Robert M Huntington

HUNTINGTON

Posted By: Tina Keister
Date: 1/19/2006 at 14:17:52

Robert M Huntington, physician and surgeon, Boone, was born at North Bloomfield, Ontario county, New York, June 3, 1831, and is the second surviving son of Sidney Huntington and Maria (nee Holmes), and a direct descendant of Simon and Margaret (nee Baret) Huntingon, of Norwich England, who removed with his family to this country in 1639 or 1640, settling at Roxbury, Massachusetts, in the early years of his life he worked summers and attended school winter, the winter of 1850-51 he attended school at Batavia, New York, was called home early in January owing to the illness of his father, who died on the 11th of that month, 1851, aged sixty-five, this left him alone with his mother and a younger brother, his oldest brother being married with a family of his own, his youngest brother soon after apprenticed himself to the machinist's trade at Rochester, New York, he spent the year 1854 in New York City, in the fall of 1855 he had every arragement made to attend college at Genesee Wesleyan Seminary and College, Lima, New York, but sudden illness of his mother prevented the consummaion of his plans to go through an extended course in college and eventuated in his entering the office of Dr G H Bennett, of Lima, New York, as a student of medicine, his mother died August 28, 1859, he soon after went to Michigan attended one term at the Hillsdale College, that fall went to St Loius and became the pupil of Prof. Joseph N McDowell, a that time president of the college and dean of the faculty of the medical department, University of Missouri, and recieved his diploma Feruary 28, 1861, remained with his preceptor until after the fall of Fort Sumpter, and was tendered a commission as assistant surgeon in the Confederate service by Jefferson Davis, through Dr McDowell, who was at that time in frequent communication with and a personal friend of Davis, not seeing it in that light, he finally left St Louis for Kalamazoo, Michigan, he enlisted as a private soldier immediately after the battle and defeat at Bull Run, August 23, 1861, in company I, SiXth Michigan Infantry, the capital being in danger, the regiment was sent forward at once and arrived in Baltimore about the 1st or 2nd day of September, and went into camp at McKim's Hill, where they remained until February 21, 1862 embarking on the evening of that day for Fortress Monroe and Newport News, they left Newport News with Gen. B F Butler's forces for Ship Island, Mississippi, on entering the service he was immediately put on hospital duty, and on his arrival at Ship Island was detached from his regiment for special duty at Gen Butler's headquarters in the office of Dr Thomas Hewson Bache, medical director, Department of the Gulf, and he remained until the trops moved against New Orleans, he was then ordered on duty at the general hospital at Ship Island, where he remained until the last of June, then went to New Orleans and spent the first fourth of July in that city spent there by United States forces, and was finally ordered back with instructions to pack their supplies and move with their sick to New Orleans, and were distributed among the hospitals then established, but sending most of the St James, on Magazine street, he was then ordered back to duty with the medical director, and remained until after the battle of Baton Rouge and the sick and wounded began to arrive in such numbers as to require more room than the city hospitals would accommodate, he was then ordered to the U S Marine Hosptil with instructions to draw two hundred rations for five days, take full charge of the institution and do the best he could, at that time the hosptial was entirely empty and unoccupied except by on old soldier and his wife as custodians, not a bed, chair, stove or means of cooking or making the sick cmofortable was there, no medicines or rations, instead of sending two hundred men , there were over twelve hundred, some quite sick, all some sick, he remained in charge for ten days and was relieved by the brigade surgeon of volunteers, just arrived from New York, he still remained on duty at the hospital for some months, being relieved he spent a few months with Major Longley in the Commissary department, and was commissioned assistant surgeon First Louisiana Native Guards March 30, 1863, his regiment doing duty at various points in and about New Orleans and Baton Rouge, and finally ordered into the field, participating in the seige and battles at Port Hudson, Louisiana, was also on the Red River expediton, beside many short raids and skirmishes, soon after the fall of Port Hudson, he was placed in charge of the general hosptial, and had also under his charge and sanitary supervions the contaband camp, the post guard house, Second Vermont battery, battery G, Fifth United States regular artillery, besides two working parties, building fortifications, under the command of Major Long and Major Rigart, he was dischraged from the service by general orders from the war department May , 1865, after the surrender of Lee, ordering the discharge of all officers absent from their commands, by reason of sickness or leave of absence on a certain day of May 1865, and being at that time , for the first time during his term of service, on the sick roll, the order let him out, after leaving the service he settled in Kalamazoo, Michigan and was induced by a distant relative (Dr T Romeyn Huntington), to investigate homeopathy, since time he has practiced that system, he was married October 1865 to Mary P Hildreth, daughter of George W Hildreth, of Lockport, New York, they have one child: Robert Jay Huntington, seven years of April 20, 1880, came to Boone October 19, 1871

From the 1880 Boone county History Book