Henry Wetzel
Henry Wetzel was born on September 14, 1840, in Silver Spring, Pennsylvania, to John Wetzel and Catherine Wise. His father died in the 1840s. He grew up and attended school in North Middleton, Pennsylvania. By the early 1860s, he was living in Ohio. He enlisted in the Union army on August 22, 1862, and he mustered in as a private in Company B of the 121st Ohio Infantry on September 11. The regiment took part in the defense of Cincinnati, the Battle of Perryville, the Battle of Chickamauga, the Siege of Chattanooga, the Atlanta Campaign, the March to the Sea, and the Carolinas Campaign.
 
Wetzel remained devoted to the Union, writing that he was “fighting for the Union and Constitution as it was and as it ever must be.” During one battle, he reflected, "if I would fall I would fall for my Country, for freedom, and for mankind." He fiercely opposed emancipation, insisting that he was “not fighting for the [n----r].” He later noted that “there is to[o] much [n----r] about this war but still we should stick together for our dear Country, and let the [n----r] go to Halifax.” Nonetheless, in February 1863, he wrote that, “if the freeing of the Negro will crush this rebellion I say free them.” He mustered out on June 8, 1865.
 
He returned to Pennsylvania after the war, and he married Elizabeth Bucher around 1874. He applied for a federal pension in May 1888 and eventually secured one. By 1910, they were living in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and Wetzel was working as a painter. His wife died on June 30, 1910. By 1920, he was living with his niece Elizabeth Keller in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. He died there of Bright’s disease on August 14, 1925.
2171
DATABASE CONTENT
(2171)Wetzel, Henry1840-09-141925-08-14
  • Conflict Side: Union
  • Role: Soldier
  • Rank in: Private
  • Rank out: Private
  • Rank highest: Private
  • Gender: Male
  • Race: White

Documents - Records: 24

  • (6597) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 12 April 1863
  • (6606) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother, 16 March 186X
  • (6607) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother, 25 February 1863
  • (6608) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs, 6 February 1863
  • (6609) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 2 February 1863
  • (6610) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs and Phoebe Jacobs, 25 December 1862
  • (6611) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 19 November 1862
  • (6612) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 19 November 1862
  • (6613) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Sister, undated
  • (6614) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 9 September 1862
  • (6615) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother, 27 March 1865
  • (6617) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs and Phoebe Jacobs, 22 March 1862
  • (6618) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs and Phoebe Jacobs, 28 February 1862
  • (6619) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 22 May 1863
  • (14992) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 19 October 1863
  • (14993) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 8 November 1863
  • (14994) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 21 February 1864
  • (14995) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs and Phoebe Jacobs, 21 May 1864
  • (14996) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother, 24 March 1864
  • (14997) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs and Phoebe Jacobs, 4 July 1864
  • (14998) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 11 July 1864
  • (14999) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 15 August 1864
  • (15000) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to Elmira Jacobs and Anna Jacobs, 17 September 1864
  • (15001) [writer] ~ Henry Wetzel to George W. Jacobs and Phoebe Jacobs, 25 December 1864

People - Records: 5

  • (2171) Wetzel, Henry is the [aunt/uncle of] (5202) Jacobs, Elmira Catherine
  • (2171) Wetzel, Henry is the [aunt/uncle of] (5203) Jacobs, Anna Mary
  • (1643) Jacobs, George W. is the [sibling-in-law of] (2171) Wetzel, Henry
  • (2172) Wetzel, George W. is the [sibling of] (2171) Wetzel, Henry
  • (2188) Jacobs, Phoebe is the [sibling of] (2171) Wetzel, Henry

Places - Records: 2

  • (1689) [birth] ~ Silver Spring, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania
  • (1333) [death] ~ Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Pennsylvania

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Regiments - Records: 1

  • (654) [enlisted] [B] ~ 121st Ohio Infantry
SOURCES

1850, 1910, and 1920 United States Federal Censuses, available from Ancestry.com; Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865, available from Ancestry.com; General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934, available from Ancestry.com; Pennsylvania Death Certificates, 1906-1968, available from Ancestry.com; Henry Wetzel to Family, 2 February 1863, Nau Collection; Henry Wetzel to Family, 22 May 1863, Nau Collection; Henry Wetzel to George Jacobs, 6 February 1863, Nau Collection; Henry Wetzel to Brother and Sister, 19 October 1863, DL0984.011, Nau Collection; Harrisburg Telegraph, 17 August 1925.