The Civil War was one of the pivotal events in the history of the United States. The four year long conflict saw the mobilization of millions of men along with countless battles and skirmishes on land and water. It's not surprising therefore that the war gave rise to a vast array of controversies about people and events; controversies which remain debated to this very day. One of the controversial figures is Joseph Vandor, a Hungarian-born officer.

Approximately two hundred Hungarians participated in the Civil War. Most of them were political exiles who came to the United States after the unsuccessful 1848-49 War of Liberation led by the renowned patriot Lajos Kossuth against the ruling Hapsburg dynasty. The overwhelming majority of these émigrés sided with the Union. Though few in numbers compared to many other ethnic groups, an impressive proportion of them attained high ranks due to their military experience. From this small group of Hungarians arose two generals, four brevet brigadier-generals, some twenty colonels, and more than thirty majors and captains. Like their comrades, native-born as well as foreign-born, these officers had their share of praise, criticism, and controversy.

Joseph Vandor's service in the Civil War - as colonel of the 7^th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment - was brief, turbulent and controversial. Much has been written about the circumstances of his appointment and resignation, and the topic attracts interest and analysis to this very day. While differences of opinion over his short military tenure continue to flourish, only limited attention has been given to his life and career before and after the war. Reviewing these periods provides a much clearer picture of his character, abilities and achievements and helps to understand the dispute swirling around his war record.

Vandor was the scion of a financially comfortable family. As such, he received a thorough education typical of the times and his social standing. During the 1848-49 War of Liberation, he rendered valiant service, attaining the rank of major. He was also wounded. To punish officers of the revolutionary army, the Hapsburg authorities impressed many of them into the Imperial army as privates. Vandor was among these. He and several of his comrades sent to Bohemia took the first opportunity to desert, make their way to Hamburg, and from there sail to the United States. His arrival in America was duly noted: "The following Hungarians arrived here yesterday from Hamburg: Major Joseph Vandor, Capt. John Szabo, . . ." reported the New York Daily Tribune on May 8, 1850.

While a number of Hungarians lingered or settled in New York City, their port of arrival, Vandor didn't remain long. Thanks to his knowledge of languages and training as a soldier, he was able to obtain employment at military schools in the Washington, DC, area.

His appointment as professor of modern languages (German and French) and fencing at the Military College of Captain Alden Partridge at Brandywine Springs, Delaware, was noted by the local media, among them the July 12, 1853 edition of the Baltimore Sun. Captain Partridge was one of America's great soldiers. A graduate of West Point and superintendent of the academy from 1814 to 1817, he maintained that a large standing army was a menace to the democratic institutions of the country. But realizing the importance of military might, he urged that the nation should train a large "citizen soldiery" in the art of war. With these views in mind, he founded the first purely technical and military school which became Norwich University in 1834. Other military schools - among them the academy at Brandywine Springs - followed.

However, Vandor's association with Captain Partridge was rather brief. It wasn't their fault. First, the building housing the school burned down. An even more serious calamity befell a short time later; Captain Partridge died in the middle of January, 1854.

In the latter months of 1853 Vandor was running his own fencing school in Richmond, Virginia. Advertisements in a local paper, namely the Daily Sentinel, outlined the scope of the curriculum offered along with the names of several influential supporters. On August 1, 1855, Vandor was naturalized as a United States citizen in the Circuit Court of Queen Anne County, Maryland.

Changing locations and career paths, Vandor enrolled at Harvard University to study law. He received his Bachelor of Law at the school's annual commencement exercises in July 1857. The graduation ceremonies and the names of all those who earned degrees were printed in a number of newspapers, among them The Massachusetts Spy, July 22.

After obtaining his diploma, Vandor moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, an attractive and growing city, offering excellent opportunities. Apparently he was about the only resident of Hungarian extraction in the Badger State at the time; as a matter of fact, even several decades later, or more precisely in 1890, the Hungarian population of the state numbered less than five hundred.

