Our Neighbors: John E. Atwood
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Not far from the spectacular Tinker vault and just across the path from the stately Amasa Richardson shaft there is the unassuming grave of a modest, humble man. His name was John E. Atwood. But in spite of his modesty, he achieved several high points in local history of a sort vouchsafed to few. What high points? One in particular is eye popping.
Born and raised in North Adams, Mr. Atwood was a charter member of the Johnson Grays, the first of two companies of Civil War soldiers recruited here in North Adams, then a part of Adams. They chose the name themselves. Johnson, because of the local industrialist Sylvander Johnson, who oversaw the fundraising and expenditure of the money to buy the men their guns and uniforms; Grays, because the local tailor who made the uniforms made them in Cadet Gray (for no adequately explored reason).
When they formally enlisted in the Union Army, they became Company B of the Tenth Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry. They were issued blue uniforms and their moniker was changed to the Johnson Guard. Their exploits were reported weekly in the Hoosac Valley News, one of two weekly papers published locally at the time (the other was the North Adams Transcript). Go to the North Adams Public Library and you can read those reports for yourself on microfilm.
Private Atwood was promoted to Corporal in 1862. He fought at Fair Oaks — where he was shot in the ankle — White Oak Grove, Gains Mills, Charles City Cross Roads, Malvern Hill, Antietam, Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg. It was at Gettysburg where he suffered his most fortuitous injury: As he was marching into battle he was overcome with sunstroke.
This may sound wimpish at first, but it's important to remember that the uniforms at the time were made of wool and they were wearing a LOT of wool! Woolen long johns with long sleeves, heavy woolen long sleeve shirts and pants topped with a very heavy woolen jacket; plus a woolen hat and a havelock. A havelock was a small cape hung from the hat to protect the back of the neck from the sun. Now picture wearing all that in the south and in the blazing heat of summer. It's amazing the men weren't dropping like flies.
Cpl. Atwood was taken to a field hospital, where he remained after the battle. His unit moved on without him. When he became ambulatory he was pressed into service as a nurse. And some months later, the decision was made to establish a National Cemetery at Gettysburg.
Every state in the Union was represented by a Color Guard. What is a Color Guard? It consists of three men: a color bearer to hold the flag and two snipers. In battle, the snipers would protect the color bearer from the enemy, who played a deadly game of "Capture the Flag." Being assigned to the Color Guard — while a dangerous appointment — was considered a great honor, even for a purely ceremonial purpose, such as at the dedication of a cemetery or for a funeral.
The governor of Massachusetts accordingly appointed three soldiers to the Massachusetts Color Guard. These three went at once to a Maj. Couch, the officer in charge of the region, and asked to be relieved of the duty. It should, they insisted, be given to invalid soldiers from hospitals in the vicinity. Two men from the Tenth Regiment were accordingly assigned to the Massachusetts Color Guard. One of them was Cpl. John E. Atwood of the Johnson Guard, who was made color bearer. If this honor isn't enough, it means by extension that Atwood was an eyewitness to that particularly memorable event, President Lincoln's delivery of the Gettysburg Address. His seat was only 15 feet from the president, and he met the president (!!!) that evening at a reception.
One would think this to be the high point of someone's — or anyone's — life, but in the GAR War Sketches book, Atwood spared it only the final third of a single sentence: "... had the great pleasure of hearing the famous address of President Lincoln." But this was not his only experience with the famous address. In 1905, on Memorial Day here in North Adams, Atwood delivered the Gettysburg Address himself.
He was mustered out of the army on July 1, 1864. The sentiments he expressed in the War Sketches Book are similar to those of most other Civil War veterans: "The most important event in my whole service and the one for which I am most grateful was the sparing of my life and receiving an honorable discharge."
He returned to North Adams and made his living as a printer. In the 1890s, he spent five years in the North Adams Police Department. He died in 1907 in Boston, where he had gone for medical treatment.
Atwood first came into my life in 1995 when I stumbled upon his encounter with President Lincoln in a regimental book about the Tenth Regiment. I pulled out the stops to locate his grave and was surprised that there was no GAR flag holder on it. There must have been one there once, but it was long since gone. So I had the great honor and pleasure to organize a ceremony to place one there. Atwood's descendants took part, along with members of the Tenth Regiment Reenactors.
So the next time you're in Hillside, visit Mr. Atwood. Remember, his story is a single thread in the rich tapestry of North Adams history. And whether you're related to him or not, if you're from North Adams, his story is YOUR story. So stop by and pay your respects.
There was a time when neighbors knew each other; when everyone who lived nearby was an acquaintance, if not actually a friend. In recent years, we've grown increasingly out of touch with our neighbors, less friendly, less helpful to each other.
Today, we are at a point where we have to get to know each other once again, and to recognize that helping our neighbors maintain their property increases the value of our own. This series is an attempt to help us get to know a particular community of neighbors, without whose vision and efforts this city would not exist.
These neighbors are the residents of Hillside Cemetery. As part of our effort to restore and maintain this, the city’s oldest municipal cemetery, we hope to generate interest, funding and volunteer labor in an effort to restore it. This work is an important step in maintaining our city's heritage and civic pride. But more than this, it's a way in which we can help our neighbors; neighbors who laid the foundations of North Adams and paved the way for us.
It seems only proper that we help these neighbors, and get to know them.
Tags: celebrity, historical, our neighbors,
