behind AotW

Lieutenant Colonel Jacob Eugene Duryée led his regiment, the 2nd Maryland Infantry, in their attack on the Lower Bridge (Rohrbach’s, later Burnside’s) at Antietam on 17 September 1862. That was the highlight of his military career – he resigned his commission a few days later, probably to avoid the new Colonel, soon to arrive.

Here he is about 36 years later, in 1898, soon after his grandson Harvey Hoag Duryée, Jr. was born. That’s Junior in the middle, Jacob standing behind, Jacob’s mother Caroline E Allen Duryée (1820-1905), and his son Harvey Hoag Duryée (1871-1924). Sadly, little Harvey died at age 9 in 1907.

This lovely photograph was contributed to Findagrave by Kent Duryee. Thanks to Kent, also, for catching my error with Junior’s first name and for helping date the photograph:

Harvey Jr. was born on December 3, 1897, and he looks much older than one month, so the picture had to have been taken in 1898. Also, Jacob and his son Harvey and their families moved from New York to Los Angeles in late 1898. Caroline, Jacob’s mother who is in the picture on the left, remained in New York.