Helmer T. (Ham) Aasheim. (WWII, Korea, Cold War)

     Ham is the son of Edward T. and Helen (Gunhus) Aasheim and was the husband of Gladys Ona. He was born in Wahpeton, North Dakota and was brought up mostly in Grand Forks, North Dakota and Malta, Montana. He entered the Army Air Corps in September 1941 and was discharged in January 1946. He spent the bulk of WWII as adjutant of a bomber group in the Aleutian Islands, and afterward as Air Inspector of a Troop Carrier Base in Alliance, Nebraska. In 1951 he was recalled to active duty in the USAF during the Korean War. From 1951-1955 he served as Executive Officer and instructor of Air Force ROTC at the University of Minnesota. From 1955-1966 he was assigned to the Office of Special Investigations (OSI). From 1957 to 1959 he served as commander of the Turkey - Greece district, OSI. From 1960-1963 he was Commandant of the OSI Academy in Washington, DC. From 1963-1966 he was Commander of Alaska District OSI. He retired as a colonel in 1967, and is living in Napa, California. He married Gladys Ona prior to leaving for his tour of duty in the Aleutian Islands. Ham and Gladys raised three children.

John MacMillan Alexander (Civil War) 91st Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

   John MacMillan Alexander was the son of John Alexander and Mary Wise. He was the grandson of John Wise and Jane MacMillan. He was born in Delaware County, Ohio in 1841. He took part in all of the battles of the 91st except one, first in the Kanawha Valley of what is now West Virginia, and then in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. He was wounded at Fisher's Hill in 1864, and was also disabled from his long and active service. He was First Sergeant of his Company at the time of his discharge on June 30, 1865. After the war he first was in the carriage making business and then became a grocer. In the 1880's he became mayor of Gallipolis, Ohio. He married Elizabeth Hill in 1868 and they raised five children.

Anthony Bickel. (War of 1812) James Anderson’s Company, Grayson County, Virginia Militia.

     Anthony Bickel was the son of Jacob Bickel and Catharine (Brown) Bickel. He was the Grandson of the immigrant, Frederick Bickel. He was born in Botetourt County, Virginia in 1790 and he died in Gallia County, Ohio in 1860. He is buried in Hulbert’s Cemetery in Green Township, Gallia County, Ohio. He was a private in James Anderson's Company which had just arrived in the area of Virginia's eastern shore when their service was cut short by the sudden unexpected end of the war. He walked home from Norfolk, Virginia to Wythe County, a distance of 321 miles. When the law granting bounty land for 1812 veterans was passed in 1855 he was granted 160 acres of land in Hamilton County, Ohio (near Cincinnati). He sold the warrant for this land the same year. He married Dianah Chappell in 1814 and they raised nine children.

Frederick Pickle (Bickel). (Revolutionary War) Hanover Rifle Battalion of Militia of Lancaster County associators.

     Frederick Bickel was the original Bickel immigrant from Germany in our family. He brought his family to Pennsylvania in 1749. He was born in Massenbach, Württemberg, Germany in 1723. He died in Lebanon County, Pennsylvania in 1794 and is buried in Bindnagle’s Lutheran Church Cemetery near Palmyra. There is no record of the type of service performed by this unit. All members of the Lancaster County associators signed the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and could be called upon to perform military service.

Jacob Bickel. (Revolutionary War) Captain Martin Weaver's Company & Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment.

     Jacob Bickel was born June 16, 1744 in Massenbach, Wuertemberg, Germany and probably died about 1810 in Virginia. He immigrated to America with his parents and sister in 1749 at the age of five years. He is the son of the immigrants, Frederick Bickel and Dorothea (Mueller) Bickel. He apparently had two tours of duty. Initially he was with the Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment that fought the Battle of Long Island on August 27, 1776. He and about two hundred others returned home without permission after the battle and then petitioned to return to action under different leadership. He subsequently served in Captain Martin Weaver's Company. There is no record of the type of duty that this Company performed, but some conclusions can be made from the pay records. These records strongly suggest that this was one of the Pennsylvania Militia Companies that George Washington took across the Delaware on Christmas Eve, 1776. Click here to see a record of the Pennsylvania Rifle Regiment and further discussion.

