U.S. Miltary Service: Calhoun, Middleton, Grimes, Rentz

As a tribute to Memorial Day, this post will touch on military service of my family in the U.S.  This blog is in no way complete and tends to stick to my more immediate family.  I welcome any content fellow family members can provide.  This blog will focus on my maternal side.  For my paternal  side, click here.

My mother's side of the family timed out so that the men missed much of the 20th century conflicts and also the Revolutionary war.  The Civil War and the ware of 1812 are prevalent in my maternal family history.

Civil War

My second great-grandfather, James Frank Calhoun fought for the Confederacy.  His record is as follows: Appointed 2d Sergeant of Co. G,  7th Regiment Ga. State Troops November 16, 1861. Mustered  out May 2, 1862. Enlisted as a private in Co. B (Milford Guards), 62d  Regiment Ga. Inf. May 31, 1862. Captured October 1863.  Transferred to Co. B, 8th Regiment, Ga. Calvary July 11, 1864.  Roll for December 31, 1864, last on file, shows he was "In hands of enemy." James made it home to Baker County Georgia and passed away in 1879. 

Lineage from Calhoun to me.  my mother:  Mary Lula Calhoun. Mary's father:  Zachariah Calhoun. Zachariah's father:  John T. Calhoun.  John T's father:  James Frank Calhoun.

Austin B. "Alsey" Middleton, also my second great-grandfather, enlisted as a private in the Georgia 29th Battalion which was ac
tually raised up in Schley County.  Alsey's great, great granddaughter, my mother Mary, would move to Schley County in 1947 when she married Donald Franklin.  Information about the 29th is as follows:

The commanders of the 29th were Lt. Col. Arthur Hood and Major Charles H. Camfield.  Company "D" was raised in Schley County and known as Hood's Cavalry or Schley Cavalry and had as its commander, Captain Jeremiah C. Lasseter, who in the 1860 census listed his profession as teacher.  The 29th Battalion was engaged in battles in McIntosh County, Ga from August 2 through August 4, 1864 and the Savannah Campaign in November and December 1864.

Lineage from Middleton to me.  my mother:  Mary Lula Calhoun. Mary's mother :  Claudia Mae Middleton.  Claudie Mae's father: William Middleton.  William's father:  Alsey Middleton.

In April of 1862, George Washington Grimes joined  the 55th Georgia Volunteer Infantry where the men from Miller County were known as the "Miller Wildcats." For details of their campaigns, click here.  Grimes was sick at the end of 1864 and was sent to a hospital in Knoxville, Tenn.  He made it home and lived until 1931.  G.W. Grimes was also my second great-grandfather.

Lineage from Grimes to me.  my mother:  Mary Lula Calhoun. Mary's mother :  Claudia Mae Middleton.  Claudie Mae's mother: Elizabeth Grimes.  Elizabeth's father; George Washington Grimes.

War of 1812

Joshua Rentz joined up to fight for his country at the age of 14, joining Juhan's Battalion, South Carolina Militia.

Lineage from Rentz to me.  my mother:  Mary Lula Calhoun. Mary's father:  Zachariah Calhoun. Zachariah's father:  John T. Calhoun.  John T's mother:  Arkansas "Babe" Rentz.  Babe's father: Joshua Rentz.

William Grimes. Sr. also fought in the War of 1812 with the : 2nd Regiment (Thomas) Georgia Militia. He joined at the age of 18.

Lineage from Grimes to me.  my mother:  Mary Lula Calhoun. Mary's mother :  Claudia Mae Middleton.  Claudie Mae's mother: Elizabeth Grimes.  Elizabeth's father; George Washington Grimes.   George's father: Williams Grimes Sr.

A Quick Overview of U.S. Military Service - Perrin, Beckwith, Franklin, Grantham, Dozier, Parham

As a tribute to Memorial Day, this post will touch on military service of my family in the U.S.  This blog is in no way complete and tends to stick to my more immediate family.  I welcome any content fellow family members can provide.  This blog will focus on my paternal side.  For my maternal side, click here.

Current

My first cousin, Andrew Perrin, has made his career serving in the military and includes serving in Operation Desert Storm. He has served as part of Special Forces and as a Ranger, sniper, interrogator and jungle specialist.He is currently stationed at Ft. Bragg as a member of the Army 101st Airborne.

Most famous

Col. "Charging" Charlie Beckwith is the most famous family member serving in the military. He is my father's first cousin. Col. Beckwith founded Delta Force and led the 1980 attempt to remove the American hostages held at the embassy in Teheran.  To learn more about Col. Beckwith, you can read his book, Delta Force.   Charlie's granddaughter, Mary Howe, has followed in his footsteps joining Air Force Special Ops unit that supports Delta Force in 2013.  She is currently deployed in the Middle East.

Charlie's older brother, Lamar Beckwith, served in WWII in the Army Air Corps.

WWII

Donald Franklin, my father, joined the Army October 11, 1942 at Ft. McPherson.  After basic training and before he was shipped out, Donald had a brush with fame.  He was stationed for a week with Clark Gable.  His time in the military was spent on Bermuda as a member of the Army Air Force, which later became a separate military branch.

All of Donald's sisters married men who served in WWII as well.  Uncle Howard Perrin flew planes, Uncle Howard Hall was in the 746th Railway Battalion, U.S. Army in Augsburg, Germany from 1944-1946.  Uncle Jimmy Stewart was a Marine and was at Iwo Jima.  These children of the 1920's grew up to earn the well-deserved title of "The Greatest Generation."

WWI

My grandfather, Henry Newton Franklin, joined the Army on October 22, 1917.  He and my grandmother had been married seven weeks.  Off he went to Ft. Screven on Tybee Island.  WWI ended November 11, before Newton was shipped out.

Civil War

The next generation to feel the affects of war goes back to my second great-grandfather, Benjamin J. Grantham who fought for the Confederacy.  His military record is as follows:
VOLUNTEER INFANTRY ARMY OF TENNESSEE C. S. A. SCHLEY COUNTY, GA SCHLEY

RIFLES Grantham, B. J.- private December 6, 1862. Detailed in Quarter- master Dept. February 1863. Surrendered at Greensboro, N. C. April 26, 1865.

Lineage from Grantham to me:  my father:  Donald Franklin. Donald's father:  H. Newton Franklin.  Newton's mother: Nancy Grantham.  Nancy's father:  Benjamin J. Grantham. 

Creek Indian War of 1836

Shepherd's Plantation battle marker

In 1836 when the Cherokee were removed from North Georgia, the Creeks, Choctaw, Chickasaw and Seminoles were also removed. Several battles broke out in 1836 and 1836 along the Georgia-Alabama borders south of Columbus.  The first battle in May of 1836 was in Roanoke, Ala., about 60 miles southwest of Sumter County where Hansel Beckwith (Beckworth) had settled.  Hansel signed up on May 30, just in time for the June 9 battle at Shepherd's Plantation, the most aggressive of the attacks.  For more information about the Creek Wars and the battle at Shepherd's Plantation, visit the Explore Southern History website.

Revolutionary War

While Amos Beckwith, also my fifth great-grandfather, did not fight in the Revolutionary War, he and his family did support the Colonial troups with supplies and was considered part of the war effort.

Lineage from Beckwith to me:  my father:  Donald Franklin: Donald's mother:  Bessie Beckwith.  Bessie's father:  Alburtus Beckwith:  Alburtus's father:  Hansel Beckwith.  Hansel's father:  Hansel Beckwith.  Hansel's father:  Henry Beckwith IV.  Henry's father:  Amos Beckwith.