In 1830 Wisconsin was still a pristine, unorganized wilderness, with a population of less than 4,000; eighteen years later it was admitted as a state into the Union. The new settlers came mainly from the older states but new immigrants constituted a substantial fraction. Germans represented the predominant immigrant group throughout the antebellum period. The Swedish novelist Fredrika Bremer visiting Milwaukee in the 1850s, mentioned seeing "German houses, German inscriptions over the doors or signs, German physiogamies." Between 1844 and 1854 over a million Germans emigrated to the United States. Much of this flow was directed westward to Wisconsin and adjacent states. In the early 1850s the Wisconsin Bureau of Immigration rendered valuable aid to perspective German settlers and indirectly persuaded many more to migrate to Wisconsin.

Wisconsin's best known German immigrant was Carl Schurz. A firm believer in the principle that all human beings are born equally free and independent, Schurz ardently championed the cause of the slave. Therefore it's not surprising that he joined the infant Republican party. Human slavery was repugnant and abhorrent to him. Schurz referred to the South's peculiar institution as the "one shrill discord in the American democracy." At the Chicago Convention on May 18, 1860, Schurz secured the adoption of what has been called the "Dutch plank" containing declarations for the liberal and just treatment of the immigrant, and economy and equity in the disposition of public lands.

Another noted German '48-er, Henry Villard, reported that good orchestral and vocal music was more liberally provided in Milwaukee than in any other city in the West. By 1860 twenty German-language newspapers were published in Wisconsin. Due to their great numbers, Germans were present in every major economic and political sphere. The city also became renowned for its beer, with the breweries of Pabst, Schlitz, and Miller. Therefore it's not surprising that Milwaukee acquired the sobriquet "The German Athens of America" and constituted the emotional heartland of German-American culture.

The 1840s and 1850s witnessed an enormous surge in the number of immigrants entering the United States. Many native-born Americans became alarmed at the flood of immigrants. A number of nativist parties and organizations were formed to stem the tide of immigrants and curtail their political and civil rights. The best known among these were the Know-Nothings. Nativism and some of its more vicious aspects were exhibited most intensely between 1852 and 1856. While the Know Nothings made impressive inroads in several eastern states, they made little headway in Wisconsin. To show their repudiation of nativism, the Republican party put Hans Christian Heg, an immigrant from Norway, on their ticket in 1859.

On August 22, 1857, Vandor married Pauline Knobelsdorf, a descendant of Major von Knobelsdorf, architect of Frederick the Great. Paul, the first of their three children, was born on June 13, 1858. For several years he was in partnership with William T. Butler. Known as Butler & Vandor, their office was located in the Juneau Block, No. 310, East Water Street. According to one local newspaper article, Vandor "obtained a reputation in the legal profession for ability and unflinching honesty."

On the eve of the Civil War the population of Wisconsin exceeded 750,000 and it was one of the country's most rapidly developing Western states. Milwaukee claimed a population of 45,000 while Madison, once a country village, had become a growing and bustling capital city. "Milwaukee is a pleasant town, a very pleasant town," observed British author Anthony Trollope touring the country in 1860.

Wisconsin was fortunate to have a competent and resolute governor in Alexander W. Randall during these crucial times. A native of New York State and a lawyer from Waukesha, he was a ready stump speaker and popular because he know how to "fit the vein" of any audience. Endowed with a sound, keen, and quick intellect, he was admirably suited to the needs of the hour. Even before his inauguration in January, 1861, he had grasped the nation's predicament, and he was convinced that there would be a fierce and prolonged struggle between the North and South.

When the Confederates fired upon Fort Sumter, the Janesville Gazette emphatically declared: "The rebels must be put down." Most of Wisconsin's leading newspapers agreed. At a governors' conference in Cleveland, Ohio, on May 3, 1861, Randall, unleashing all his great oratorical skills, thundered that "Charleston should be razed till not one stone was left upon another, . . . Had I the power of the thunderbolts of Jove, I would wipe out not only traitors but the seeds of traitors."

Wisconsin was wholly unprepared for war. "Probably no state in the Union, young or old, was so little prepared for prompt, intelligent and effective action in a great emergency, but subsequent events demonstrated that what was lacking in military knowledge in Wisconsin was made up in aptness at learning the lessons of war," said a scholarly historical treatise, published in 1906. Wisconsin was by no means alone in this predicament and course of action.

President Abraham Lincoln's call for arms stipulated one regiment from Wisconsin to serve for three months. The President, like most people, was convinced that the war would be of short duration. Within one week the required number was raised. A regiment consisted of ten companies from 900 to 1,000 troops and officers. Regimental headquarters comprised a colonel, a lieutenant-colonel, a major, and a staff of twelve commissioned and non-commissioned officers.

