He was born in Cape May County, New Jersey (7). He was 19 years old when he was enlisted (3, 7).
He was living in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, when he was enlisted (3).
He was 5 feet 4 inches tall, and had a light complexion, hazel eyes, and dark hair (7).
He was enlisted and mustered into service on 24 September 1861 (1, 3, 6, 7). He was enlisted at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (3, 7). He was mustered in as private, in company D, at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (1, 3). He had gun number 68 (5) or rifle number 19 (7).
He was transferred to company H on 31 October 1861 (1, 2, 3, 6).
He was promoted to corporal (3, 5, 6).
He died of smallpox, in Washington DC, on 22 May 1862 (1--the co.H entry records this date and 26 May, 3 [26 May], 4 [22 May], 5 [22 May], 7 [no date]). He was buried in the "Mil Asy Cem'y" (1).
On 6 February 1883, his father, Silas Charmelia, applied successfully for a pension (8, 9).
1 Bates, Samuel Penniman. History of Pennsylvania volunteers, 1861-5. Harrisburg: B. Singerly, state printer, 1869-71. 5 volumes. 'Ninety-first regiment', volume 3, pages 186-233. (In the roster) (Silas Charmelia)
2 company D, register of men transferred, entry 4 (Silas Charmelia)
3 Civil War Veterans' Card File, available at the Pennsylvania State Archives, searched 27 July 2004 (Silas Charmelia)
4 company H, register of deaths (Silas Charmelia)
5 company H, list of non-commissioned officers (Silas Charmelia)
6 company H, register of men transferred (Silas Charmelia)
7 company H, descriptive roll, #19 (Silas Charmelia)
8 pension index, by name (Silas Charmelia)
9 pension index, by regiment, 91st PA Infantry, company H (Silas Charmelia)
[I did not find an entry for him in Ancestry's index to the 1890 veteran's census (searched May 2007)]
[I did not find an entry for him in the LDS indices to the 1850-1880, 1900, and 1920 censuses (searched November 2009)]
[I did not find an entry for him in the HeritageQuest indices to the 1860-80, 1900-20 censuses (searched November 2009)]
[I did not find an entry for him in RootsWeb WorldConnect (searched November 2009)]
[I did not find an entry for him in the Footnote indices to the 1860 or 1930 censuses]