Person:Richard Stillwell (6)

!Resided at Scranton, PA. "Captain Stillwell received a very singular wound. A bullet struck the side of his neck near the big artery and appeared to have gouged out a bit of flesh and glanced off. It bled more than this circustance seemed to warrant, but the Captain was sure he was not hurt and made light of it. Swelling and pain speedily developed in his shoulder, and it was found that the missile, instead of glancing off, had taken a downward course and finally lodged near his shoulder joint, a distance of 10 to 12 inches from where it had entered. He was given leave of absence on account of his wounds, and the ball was cut out after his return home, and ultimately the whole channel made by the ball had to be opened, when it was found lined with whiskers which the ball had carried with it... In conclusion I desire to acknowledge my indebtedness to ...... Mr. Lewis B. Stillwell, son of that brave and splendid officer, Capt. Richard Stillwell, Company K, who was wounded and disabled at Fredericksburg, for constant encourgament in the preparation of the work and for assistance in its publication." [War from the Inside, etc. by Col. Frederick L. Hitchcock, Lippincott Press, Philadelphia, 1904, pp. 129, 130.] Pages 182, 183.

                "WAS A PIONEER 
   DEATH OF CAPT. RICHARD STILLWELL, YESTERDAY 

For half a century, he was identified with the city's activities -- Captain of first military guard organized in Scranton. Served with distinction in the Civil War. Designed and constructed the first mine ventilating fan used in these parts. Captain Richard Stillwell, one of Scranton's pioneers, died yesterday morning at the family residence, 832 Jefferson Ave., aged 81 years. The funeral service will be held Monday at 2:30pm. Interment will be made in Dunmore cemetery. Capt. Richard Stillwell was a typical representative of that strong and brave generation that faced the problems and met the trials of the Civil War. For more than 50 years a resident of Scranton, he has lived in recent years a life of comparative retirement. Few are now living of those, who, in the early days, knew him as a leader in the community -- the Captain of the first Scranton Guard, a constructor and inventor of marked ability in early mining operations, member of the early councils, and at one time chief of the Scranton fire department. Descended from a New York family greatly distinguished in colonial days, he was born at Hope, NJ in 1824. His parents were John Stillwell and Eliza Buckley. When he was about 6 years of age they removed to Easton, PA, where the family lived until 1848, when with his father he bought a large tract of timber on the Pocono mountain near Tobyhanna and went into the lumber business. He came to Scranton early in the 50's and entered the employ of the Lackawanna Iron & Coal company. As superintendent of that company he was actively associated with the late George W. Scranton, Joseph H. Scranton, Selden T. Scranton, Charles F. Mattes, William W. Manness and others of a group of pioneer citizens who cleared away the forests, opened the mines and built the first homes and churches of the now populous community. Modest and retiring in temperament, he was recognized throughout his life as a man of the most sterling character, great practical ability and force -- a leader and strong upholder of the law in all times of public disturbance and peril. While living in Easton, PA, he became interested in military affairs and in 1842 enlisted as a private in Captain (afterward Governor) Reeder's company of state militia. He served in this company until he removed from Easton in 1848, at which time he was orderly sergeant. In 1854 he organized in Scranton the original Scranton Guard, a company which was attached to the 3rd Battalion, 48th Regiment, Pennsylvania militia and which he commanded as captain until it was mustered out of service in July, 1859. August 18, 1862, he entered the service of the US government as captain of Company K, 132nd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, a regiment which, in 9 months, lost more than 40% of its original members by death and wounds in battle. At Antietam, this regiment, of which companies I & K were recruited in Scranton, fought its first battle and acquitted itself with great credit. At Fredericksburg it took part in the famous assault upon the Confederate position on Mary's Heights, where 30% of its members were killed or wounded in 30 minutes. In this assault, Capt. Stillwell received a very serious wound, which incapacitated him from further active service in the field. He returned to Scranton after partially recovering from the effects of his wound, and was appointed provost marshall of the 12th District of PA. Shortly before enlisting in the army he built the old Oxford breaker for Selden T. and George W. Scranton, and, to ventilate the headings, which were driven from the foot of the shaft, he designed, erected, and operated at the mouth of the shaft an exhaust fan. This is believed to have been the first instance in which a fan was thus used to ventilate a mine. It is possible that this method had been used elsewhere, but if so the fact was not known to Capt. Stillwell and his associates, and his success in devising this method, which was soon generally adopted, was recognized as an important advance in mining methods. After the close of the war he became superintendent of coal breakers for the Pennsylvania Coal company, a position which he held until, at the age of 75, he retired from active work. He became a member of the First Presbyterian Church June 6, 1858. In 1873, he and his wife Margaret Snyder, withdrew from the First church and were among those who formed the nucleus of what is now the prosperous and influential Second Presbyterian Church. He is survived by 3 sons, Harry E. Stillwell of 832 Jefferson Ave.; Lewis B. Stillwell, of Lakewood, NJ; and Col. Frederick W. Stillwell of the 13th Regiment." [Scranton Tribune, 18 Feb 1905]. Pages 183, 184. SOURCE: History of Capt. Nicholas Stillwell by John E. Stillwell; published 1930; Vol. 3, page 145; SLC Film 1033615.