Offers of service flooded the Governor's office as thousands were eager to sign up. The recruits of 1861 were true volunteers; they came forward without compulsion or coercion. To organize and establish a training camp for the volunteers, a large site outside Madison was selected and became known as Camp Randall in honor of the Governor. While the volunteering was gratifying, there remained the vexing problems of arming and equipping the men.

Governor Randall believed that far more men would soon be needed than the President had asked for and therefore decided not to disband the surplus. He told them to continue training. By the end of April the 1^st Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was ready for the field. However, the troops lacked arms and were indifferently clad. On June 20^th the 2^nd Wisconsin left Madison for the nation's capital and on July 11 th the 3^rd Wisconsin departed for the same destination. They were followed in rapid succession by the 4^th, 5^th and 6^th Wisconsin.

Secretary of War Simon Cameron urged Randall and the other governors to utilize foreign officers of military education and experience. But even in Wisconsin where immigrants abounded, the native-born - perhaps due to the lingering effects of Know Nothingism - were very sensitive as to being placed under the command of any foreign-born.

With directives from Washington in mind, Governor Randall appointed Vandor as colonel of the 7^th Wisconsin Infantry; the effective date of the commission was June 24, 1861. According to one of the local papers, the Governor selected Vandor "upon the recommendation of the Mayor and principal citizens" of Milwaukee and because of his eminent qualifications as "a man of much military experience both in the field and as a military teacher."

The formal organization of the 7^th Wisconsin began on August 16; the men were mustered into service by companies. The organization was completed by September 21. "Colonel Vandor," intoned the Wisconsin Patriot on that day, "completely possesses the respectful confidence of his men."

Probably due to simple carelessness Vandor's name became "Dutchified" to Van Dor in certain publications and soon a number of newspapers and sundry official and unofficial reports regularly referred to him by that misnomer. For example, the August 12, 1861, edition of the Evening Patriot printed the names of the companies composing the regiment and its commander as:

This rendition of his name has persisted to this very day and there is no shortage of current writings which identify him as Van Dor.

As the men were assembling in Camp Randall, Vandor lost no time in initiating drills and acquainting them with the basics of military science. The 7^th was the first regiment in the State to have rifles issued for training. Vandor's zeal and commitment did not go unnoticed by the local media and they were effusive in their praise of him. "The short time he has been in camp, drilling his regiment, he has acted as a thorough and As the men were assembling in Camp Randall, Vandor wasted no time in initiating drills experienced officer," intoned the Wisconsin Daily Patriot, September 17, 1861. "There is no doubt of his regiment being handled as ably on the battle field as it is in the camp."

In accordance with orders received on September 4, the 7^th Wisconsin left the State on September 21. The numerical strength of the regiment at this time was 1,016. When they made a brief stop at Stoughton, home of the Stoughton Light Guard, which comprised Company D, the ladies of the town wanted to give the local lads a fine banner. However, the presentation was cancelled when it came to light that under regulations such banner would be only an encumbrance if carried. The 7^th Wisconsin traveled to the nation's capital by way of Pittsburgh, Harrisburg and Baltimore. Everywhere on loyal soil the men were greeted with unrestrained welcome and showered with praise.

They reached their destination on the 26^th of the month and were assigned to duty in the Defenses of Washington. A few days later the 7^th and three other infantry regiments - the 2^nd Wisconsin, the 6^th Wisconsin and the 19^th Indiana - were organized into a brigade under the command of General Rufus King. This brigade became known as the Iron Brigade and went on to compile an unsurpassed record of gallantry and sacrifice.

A grandson of Federalist statesman of the same name, General King had a varied and distinguished career. A graduate of West Point, King worked as an engineering surveyor and newspaper editor before moving to Wisconsin in 1845. As part owner and editor of the Milwaukee Sentinel, he made the paper one of the leading journals of the Northwest.

The Iron Brigade was assigned to General Erwin McDowell's division of the Army of the Potomac. Distinctive in their tall black Hardee hats, the Iron Brigade was the only all- western brigade in the Army of the Potomac. On October 5 th, the men went into camp at Fort Tillinghurst, on Arlington Heights. There, they were in rear of the great line of forts on that side of the Potomac. The ensuing weeks were filled with drills, parades, and reviews.

