Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive!

These words, often attributed to others, were penned by Sir Walter Scott. They can be found in the 17th stanza of the poem, Marmion, Canto VI. There will be many webs to untangle through these posts. I will try to be as fair as I can in my presentation. However, I will have an opinion. I will happily change it with new evidence or a convincing counter-argument. I will also seek to be respectful of those whose lives I will be giving some account of. However, we are neither angels nor devils, so there will be some shades of grey emergining over the next several posts.

I am hoping that those who are looking for information about various people might pick up clues at this site that will shorten their search. I also hope that those who have further information will be willing to share it to create a fuller picture of the family and the times in which the various members lived.

This post continues a story taken up for the first time in the previous post. It seeks to ask and answer, to one degree or another, the question: Who was Jeremiah Ingalls? I am not talking about the composer. Well, I will have something to say about him. However, my focus will be on Jeremiah Boss, the son of Stephen and Lucina (nee Bulman) Boss. Jeremiah Boss can be found with his family in the 1850 and 1860 Federal Census data for Kirkland, New York. There is evidence that he enlisted in Company I of the 2nd Oneida Regiment, the 26th New York Volunteers. Company I was, in fact, recruited from Oriskany in Oneida County. He is reported to have been wounded in the thigh by a ball at the Battle of Fredericksburg.

Yet, he is not to be found again in the Census data. Did he die of his wounds? I do not think so. In the previous post, I mentioned the Act that increased the invalid pension of Jeremiah Ingalls (alias Jeremiah Boss). This is the first of many clues to be followed. It leads directly to the pension claim that he applied for on 24 December 1864. Later, a Margaret Ingalls would make a widow's claim in Minnesota in 1916. It is to Minnesota that we must go.

In the 1870 Federal Census data, a Jerry Ingalls can be found in Shell Rock, Freeborn, Minnesota. He is 27 and was born in New York. His occupation is listed as a carpenter and joiner and he has $700 worth of real estate and $300 of personal funds. In 1880, a Jeremiah Ingals (37) can be found in the Federal Census data in Austin, Mower, Minnesota. He is with his wife, Margarett (29) and children: William (8), Ada (6), Alice (4) and Arthur (2). He is listed as a house carpenter whose parents, like himself, were both born in New York. His wife was born in Canada. Her father was born in Scotland and her mother in Canada. That her maiden name was Gemmel is asserted here and here. The family base will not move from Austin in Jeremiah's lifetime.

Many of the family are buried in the Oakwood Cemetery in Austin, Minnesota. Jeremiah's headstone can be viewed here. Margaret's is here. At this site, you can find the following information:

Ingalls, Jeremiah E. 04-10-1843 06-23-1916
Ingalls, Margaret P. 02-19-1851 07-05-1934

The "E" may be for Eugene. They had a son whose middle name was Eugene.

Something interesting happens in the 1885 Minnesota Census (1 May 1885). His year of birth is still listed as 1843. However, while he nominates himself as having been born in New York, he lists both his parents as having been foreign born. Additionally, although there is a column specifically for this question, he makes no mention that he was a soldier in the Civil War. It gets stranger still in the 1890 Veteran's Schedule. Here his is listed as Jeremiah Ingalls, alias Jeremiah Boss, who served as a private in I Company of 26 NY Infantry from 26 April 1861 until 28 May 1863. In the notes it states that he had a gun shot wound to the right testicle and hip, a bayonet wound to the right leg and a sabre wound to the left wrist. He is also listed as having chronic diarrhea and piles. There is a further note that is quite strange. It states that he took his step-father's name when he enlisted, as he was under age at the time.

If this is Jeremiah Boss of Kirkland, New York, there are some interesting implications. But, I will wait to speak to them as the plot actually thickens somewhat. In the 1900 Federal Census, he is 55 years old, works as a carpenter (althought he was not employed for 5 months in the previous year), owns a mortgaged house, was married in 1871 and lists both his parents as having been born in France. His wife has seven of nine children living and is 49. In fact, the census has Jeremiah as being born in April 1845 and Margaret in February 1851. They have a number of children still living at home: Victoria (August 1800), Jerry A. (November 1883), and Lucy A. (June 1887--yet she is listed as 2 years old...so, should this be 1897?). They have two roomers living with them; one is a printer and the other a day labourer.

In 1910, their daughter Lucy (12) still lives with Jerry (68) and Margaret (64). Jerry is wagon-maker who has worked each week during the past year, owns his own home free and clear, was in the Union Army and has two parents who were French. In 1920, a Margaret Ingalls (68 and born in Canada of a father from Scotland and a mother from Canada) lives in Lyon, Minnesota with her son-in-law, Arthur W. Calkins (24), and his wife, Lucy (22). They have a son named Arthur E. Calkins (2). In 1930, a Margaret Ingalls (80) lives in Mobridge, Walworth, South Dakota with her son-in-law, William James (60) and his wife, Victoria (49). Margaret had emigrated to America from Canada in 1858 and her father was born in Scotland and her mother in Canada.

