2nd Rhode Island Infantry at Camp Jameson about September 1861 – March 1862 . . . drilling, drilling, drilling, that thing General McClellan did so well. http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ppmsca.33197
Civil War (Union)
Company C, 2nd Regiment, Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry
John Boyle’s place of birth in the United States is uncertain. His parents and older siblings arrived in the country in the 1830s but the many records that indicate John’s place of birth vary between several states. The family settled down in Providence, Rhode Island before long and in 1861 John joined the 2nd Rhode Island Infantry. If you’ve ever watched the Civil War series by Ken Burns then you would have heard numerous quotes read by
Elisha Hunt Rhodes who, by the end of the Civil War, rose to command the regiment. John served from the beginning of the Regiment’s founding in 1861 until being mustered out on June 17, 1864 having served his three year term. During those three years John’s regiment would be involved in many of the famous engagements of the war, including Gettysburg
where a monument exists to memorialize their participation in that engagement.
John eventually applied for a pension for his service but died tragically soon after suffering an ailment on the job. His wife, Bridget, received assistance from friends and family to complete the process and she received a widow’s pension.