My grandfather was part of Civil War History
George Washington Lowery was drafted July 19, 1864 at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. He was assigned to Co. A, 81st Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry for three years. Born in Franklin County, PA he was a 37-year-old laborer. At 5 feet 9 inches tall, with a fair complexion, grey eyes, and dark hair, he was an average guy, his description not uncommon for the time. Serving during the latter part of the war he was a draftee. I suspect my grandfather left his wife and six children a bit reluctantly to answer the call of his country. (I have found a tidbit of information that suggests he was a substitute. I’m still working on verifying that.) After a brief two-month training stint to make the “every-day man” a soldier, Lowery and the rest of the recently drafted recruits were sent to join their regiment. The 81st Pennsylvania had been mired with the rest of the Second Corps at Petersburg, Virginia, which had been under siege for months. Even though they were in the midst of war, it has been written that many Confederate officers who lived in the area were able to slip away and visit with family and attend Sunday church services. The […]