ALBION – A child safety seat check event planned for this Saturday has been cancelled and will be rescheduled.
The event was planned for the Save-A-Lot Plaza in Albion.
“This event will be re-scheduled for a future date and time,” said Sheriff Scott Hess. “The Sheriff’s Office regrets any inconvenience.”
Photo by Tom Rivers – Randy Bower is all smiles outside the Board of Elections office when he realizes he has won the Republican line for Orleans County sheriff in the Nov. 3 election. Chris Bourke, left, has been campaigning with Bower as Bower’s choice for undersheriff. Bourke is currently a lieutenant in the Sheriff’s Office.
ALBION – Randy Bower has captured the Republican line for sheriff in the general election. It was a hard-fought victory for Bower, an effort that began several months ago.
Bower wasn’t endorsed by the Republican Party leaders. He forced a primary and had a razor-thin 27-vote lead, 1,588 to 1,561, over Tom Drennan after the primary on Thursday.
When the absentees and affidavit ballots were counted this morning, Drennan gained 6 votes overall. But that wasn’t enough to erase the 27-vote buffer Bower built up.
The final unofficial results give Bower 1,671 votes to 1,650 for Drennan. (There is a chance a few more votes could trickle in by the Thursday deadline, but they would need to have been mailed by Sept. 9. Election Commissioner Dennis Piediomonte doubts any more will come in.)
“It has been a tough race,” Bower said after the absentees were counted. “He (Drennan) did really well with it. I’m sure we were both sitting on pins and needles.”
Drennan will remain on the ballot with the Independence and Reform lines. The Independence line is the third one down, ahead of the Conservatives.
The Nov. 3 election also will include a Democratic Party candidate, retired Medina police investigator Don Organisciak.
With another candidate in the mix, as well as independent and third-party voters, Piedimonte said it’s difficult to forecast who will win.
Randy Bower has been highly visible in the community in recent months, attending festivals, chicken barbecue dinners, classic car shows and numerous other events. He is pictured here on Friday in Albion during a memorial service on the 14th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Bower pulled off a significant upset by winning the GOP Primary. As the endorsed-candidate, Drennan had the support of many Republican leaders. Morgan said both Drennan, the chief deputy in the Sheriff’s Office, and Bower, a dispatcher for nearly 30 years, both have worked hard campaigning in recent months.
“They’re both good people,” Morgan said after the vote was announced this morning.
Bower said he is looking for broad-based support in the general election, drawing on Republicans, Democrats, Conservatives, independent voters and third parties.
He said the Conservative Party helped to get his campaign going with an endorsement in early May, before the Republicans backed a candidate.
“It started as a grass roots effort,” Bower said. “It has been a team effort and we will bring a team mentality to the Sheriff’s Office. We will get everybody helping everybody in Orleans County.”
Bower, 50, of Murray said his campaign has gained energy and support since the spring. Securing the Republican line adds more momentum to the campaign, he said.
“Nobody can do it by themselves,” he said. “I’m here to lead and to surround myself with good people.”
ALBION – Several people were sentenced to state prison on Monday by Orleans County Court Judge James Punch for crimes that included selling and possessing drugs, and other felonies.
Vickie Hughes, 49, of Brockport was sentenced to 2 ½ years in state prison, plus 2 years of post-release supervison.
She pleaded guilty on June 1 to criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fifth degree. She admitted she had morphine in Albion last October and sold it in the Rite Aid parking lot. Hughes, as a second felony offender, could have been sentenced to up to 4 years in state prison.
Another Brockport resident who admitted to selling cocaine and marijuana was sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison.
Jesus M. Vargas, 35, was arrested in December following an investigation by the Orleans County Major Felony Crime Task Force into the sale and distribution of cocaine and marijuana in Orleans County and Brockport.
A Medina resident was sentenced to 1 ½ to 3 years in prison for trying to cash a forged check.
