Loomis, Gustavus A.
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MILITARY SERVICE Age: 0, credited to Thetford, VT Unit(s): 5th US INF Service: USMA 11; veteran of War of 1812, Mexican War, Black Hawk War, Seminole Wars in Fla.; COL, 5th US INF, 1851; in 62, being then 72 years old, cmdd recruits on Governor's Island; retired 6/63, Bvt BGen USA 3/13/65, for long and meritorious services [College: USMA 11] See Legend for expansion of abbreviations VITALSBirth: 09/23/1789, Thetford, VT Death: 03/05/1872 Burial: Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven, CT Marker/Plot: Magnolia Gravestone photographer: Heidi McColgan Findagrave Memorial #: 33490187 MORE INFORMATION Alias?: None noted Pension?: Yes, widow Mary A. T., 8/6/1874 Portrait?: Unknown College?: USMA 11 Veterans Home?: Not Found (If there are state digraphs above, this soldier spent some time in a state or national soldiers' home in that state after the war) Remarks: None DESCENDANTS (Are you a descendant, but not listed? Register today) |
BURIAL: Copyright notice    Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven, CT Check the cemetery for location/directions and other veterans who may be buried there. |
Military Headstone Dedication Ceremony
Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven, CT - Saturday, June 21, 2014
Thetford, Vermont native Gustavus Loomis was an 1811 graduate of the U.S. Military Academy. A dedicated soldier and a devout Christian, wherever he was stationed, Loomis attended to his military duties as well as the physical and spiritual needs of his soldiers and members of the local community.
After 54 years of active service, he retired in June 1863, but saw additional service during the Civil War as Superintendent of General Recruiting. After the war, he was brevetted Brigadier General "for long and faithful service."
He retired to Stratford, Connecticut. He died there in 1872 and was buried in his wife's family plot in Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven. For several decades, at least, there had been no marker on his gravesite, but in 2014, that was rectified. Over 140 years after he was buried at Grove Street Cemetery, Gustavus Loomis finally has a stone.
Heidi McColgan submitted the following, which was published in the New Haven Register:
Chaplain Kenneth Lawson, author of "For Christ and County: A Biography of Brigadier General Gustavus Loomis," speaks at the service at the newly installed headstone for Brevet Brig. Gen. Gustavus Loomis, who served 54 years in the military. Loomis was buried more than 140 years ago in Grove Street Cemetery, New Haven. He was a native of Thetford, Vt., and a veteran of six wars, including the Civil War. Nolan's Hamden Monument Co. donated the stone; cemetery Superintendent Bill Cameron, a Marine Corps retiree, installed it for free; volunteers from Vermont in the Civil War organized the event; Company G, 14th Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, provided a gun salute, and John Cogan of Buglers Across America played taps. Lawson is garrison chaplain at Fort Hunter Liggett, Jolon, Calif.
Information and photos submitted by Heidi McColgan
Obituary
Colonel Gustavus Loomis, who died on Tuesday, the 15th, ult., at Stratford, Conn., was a native of Vermont, and graduated at West point in 1811. In the war of 1812 he was taken prisoner at the surprise of Fort Niagara. At the close of the war he was exchanged, and served upon the frontier until the breaking out of the rebellion. From 1861 to 1867, Colonel Loomis served as mustering officer of Connecticut and Rhode Island volunteers, and on court martial duty. In 1863 he was retired from active service, having been on the register more than forty-five years, and in 1865 he was brevetted Brigadier General, for long and faithful service.
Source: Vermont Christian Messenger, March 14, 1872.
Courtesy of Tom Boudreau.