“Dillivan J. Peck, son of Alvah and Dorthea (Hathaway) Peck, was born and raised on Peck Hill in Jay, New York. He married Serepity Ripley, daughter of Samuel J. and Margaret Mary (Bell) Ripley of Wilmington, New York. The ceremony took place at her father’s house and was performed by the minister of the First Baptist Church of Jay, Elder Charles Berry. Dillivan supported his family by farming and basket-making, at which he was very good. When the Civil War broke out, the call for volunteers finally reached the area, so Dillivan responded by enlisting into Company G of the 96th New York Volunteers in Wilmington, New York on March 1, 1862. At the time of his enlistment he was described as 5ft. 6in. in height with a light complexion, blue eyes and light brown hair. He was also said to have had a birth mark on forehead near his hairline, which some called the mark of a saint. Dillavan’s unit left the state on March 11, 1862 and was assigned to the 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, 4th Corps of the Army of the Potomac under the command of General George McClellan. In April of 1862, this unit was involved in the Siege of Yorktown, Virginia. The history of the 96th regiment from this time on is one of untold hardships, of long and weary marches and of fierce and murderous battles. By May of that year, Dillavan was reported to be in the hospital suffering from diseases contracted from his military service. He was medically discharged from Mount Pleasant Hospital in Washington, D.C. on June 22, 1862 for chronic rheumatism from the last 3 months with no prospect of recovery. He then returned home where he was nursed back to health by his wife Serepity who was known for her ability to care for the sick with herbs and other remedies.

A year later Dillavan again decided to serve his country. He joined Colonel Morgan H. Chrysler’s newly formed 2nd New York Veteran Cavalry Company L in Plattsburgh, New York on December 16, 1863. His younger brother Daniel and his brothers-in-law Nathaniel White, Malvin Grady, Elbridge Green and Samuel J. Ripley also joined. They all received the standard 300 dollars bounty from the Government which was paid out in installments over the next 3 years. This unit left the state in December of 1863 and was assigned to the Department of Washington. Later they were transported to the state of Louisiana by steamer ships and assigned to the 5th Brigade of the Cavalry Division, 19th Corps of the Department of the Gulf, commanded by Major General Nathaniel P. Banks. While on board one of these steamers, Dillavan was said to have received a tattoo on one arm below his elbow with his initials “D.P. born A D 1825” and surrounded by flags or sails, he also had a mark about 1/4 inch wide all the way around his wrist on the other hand. These tattoos were used to identify him in later years. Dillavan’s unit was involved with the Red River Campaign and fought in and around Louisiana. During most of his duty he suffered from chronic diarrhea and intermittent fever which was common among other soldiers. Because of this, he was in the hospital in Alexandria, Louisiana on a regular basis. When his younger brother Daniel Peck was killed in 1864, he was allowed a furlough to go home, but returned shortly.

When the unit was discharged in Talladega, Alabama on June 24, 1865, Dillavan was reported as a deserter and was said to have taken with him the following ordnance: 1 revolver and 1 holster, a saddle blanket, 1 pair of spurs and straps, 1 saber and 1 belt with plate. The charge of desertion was reversed by the War Department on August 21, 1890 by the Act of Congress approved March 2, 1889 and he was awarded a honorable discharge. After the war Dillavan most likely started home, but only made it as far as Rome, Georgia, there he obtained a job in a lime kiln quarry in nearby Kingston. At this time he decided to change his name to Daniel Purmort. This name still matched the initials tattooed on his arm as stated earlier. It was believed that he chose the name Daniel in honor of his younger brother who had died in the war and the last name of Purmort because that was his aunt Rosamond’s maiden name. This new change in his life was an indication that he had no intentions of ever returning home to his wife and children.

