George Johnston Fairweather

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 In July, this year, I had several days away in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, in the town of Bowral and like all good genealogists, I went for a wander in the cemetery and found this grave.




Interesting!  I searched  Trove and found five articles about George's death. Ancestry was next and I found his enlistment details.

George Johnston Fairweather was born 1838 in New Brunswick, Canada  and enlisted on the Union side, 15 June 1861 in Maine, as a Private. His unit was Company A,  4th Infantry. After nearly three years, George Musters Out, he deserted!

Reading where he fought, I can understand why he deserted, they weren't little battles.

Searching several online databases, yield few results and add nothing to my research.

George's death is covered in several paper, like the;  Mudgee Guardian and North-Western Representative (NSW : 1890 - 1954) Thursday 20 August 1908- Page 25.


Two of the papers give a detailed account of the Coroner's Inquiry. 
( https://trove.nla.gov.au/)

Ancestry give his parents as Benjamin Fairweather and Margaret Currie, but I haven't check this, myself.

Questions remain. Why did a Canadian lad enlist in the American Civil War? When did he arrive in Australia?

I'm using this post a bait, in the hope that someone might let me know more about George.


 

 


Comments

  1. Colin Fairall25 February 2025 at 16:21

    Hi Lillian, I have been going past George’s grave since 1967 as my grand uncle is buried close. The original headstone was a typical civil war headstone and very simple, as they were just the small semi circle topabout 1 ft high. It’s great to see the newer representations as I always wondered what a civil war grave was doing at Kangaloon Road Cemetary. In the years that ensued I have been involved with an Australian civil war reenactment group and actually been to some of his battle sites. I think after so so many battles the serenity and isolation of Burrawang was as far as a person could get to when PTSD sets in. The account of the constable taking him to hospital in a storm may have hastened his death. I met my wife not far from Bull Run and one day may take a photo of the grave and leave it there in his honor. Great story😀

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lilian's Tree25 February 2025 at 19:18

      Hi Colin, I too wondered why he was there, hence my research on him.

      Delete

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