George Augustus Wheeler, MD (July 26, 1837 – January 14, 1923) was a surgeon in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and a prominent

Maine Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...

historian. He authored two historical books including ''History of Brunswick, Topsham, and Harpswell, Maine'', which the

Pejepscot Historical Society The Pejepscot Historical Society, known as the Pejepscot History Center, is the fourth oldest historical society in the state of Maine. Founded in 1888, the society's mission is to preserve and celebrate the history of the Pejepscot region, which ...

states as the "authoritative text on the three towns through ".

Early life

Wheeler was born in

Standish, Maine Standish is a town in Cumberland County, Maine, United States. The population was 10,244 at the 2020 census. It includes the villages of Standish Corner, Sebago Lake Village and Steep Falls, and the localities known as Richville, Elmwood, Stan ...

on July 26, 1823, to Minister Amos Dean Wheeler and Louisa Amelia Wheeler. He graduated from

Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...

with a Bachelor of Arts and in received his master's degree from Bowdoin College's Medical School of Maine. He received his doctorate from

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical and Academic Area, Longwood Medical Area in Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is the third oldest medical school in the Un ...

in . From to Wheeler lived in several different towns of Maine, including Falmouth, Orland and Presque Isle.

Military career

In July of , Wheeler enlisted in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

and was mustered into the

18th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment The 1st Maine Heavy Artillery Regiment was a regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It suffered more casualties in an ill-fated charge during the Second Battle of Petersburg than any Union regiment lost in a single day of comba ...

as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

. He would later become a

Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...

of Company G. The 18th Maine would later have its name changed to the

1st Maine Heavy Artillery Regiment The 1st Maine Heavy Artillery Regiment was a regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It suffered more casualties in an ill-fated charge during the Second Battle of Petersburg than any Union regiment lost in a single day of comba ...

and disbanded after the war. On October 4, , Wheeler was commissioned assistant surgeon, U.S. Volunteers, and soon after he was appointed to take charge of the U.S. General Hospital at

Annapolis Junction, Maryland Annapolis Junction is an unincorporated community in Howard and Anne Arundel counties, Maryland, United States. Demographics The ZIP Code for Annapolis Junction is 20701. The following information is based on the 2000 Census for 20701: *Popu ...

, On March 30, , he was commissioned Surgeon of

United States Volunteers United States Volunteers also known as U.S. Volunteers, U.S. Volunteer Army, or other variations of these, were military volunteers called upon during wartime to assist the United States Army but who were separate from both the Regular Army (United ...

, and ordered to the

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the primary field army of the Union army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the Battle of ...

and was placed in charge of the Depot Field Hospitals of the 9th Army Corps. In the summer of Wheeler served as

medical director A medical director is a physician who provides guidance and leadership on the use of medicine in a healthcare organization. These include the emergency medical services, hospital departments, blood banks, clinical teaching services, and others. ...

with a division of the 9th Army Corps; Medical Inspector of Hospitals, and later, Surgeon in charge of

Field hospital A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities. This term was initially used in military medicine (such as the Mobile ...

s, and temporarily medical director of the Corps. During the

Siege of Petersburg The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the siege of Petersburg, it was not a c ...

, Wheeler was put in charge of all the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

hospitals, but owing to a change in the

military command A command in military terminology is an organisational unit for which a military commander is responsible. Commands, sometimes called units or formations, form the building blocks of a military. A commander is normally specifically appointed ...

, he was relieved and ordered to Burksville Junction in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, and placed in charge of transporting all the wounded to

City Point, Virginia City Point was a town in Prince George County, Virginia, Prince George County, Virginia, United States, that was annexed by the independent city of Hopewell, Virginia, Hopewell in 1923. It served as headquarters of the Union Army during the sieg ...

where he went with three railroad trains of the wounded. At the close of the war he was ordered to

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

, and from there to

Jeffersonville, Indiana Jeffersonville is a city and the county seat of Clark County, Indiana, Clark County, Indiana, United States, situated along the Ohio River. Locally, the city is often referred to by the abbreviated name Jeff. It lies directly across the Ohio Riv ...

