Have you seen these swords?
TWO (2) CEREMONIAL SWORDS presented to Capt. Joseph A. Perry of the 17th Maine.  It is believed that the each sword was in a scabbard and that they had a tasseled cord at the handles - possibly red in color. 

The two swords were displayed for many years in the cottage of Leon and Margurette Merritt on Long Island, Maine and were in outstanding condition.

They were placed in the Bosworth Memorial Museum in Portland, Maine in the late 1960's or early 1970's.  A friend of the family, Winnifred Berry Field, placed the swords in the Museum on behalf of the family with permission to display from Harold J. Earley.

The last records of the collection were from Annie A Gould Tent #1, National Alliance of the Daughters of Veterans, Bosworth Memorial Museum, Post 2, Grand Army of the Republic.  The final entry recorded was on December 10, 1975.  On that date, they met at the Eastland Motor Hotel.  The officers were: Mildred Carson, President; Alice Brown, Sr. Vice President; Ruth Stuart, Jr. Vice President; and Maude Conant, Secretary.  Winnifred Field was elected as an alternate delegate on December 29, 1971.

SEARCH FOR THE LOST SWORDS IS BEING CONDUCTED BY DALE M. EARLEY, FORMERLY OF 191 CLARK STREET IN PORTLAND MAINE., GREAT, GREAT, GRANDSON OF JOSEPH A. PERRY.
IF YOU HAVE ANY INFORMATION ABOUT THE LOCATION OF THESE SWORDS, PLEASE                         TO SEND ME AN E-MAIL.   THANK YOU!
CASUALTIES

1,371 Enrollment
207 Killed
552 Wounded
163 Died of Disease
31 in Confederate Prisons
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BATTLES

June 15-18, 1864
June 22, 1864
(Jerusalem Plank Road)
September 30, 1864
(Peebles Farm)
October 27, 1864
(Burgess Mill)
February 5, 1865
(Hatcher's Run)
earleydandd@cs.com
BORN:                         Belmont, Maine - 22 Jan 1830
RES:                             Portland, Maine - Painter
COMMISSIONED:   21 Jull 1862, 2nd Lt., Co. C
MUSTERED:              18 Aug 1862
COMMISSIONED:   2 Mar 1863, 1st Lt., Co. F
COMMISSIONED:   15 Aug 1863, Capt., Co. F
WOUNDED:               Wilderness, 6 May 1864, Side
MUSTERED OUT:     4 Jun 1865
JOSEPH A. PERRY
Civil War Veteran
INFORMATION FOUND IN THE BOOK, RED DIAMOND REGIMENT BY WILLIAM B. JORDAN, JR.:

Should have received the 17th Maine Regimental Association Medal.

Should have received 160 acres of land at the close of the war, according to a recruiting notice printed at the Daily Press Office, Portland, Maine.

Chapter One, Page 3:  "Almost immediately , Second Lieutenant Joseph A. Perry, a Portland house painter, after receiving his commission on July 2, was appointed regimental mustering officer for the state.  He previously served in the state militia as an orderly sergeant."  (
Portland Daily Press, Wednesday, July 9, 1862, 2/7.)

Chapter One, Page 11:  "Not to be outdone, the Ocean Engine Company of Portland presented a
fine sword and belt to Second Lieutenant Joseph A. Perry of Company C, with the obligatory dinner."  (Portland Daily Press, Saturday, October 18, 1862, 3/1.)

Chapter Five, Page 85:  "While in camp at Upperville, each regiment received orders to send a detachment back to their native state for recruitment and to pick up detachments of conscripts.  the 17th sent Captains Charles P. Mattocks and John C. Perry, Second Lieutenants Joseph A. Perry, William H. Greene, plus two sergeants, three corporals, and a private."  (Regis De Trobriand,
Four Years with the Army of the Potomac [Boston:  Tichnor, 1889] , pp. 526-527)

Chapter Five, Page 94:  "During that brief period of relative inactivity, the officers of the III Corps organized the Third Army Corps Union for the purpose of preserving the bonds of camaraderie among the veteran regiments of this battle-scarred corps.  Major General Daniel E. Sickles was elected the first president and Major General David B. Birney, vice president.  Among the charter members were Captain Charles P. Mattocks, Lieutenant Colonel Charles B. Merrill, Captains Edwin B. Houghton, Joseph A. Perry, Edward I. Merrill, Surgeon Nahum A. Herson, and Quartermaster Josiah Remick.  A handsome gold medal was subsequently designed by Brigadier General Regis de Trobriand and manufactured by Tiffany of New York.  the Third Army Corps Union was the first association formed by the veterans of the Civil War, antedating by several years all similar organizations.  If a member was killed in action or died in the service, the assocation paid to have the body embalmed and buried.  The undertakers Brown and Alexander of Washington had an exclusive contract.  It also assisted the families of the deceased and cared for disabled, indigent members."  (Williams P. Shreve,
The Story of the Third Army Corps Union [Boston:  privately printed, 1910], pp. 1-19.)

INFORMATION FOUND AT EVERGREEN CEMETERY, PORTLAND, MAINE:

Joseph A. Perry                           Born:  22 Jan 1830                 Died:  18 Feb 1882
Rancyanna B. Hillman (Wife)  Born:  5 Oct 1833                   Died:  30 Jun 1903
Waldo H. Perry (Son)                 Born:  1856                            Died:  1932
earleydandd@cs.com