In 1898 a crisis in Cuban affairs, due to Spain's
wretched and inhuman treatment of her colonists there, brought
on war with the United States, known as the Spanish-American
War, which, though it lasted only one hundred fourteen days, was
very decisive in its results. During that brief conflict
the United States land and sea forces destroyed two Spanish
fleets, received the surrender of more than thirty-five thousand
Spanish soldiers, took by conquest the islands of Cuba and Porto
Rico, and Manila, on the island of Luzon, in the Philippines,
and so convinced the Spanish government that further prosecution
of the war was unwise that terms of peace were asked for.
President McKinley demanded the independence of Cuba, the
cession of Porto Rico and Guam, one of the Ladrone islands, to
the United States, and the retention of Manila by the United
States pending the final disposition of the Philippines by a
joint commission. By the terms of the final peace treaty,
which was concluded in Paris, Spain relinquished her sovereignty
over Cuba, ceded to us her other West India possessions and the
island of Guam, and transferred her rights in the Philippines
for the sum of twenty millions of dollars.
The total number of United States troops engaged in
this war was 275,717 and teh approximate cost of the war was
$150,000,000. The Americans suffered no loss of ships and
but two hundred and seventy-nine lives, while two thousand one
hundred and ninety-nine Spaniards were killed, besides the
almost total annihilation of her navy.
Fayette county had a part in this war, Company E, of
the Fourth Ohio Regiment National Guard, and which was located
at Washington, C. H., being called into the service.
Company E was sent to Columbus to drill, and was finally
mustered into service of the United States, all but sixteen
passing the military test upon their government examination.
The original officers and men in this company were as follows:
Captain, William Vincent
First lieutenant, Charles O. Updyke
Second lieutenant, J. M. Fugate
First sergeant, Charles Stugden
Sergeant, O. E. Hardway
Sergeant, Elmer Vincent
Sergeant, Charles Sexton
Sergeant, Norman McDonald
Corporal, L. A. Jones
Corporal, Robert Bonham
Corporal, Bert Creamer
Corporal, D. R. Duncan
Corporal, John Gillum
Musician, Walter Paul
Musician, William Eyer
Armorer, Charles Jarnigan
Armstrong, William C.
Basley, William A.
Becker, William F.
Bell, Ed. S.
Bird, William L.
Carr, William J.
Coffman, N. J.
Cook, J. W.
Davis, N. W.
Fandall, H. D.
Figgins, Charles E.
Gray, Willis S.
Hardy, A. J.
|Marine, A. E.
Marine, R. W.
Marquett, H. C.
Michner, J. H.
Taylor, E. L.
Whited, B. F.
Wilt, A. W.
After being finally
mustered into the United States service, this company was sent
to Chicamauga and later went to Porto Rico. On the
conclusion of hostilities the company was discharged and
welcomed home, being given a grand reception by the citizens.
HERO IN TWO WARS.
The only Mexican War soldier residing in Fayette county in 1913
was B. F. Jacobs, aged ninety years, who lived with his
son near Parrott's Station. In addition to having served
in the Mexican War from 1846 to 1848, he was also a soldier in
the Civil War for three years, and was lieutenant in the
Forty-fourth Ohio Regiment of Infantry. Up to the age of
eighty years, he had never had a doctor call on him for medical
treatment. In 1913 he took part in the encampment of Ohio
soldiers at Washington C. H. and appeared hale and hearty.