Terry R. Johnson, 25, of Medina pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of a forged instrument in the second degree, a charge that carries a maximum of 2 to 4 years in state prison. As part of a plea deal, Johnson faced a maximum 1 ½ to 3 years in prison.
He admitted in a previous court appearance knew he was given a forged check and then tried to cash it. Johnson said someone bought his car with a forged check in another person’s name. Johnson told the judge he knew the check was forged.
Judge Punch said prison was warranted “considering the nature of the crime and your long criminal history.”
Joseph Taylor, 18, of Shelby Center was sentenced to 2 ½ years in state prison and 2 years of post-release supervision for attempted burglary in the second degree.
Taylor admitted in a previous court appearance he broke into a house on Long Bridge Road in Albion on Jan. 15.
Taylor’s attorney Nathan Pace requested youthful offender status for Taylor and a split sentence with probation to “give him an opportunity to improve himself.”
Punch said Taylor has twice been given youthful offender. The judge denied youthful offender this time.
“This is a serious crime and it looks to me like a crime spree,” Punch said.
A 17-year-old boy from Albion was sentenced to six months in county jail for attempted second-degree burglary and criminal mischief. He also was ordered to pay $3,564 in restitution for the costs of fixing a car he damaged.
The boy was granted youthful offender. Orleans Hub won’t publish his name. He will need to pay the restitution over 48 months once he is out of jail.
“People work hard for their property and then you just wreck it,” Punch told the boy. “This is a serious thing.”
John Belson
YATES – John Belson, the Yates town supervisor for nearly four years, survived a Republican primary challenge from Jim Simon, a vocal opponent of a wind turbine project in Yates and Somerset.
Belson was ahead after voting on Thursday, 145-139. Belson distanced the lead by another vote after absentees were counted this morning, with Belson picking up 8 more votes and Simon gaining 7.
Belson said he has tried to stay neutral in the wind turbine project, waiting for Apex Wind Energy to submit official documents about the project.
“We’ve tried to stay on the middle ground and gather information,” Belson said after the absentees were counted. “We try to stand up for the whole community.”
Apex wants to build 60 to 68 wind turbines that would peak at 570 feet. Most of them would be in Somerset but some would be in northern part of Yates on the western side of the town, according to the proposal.
Save Ontario Shores, a grass-roots group opposed to the project, backed Simon for the election. The group wants to see Yates officials be more aggressive in rejecting the plan.
Save Ontario Shores points to Somerset, where the Town Board passed an official resolution to oppose the project following a survey of town residents that showed overwhelming opposition to the large turbines near the lakeshore. Somerset also has hired an attorney to fight the project.
Yates is now forming a committee to have a survey. That will include a Town Board member, Wes Bradley, and at least a representative from Apex and Save Ontario Shores.
“It’s been very controversial and we’ve been thrown into the middle of it,” Belson said about the turbine project.
Meanwhile, Belson and the Yates Town Board have other town business. They are working on the 2016 town budget and a plan for a shared assessor among Yates, Ridgeway and Shelby, Belson said.
Photos by Thom Jennings – Some of the hunters pose with some of the birds harvested during the hunt last weekend in Shelby
SHELBY – It’s shortly after 4:00 a.m. on a rainy Saturday morning in Shelby, but the spirits of the visiting veterans and volunteers at the newly christened Warrior House are not dampened.
“That’s why they call it water fowl,” one of the volunteers quips when asked if the morning hunt will take place in the rain.
Thirteen injured veterans were the guests of honor for the first weekend of what is dubbed “Operation Restoration,” a new program that brings wounded veterans together for a weekend hunt at a house on Salt Works Road in Shelby.
Hunters and veterans finish up breakfast and get ready for the hunt.
Just a few weeks ago the residence that now serves as a sleeping quarters was cleared out and cleaned up by a small army of volunteers, many of them from the Akron Free Methodist Church.
The kitchen now houses new appliances, donated from various individuals and businesses and what once served as a living room is now filled with newly constructed beds, built with volunteer labor from the Christian Youth Corps, a group based in Delevan, NY.
