John Riley II

He was born in Dover New Jersey in 1843, the son of John and Roseanne Riley.  The family moved to Rhode Island the following year as his father went to work at the Morgan Mill.  Upon the outbreak of the Civil War, he watched his father and brother James leave home to join the 2nd Rhode Island Regiment.  In July of 1861, his father was killed in action in Virginia in the First Battle of Bull Run.  In a cruel twist of irony, he was killed while fighting against Robert E. Lee, with whom he had served during the Mexican-American war.  His brother James was severely wounded in action while fighting in that same battle.

Feeling the need to join the fight for the Union, John enlisted into the 2nd Rhode Island in February, 1863.  During his training in Washington DC,  John recalled seeing President Lincoln talking with the troops on numerous occasions and once had the honor of shaking hands with the President himself.  Throughout the remainder of his life, he enjoyed saying  “You just shook hands with a man who shook the hand of Abraham Lincoln.”

He and his comrades were to see action in many of the major battles that lay ahead. 

In 1863, they fought in the Battles of Chancellorsville, Fredericksburg, Salem Heights,  Franklin’s Crossing, the epic Battle of Gettysburg,  and Rappahannock Station, Va.  1864 brought more fighting in Virginia in the Battles of the Wilderness, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor,  the Siege of Petersburg,  and their participation in General Sheridan’s Shenandoah Valley Campaign.  The unit spent the winter and the spring of 1865 in

Petersburg, Va. and participated in the second Siege of Petersburg.  The men of the 2nd Rhode Island distinguished themselves in helping to win the Battles of Fort Steadman and Fort Fisher.  They then joined General Grant’s Appomattox Campaign in March and participated in the fall of Petersburg and the Battle of Saylor’s Creek.  During the first week of April, 1865, Grant’s army was engaged in full pursuit of Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army.  The 2nd Rhode Island was present with General Grant at Appomattox Court House April 9, 1865 to witness the surrender of the confederate forces by General Robert E. Lee.  He told of participating in firing a salute to the vanquished after the ceremony.  The unit then marched back to Washington, DC and participated in the Grand Review up Pennsylvania Avenue on June 8th for President Andrew Johnson and the Nation.  He mustered out of the Regiment on June 13th in Halls Hill, Va. and returned home to Scituate.

On October 6, 1865, he married Anna Mason and their union lasted until her death in May, 1918.  They had 11 children, and John lived to meet 22 grandchildren, 29 great-grandchildren, and 1 great-great grandchild. He spent his working years doing a variety of interesting jobs.  His first job after returning home was driving the stagecoach between Hope and Riverpoint, along the Pawtuxet River.  After that, he worked for many years as a millwright for 3 generations of the Knight family in the mills of the Pawtuxet Valley.  His skills as a carpenter were well known, and he helped to build a number of structures in and around Hope, including the Jackson Tavern and Green Acres Lodge.   Governor Jackson employed John on numerous occasions for carpentry work. His last job was working in the Knight Mills making uniforms for our soldiers of the First World War.  He retired at the age of 80.

John, well and affectionately known as “The Old Gent” by this time, spent the remainder of his years in good health and with a clear mind.  He enjoyed spending time at the Jackson Tavern and entertaining people by the hour regaling stories of his experiences as a soldier, and of the bygone days of the Pawtuxet Valley. He was blessed with a strong and clear memory until the very end of his life, and he shared many of his experiences with his friends and family, most especially his grandchildren. A few months before his death, John was sworn in as Rhode Island department commander of the McGregor Post of the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.).  After living a remarkable and full life,  Mr. Riley passed away on May 7, 1943,  just shy of his 102nd birthday.