Wayne County, Indiana
BIOGRAPHICAL
SKETCH OF VOLNEY HOBSON.
CAPTAIN COMPANY E, 9TH CAVALRY REGIMENT, INDIANA VOLUNTEERS.
The subject of this sketch, Captain Volney Hobson, was the son of Evan
B. Hobson and Elizabeth (Elliott) Hobson, who were united in marriage,
January 8, 1826, at the then village of New Castle. To this union were
born six children, Volney, the second child and the only son, being
born April 9, 1828.
The Hobson and Elliott families were among the earliest settlers of
Henry County. Abraham Elliott, the father of Elizabeth (Elliott)
Hobson, came from Wayne to Henry County, about the time the latter
county was organized. He had been a prominent citizen of Wayne County
as he became, afterwards, of Henry, during the remainder of his life.
The Hobson came to Henry County and were identified with its affairs
prior to the coming of the Elliotts, and it was at the house of Joseph
Hobson, the brother of Evan B., that the commissioners appointed to
organize the county, were authorized to meet by act of the General
Assembly. This house was situated on what is now known as the Stephen
Elliott farm, about two miles south of New Castle.
From the foregoing, it will be readily discerned that the subject of
this sketch was a scion of two noted families of the early days, who
were among the most active and prominent in the civil and political
affairs of the county.
Evan B. Hobson died August 22, 1838. After the death of his father,
Volney lived for several years at New Castle with his uncle, on the
maternal side, Judge Jehu T. Elliott. In 1847 or 1848, he went to
LaPorte, Indiana, where he served a three-year apprenticeship at the
tanner's trade, with his uncle, the late James Black, whose wife, Jane
Elliott, was a sister of Elizabeth (Elliott) Hobson, and the mother of
the late Amanda V. Hudelson, the late Nathaniel E. Black and of Mrs.
Kate McMeans, of New Castle.
After finishing his trade, he returned to New Castle about 1852 and in
February, 1853, started overland to California. It may sound strange
now, but for many years after gold was discovered in California, and
before the days of the western railroads, it was the custom to drive
cattle, from the central and western parts of the Mississippi Valley,
to that State, to supply the miners with beef. At this period, there
lived south of New Castle, on what is known as the Jacob Walker farm, a
man named Hugh Sweeney, who made a business of driving cattle across
the plains. To that end, early in the Spring of 1853, he had arranged
to start with a drove from the Platte Country, in Missouri, in the
western part of that State, just across the Missouri River from Fort
Leavenworth, Kansas. For this venture, Volney Hobson contracted with
Sweeney to go as his companion and assistant. They left Fort
Leavenworth for California early in May and reached Sacramento about
September 1st. Hobson remained with Sweeney until the cattle were
disposed of, after which, in the Fall, he went to the mines in Eldorado
and Placer counties. He followed mining, with varied success for
several years, but finally abandoned it and commenced farming in the
Sacramento Valley. He continued at this work until the beginning of the
Civil War, when he left the Golden State, reaching his home at New
Castle in the Spring of 1862. Soon after his arrival, he tendered his
services, in a clerical capacity, to the headquarters of the 19th
Indiana Infantry, commanded by Colonel, afterwards General, Solomon
Meredith, serving with the Army of the Potomac. In this capacity he was
present at the battle of Antietam, September 17, 1862, and witnessed
what is recognized as one of the fiercest and bloodiest battles of the
Civil War. He remained with the Army of the Potomac, until the Spring
of 1863, when he again returned to New Castle.
In the Summer of the same year, when the Confederate General, John H.
Morgan made his famous raid into Indiana, Volney Hobson assisted in
recruiting Company A, 110th Indiana Infantry (Morgan Raid Minute Men),
of which he was made Second Lieutenant. In the Winter of 1863-64, he
was the principal mover in the organization of what became Com[any E,
9th Indiana Cavalry, and of this famous cavalry regiment is the
military history of Captain Volney Hobson, until the day of his
untimely death, December 17, 1864. He was instantly killed near
Franklin, Tennessee, while leading his company against the enemy under
General Hood, who had fallen back from Nashville, to Franklin. As soon
as possible after the battle, the body of Captain Hobson was secured
and sent to New Castle from whence it was taken to the Batson Cemetery,
in Liberty Township, and there interred in the family lot, with all the
ceremonies appropriate to the burial of a deceased soldier.
No braver man the Captain Hobson ever wore the uniform of a United
States officer. To him fear was a stranger. He died in a noble cause
and to him and the thousands of others who sacrificed their lives on
the battlefield, our Country owes its preservation. Captain Hobson was
the soul of honor and exceedingly genial in disposition. He despised
the slanderer and the mean and cowardly met with his deserved contempt.
His memory to all who knew him will ever be most fondly cherished.
For the purpose of this history, it is necessary to state that Captain
Hobson's mother, Elizabeth (Elliott) Hobson was on November 26, 1839,
married to the late James Peed, one of Henry County's best known
citizens. To this union were born three children, namely: Caroline,
Evan H., and Helen, now Mrs. William F. Johnson of Washington, District
of Columbia. The last two named alone survive. Evan H. Peed is one of
the best known citizens of the county and is respected at home and
abroad for his sterling integrity, urbanity and generous nature.
At the battle of Antietam, Captain Hobson secured a very fine gold
watch and chain, taken from the body of a South Carolina Major, and
when, at a later date, the Capitan went into the Federal Army with the
9th Indiana Cavalry, he left the watch with his half-brother, Evan H.
Peed, who is still its possessor and regards it as among his treasured
mementos. It is worthy of mention that the Hobsons were from North
Carolina and the Evan Hobson, together with his brothers, settled in
what is now Henry County, sometime prior to its organization as a
county.
Captain Volney Hobson was commissioned as Captain of Company E, 9th
Indiana Calvary, December 18, 1863, and was mustered into the United
States service January 8, 1864.
Source: Hazzard's History of Henry County, Indiana, 1822-1906 by
George Hazzard 1906
Transcribed and contributed by Larry Wells
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