Christian Youth Corps group receives guidance on how to construct bed frames last month.
A hunter relaxes at the newly made sleeping quarters.
The concept of The Warrior House was developed in May of this year, not long after Peter Zeliff Jr. purchased the property on Salt Works road, which at one time was a commercial hunting business. A conversation between Zeliff and tractor salesman Joe Pionessa led to what became a series of organizations and individuals working together to make the first weekend hunt possible.
By 4:30 a.m. on Saturday, Doni Roehling cooked over a dozen breakfast sandwiches and the hunters began gathering their commemorative goose calls and headed to the blinds.
By 5:00 a.m. the house was quiet, with just a few volunteers staying behind to clean up, including Zeliff and his seven-year-old son Owen.
In less than six months the Warrior House has become a reality, and what was originally supposed to be an initial group of 10 hunters became 13, five came through Chappy’s Outdoors and eight from Operation Injured Soldier.
By the conclusion of the weekend the group harvested over 60 geese, and several pheasants and pigeons, all while enjoying the camaraderie and support of volunteers and fellow military veterans.
This past weekend’s hunt is only the beginning of Zeliff’s long-term plans for The Warrior House. The second group of injured veterans will arrive the weekend of Oct. 30, and there are plans for other groups to utilize the property over the next year.
This shows one of the commemorative custom-engraved duck calls.
Provided photo – These boys enjoy a meal at Holley Central School over the summer.
Press Release
Holley Central School
HOLLEY – Holley children received free breakfast and lunch at the Holley Middle/High School Dining Hall this summer due to a partnership with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
The school district provided meals to children under the age of 18 living within the Holley Central School District, regardless of income level.
“We are pleased to offer the community at large the opportunity to take part in this program,” said Holley Superintendent Robert D’Angelo.
Food Service Director Vickie Scroger said that the district served on average 135 people per day, with the busiest days being Tuesdays through Thursdays when most of the fitness classes were also offered.
Scroger also said that they fed more students and families at lunch time than they did at breakfast. From the end of June through the end of August, students consumed 1,140 breakfasts and 2,249 lunches, while the adults ate 41 breakfasts and 400 lunches.
Students who participated in morning and/or afternoon exercise classes such as FIT4U! and BLAST programs appreciated the chance to refuel their bodies before and after their exercise sessions.
Brothers Steven and John Mounts participated in all of the FIT4U! sessions and said they liked the convenience of the breakfast breaks, which were a grab-and-go breakfast option. They returned to the Dining Hall each day for lunch and enjoyed the wraps as their favorite mid-day meal. “This is a better lunch than we’d make for ourselves,” Steven said.
Students cited Frudels, cereal, pancakes and bagels as their top choices for breakfast. Pizza, wraps, tacos, subs, fruit and vegetables were their favorites for lunch. The kids also enjoyed watching TV at breakfast and a movie at lunch time.
“My son eats more lunch here than he does at home,” said Jaime Lyndaker, who brought her son to the Dining Hall for lunch after his summer recreation program.
“The kids like eating together,” said Ruth Press, who was at lunch with her grandson.
Both Lyndaker and Press said they thought that it was a valuable program for the district to offer and appreciated the chance to save money on groceries.
Adults, including Holley staff members, were also able to purchase breakfast and lunch from the district during this program. Breakfast was $2.25 and lunch was $4.
ALBION – A Batavia man admitted to selling cocaine in Orleans County on March 31 and could face up to 9 years in state prison.
Philip R. Ayala, 30, of Summit Street pleaded guilty on Monday to criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree. As a second felony offender, he could have faced a sentence of 2 to 12 years in state prison.
As part of a plea deal in Orleans County Court, Ayala would face no more than 9 years in state prison, plus up to three years of post-release supervision.
Ayala also faces drug charges in Genesee County. As part of the plea deal in Orleans County, he would serve a concurrent sentence for both charges in Orleans and Genesee counties.
