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PHILADELPHIA TO HONOR CIVIL WAR'S ONLY ARMENIAN SOLDIER
Tert.am
11:01 27.09.11
The only known Armenian to have served in the Civil War, Khachadour
Paul Garabedian, is will be recognized with a new grave marker in a
Philadelphia cemetery on Saturday, October 1.
According to The Washington Times, the construction of the hero's new
thumb-stone became possible thanks to an anonymous $10,000 donation
and the dedication of fellow Armenian-Americans.
Garabedian was born in the small town of Rodosto near Constantinople
(now known as Istanbul) in Turkey, on August 25, 1836, and immigrated
to Lowell, Mass. in the late 1850s. There he worked as a machinist
and became an American citizen.
In 1864 at the age of 28, he enlisted in the Union Navy. Engineers
were in demand at the time, and his years of working in the mills in
Massachusetts made him a desirable recruit. He enlisted as a Third
Assistant Engineer, holding officer rank, and served upon two ships,
the USS Geranium and the USS Grand Gulf, both blockade ships, deployed
to cover Southern ports along the Atlantic Coast and later on in the
Gulf of Mexico.
Garabedian's letter of appointment was reported in the Lowell Daily
Citizen & News of August 11, 1864, part of which said:
"We record this appointment with pleasure. The young gentleman is
an Armenian by birth, but has become not only naturalized, but is
thoroughly indoctrinated in liberal and loyal principles. We have no
doubt at all that he will acquit himself honorably and usefully in
the position assigned him."
The USS Grand Gulf, on which Garabedian primarily served, had a
steam engine and was screw propelled. With a top speed of 11.5 knots,
armed with one 100-pounder, two 30-pounders, and three 8-inch guns,
it was highly effective as a blockader. She was credited with sinking
a number of blockade-runners along the coast.
From: A. Papazian
Tert.am
11:01 27.09.11
The only known Armenian to have served in the Civil War, Khachadour
Paul Garabedian, is will be recognized with a new grave marker in a
Philadelphia cemetery on Saturday, October 1.
According to The Washington Times, the construction of the hero's new
thumb-stone became possible thanks to an anonymous $10,000 donation
and the dedication of fellow Armenian-Americans.
Garabedian was born in the small town of Rodosto near Constantinople
(now known as Istanbul) in Turkey, on August 25, 1836, and immigrated
to Lowell, Mass. in the late 1850s. There he worked as a machinist
and became an American citizen.
In 1864 at the age of 28, he enlisted in the Union Navy. Engineers
were in demand at the time, and his years of working in the mills in
Massachusetts made him a desirable recruit. He enlisted as a Third
Assistant Engineer, holding officer rank, and served upon two ships,
the USS Geranium and the USS Grand Gulf, both blockade ships, deployed
to cover Southern ports along the Atlantic Coast and later on in the
Gulf of Mexico.
Garabedian's letter of appointment was reported in the Lowell Daily
Citizen & News of August 11, 1864, part of which said:
"We record this appointment with pleasure. The young gentleman is
an Armenian by birth, but has become not only naturalized, but is
thoroughly indoctrinated in liberal and loyal principles. We have no
doubt at all that he will acquit himself honorably and usefully in
the position assigned him."
The USS Grand Gulf, on which Garabedian primarily served, had a
steam engine and was screw propelled. With a top speed of 11.5 knots,
armed with one 100-pounder, two 30-pounders, and three 8-inch guns,
it was highly effective as a blockader. She was credited with sinking
a number of blockade-runners along the coast.
From: A. Papazian