James K. Polk Bickle. (Civil War-Confederate) Dobbins Brigade, Newtons Regiment, Co.

     James K. Polk Bickle was the son of Henry and Malinda (Elliott) Bickle. He was the grandson of Michael and Elizabeth (Whetsel) Bickel. He was born in 1845 at Wild Haw, Izard County, Arkansas. He served in the Confederate army for fourteen months. He married Emily Isabelle Johnson and they raised six children.

† Salmon Bickel. (Civil War) 7th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, Co M.

     Salmon Bickel was the son of Anthony Bickel and Dianah (Chappell) Bickel. He was born in 1831 in Gallia County, Ohio. He married Susan Herrington in 1855 by whom he had two children. He was working as a school teacher when he enlisted as a private in the Union army on November 8, 1863 at Pomeroy, Ohio. He was captured during the Battle of Big Creek near Rogersville, Tennessee on November 6, 1864. He was incarcerated, first at Belle Isle Prison in Richmond, Virginia, and later transferred to Andersonville Prison in Georgia. He died of "dropsy" on May 13, 1864. He is buried in the cemetery at the Andersonville prison. Click here for a comprehensive account of his Civil War service.

Andrew Brown (Revolutionary War) Hanover Rifle Battalion of Militia of Lancaster County associators.

     Andrew Brown was the son of Michael Brown and Anna Juliana (Karger) Brown and was the brother of Catharine (Brown) Bickel. He was born in what is now Lebanon County, Pennsylvania on May 14, 1753 and he died on July 7, 1830. He is buried in Clinton County, Ohio. There is no record of the type of service performed by this unit. All members of the Lancaster County associators signed the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and could be called upon to perform military service.

Christopher Brown. (Revolutionary War) Hanover Rifle Battalion of Militia of Lancaster County associators.

     Christopher Brown was the son of Michael Brown and Anna Juliana (Karger) Brown. He was born in what is now Lebanon County, Pennsylvania on June 7, 1750. He died on July 16, 1816. He is buried in St. John’s Lutheran Church Cemetery, Wytheville, Virginia. There is no record of the type of service performed by this unit. All members of the Lancaster County associators signed the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and could be called upon to perform military service.

Franklin Monroe Brown. (Civil War) Served in Co. D 1st Kansas Infantry and Co. F 13th Kansas

     Franklin Monroe Brown was the son of William Miner Brown and Rebecca (Howard) Brown. He was the grandson of Andrew Brown and his wife Catherine, and is the great grandson of Michael Brown and Anna Juliana (Karger) Brown. He was born in Clinton County, Ohio on March 10, 1841. He died in Oskaloosa, Kansas on April 4, 1865. He is buried in Pleasant View Cemetery in Jefferson County, Kansas. As reported in the Oskaloosa Independent. He was struck by lightning and killed near Oskaloosa, Kansas, just two weeks after he was discharged. He had served three years in the Union army and was with General Sherman in his march through Georgia.

Michael Brown. (Revolutionary War) Hanover Rifle Battalion of Militia of Lancaster County associators.

     Michael Brown is thought to be the original Braun (Brown) immigrant from Germany. He was born on January 15, 1723 in Germany and he died in March, 1785 in what is now Lebanon County, Pennsylvania. He is buried in the Bindnagel Lutheran Church Cemetery near Palmyra, Pennsylvania. He was married to Anna Juliana Karger. Muster rolls for this battalion list him as a 2nd Lieutenant. The battalion was commanded by Col. Timothy Green. There is no record of the type of service performed by this unit. All members of the Lancaster County associators signed the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and could be called upon to perform military service.

Michael Brown. (Revolutionary War) Hanover Rifle Battalion of Militia of Lancaster County associators.

     Michael Brown was the son of Michael Brown and Anna Juliana (Karger) Brown. He was born in what is now Lebanon County, Pennsylvania on October 22, 1751 and he died in Wythe County, Virginia in 1820. He is buried in the St. John's Lutheran Cemetery. There is no record of the type of service performed by this unit. All members of the Lancaster County associators signed the Oath of Allegiance to the United States and could be called upon to perform military service.

Nicholas Cassell. (Revolutionary War) Martin Weaver’s Company.

