Captain Rudolph Papst

Capt Rudolph's parents were John Joseph Papst/Sarah Ross French and they were married on the 23 June 1838. Capt Rudolph was born 25 Dec 1838 in York County, Ontario. It looks like he immigrated to Michigan in the spring of 1858 from Goderich, Ontario. Capt was married twice. The first marriage (3 April 1864) was to Emily Banghart and they had two children, Edwin Tecumseh Papst and Rudolph Papst, Jr. Emily died and Capt Rudolph married Eleanor Frances Lewis (1892). They had one daughter Anna Alicia Papst (1893), who was a spinster school teacher in Detroit for
40 years. She never married. Some of his civil war duties were

THE WESTERN THEATER: SHERMAN'S MARCH TO THE SEA AND CAMPAIGN OF THE CAROLINAS

On November 12, 1864, Sherman marched out of Atlanta toward the Atlantic coast. Tracing a line of march between Macon and Augusta, he carved a sixty-mile wide swath of destruction in the Confederacy's heartland. The only forces the Confederacy could bring to oppose him was Wheeler's cavalry and a motley collection of militia and over and under-aged reserves of perhaps 14,000 troops; certainly no match for the 62,000 Union veterans Sherman had kept with him upon leaving Atlanta.
His army marched in two large columns under the command of Howard and Slocum. Sherman reached Savannah on December 10. The Confederate garrison could not hope to prevent its capture, so evacuated the city with 10,000 troops via a pontoon bridge. Sherman presented Savannah to Lincoln as a "Christmas gift".
Sherman did not linger long at Savannah, and despite the miserable winter weather was soon on the march again. The Confederate forces in the region were fragmented at this time, with troop concentrations under Hardee and Beauregard, who could do little with the forces either had at hand, to slow Sherman down.
Columbia, South Carolina, captured on February 17, 1865, was dealt with particularly harshly by Sherman's men. Two-thirds of the city was burned down, although it was probably done at their own initiative rather than under any orders from Sherman. Many Federal troops held a special hatred for South Carolina because they felt the state was responsible for starting the war.
Finally, too late to really make any difference, Robert E. Lee was named General-in-Chief of the Confederacy's armed forces and Joe Johnston was given command of all remaining forces in North Carolina. Reinforcements from the tattered remnants of the Army of Tennessee would arrive via a patchwork railroad/overland route from Tupelo to join other commands under Beauregard, Bragg, and Hardee, but these were too few and too late.
Johnston looked for an opportunity to do some damage to Sherman's Federal steamroller and finally saw an opportunity on March 19, 1865. Slocum's and Howard's columns had become widely separated and Johnston concentrated his available troops (about 21,000 effectives) near Bentonville to try and crush Slocum's column before Howard could come to his support. Initially the Confederate attacks went well, but Slocum was able to bring up reinforcements to withstand the repeated assaults. Little fighting took place on March 20, but on the 21st Sherman's entire command was in position to launch a counterattack. Johnston skillfully beat back the Federal attacks and retreated that night toward Smithfield.
 

John Wood UEL

John Wood, born c1764, my great great grandfather, is said to be buried in Spring Hill Cemetery. He was the 4th son of Jonas Wood b 1737 and his wife, Sarah Osborne b; 1735. Jonas lived at Kakkiat N.Y. but moved to the east branch of the Delaware, N.Y. where they established a farm and 8 children were born: Jonas 1760, Benjamin 1761: William 1762: John !764: Roger 1766:
Nathaniel 1770: Sarah 1772. Jonas came to Canada in 1780 because of the part he played in the American Revolution. In his Claim for losses dated at Montreal, 28 Feb 1788, Jonas says he always took an active part in favour of Great Britain and was taken prisoner by the Rebels in 1778 for assisting  British Scouts. He was tried for his life at Esopus for murder. He broke loose and escaped to Canada after being four weeks in distress in the woods. He never served in any corps. He had 4 sons in the army and resides in New Johnstown. He had 50 acres of improved land on the Delaware. He had built  himself a house and a barn and stable, all burnt and destroyed by the rebels. He drove his cattle to Col. Butler. He lost 9 horses, 30 sheep, 2 calves, 12 hogs and furniture and farming utensils and a loom and crops in the barn. Jonas Jr. and Ben were in the Butler's Rangers; William, John, and Roger were listed in the Kings Royal Regiment of New York. The 2 youngest- Nathan and Steve were naturally too young to fight. The mother Sarah after a hazardous journey reunited with her husband and sons on the Isle of Jesus in the St. Lawrence.
This was written by a Wood relative who lived in Vernon, Ontario
 

