Keck-Rachor Family             

Franklin Keck & Caroline Campbell

On 15^th August 1862 at McArthur, OH Franklin enrolled in Company F, 114^th Regiment of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry.[2]  He attained the rank of corporal.  (He may have fought in the battle of Harpers Ferry 14-15 Sep 1962 in McClellan’s army.)  He was honorably discharged due to chronic diarrhea in St. Louis, MO on 15 June 1863.  Many soldiers who got diarrhea died and Franklin also was expected to die.  But after going home and getting some decent food and rest, he recovered fully and reenlisted for the last 90 day tour, taking his brothers Philip and Andrew with him.  He served as Sergeant-of-the-Guard in Company D, 194 ^th Regiment, OH Volunteer Infantry from 18 Feb 1865 to 24 Oct 1865[3] when he mustered out along with his brother, Philip.  (194th Regiment was organized at Camp Chase March 1865, left Ohio for Charleston, WV on March 14, under Colonel Anson G. McCook who was assigned to General Egan's Provisional Division, Army of the Shenandoah; operated in the Shenandoah Valley till April [Lee surrendered to Grant at Appomattox on 9 Apr 1865] then ordered to Washington, DC for garrison duty till it mustered out October 24, 1865. Regiment lost 38 enlisted men by disease.)[4] 

Family tradition relates:  In the early part of the war Franklin organized a group of friends and neighbors and went to Columbus to get uniforms.  Later he served in Sherman's Army.  One night he took sentry duty for a soldier who was too frightened to serve his watch.  At one time a southern farmer pleaded with him to forbid his men to climb a heavily loaded cherry tree.  Franklin promised not to let them climb the tree but let them fashion a hook and knife that snipped the cherries from the tree.  A very compassionate and inventive man!  His son Edmund remembered him telling of fighting in the Shenandoah Valley and at Harper’s Ferry.  He always seemed proud of his record and his rank of Sergeant of the Guard.[5]  He applied for a pension and received $12/mo from 1890, then $15/mo from 1907, $20/mo when he turned 75, $38/mo from 1918, $72/mo from 1922.[6]

After the war, he returned to OH and once again engaged in farming.  Six more children were born: Emma “Eliza” on 28 Nov 1866, Edward (Edmund?) “Emonel” on 26 Apr 1869, Philip on 18 Sep 1871, Juliet “Hazel” on 10 Aug 1874, Oscar on 13 Apr 1877 and Charles F. on 12 Aug 1879.  He and Caroline were divorced on 20 Oct 1881 in Logan, OH.[7]  He then married Eva A. but they were divorced on 14 Mar 1891.[8]  His third marriage was to Alice GIBSON on 20 April 1891.[9] 

Carolyn Campbell died on 17 Jan 1905 and is buried in Hamden, OH.  In 1910 at 75, Franklin was living near Chillicothe, OH.  He died on 18 Jan 1924,[10] age 90, in Minerton, OH and was buried in St. Mary’s Cemetery.  Alice died of old age at 83 yrs. on 1 Aug 1945 in Columbus, OH.[11] 

In 1883 Elmer W. married Fernia EDWARDS whose mother was born in Wales.  He was a school teacher from 1882-1897,[12] listed as teacher in the Dundas school, and was called "Professor Keck" in a citizen's biography.  He later owned and operated a coal mine near Hawk.  Elmer’s children, Blanche, Garnet and Elmer, were also teachers.

October 2004                                                                                 Jim Keck      336 229-0426

(to be continued)                                                                           jkeck1@triad.rr.com