martymtg
Member
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For me, it would have to be my ancestor, John MIlton Hancock.
Since I was a kid, we had been told that we were somehow related to General Hancock. My dad mistakenly thought it was Winfield Scott Hancock, the union general about whom so much is written.
We visit Gettysburg once or twice a year since we first got out there 6 or 7 yrs ago. My wife had constantly harped on getting our pictures taken in civil war regalia. My son and I never wanted to bother, it seemed like it was always 90+ degrees and just a pain in the butt to get all dressed up.
Anyway this third time out there she finally talked us into it.
We went reluctantly into the store and the girl asked, "Do you want to dress as Northern or Confederate officers?"
Both Nick and I said northern distinctly. Well, the girl comes out from the back, and sure enough she's got CONFEDERATE gear. Nick and I looked at each other, both shrugged, as if, lets just get this over with, and put on the rebel outfits.
When we came out with the pics, my wife, disappointed, said, "Why did you get confederate gear?"
We both explained, that it was too much of a bother to have the young girl go back and get the union gear and she had her damn picture so what difference did it make?
She wasn't real happy with that but we both laughed and kept walking when she told us to go back in and get another pic taken in union gear.
Shortly after that I was speaking with a cousin I hadn't seen for some thirty years. Turns out he's big time into the Civil War. He tells me that the General Hancock we were related to was a Confederate officer who was promoted to general temporarily in the field, and was ALSO wounded, in the chest, at Gettysburg. It turns out our roots go back to a Thomas Hancock who was influential in the 1770's in Randolph County, NC.
Anyway, needless to say, I immediately thought back to the day that the young lady somehow misunderstood what both my son and I said, quite clearly, and came out with the rebel uniforms.
Makes you wonder if old John Milton Hancock just wasn't having two of his ancestors wearing yankee blue.
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