Brother vs Brother, Maryland 1st Regiment in Front Royal, Virginia & Elsewhere

Visiting the remarkable location in Front Royal, Virginia where brother literally fought against brother. It was here in 1862 that a young Confederate man actually captured his own Union/Yankee brother on the battlefield. Both young men were recruited from the same town and county so it was literally became a matter of former friends from the same families, church, schools, and neighborhoods shooting and fighting against one another on the battlefield. The North and South each had organized a Maryland 1st Regiment of which each brother joined. One historical marker tells of roommates from the same military school fighting against each other during the battle and attending each others weddings while on leave. Of course, most of the time families were fighting on the same side which was actually more traumatic. Letters reveal that nearly every soldier had to bury their own family members and friends after each battle.

I also included photos of my visit to Union Mills, Maryland where a historical marker tells of a slave owning brother supporting the Union/Yankees while his older non-slave owning brother supported the Confederacy.

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ADDITIONAL READING/REFERENCES:
Brother Against Brother Historical Marker in Front Royal, VA:
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=1552

Culp Brother vs Brother, Historical Marker in Gettysburg, PA:
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=66634

Shriver Brothers: Brothers Divided
– Slave owning brother supported Union, non-slave brother owner supported Confederacy:
http://www.crossroadsofwar.org/wp-content/uploads/CWS_Divided-Families.pdf
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=155368

Campbell Brothers: Alexander and James fighting on opposite sides at the Battle of Secessionville:
https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-history/civil-war-brother-against-brother/

Front Royal war-between-states memorials:
https://www.hmdb.org/results.asp?Related=2436

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QUOTES:

- Lincoln: “My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery.”

- Lincoln: "I have no purpose directly or indirectly to interfere with the institution of slavery. I believe I have no lawful right to do so and I have no inclination to do so."

- Jefferson Davis: “We are fighting for Independence, we are not fighting for slavery. It never was an essential element.”

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- President Woodrow Wilson: “The role of slavery became the proclaimed cause the Civil War because it was necessary to put the South at a moral disadvantage by transforming the contest from a war for Independence into a war waged for the maintenance and extension of slavery.”

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PHOTOS & COMMENTARY:

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Photo:

Depiction of one of the remarkable moments in American history where Brother literally fought against brother on a battlefield in Front Royal, Virginia. Regiments were recruited from the same location so it was common that family and friends fought together, but also on occasion against each other. It was here in 1862 that a young Confederate man actually captured his Union/Yankee brother on the battlefield. Both young men were from their respective 1st Maryland Regiments. Both regiments were recruited from the same town so it was literally became a matter of former friends from the same families, church, schools, and neighborhoods shooting and fighting against one another on the battlefield. One historical marker tells of roomates from the same military school fighting against each other during the battle and attending each others weddings while on leave.

I also included photos of my visit to Union Mills, Maryland where a historical marker tells of a slave owning brother joining the Union/Yankees while his older non-slave owning brother joined the Confederacy.

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Photo:

Visiting the remarkable location in Front Royal, Virginia where brother literally fought against brother. It was here in 1862 that a young Confederate man actually captured his Union/Yankee brother on the battlefield. Both young men were from their respective 1st Maryland Regiments. Both regiments were recruited from the same town so it was literally became a matter of former friends from the same families, church, schools, and neighborhoods shooting and fighting against one another on the battlefield. One historical marker tells of roomates from the same military school fighting against each other during the battle and attending each others weddings while on leave.

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Photo:

Front Royal, Virginia with Warren County Courthouse, historical sign, Confederate Memorial, and Main St in the background

Excerpt from; https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=587
Stonewall Jackson, Moving against Banks, captured this town from a Union force under Colonel Kenly, May 23, 1862.
Map coordinates: (38° 55.071′ N, 78° 11.574′ W)
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Photo:

Visiting and reviewing the historical markers at Union Mills, Maryland which is located just south of Gettysburg, PA. This is the Mill owned by the Shriver Brothers who were divided by the war with the slave-owning brother supporting the Union and the non-slave owning brother supporting the Confederacy. The Confederate brother is the Great, Grandfather of Shriver/Kennedy fame. His Greatx2 grandaughter, Maria Shriver, married Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Here's more of the story:

Divided Families: The Shriver Brothers of Union Mill In 1863, brothers Andrew K. Shriver and William Shriver together shared the family homestead in Union Mills, Maryland. Andrew K. Shriver stayed in the main house with his wife Catherine and their four children, while William and Mary Shriver lived across the road with their family of eleven children. As one of their descendants put it, “The road … was not the only thing that divided the brothers.” When the tensions between the North and the South erupted into civil war, the Shriver brothers found themselves on opposite sides. In this they were like many other families in the mid-Maryland border region. Andrew, owner of a few household slaves, sided with the Union, while William, who owned no slaves, supported the Confederacy.3 In 1863, both brothers had the opportunity to host the opposing sides’ army.

Although they were reported to “live peacefully as neighbors,” it was inevitable that a certain amount of tension existed between the Shriver brothers and their families during the war. Louis Shriver, Andrew’s youngest son, later recalled: “Our two families lived close together and although we continued to visit back and forth, social discourse was always strained and often resulted in unhappy arguments.”4 In late June and early July 1863, when both Union and Confederate armies marched through Union Mills in one twenty-four hour period on their way to Gettysburg, the Shriver brothers’ opposing loyalties would become manifest.

