And there were many such as my GGrandfather, that ended up with physical ailments that plagued them early on, and they went the whole war fighting battles, and dealing with the physical health problems as well. My GGrandfather early in 1861 got sick, and ended up with a chronic diarrhea that after the war made him eligible for disability. Those men gave up a lot to stand for what they believed in! Mari <snipped> >The Army recruiters would camp out in early Spring and sign the fellows >up as they left the logging camps for summer work elsewhere. They told >the fellow, who were hearty and tough, that with their help the war >would be over by the next winter. The war went on from 1861 to 1865; not >quite as promised. <snipped>

Mari, That is so true. Those who died in battle or of injuries and infection from wounds were greatly outnumbered by those who died from disease while serving. Yet, even that is a fraction of what individuals and families faced. Chronic Diarrhea may not sound like much to some. When you read about how many men returned with that ( tens of thousands), and the fact that it lasted the whole rest of their lives, leaving them with years of weakness and debilitation, you begin to see how it deeply affected not only the individuals, their families, but the future history of the family. The cause was never discovered and there was no cure. They treated the symptoms as best they could and tried to go on taking care of their families with what little energy they could muster. Being considered heros didn't help them feed their families. It was decades before they were accepted for even a small pension to help defray the medical costs and loss of income. By then it was not a help in raising their families and the losses included opportunities for successful farms, businesses, education, family health and seriously affected the future. They "had not been injured in battle". Other chronic debilitating conditions that resulted from that devastating war (for both sides) included serious hernias (ruptures that could not be repaired as now), bleeding hemorrhoids (causing continuous pain and generalized weakness), chronic blood infections (blood poisonings), Chronic Lung Disease (progressive deterioration of the lungs), digestive difficulties such as ulcers (now we know it is often caused by a bacteria that can be passed along) which left the person malnutritioned, blood disorders such a Malaria and chronic anemias, to name a few of the most often seen. This does not even begin to touch on the emotional debilitation's that were never recognized, such as post traumatic stress syndrome. These conditions came home with them from the war and became part of the family; and our legacy. Rita Mari wrote: > And there were many such as my GGrandfather, that ended up with > physical ailments that plagued them early on, and they went the whole > war fighting battles, and dealing with the physical health problems > as well. My GGrandfather early in 1861 got sick, and ended up with a > chronic diarrhea that after the war made him eligible for > disability. Those men gave up a lot to stand for what they believed in! > > Mari > > <snipped> > >The Army recruiters would camp out in early Spring and sign the fellows > >up as they left the logging camps for summer work elsewhere. They told > >the fellow, who were hearty and tough, that with their help the war > >would be over by the next winter. The war went on from 1861 to 1865; not > >quite as promised. > <snipped> > > ==== WIGEN Mailing List ==== > Celebrate Wisconsin! > Visit the Waushara County WIGenWeb Project Pages > http://www.rootsweb.com/~wiwausha/wsctweb.html > Visit the Wood County WIGenWeb Project Pages > http://www.rootsweb.com/~wiwood/