James Hart Purdy

(1838 - 1912)
Home State: New York
Branch of Service: Infantry
Unit: 59th New York Infantry

Before the Antietam Campaign:
He was a school teacher in New York City and Junior-Principal at the Virginia Military Institute in Petersburg, VA. Immediatly before the War he was a medical student at the University of the City of New York. He enlisted as Private in Company I, 71st NY State Militia on 20 April 1861 and served to 30 July. He was appointed 2nd Lieutenant, Company F, 59th New York Infantry on 16 August 1861. He was promoted to First Lieutenant on 12 October 1861.

In the Antietam Campaign:
He was wounded in action on 17 September 1862 - severely, in the left elbow.

The remainder of the War:
He was promoted to Captain on 19 September 1862, and Major of the Regiment on 8 January 1863. He resigned 13 June 1863, incapacitated by his wound. He served as volunteer Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to General James Kiernan beginning in August 1863, and was at Vicksburg, MS. He was captured in action 12 October 1863 in Madison Parish, LA, and held a POW at Shreveport until 1 January 1864.

After the War:
He studied the law and settled in St Louis, MO after the War.

References, Sources, and other notes:
Basic information from State of New York1. Thanks to Devan Sommerville for scrubbing through the Report and extracting and transcribing the roster data for AotW. Further details from familiy genealogists.

Birth Date: 02/02/1838 Place of Birth: Shrub Oak, NY
Death Date: 11/03/1912 Death Place: Chicago, IL

Notes

1 State of New York, Adjutant-General, Annual Report of the Adjutant General of the State of New York [year]: Registers of the [units], 43 Volumes, Albany: James B. Lyon, State Printer, 1893-1905, Issue 26 (for the year 1900) [AotW citation 8783]

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