Help With ID'ing Civil War Photographer Last Name Ward

Pat's pension card says the soldier being reported on became an invalid when the invalid claim was filed Dec 4 1894 from Arkansas. Either that's not the same guy or the family trees have the wrong information.

 

I saw that there was also an Orson Ward who served out of Wisconsin in the Civil War. And there may have been more.

I wouldn't be surprised at any online family trees having inaccurate information, either.

 

Don't believe everything you read on line..............this included !!

 

"White tree trunk paint" is still being sold today.

Different reasons are given depending on the geographical area (weather).

When I was a young child I remember seeing "lower" tree trunks painted white. I "think" there was a white paint(?) used long ago which was painted over a tree trunk which had been "wounded" in some way or had been infested (or in danger of being infested) by various insects (don't know which insects though).

I'm fairly certain that in my area it wasn't done for aesthetic reasons.

 

Hi,
We used to whitewash trees from the roots to the first branches. It was to "kill" off any strange insects that might find their way up the tree. This was done in the hills next to West Virginia commonly called Western Pennsylvania in the 30s and 40s. The whitewash was made from lime and water. It also was used in painting the inside of the hen house and barn interiors. It was also painted on the stone walls near the house.
greg

 

I never paid much attention, either... somehow I thought my physical surroundings had always been the way they were and always would be. The naivete of youth...

I was in the middle of Brooklyn in a nice neighborhood with tree-lined side streets, so may have seen painted trees there... not sure. Our house had the tiniest lawn you can imagine, yet we actually had a two-story tree. I don't think the lawn was much wider or deeper than the tree's branches.

The tree was removed sometime since, which makes me sad.

 

Sure, Fig, I understand. I'll list the references in the same sequence as the info I posted above....

1. Historical Data Systems, comp. U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2009.

Original data: Data compiled by Historical Data Systems of Kingston, MA from the following list of works.

Copyright 1997-2009
Historical Data Systems, Inc.
PO Box 35
Duxbury, MA 02331.

2. National Archives and Records Administration. U.S., Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2000.

Original data: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration. T288, 546 rolls.

3. New York State Archives, Cultural Education Center, Albany, New York; New York Civil War Muster Roll Abstracts, 1861-1900; Archive Collection #: 13775-83; Box #: 1180; Roll #: 837

Source Information
Ancestry.com. New York, Civil War Muster Roll Abstracts, 1861-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011.

Original data: Civil War Muster Roll Abstracts of New York State Volunteers, United States Sharpshooters, and United States Colored Troops [ca. 1861-1900]. (microfilm, 1185 rolls). Albany, New York: New York State Archives.

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I'll see if I can find source info for the family trees.

 

Fig, the info in the first family tree apparently was derived from other trees in Ancestry. The second tree cited this source, but didn't provide a link...

"Online publication - Ancestry.com. OneWorldTree [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: MyFamily.com, Inc."

 

According to all the public trees (and there are quite a few) that cover what appears to be the Orson L Ward in those military records, Orson L Ward was born in Poultney, Vermont. They cite (and have attached) the 1850 Census when Orson was 17 and working on the family farm. His father was already deceased.

None of them have any other records for him (besides the military records) past that date - and many say he died 1870 or so, without corroborating records. Those that give a location all seem to say California.

 

Ugh. The "OneWorld Tree" is made up of the information gleaned from existing online trees - whether documented or not. I put absolutely no faith in it as a "source."

 

I know in the family tree I created in Ancestry, I have people and relationships that I found in other people's trees but couldn't corroborate.

So I have no idea if my own tree is accurate, but since I didn't want to spread misinformation, I kept my tree private.

 

Bakers, do you know if OneWorld Tree includes info only from public trees or also from private ones?

 

A good choice, Pat.

 

I'm not certain about that, Pat. Since "they" have all the information (and mis-information) from all the trees, they may have included the private ones, but I don't know for sure. When you get a OneWorld Tree match to look at, you will notice that there are no records attached with which to confirm.

 

I have such mixed feelings about Ancestry. It's great that all this info has been pulled together and that they make it fairly easy to access. But it bugs me that historical data has been monetized and made proprietary.

 

Thank you all so much again for the help!

What I'm confused about, is that it would seem if he was residing in this house in the early 1860's in occupied South Carolina and taking photos, we would find CDV's or Cabinet Photos with O. Ward or O. L. Ward etc.

According to the fellow who sold me the photos, Ward was a photographer himself, and lived in that house taking photos of the war. (which is what is written in antique ink on the back of the house photo)

 

I agree... but it is useful. I still don't like all of the trees with no sources. Or sometimes the Census is cited as a source for things like a death date. And it only very rarely can be used for that purpose. Just good clues, but not really very useful in many cases. I didn't know about the One World Tree. Sounds like that could really cause misinformation to proliferate!

 

Hard to say... he might have been a photographer, but not well known as one. Perhaps taking private photos? Also it sounds like he was in the war and perhaps he was a military photographer?

 

The Beaufort area of SC was occupied from late 1861 onward, although the majority of the state inland was free of Union troops until Sherman marched through in 1865. So, assuming this O L Ward was the one who served in the maritime artillery and was discharged from service in 1863, he could have stuck around.

But I just realized that the portrait was taken in Chicago. Hm. The man got around!

 

If he was a military photographer, I'd his work most likely wasn't issued under his name.

My guess is that photographers who owned their own studios became well-known because they marketed themselves heavily.