While living in Kingston he met an Agnes Bramblett who was the daughter of John and Nancy (Allen) Bramblett from Gilmer County, Georgia. John was a paroled confederate soldier who had served with the 11th Regiment of the Georgia Volunteers known as Mrs. Joe Brown’s Boys from 1861 to 1862. When John and the rest of the family first met Daniel Purmort they suspected that he was already married because of his age but he reassured them that his wife had died in New York some years back. Daniel and Agnes were married in Cartersville, Georgia on June 8, 1866 and spent several years in that area. Some time after 1870 they moved to a small community along the Georgia/Alabama state line known as North Carolina, Georgia. After 1880, they finaly settled in the town of Eastaboga in Talladega County, Alabama. Daniel supported his family as a laborer and a basket-maker for which he was known.

Back in New York, Dillavan’s 1st wife Serepity finally accepted the fact that her husband must have died from disease during the war. Many who served with him said that the last time they saw him he was pale and very sickly looking and could barely get around. So now she was left with the burden of raising her family alone. As years passed and she grew older she was cared for by family and friends. Serepity joined the United Methodist Church in Jay, NY and was baptized alongside the Ausable River on July 4, 1869. Around 1880, the house she was living in and all her personal belongings were destroyed by fire. She was then taken in and cared for by her daughter Elizabeth. On July 24, 1890 she applied for a widow’s pension from the Government. Her claim was that her husband never returned from the war and was presumed dead, and that she was too old to support herself and di not want to be a burden on her family. She also stated that she was not in the best health, and that she had fallen down a flight of stairs and sprained her ankle and wrist and caused great pain to her back. This claim was rejected on December 2, 1892 for the lack of proof in the death of Dillavan J. Peck. She then made several appeals to the pension bureau that she had not heard from her husband in over 20 years and that he must have died.

While her claim was being processed and considered, another claim was received on May 26, 1894 from Dillavan J. Peck, alias Daniel Purmort, as a disabled soldier living in Eastaboga, Alabama. In light of this application, the claims made from both parties were reevaluated and an investigation took place. It seems that after Daniel’s wife Agnes died in October of 1893 he admitted to family and friends that his real name was Dillavan J. Peck and that he had a family in New York. This was indeed a surprise to everyone, especially his first wife, Serepity, who thought for 20 years that he was dead. Daniel Purmort made his pension claim that he had ruptured himself in 1871 when lifting a stick of wood and it slipped from his hands and one end struck him in the lower part of his bowels. This was the same area where he said he was struck by a bomb and thrown from his horse during the battle of Morganza, Alabama in 1864. He was then forced to wear a truss because the injury was protruding out from his side and was very painful. When examined in later years by his doctor, John T. Donaldson, he described Daniel as an unsound man who was suffering from an inguinal hernia on his left side and is absolutely incapable of doing any manual work. Another problem described was a weak right eye, due to ulcerations of the cornea causing him to be near-sighted. His left eye was normal. When the investigation was completed, the pension bureau agreed to split the pension between the two parties, the disabled soldier receiving 12 dollars per quarter and his wife in New York receiving 8 dollars per quarter. Daniel Purmort was severely injured in November of 1899 when a team of horses he was driving got away from him and he was thrown from the wagon. He was cared for by the family doctor and his son John Alvah at his home near Lincoln, Alabama, but after suffering and being totally out of his head for several weeks, he died from his injuries. Dillavan Peck’s first wife, who at the time was living in an old folks home on Peru Street in the town of Plattsburgh, new York, was officially declared a soldier’s widow and received the allotted pension due her until her death on September 17, 1905.”96

In the 1850 census, he was living in Wilmington, next to Alvah, with Serepta, Sybill (sister?, age 23), Joshua, Ebenezer, Lyman, Esther, Dinah, Gibbs, Miranda, Caroline, Daniel, Jane, Elizabeth, and Alvah. Next to Peter Lamoy.145

Serepity reported to the 1890 census that he had enlisted in Company L of the 2nd NY Cavalry on Dec. 1862; however, since he was going into the same company as Joel Peck (Dec. 1863) and Joseph Peck reported Dec. 1863, it’s safe to assume she or the censustaker got this wrong. “Disability: died in the service. Remarks: never heard from.”74