Journal Entries
NaJoPoMo #12 Midshipman Leib
Posted Nov 12, 2014
I said earlier that Thomas had not been assigned to a ship until 1817, let me correct myself slightly. He was assigned to the 'Franklin' on 26 April, 1816, but she did not go to sea until 14 October, 1817. In the year and a half in between he was undoubtedly being taught the lessons about life aboard as well as helping with the final fitting out.
This ship (mounting 74 guns) was almost twice as large as the biggest ship used in the late war with Great Britain, and was a part of the program to improve the resources of the US Navy. Her first station was to be flag-ship of the Mediterranean Squadron, but first she landed in England to deliver the new Ambassador to the 'Court of St James'.
In February, 1820 he was transferred to the brig 'Spark', also in the Mediterranean. Moving from one of America's largest ships to one of the smallest, we can imagine that he was being given experiences that would help him in future assignments. He returned with her to the harbour of New York in July of 1821.
His next assignment was to to the Naval Yard in Philadelphia in 1821. We can imagine he was glad to back in his home town.
In 1822 he attended the Navel School at Norfolk (the modern Naval Academy was still far in the future A1162388. In October he was assigned to the 36 gun frigate 'Congress'. She would send six months in the Caribbean fighting pirates, before sailing to both Spain and Argentina to deliver Ambassadors.
After his return in 1824 he assigned to the New York Navy Yard for six months.
In January he was ordered to attend his examination for the rank of Lieutenant in Washington, DC. He was given permission to take his exam on 19 December, and was officially promoted, by an act of Congress, on 28 April, 1826.
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NaJoPoMo #11 Veteran's Day
Posted Nov 12, 2014
I can hardly let this special day pass without a moment to reflect on those who have served their country. Unfortunately our world is not always a peaceful place.
Most of actual fighters are young men, hardly more than boys, who are forced to fight for their country, either by conscription or persuasion. The old men who lead them and the politicians who declare war may be in a different category.
I will not try to go into detail of all the conflicts we have to remember, not to mention the millions of men who faced each other on both side. My Grandfather fought in the 1st World War (The War to End All Wars) and my Father fought in WWII - the next one. The wars go on....
I remember several years ago I had two co-workers who had both been fighter pilots in the Second World War. One day they got talking about it, each decided to bring in their flight logs to compare dates. They did find one date when they were both in the air at the same time, engaged in the same air battle. One flew for the US Air Corps - the other was a member of the Luftwaffe. They became good friends.
As it has been almost a hundred years, let me share this tune http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UvQ52A7ksM
I am not a veteran myself, but I have played on on TV.
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NaJoPoMo #10 T Leib Genealogy
Posted Nov 10, 2014
It appears the first member of the Leib family arrived in Philadelphia as a passenger on a ship in 1753. John George Leib was a tanner by trade, and many thought he had been born in Strasbourg, Germany about 1730.
He was married in 1757 to Marretha Dorothea Leibhart. After only ten years in the country (1763) he had established himself well enough to purchase his own tannery in the German Town (Northern Liberties) area of the city.
They had several children together. Two of them became rather prominent and deserve a mention here
The first born was Dr. Micheal Leib who would serve as a Congressman and Senator on both the state and Federal level. His daughter Lydia Leib will become a prominent figure in this story.
The second is John Lewis Lieb who was a Philadelphia lawyer, who moved west to Detroit, Michigan in the year of 1817 to become a territorial judge, the same year Thomas joined his first ship. The Harrison books states clearly that he was Thomas' father, but no other records found support this. It is possible that most of these reports were written only by those who knew him in Detroit and never knew he had another son, or that the truth lies elsewhere. There is a street near the river that bears his name, although the spelling on many of the signs has been corrupted to 'Leeb' using the Anglican pronunciation, in proper German it should be pronounced 'Libe' as the second letter is given the pronunciation in that language.
The Harrisons
Thomas Harrison was born in Cumberland County, Great Britain, He married Sarah Richards in Philadelphia 21 June,1764, so he had emigrated sometime prior to this date.
His son John Harrison married Lydia Leib on 27 November 1802. Their first child was born on 27 November, 1803 Caroline Matilda.
John would become a very important manufacturer of chemicals, and is credited for developing the first practical method of producing Sulphuric Acid in the Americas. He became a very wealthy man.
We will continue with Thomas' career, but I may take a brief pause for 11 November first.
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NaJoPoMo #9 Thomas Leib USN
Posted Nov 9, 2014
This is a biography I have been working on for many years, the story is not complete, but I would like to share what I have found.
Thomas is not one of my ancestors, my only connection is that he was the Naval commander of Fort Foster A87761631 near Tampa, Florida, USA. I have helped present a living history program there for well over the last 30 years. After starting with as simple soldier suffering from fever in the surgeon's area. Over the years I have moved from position to position as I gained more knowledge about the fort. For the last decade or so I have represented the fort's commanding officer.
