Joseph Amy (1796 - 1874)

Born 20 Apr 1796 in Pennsylvania, United States

Husband of Casindria (Applegate) Amy — married 1824 in Corydon, Harrison County, Indiana

Descendants

Died 5 Jul 1874 at age 78 in Washington, Harrison County, Indiana, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Rick Saunders [send private message]

Biography

In a letter written on 31 March 1831 by Mary (Johnson) Applegate to her son James Applegate she stated:
"Joseph and Cassy Amy send their Best respects to you and family. [T]heir family has increased considerable. [T]he Names of their children are Levi and William, Jane and Elizabeth, Joseph, Jesse, George, Ira, Allen and James the youngest named for you. [T]hey would be glad to heare from you often."^[1]

Residence

Residence: Land Grant of 80 acres

Date: 5 JUL 1831

Place: Harrison County, Indiana

Residence:

Date: 1 JUN 1840

Place: Washington, Harrison County, Indiana

Residence:

Date: 1850

Place: District 45, Harrison County, Indiana^[2]

Residence:

Date: 1860

Place: Washington, Harrison County, Indiana^[3]

Residence:

Date: 1870

Place: Washington, Harrison County, Indiana^[4]

Will

Will:

Date: 30 JAN 1874

Note: In the Name of the Benevolent Father of all I Joseph Amy of Harrison County and State of Indiana do make and publish this my last Will and testament. Item 1st I give and Bequeath to my two sons Jesse Amy, and George W.Amy, the farm I now reside on being the east half of the south East quarter of section 36 in township 4 south Range 2 to be Equally divided between them and to be their property during their natural Life and at"Jesse Amys decease his part of the above described real estate to be given to his Lawful heirs to be theirs forever provided my son George W.Amy should die Leaving no children Lawfully begotten of his body then and in that case the Share of the above described real estate devised to my son George W. Amy is hereby devised and Bequeathed to my Grand son IraAmy to be his property forever. Item 2nd The personal property that may be on hand at the time of my decease after all my just Debts and funeral expenses are paid I wish disposed of in the following manner in the first place if my granddaughter Kesiah E. Amy who now resides with me stays with me and takes care of me until my decease I give and bequeath unto her one Cow, and one BedBedstead and Bed clothing out of my personal property, the balance that may be on hand at me decease to be divided Between my two sons Jesse Amy and George W. Amy or sold as they may elect. I do hereby revoke all former wills by me made. In testimony hereof I have hereunto Set my hand and seal this 30th day of January A.D. 1874\t\t\t\tJoseph AmySigned and Acknowledged by said Joseph Amy as his Last Will and testament in our presence and signed by is in his presence. John R. Baxter Daniel Baxter

The will was proved on 23 July 1874 by John R. Baxter.^[5]

Burial

Burial:

SDATE 6 JUL 1874

Place: Harrison County, Indiana

Event

Event: Joseph Amy arrives in Indiana

Type: Misc

Note: "Joseph AMY's was born in Pennsylvania according to census, but his exact origin there is unknown. Family tradition is that the name was originally spelled EMIGH. Tradition is that he went down the Ohio River on a flatboat, and upon arriving at the site of now New Amsterdam his only possessions were a grubbing hoe, a bridle,and an iron pot. In Indiana he was a blacksmith, and later a Justice of the Peace."http://home.netcom.com/~fzsaund/amy.html

Event: Civil War prison camp

Type: Military Service

Note: Andersonville Prison During the Civil War

Added by Deborah McKay1955 on 25 Sep 2008

(Source: http://www.civilwarhome.com/andersonville.htm)

Officially named Camp Sumter, the most notorious Civil War stockade was hastily constructed in early 1864 near the town of Andersonville in southwest Georgia. The number of Union soldiers held near Richmond had swelled with the breakdown of prisoner exchange agreements, posing a threat to the Confederate capital's security and taxing Virginia's already limited resources.

In late February, Federal prisoners began to be transferred to the still-unfinished Georgia facility. By July, Andersonville, built to accommodate up to 10,000 captured soldiers, was jammed with over 32,000, almost all enlisted men. The open-air stockade, enclosed by 20 foot-high log walls, grew to 26 acres, but remained horribly overcrowded and conditions became more and more intolerable. Running in the middle of the camp was a stagnant, befouled stream, absurdly named Sweet Water Branch, used as a sewer as well as for drinking and bathing. There were no barracks; prisoners were forbidden to construct shelters, and while some did erect tents and flimsy lean-tos, most were left fully exposed to the elements. Medical treatment was virtually nonexistent.

With the South barely able to feed its own men, the prisoners, who were supposed to get the same rations as Confederate soldiers, starved-receiving rancid grain and perhaps a few tablespoons a day of mealy beans or peas.

The poor food and sanitation, the lack of shelter and health care, the crowding, and the hot Georgia sun all took their toll in the form of dysentery, scurvy, malaria, and exposure.

During the summer months, more than 100 prisoners died every day. Others fell victim to thieves and marauders among their fellow captives. The desperate situation led a Confederate medical commission to recommend relocating those prisoners who were not too ill to move, and in September 1864, as William T. Sherman's advancing army approached, most of Andersonville's able-bodied inmates were sent to other camps.

Remaining in operation until the end of the war, Andersonville held more captured Union soldiers than any other Confederate camp, a total of more than 45,000, nearly 30 percent of whom died in captivity. The North had learned of the camp's appalling conditions well before the emaciated survivors were released in 1865, and outraged citizens urged retribution on Southern prisoners of war. That was hardly necessary: the Union had its own wretched prison camps, including Elmira, New York, where the death rate approached Andersonville's, even though the North was far better equipped to cope with captured soldiers. Mismanagement and severe shortages were more to blame for the horrors of Andersonville than any deliberate attempt to mistreat prisoners.

Nevertheless, many Northerners insisted that the abuse was deliberate and demanded vengeance. Consequently, after being tried by a U.S. military court and convicted of war crimes, the prison's commander, Captain Henry Wirz, was hanged in November 1865 for "impairing the health and destroying the lives of prisoners." Meanwhile, Clara Barton and other government workers compiled a list of 12,912 prisoners who had died at the camp. Andersonville's mass graves were replaced by a national cemetery, which is today still used as a burial ground for American veterans.

Event: Genealogy of Joseph Amy, by Fredric Z. Saunders

Type: Misc

Note: "Joseph AMY's origin in PA is unknown. Family tradition is that the name

was originally spelled EMIGH. Tradition is that he went down the Ohio River

on a flatboat, and upon arriving at the site of now New Amsterdam his only

possessions were a grubbing hoe, a bridle, and an iron pot. In Indiana he

was a blacksmith, and later a Justice of the Peace.", by Fredric Z. Saunders

Background of Joseph Amy. Provided by Fredric Z. Saunders. http://home.netcom.com/~fzsaund/amy.html

Sources

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/16689067/joseph-amy

1. ↑ 31 March 1831 letter from Mary Applegate in Harrison County, Indiana to son James Applegate in Elizabeth town, Alleghany County, Pennsylvany, http://applegate-project.org/tng/showmedia.php?mediaID=468
2. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MHJN-BSK : accessed 22 May 2016), Joseph Amy, Harrison county, Harrison, Indiana, United States; citing family 1110, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M4N2-RPS : accessed 22 May 2016), Joseph Amy, 1860.
4. ↑ "United States Census, 1870," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXXR-LSH : accessed 22 May 2016), Joseph Amy, Indiana, United States; citing p. 18, family 132, NARA microfilm publication M593 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 545,820.
5. ↑ "Genealogy of Joseph Amy Family of Harrison County, Indiana."