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Thomas Joseph Callan was born in Rathiddy, Dundalk, Co. Louth, on
July 13th, 1853, to Peter Callan and Ann Callan (née Hacket).
He was the last of four children. The others were William (1845),
Mary (1847), and Jane (1851). Thomas was baptised the day he was
born. His sponsors were Nicholas Callan and Catherine Jane Kelly.
His parents, Peter Callan and Ann Hacket, were married in Ballinfuil
on May 3rd, 1842. It is believed that Peter worked for the Fortescues
at Stephenstown, as did other members of his family, perhaps including
Thomas.
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We
don't know when Thomas J. Callan migrated to America. The next record
we have shows that he enlisted in the 7th Cavalry in Boston on March
10th, 1876, and was sworn in by Lieut. Henry Lawton. His enlistment
form says he had blue eyes, dark hair, fair complexion, and was
5 feet, 9 ½ inches in height. It also says that his previous
occupation was that of a morocco dresser.
Three months later Thomas found himself galloping towards the Little
Bighorn River in Montana, a trooper in General Custer's famed Indian-fighting
regiment. The 7th Cavalry intended to attack and subdue a large
camp of Sioux and Cheyenne Indians under Sitting Bull and Crazy
Horse. Thomas served with Company B whose assignment was to guard
the pack train containing provisions, ammunition, and accoutrements.
When Custer and 5 companies of the 7th Cavalry under his immediate
command were wiped out by Sioux and Cheyenne warriors some 4 miles
upriver the Indians turned their attention to the rest of the regiment,
7 companies under Major Reno, including Callan's Co. B.
two
days and nights Reno's men fought off continuous Indian attacks.
On the second day the pathetic cries of the wounded provoked some
of the men to run to the Little Bighorn River for water. The river
was almost half a mile away and the gulches and rocks concealed
thousands of hostile Indians. Thomas J. Callan was one of those
brave men who volunteered to run the gauntlet of bullets and arrows
and fill canteens in the river.
The water carriers were successful in their task and were lucky
to return without injury, apart from Private Michael Madden, Co.
K, a native of Galway, who was shot in the knee and had to have
his right leg amputated. (Strangely, Madden was not awarded a Medal
of Honor).
Thomas Callan was awarded a U.S. Congressional Medal of Honor along
with 23 others including Monaghan-born Sgt Thomas Murray. It is
believed that 6 other members of the water-carrying party were also
Irish.
T. J. Callan's citation reads: "Volunteered and succeeded in
obtaining water for the wounded and displayed conspicuous good conduct
in assisting to drive away the Indians".
A further example of Callan's courage comes from the Walter Camp
Collection: "Col. Sturgis sent Callan of Company B and another
man to carry a despatch to Col. Miles at Fort Keogh [in 1877]. Callan's
horse gave out enroute and the other man went on and left him. When
this man got to Fort Keogh he made no mention of it, and after Callan
got in, Miles put this man in the guardhouse and praised Callan
very much".
We next find T. J. Callan in the 1880 U.S. Census in Billings, Dakota
Territory, where he is listed as a soldier and married to a Lizzie
Callan, aged 22, a laundress. We don't know if he and Lizzie were
indeed married because soldiers sometimes
cohabited with laundresses during lonely times of duty on the frontier.
Thomas was discharged from the army on March 9th, 1881, at Fort
Yates, D.T., on expiration of service, as a private of good character.
His civil occupation was that of clerk and he resided in Yonkers,
N.Y., for 28 years. In the U.S. Census of 1900 he is found living
at 125 Downing Street in the 1st Ward. The census form lists a wife,
Mary J., aged 36, born in New York but whose parents were born in
Ireland. A daughter is also listed, Josephine (?), aged 11.
Thomas Joseph Callan died at 125 Downing Street at 11.30p.m. on
March 5th, 1908, at the age of 54. Cause of death was chronic interstitial
nephritis. He is buried in the Holy Sepulchre Cemetery, East Orange,
N.J., Grave 5, Lot 46, St. Stephens Path. There is a Veteran's Marker
on his grave.
His wife Mary received a pension until February 24th, 1919. (T.
J. Callan's obituary appears in the Chicago Record, March 7th, 1908,
the Helena, MT, Daily Herald, March 7th, 1908, and the Helena Daily
Independent, March 7th, 1908.)
If any readers of this article know of any living Callan descendents
or if they have any photos or other documents please contact the
proprietors of Custer's Cookhouse & Bar, 80 Bridge Street, Dundalk,
Co. Louth, Ireland. Tel: 042 935 9448 or e-mail: info@custerscookhouse.com
Following are some related internet sites:-
http://www.louthonline.com/Culture/History/Louth_Hero/louth_hero.html
http://www.louthonline.com/Culture/History/Stephenstown_/stephenstown_.html
http://www.louthonline.com/html/louth_hero.html
http://www.garryowen.com/water.htm
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=19709
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