RESIDENCES: A pre-war (1850/1860/1870) resident of Luray, Dist. #3, Page Co., Va.
RECORD OF SERVICE: Enlisted as a private 02 Jun 1861 at Luray in Company K ("Page Volunteers"), 10th Virginia Infantry. Detailed to attend wounded soldiers, 09 Aug 1862. Detached to gather conscripts & deserters Jan 1863 - Jun 1863. POW 12 May 1864, Spotsylvania C.H. Sent to Pt. Lookout, Md. 18 May 1864; Elmira, N.Y., 02 Aug 1864. Exchanged Feb. 1865, James River.
OBITUARY: HERSHBERGER, JOHN S. an old & highly respected citizen of Luray, prominent as a Confederate veteran & Mason & in former years a partner in the planing mill firm of Schwartz & Hershberger of this place, died unexpectedly at his home on the suburbs of Luray at 7:00 Saturday evening [29 Jan 1927]. Mr. Hershberger, who reached his 84th birthday the 11th of last August had declined gradually in strength for a number of years, but was able to go about his home & take auto rides until the last & through his eyesight had failed to such an extent that he could do no reading, he shaved himself according to habit on Saturday morning & completed his bath an hour or two before his death. Seized suddenly with a pain at the heart he died within an our on account of the failure of the vital powers, being conscious almost to the last Mr. Hershberger was a man of vigorous constitution & powerful physique. About 5 years ago a weakness developed in his lower limbs that gradually made walking a burdensome & difficult matter for him, dooming him to an amount of inactivity that probably helped to shorten his days. He was cheerful & had an unfailing sense of humor to the last. He is survived by the following children: Mrs. J. S. (Lizzie) Brumback of Middletown, Va., Mrs. Ella Kibler of Luray, Mrs. Annie Davidson of Ashland, Va., Mrs. Raymond (Nettie) Kibler of Baltimore, Md. & Harry H. Hershberger also of Baltimore. His wife who prior to marriage was Miss Melvina Ann Strickler, a sister of H. M. Strickler of Luray died on 01 Jan 1901. They were married in March 1866. Mr. Hershberger was a son of the late Pendleton & Mrs. Elizabeth Beaver Hershberger & was born at the old Hershberger homestead on the Hawksbill, which later descended to Ambrose B. Hershberger. The surviving sisters & brothers are David H. Hershberger, Mrs. Emily Stirewalt, Ambrose B. Hershberger & Miss Fannie Hershberger of Luray & Mrs. Susan Yowell of Orlando, Fl. Brother, Daniel Hershberger & one sister, Mrs. J. C. Rickard both of near Luray have passed away. All of the children with members of their families & all of the brothers & sisters but Mrs. Yowell are here for the funeral which will take place from the M. E. Church at 11 a. m. this (Tuesday) morning, the Masons being in charge. Mr. Hershberger was a high type of citizen who in the various relations of life did not fail to do his full duty. He was only 18 years old when he marched out with Co. K, 10th Va. Infantry in June 1861, the 1st quota of Page soldiers to go into the Confederate army. He served faithfully & bravely till he was captured with Gen. Edward Johnson's Division of 11,000 men in the Wilderness in 1864. After that he spent nearly a year in prison mainly in Elmira, NY. He was in almost every battle in which Co. K. & Stonewall Jackson participated & was never wounded. The night after the battle of Cedar Mountain he went back to the battlefield to search for his missing captain, Capt. D. C. Grayson whom he found fast bleeding to death from a shot through the lungs. Mr. Hershberger gathered other comrades & they carried Captain Grayson to the field hospital & he finally recovered. This instance out of his war record is but one of the many that might be produced to illustrate the courage & loyalty of John S. Hershberger. Of the men who marched so gallantly out of Luray under Co. K's banner in June 1861, only 3, Captain D. C. Grayson of Washington, DC., P. M. Printz of near Ida & F. M. Huffman of Mound City, Mo. are alive, though there are doubtless others who joined the command later. Next to his services as a soldier Masonry would probably take precedence in Mr. Hershberger's life. He became a Mason in the spring of 1865 just after being liberated from a Northern prison. To him & his late business partner, T. E. Schwartz & a few others is due the credit of keeping the Masonic fires burning in this county through the years that followed. Much of the present strength of the order perhaps its existence is owing to the efforts of these men. Mr. Hershberger was a father & an authority among Masons & was loved & venerated by them. He held all the offices in the local Blue Lodge, Chapter & Commandery & for some time was district deputy. He was the oldest member in the local orders both in point of age & membership & enjoyed this distinction for a long time. His love for Masonry never failed & it was only 2 or 3 months ago that he assisted up the double flight of steps leading to the Masonic lodge room for the last time. For 35 years he was a consistent & valued member of the Methodist church. He also belonged to Rosser-Gibbons Confederate Camp & in all connections of the kind was candid, fearless & loyal to what he considered the best interests of the cause concerned. While outspoken he was always conservative & careful in arriving at an opinion & he was a man marked free from any kind of malice. When Mr. Hershberger came back from the war he lived for a time with his father & afterwards on the place which late on was the home of his brother, David H. Hershberger. About 1875 he bought the old Keyser farm in Springfield District near Sandy Hook which he held until 1890 when he sold it to J. A. Hammer. Part of the price of the farm was lost in the bank failure at that time, but he was too tried a soldier to be daunted by ill fortune. Forming a partnership with T. E. Schwartz in the planing mill business they enjoyed a very large patronage for 10 or 12 years until Mr. Schwartz's health failed. Then Mr. Hershberger was associated with John H. Heiston & others for a short time, next retiring from active business & applying his never failing energy & industry to smaller contracts & work of various kinds.
OBITUARY from Confederate Veteran Magazine 1927:
In reporting the deaths of some Virginia comerades, P.M. Kauffman writes from Luray, Va.:
"I am enclosing a worthy tribute from the pen of Capt. D. C. Grayson, commanding the company of the two ex-Confederates to whom he refers. James A. Matthews died in Nebraska City, Nebr., January 18, 1927; he was born on Page County, Va., April 29, 1839. John Silas Hershberger died at his home in Luray, Va., January 29, 1827. He served as treasurer of Rosser-Gibbons Camp, U.C.V., of Luray, for a number of years and was an interested reader of the CONFEDERATE VETERAN, binding each volume for preservation. he was buried by the Masons. Captain Grayson says:
"During the past month two of the members of Company K, 10th Virginia Infantry, have passed away - James A. Matthews, of Nebraska City, Nebr., and john S. Hershberger, of Luray, both soldiers of unblemished records for courage and loyalty to the cause for which they fought. They were both of the original volunteers of the company that went to the front on june 2, 1861, and remained faithful in service in the ranks until captured, and as prisoners of war, until the surrender. Matthews left his native State and county in 1870, settling in the far West among his former enemies, but evidently never concealed the fact that he was an ex-Confederate soldier and was proud of his record, as he applied for a Cross of Honor, which I obtained here for him and sent to him. i saw him for a short time only while at the Gettysburg reunion of the Blue and Gray, just as he was on the eve of leaving for home."
"John S. Hershberger was a veteran who was not only true to the cause, but remained unto his death uncompromising in his loyalty and adherance to the undying principles he had fought for in the ranks, and for which he endured as a prisoner of war for thirteen months while refusing to take the oath of allegiance. he was loyal to his comrades as to his country. After I was wounded I lay for quite a few hours in the enemy's lines, and after they were repulsed, he set out to look for me, and found me writhing in agony, and with comrades carried me to the rear. On the following day, when the army was falling back across the Rapidan River and I was sent to Charlottesville, he went with meand for six long weeks, night and day, was a faithful attendant at my bedside. I have always felt that my recovery was largely due to his fidelity and care. I can pay no higher tribute to these two comrades and true soldiers than, as their commander, to testify to their unfaltering courage in the hour of battle when shot and shell were flying, or when in camp or on the march, never to shirk a duty or disobey a command."
"This leaves but three of the company living, including myself, out of the original one-hundred volunteers and afterwards of fifty enlisted by offer or bounty. Peace to their ashes."
|