Belleville Sons Honor Roll

These men are known to have died in the Civil War

Captain Henry Benson of Belleville died
at Malvern Hill, Va., in 1862.

John J. Rodgers died of his wounds April 8, 1865.

Thomas Stevens was killed June 27, 1862.

The call for volunteers in 1862 found Franklin a part of Belleville. A small military company of about forty men had been drilling for some time under Cornelius McClees, in the old school house on Avondale Road.

Twenty-six of this little company immediately volunteered and with fourteen others from Belleville marched with McClees to Newark to Camp Frelinghuysen.
Here they were mustered into the State Service on September 3, 1862, and were enrolled in Company C of the 26th New Jersey Volunteers for nine months.

The regiment was made up of men from adjoining towns, Orange, South Orange, Bloomfield and Caldwell, each furnishing one company, while Newark furnished the remaining six.

Three weeks later, after they were officered and equipped, they proceeded to Washington.

Samuel H. Pemberton, of Newark, was chosen captain of Company C and Cornelius McClees First Lieutenant.

The “26th of New Jersey” was in three engagements before Fredericksburg, the great defeat of the Union troops, under General Burnside, on December 13, 1862, and the two minor engagements of May 3 and June 5, 1863, under General Hooker.

In the great battle of Dec. 13th, as raw troops, they faced the terrific fire of the Confederate batteries, and for three nights lay down upon their arms.
They also took part in the memorable “mud march” back to Camp.

After the season in winter quarters near Belle Plain they again took the field, and eventually captured and held the Heights of Fredericksburg.
The regiment returned to Newark when their term of enlistment expired and was mustered out Sept. 19, 1863.
 

Source: The History of Nutley, compiled by Elizabeth Stow Brown, The Woman’s Public School Auxiliary; copyright 1907 by The Board of Education of Nutley, New Jersey.

Veterans

Daniel Henry Rucker

Major General, US Army
(Arlington National Cemetery)
Born on April 28, 1812 at Belleville, New Jersey.

Rucker

Stephen V.C. Van Renssalaer

Civil War Union Army Officer. Commissioned Captain and commander of Company A, 13th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry on August 22, 1861, and fought with his unit at the Battles of Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsvile and Gettysburg.

Death: May. 20, 1885
Buried: Christ Church Cemetery

Van Renssalaer

Company F, Second Regiment

William E. Blewett 1st Lieut June 4, '62 June 4, '62 3 Yrs 2d Lieut. June
12, '61; 1st Lieut. vice Vreeland promoted; resigned Sept. 9, '62.

Source:
Civil War database
N.J. CivilWar Record: Page 126
NEW JERSEY VOLUNTEERS.
Company E, Second Regiment.

DIARY OF JAMES C. TAYLOR of Belleville, N. J. In the War to Save the Union of the United States of America

Belleville Sons Honor Roll - Remembering the Men Who Paid for Our Freedom

Second edition is now available in paperback or as a download. The 174-page second edition updates information from the 106-page original printing, including more information on Belleville actions in the American Revolution, War of 1812, Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War and peacetime casualties.

Sources

Belleville Historical Society, Edward O'Neil

The Belleville Times, Nov. 11, 1996, Richard Dickon, Editor

Civil War Diary of James C. Taylor of Belleville, Company F, 39^th Regiment, New Jersey Volunteers, in the War to Save the Union of the United States of America, 1925.

Diane Price, Belleville Public Library

Michael Perrone

Find a grave

NJ State Library