     Nicholas Cassell was born in 1750 in Pennsylvania. He died in Wythe County, Virginia on April 24, 1816 and is buried in St. John's Lutheran Cemetery. He was married to Catharine (Brown) Bickel’s sister, Anna Margaret Brown. Jacob Bickel served in this same Company during his second tour of duty. Both of them appear on several muster rolls. As with the Hanover Rifle Battalion of Militia, it isn't known the type of service in which this company participated.

Stephen Chappell. (Revolutionary War--British army) Queen's Own Loyal Virginia Regiment and The Loyal American Regiment of Foot.

     Stephen Chappell was born in 1750 in Princess Anne County, Virginia. He was the son of John and Mary Chappell, and the father of Dianah (Chappell) Bickel. He died in Wythe County, Virginia in 1822. He joined a Loyalist unit, The Queen’s Own Loyal Virginia Regiment, as a private in Princess Anne County, Virginia, early in the Revolutionary War, before the signing of the Declaration of Independence. He accompanied this unit to New York City where it was subsequently disbanded. He then joined a newly formed regiment, The Loyal American Regiment of Foot. In 1780 he was picked as part of a select group to accompany Captain Patrick Ferguson, a British commander, to South Carolina to participate in the siege of Charleston. After Charleston fell he was led by this same commander during the Battle of King’s Mountain in South Carolina where he was taken prisoner. He either escaped or was exchanged in either late 1780 or early 1781. Click here for further information on his military experience.

Everly Wayne Cox. (WWII, Korean War, Cold War) United States Navy.

     Everly Wayne Cox is the husband of Gen Cox, sister of Agnes (Ona) Elvick. He had a distinguished career as a naval pilot during WWII. After the war he served another assignment on active duty stateside in 1948-1950, and was recalled to active duty during the Korean War. He otherwise served in the Naval Reserve until he retired from the Navy in 1973. Everly has generously provided us with a first person account of his career as well as a photograph of E75, his "Black Cat" and its crew. This can be accessed by clicking here .

Milo Elgin. (WWII) Co. B 38th Infantry, 1st Army, United Stated Army.

      Milo Elgin was married to Carrol Kallestad. Carrol's father was Bernhard (Ben) Kallestad, whose WWI service record is recounted below. Carrol is a first cousin of David Kallestad who is married to Glenna (Elvick) Kallestad. Milo was wounded during the counter offensive undertaken by American troops in Belgium to drive back the Germans in the Battle of the Bulge in 1944-45. He rejoined his unit again later and was part of the meeting of the Russian and American forces at the Elbe River in April of 1945, and again later at Pilsen, Czechoslovakia. He has written a first person account of his experience which can be accessed by clicking on this link. Elgin.

Neil Elvick: (Served stateside during the Vietnam War) Captain, United States Air Force.

     This is my own military record. Entered service at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas in 1967 and then served two years as a physician with the rank of Captain at Mather Air Force Base near Sacramento, California.

Roger Elvick. (Cold War) United States Marine Corps
     He is the son of Nelson and Agnes Elvick. Enlisted as a Private in the United States Marine Corps in 1957. Boot camp at Camp Pendleton in San Diego, California. Then training in Jet Aircraft Mechanics at Jacksonville Naval Air Station, Florida and then further training in Memphis, Tennessee before serving as a jet mechanic at El Toro Marine Air Station near Santa Ana, California. He was with the 3rd Marine Air Wing #224 Attack Squadron at El Toro. He received an Honorable Discharge as a Corporal, from the reserves in 1962. He married Marlys Hietala in 1957 and they raised five children.

Jakob Larsson Flatekvål. (Great Nordic Prince Wars between Denmark and Sweden in the early 1700's)

     Jakob Larsson Flatekvål was born in 1683 at Flatekvål, Modalen, Hordaland, Norway. He is the 4th great-grandfather of Nelson H. Elvick. He was married to Marta Pedersdatter Flatekvål. He was captured by the Swedish army but escaped and returned home. He died in 1750 at Leiro, Vaksdal, Hordaland, Norway. See the account in the Vaksdal Bygdebok.