According to this obituary, Jerry and Margaret lost their third child, Alice Zoe, in 1905. She died in her parents' home on West Maple Street after suffering for some time from a stomach abscess. She left a husband and child. She also left three brothers and three sisters: Will Ingalls, Mrs. Ada Hart, Arthur Ingalls, Victoria O'Dell, Burt (perhaps from Jeremiah Albert) and Lucy who was still living with her parents. The 1905 Minnesota Census indicates that the address was 510 West Maple Street. Jeremiah is listed as being 66 years old and Margaret as 54. Jeremiah's parents are still listed as having both been born in France. Jeremiah was a wagon-maker and had been a soldier in the Civil War. Both Lucy and William were living with Jerry and Margaret on 3 June 1905. Oddly, Margaret's mother is listed as having been born in Michigan.

Why the alias? And, which name is the alias? I believe that Ingalls is the alias. It makes no sense to use your "step-father's" last name to hide being underage at your enlistment. Additionally, the family actually lists his birth as 10 April 1843. He would have been 18 at his enlistment. In fact, the data states just this fact when he enlisted in May 1861. Also, he enlisted in a company comprised of men from Oriskany in Oneida. If Stephen Boss was his "step-father", then everyone would know him and the alias is hardly an alias. Besides, in 1860, there are only two adult Ingalls in Utica and surrounds. They are both in their earlier thirties and from Scotland. One is in the mental asylum.

Ingalls is a Scottish and English name with Viking associations. It is hard to believe, but not impossible that both parents would be born in France and the father's name of Anglo heritage. But, this does not fit the facts. Lucina was not listed as having been born in France. So, unless this Jeremiah Boss/Ingalls was not even from Oneida, the alias should be Ingalls and not Boss. The story about being underage and taking your step-father's name would be a convenient way to explain the fact that your current documentation and your discharge papers with their notes were in different names. However, it would really only work with someone who might not otherwise care. While my mind can be changed by other evidence, I find it an unconvincing story in itself.

But, why the alias and why French parents? Let's start with the second question first. If Lucina Bulman was Jeremiah's mother, then she would have had Native American heritage as did her brother Henry Bulman according to his son, Grisel Bulman. The Indian wars may have made admitting to a Native American heritage undesirable in the West. If Jeremiah was dark complected and had higher cheekbones, it might have been more convenient to claim French ancestry than Native American. It happens all the time. It is clear that before 1885, Jeremiah indicates that both parents had been born in New York.

Why the alias? By the time that the 2nd Oneida Regiment fought in the battles associated with Fredericksburg, they had already lost a large number of their original 1200-odd men. In those fateful days of December 1862, the 26th New York Volunteers could only put 280 men into the field. After the fighting, 170 men were found to be killed, wounded or missing. In the end, 51 were mortally wounded. Like the Second Battle of Bull Run, they had had the highest casualty rate of their Division. After their two years of service, the men of Regiment were mustered out on 28 May 1863 in Utica, Oneida County, New York. This is how Paul Taylor describes the fortunes of the Regiment in an overview of his 2005 book, Glory Was Not Their Companion, which lists Jeremiah Boss in the Regimental Roster, but not an Ingalls:

This is a story of New Yorkers who were recruited primarily from the gentle farmlands of central New York young and middle-aged, American and European, farmer and tradesman, poor and well-off all of whom were among the first to step forward and answer their fledgling nation's call during the Civil War. Though those young men marched proudly off to war anticipating glory and quick victory, victory was usually absent and glory was not their companion. Official accolades never seemed to materialize, and death soon wrapped its cold arms around the Second Oneida with a vengeance experienced by very few other blue-clad regiments. To be fair, more often than not the regiment was placed in difficult, often impossible tactical situations, which resulted in the New Yorkers being forced to leave the field in disorder. They did their best and played their small role in a much bigger production whose results helped to shape America into what it is today.

From the records, it would appear that Jeremiah was 19 years old when he survived Fredericksburg. It is not clear whether the sabre wound was given by a calvary trooper or by an Confederate officer of foot. In either case, the sabre and bayonet wounds meant that he had fought at very close quarters. These wounds may have been gained at an earlier time than Fredericksburg, given Taylor's description of the situation in the December battle where the actions of two privates would led to their receiving the Medal of Honour. It may be that Jeremiah was a very troubled young man when he returned to Utica and, then, tried to begin his life anew in Kirkland. The fact that he still suffered chronic diarrhea in 1885 might indicate continued distress after the war. From the slightly obscured data in the 1910 Federal Census, it looks like Jeremiah arrived in Minnesota shortly after the war.

Perhaps Jeremiah went west to get away from the reminders of the carnage in the east. He would not have been the only person. Again, he might have wanted to avoid being found by his family. It is also possible that he chose the name Ingalls for a very specific reason. Jeremiah Ingalls (1764-1838), a Congregationalist tavern-keeper, was a composer of some merit and reputation who had written a number of important works. The early ones had been published in a song book called, Christian Harmony. His music became part of an important movement (shape-note singing; e.g., Sacred Harp--remember the movie Cold Mountain with Nichole Kidman and Jude Law) that sought to train choral groups and choirs throughout the United States, particularly in rural areas (see this site for more information).

It should be noted that Alice Zoe was a member of Christ Episcopal Church and that her funeral in the Baptist Church was arranged by her parents.

Please spend some time watching the following videos (especially the Native American and African American shape-note singing) and perhaps even learn more about this important living tradition in the United States at site such as this one.