Joseph (Joe) was born in the old Pierson home on Cold Soil Road, just south of its intersection with Blackwell Road. He was the fifth child of Theodore Pierson, a farmer, and his wife Catharine (Reed). When Joe was 8 years old, his father died at age 50. Presumably the family lived together with Joe's namesake grandfather, Joseph Pierson and grandmother Jemima (Hart). In Oct. 1853, a month after the grandfather's death and because Joe and his siblings were heirs to property, their mother was granted legal guardianship of her children (all still minors).
At the age of 19, on 30 Aug. 1862 (16 months after the attack on Fort Sumter that started the War of the Rebellion), Joe joined the Union Army. He enlisted as a private in Company H of the 21st Volunteer Infantry for a term of 9 months. With him were his first cousin Liscomb B. Reed, who was enrolled as a corporal, and other local boys including two distant Reed cousins. The 21st Regiment left New Jersey on Sep. 24th for Washington, proceeded to Frederick, Md., and then joined the Sixth Corps of the Army of the Potomac. It saw action at Fredericksburg, Va., in Dec. 1862 and May 1863; in Salem Heights, Va., in May 1863; and at Franklin's Crossing, Va., in June 1863.
Whenever he could, Joe wrote home. And several of his letters have survived. In Feb. 1863, writing from camp at Bell Plain, Va., he asked his brother George whether there was a draft yet in Lawrence and Hopewell: "is the boys getting sent yet or not - tell them we begin to think that it purt near time for us to be relieved and let them have a triles at it." A month later, after receiving a care package from home, he wrote: "Tell Sary Ann that her ginger cubes tastes just as they allways did but I cant Steel them out of the pan like I usto."
Joe and the rest of his regiment were sent home to New Jersey at the end of their 9-month term and mustered out at Trenton on 19 June 1863. Two weeks later, the tide of the war turned at Gettysburg, where the dead, wounded and missing totaled more than 50,000 between the two armies.
During his military duty, Joe met Isaac S. Everett of West Windsor, who served in Company E of the 21st Regiment. When they returned home from the war, Isaac introduced Joe to his little sister (and Joe's future wife) Keturah E. Everett. A few years later on 9 Jan. 1867, when Joe was 23 and after Keturah had turned 18, the two were married at the Everett home in West Windsor.
Keturah's father gave them a farm in Lawrence Twp., at the corner of Rosedale and Carter roads. Through various transactions and mortgages, the title to this property was ultimately in Keturah's name. In the 1870 and 1880 censuses, Joe was listed as a farmer. He and Keturah had eight children together, all born in Lawrence Twp. The last, a son born in 1886, lived just one day. During their 19-year residence in Lawrence Twp., at some point Joe served on the township committee (according to his obituary).
By 1887, Joe and Keturah moved into Hopewell Borough, where Joe was a livery man. Based on the 1887 map of the town, he and a partner operated as Cray & Pierson off of Union St. (now Princeton Ave.) and Columbia Ave. In 1889, Keturah purchased 29 Blackwell Ave., near the railroad station. They lived there for the remainder of Joe's life, and Joe ran his livery business out of large barns behind the house (see photo courtesy of cousin Bob Gantz). He advertised in the town paper: "I will furnish you with single and double teams at reasonable prices, with a dog under the wagon."
In 1893, he also advertised that he had "Pierson's Conquering Liniment" for sale. The exact purpose of the liniment is unknown. Joe's sons George and Theodore (Dory) were druggists, and the latter became a physician. But Joe was known to have employed "non-prescription medication" you might say. That is, he was not known as a "tea-totaller." He had a reputation, in fact, as a drover (livestock dealer) to make his best deals with the help of a bit of libation.
In the 1890 special census schedule of Civil War veterans, Joe had been listed as having incurred rheumatism as a result of the war. (He was granted a life pension in 1903 as an invalid.) In 1900, he was called a livery man in the census, and in 1910 he was shown as a livestock dealer. By the time of the state census of 1915, Joe was retired.
Between 1897 and 1915, Joe and Keturah suffered through the deaths of three adult children: daughter Louie died in 1897 at the age of 19; son James E. (Jim) died in 1909 at age 41; and daughter Margaret H. died at age 34 in 1915. He and Keturah took in their grandson James E. Jr. (nicknamed "Butch") for a time after their son Jim's death in 1909.