Thaddeus H. Fuller. (American Civil War - Union) Trumbull Guards, an independent Ohio infantry Company, assigned for river guard in Gallipolis from Noveember 1862 to July 1865.

     Thaddeus Fuller was the son of Atherton and Mary Fuller. Mary was Malinda (Bickel) Wise’s sister and so Thaddeus was my grandmother, Rosa Wise’s, first cousin. The Trumbull Guards were first organized in Trumbull County, Ohio but then stationed in Gallipolis. They were needed militarily during the Point Pleasant raid and during the invasion by Morgan’s Raiders. They were assigned the job of protecting Ohio's border with the Confederate state of Virginia along the Ohio River. Also Gallipolis was an important base for keeping military supplies and there was also a large military hospital there.

James W. Gibson. (Vietnam, Cold War) United States Air Force.

      James W. Gibson is the husband of Donna Gibson who is descended from Anthony and Dianah Bickel through their daughter Nancy Taylor. Jim's military and civilian career can be viewed by clicking on this link. Gibson .    

† John Hill. (American Civil War) Sergeant Co. L, 7th Ohio Voluntary Cavalry.

     John Hill was the brother-in-law of John MacMillan Alexander who was a first cousin of Rosa Belle (Wise) Elvick. He was in the same regiment as Salmon Bickel, and they were both captured on the same day and in the same battle. Both were prisoners of war, first at Belle Isle near Richmond, Virginia and later at Andersonville, Georgia. John died at Andersonville on April 7, 1864 and is buried in the cemetery there. He was unmarried.

Steinar Jensen. (WW II--Norwegian navy) Military unit name unknown.

     Steinar Jensen was born and raised on the island of Ona off the central coast of Norway. He is the son of Ole Elias and Hanna Nikolina Jensen. He is the nephew of Hans Ona. He worked in the merchant marine from 1934 until just before the outbreak of WW II. He then joined the Norwegian navy to fulfill his military obligation. He served on the destroyer, Sliepner, and he suffered a severe burn during a naval battle in the Moldefjord with the royal family looking on from the hills above Molde before their evacuation from Norway to England. He recuperated for several months in a hospital in Scotland. He then served aboard the destroyer Stord escorting convoys to Murmansk on the Arctic coast of the Soviet Union. The Stord was one of two Norwegian destroyers (the other one was the Svennur ) that participated in the D-Day invasion. They went into action side by side. The destroyers came in close to the shore and shelled the German gun positions and thereby helped General Montgomery's British troops to land. The Svennur was sunk by a torpedo just as the action began. After D-Day, the Stord returned to convoy duty. Today Steinar is retired and lives on Ona with his family.

Einar Donald Johansen (WWII) Company "C" 65th Armored Infantry Regiment 20th Armored Division.

     Einar Donald Johansen (Don), was born July 26, 1923 in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and he died December 18, 1988 in Denver, Colorado. He was the husband of Eunice (Elvick) Johansen. He entered the army on February 25, 1943 at Ft. Snelling in Minnesota. He was promoted to staff sergeant while at Camp Campbell, Kentucky. He led his platoon of fifty-five men into action in France and Germany. They participated in the liberation of the notorious concentration camp at Dachau, Germany, and in house to house fighting in Munich. His unit left France on July 28, 1945 to await deployment in the Pacific for the invasion force scheduled to invade mainland Japan. This was made unnecessary by the surrender of the Japanese on August 15. He received his discharge from the army on February 12, 1946 at Camp Grant, Illinois. He married Eunice Elvick in 1949 after both had graduated from the University of North Dakota, and they subsequently raised four children.

Bernhard (Ben) Julius Kallestad (WWI) Company K, 352nd Infantry, Company M, 348th Infantry and Company E, 47th Infantry.

     Bernhard (Ben) Julius Kallestad was the son of Magne Johannesson and Kari Kallestad and the uncle of David Kallestad. He was inducted at Lakota, North Dakota on September 21, 1917. He saw overseas duty from May 10, 1918, to March 7, 1919. He was severely wounded on Sept. 27, 1918 which included injuries suffered from a gas warfare attack. His engagements in France included offensive action in the Aisne-Marne; St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne sectors and defensive action in the Vesle (Champagne) and Toulon (Lorraine) sectors. He was discharged at Camp Dodge, Iowa, on April 8, 1919 as a Corporal, with Surgeon's Certificate of Disability, 35%.

