He was 45 years old when he was enlisted (3, 4, 6, 8 [46 in 1860], 9 [58 in 1870], 10 [60 in 1870], 11 [66 in 1880], 14 [64 at death in 1881]). He was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (6, 8 [New Jersey], 9 [New Jersey], 11 [New Jersey], 14 [New Jersey]).
In 1860, he was living in the first ward of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (8). He was living with his wife Patience and daughters Jane, Emma, and Sarah (8). He was a purveyor [?], and owned $150 in personal property (8).
He was a teamster when he was enlisted (6).
He was 5 feet 7 inches tall, and had a light complexion, light eyes, and dark hair (6).
He was enlisted and mustered into service on 3 October 1861 (1, 3, 4, 6). He was enlisted for three years, by Lieutenant Pierce, at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (3, 4, 6). He was mustered in as a private, at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (3, 4). He served as a private, initially in company D (1).
He was transferred to company F on 31 October 1861 (2).
He was discharged at Carroll Hill Barracks, Washington DC, on 6 May 1862 on surgeon's certificate of disability (1, 4, 5, 6).
On 24 November 1862, he applied for a pension, which he eventually received (7, 12 [24 Nov 1862], 13).
In 1870, he was living in the 1st ward of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (9, 10). He was living with his wife Patience, and daughters Emma and Josephine (10). He was a house carpenter, and owned $200 in personal property (9).
He was dropped from the pension roll on 5 March 1878, because his disability existed before his service (12). He requested reconsideration (12). The Pension Bureau refused to reconsider their decision, because they thought the "adverse evidence ... nearly conclusive" (12). He was living at 1409 Rye Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, either in 1878, or in 1881 (when the report was written) (12).
In 1880, he was living in the rear of 524 Christian Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (11). He was living with his wife Patience, and daughters Josephine and Anna (11). He was a house carpenter (11).
On 10 [?] May 1881, he died, of phthisis pulmonalis (14). He was married (14). He died at, or was buried from, 108 Wilson [?] Street, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (14). He was buried on 15 [?] May 1881, at the St Paul's ME Church Burial Ground (14).
On 4 [?] March 1889, his widow, Patience Strang, applied unsuccessfully from Pennsylvania for a pension (7, 13).
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) (Benjamin Strang)
2 company D, register of men transferred, entry 15 (Benjamin Strang)
3 Civil War Veterans' Card File, available at the Pennsylvania State Archives, searched 10 August 2004 (Benjamin Strang [co.D])
4 Civil War Veterans' Card File, available at the Pennsylvania State Archives, searched 10 August 2004 (Benjamin Strang [co.F])
5 company F, register of men discharged (Benjamin Strang)
6 company F, descriptive roll, #17 (Benjamin Strang)
7 pension index, by name (Benjamin Strang)
8 1860 US census, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, first ward, microfilm series M653, film 1151, page 112 = 112 handwritten (Benjamin Strang)
9 1870 US census, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 1st ward, microfilm series M593, film 1387, page 571 = 240 handwritten (Benjamin Strang)
10 1870 US census (second enumeration), Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, 1st ward, microfilm series M593, film 1415, page 195 = pages 29-30 handwritten (Benjamin Strang)
11 1880 US census, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, supervisor's district 1, enumeration district 39, microfilm series T9, film 1167, page 117 C = 3 handwritten (Benj Strang)
12 Report in the matter of five hundred cases wherein the pensioners' names have been dropped. Pension bureau. March 3, 1881.--Referred to the Select Committee on the Payment of Pensions, Bounty, and Back Pay. 46th Congress, 3d session. House of Representatives, Report No. 387. Appendix, page 49 (Benjamin Strang)
13 pension index, by regiment, 91st PA Infantry, company F (Benjamin Strang)
14 death certificate, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 10 May 1881 (Benjamin Strang)
[I did not find an entry for him in the Ancestry indices to the 1890 veteran's, 1900, 1910, 1920, or 1930 censuses (searched November 2006) or the 1850 census (searched July 2007)]
| line | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 |
| Dwelling number | 760 | ||||
| Family number | 804 | ||||
| Name | Benjamin Strang | Patience | Jane | Emma | Sarah |
| Age | 46 | 43 | 18 | 11 | 9 |
| Sex | m | f | f | f | f |
| Color | |||||
| Occupation | Purveyor [?] | ||||
| Value of real estate owned | |||||
| Value of personal estate | 150 | ||||
| Place of birth | " [sc. N Jersey] | " | " | Phila | " |
| Married within year | |||||
| Attended school within year | 1 | 1 | |||
| Cannot read & write | |||||
| Deaf, dumb, blind, etc. |
| line | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 |
| Dwelling-house number | 375 | |||
| Family number | 393 | |||
| Name | Strang Benjamin | - Patience | - Bowers George [?] | - Emma |
| Age | 58 | 52 | 21 | 20 |
| Sex | M | F | M | F |
| Color | W | W | W | W |
| Occupation | House Carpenter | Keeping house | Blacksmith | Boarding |
| Real estate value | ||||
| Personal estate value | 200 | |||
| Birthplace | New Jersey | New Jersey | Penna | Maryland |
| Father foreign born | ||||
| Mother foreign born | ||||
| Birth month if born within year | ||||
| Marriage month if married within year | Jan | Jan | ||
| Attended school past year | ||||
| Can't read | ||||
| Can't write | ||||
| Deaf, dumb, blind, etc. | ||||
| Male US citizen at least 21 years old | 1 | 1 | ||
| Male US citizen at least 21 years old who can't vote ... |
| line | 39 | 40 | 1 | 2 |
| Dwelling-house number | 1404 | |||
| Family number | ||||
| Name | Strang Benjamin | Patience | Strang Emma | Josephine |
| Age | 60 | 55 | 30 | 20 |
| Sex | M | F | F | F |
| Color | ||||
| Occupation | ||||
| Real estate value | ||||
| Personal estate value | ||||
| Birthplace | ||||
| Father foreign born | ||||
| Mother foreign born | ||||
| Birth month if born within year | ||||
| Marriage month if married within year | ||||
| Attended school past year | ||||
| Can't read | ||||
| Can't write | ||||
| Deaf, dumb, blind, etc. | ||||
| Male US citizen at least 21 years old | ||||
| Male US citizen at least 21 years old who can't vote ... |
| line | 44 | 45 | 46 | 47 | 48 |
| street name | Christian Street | ||||
| house number | back [?] 524 | ||||
| dwelling visit # | 28 | ||||
| family visit # | 31 | ||||
| name | Strang Benj | - Patence [sic] | - Emma | - Josephine B | - Anna B |
| color | W | W | W | W | W |
| sex | M | F | F | F | F |
| age | 66 | 64 | 30 | 27 | 8 |
| month born if born in year | |||||
| relationship | wife | daughter | daughter | daughter | |
| single | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||
| married | 1 | 1 | |||
| widowed/divorced | |||||
| married during year | |||||
| occupation | House Carpenter | Keeping house | no occupation | Dress Maker | attends school |
| months unemployed | |||||
| currently ill? | |||||
| blind | |||||
| deaf/dumb | |||||
| idiotic | |||||
| insane | |||||
| disabled | |||||
| school this year | 1 | ||||
| can't read | |||||
| can't write | |||||
| birthplace | New Jersey | New Jersey | Maryland | Penna | Penna |
| father's birthplace | New Jersey | New Jersey | New Jersey | New Jersey | New Jersey |
| mother's birthplace | Penna | New Jersey | N. Jersey | N. Jersey | N. Jersey |