Ayala was sentenced to 8 years in state prison last month by Genesee County Court Judge Robert C. Noonan.
Ayala will be sentenced in Orleans County on Dec. 21.
In other drug cases on Monday:
A Hamlin man admitted he sold cocaine in Monroe County and Holley in transactions arranged with a confidential informant in Orleans County.
Joel E. Johnson, 31, of Fox Hollow Street pleaded guilty to attempted criminal sale of a controlled substance in the third degree, a charge that normally carries a sentence up to 5 1/2 years in state prison.
However, as part of a plea deal the sentence will be capped at no more than 4 years, plus up 1 to 2 years of post-release supervision.
Johnson will be sentenced on Nov. 23.
An Albion man admitted to selling marijuana in excess of 25 grams on May 28.
Charles A. Santiago, 27, of 214 North Main St. pleaded guilty to third-degree criminal sale of marijuana. District Attorney Joe Cardone said the marijuana sold by Santiago weighed 27.55 grams at a Niagara County lab.
Santiago accepted a plea deal that calls for a maximum sentence of 1 ½ years in state prison. He is a first-time felony offender.
He will be sentenced on Nov. 23.
Erin Fuller
ALBION – Deputies and staff at the Orleans County Sheriff’s Office are mourning the loss of Erin Fuller, a 16-year veteran of the department who died on Saturday.
“Deputy Fuller died tragically while off-duty on Saturday – September 12th and his death was investigated by the Town of Orchard Park Police Department in Erie County,” Sheriff Scott Hess said today in a statement. “The Sheriff’s Office was in close contact with the Orchard Park PD throughout that investigation and foul play has been ruled out.”
Prior to working as a deputy the past 16 years, Deputy Fuller had previous service in the United States Marine Corps. He was president of the 23-member Orleans County Deputy Sheriffs’ Association, and also worked on the marine patrol.
“The sworn and civilian staff of the Sheriff’s Office is coping with this event and grief counseling is going to be made available to all,” Hess said.
File photo – Orleans County Deputy Sheriff Erin Fuller in May discusses staying safe this summer in and around water with local 6th graders at the “Water, boats and being safe” station at the annual Orleans County Conservation Field Days.
Photo by Tom Rivers – Janna Stirk gives her son, Brody, a hug during a stop today at Bullard Park in Albion. Janna has raised the most money, $1,380 as of Monday evening, in a Sept. 20 walk to benefit autism awareness and services for the Rochester/Finger Lakes region.
ALBION – When he was 18 months old, Brody Stirk started getting services to help with his speech. He continues to receive speech and occupational therapy at Rainbow Preschool.
His mother, Janna Stirk, believes those services and an early diagnosis of autism have helped Brody be highly functioning.
“When he was first diagnosed, it was overwhelming,” Stirk said about her son. “But now we celebrate it.”
Brody is 3 1/2 and is in Rainbow Preschool. His mother said the program provides many services to help Brody with his verbal skills and to understand and use his sensory skills.
Janna and her husband Morgan Stirk used many services and information from Autism Speaks, a leading autism science and advovacy organization. When Mrs. Stirk saw the Rochester/Finger Lakes region was having a beneft walk on Sept. 20 for Autism Speaks, she and many of Brody’s family and friends signed up for the walk at Monroe Community College’s Brighton Campus.
Stirk also had been good at asking for donations for the cause. In fact, the $1,380 she has raised by herself is the most of anyone in the Rochester/Finger Lakes. Click here to visit the Autism Speaks website.
Stirk is also part of “Team Brody,” which is up to $1,745 in donations. The team has a $2,000 fund-raising goal.
Stirk has used Facebook and other social media to rally support for the cause.
She would like to try another walk in the spring, but this time would like the proceeds to stay in Orleans County and help Rainbow Preschool.
“The services for Brody have made a big difference,” she said. “He’s really come a long way.”
