Philetus Woodruff  Finch            Oct  4, 1838 -  April 8, 1911

 

Philetus was the son of George B. Finch and Abigail Shute Allen.  He grew up in Manhattan with brothers George and Effingham and a sister Susan.  His father George was a carpenter who seemed to move the family frequently northward as Manhattan was expanding and the need for skilled builders was moving in the same direction.  Philetus would learn a trade as well, being listed in different documents as a painter or paper hanger. Philetus' brother George was a clerk in a liquor store who settled down and married into a weathly family. George's wife was named Louise Burhman. They had 5 children ,all girls. Susan is lost to history, I haven't been able to find much about her. The youngest of the clan was Effingham.  Effingham married a woman named Emma and they had 8 children. Effingham and his family moved to Brooklyn by 1880 and thrived there. I believe he worked as a dry goods clerk and salesman, finding the particulars is difficult, but he must have been succesfull as his whole family is buried together in a family plot in Cedar Grove Cemetery in Queens, NY. 

 

When the war started, Philetus joined the NYS NG with a unit that was comprised of wealthy and noteable men of Manhattan. They furnished there own equipment and most of the logistics for the 22nd. They were eventually called into emergency service on  May 28, 1862 for 90 days. They left for Baltimore, Maryland and remained on duty there and at Harpers Ferry until September. The unit mustered out of service September 5th 1862.

 

The unit was again organized for service on June 18th, 1863.  They went to Harrisburg Pa. where they joined up with a number of units.  They fought in the Gettysburg Campaign at the Battle of Sporting Hill (June 30th) and the Battle of Carlisle (July 1st).

 

The 22nd left after the Battle of Carlisle to go back to NYC to muster out of service, but the draft riots intervened. The unit was then needed to guard the Brooklyn Navy yard during the riots. Finally they were mustered out on July 24, 1863.

 

November 15, 1863 Philetus marries Mary Trefcer at the Lutheran Church at 15th St and 6th Ave. She is the daughter of Frederick Trefcer and Annie Mary Bauer of  NYC who immigrated from Baden-Baden, Germany in abt 1850. 

 

On August 5th, 1864 Philetus volunteers for service again with the 5th NY Heavy Arty. The unit was stationed in Harper's Ferry,  and remained there until the end of the war. The unit was mustered out of service on July 19 , 1865.

22nd NY Infantry NG