First Class Scout
Dublin Core
Title
First Class Scout
Subject
Union Soldier
Description
First Class Scout
Benjamin B. Hart, a private in the 24th New York Infantry, gained a reputation as a first-class scout for his division in late 1861 and early 1862. According to a newspaper article datelined from Upton’s Hill in Arlington, Va., where Hart posed for this portrait, he “won by his daring and valuable services a handsome compliment from his regiment. At dress parade a few evenings since, the regiment was formed in a hollow square, and Private Hart was called forward. The Major then complimented him on his soldierly bearing and courageous adventures, and in the name of the regiment, and as testimonial of their appreciation, presented him with a revolver of superior workmanship, a spy glass, a pocket compass, and a set of maps of the region and State of Virginia.” Speeches were made afterward. The report added, “This, we believe, is the first instance in which a private has won such a complimentary notice from his regiment.”
Hart was not able to enjoy the honor for long. On Aug. 30, 1862, at the Second Battle of Bull Run, Hart suffered a severe wound in his right leg that ended in an amputation. Hart succumbed to its effects in November 1862 at age 33.
Carte de visite by the Army Photograph and Ambrotype Gallery at Upton’s Hill, Va.
Benjamin B. Hart, a private in the 24th New York Infantry, gained a reputation as a first-class scout for his division in late 1861 and early 1862. According to a newspaper article datelined from Upton’s Hill in Arlington, Va., where Hart posed for this portrait, he “won by his daring and valuable services a handsome compliment from his regiment. At dress parade a few evenings since, the regiment was formed in a hollow square, and Private Hart was called forward. The Major then complimented him on his soldierly bearing and courageous adventures, and in the name of the regiment, and as testimonial of their appreciation, presented him with a revolver of superior workmanship, a spy glass, a pocket compass, and a set of maps of the region and State of Virginia.” Speeches were made afterward. The report added, “This, we believe, is the first instance in which a private has won such a complimentary notice from his regiment.”
Hart was not able to enjoy the honor for long. On Aug. 30, 1862, at the Second Battle of Bull Run, Hart suffered a severe wound in his right leg that ended in an amputation. Hart succumbed to its effects in November 1862 at age 33.
Carte de visite by the Army Photograph and Ambrotype Gallery at Upton’s Hill, Va.
Source
Ronald S. Coddington Collection
Collection
Citation
RonCoddington, “First Class Scout,” Mapping the Civil War in Arlington, accessed October 22, 2024, https://mtcwia.com/items/show/210.