Civil War Service
Civil War Service
This is the gravesite of Caleb Ross located at St. Luke’s Church in Seaford, DE. It is situated under the yew tree that has grown from a tiny sprig.
Caleb was 18 when he joined the 9 th Virginia Calvary Company H of the Confederate Army on June 22, 1861.
- Caleb’s company was headed by Captain William H.F. Lee, nephew of General Robert E. Lee
- Caleb contracted typhoid fever and died at Big Springs, Virginia on September 17, 1861 before seeing any action in the Civil War.
- After the war, Governor William H. H. Ross sent a personal representative to bring Caleb’s body back to Seaford. It was buried at Saint Luke’s Episcopal Church in 1865.
- When the casket arrived, a small yew sprig lay on top. It was planted next to the Caleb’s body and has grown into a towering evergreen over 25 feet high.
- Caleb’s cousin, Lt. William James Fisher, was a Union soldier. They both served during the Civil War but were fighting on opposite sides. They were related by marriage when Caleb’s sister, Mary Green Ross, married Isaac Montgomery Fisher, younger brother of William Fisher. They both died about age 20.
- Caleb’s tombstone says “Gone but not forgotten. Caleb Ross, brother of George, died in the Confederate service at Big Springs, Virginia on September 17 th 1841-1861 aged 20 and 18 days.”