Photos by Tom Rivers
WATERPORT – Joan Page has spent the past three years working on the Bell Tower Lodge, turning a big open space into four bedrooms, a private three-story suite and a common area with a kitchen.
Bell Tower Lodge, the former Kenyonville United Methodist Church, opened in June. Page had an open house over the weekend at the location on Oak Orchard River Road.
She is pictured in the second floor of the private suite, which has a sliding door that can be closed for privacy or opened to show the common room.
The former church was originally built in 1833. It was closed as a church in 1983, when three United Methodist churches joined to build a new church in Carlton.
Page bought the property, including a neighboring house in 1989. She wanted the house and the church building was included in the deal.
Page put a new roof on the church soon after she bought it. She also made some foundation repairs. The building wasn’t changed too much while she used it for a gift shop and later as a wood-working business.
Three years ago she began the ambitious task of turning the structure into a lodge.
“I couldn’t let this building go,” said Page, a Kendall graduate who now works as postmaster in Barker. “I have this need to bring things back to life.”
Page envisioned the building as a lodge. The property overlooks Lake Alice at the Kenyonville Road bridge.
She thought it could be popular with fishermen, and families in town for reunions and other events.
She stopped by the Waterport Dam about three years ago and asked visiting fishermen if they would like an upscale lodge as an option to stay. Many told her they thought that type of lodge would be a success. Many wives of fishermen want to travel with their husbands to Orleans County but they don’t want to stay in motels, or more rustic sleeping arrangements.
The Salmon Room is one of four bedrooms with two full-size beds and a private bathroom and shower.
Page furnished the rooms with repurposed furniture. She fixed many discarded furniture pieces, and bought others at auctions and thrift shops.
She removed the plaster from the ceiling in the old church and discovered the original wooden beams.
This room, part of a three-story private suite, used to be part of a Sunday School classroom.
Page opened the lodge in June and she said people have been enthusiastic and surprised by what they see inside.
“Because we’re in this area they don’t think there will be a boutique lodge,” she said.
The private suite leads to the top of the cupola, which offers this view of Lake Alice and the bridge on Kenyonville Road.
Page had lots of help from family and friends in the renovation.
Page uses three hemlock logs as support for the stairway to the second floor and also for ambiance.
She has a church pew on the first floor. It wasn’t original to the church. Page said the building was stripped of all the pews before she bought it. She found a pew in the lodge at an auction.
She pulled up carpeting on the floor and discovered the original floors, which have been sanded and repainted.
Below her is the common area for socializing and preparing meals.
“I wanted it to be a lodge and to be comfortable,” she said.
Page has the program from the final service at the church in this frame near the entrance of the lodge.
A historical marker is next to the former church. It notes the church was built in 1833, with the first Methodist class organized in 1818 by Barber Kenyon.
For more on Bell Tower Lodge, click here.
ALBION – The Holy Family Parish in Albion, in cooperation with eight other local churches, will host an Ecumenical Sustainability Fair on Tuesday from 5:30 to 9 p.m. at Holy Family’s Lyceum, the upstairs hall at 106 S. Main St.
The event is titled “On Care for Our Common Home,” the subtitle of a message from Pope Francis, who has pressed Christians on their duty to care for nature.
The Sustainability Fair includes 22 exhibitors who will touch on recycling, composting, reducing consumption, caring for the environment and many other earth-friendly practices. Four groups will provide tastings of sustainable foods, including Leonel Rosario, chef-owner of Mariachi d’Oro Restaurant in Medina.
Some of the exhibitors include: Wegmans, Rochester Institute of technology, Catholic Charities, Pullman Universalist Church, Brockport First Presbyterian Community Garden, “accomplished gardeners,” Lift Bridge Book Store, Hospice, Boy Scouts, Christ Farm Market, G-O Ministry of Concern and several others.
Father Dick Csizmar, pastor of the Holy Family Parish, is pleased to see the pope lead on sustainability, and for the local churches to rally around the issue.