By this time the initial enthusiasm of the volunteers had subsided noticeably. The fact that war wasn't a lark but a serious business began to sink in. Military life was altogether different than civilian life. Adhering to regulations and following orders all day constituted a difficult transition for most men. Vandor, like other officers in his position, was confronted by a multitude of trivial and serious problems.

Several colonels of Wisconsin regiments, Vandor among them, were accused by some Milwaukee newspapers of having been bribed by certain railroad companies to transport the troops under their command. Vandor vehemently denied any such allegation, labeling them as absurd: "Said report as to my person is either a gross mistake or a willful slander to injure my good name . . . I shall take the necessary steps, if possible by way of a court of inquiry." When the matter was scrutinized by the Van Wyck Investigating Committee, Vandor was found completely innocent of any wrongdoing.

A far more formidable challenge not only for Vandor but for the entire army was the issue of discipline. The Union army was a conglomerate of volunteer citizens not a professional body led by military elitists.

The general criticism of the volunteer army by foreigners was that the soldiers were superior to the officers. While the officers could lead the men, but they could not command them. The soldiers detested taking orders and the officers shrank from commanding. The soldier would comply with a reasonable order but he did so because it was reasonable, not because it was an order. When unfair or trifling orders were given, the officers found that they had not soldiers but free and independent citizens to deal with. Due to the easy familiarity between officers and the men, rigid discipline was impossible. Often both officers and men came from the same neighborhood, to which they intended to return. The situation was rendered even worse by the system of election of officers, a practice which placed a premium upon popularity rather than ability.

The attitude of the men toward officers varied according to the conduct of the officers toward the men. So numerous were the easy-going or inefficient officers that the occasional strict disciplinarian, even though not personally obnoxious, found himself in a very trying situation. Sometimes even regular officers found themselves at a loss how much to expect of the raw volunteers. Consequently some of them relaxed in discipline to such an extent that their regiments got into a worse state than those of the volunteer officers

Cases of colonels and other officers who incurred the unpopularity of their subordinates would fill volumes. Needless to say, such officers also tended to lose control over their men.

Vandor was not the only colonel in the brigade who incurred the displeasure of some of his officers and men. Members of the 19^th Indiana questioned the competence of Colonel Solomon Meredith, possessor of a zealous political background, but without any previous military experience. In a letter, dated October 2, regimental Surgeon Calvin Woods wrote: "Our Col has no practical sense. The officers have all found it out."

According to Richard N. Current's The History of Wisconsin the ordinary soldiers liked Vandor well enough despite the fact that he was a strict disciplinarian. That Vandor was committed to discipline is also stressed by William De Loss Love in his 1866 book Wisconsin in the War of the Rebellion. A similar view was echoed by Governor Randall when he referred to the 7^th Wisconsin in his annual message: "This regiment comprised a splendid body of men, and was well officered. Col. Joseph Vandor, a native of Hungary I believe, had seen service in the old country, is a brave man and a thorough disciplinarian." Robert Nesbit's Wisconsin A History describes Vandor as "masterful in drill, a good disciplinarian," and that "his men swore by him." Furthermore, Vandor even instituted bayonet drill, very much of a novelty at the time.

Vandor's adherence to rigid disciplinary measures took a variety of forms. He forbade any liquor in the training camp. When local citizens presented a barrel of beer as a gift to the regiment, he refused it in no uncertain terms. He arrested one of the soldiers and had him confined for participating in a dress parade wearing a dirty uniform. He placed under arrest a captain for going into the city on the day the captain was officer of the day and was required to be on duty all day.

Some commentators portrays Vandor and his troubles in an entirely different light. For example, The Men Stood Like Iron, a work by Lance J. Herdegen and which draws on Alan T. Nolan's The Iron Brigade, claims that Vandor was incompetent at drilling, arbitrary in discipline, and asserts that Vandor had a poor command of the English language. Various other writings raise similar allegations.

That Vandor had a poor command of the English language is startling and questionable. When he came to America in 1850 he was already fluent in French and German; therefore, he definitely had a knack for languages. By the time the Civil War rolled around, he had been in the United States for nearly a dozen years, obtained his law degree from Harvard University and not some diploma mill, and was a practicing attorney, admittedly in a strongly German milieu. Considering all the facts, it is highly improbable and rather hard to believe that he was struggling with the language when he took command of the regiment.

