Samuel Ammon and wife Mary (Hicks) Ammon had at least four sons, three of whom served during the Civil War. The four sons included, Beach, Levi, William, and Harvey. The father, Samuel died in 1852, nine years before the start of the Civil War, never knowing the service his sons would perform for their country.
Samuel was a tailor in the town of Lewisburg, Pennsylvania, and died at the age of 38 due to dysentery. Samuel's death left Mary to care for their children alone until her death in 1899.
I learned about this family service in the Civil War about 15 years ago when I took a weekend drive to Chancellorsville Battlefield Visitor Center in Virginia. There on the wall was the below photo of Levi H. Ammon, along with many other photos of young boys and men who had been killed.
My mother, Carol (Ammon) Curfman, was born and raised in the Lewisburg area, so I immediately wondered if this might be a distant relative. I called her, and without telling her the name, asked if any of her distant relatives had died during the war. She mentioned that she had heard of a Levi who had fought in the war.
After doing some additional digging on Ancestry's website, I was able to confirm that Levi was indeed connected to her and my family line. Levi was the brother of Harvey, who was my mother's direct descendant, and the only one of the four boys that did not serve in the Civil War, probably because he would have only been 15 at the time.
It is not clear how close Harvey and Levi were, but Harvey would later name one of his sons after his fallen brother, Levi, who would be my second great grandfather.
Not much is known about Levi's life prior to the Civil War, other than the early death of his father, and the fact that Levi served as a newspaper delivery courier. After the war, in 1869, the below article was published highlighting Levi's service as both a carrier boy and his death in the Civil War.
Levi was a member of the 51st Pennsylvania infantry and attained the rank of Corporal. He joined the regiment in 1861 and by 1863 was discharged after serving his full tour. Levi must have felt close to the other boys in his unit and a strong sense of patriotism, because he reenlisted and served until his death in 1864.
Levi would have participated in a number of well-known battles, including Antietam, Vicksburg, and Wilderness, where he would be killed. The below newspaper clipping from the 1880s is an excerpt from a letter written home by another Lewisburg native, who also served in the 51st PA infantry. According to the excerpt, Levi was injured in the right arm prior to the battle of Antietam at the Battle of South Mountain in Maryland. The excerpt also mentions the death of a General Reno. According to my research, Union General Jesse Lee Reno was killed in battle three days before the Battle of Antietam. Reno was shot while trying to repel Robert E. Lee's invasion of Maryland
The 51st PA infantry played a pivotal role at the battle of Antietam. The 51st Pennsylvania, along with the 51st New York, were the two regiments that successfully stormed Burnside's Bridge and led the attack to the outskirts of Sharpsburg. A monument was erected beside the bridge to commemorate the bravery of the 51st PA infantry. It is unknown if Levi's injury kept him from fighting at Antietam or not.
Levi was 21 when he was killed on May 6, 1864 at the Battle of the Wilderness. Penn State University holds a book on the history of the 51st PA infantry regiment that has three mentions of Levi and a description of the day Levi died.
According to the book,
On the 1st of November, 1863, a detail of about 55 men were sent up the Holston river six miles to do picketing at Leiper's Ferry. This detail was under the command of Captain Gaulin and Sergent Patterson, Co. I, and Corporal Levi Ammon, of Co. H. On the night of the 2nd, the rebel pickets on the opposite side of the river, only a few yards wide, fired into Corporal Ammon's relief, but the corporal was of a courageous nature, and stood his ground with his little band of heroes like a true soldier, and fought the enemy for twenty minutes, when the rebels retired to their original position.
On the 5th of May 1864 the regiment was aroused at 4AM, got a hasty breakfast, left the station at 5AM and arrived at Germania ford, on the Rapidan river at 11 AM. After crossing the river on pontoons it went immediately to the front. Arriving in front of the enemy it was sent off to the right of the line and went on picket, where it remained until 4 AM of the next morning, when it came in and took up a position in the front. At 8AM it was in battle with a desperate foe, in a perfect wilderness, where daylight had to struggle to penetrate the dense foliage. Towards noon the enemy's fire slackened a trifle; they were evidently getting terribly punished. The 51st advanced a short distance, but were driven back; then in turn the enemy was forced back, and thus it was until 7 PM on Friday, the 6th of May, on which was fought "the battle," as it was properly called, "of the Wilderness." The loss in the 51st of killed, wounded and missing was not definitely known, but it was about ninety in all.
The below excerpt from the Lewisburg newspaper announced Levi's death a few weeks after the battle. It is unclear if this is how his mother learned of his death, or if she had been informed before this was published in the paper.
Levi's final resting place is not known. According to documentation at the time, he was buried with the 9th Corps near City Point, VA, but no grave lists his name.
William L. Ammon
Levi's brother, William L. Ammon also served in the Civil War. William served as a private in Company E, 142nd Pennsylvania Regiment, GAR.
Both William and Levi reenlisted on the same day in June of 1864.
William was also at the battle of the Wilderness and according to his muster rolls, he was injured on the same day (6 May 1864) that his brother, Levi, was killed in that battle. We do not know the extent of his injuries. Since they were in different regiments, it is unknown if either Levi or William saw each other during the battle or how soon after the battle that William was told of his brother's death.
After the war, William traveled to Texas, probably on the Santa Fe trail, which was known to be a dangerous route.
In 1867, the Sunbury newspaper details a letter it says was written by Willaim to the Lewisburg Chronicle, dated 22 October, which details how their traveling party was attacked and of the thirty-one men, 22 were killed. William states that 39 Indians were killed inside the corral, suggesting they circled their wagons for safety. I could not find the original letter in the Lewisburg Chronicle or a reference to this battle on the Internet.
It is unclear why William was headed to Santa Fe and Texas and if he was still acting in a military or civilian role. William's mother's obituary states that "William L. Ammon, perished on the plains of Texas, 1873." This is quite intriguing and leaves a lot to the imagination. Was he killed by Indians? Disease?
Beach C. Ammon
Captain Beach C. Ammon survived the Civil War and appears to have remained active in military reunions. His picture is below. It was found on find-a-grave website.
Captain Beach Ammon lost his eyesight in his final years. Beach was a bookkeeper prior to the war. He enlisted at the beginning of the war, in September 1861 and joined Company E. of the 53 PA infantry. He was commissioned captain in April 1864, one month before the death of his brother, Levi. According to the below obituary, Beach served at Gettysburg. Beach would serve as Post-master after the war, and his wife and all three of his children would precede him in death. Beach is buried in Union cemetery in Lewisburg, PA.
