No matter where in the world, you’re bound to have members of the family that have fought wars and battles for the countries they served. And with the celebration of Veteran’s Day in American this entry is no better entry to write down all the members that have served and fought from then till now.

William Carson (1728-1786) was originally from Northern Ireland and eventually got married before he and his lovely bride Mary Linn immigrated to America. There were no documents when the sailed over here but it was between 1751 and 1752. During this time, the American Revolution broke out and he was living in Pennsylvania. Records show that he was a private for the 5th company out of Pennsylvania. He was featured in a couple of written “documentaries”, one is called “Women in the Revolutionary War”, highlighting his daughter Mary, as well as having a membership in the “Sons of the American Revolution.” And yet, he is close to compare to Jamie Fraser from Outlander but with subtle differences.

Alexander McClanahan (1734-1797), my 5th great grandfather and another fellow Northern Irish and a possible neighbor to Will, but unlike his fellow soldier, he grew up in Virginia. His family moved to Virginia before he was 5. According to various sources, he was a decorated soldier. By 1783, he was a colonel of the 3rd regiment in the state of Virginia. And like William, he got a membership with the “Sons of the American Revolution”.

Benjamin Newman (1837-1916) was originally from Wisconsin with his parents, 5 full blood siblings and one half sibling. He was mustered in on August 27, 1862 in Chicago IL. During the Civil War, he was apart of the 88th Illinois Infantry in Company G. By the end of the war, he was already a Sergeant and was mustered out on June 9, 1865 by Capt Chickering in Nashville TN. After the war, he got married, started a family out in Kansas. Not much is said about what he does post war, but the census prior to his death says he’s making his own income.

James McClanahan (1824-1895) has had it all together prior to the war. I was married, had a few kids, all was great until his first wife passes away in their late 30s. Shortly after, he remarried and moved his family down south. According to the records, we was on the confederate side, serving in the Williams regiment aka the Missouri Calvary. And sometime in 1864, he switched sides to the union side. But that part of whether he’s confederate or union is still a confused mystery. After the war, the McClanahan’s relocate to Kansas to expand their family and worked as a farmer.

Joseph McKibben (1831-1884) entered into the war at a fairly older age, at the age of 30. He was already married with kids, and he joined with a possible buddy of his William Young. He was mustered in on October 15, 1861 in Camp butler IL. He became a sergeant in the G company of the 46th Illinois infantry in the civil war serving the union side. When the war ended, he was 2nd lieutenant and became disabled due to partial paralysis. There were no clear sources on what he does for a living, if he was able to, how he was able to keep his family afloat until his death in 1884, but he was able to see the birth of his last born a daughter.

Benjamin Raymond Newman (1880-1965) was the son of Sgt Benjamin Newman. Prior to getting drafted into the First World War, he was married, had a few kids, and worked odd jobs as a laborer. Unlike his father, he didn’t last very long in the Great War. He arrived back home from Bordeaux France to Brooklyn NY due to a medical detachment on May 18, 1919 aboard the Luckenbach. But like his father, Ben did serve in the infantry, the 327th infantry. By the time he passed away in 1965, he and is family already moved to Oregon.

John Wangler (1917-1995) was my paternal grandfather and boy was his life a story! He was born to Polish immigrants, lost his dad to cancer. When his mom remarried, they kicked him out of the house and he had to live with his older brother for a bit, who was a manager at a Safeway, and worked his way up. When he got drafted into the marines, he was married, working at a Safeway in Southern Washington. During the war, he and his wife (not my grandmother) divorced, fought in a few battles, including at Iwo Jima, and got wounded a few times as well. One story that stood out as both funny and embarrassing was the time where he got demoted down to corporal all because he didn’t eat his C rations. But life post war was even better than prior, he remarried, had two boys, one of them being my dad, started his own family business and things went well. Sadly, I never got to meet him because he died of a broken heart shortly after my parents 1995 wedding.

Albert Newman (1905-1972) was my great grandfather and the grandson of Sgt Newman. By the time WWII came around, he was married, living with mom, and working at Pressman Bakeries. As if he was chosen or not, no records show of if he did or not. But we know that his son Donald would have been at least 12 years old. But we know that by 1950, the Newman family moved to Oregon where Albert was a sales manager at a potato chip company. And from word of mouth, he has had Parkinson’s and passed away from it.

With Veterans Day being a day to celebrate a remember those who serve, let it be a day to remember those who serve in your family. The history of your family matters more than the history in the books because you can relate to it.