“With Pope Francis’ new encyclical Laudato Si’ evoking great discussion world-wide, it truly is a delight to see our pope addressing the issue of ‘our common home,’ our planet earth, and what we are called to do to make life more blessed for those around our globe today; for preparing for future generations to have opportunities to enjoy what God has placed in our hands; to help create a world where people truly work for the good of one another,” Csizmar said.
Sister Sharon Goodremote, an environmental educator in the Western New York Catholic Diocese, will be the featured speaker at 6:30 p.m. Goodremote is currently the chairowman of the Diocesan Care for Creation Committee whose “mission is to educate Catholics throughout the diocese about Catholic teaching on care for creation.
The committee’s focus is on sharing resources on Pope Francis’ encyclical and providing practical ways people to respond to the Church’s call to make care for creation not an Earth Day slogan, but something integral to our way of living.”
Bob Golden is co-organizer of the fair. He is pleased with the interest from so many exhibitors.
“I’m shocked,” he said. “We’d hoped for maybe six to 10 organizations who would display their sustainability efforts. We now have 22 exhibitors slated.”
Wegmans has provided a grant to help finance the event.
“Even though we’re frequent shoppers and fans of Wegmans, we were impressed by their commitment to sustainability,” Golden said. “Their initiatives in eliminating food waste, composting and using compost to generate electricity and recycling in many different ways have dramatically reduced what they send to landfills.”
There will be a roundtable discussion beginning at 8 p.m. that will include Sister Sharon Goodremote, Leonel Rosario (who also has worked as a farmworker), and Sheila Stone, who worked 20 years at Buffalo Catholic Charities and has been involved in Sacred Heart Center and Earth Heart.
The event is free and open to the public.
ALBION – The boards of directors for both The Arc of Orleans and Genesee ARC have voted for a merger of the two agencies that serve developmentally or intellectually disabled residents.
NYSARC, Inc., the non-profit organization that oversees the Genesee and Orleans chapters, will monitor and guide the voluntary unification process, which should be completed in 2016. Combined, the agencies serve over 1,200 individuals with disabilities.
Donna Saskowski, longtime executive director of the Genesee ARC, has also been overseeing the Orleans chapter since April.
“For months we have been meeting to discuss how we can collaborate and share services,” Saskowski said. “This was the next logical step.”
John Huber, president of The Arc of Orleans, said the merger is a progressive move that will expand opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in both counties.
“Our new dream is to adapt to the changing horizon while providing expanded services to the people we serve,” Huber said.
Candie Pocock is president of the Genesee ARC. She echoed Huber’s comments.
“What’s important for families, staff and individuals in both chapters to understand is that programs and services will continue in each county, and now have the opportunity to grow,” she said.
Each board recognizes the similarities between their respective counties, Saskowski said.
“We are rural, neighboring, agricultural communities, roughly the same size in area and among New York’s smallest in terms of population,” Saskowski said. “Looking ahead, we feel our similar cultures will allow for a smooth transition.”
In a joint statement the chapters’ executive boards said the merger will approve the financial health of the organization.
“We are choosing to unify in order to effectively address the financial challenges resulting from current NYS Medicaid transformational reform initiatives.”
Genesee ARC was founded in 1966 and will be marking its 50th anniversary next year. The Arc of Orleans was founded in 1970 and is celebrating its 45th anniversary in 2015.
“This is a strong statement in support of the people we serve and all of our staff,” Saskowski said about the decision to merge. “The Orleans and Genesee Chapters have nearly 100 years of experience serving people with disabilities in our two counties. This vast experience will position us well going forward.”
Photo by Tom Rivers
GAINES – A tractor is parked in a wet field along Kenyonville Road late this afternoon after two days of heavy rain.
The rain and cool temperatures will give way to sunshine and warmth on Monday.
The National Weather Service is forecasting mostly sun with a high of 72 degrees on Monday, followed by a high of 78 and sunny on Tuesday. Wednesday and Thursday will also be sunny with a high of 81 on Wednesday and 80 on Thursday, according to the Weather Service.
