IT is said that adversity is a good school for character; and true it is that in the lives of great men we see this
element of struggle, which has helped to make them great. Lincoln and
others are examples of this fact, and the mass of our good citizenship,
those who form the sinews of the republic, are these self-made men, who
have risen to positions of prominence and usefulness, not by wealth or
influence, but by that inherent quality of nobility and power. Augustus
C. Parry was one of those men who rose by this true quality of soul, and
performed a useful part for his country and his city.
Augustus Commodore Parry, of English and Welsh
parentage, was born on the site of the Monmouth battle-field, in New
Jersey, December 15, 1828. His parents moved to Cincinnati when he
was but a child, and soon after he was left an orphan. His
guardian, Dr. Emmert, apprenticed him to A. G. Lotze, to learn the trade
of a tinner, in which business he afterward established himself.
He was very public-spirited, and at an early age became identified with
the interests of the city, taking a responsible part in his duties as a
citizen. At that time the excellent fire department of which
Cincinnati is now so justly proud did not exist, but her safety from the
destructive power rested on voluntary helpers. Augustus Parry was
captain of the No. 3's in this volunteer fire company, and many a time
ran with the "boys" to the fire in those days, when help and
means were scarce, and when only the brave in heart lent a hand.
Often he held to the rope that pulled the engine to the fire, and as he
boldly plunged into the thickest of the flames he was often severely
scorched. We quote from a testimonial—a picture of the fire—presented
to him. It reads, "This fire took place on Fourth Street, between
Main and Sycamore, on the fourth day of September, 1854, on which
occasion Mr. A. C. Parry, captain of Independence Fire Company, No. 3,
was severely burned about his arms, head, and shoulders." A
silver cup, presented at another time, tells of the love of his
associates in this work. He was also overseer of the poor. in the Fourth
Ward, then a very poor district of the city; and he was a friend to
those in need. As a member of the school board, he helped to introduce
German in the schools.
Thus faithfully performing his duty in the city,
he would hardly hesitate when his country called. In 1861, in
April, after the first gun was fired on Sumter, and there came a call
for men to rescue the country, his ardent soul caught the patriotic
fire, and, leaving business, wife, and children, he nobly offered
himself for the defense of his country. For a definite account of his
career in the army we extract from "Ohio in the War :"
"A. C. Parry entered service April 16, 1861,
as major of the Second Ohio Infantry, and was at once ordered to
Washington. At the battle of Bull Run he was placed in command of his
regiment early in the action, and on the retreat of the army he repelled
the attacks of the enemy's cavalry. On the 30th of July, 1861, he
returned to Ohio; and, on reaching Cincinnati. in command of his troops,
received such a welcome as the overflowing patriotism of the people
prompted. It was estimated that one hundred- thousand people took part-
in the reception exercises.
" In August he was commissioned major of the
Forty-seventh Ohio Infantry, many of whom were Cincinnati men, and the
regiment was called the 'Wilstach regiment.' He was in the battle
of Carnifax Ferry, and in minor engagements about Cotton and Sewell
Mountains. In August, 1862, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel: In
September following he was sent to dislodge the enemy from Cotton
Mountain, and to relieve the garrison at Fayette C. H., Va., which were
successfully accomplished. The troops at Fayette C. H. were
enabled to join the main body in the retreat down the Kanawha. During
this retreat Colonel Parry had charge of the rear-guard nearly all the
time, and successfully checked the advance of the enemy until the stores
were all secured or burned. At Charleston he maintained his position in
the front line for six hours against a superior force."
In January, 1863, he was promoted to colonel. The
regiment was then transferred to Vicksburg, where Colonel Parry's
practical abilities were of much benefit. At one time, having been
called on by General Stuart for a plan of a bridge. across a break in a
levee, he submitted one, according to which he built a bridge in
fourteen hours, on which the troops crossed. During the advance to
the rear of Vicksburg he was temporarily in the command of a brigade, in
the absence of. General Ewing. In the assault on Vicksburg he took
a prominent part, being in the advance line. In the Fall of 1863 he
marched with his command to Chattanooga, where he took part in the
battle of Mission Ridge and in the pursuit of Bragg. At Larkinsville,
Alabama, Colonel Parry took command of the brigade, and subsequently was
appointed temporarily to the command of the Second Division, Fifteenth
Army Corps. He went with his regiment, in the Atlanta campaign in 1864,
through the battles of Resaca, Dallas, and Kenesaw Mountain. At the
latter place he was severely wounded, but recovered in time to go the
March to the Sea. He was the first field officer who entered the enemy's
works at the storming of Fort McAllister by General Hazen's division. He
was breveted brigadier-general, to date- from March 13, 1865.
The war being ended, General Parry entered into
work in the city of Cincinnati with his old enthusiasm. He again went
into his old business, but kept up the army associations, belonging to
the Grand Army of the Republic and the Soldiers and Sailors' Union, of
which he was the president. In the Fall of 1865 he was elected
treasurer of Hamilton County, on the Republican ticket. A year later he
entered upon his duties, with all the earnestness of his spirit; and the
work at that time, on account of the delinquent taxes, was especially
heavy. The exposure and trials during the years of the war had
been too severe, and had undermined his constitution, so that he was
able to perform the labors of his office but a short time. In the same
year, December 16, 1866, he died, being then but thirty-eight years and
one day old. If so much was accomplished in the few years of life given
to him, what might have been expected in the full maturity of his power?
The struggle. of the country in the civil war thus robbed he country of
brave men before their prime—those who would now be a help and a glory
to her. While we sorrow in the sacrifice, we honor those who performed
the noble part of the patriot.,
Source: In Memoriam
Cincinnati 1881, Cincinnati, A. E. Jones, Publisher, 1881.