In Jan. 1917, Joe and Keturah celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary surrounded by their extended family. The marriage would last another 5 years until 17 Sep. 1922. On that date, while visiting with neighbors on their front porch, "in his usual jovial humor," Joe fell over backward in the midst of conversation and died moments later. He was 78 years old. Dr. Van Neste listed the cause of death as arteriosclerosis.
Joe was remembered by his grandchildren for his bright eyes and smile. He was a congenial person--and perhaps a bit more carefree than his wife of 55 years, in whose name they owned the properties where they raised their children and grandchildren. His funeral was held at their home on Blackwell Ave. with the pastor of the Presbyterian Church officiating. Joe had been a longtime member of the Grand Army of Republic, a veteran's organization. He was buried with military honors.
NOTE: It was reported in Joseph Pierson's obituary, and elsewhere, that he was a direct descendant of John Hart, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, through his grandmother Jemima (Hart) Pierson. This is not accurate. Jemima was the granddaughter of Benjamin Hart, the signer's double cousin (i.e., Benjamin and John Hart were cousins through their fathers, who were brothers, and also through their mothers, who were Furman sisters).
Also, Joe has been erroneously referred to in recent family materials as "Joseph Wilson Pierson." This is a mistake, without question. He never had or used a middle name or initial.
I have created a virtual cemetery for memorials of members of Company H, 21st Regiment, New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. Joseph Pierson served in this unit with one first cousin, and at least 15 other, more distant relatives (by blood or marriage).
At the age of 19, on 30 Aug. 1862 (16 months after the attack on Fort Sumter that started the War of the Rebellion), Joe joined the Union Army. He enlisted as a private in Company H of the 21st Volunteer Infantry for a term of 9 months. With him were his first cousin Liscomb B. Reed, who was enrolled as a corporal, and other local boys including two distant Reed cousins. The 21st Regiment left New Jersey on Sep. 24th for Washington, proceeded to Frederick, Md., and then joined the Sixth Corps of the Army of the Potomac. It saw action at Fredericksburg, Va., in Dec. 1862 and May 1863; in Salem Heights, Va., in May 1863; and at Franklin's Crossing, Va., in June 1863.
Whenever he could, Joe wrote home. And several of his letters have survived. In Feb. 1863, writing from camp at Bell Plain, Va., he asked his brother George whether there was a draft yet in Lawrence and Hopewell: "is the boys getting sent yet or not - tell them we begin to think that it purt near time for us to be relieved and let them have a triles at it." A month later, after receiving a care package from home, he wrote: "Tell Sary Ann that her ginger cubes tastes just as they allways did but I cant Steel them out of the pan like I usto."
Joe and the rest of his regiment were sent home to New Jersey at the end of their 9-month term and mustered out at Trenton on 19 June 1863. Two weeks later, the tide of the war turned at Gettysburg, where the dead, wounded and missing totaled more than 50,000 between the two armies.
During his military duty, Joe met Isaac S. Everett of West Windsor, who served in Company E of the 21st Regiment. When they returned home from the war, Isaac introduced Joe to his little sister (and Joe's future wife) Keturah E. Everett. A few years later on 9 Jan. 1867, when Joe was 23 and after Keturah had turned 18, the two were married at the Everett home in West Windsor.
Keturah's father gave them a farm in Lawrence Twp., at the corner of Rosedale and Carter roads. Through various transactions and mortgages, the title to this property was ultimately in Keturah's name. In the 1870 and 1880 censuses, Joe was listed as a farmer. He and Keturah had eight children together, all born in Lawrence Twp. The last, a son born in 1886, lived just one day. During their 19-year residence in Lawrence Twp., at some point Joe served on the township committee (according to his obituary).
By 1887, Joe and Keturah moved into Hopewell Borough, where Joe was a livery man. Based on the 1887 map of the town, he and a partner operated as Cray & Pierson off of Union St. (now Princeton Ave.) and Columbia Ave. In 1889, Keturah purchased 29 Blackwell Ave., near the railroad station. They lived there for the remainder of Joe's life, and Joe ran his livery business out of large barns behind the house (see photo courtesy of cousin Bob Gantz). He advertised in the town paper: "I will furnish you with single and double teams at reasonable prices, with a dog under the wagon."
In 1893, he also advertised that he had "Pierson's Conquering Liniment" for sale. The exact purpose of the liniment is unknown. Joe's sons George and Theodore (Dory) were druggists, and the latter became a physician. But Joe was known to have employed "non-prescription medication" you might say. That is, he was not known as a "tea-totaller." He had a reputation, in fact, as a drover (livestock dealer) to make his best deals with the help of a bit of libation.