Provided photo
BATAVIA – Two cheerleaders at the Albion-Batavia youth football games on Saturday were the focus of an effort to raise awareness for childhood cancer.
Emma Harris, left, of Batavia and Madison Muckle, 7, of Albion have been diagnosed with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia. Madison has endured chemotherapy and is cancer-free.
“She is doing wonderful,” said Madison’s mother, Jaime Allport. “We’ve been very lucky. There hasn’t been any side effects.”
Emma was recently diagnosed with ALL.
More than 60 coaches and parents from both communities wore gold-colored shirts to highlight childhood cancer during youth football games on Saturday. The effort was part of a national push where September is “Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.”
Photo by Tom Rivers
Geno Allport, coach for the Albion JV team in the youth football program, wears one of the gold shirts while addressing the team after a 34-0 victory over Batavia. He is the uncle of Madison Muckle, who battled cancer for 2 1/2 years and is now free of the disease.
Madison was diagnosed when she was 3. She is now entering second grade and participates in dance, baseball, cheerleading and Girl Scouts. Her family and friends have put on the “Madisonation Golf Tournament” the past five years. Visit madisonation.org for more on the golf tournament.
The benefit on Aug. 23 at Hickory Ridge Gold Course raised $6,110, with some of the proceeds given to Emma Harris’s family to help them while they fight the disease.
Madison’s mother said few research dollars or public awareness is directed to childhood cancer, even though there are about 13,500 children diagnosed with cancer in the United States annually.
This past week I had the pleasure of visiting the Fredericksburg Battlefield Park in Virginia and Gettysburg Battlefield Park in Pennsylvania, both with connections to local soldiers from Orleans County.
Each visit was a moving experience and I thought perhaps I would share several stories of local men from our area over the coming weeks.
The top image shows the gravesite of Pvt. Charles McOmber (misidentified as McCumber), burial number 2296.
Charles McOmber was born in 1844 at Carlton – his uncle Col. Calvin Otis was in command of the 100th New York Infantry and a noted architect in Buffalo. His father Van Rensselaer later enlisted with the 8th New York Cavalry at the advanced age of 54 and his brother Otis would serve with the 76th New York Infantry, spending 9 months at Andersonville Prison. Another brother Lorenzo would enlist with Orleans County’s 17th Light Independent Artillery, dying from typhoid fever in the summer of 1864.
Charles enlisted in April of 1861, responding to Lincoln’s initial call for 75,000 volunteers after the bombardment of Ft. Sumter. As a member of the 23rd New York Infantry, Charles was present for the battles of Bull Run and Antietam before accompanying the regiment to Fredericksburg in December of 1862.
This image depicts Fredericksburg National Cemetery. The taller grave markers indicate identified burials – shorter markers are labeled with a number, indicating the site contains unidentified remains. The gravesite of Pvt. McOmber rests near the statue of Gen. Humphrey.
On December 12, 1862, Abner Doubleday began to position his division across the Richmond Road under the cover of fog to prevent a Confederate advance into the city. Situated atop Prospect Hill and overlooking this maneuver was Jeb Stuart and his horse artillery under the command of John Pelham. As the fog began to lift, Pelham’s artillery delivered direct fire upon the forces of Doubleday’s division.
Charles McOmber was struck by fragments from an artillery shell prior to the official start of the battle. Cpt. William Cole of Company B later wrote that he witnessed Pvt. McOmber’s death, having been hit by a shell and expiring within two hours. Prior to his death, Charles sent his monthly pay to his mother Angela in Ohio to help support both her and his youngest brother and sister. Angela was forced to apply for a “widow’s pension” as a dependent mother following his death.
When the Fredericksburg National Cemetery was established in 1866, the battle had concluded nearly 4 years prior and many interments were misidentified or unidentified. Fewer than 3,000 of the more than 15,000 burials in the cemetery are identified, including the grave of Charles McOmber.