The first to arrive were General Jeb Stuart’s Confederates, who knocked on Andrew Shriver’s door at eleven o’clock in the evening of June 29 and asked for shelter for the night. In his memoir, Louis Shriver, who was twelve at the time, described his father’s reaction to the Confederate general’s request: “’Well, sir,’ Andrew K. Shriver replied, ‘I can tell you, I am a Union Man!’”5 The elder Shriver had no intention of playing host to Confederates; he refused the officers lodging in his home, forcing them to sleep in the orchards, and declined to share any supplies. Even the threat of imprisonment did not compel Andrew Shriver to accommodate his guests. The morning after spending the night in the orchard, the Confederate officers moved across the road where they were greeted by a decidedly more enthusiastic and hospitable host. William Shriver was eager to feed and entertain the Confederates. His daughter Sarah would later write about having General Stuart and his men in their home: “… our table [was] surrounded by so many shining lights – Majors, Colonels, Captains, Doctors and to crown all, those two noble Generals: the harmony and good fellowship, high breeding, and aristocratic bearing of these noble men.” The officers enlisted William’s sixteen year old son, Herbert, as a guide, and at 10:00 am began their departure from Union Mills. This excitement was not to be the last that day for Union Mills and the Shriver families.

By the late afternoon, just as life was returning to normal, the Union troops made their appearance. The Fifth Corps of the Potomac under the command of General Sykes arrived in Union Mills at five o’clock. This time, the soldiers were a “welcome sight” to Andrew K. Shriver, who greeted the Northern troops with as much enthusiasm as his brother had the welcomed the Southerners. While Andrew K. Shriver extended his hospitality to the Union officers with food, entertainment, and a comfortable place to sleep for the night, no such assistance was forthcoming from William Shriver. In the morning, the twelve thousand men marched on to Gettysburg. Over the next few days, the Shriver households were on the periphery of the Battle of Gettysburg. After the battle, thousands of troops, prisoners, and wounded soldiers would pass through Union Mills on the road past the Shriver homestead. Some would stop at the “old long pump in front of our house to quench their thirst,” Louis Shriver later remembered. And, if he was nearby, Louis recalled that he would “gladly pump for them.”

The two Shriver brothers sent sons to join the military. Andrew K. Shriver’s eldest son, Henry Wirt, joined an emergency militia of Pennsylvania volunteers on June 17, 1863 during Lee’s northern invasion and returned home a month later when the unit was disbanded on July 30.11 Four of William Shriver’s eight sons joined the Confederate cause: Andrew Keiser served in the 1st Maryland Infantry; Christopher Columbus joined the Medical Department of Richmond; Thomas Herbert joined the 1st Virginia Cavalry after acting as their guide the night of the invasion; and Mark Ownings followed his older brother into the 1st Virginia Calvary shortly after the Battle of Gettysburg. 12 All five cousins survived the war, and many of their descendants are still living in Maryland, no longer divided by sectional tensions.

This was contributed by Andrew Borsa, B.A. from Boston College

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Misc Photo:

This historical war memorial and both historical markers were just recently removed from the front of the Bowling Green Courthouse in Virginia. No explanation was given to why they were removed. Polls found the public overwhelmingly supported keeping them in place. Some have suggested the primarily non-native county councilors don't want the public to be aware of what their Yankees did to southern towns.

Excerpt: "War is terrible anyway, but war between brothers is the worst of all."

Full text of the historical marker recently removed is found here and follows:
https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=12965

On May 21, 1864, Gen. Winfield S. Hancock’s Second Corps passed through Bowling Green. Union soldiers broke into stores, looted homes and freed prisoners from the jail. Documents from the ransacked courthouse littered the streets.

A few bold souls ventured outside to hurl epithets at their tormentors. “Are you going to Richmond?” cried one woman. “You’ll all lay your bones in the ground before you get sight of it!”

To help restore order, a young Union captain named Chapman posted guards. Invited for a hot meal by the owner of the nearby Star Hotel, Capt. Chapman would remember Bowling Green with fondness. In 1906, he wrote to Caroline County Clerk Ned Coghill that it was so kind to take an enemy in and feed him.

”War is terrible anyway,” Coghill replied, “but war between brothers is the worst of all. Thank God we are at peace! I was also a soldier in that war, and surrendered with General Lee at Appomattox. I have a warm spot in my heart for the old soldiers of both sides.”

This historical Confederate war memorial was recently removed from the front of the courthouse and moved to a nearby cemetery:

https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=116125


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Misc Photo:

Not real brothers, but many who fought against one another were once best friends. These two famous West Point cadet friends ended up on opposite teams. Here's Confederate Lt James Barroll (JL) Washington beside his friend Union Capt George Custer. Most are aware of George Custer's "last stand" death in Montana. JL Washington was one of about 20 close family relatives of George Washington that fought for the Confederacy. He served as aide-de-camp to General Joseph E Johnson and was captured at 7 Pines battle. Incidentally, the last private owner of Mt Vernon (John Augustine Washington) was Robert E Lee's aide-de-camp when he was killed early in the war. Robert E Lee had married the only child of George Washington's only son. Hence, roughly half of George Washington's descendants (through his 2 adopted children) are through Robert E Lee.



--------------------------- Story of West Point friends who found themselves on opposite sides: Fitzhugh Lee and Averell were fighting each other as Generals on opposing sides, they were closest of friends at West Point.Lee sent his old friend and classmate the following message during this time, "I wish you would put up your sword, leave my state, and go home. You ride a good horse, I ride a better. If you won't go home, return my visit, and bring me a sack of coffee. ---------------------------


END... Many more to come

Rob Heyward