In the 1890 special census schedule of Civil War veterans, Joe had been listed as having incurred rheumatism as a result of the war. (He was granted a life pension in 1903 as an invalid.) In 1900, he was called a livery man in the census, and in 1910 he was shown as a livestock dealer. By the time of the state census of 1915, Joe was retired.
Between 1897 and 1915, Joe and Keturah suffered through the deaths of three adult children: daughter Louie died in 1897 at the age of 19; son James E. (Jim) died in 1909 at age 41; and daughter Margaret H. died at age 34 in 1915. He and Keturah took in their grandson James E. Jr. (nicknamed "Butch") for a time after their son Jim's death in 1909.
In Jan. 1917, Joe and Keturah celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary surrounded by their extended family. The marriage would last another 5 years until 17 Sep. 1922. On that date, while visiting with neighbors on their front porch, "in his usual jovial humor," Joe fell over backward in the midst of conversation and died moments later. He was 78 years old. Dr. Van Neste listed the cause of death as arteriosclerosis.
Joe was remembered by his grandchildren for his bright eyes and smile. He was a congenial person--and perhaps a bit more carefree than his wife of 55 years, in whose name they owned the properties where they raised their children and grandchildren. His funeral was held at their home on Blackwell Ave. with the pastor of the Presbyterian Church officiating. Joe had been a longtime member of the Grand Army of Republic, a veteran's organization. He was buried with military honors.
NOTE: It was reported in Joseph Pierson's obituary, and elsewhere, that he was a direct descendant of John Hart, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, through his grandmother Jemima (Hart) Pierson. This is not accurate. Jemima was the granddaughter of Benjamin Hart, the signer's double cousin (i.e., Benjamin and John Hart were cousins through their fathers, who were brothers, and also through their mothers, who were Furman sisters).
Also, Joe has been erroneously referred to in recent family materials as "Joseph Wilson Pierson." This is a mistake, without question. He never had or used a middle name or initial.
I have created a virtual cemetery for memorials of members of Company H, 21st Regiment, New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. Joseph Pierson served in this unit with one first cousin, and at least 15 other, more distant relatives (by blood or marriage).
Joseph (Joe) was born in the old Pierson home on Cold Soil Road, just south of its intersection with Blackwell Road. He was the fifth child of Theodore Pierson, a farmer, and his wife Catharine (Reed). When Joe was 8 years old, his father died at age 50. Presumably the family lived together with Joe's namesake grandfather, Joseph Pierson and grandmother Jemima (Hart). In Oct. 1853, a month after the grandfather's death and because Joe and his siblings were heirs to property, their mother was granted legal guardianship of her children (all still minors).
At the age of 19, on 30 Aug. 1862 (16 months after the attack on Fort Sumter that started the War of the Rebellion), Joe joined the Union Army. He enlisted as a private in Company H of the 21st Volunteer Infantry for a term of 9 months. With him were his first cousin Liscomb B. Reed, who was enrolled as a corporal, and other local boys including two distant Reed cousins. The 21st Regiment left New Jersey on Sep. 24th for Washington, proceeded to Frederick, Md., and then joined the Sixth Corps of the Army of the Potomac. It saw action at Fredericksburg, Va., in Dec. 1862 and May 1863; in Salem Heights, Va., in May 1863; and at Franklin's Crossing, Va., in June 1863.
Whenever he could, Joe wrote home. And several of his letters have survived. In Feb. 1863, writing from camp at Bell Plain, Va., he asked his brother George whether there was a draft yet in Lawrence and Hopewell: "is the boys getting sent yet or not - tell them we begin to think that it purt near time for us to be relieved and let them have a triles at it." A month later, after receiving a care package from home, he wrote: "Tell Sary Ann that her ginger cubes tastes just as they allways did but I cant Steel them out of the pan like I usto."
Joe and the rest of his regiment were sent home to New Jersey at the end of their 9-month term and mustered out at Trenton on 19 June 1863. Two weeks later, the tide of the war turned at Gettysburg, where the dead, wounded and missing totaled more than 50,000 between the two armies.
During his military duty, Joe met Isaac S. Everett of West Windsor, who served in Company E of the 21st Regiment. When they returned home from the war, Isaac introduced Joe to his little sister (and Joe's future wife) Keturah E. Everett. A few years later on 9 Jan. 1867, when Joe was 23 and after Keturah had turned 18, the two were married at the Everett home in West Windsor.