James McMillen (War of 1812) Capt. Wm. Faulks Co.

     He was the son of George and Sarah (Jewell) MacMillan.  He was born January 1, 1789 and died September 2, 1855.  He was a private in Capt. Wm. Faulks Co.  He is buried in Richland M. E. Cemetery in Richland Township, Belmont County, Ohio.

John McMillen. (War of 1812)

     He was the son of George and Sarah (Jewell) MacMillan. He was born about 1781 in York County, Pennsylvania. He was a physician by occupation. He died in Belmont County, Ohio, (reportedly from a horse and buggy accident) and is buried in Rock Hill Cemetery in Pultney Township. There is a War of 1812 veteran’s marker on his grave.
     The National Archives has records for ten John McMillens from Pennsylvania who served in the War of 1812. Two of them had their home counties listed and so could be eliminated, but there was no way to differentiate among the other eight, and so it is not known with which unit he served. Most of these men received their discharge at Erie, Pennsylvania and so he most likely served in the particular theater of the war in which several battles were fought on the Niagara Peninsula of Canada.

† Haakon Myre. (WWII-Great Britain)

     Haakon was the son of Paul Myre and Ingeborg (Langseth) Myre. (Ingeborg Langseth was the sister of Gudrun Langseth Ona.) He secretly left Norway with some of his friends in a small boat and escaped to England. He joined the RAF and was killed in a training accident action in England.

† Arthur Ona. (WWII) 363rd Infantry 91st Division

     Arthur was the son of Ludvig Ona and Helga (Skori) Ona. (Ludvig was Hans Ona's brother.) He was born September 29, 1921 in Nelson County, North Dakota. He was inducted into the Army from Thief River Falls, Minnesota. He served as a sergeant in the United States Army and he was killed in action during the Italian campaign on July 10, 1944. He is buried in the Florence American Cemetery in Florence, Italy. Purple Heart Medal.    

† Oddmund Johanson Otterstad. (WWII-Norway)

     Oddmund Otterstad was born in Modalen, Norway in 1904. He is the son of Johan Olavson Otterstad and Brita Knutsdatter (Lillijord) Otterstad. He is the father of Jostein Otterstad. He left home for his artillary unit the day after the German invasion and he was killed in action north of Oslo a few days later.

David H. Poff. (Civil War-Confederate) 19th Mississippi Infantry Company H., Cap’t. L.T. McKenzie’s Co.

     David H. Poff was the son of Elizah Alexander Poff and Lucinda (DuBois) Poff. He was the grandson of Jacob Poff and Elizabeth (Chappell) Poff. He enlisted at Canaan, Mississippi early in 1862 at age 20 for “the duration of the war.” He was reported as sick from January through April, 1863. He was wounded July 2, 1863 on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. He was present on muster rolls from January 1864. There was no information regarding futher service.

George Washington Poff. (Civil War-Confederate) Mississippi 2nd St. Cav. Co. A

     George Washington Poff was born about 1829 in Warren County, Tennessee. He was the son of Jacob Poff and Elizabeth (Chappell) Poff. He enlisted Feb. 1863 at Canaan, Mississippi. His record lists him as married. The National Archive records listed him as a POW who was paroled at LaGrange, Tennessee on May 24, 1865. This was about two weeks after the surrender at Appomatax. Some Confederate prisoners were held at a college in LaGrange, and this must have been where he was held. LaGrange was only about twenty miles from where the Poffs lived in Mississippi. There is very little information about the 2nd Mississippi Cavalry. There were two other Poffs (J. Foster Poff, and W. Poff) in this unit, but I have no information on them.

† James J. Poff. ( Civil War-Confederate) Mississippi 19th Infantry Co. H.

     James J. Poff was the son of Elizah Alexander and Lucinda (DuBois) Poff and the grandson of Jacob and Elizabeth (Chappell) Poff. Elizabeth was Dianah Chappell’s older sister. He was about twenty-two years old when he enlisted as a private on May 15, 1861. Although the Poff home was within about 40 miles of both the Shiloh and Tupelo battlefields, the Mississippi Poffs saw their action in Virginia. He was present on muster rolls until hospitalized in Richmond, Virginia on Feb. 24, 1862. His record shows he was diagnosed with typhoid fever on April 21, 1862. He died of wounds he received in action on 27 June 1862. His National Archives records state he was with Longstreet's Division, fighting “before Richmond.”

