Lloyd D. Forehand, 1845-1918 [RG0722.AM]

HISTORY NEBRASKA MANUSCRIPT FINDING AID

RG0722.AM:  Lloyd D. Forehand, 1845-1918

Papers:  1862-1919; 2007

Kearney, Buffalo County, Nebraska:  Soldier, homesteader

Size:  0.25 cu.ft.; 1 box

BIOGRAPHICAL NOTE

Lloyd D. Forehand was born at Croydon, New Hampshire, on February 2, 1845. He received his early education at Newport, New Hampshire, and at the age of 16 enlisted as a private in Company E, 5th Regular New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. Forehand was wounded at the Battle of Fair Oaks on June 1, 1862, and upon recovery from his wound, rejoined his regiment shortly before the second Battle of Bull Run. He was again wounded at the Battle of Fredericksburg and subsequently received his discharge at Fredericksburg in January of 1863. In December of that year he re-enlisted as a First Sergeant of the First and Second Battalion of Hancock’s Veteran Reserve Corps. Forehand was on patrol duty in Washington, DC, at the time of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. He was chosen as one of the twenty-four men detailed as a guard of honor to accompany the body of President Abraham Lincoln from Washington to Springfield, Illinois, in April of 1865. He was honorably discharged at Washington, DC, on February 2, 1866.

Upon leaving the service, Forehand migrated to Iowa. In July of 1869 he was married to Flora E. Andrews. They were to have three children, two daughters, Nellie E., Effie C. and one son, Clarence, who served as a Lieutenant in the Quartermasters Corps of the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. Forehand migrated to Buffalo County, Nebraska, in 1872 and settled on a homestead near Kearney, Nebraska. In 1885 he established his residence at Kearney and held the successive positions of superintendent of the first city water works, Kearney Street Commissioner and Superintendent of the Frank Improvement Company. Forehand died on May 27, 1918, in Kearney, Nebraska.

SCOPE AND CONTENT NOTE

This collection consists of one box of manuscript material dating from 1862-1919. This material primarily relates to the military activities of Lloyd D. and Clarence Forehand. The correspondence in folder 1 includes a copy of a letter written by Lloyd Forehand to his mother shortly after being wounded at the Battle of Fair Oaks as well as correspondence written by Clarence Forehand relating his experiences with the American Expeditionary Forces during World War I. This folder also includes a transcript copy of the diary maintained by L.E. Bulick as a member of the honor guard which accompanied the body of Lincoln from Washington to Springfield, Illinois. Lloyd Forehand received the diary transcript in 1910 from Mrs. B.B. Magee.

The remainder of the collection consists of biographical and genealogical materials relating to Lloyd Forehand and the Forehand Family, military certificates of Lloyd Forehand, and a few other miscellaneous items. Of special interest is the article, “Confederate Spy in the White House,” by James Rowe Adams (great grandson of Lloyd Forehand). The article discusses research done by Adams regarding a brief marriage between Lloyd Forehand and Mary E. Wise, an aid to Mary Todd Lincoln. The article reveals Adams’ belief that Mary Wise was actually a spy planted in the White House by the Confederacy.

INVENTORY

Box 1

Folder

1. 1. Correspondence, 1862-1919 (includes diary transcript)

1. 1. Military certificates, 1863-1919

1. 1. Biographical information

1. 1. “Confederate Spy in the White House,” by James Rowe Adams, 2007

1. 1. Genealogical material

1. 1. Miscellaneous

Subject headings:

Forehand, Clarence

Forehand, Lloyd D., 1845-1918

Lincoln, Abraham, 1809-1865

U.S. History — Civil War — Personal narratives

Wise, Mary Ellen

JEP/ht               10-10-1972

Revised TMM    10-05-2007

Encoded TMM   08-02-2011