Keturah's father gave them a farm in Lawrence Twp., at the corner of Rosedale and Carter roads. Through various transactions and mortgages, the title to this property was ultimately in Keturah's name. In the 1870 and 1880 censuses, Joe was listed as a farmer. He and Keturah had eight children together, all born in Lawrence Twp. The last, a son born in 1886, lived just one day. During their 19-year residence in Lawrence Twp., at some point Joe served on the township committee (according to his obituary).
By 1887, Joe and Keturah moved into Hopewell Borough, where Joe was a livery man. Based on the 1887 map of the town, he and a partner operated as Cray & Pierson off of Union St. (now Princeton Ave.) and Columbia Ave. In 1889, Keturah purchased 29 Blackwell Ave., near the railroad station. They lived there for the remainder of Joe's life, and Joe ran his livery business out of large barns behind the house (see photo courtesy of cousin Bob Gantz). He advertised in the town paper: "I will furnish you with single and double teams at reasonable prices, with a dog under the wagon."
In 1893, he also advertised that he had "Pierson's Conquering Liniment" for sale. The exact purpose of the liniment is unknown. Joe's sons George and Theodore (Dory) were druggists, and the latter became a physician. But Joe was known to have employed "non-prescription medication" you might say. That is, he was not known as a "tea-totaller." He had a reputation, in fact, as a drover (livestock dealer) to make his best deals with the help of a bit of libation.
In the 1890 special census schedule of Civil War veterans, Joe had been listed as having incurred rheumatism as a result of the war. (He was granted a life pension in 1903 as an invalid.) In 1900, he was called a livery man in the census, and in 1910 he was shown as a livestock dealer. By the time of the state census of 1915, Joe was retired.
Between 1897 and 1915, Joe and Keturah suffered through the deaths of three adult children: daughter Louie died in 1897 at the age of 19; son James E. (Jim) died in 1909 at age 41; and daughter Margaret H. died at age 34 in 1915. He and Keturah took in their grandson James E. Jr. (nicknamed "Butch") for a time after their son Jim's death in 1909.
In Jan. 1917, Joe and Keturah celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary surrounded by their extended family. The marriage would last another 5 years until 17 Sep. 1922. On that date, while visiting with neighbors on their front porch, "in his usual jovial humor," Joe fell over backward in the midst of conversation and died moments later. He was 78 years old. Dr. Van Neste listed the cause of death as arteriosclerosis.
Joe was remembered by his grandchildren for his bright eyes and smile. He was a congenial person--and perhaps a bit more carefree than his wife of 55 years, in whose name they owned the properties where they raised their children and grandchildren. His funeral was held at their home on Blackwell Ave. with the pastor of the Presbyterian Church officiating. Joe had been a longtime member of the Grand Army of Republic, a veteran's organization. He was buried with military honors.
NOTE: It was reported in Joseph Pierson's obituary, and elsewhere, that he was a direct descendant of John Hart, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, through his grandmother Jemima (Hart) Pierson. This is not accurate. Jemima was the granddaughter of Benjamin Hart, the signer's double cousin (i.e., Benjamin and John Hart were cousins through their fathers, who were brothers, and also through their mothers, who were Furman sisters).
Also, Joe has been erroneously referred to in recent family materials as "Joseph Wilson Pierson." This is a mistake, without question. He never had or used a middle name or initial.
I have created a virtual cemetery for memorials of members of Company H, 21st Regiment, New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. Joseph Pierson served in this unit with one first cousin, and at least 15 other, more distant relatives (by blood or marriage).
At the age of 19, on 30 Aug. 1862 (16 months after the attack on Fort Sumter that started the War of the Rebellion), Joe joined the Union Army. He enlisted as a private in Company H of the 21st Volunteer Infantry for a term of 9 months. With him were his first cousin Liscomb B. Reed, who was enrolled as a corporal, and other local boys including two distant Reed cousins. The 21st Regiment left New Jersey on Sep. 24th for Washington, proceeded to Frederick, Md., and then joined the Sixth Corps of the Army of the Potomac. It saw action at Fredericksburg, Va., in Dec. 1862 and May 1863; in Salem Heights, Va., in May 1863; and at Franklin's Crossing, Va., in June 1863.
Whenever he could, Joe wrote home. And several of his letters have survived. In Feb. 1863, writing from camp at Bell Plain, Va., he asked his brother George whether there was a draft yet in Lawrence and Hopewell: "is the boys getting sent yet or not - tell them we begin to think that it purt near time for us to be relieved and let them have a triles at it." A month later, after receiving a care package from home, he wrote: "Tell Sary Ann that her ginger cubes tastes just as they allways did but I cant Steel them out of the pan like I usto."