Samuel Poff. (Civil War-Confederate) Mississippi 34th Infantry

     Samuel Poff was born in Warren County, Tennessee, about 1836, before the family moved to Tippah County, Mississippi. He was the son of Jacob Poff and Elizabeth (Chappell) Poff. He enlisted as a private at Corinth, Mississippi on May 10, 1862. He was absent, reported sick, on the November-December muster roll, 1862. He returned to duty on March 7, 1863. The 34th Mississippi participated in the Battle of Chicamauga October 3, 1863. He was “sent to hospital” in November of 1863. There were no other records available.

William G. Poff. (Civil War-Confederate) Mississippi 19th Infantry Co. H

     William Poff was born about 1843 in Tennessee, the son of Elizah Alexander and Lucinda (DuBois) Poff and the grandson of Jacob and Elizabeth (Chappell) Poff. He was eighteen years old at the time of enlistment on Feb. 25, 1862 at Salem Mississippi. He was present on muster rolls until sick on July 31, 1863, so apparently he participated in the Battle of Gettysburg in early July, 1863. He was wounded on August 21, 1864 at Petersburg, Virginia. He was furloughed in January of 1865, apparently because of his injury. He surrendered at La Grange, Tennessee on May 20, 1865. He had permanent disability because of injury to his left arm, which was amputated, and a fractured rib.

George Flor Repass. (Civil War-Confederate) 51st Virginia Infantry, Co. C

     George Flor Repass was born on June 16, 1832. He was the son of Jesse Repass and Lydia (Brown) Repass and the great grandson of Christopher Brown and Anna Marie (Mason) Brown and the brother of Henry Lafayette Repass. He enlisted July 20, 1861 at Wytheville, Virginia. He served for the duration of the war. The 51st Virginia was involved in multiple battles, most notably Cold Harbor in June 1864. On March 2, 1865, just five weeks before the surrender at Appomatix, he was taken prisoner, along with 1,193 others at Waynesboro, Virginia. He was confined at Fort Delaware in Delaware, and was released on June 21, 1865.

† Henry Lafayette Repass. (Civil War-Confederate) 45th Virginia Infantry, Co. B

     Henry Repass was born on November 27, 1845 in Wythe County, Virginia. He was the son of Jessie Repass and Lydia (Brown) Repass and the grandson of Christopher Brown and Anna Marie (Reader) Brown and the great grandson of Christopher Brown and Anna Marie (Mason) Brown. Christopher was the brother of Catharine (Brown) Bickel. He enlisted Jan. 18, 1864. He was captured June 5, 1864. The National Archives record states it was at Piedmont, Virginia. He was a prisoner at Camp Morton in Indianapolis, Indiana where he died on August 20, 1864 of acute diarrhea. At the time of his incarceration at Camp Morton, the prison was greatly overcrowded, and disease and malnutrition were rampant. At the time of his death about ten percent of the prison population was dying each month.

Rufus B. Repass. (Civil War-Confederate) 51st Virginia Infantry

     Rufus B. Repass was born on January 11, 1842. He was the son of Stephen Repass and Rosanna Brown, and the great grandson of Christopher Brown and Anna Marie (Mason) Brown. He enlisted August 5, 1861 at Wytheville, Virginia as a musician. He served for the duration of the war. He was captured at Waynesboro, Virginia on March 2, 1865, just five weeks before the surrender at Appomatix. He was confined at Fort Delaware in Delaware and was released and discharged from there after the war ended. There were nine other Repasses in the 51st, but I was only able to identify two.

Hezekiah Saunders (Civil War-Union) Co. B, 173rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry

    Hezekiah Saunders was born July 6, 1840 and died Sept. 7, 1911. The 173rd OVI was organized in Gallipolis, Ohio and sent to guard Nashville, Tennessee. After General Sherman captured Atlanta in 1864, the defeated Confederates under command of the Confederate General Hood, invaded Tennessee and the 173rd Ohio assisted in the defense of Nashville in the Battle of Nashville in December of 1864. He was a Baptist minister for the last 35 years of his life. He was married to Fidelia Ward who was a granddaughter of Anthony Bickel's brother, Frederick.

