Jack Skelly
{{short description|American Union Army soldier (1841-1863)}}
{{Infobox military person
| name = Johnston Hastings Skelly Jr.
| image = Jack Skelly.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption =
| nickname = Jack
| birth_date = {{birth date|1841|8|4}}
| birth_place = Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1863|7|12|1841|8|4}}
| death_place = Winchester, Virginia
| placeofburial_label =
| placeofburial = Evergreen Cemetery, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
| placeofburial_coordinates =
| allegiance = United States of America
| branch = Union Army
| serviceyears = 1861–1863
| rank = Corporal
| unit = 87th Pennsylvania Infantry
| battles_label =
| battles =
}}
Johnston Hastings "Jack" Skelly Jr. (August 4, 1841 – July 12, 1863) was a Union soldier – a corporal in the 87th Pennsylvania Infantry – who died as a result of wounds sustained at the Second Battle of Winchester. He was the friend, and possibly fiancé, of Jennie Wade, the only civilian to die in the Battle of Gettysburg.Petruzzi, pp. 220–21, 223. Skelly and Wade were childhood friends and some historians have speculated that they were engaged to be married. Only one letter between the two survived the war, and it had no romantic content. He was buried in Evergreen Cemetery in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, near Wade's grave.
Biography
Skelly was born to parents Elizabeth and Johnston Skelly Sr.{{Cite web|url=https://www.gettysburgmuseumofhistory.com/gettysburg-battle/gettysburg-story-dvd-books/my-country-needs-me-the-story-of-corporal-johnston-hastings-skelly-jr-87th-pennsylvania-infantry-a-son-of-by-enrica-dalessandro-may-1-2012/|title=My Country Needs Me: The Story of Corporal Johnston Hastings Skelly Jr., 87th Pennsylvania Infantry; A Son of... by Enrica D'Alessandro (May 1, 2012)|accessdate=Jul 4, 2020}} in Gettysburg. He joined the Union Army, made the rank of corporal, and he and his brother Charles joined Company F of the 87th Pennsylvania Infantry, along with childhood friends William T. Ziegler and William Hotzworth. During the Battle of Carter's Woods near Winchester, Virginia, Jack, his brother, and their two friends were captured by enemy soldiers. After they were called upon to surrender, they attempted to flee, and Skelly was shot in the upper arm on June 15, 1863.{{Cite web|url=http://www.hoodcomstudies.com/Triplett/Johnston%20Hastings%20Skelly.html|title=Untitled Document|accessdate=Jul 4, 2020}} He died a month later. The Grand Army of the Republic post in Gettysburg was named after Skelly.{{Cite web|url=https://auburnpub.com/lifestyles/sayles-the-story-of-three-gettysburg-childhood-friends/article_f36e3cae-4a18-575c-8aaf-8e807f7ee6e8.html|title=Sayles: The story of three Gettysburg childhood friends|first=Beverly Sayles Special to The|last=Citizen|website=Auburn Citizen|accessdate=Jul 4, 2020}}
=Book=
References
{{Reflist}}
Notes
- {{cite journal|last1=Bellamy|first1=Jay|title=Brother vs. Brother, Friend against Friend: A Story of Family, Friendship, Love, and War|journal=Prologue|issue=Spring, 2013|page=20|url=https://www.archives.gov/files/publications/prologue/2013/spring/gettysburg.pdf}}
- Petruzzi, J. David, and Steven Stanley, The Complete Gettysburg Guide, Savas Beatie, 2009, {{ISBN|978-1-932714-63-0}}.
External links
- {{Find a Grave|7606339|Johnston Hastings Skelly, Jr}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skelly, Jack}}
Category:Union military personnel killed in the American Civil War
Category:Burials at Evergreen Cemetery (Adams County, Pennsylvania)