WSQ: Two Generations of Gee Veterans Multi-cache
WSQ: Two Generations of Gee Veterans
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Welcome to another installment in the Wisconsin Spirit Quest, offspring of the Indiana Spirit Quest. This series is intended to highlight the history to be found in our local cemeteries and graveyards. These caches are placed with due respect and are not in contact with or in close proximity to any of the markers. Please hunt with the reverence these hallowed grounds deserve.
This is Morrill Cemetery. You will not find any indication of the name at the entrance, and growing up, we always referred to it as "the cemetery over on Kennedy". A bit of online hunting brought the name and the history to follow.
Morrill is home to the family plot of the Gee family, remarkable for having veterans of both the War of 1812 and the American Civil War laid to rest here.
James Gee's stone stands front and center in the cemetery, and the base of his marker states in simple prose "A Soldier of 1812". He would have been a young soldier, 14 at the beginning and 17 in it's final act. Still you have to wonder if he was a native son of the young Wisconsin territory or if he emigrated to the frontier after the war, and what theater did he fight in. Mackinaw Island and the Great Lakes? Detroit? Did he see the White House burn?
His son Nelson's stone lies next to him (James' wife Lata Blue has her inscription on the back of his stone), a veteran of the Civil War having served in Company F of the reorganized 5th Wisconsin Volunteers.
The veterans of the 5th Regiment in this cemetery would have been levied after the original 5th had served their term and mustered out. The reorganized regiment left Wisconsin on October 20th, 1864 from Madison, and joined the 6th Corps under Sheridan. They would spend the winter of 1864 and the spring of 1865 in the trenches before Petersburg, and when the time came for the fall of the Confederate position, the 5th would be the first to plant the colors on the rebel ramparts.
After the fall of Petersburg on April 2nd, 1865 they would join the 6th Corps pursuit of the retreating Lee until his surrender on April 9th, effectively ending the war for "The Fighting Fifth".
Nelson's uncle Alfred and his cousin Charles, another veteran of Company F, are interred one row back. Charles' etching on his stone speaks volumes: "Died at Annapolis MD May 14 1865 of Wounds Received in the Battle of Sailor Creek April 6 1865 Age 23". Charles would have been the family tragedy, the one who didn't come home from the war. While the war ended for the 5th, he lay mortally wounded at hospital, and probably died of infection like so many others. While the families of the 5th celebrated their boys coming home, the Gees would have hitched the horses and made the ride down to the depot to await the arrival of their son's coffin on the platform.
Other notable markers include:
William Bremmer, Captain of Company F. He also served as Captain of the 18th Wisconsin, Company E before his term with the 5th. During the short term of service of the reorganized 5th he would be wounded at least twice at Petersburg and Sailor's Creek.
Hubbard Moss, Private Company E, 18th Wisconsin Volunteers. He too would have been a young soldier, only 14 when the 18th was raised in the spring of 1862.
To find the cache, you will have to seek out these stones to complete:
N44 26.ABC W089 29.DEF
A = The 3rd Digit of Hubbard Moss' Year of Birth
B = The 4th Digit of Nelson Gee's Year of Death
C = The 4th Digit of William Bremmer's Year of Death
D = James Gee's Day of Birth
E = The 2nd Digit of Hubbard Moss' Day of Birth
F = The 4th Digit of Charles Gee's Year of Death
Happy hunting and thank you for participating in the Wisconsin Spirit Quest.
Additional Hints
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