Don Shively. (WWII)

     Don Shively is a great-great grandson of Anthony Bickel and Dianah (Chappell) Bickel and a great grandson of Robert Safford Bickel and Lucinda Ann (Toler) Bickel. He is the brother of Robert Shively Jr. He enlisted in the Navy upon graduation from high school in 1944. He served overseas with the Seabees on Okinawa. After his discharge Don obtained a degree from Western Reserve University, married his high school sweetheart, Jodi Shivel, and reared three lovely daughters in Huntington, West Virginia.

Robert Shively Jr. (WWII, Korea, Vietnam, Cold War)

     Robert Shively Jr. (Bob) is a great-great grandson of Anthony Bickel and Dianah (Chappell) Bickel and a great grandson of Robert Safford Bickel and Lucinda Ann (Toler) Bickel. He was born and raised in Huntington, West Virginia. After graduation from high school, he enlisted in the Army Air Corps as an aviation cadet, graduating with wings and commission in May 1943. He flew a combat tour of duty in P51 Mustangs - 77 missions - with the 15th Tac Recce Sqn in Europe. After discharge at the end of the war he entered college, graduating with a BA in psychology from the University of Cincinnati. He married hometown sweetheart, Dorothy Ann Orndorff, and was recalled to active duty to a USAF psychwarfare unit. He accepted a commission as regular officer and continued on active duty until retirement in 1970 to Phoenix, Arizona. Other than an assignment as aircraft commander (B-47), 380th Med Bomb Sqn, Plattsburgh, New York, Bob's primary duty was as an operations officer in communications intelligence. At the time of retirement he was a Lieutenant Colonel and commander of the 6920th Security Wing, Misawa Airbase, Japan.

Robert Shively Sr. (Wendell) (WWI)

     Robert Shively Sr. is a great grandson of Anthony Bickel and Dianah (Chappell) Bickel. He is the father of Robert Shively Jr. and Don Shively. He was always called by his middle name, Wendell. He enlisted in the US Army during WWI and served in the American Expeditionary Force in France for over a year. He was a waggoner in Battery C, 21sth Field Artillery, 5th Inf Div and was in combat at St. Mihael and Meuse-Argonne. After the war he married Mary Jane Crowe and raised two sons in Huntington, West Virginia. He died in 1976.

Steve Shively (Vietnam, Cold War, Gulf War, Iraq)

     Steve Shively is the great-great-great grandson of Anthony Bickel and Dianah (Chappell) Bickel and the son of Robert Shively, Jr. He entered the Army in 1971 after the family returned from Misawa Japan where he had finished high school. He is currently a Colonel on active duty at Ft. Huachuca, Arizona, serving as Informations Systems Engineering Command Inspector General. He is married to Col Mary Beth (Swartwout) Shively, currently serving as chief of staff ISEC.

James Thompson (Ciivil War) Co. A, 91st Ohio Volunteer Infantry

     James Thompson was the son of Phoebe (Chappell) and Francis Thompson. Phoebe was the twin sister of Anthony Bickel's wife, Dinah. He was born in 1843 in Gallia County, Ohio. He served for a total of 3 years and 3 months and participated in some of the war's greatest battles. Henry Wise's nephew, John Alexander, was a sergeant in the same Company. He had two sons during his first marriage to Mariam Topping. After she died he was married two more times. He is buried in Calvary Baptist Cemetery in Gallia County. His paternal grandfather, Andrew Thompson, was said to have been a Revolutionary War soldier.

Jacob Weiss (American Revolutionary War) Co. I, 2nd Regiment of Northampton County Militia

    Jacob Weiss was the son of Erhard and Susanna (Huth) Weiss/Wise and brother to Phillip Wise, my ggg grandfather. He was born May 8, 1754 in what is now Montgomery County, Pennsylvania. His dates of service extended from January 13 to November 25 1776. It is not known what type of service this involved. He was married in 1777 to Elizabetha Schmidt, who was actually his sister-in-law's sister. He died in 1825 and is buried in St. Paul's Blue Church Cemetery near Coopersburg, Pennsylvania.

