The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War walk to the gravesite of Civil War Union veteran Pvt. James Schobel White on Aug. 10, 2024, at the East London Cemetery Chapel in England. The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War hosts a memorial annually for fallen U.S. Civil War veterans in London. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
LONDON — A Civil War soldier received military burial honors for the first time over the weekend, thousands of miles from where he served and nearly 94 years after he was laid to rest.
The ceremony for Pvt. James Schobel White took place Saturday at the East London Cemetery and was hosted by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.
White was born in the United Kingdom in 1843 and joined the Union side on an impulse, keeping his enlistment secret from his family because he thought they’d be concerned for his safety, said Michael Hammerson, junior vice-commander of the Union veterans’ group.
They were right to be worried. He joined Company B, 113th Ohio Volunteer Infantry and fought in November 1863 at the Battle of Missionary Ridge near Chattanooga, Tenn., where more than 50,000 Union soldiers attacked over a long front and forced a Confederate retreat into Georgia. A Confederate officer described the loss as “the death knell of the Confederacy,” according to the National Parks Service.
David Frost, grandson of Civil War veteran Pvt. James Schobel White, receives a folded flag at the East London Cemetery, England, Aug. 10, 2024. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
A chaplain, left, and Mathew O’Neill, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War camp commander, lead the carrying of the flag to drape over the grave of Civil War veteran Pvt. James Schobel White at the East London Cemetery, England, Aug. 10, 2024. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
Chaplains give a closing prayer during the ceremony for Union Civil War veteran Pvt. James Schobel White at the East London Cemetery in England, Aug. 10, 2024. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
Mathew O’Neill, a camp commander with the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, gives the greeting and address for Civil War Union veteran Pvt. James Schobel White on Aug. 10, 2024, at the East London Cemetery Chapel in England. The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War hosts a memorial annually for fallen U.S. Civil War veterans in London. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
A family member of Pvt. James Schobel White holds the program created by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War in the East London Cemetery Chapel, Aug. 10, 2024. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
Michael Hammerson, junior vice commander of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, remembers Civil War veteran Pvt. James Schobel White through family letters, Aug. 10, 2024, at the East London Cemetery Chapel in England. Hammerson's organization hosts a memorial for U.S. Civil War veterans in London every year. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
White also fought in the broader Chattanooga campaign and well as the Atlanta campaign. He served for 20 years, family members at the service said Saturday.
The earliest incarnation of Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War was founded in 1881 and open to both veterans and family members. The group honors the fallen by seeking out, marking and maintaining the graves of Civil War veterans. It also awards college scholarships, provides educational resources and works on Civil War-related preservation projects.
More than 1,155 Union and 151 Confederate soldiers are buried in the United Kingdom, with more to be identified, according to the organization.
The ceremony on Saturday included choir hymns, prayers and a remembrance. Later, an American flag was held over the grave, then folded and presented to the family. Wreaths were laid at White’s gravesite, followed by a rendition of Taps.
White joined the London branch of the veterans’ group after he retired, said David Frost, White’s grandson.
“My mother always told me that he feared that since they were using so many flags for the increasing burials, he didn’t think there would be any left for him.
“I’m glad to finally say he was wrong.”
A chaplain, left, and Mathew ONeill, the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War camp commander, lead the carrying of the flag to drape over the grave of Civil War veteran Pvt. James Schobel White at the East London Cemetery, England, Aug. 10, 2024. (Loretto Morris/Stars and Stripes)
