Shannon M. Thomas | Mostly Genealogy

In the next few posts in this series I hope to tell the story of the Fishing Creek Confederacy and Alvah Russel Rutan. On August 28, 1861 the first arrests were made.  Roughly 100 men were gathered in a church in Benton, Columbia County, Pennsylvania.  Of the 100 gathered 45 men were arrested and marched to Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania in Columbia County from Benton.  The men did not resist arrest even though they were not given a reason for the arrests.  From Bloomsburg the men were taken by train to Fort Mifflin (below Philadelphia). Once they arrived there they were denied contact with counsel, friends and family.  They were not told who was accusing them or what they were being arrested for.  All of the men who were arrested were Democrats and only one of them had been drafted or were eligible for the draft. The men were honest, hard working men who believed in God and each other.  They did what they could to meet the draft quota for Columbia Count...

I have some alerts set up on Ebay to let me know when anything is posted with some of my surnames and even some places.  One of the alerts I get is anything Siegfried related.  About a month ago I was alerted to a picture of a woman and on the back of the picture is written Emma Siegfried {I'm pretty sure it says Mrs Emma Siegfried} and of course I bought the photo .   The other thing I noticed on the back of the photo was the photographer's name and that it says Reading PA.   {I know some of the Siegfried's come from that area}. I looked in my Legacy database to see if I have an Emma Siegfried . . . and I do!  One is my great aunt born in 1926 {the photo is not of her} and the other is Emma Lydia Shellhammer Siegfried born in 1862 {I don't think it is of her but it could be}. Emma Siegfried {front} Emma Siegfried {back} In the picture below are my 2nd Great Grandparents William Andrew Siegfried {who is also my half 2nd great uncle} and Emma Lydi...