1862 Dated and Inspected Ames Model 1850 Foot Officers Sword with Presentation to Capt. Hugh Donnelly - 37th Mass Infantry - WIA Cold Harbor

American Civil War

30.25" slightly curved single edged blade, 36.25" in overall length. 6" hilt with gilt brass guard and shagreen covered grooved wood grip with fourteen wraps of twisted wire. Reverse ricasso dated 1862 with a shadow typical of a die bounce when struck, and the obverse ricasso is inspected GGS for arsenal sub-inspector George G Saunders. Only 571 Ames Model 1850 Foot Officer Swords were inspected and delivered to the Ordnance Department in 1862. The blade is etched with the three line Ames address on the obverse above the ricasso and both sides are decorated with acid etched flowing foliate scrolls, patriotic and martial themes. The sword is accompanied by Ames marked its gilt brass mounted leather scabbard with the obverse of the upper mount engraved in five lines: Presented to/Hugh Donelly/Capt. Co. I, 37th Mass Vols./by his friends/July 22, 1862. The sword is accompanied by a large binder of research about Donnelly. Included is a copy of a Springfield Republican newspaper article dated July 23, 1862 that discusses the presentation of this sword to Donnelly by his friends, the class of 1860 from his high school.

Hugh Donnelly enlisted in the 38th New York Volunteer Infantry as a private in Company E on May 7, 1861. The 38th New York suffered some 138 casualties at First Manassas and like much of the Union Army that fought at that battle returned to the defenses of Washington until the spring of the following year and the beginning of the Peninsula Campaign. The regiment fought during the Siege of Yorktown, at Williamsburg and a Seven Pines during April and May and at Williamsburg Donnelly was wounded on May 5. The regiment fought during the Seven Days before Richmond, including Oak Grove, White Oak Swamp, Glendale and Malvern Hill. On August 26, 1862 Donnelly was discharged for promotion and was commissioned as a captain the following day. He was mustered into the 37th Massachusetts Infantry on September 4, as the captain of Company I. The 37th Mass saw action at essentially all of the major battles in the east from the end of 1862 through the end of the war. These included Fredericksburg, the Chancellorsville Campaign, Gettysburg, the Mine Run Campaign, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, the Siege of Petersburg, Winchester and the Appomattox Campaign. At Cold Harbor the colonel of the 37th was given command of the brigade and Donnelly was made the acting colonel, commanding the regiment. During that battle on June 5, 1864 he was wounded in the head and discharged for disability on January 31, 1865.

From the Collection of George Oldenbourg

This lot is located in Cincinnati.