William B. Gere

William Beecher "Beech" Gere (c.1830 - February 4, 1921) was a farmer, American Civil War veteran, politician, United States Marshal, and early settler of Chatfield, Minnesota. ^{[1] [2]} After the war he lived in Sumter County, Alabama and served in the Alabama House of Representatives as a Democrat. ^[3]

Further information: 5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment, Thomas P. Gere, and Battle of Fort Ridgely

At the outbreak of the American Civil War Gere volunteered for service in the Union Army and enlisted as a Private on January 17, 1862. ^[4] On March 2, 1862 Gere was given an Officer's commission as Captain in the ranks of the 5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment under the command of Colonel Lucius Frederick Hubbard. ^{[5] [6]} A Civil War era photo of Gere and others survives. ^[7] Gere's younger brother Thomas P. Gere also served with him during the course of the war as his 1st Lieutenant in Company B. ^{[8] [9] [10]} The Minnesota Historical Society has some of Gere's papers. ^[11] The 5th Minnesota fought primarily in the Western theater of the American Civil War. Company B of the 5th Minnesota was originally posted on outpost duty at Fort Ridgely near the Upper Sioux Agency and the Lower Sioux Agency shortly before the outbreak of the Dakota War of 1862.

Company B moved to Fort Ridgley from March 22-25, 1862, and had garrison duty there till November, 1862. ^[12] Companies "B" and "C" marched to Sioux Agency on the Yellow Medicine River on June 30 to July 2, 1862 to preserve order during annuity payment to Indians. During the Dakota War in August, 1862 Company B fought at the Battle of Redwood Ferry and the Battle of Fort Ridgely. Company B later marched for Fort Snelling on November 9, 1862 as an armed escort to the Dakota Prisoners of War. Gere and Company B eventually rejoined the rest of the 5th Minnesota Regiment near Oxford, Mississippi on December 12, 1862 and would fight the remainder of the war in the Western theater of the American Civil War. Gere was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant colonel of the 5th Minnesota on August 31, 1862, he was discharged from the Union Army on August 31, 1865 and was brevetted with the rank of Colonel. ^[13]

Later Life

Following the war Gere moved to Sumter County, Alabama where he continued to work as a Democrat politician for the Alabama House of Representatives. ^[3] Gere died on February 4, 1921 at the age of 91 in Bessemer, Alabama. Gere is buried at the Cedar Hill Cemetery in Bessemer. Gere was part of the Free and Accepted Masons.

References

1. "Gere, William B. "Wm. B., W.B." - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present". www.lrl.mn.gov.
2. "The Political Graveyard: Index to Politicians: Gerard to Gerrity". politicalgraveyard.com.
3. "Senate documents". January 31, 1877 – via Google Books.
4. "Dalby Database - Civil War Search Results". www.dalbydata.com. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
5. Minnesota. Adjutant General's Office (1862). Annual report. The Library of Congress. Saint Paul.
6. "Soldier Details - The Civil War (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
7. "In Their Words: Lt. Col. William B. Gere". Post Bulletin. October 14, 2014.
8. "Thomas Parke Gere, First Lieutenant, United States Army". www.arlingtoncemetery.net.
9. Neill, Edward Duffield (January 31, 1887). "Concise History of the State of Minnesota". S.M. Williams – via Google Books.
10. Minnesota in the Civil And Indian Wars 1861-1865. Minnesota Historical Society. January 31, 2005. ISBN   9780873515191 – via Google Books.
11. "William B. and Thomas P. Gere papers, 1847-1911". researchworks.oclc.org.
12. "Battle Unit Details - The Civil War (U.S. National Park Service)". www.nps.gov. Retrieved 2025-10-23.
13. Minnesota. Adjutant General's Office (1862). Annual report. The Library of Congress. Saint Paul. p. 226.

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

William Beecher Gere
Photograph of Lucius F. Hubbard (front row, left) seated with Lt. Col. William B. Gere, Thomas P. Gere, and William B. McGrorty; all members of the 5th Minnesota Infantry Regiment, taken after the Battle of Corinth.
Member of the Minnesota Legislature from the 8th district
In office 1856-1857