Kelly Sagert

Kinswomen Poem

Kinswomen Blood of kinswomen throbs through my veins twisting strands of shared DNA from women I’ve never known except when they whisper to me in my dreams. Oh, kinswomen, I’ve missed you. Welcome Home   Home is where kinswomen linger after they have left the Earth still embracing loved ones shared memories connecting their inner hearts, spirits, and souls remembering lifetimes together   Photo by Sandra Seitamaa on Unsplash

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Wells Waite Miller: Filling in the Gaps, Part 2

I continue my research into forgotten Civil War hero Wells Waite Miller thanks to a book titled Margaretta Township and Castalia Village: Past and Present (Cold Creek Girl Scouts, 1976). You can find part one here where I fill in some gaps in my knowledge. Here’s the next set. Wells Waite Miller: Short Teaching Career After being seriously wounded at Gettysburg in 1863, Wells served in the position of captain in the Veteran Reserve Corp, effective April 1, 1864. He wanted to return to the regular Army but was denied the opportunity during the rest of the Civil War and

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Wells Waite Miller: Filling in the Gaps, Part 1

Today, I headed to the library in Sandusky, Ohio to read a reference book titled Margaretta Township and Castalia Village: Past and Present (Cold Creek Girl Scouts, 1976). Thank you, Girl Scouts! In this slim volume of history, I hoped to find pieces of information to further fill out my understanding of Wells Waite Miller, a largely forgotten Civil War hero from Castalia—and I’m happy to report that I did. In this post and its sequels, I’ll link to previously written posts and add more details to the stories. More Details About the Castalia Massacre I’d previously written about a

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Redemption by the River

In this poem, I imagine encountering the ghosts of ancestors along the river bed.  Chilly mud dampens my knees as I kneel at the edge of the river. Relentless water ruts the earth, pummeling ancient boulders, stripping even grace bare.   I’m hammered by heartbreak with ghostly mist my only witness. When I finally lift my head, the moon is my lantern and I see you, standing silently by the riverbank.   My heart flutters, a tambourine, till I realize how long ago your tears fed this river in the opening by the pines. Your blood now flows in my

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Are You a Writer?

Wondering if You Are a Writer? Give yourself one point for each of these that sound like you: You love to read: Maybe you hide a flashlight under your bed so you can read under the covers, late at night. You probably tuck a book in your book bag, so you’re never without reading material. If without a book or magazine, you’ve been known to read ingredients on a can of food. You love to write: You might write poetry or essays or stories. You might keep a journal. We each have our own types of reading and writing that

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Thomas Miller: Ancestors in England

Wells Waite Miller’s direct ancestor, Thomas, came to the Colonies from England during the Great Puritan Migration in the 1630s. Initially an integral part of the community, Thomas ended up being at the center of one of its greatest scandals. How? He fathered a child with his maid, Sarah, Nettleton, while still being married to Isabel. Their child, also named Thomas, is part of Wells’ direct lineage. Certain first names were commonly used throughout generations in the Miller family—something not especially unusual. Nor were the names repeatedly used: Thomas, John, Samuel, and Joseph for males and Margaret for females. Thomas

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Calvin Caswell, Continued

Previously, I provided an overview of the life of Calvin Caswell, the father in law of Wells Waite Miller (who is the Civil War soldier I’ve been researching). This includes information about his grandfather, Thomas Caswell, who served as a Revolutionary War soldier; his father, Thomas, who fought in the War of 1812; how Calvin came to Ohio; and his two marriages (to sisters) and his  children, including Mary Helen who married Wells in 1864. I’ve also researched the tragic “Castalia Massacre,” which occurred in 1813 on land that, in 1851, Calvin bought and built his house upon. Here’s more!

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Aaron Miller: Born Under the Drumbeats of War

Birth of Aaron Miller, Jr. Born on February 17, 1758, Aaron Miller, Jr. was just two years old when the French and Indian War began, which kept British forces in the Colonies busy fighting—and spending money on military-related expenses. This war lasted until the Treaty of Paris in 1763 when France ceded its mainland North American territory to Britain. This war and subsequent treaty vastly increased the territory held under the British crown, but it was an expensive war, one that led to Britain increasing taxes on those living in the Colonies. Couple that with George III coming to the

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Captured! Camp Parole

“Hardened veterans, scarcely strangers to the sting of battle, nevertheless found themselves ill-prepared for the horror and despondency awaiting them inside Civil War prison camps. While they often wrote frankly of the carnage wrought by bullets smashing limbs and grapeshot tearing ragged holes through advancing lines, many soldiers described their prisoner of war experiences as a more heinous undertaking altogether.” (American Battlefield Trust) After the brutal fighting at Antietam on September 17, 1862, Wells Waite Miller of the 8th OVI headed to Harpers Ferry, Virginia with his unit where they went to rest, reinforce, and resupply. On October 29, 1862,

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Wells Waite Miller: Republican Candidate for Ohio Governor?

As I’ve been researching the life and times of Wells Waite Miller, it has become quite clear that he played a significant role in 19th-century Erie County politics and farmers associations, also serving as longtime secretary of what became the Ohio Department of Agriculture. Going through scans of Sandusky newspapers, though, revealed much more. Setting the Stage: Ohio Governor’s Race On January 8, 1900, Republican George Kilbon Nash became Ohio’s 41st governor—an election in which Wells Waite Miller had received support to become the Republican candidate. It’s interesting to see the many ways in which the two men experienced similar

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