The Village of Leonard

The area of Leonard was colonized in the1870s. A Mr. Rathwell was one of the earliest settlers in the area. During the 1880s a rural school was built in the area and used until 1928. In 1890, Dunning Road was opened between Cumberland Village and Bear Brook. In 1897 the railroad tracks were laid in for the CPR line. In 1899, the construction of a new Cumberland Township Town hall began in Leonard to replace the one in Cumberland village. A post office was officially established in 1901. From 1898 to 1904, the postmaster was R.J. Moffat and from 1904 to 1915, the postmaster was H. Pariseau, general store owner. In 1908, a train station was built and named after William James Leonard, the superintendent of the CPR for Ontario and Quebec. In fact, Mr. Pariseau named the village after the train station. The village included general stores, one blacksmith, an hotel, and the Poaps saw and grist mill. The station master was Ron Courier. In 1910, the population was 100. In 1914 the population decreased to 75. In 1914, there were a general store, the Poaps sawmill, and a hotel in the village. From 1915 to 1926, James Troy, general store owner was postmaster.

During the 1920s, there were a general store, a hotel, the Poaps sawmill, a grocery and a blacksmith. From 1927 to 1929 Carson Rathwell, a general store owner, was postmaster. From 1929 to 1963 Mrs. Carson Rathwell was the postmistress. During the 1940s there was still the Poaps sawmill, and a hotel. The population was still 75.

In 1946, a new Cumberland Township Town hall was built in Leonard to replace the old one. In 1947 the Poaps sawmill was still active.

On August 22nd 1964, there was a passenger train accident at the train station. The train station was later torn down later that year. From 1963 to 1968, Mrs. Charles Rathwell was the postmistress. In 1969, the Leonard post office closed. The CPR tracks were lifted in 1986.The year 1989 saw the closure of the Town hall and the opening of the new one on Centrum Boulevard in Orleans. Today there are six historic homes left in the village.

(Most data taken from early 20th Century Business Directories)
 

Account of John Poapst

Among the papers of Albert Wilson Otto (1856-1937) of Cut Knife, Sask., held by his descendants, is an account he recorded 1930 of an incident involving John Poapst. I know of no reason it would be passed down in the Otto family if it weren’t related to the family of Johan Adam Papst.
" John Poapst was shot in the War of Independence with a charge of buckshot and was badly wounded. He managed to get away and his in a mow of hay in a barn. The enemy saw him and came into the barn looking for him. One of them came into the hay to look for him, and it was said by some of the old people that once it passed down through the hair of his head, but he laid quiet as he could and was not discovered by them. His wound was very painful and he was nearly starved with nothing to eat, but was afraid to venture out of his hiding place. When night came an old darkey and his wife came into the barn to do up some evening chores and he heard her saying, "I wonder where that poor man is? If I knew I would get him something to eat. " John thought that this was only a ruse to pure him out to capture him, so he did not let them know that he heard them. The next evening he again hear her saying the same thing, but was still afraid that it only was a ruse to make him come out, so he lay still. His wound was now so painful and he was so hungry that he saw that he would die anyway. He made up his mind that if he heard her saying that again that he would venture out, which he did and nearly scared them into to fits for they were very superstitious and they thought he was a ghost. The old lady went to their cabin and brought him something to eat and then they hid him again until after night and the old darkey paddled him across the river to the British lines. After many narrow escapes, John at last reached the British lines in safety."