Civil War Frontiers: Niagara to Haiti

Joseph and Peter J. Watts were brothers to my second great-grandfather, John.

Joseph and Peter were the first WATTS (or should I say VAUTHRIN) family members born in the USA. Professionally, they were both brass finishers / machinists. Moreover, they both served in the US Civil War—which is what I will explore, a bit, today.

Peter J Watts was born in May 1838. By the outbreak of the civil war, he was a brass finisher, and Buffalo volunteer fireman.

In June of 1863, Peter was mobilized as a private in the New York State Militia’s 74th Regiment, Company G. This was a 30-day deployment. He participated in what is now known as the Gettysburg Campaign. He saw duty at Mt. Union, PA; and on 10 July was involved in a skirmish near Clear Springs, MD. On 14 July, the Regiment was ordered to New York City, to help suppress the draft riots. The Regiment mustered out on 3 August, but was then immediately reactivated and ordered to preserve the peace during Buffalo’s draft. The unit was relieved on August 22nd.

In November 1863, the 74th was remobilized for another thirty days, stationed in Buffalo, for “protection of the frontiers of the State.”

Older brother, Joseph Watts, was born in 1836. Before the war, he was a finisher for Colligon Brothers Eagle Brass Foundry. (It appears that owner, Frank Colligon, lived only a few doors away from the Watts family Ellicott Street home. Joseph’s and Peter’s brother-in-law was Frank COLLIGNON, and I wonder if this is the same family. However, that hypothesis can wait for another day.)

Joseph was in the Union Navy. On 9 July 1863, he began his commission as Acting Third Assistant Engineer. I do not know how he spent his initial months of service, but by spring 1864 Joseph was part of the North Atlantic Blocking Squadron, on board the steamer USS Southfield.

On 19 April of that year, on the Roanoke, near New Berne, NC, the Southfield was rammed by the Confederate ironclad CSS Albemarle. The Albemarle “tore a hole clear through to the boiler” of the Southfield—a result that could have been fatal to an Engineer! Luckily, Joseph survived the battle, and was picked-up by the USS Ceres.

On 21 October 1864, Joseph Watts was promoted to Acting Second Assistant Engineer. By January 1865, Joseph was serving on board U. S. Steamer Galatea, protecting merchant ships in the West India Squadron. He was based at Cap-Haitien, Haiti. (Given that Joseph’s parents were French, I assume he spoke French, which would be quite useful in Haiti.)

Joseph resigned his commission on 12 May 1865. He returned to Buffalo, but in 1870, Joseph moved to San Francisco. Around that same time, he married. Later he and wife, Margaret, had two children: Mary, and Joseph Adolphus. It appears that Joseph died in the 1920s.

Peter Watts married Catherine Blair, in 1866. They had three children: Joseph J.; Elizabeth; and Harry P. Watts. He appears to have been very active with the Buffalo Volunteer Fire Department and with politics in general. Peter died in 1901.

Monsieur Vauthrin?

The US Census records are consistent on the fact that my second great-grandparents were born in France. I am one-eighth French—12%.

I know that early Buffalo (my hometown) had French Churches. Due to a significant representation of Franco-Americans, the Buffalo volunteer fire department’s Engine 8 was know as “French 8.” There is a French and German Cemetery in nearby Cheektowaga. All this caused me to wonder about the community of French immigrants. Perhaps understanding more about their community, I could get some additional insights regarding my ancestors.

I posted a message on RootsWeb.com’s Erie County New York message board, mentioning some of my ancestors’ names, and indicating that I would be grateful for any insights about French immigrant society in mid-1800's Buffalo, NY.

Someone responded!

He provided some information about the small French community, and inquired about my ancestors’ religion. He also pointed out (the common reaction) that WATTS does not "look French." He wondered, “could it have been changed from something else?”

It turns out, that responder is professional genealogist, in Buffalo, specializing in Catholic families. His name is Glenn R. P. Atwell—and you would be amazed at the data he has compiled from Buffalo’s Catholic churches and cemeteries. Luckily, for me, Frenchmen with such an apparently non-French surname intrigued Mr. Atwell. I engaged Mr. Atwell for some brief but extremely insightful research, which proved a great investment.

It turns out that our family name was VAUTHRIN. How that became WATTS is still a mystery.

In later posts, I go into some details.