Raymond, Walter

In 1862, Walter Raymond's father requested that his son, Walter Raymond, then 16 years old, be allowed to enlist in the Union Army. Walter was mustered on September 12, 1862. He served until June 18, 1863. He reenlisted and was mustered into Company L of the First regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Cavalry on January 6, 1864. On August 16, 1864, he was taken prisoner by the Confederate Army in Malvern Hills, Virginia. Unfortunately, Raymond died of disease and starvation on December 25, 1864 in Salisbury, North Carolina as a prisoner of war. He is listed on the marble plaque in the Hall. His story was brought to national attention after Harriet Beecher Stowe wrote an article The Noble Army of Martyrs.

His picture hangs in Memorial Hall (in Memorial Hall Library). Each year on Memorial Day, flowers are placed beneath his picture as a tribute. The tribute began with Charlotte Helen Abbott, a friend of the family. It was handed down through several Andover women through the years and subsequently adopted Memorial Hall Library staff.

His parents, Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Raymond, set up a charitable trust, The Walter Landor Raymond Fund for needy persons, veterans, their widows, and descendants.

A monument in Spring Grove Cemetery commemorates his sacrifice.

See

• Andover Boy's Bravery Recalled by Civil War Tributes. Andover Historical Society Newsletter

v.17 #2, Summer 1992.

• Massachusetts, Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in Civil War, Volume VI, page 214 (Andover Room R 973.74 Mas v.6)

• Portrait of Walter Raymond - located in the Hall of Memorial Hall Library. (scroll to Second Floor)

--Eleanor 16:29, June 12, 2007 (EDT)
--Leslie 10:15, July 5, 2012 (EDT) back to Main Page