Sergeant Bullock And The Andersonville Diary

In 2006 we spent an evening at Andersonville lighting candles, each candle represented a prisoner who died, to commemorate Veteran's Day.  The rainstorms did not cooperate; Jim took one of the few photographs of the Andersonville Prison grounds with candles lit.

An excerpt from Andersonville Diary.... by John L. Ransom, spoke of Sgt. Bullock from Michigan, whose life was changed because of his imprisonment.  Silas Bullock was in Co. C, 9th MI Cavalry as was the diarist.

Sergt. Bullock was also exchanged at the same time, but never did service thereafter. He is now an inmate of a Michigan insane asylum, and has been for some years, whether from the effects of prison life I know not, but should presume it is due to his sufferings there. His was a particularly sad case. He was taken sick in the early days of Andersonville and was sick all the time while in that place, a mere walking and talking skeleton. There is no doubt in my mind l hat his insanity resulted from his long imprisonment.


Early Days In Detroit by Friend Palmer, also mentioned Silas Bullock who was taken prisoner during the Civil War and held at Andersonville and never entirely recovered.  Silas Bullock married Nettie Sprague on April 14, 1870, a niece of Oliver & Julia (Sprague) Hyde.  Oliver Hyde (1804-1870) was Mayor of Detroit in the 1850's.   Silas died on February 23, 1882, in the asylum in Pontiac, Oakland County, Michigan. 

In 1860 Silas W. Bullock was living with his (presumed) parents, Jacob and Hannah Bullock in Plymouth, Wayne County, Michigan.  Could he have even imagined the horrors awaiting him in Andersonville Prison?  

Silas & Nettie (Sprague) Bullock were living in the Mary Sprague household in Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan, in 1870.  Nettie and her children, Earl and Florence Bullock, were still living with her mother in 1880.  Silas was living in the Pontiac Asylum in 1880.  Earl Bullock may have been a physician and living in New Mexico in 1900.  Florence (Bullock) Gailey, her husband, John Knox Gailey (who were married in Chicago on June 6, 1893) were living in Detroit in 1900.  John K. Gailey died October 15, 1926, in California (see a bio here).  Florence Gailey and her son, John Knox Gailey, Jr., were living in California in 1930.  Florence died in California on January 27, 1966 at the age of 91.  Her son died in 1960.

Henrietta (Nettie) Bullock married 2nd William F. Baker in Detroit on June 29, 1899.  There were living in Detroit in 1900.  Nettie (Sprague) Bullock Baker died May 26, 1906, and is buried in Elmwood Cemetery.

A Pension Index Card for Silas W. Bullock and his widow can be found here.  His last rank was Q.M.S. in Company C, 9th Reg. Michigan Cavalry.