Valley Girl Views: Remembering the Susquehanna Valley Men Who Died in The Spanish American War Of 1898

Morning Exercises

Company C (From Milton PA, plus others) of the Twelfth Infantry

In 1898, twenty men from the central susquehanna valley, men from Milton, Watsontown, Williamsport, Sunbury, Jersey Shore and Lock Haven, were killed when Spain declared war on the United States

The Twelfth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry

From Northeastern PA

But none of the men from Northeast Pennsylvania ever saw battle in this war. They never went to Cuba, never left US Soil. First the went to Camp Mt Gretna, To Camp Alger near Washington DC, for training, drills, and marching practice. It was there at Camp Alger that the men contracted Typhoid. 90% of the 3,000 deaths in the Spanish American War were caused by infectious diseases such as yellow fever and typhoid.

This in no way detracts from their service. The men left their families to fight in a war. The trained, they drilled, they marched. And they died, in service to their country.

About The Spanish American War

June 24 1898, The Miltonian

Newspapers frequently worked the current news into their sponsors advertisements.

In 1895, Cuba began to struggle for Independence from Spain. Spain took brutal, repressive, measures to halt that rebellion, and American newspapers used exaggerated, sensationalized, headlines about the conflict, to sell newspapers ("Yellow Journalism") which stirred up the wrath of the citizens.

The USS Maine, an American battleship, had been sent to Havana's harbor to protect US citizens and property in Cuba after the riots in Havana. On February 9, 1898, the New York Journal printed a private letter from the Spanish minister in Washington, Enrique Dupuy de Lôme, describing McKinley as “weak and a popularity-hunter” and raising doubt about Spain’s good faith in her reform program. De Lôme immediately resigned, and the Spanish government tendered an apology. And then just a week later, the USS Maine battleship sank. To this day, the cause is unknown, but a naval inquiry declared it was caused by a mine, andin the eyes of the American people, it was believed to be an act of aggression by Spain.

The Sunken USS Maine Battleship

On April 9th, Spain announced an armistice, and an expedited plan to grant Cuba limited powers of self government. That wasn't good enough for the US Congress, they issued resolutions that declared Cuba's right to independence, and demanded that Spain's armed forces leave the island.

President McKinley was given the authority, and fifty mission dollars to build up military strength, to send in forces to make sure Spanish troops left the island of Cuba, making it clear that they had no plans to annex Cuba, only to make sure the Spanish troops left.

Spain responded by declaring war on the United States. The United States responded by declaring War on Spain.

Spain was not in the least bit prepared for war, especially not against the United States. They were out-manned and outgunned in every way possible, and the war was short, and pathetically one sided.

In May of 1898, Commodore George Dewey led a Naval Squadron into the Philipines. In less than two hours, the anchored spanish fleet was destroyed. 370 Spanish men were killed, and 10 Americans.

Theodore Roosevelt & The Rough Riders, in the Spanish American War

It took a little longer, and some reconnaissance, to locate Cerveras Spanish Caribbean Fleet. But in early July of 1898, an army of troops under Gen William Shaffer, including Naval Secretary Theodore Roosevelt and his Rough Riders, slowly advanced on Cervera's fleet and forced it from the harbor. Cervera attempted to escape west along the coast, but all of his ships came under heavy fire, all being either sunk, or beached by fire damage.

Santiago surrendered on July 17th.

Communication in 1898 was slow. The cruiser Charleston stopped at Guam and accepted its surrender from its Spanish governor who was unaware his nation was even at war. A peace protocol was signed on August 12, but Commodore Dewey and Maj. Gen. Wesley Merritt, leader of the army troops, assaulted Manila the very next day, unaware that peace had been declared.

The war came to an end when representatives of Spain and the United States signed a peace treaty in Paris on December 10, 1898. The treaty established the independence of Cuba, ceded Puerto Rico and Guam to the United States, and allowed the victorious power to purchase the Philippines Islands from Spain for $20 million. The war had cost the United States $250 million and 3,000 lives. But of those 3,000 deaths, it's estimated that 90% were caused by infectious diseases, such as yellow fever and typhoid, not battle.

America had had no interest in adding these islands to their nation, but battles during the war made their strategic location clear. Manila Bay in particular. Recent European aggression in China seemed to threaten the U.S. market, and Manila appealed to them as a base from which U.S. interests in China could be defended. The leaders of Protestant churches saw the easy victory at Manila as a divine summons to missionary work in the Philippines. The British and Japanese governments let it be known that they would be pleased to see the United States keep the islands. There were difficulties about any other course of action, and not wanting to repeat the battles they had just fought, it was easiest for the United States to acquire the islands.

The acquisition was not popular with the US Congress, but when the vote was cast, it passed. By one vote.

The Spanish American War was influential in Hawaii becoming a part of the United States, as well. In 1893, a group of Hawaii based planters and businessmen had overthrown Queen Liliuokalani and established a new government. They promptly sought annexation by the United States, but President Grover Cleveland rejected their requests. In 1898, however, President McKinley and the American public were more favorably disposed toward acquiring the islands. Supporters of annexation argued that Hawaii was vital to the U.S. economy, that it would serve as a strategic base that could help protect U.S. interests in Asia, and that other nations were intent on taking over the islands if the United States did not. So Hawaii became a state.

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