Several accounts indicate that Vandor had a habit of pointing out the deficiencies of his officers in front of the soldiers. Such embarrassment naturally created a strong resentment towards him. The insulted and dissatisfied individuals banded together and drew up a letter to Vandor on September 30^th which expressed their grievances: "We regret exceedingly that our sense of honor as men and officers of the 7^th Regiment of Wisconsin Volunteers compels us to the necessity of informing you that the severe reprimands and the approbious epithets hurled at us are received and felt with great dissatisfaction and that we as gentlemen considering ourselves entitled to be treated us such respectfully ask you . . . to retract the following accusations or resign command of this Regt. . . ." Flaunting or stressing a military education in the face of ex-civilians without the benefit of such background was certainly not tactful.

But there was considerable support for Vandor to retain command of the regiment. For example, one trooper wrote in his diary on October 26, 1861: "Petition signed that Colonel Joseph Vandor should remain with us."

With all the unpleasantness swirling about, Vandor handed in his resignation on January 30, 1862. He was succeeded by William W. Robinson, the regiment's lieutenant-colonel.

The controversy around Vandor's tumultuous command didn't cease with his resignation or the end of the war. Reminiscing about the Civil War and the participants, a Wisconsin newspaper article of the early 1890s declared that Vandor's military career came to an abrupt end "when his overbearing and tyrannical disposition caused his subordinates to make it too warm for him and he resigned." More than two decades later Paul Vandor vehemently defended his father's record, attributing his difficulties to an "outgrowth of a cabal in the regiment, nurtured by jealousy of his military proficiency."

The sharply contrasting views about Vandor are certainly perplexing. I had the opportunity to discuss this topic in some depth with Roy Gustrowsky and Paul Johnson who were researching the history of the 7^th Wisconsin and regiment's troopers. (Paul Johnson's second great grand-uncle was William W. Robinson, who succeeded Vandor as the regiment's commanding officer, and his second great-grandfather was Andrew Robinson, the first quartermaster sergeant of the 7^th.) We concluded that considering Vandor's previous and subsequent career he wasn't the incompetent martinet as some of his critics claimed. However, he undoubtedly lacked finesse in dealing with subordinates and tended to be condescending. As a former professional soldier trained according to a rigid conduct, he was unable to adjust to being an officer in an army where the subordinates were citizens first and soldiers second and orders weren't blindly obeyed but often questioned and challenged. Vandor wasn't alone in this predicament.

On February 1, 1862, newspapers announced Vandor's appointment as US consul to Tahiti. The appointment apparently owed much to the support of a small number of prominent figures, including Carl Schurz, Governor Randall, and Lincoln cabinet members Salmon P. Chase and William H. Seward. As consul, Vandor drew an annual salary of $1,000, the same as his counterpart on Fiji.

Covering approximately 400 square miles, Tahiti is the largest of the Society Islands. Discovered by the English navigator Samuel Wallis in 1767, the island was explored by the French sailor Louis Antoine de Bougainville and claimed for France.

While art lovers will always associate Tahiti with Paul Gaugin, readers and movie-goers immediate conjure up the mutiny on the Bounty when the island is mentioned. The incident, which occurred in 1789, is undoubtedly the most infamous of mutinies in history. Several books have chronicled the events surrounding it; especially regarded is the sprawling trilogy Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James N. Hall, published in 1932. Among the adaptations to the silver screen, the 1962 film, starring Trevor Howard as the tyrannical Captain William Bligh and Marlon Brando as the brooding, rebellious Fletcher Christian, is the most lavish. Shot on location in spectacular color, it features breathtaking scenery, swashbuckling action rivaling any Errol Flynn epic, and of course beautiful girls attired in authentic native costumes delighting the sailors with rousing dances. The thrilling saga of the mutiny is now a fixture in our popular culture. "Known to millions of people," wrote one scholarly publication, "it has been passed from generation to generation." As a matter of fact, the popular TV show Jeopardy! aired on May 1, 2015, featured an entire category on the doomed ship.