, where he remained until he was mustered out in July of . On June 1, , he was

brevetted In military terminology, a brevet ( or ) is a warrant which gives commissioned officers a higher military rank as a reward without necessarily conferring the authority and privileges granted by that rank. The promotion would be noted in the of ...

"for faithful and meritorious services" as lieutenant colonel.

Later life

After leaving the Army, Wheeler practiced as a physician for a short time in Alberton, Maryland, then went to Washington, D.C. where he was employed as a surgeon by the Bureau of Refugees and Freedmen, and was in charge of the hospital in

Arlington County, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

. Wheeler then, was employed at

Campbell General Hospital Campbell General Hospital was a Union Civil War hospital which operated from September 1862 to July 20, 1865, in northwest Washington, D.C. Location The hospital was located on Boundary Street NW (now Florida Avenue NW) between 5th Street NW and ...

as an assistant surgeon. In he moved to

Topsham, Maine Topsham () is a town in Sagadahoc County, Maine, United States. Topsham was included in the Lewiston-Auburn, Maine metropolitan New England city and town area. The population was 9,560 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Portland-South Po ...

to practice medicine, later moving to

Old Town, Maine Old Town is a city in Penobscot County, Maine, United States. The population was 7,431 at the 2020 census. The city's developed area is chiefly located on the relatively large Marsh Island, but its boundaries extend beyond it. The island is su ...

, where he was in practice until , when he moved to Castine, Maine. While in Castine, he became a Camp Commander for the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (United States Navy, U.S. Navy), and the United States Marine Corps, Marines who served in the American Ci ...

, a Civil War veterans organization, Post No. 76. In Wheeler wrote the book ''The History of Castine, Brooksville and Penobscot, Maine'' and in co-authored with his brother, Henry Warren Wheeler, the book ''History of Brunswick, Topsham and Harpswell, Maine: Including the Ancient Territory Known as Pejepscot''. Wheeler was on the

Board of selectmen The select board or board of selectmen is commonly the Executive (government), executive arm of the government of New England towns in the United States. The board typically consists of three or five members, with or without staggered terms. Three ...

for Castine, Maine and in he was chosen as

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

of the School Committee of Castine to which he was repeatedly elected. In he was elected a member of

Maine Historical Society The Maine Historical Society (MHS) is the official historical society of the U.S. state of Maine. It is located at 489 Congress Street in downtown Portland. The Society currently operates the Wadsworth-Longfellow House, a National Historic Land ...

. Wheeler was prominently connected with the Masonic Fraternity, a part of the Republican Party and a member of the Unitarian church.

Family, legacy and death

February 17, 1864, Wheeler married Mrs. Margaret Lavinia Dorsey, daughter of John F. and Elizabeth Harvercotta of

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. The same day he legally

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

Elizabeth Dorsey, daughter of John R. and Margaret L. Dorsey, and gave her the name Elizabeth Dorsey Wheeler. Wheeler and Dorsey had four other children: two daughters, Frederic L. Smith, Boyd Bartlett and two sons, George D. Wheeler and C. A. Wheeler. They also had three other children that passed away at young ages: Mary Charlotte (8 months old), Katherine Irene (7 months old) and Harvey Haskell (27 days old). Later in life, as well as an established physician, Wheeler was a well respected historian. His two books, ''The History of Castine, Brooksville and Penobscot, Maine'' and the ''History of Brunswick, Topsham and Harpswell, Maine'' were heavily researched and well received. Over the years these books have been "considered by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it." The later of the two books is stated by the

to be "considered the authoritative text on the three towns through 1878". George Augustus Wheeler died on January 14, 1923, in Castine, Maine.

Bibliography

Notes

:a. :b. :c.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wheeler, George Augustus 1837 births 1923 deaths Bowdoin College alumni Medical School of Maine alumni Harvard Medical School alumni People from Standish, Maine Historians of Maine Union army surgeons Pejepscot, Maine