When Eglantine's husband, Abraham, left in October 1862 to join the 21st Regiment, he left behind his beloved wife and his aged parents, Abraham & Mary Preble who lived in the same house. Eglantine's father-in-law Abraham died the following April.

A year before her husband left, their first child, Jessie, died at the age of 4. At the time of Abraham's departure from Maine for Louisiana, Eglantine was caring for Tina, 4; Henry, 3; Marion, almost 1; and 3 months old Arthur who died 3 weeks before his father came home in August 1863.

After Abraham came home, Eglantine and other local women organized a Soldier's Aid Society to help sick and wounded soldiers by sending donations. Eglantine's name was on a list, found in the New York Public Library, of people from the Whitefield area who donated items.

Not too long after Abraham's homecoming their house burned and they relocated to another one while the new house was being built. About 150 years later the current owners, while renovating a room, found a memento from Eglantine carefully placed into the wall. [Contributor: Libby Harmon # 48019007]

[Daily Kennebec Journal, Fri, Jan 26, 1912, page 6]

The Pacific Grove (Cal.) Review of Jan. 7, contains the following of interest to Maine readers.

"Mrs. Eglantine Turner Preble died at her home here, Sunday morning, after an illness which commenced in September last. Mrs. Preble was the daughter of Samuel B. and Sarah Lennan Turner, and was born in Whitefield, Maine, Feb. 28, 1837. On December 3, 1854, she was married to Abraham H. Preble. They resided in the east until fourteen years ago when they came to California and made their home in Pacific Grove. Mrs. Preble leaves two sons, two daughters, and a brother to mourn her loss, Eglantine H. Preble of this city, Henry Turner Preble of Berkeley, and Ernest A. Preble of San Francisco. Her brother, Hon. F. B. Turner, is a resident of Whitefield, Maine."