In 1935 Wisconsin County Locates Grave of Little Drummer Boy from War of 1812: Jacob Chesley (1799-1880)

As published in Marshfield News-Herald, Marshfield, Wood County, Wisconsin, August 2, 1935 --

Locate Grave of 1812 Vet at Colby: 

Deceased Town of Hull Resident was Drummer Boy in Conflict 

     Marathon county's first war veteran's grave has been located as a result of the emergency relief administration's project for the registration of all veterans' graves. The grave is located at the Colby cemetery, which is in Clark county, and is the grave of Jacob Chesley, a resident of the town of Hull, Marathon county, until his death, January 25, 1880.
     Chesely was 12 years of age when he enlisted as a drummer boy with United States forces in the Indian war of 1812 in New York state. Little of his war experience is known today by his granddaughter, Mrs. George Dickenson, who still resides in the home where Chesley had lived with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. L. L. Cramer.
     Mrs. Cramer previous to her marriage was Wealtha Chesley, a daughter of this veteran of the war of 1812. Other children included J. P. Chesley of Stevens Point, who was a Civil war veteran, and Hiram Chesley, who died in Oregon and who at one time had a homestead in section 1 of the town of Hull. Mrs. Dickenson has a brother, Alfred Cramer, at Santa Monica, Cal., and numerous other descendants of Jacob Chesley live in Iowa.
     Jacob Chesley left New York state in his early manhood for Illinois and became a widower early in life. He lived at Stevens Point before coming to the town of Hull. He was a farmer by occupation.

Jacob Chesley was my 3xg-grandfather.

Copyright © 2014 by Kevin W. Walker