George Matthew Wise. (Civil War) 43rd Ohio Infantry Co. A

     George M. Wise was the son of Philip and Prudence (MacMillan) Wise. He was the grandson of George Wise and Keziah (Kilgore) Wise, and the great grandson of Philip Wise and Anna Margareta (Schmidt) Wise. He was born September 5, 1841 and he died February 27, 1925. He is buried in Rock Hill Cemetery in Pultney Township, Belmont County, Ohio. He enlisted as a private at the age of 20 on November 2, 1861 at Bellaire, Ohio. His occupation was listed as farmer. He was discharged as a 1st Lieutenant on July 13, 1865. His entire tour of duty was spent with the Army of the Cumberland. He served initially as regimental postmaster in the Quartermaster Dept. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant at Bolivar, Tennessee, which is near the Shiloh battlefield, on October 4, 1862. He was able to go home to Ohio (from Decatur, Alabama) on leave in October and November of 1864. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant-major on Jan. 1, 1864 when he re-enlisted at Prospect, Tennessee, which is just outside Chattanooga. He was with General Tecumseh Sherman’s army and this was just before the start of Sherman’s march to the sea. He was promoted to the rank of 1st Lieutenant on January 17, 1865 at Pocotaligo, South Carolina, (about 35 miles north of Savannah, Georgia) with Sherman’s army headed north after their famous swing through Georgia. He served as adjutant for the duration of his service. He received his discharge from the army on July 13, 1865 at Louisville, Kentucky. After the war he married Hannah Jennie Keyser in 1866. They had six children. He served for many years as postmaster in Bellaire, Ohio. He was the census taker for the 1880 census in Pultney Township in Belmont County.

His letters written to his family back in Ohio have been published online by the Ohio Historical Society on its website. (George M. Wise's letters home) 

Henry Wise. (War of 1812)

     Henry Wise was the son of Erhard Weiss and Susanna Huth. He was the only one of their children who stayed in York County, Pennsylvania when all of the rest moved on to Ohio. He was born in 1777 in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania and died in York County in 1820. There is a record from Veterans' Affairs of service during the War of 1812, but no mention of the type of service.

Henry Wise. (American Civil War) "Squirrel Hunter"

     Henry Wise was the son of John Wise. John was the brother of Henry Wise in the previous paragraph. John's son, Henry, was the father of Rosa Belle (Wise) Elvick and was my great-grandfather. Squirrel Hunter was a name applied to the Ohio men who were called up to defend Ohio's southern border in September, 1862 when the state was threatened with an invasion by Confederate forces in Kentucky. The Confederate troops were withdrawn within a month and the Squirrel Hunters were then discharged. His name appears as Jno. Henry Wise from Clay Township, Gallia County on the Squirrel Hunter's roster. Jno. (abbreviation for John) was a derivative of the German, Johan, which was still being used at baptism, but thereafter usually discarded.

Jacob Wise: (Civil War) Co. I, 130th Pennsylvania Infantry; Co. D, 194th Pennsylvania Infantry; and Co. K, 149th Pennsylvania Infantry.

    Jacob Wise was born in Peach Bottom Township in York County, Pennsylvania in 1841, the son of Nathaniel G. Wise, grandson of Henry and Margaret (Anderson) Wise and great grandson of Philip and Mary Wise. He served in three different Pennsylvania Infantry regiments from August 1862 to June 1865.

John Wise: (Civil War) 7th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry Co. L

    John Wise was the youngest son of John Wise and Jane MacMillan. He was called John Wise Jr. on certain land deeds. He was born about 1826 in Belmont County, Ohio. He married Esther Bailey in 1846 and in the mid 1850's they moved to Perry Township in Gallia County, Ohio. He served in the same regiment as Salmon Bickel above but was in a different company. This unit participated in multiple actions with the enemy from October 1862 until it was mustered out on July 4, 1865 in Nashville, Tennessee. All of the action was in Kentucky and Tennesse except for the pursuit of Morgan's Raiders which took them into Indiana and Ohio in July of 1863.