We are pleased to offer for the first time this large grouping that pertains to William Byron Henry (1837-1910), who served Company B of the 116th Ohio Infantry during the Civil War. Henry enlisted with the rank of Sergeant, but was given command of company "B" after the death of Captain Edwin Keyes, who was captured by Confederate forces during the Battle of Lynchburg (Keyes died in captivity).

A schoolteacher before the onset of hostilities, Henry served until the end of the war, fighting with the 116th OH Infantry in almost all of their major engagements. In 1868, Henry and his family moved from Ohio to Minnesota, where he died in 1910. Henry never forgot the death of his friend, Captain Keyes, and named his first born son "Edwin Keyes Henry." Henry was so highly admired that the The Leader, a newspaper in Pomeroy, Ohio, published a full page tribute to Henry upon his death. The article is a glowing account of Henry's life, filled with friend's attestations describing his impressive qualities and gallant service during the Civil War.

This large, comprehensive grouping includes: a rare recruitment broadside, two pairs of gold bullion bordered officer's straps, two issued officer's hat cords, a 100+ page ledger that tracks named individual soldier's expenses (knapsack, issued boots, etc) in the 116th Ohio, a carved wooden ring that reads “Union" made by Henry, a Civil War era patriotic powder flask, Henry's military buttons he that wore on his uniform, a Civil War era housewife, a Civil War era leather wallet, Henry's inscribed bible, over 30 wartime documents and letters, a three-page memoir describing Henry’s motivation for enlisting in the Civil War, various pieces of paper ephemera relating to Henry's life, a wartime diary/ledger written by Henry that includes battle content and many interesting entries, six tintypes of 116th Ohio soldiers, a carte-de-visite (CDV) photograph of Henry, business cards, six Civil War era cased images of Henry/his family, and personal items/documents/images too numerous to list.

Attached to this lot are nearly 40 photos that show most of the group’s contents. Please contact us if you’d like to see additional items, close-up views, etc.

Rarely are so many items relating to a soldier’s service and life kept together like this, the group is a veritable time capsule from the Civil War era. 

[Civil War, Union, Confederate] [Civil War, Union, Confederate] [19th Century Photography, Daguerreotype, Ambrotype, Tintype, CDV, carte-de-visite, albumen, cabinet card]