Tahiti and the surrounding islands soon became regular ports of call. Visits by ships of various nations was followed by the influx of missionaries. There was a sharp competition between Catholic and Protestant organizations. The London Missionary Society in particular exercised a strong influence. By the late 1830s whalers began to congregate in Tahiti in their exploitation of the resources of the Pacific Ocean. As many as 70 to 80 ships called on the island's capital Papeete annually. Among the whalers who spent time on Tahiti was none other than Herman Melville, destined to become one of America's greatest writers. In January of 1841 the future author of Moby Dick and other classics was still a struggling author when he signed up as a crew member of the Acushnet. South Sea beachcombers and vagabonds bitterly contested each other for the exclusive right of directing the traffic in the port on several islands, creating a nuisance for commercial vessels. Deserters from ships aggravated festering problems.

In the early 1860s France was extending and solidifying its control over the islands, giving rise to considerable tension and turmoil. While Tahiti became a French protectorate in 1843, it wasn't ceded to France until 1880. Hence Tahiti in Vandor's time wasn't quite the care-free, sun-drenched paradise as it's often depicted in the movies and in travelogues. When he assumed his duties, American prestige was at a low level. This situation, pointed out an article in the New York Times, December 13, 1862, was due to the unfitness of his two predecessors. Americans had high hopes that Vandor would "represent our Government in a creditable manner" and usher in a new era of American-Tahitian relations.

A very serious problem confronting Vandor and his diplomatic colleagues was the depredation of kidnappers who preyed upon the inhabitants of the smaller and more remote islands, plucking them from their villages, and then thrusting them into virtual slavery on plantations in Australia, Fiji and elsewhere under the most deplorable conditions. One of the businesses employing slave labor was none other than the Tahiti Cotton Company.

Blackbirding - as the practice of luring South Sea islanders to toil for next to nothing - flourished between 1863 - 1904. All kinds of people were involved in it - traders, beachcombers, smugglers, gun runners and deserters from sundry navies. Kidnapping, murder and massacre were part of the trade, and before the sordid practice petered out the death toll ran to the many thousands. The natives naturally reacted violently, regarding all white men evil and killing them indiscriminately. Missionaries, and their wives, were often the targets and victims of the vengeance exacted by the islanders.

One writer observed that when "Abraham Lincoln entered reluctantly into the Civil War that was to end in the freeing of slaves in the United States, he never dreamed that the very war was providing a market for labor of South Sea Islanders to give a new impulse to blackbirding in the Pacific."

During his years on Tahiti, Vandor attended mostly to rather mundane matters and routine duties. However, 1868 was a notable year as it witnessed a serious clash between one of the still independent nearby islands and the gunboat diplomacy of the French navy.

1868 also marked Vandor's last as consul. He was replaced by Francis A. Perkins, who was appointed to the post on December 14, 1868. Upon coming back to the United States, Vandor did not return to Wisconsin, but settled in San Francisco and resumed the practice of law. The family took residence at 715 Ellis Street.

In addition to carrying out his duties as a lawyer, Vandor took an active role in a host of civic and social organizations. In 1870 he was among the signers of the "Petition In Reference To Establishing a Public Law Library in San Francisco." Addressed to the Legislature of the State of California by judges and members of the Bar of the City and County of San Francisco, it pointed out the dire need for such facility. Vandor was president of the Austrian Benevolent Society. He was a prominent figure in the local chapter of the GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) and served as judge-advocate for the Department of California in 1871 and 1873.

Vandor died on May 7, 1873, and his funeral was held three days later. Members of the Bar paid tribute to his memory by passing resolutions to adjourn the courts of the city. His funeral was conducted by the Austrian Benevolent Society and he was laid to rest in San Francisco National Cemetery, Section OSA, Row 69, Site 8. Both the English and German-language press of the city carried obituary notices.

Paul, his eldest son, studied law and then became a noted newspaperman in San Francisco, Alameda and Fresno. As owner of the Fresno Evening Herald and Democrat, he exerted considerable influence in the community. Avidly interested in all facets of California history, he was a recognized authority on the San Joaquin Valley and was a charter member of the Fresno County Historical Society. He was among those who experienced the great earthquake which leveled San Francisco in 1906. He was the author of the History of Fresno County, a massive tome packed with sundry facts and biographical sketches, published in 1919. Paul's own entry extends over nearly three pages; however, it provides only a few specific details about his parents. He passed away on April 5, 1926.

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