Person Page - 1008

Predeceased: Alice McDowell, Lester Summach and Mary Summach.⁵

A member of one of the oldest families of this county was born in Miller Township, April 19, 1846. He is a son of Franklin T. Blasdel, of the old Blasdel family, which was prominent in the early settlement of the county, and is elsewhere referred to in this work. Our subject was reared on the farm and educated in the township and district schools, with the advantage of two years in the public schools of Lawrenceburgh. In the fall of 1862 he entered the war, enlisting in Company H, Eighty-third Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and serving almost three years. He took part in some of the most important battles of the war among which were the siege of Vicksburg, and the engagements of Sherman on his famous march to the sea- On his retirement from the service Mr. B. taught school five terms, and in 1875 purchased fifty acres of land, which he has since been engaged in cultivating. He was married, October 4,1870, to Mary E. Leming, daughter of Lorenze D. Leming, of Miller Township, an old resident of the county. They have six children: Flora E., Mabel A., Emma G., Quincey E, Franklin T. and Charles D. Mr. Blasdel is a member of the G. A. R., and Baptist Church, and is an industrious, reliable citizen in every particular.¹⁸

Civil War Veteran
     Called to His Last Rest From His Home at Bright
     Chas. B. Blasdel, a veteran of the civil war, died at his home in Bright last Saturday aged seventy-seven years, ten months and four days.
     Mr. Blasdel was the son of Frank T. Blasdel, of the old Blasdel family, which is one of oldest families in the vicinity, and one which was very prominent in the early settlement. He was born April 12(?), 1846, reared on the farm, and educated in the township and district schools, having the advantage of two years in the public schools of Lawrenceburg.
     He was one of a family of ten children. One brother, Jerry Blasdel, lives at Great Falls, Montana; one sister, Mrs. Fannie Johnson, lives at Salt Lake City, and Mrs. Cora Blount of Atchison, Kansas, survive him.
     In his young days he shared all the hardships of the life of a Baptist preacher and a farmer's family. Uniting in youth with the Baptist church, he remained all his life a consistent faithful member.
     In the fall of 1862 he entered the civil war, enlisting in Co. II, 83rd Indiana Volunteer Infantry, and served almost three years. He took part in some of the most important battles of the war, among which were the siege of Vicksburg, and the engagements of Sherman on his march to the sea, taking part in the battles of Lookout Mt., Youngstown, Chicamanga and many others.
     At one time he was stricken with typhoid fever which kept him for many weeks in hospital.
     After reaching the sea where his service ended, he in company with his comrades went to Washington, D.C., where they took part in the grand review where they passed before the highest authorities of the United States, being reviewed by President Abraham Lincoln in the presence of 75,000 persons from other lands.
     In June 1865, occurred his retirement from the service. He taught school for five terms, and after that (he h)as spent his life, engaged in the cultivation of the soil.
     He was married Oct. 4, 1870, to Mary E. Leming, daughter of Lorenzo Leming, of Miller township, also an old resident of the county.
     To this union were born four sons and four daughters. One son Franklin T. and two daughters, Mabel Sykes and Emma Cormican, preceded him to the grave.
     Mr. Blasdel was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic and the Baptist Church, and was ever an ... and reliable ... loved and respected by all who knew him.
     ...he was borne to his last resting place in the Gibson Cemetery by World War veterans in uniform and Ralph M(ericle), Bright's last civil war veteran, an honored attenda(nt.)¹²

Civil War Veteran Answers Last Roll Call
     Charles Blasdel, age 78, one of the well-known residents of Miller Twp. died at his home in Bright, Saturday, February 23rd.
     Mr. Blasdel was a veteran of the Civil War, enlisting in Company H, 83rd Indiana Regiment, in this county, when Lincoln issued his second call for volunteers in 1862. He was then but seventeen years of age. The company of which he was a member participated in some of the important engagements of the war. He was with Grant at the siege of Vicksburg, and later was with Sherman on his famous march to the sea. After taking part in the Grand Review of the armies of the East and the West in Washington, at the close of the war, he returned to his home in Miller township, where he resided on a farm until he retired about 12 years ago. He then moved to Bright, where he lived until the time of his death.¹⁹

Survivor(s): George R. Ziebell and Gus Ziebell.⁸