Lt. Thomas Lucas joined the Union Army, along with his five brothers, at the beginning of the war. As a member of Company F of the 1st Pennsylvania Volunteer Reserve Cavalry, he wrote home approximately every three days. What happened to him and his brothers during the period of July 1861 to September 1864 will be the topic of our August meeting.

Our speaker, Rich Ignatius, will be bringing alive the history of his wife's great-great grandfather, Lt. Thomas Lucas. The letters Lucas sent home were preserved by his wife, and passed down generation to generation. Rich's wife's cousin completed a project started by their grandfather, a grandson of Thomas Lucas (Thomas Lucas Bayard), to publish these letters.

Rich will cover Company F's service, starting under Gen. George D. Bayard, through the war; from Drainsville, Fredericksburg, Antietam, Gettysburg, and up to Lee's surrender when a company member wins the Medal of Honor. He'll be adding tidbits from Lucas' personal comments along the way, as well as his encounters with his great nemesis, "The Gray Ghost," John Singleton Mosby.

Rich is a tax accountant (enrolled agent) by day, specializing in large, multistate corporations. Both he and his wife have Civil War ancestors, so he's always had an interest in their history. Rich and his family are reenactors with the 116th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Co. D, and members of the Orange County Civil War Round Table.

Please join us as we learn more about the life of the Civil War cavalryman.

Janet Whaley
Program Chair

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