UNIT: Company F, 23rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry
HOMETOWN: Not specified in the booklet narrative
BORN/DIED: 1840–1863
RANK: Private
GRAVE LOCATION: West Laurel Hill Cemetery, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania; exact plot unknown
Approximate Grave Location:
[GRAVE MAP PLACEHOLDER: Joseph Tetlow]
West Laurel Hill Cemetery, Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania; exact plot unknown
Add an approximate grave-location image when available.
Hear My Story
[AUDIO PLACEHOLDER: Add Joseph Tetlow’s audio story and replace the links on the icon and “Hear My Story” heading.]
Read My Story
I was born in 1840. I enrolled in the 23rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry on August 27, 1862, and was mustered in as a Private in Company F on September 13, 1862. I fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg and was mortally wounded on December 13, 1862.
I remember being sent to the 1st Division United States Army General Hospital in Alexandria, Virginia, on January 2, 1863. A ball had entered the outer side of my right leg, right behind my knee. The ball was removed, but I ended up with a high fever and chills. I was in a lot of pain, and my leg was very swollen with a lot of pus around the wound. They cut into my knee and let out the pus, which gave me much relief. However, a few days later, the chills came back, and I became delirious. I also had a lot of pain in my stomach. Four days later, I died from my wound.
There were an estimated 1.5 million casualties reported during the Civil War. Most casualties and deaths in the Civil War were the result of non-combat-related disease. For every three soldiers killed in battle, five more died of disease. Two-thirds of soldiers, both Union and Confederate, died of disease or infection by the end of the Civil War. Of those who suffered battlefield wounds, gangrene or hospital gangrene was one of the deadliest infections at the start of the war. This is what happened to me.
I no longer have a tombstone in this cemetery, my remains were moved to West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, PA. I am buried in a plot next to my sister-in-law. My tombstone in Pennsylvania states that I died from wounds received at the Battle of Fredericksburg. On February 9, 1863, my father, James Tetlow, received $7.93 from the State of New Jersey for pay owed to me at the time of my death.
Joseph Tetlow (West Laurel Hill Cemetery – location unknown)
(Joseph Tetlow Civil War voucher)
(1863 15 January New Jersey Mirror)
Timeline
1840: Born.
August 27, 1862: Enrolled in the 23rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry.
September 13, 1862: Mustered into Company F as a Private.
December 13, 1862: Wounded at Fredericksburg.
January 2, 1863 (narrative): Sent to an Army hospital in Alexandria, Virginia; later died from his wound. His gravestone gives 1863 as his death year.
February 9, 1863: His father James received $7.93 in pay owed to him.
Later reinterment: Remains moved to West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd, Pennsylvania; date not given.