To make a proper and respectful portrayal I started my quest to learn as much about the actual man as I could. As a naval officer the basic details are all public record. When I first started my quest the Internet, as we know it, did not exist so I started with a few phone calls and letters to the US Navy History Center. The first reply I received had a very interesting report on how he had rescued the keeper on the Cape Florida Lighthouse A282999. I really need to put this story together an a Peer Review Entry the 'Bill Baggs' Entry contains only a single sentence for this important event, and there is so much more to tell.
I also received a brief time-line of his career;
He was offered a warrant as midshipman in September of 1811.
He accepted it in January, 1812
Thomas' first assignment was to the newly built Ship of the Line 'Franklin' in 1817
This was quite surprising as the US Navy had been quite busy in the missing years A87767572.
His other assignments to ships and shore stations followed, until his death in 1851, most of which followed in logical order for the time. I will save them until the proper time (I am sure this needs to be split into several parts here).
My next big breakthrough came several years later when I could start to conduct searches on the web. I learned his wife was a part of the prominent Harrison family of Philadelphia, who would have descendants that include US Presidents William Henry, and Benjamin Harrison.
A private family history was published in 1910 that includes a section about the ancestry of the Leib family and even a paragraph about Thomas, his wife and children. As it always seems to happen the more answer you find, the more questions they raise.
However my biggest puzzle was when I located his grave http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Leib&GSfn=Thomas&GSbyrel=all&GSdyrel=all&GSst=40&GScntry=4&GSob=n&GRid=38861990&df=all&
According to records he was either 48 or 49 years old at the time of his death. Had he been born in 1806 he would only have been 5 years old when he joined the navy and 45 at the time of his death.
I have found a baptism record for Carline Leib dated 1801, if the date of both births are off by three years it would place Thomas birth in 1803 it would put him at 8 years old when joining the navy, too young to go to sea, but such things were done so the family could draw his salary and the child would gain seniority. He would have been 14 when he was assigned to a ship, usually the minimum age for active duty. Perhaps the numbers carved in stone are wrong?
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NaJoPoMo #8 The US Civil War, from Start to Finish
Posted Nov 8, 2014
No, this is only a journal entry. This is about one individual who had the honour, or misfortune, to witness both events - through no effort of his own.
Let me tell you a bit about the strange adventures of Wilmer McLean.
In 1853 he married a widow with 2 small children, and a 1,200 acre plantation near Bull Run Creek and the town of Manassas, Virginia (near the site of what is now Dullas Airport). Having risen to the rank of Major as a supply officer in the Virginia Militia, he continued his work as a wholesale grocer. There were slaves and over-seers to tend to the day to day work of the plantation.
After the election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 the Southern States began proclaiming their independence. After South Carolina troops fired on Fort Sumter on 12 April, 1861 war seemed certain. Large armies began to form in both the US Capital, Washington, DC and the new Confederate Capital city, Richmond Virginia. McLean's plantation was between them, at a strategic point.
When the Confederate General asked to use his house as a temporary headquarters, McLean felt obligated to help in any way he could. This also made the farmhouse a major military target. When one of the cannon shells of the opening salvoes landed in the kitchen fireplace the General was amused, McLean only saw his home being damaged. When the 1st Battle of Bull Run (Manassas in the South) A87805939 was followed by a second battle on the same ground a year later, McLean had had enough, he decided to move his family to a quiet town some 200 miles to the south of the battles - Appomattox Court House (the name of the town, because it was a county seat).
For a year, or more, his plan worked perfectly, and McLean made a nice living supplying the Confederate armies with food. Then Sherman marched his troops to the sea and turned north, Grant mounted a major push and captured Richmond. The Confederate Army under General Robert E Lee were forced to flee to the south. Guess whose house stood at the vital point where the forces were about to meet.
Lee was desperate, he had almost resolved himself to take his men into the nearby mountains and fight a guerilla campaign to extend the conflict as long as possible. He then looked at his men, starving and dressed in tatters, he realized that the cause was indeed lost. He sent one of his staff into the nearby town to find a suitable place for his surrender to take place.
The comfortable, two-storey McLean home was the obvious choice. Wilmer sighed, but agreed to let the Generals once more use his home. After the treaty had been signed all the Union officers decided that they must have a souvenir of this momentous occasion. The parlour was soon stripped of anything that could be carried, although in all fairness, most offered to pay the owner far more than the items were actually worth.
After the war the fortune that McLean had made was mostly in worthless Confederate bills. The house fell into foreclosure and eventual ruin, although it has been restored as a National Monument.
It has been reported that in later years McLean claimed that the Civil War had started in his front garden, and ended in his front parlour. He certainly had a right to that claim.
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