Joe and the rest of his regiment were sent home to New Jersey at the end of their 9-month term and mustered out at Trenton on 19 June 1863. Two weeks later, the tide of the war turned at Gettysburg, where the dead, wounded and missing totaled more than 50,000 between the two armies.
During his military duty, Joe met Isaac S. Everett of West Windsor, who served in Company E of the 21st Regiment. When they returned home from the war, Isaac introduced Joe to his little sister (and Joe's future wife) Keturah E. Everett. A few years later on 9 Jan. 1867, when Joe was 23 and after Keturah had turned 18, the two were married at the Everett home in West Windsor.
Keturah's father gave them a farm in Lawrence Twp., at the corner of Rosedale and Carter roads. Through various transactions and mortgages, the title to this property was ultimately in Keturah's name. In the 1870 and 1880 censuses, Joe was listed as a farmer. He and Keturah had eight children together, all born in Lawrence Twp. The last, a son born in 1886, lived just one day. During their 19-year residence in Lawrence Twp., at some point Joe served on the township committee (according to his obituary).
By 1887, Joe and Keturah moved into Hopewell Borough, where Joe was a livery man. Based on the 1887 map of the town, he and a partner operated as Cray & Pierson off of Union St. (now Princeton Ave.) and Columbia Ave. In 1889, Keturah purchased 29 Blackwell Ave., near the railroad station. They lived there for the remainder of Joe's life, and Joe ran his livery business out of large barns behind the house (see photo courtesy of cousin Bob Gantz). He advertised in the town paper: "I will furnish you with single and double teams at reasonable prices, with a dog under the wagon."
In 1893, he also advertised that he had "Pierson's Conquering Liniment" for sale. The exact purpose of the liniment is unknown. Joe's sons George and Theodore (Dory) were druggists, and the latter became a physician. But Joe was known to have employed "non-prescription medication" you might say. That is, he was not known as a "tea-totaller." He had a reputation, in fact, as a drover (livestock dealer) to make his best deals with the help of a bit of libation.
In the 1890 special census schedule of Civil War veterans, Joe had been listed as having incurred rheumatism as a result of the war. (He was granted a life pension in 1903 as an invalid.) In 1900, he was called a livery man in the census, and in 1910 he was shown as a livestock dealer. By the time of the state census of 1915, Joe was retired.
Between 1897 and 1915, Joe and Keturah suffered through the deaths of three adult children: daughter Louie died in 1897 at the age of 19; son James E. (Jim) died in 1909 at age 41; and daughter Margaret H. died at age 34 in 1915. He and Keturah took in their grandson James E. Jr. (nicknamed "Butch") for a time after their son Jim's death in 1909.
In Jan. 1917, Joe and Keturah celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary surrounded by their extended family. The marriage would last another 5 years until 17 Sep. 1922. On that date, while visiting with neighbors on their front porch, "in his usual jovial humor," Joe fell over backward in the midst of conversation and died moments later. He was 78 years old. Dr. Van Neste listed the cause of death as arteriosclerosis.
Joe was remembered by his grandchildren for his bright eyes and smile. He was a congenial person--and perhaps a bit more carefree than his wife of 55 years, in whose name they owned the properties where they raised their children and grandchildren. His funeral was held at their home on Blackwell Ave. with the pastor of the Presbyterian Church officiating. Joe had been a longtime member of the Grand Army of Republic, a veteran's organization. He was buried with military honors.
NOTE: It was reported in Joseph Pierson's obituary, and elsewhere, that he was a direct descendant of John Hart, Signer of the Declaration of Independence, through his grandmother Jemima (Hart) Pierson. This is not accurate. Jemima was the granddaughter of Benjamin Hart, the signer's double cousin (i.e., Benjamin and John Hart were cousins through their fathers, who were brothers, and also through their mothers, who were Furman sisters).
Also, Joe has been erroneously referred to in recent family materials as "Joseph Wilson Pierson." This is a mistake, without question. He never had or used a middle name or initial.
I have created a virtual cemetery for memorials of members of Company H, 21st Regiment, New Jersey Volunteer Infantry. Joseph Pierson served in this unit with one first cousin, and at least 15 other, more distant relatives (by blood or marriage).
Gravesite Details
Heartfelt thanks to Anne West for creating this memorial and to cousin Bob Gantz for the pics and sponsoring.
Family Members
Siblings
