John Smith Brown

Son of a lawyer, in 1855 he was a 19 year old student listed as living at his parent's home in Urbana, Steuben County, NY. He attended Yale College but departed before graduating due to failing eyesight and traveled in England, Ireland, and Scotland, then settled in St. Louis, MO in 1857. He was there into 1861 then returned East and enlisted in Albany, NY, qualified as a US Sharpshooter, and mustered on 29 August 1861 as a Private in Company B, First United States Sharpshooters. He was appointed Sergeant Major of the regiment on 10 October, assigned as acting Adjutant on 7 January 1862, and promoted to 2nd Lieutenant of Company A on 1 March.

He was with his company in Maryland: they were in reserve at Antietam on 17 September 1862 and more actively engaged at Boteler's Ford on the Potomac River near Shepherdstown, VA on the 19th and 20th. Of his part on 20 September he later wrote:

Saturday morning having no order to advance we lay in the Canal and protected the retreat, doing good duty, as we were armed now with Sharps Target Hair Trigger Rifles.

He mustered out of the Sharpshooters on 3 October 1862 to accept the post of First Lieutenant and Adjutant of the 126th New York Infantry, his new commission dating from 2 September. He joined his new regiment at Camp Douglas in Chicago, the parole camp where most of the men of the regiment had been since their capture at Harpers Ferry on 15 September; they were formally exchanged to return to duty on 22 November 1862. He was promoted to Major to date from 20 November 1863 and to Lieutenant Colonel on 2 May (to date from 18 April) 1864. He was appointed Colonel on 27 July (date of rank 17 June) 1864, but did not muster at that rank, and he mustered out with his regiment on 3 June 1865 near Alexandria, VA.

In June 1865 he was living with his parents and a younger sister at Milo in Yates County, NY. He died young, just 30 years old, of consumption (tuberculosis) in April 1866.

His service from Phisterer,1 Stevens,2 the Adjutant General,3 and his New York Muster Roll Extract, online from fold3. He's also seen as J. Smith Brown, Smith Ira Brown, Smith J Brown, and Ira Smith Brown. Personal details from family genealogists and the New York State Census of 1855 & 1865. His gravesite is on Findagrave, source also of his picture, from a photograph contributed by Russell Kasper. Thanks to Dave Lay for the pointer to Brown and for sharing his considerable research on him, notably in Brown's wartime letters.

He married Mary Gulick (1842-1921) in November 1865 and they had a daughter Jean (1865-1898) and a son Gilbert, born in Manhattan after his father's death, who only lived a month.

See much, much more about J. Smith Brown and his war experience in a massive post by Dave Lay on his 126th New York Infantry Facebook page, source of some details and his Shepherdstown quote above.

07/16/1835; Hammondsport, NY

04/27/1866; Jerusalem, NY; burial in Lakeview Cemetery, Penn Yan, NY