LYMAN W. PUTMAN -- 118th INFANTRYYOUNG FARMER WENT TO WAR - In 1860, Lyman W. Putman was living on hisparent's farm in the Town of Peru where he was born. He was the eighthof the ten children of Archelaus Putman (Putnam) and Deborah Kimball.When his father died in 1862, Lyman enlisted in the 118th Infantry onAugust 30th.He was mustered into Captain John Stone's Company K and, afterorganizing in Plattsburgh, the regiment left for Washington on September1st. They got to the capital after a few weeks of guarding railroadsnear Baltimore and then camped at Fort Ethan Allen on the south side ofthe Potomac. Next, the regiment camped at Camp Adirondack just north ofthe capitol.By April 20, 1863, the 118th was on its way to the Siege of Suffolk atthe southern end of the Virginia Peninsula. After the siege, they hadseveral engagements in May and lost their first blood at South AnnaBridge. For the rest of 1863, they returned to the mouth of the JamesRiver and performed garrison and guard duty at Yorktown, Norfolk,Portsmouth, and Newport News, VA.Lyman became ill and was sent to the Balfour Hospital in Portsmouth. Hereturned to his regiment and went to the battlefields near Petersburg in1864. On August 15, 1865, he was discharged in Albany and went home toPeasleeville.His farm was a few miles east of Peasleeville near that of his brother.In 1898 he gave a "sociable" at his house in Peasleeville. Both isparents were buried in the Peasleeville Cemetery just down the road fromtheir farm, and he joined them there in 1911 at 72 years old.
