Husband Col. Everhard Bierer 1
Born: 9 Jan 1827 - Uniontown, Fayette Co, PA 1
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Died: Aft 1889
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Father: Everhart Bierer (1795-1876) 2 3 4
Mother: Catherine Margaretta Rukenbrod (1798-1858) 2
Marriage: 8 Apr 1852 - Brownsville, Fayette Co, PA 5
Wife Ellen Smouse 5
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Father: Samuel Smouse ( - ) 5
Mother: Elizabeth [Unk] ( - ) 5
Children
1 M Everhard Bierer 5
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2 M Andrew G. Curtain Bierer 5
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3 M Bion. B. Bierer 5
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General Notes: Husband - Col. Everhard Bierer
He received a good education at the private schools and at Madison College in his native town. Leaving college in 1845, he commenced the study of the law in the office of Joshua B. Howell, Esq., and was admitted to the bar in March, 1848. After two years in traveling through the West and in some desultory literary and educational work, he returned to his native town and entered upon the practice of his profession. In October, 1850, he was elected the first district attorney of Fayette county, the office having previously been appointive. He performed the duties of the office during the term of three years and successfully continued the practice of his profession until April 23, 1861, when he left his office and raised the first company of Volunteers in Fayette county, in the war for the Union. His company afterwards became Company F of the Eleventh Regiment Pennsylvania Reserved Corps; he continued in command of it until September 14, 1862. He served mostly in the Army of the Potomac, and was in the battles of Drainesville, Mechanicsville and Gaines Hill or Cold Harbor before Richmond, where he was surrounded and captured with his command June 27, 1862. With his company, he made, it is believed, the last desperate resistance on that bloody field. He and the survivors were taken to Libby Prison and Belle Island, from which they were released by exchange, August 14, 1862. Six days afterward, he returned to Washington, where he was granted, by Secretary Stanton, a twenty-days' leave of absence on account of ill health, and went home; but learning by telegram of the impending battle of Second Bull Run, he returned to the army and joined his command on the day of the last battle, August 30, 1862. He was also in the battle of South Mountain, September 14, 1862, where he was severely wounded in the left arm, the ball fracturing the arm and passing through the elbow joint and lodging there, from which it was not extracted until November 25th, following. Having become convalescent, on October 24, 1862, he was appointed commandant of Camp Curtin at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, with the rank of colonel, where he organized the One Hundred and Seventy-first, One Hundred and Seventy-second, One Hundred and Seventy-third, One Hundred and Seventy sixth, One Hundred and Seventy-seventh and One Hundred and Seventy-eighth regiments of infantry; and on November 18, 1862, was commissioned colonel of the One Hundred and Seventy-first. After service in southeastern Virginia, with headquarters at Suffolk, his regiment was ordered to New Berne, North Carolina, marching overland to Ballard's Landing, on the Chowan river, there taking shipping. From there he was engaged in several expeditions and several skirmishes in the interior of that State. Subsequently he was ordered to Washington, North Carolina, on Pamlico river, in April, 1863. In the months of May and June, he was in command of the Military District of the Pamlico and part of the time in command of General Henry Prince's division, Eighteenth Army Corps. He was in an engagement at Blount's creek, near Washington, North Carolina, April 7, 1863, commanding a brigade under General F. B. Spinola. Spinola's forces were obliged to retire before superior numbers under the rebel General Hill. To Colonel Bierer was assigned the command of the rear guard, the enemy following in heavy force. The duty was critical. Spending the entire night in the midst of intense darkness, though pine forests and cypress swamps, the march was conducted. He finally succeeded in bringing off the column with the train, artillery and all the wounded.
July 1, 1863, Colonel Bierer returned with his regiment to Virginia, going with General Dix on his expedition to Richmond, while Lee with the Rebel army was in Pennsylvania. The expedition marched from White House landing on the Pamunkey river to within eight or ten miles of Richmond, destined as was then supposed, for an attack upon the rebel capital. Dix had a large force and the Rebel force around Richmond was small. After some skirmishing with the Rebels, Dix ordered the expedition to return to Fortress Monroe, much to the surprise and disappointment of Colonel Bierer and many other officers.
Colonel Bierer, with his regiment, went on to Washington and thence to Boonsville, Maryland, via Harper's Ferry, where he joined General Meade, and on the 7th of July was given a brigade command and afterwards assigned to duty as commander of western Maryland, with headquarters at Frederick City. September 26, 1863, he was mustered out; the regiment's term of service having expired. During the winter of 1863 and 1864, Colonel Bierer served in the Veteran Reserve Corps, but in March, 1864, on account of illness and suffering from his wound, resigned. October, 1865, after the close of the war, he migrated with his family to Kansas. Settling on a farm one mile east of Hiawatha in Brown county, he resumed the practice of law.
The Colonel was originally a democrat, and, as the nominee of that party, he was elected district attorney of Fayette County, Pennsylvania, in 1850. His opposition to the repeal of the Missouri Compromise and the extension of slavery, caused him to support Fremont for President in 1856. In 1860 and 1864 he supported Lincoln, and in the latter campaign he was elected one of the presidential electors of Pennsylvania. In 1867 he was elected representative from Brown County, Kansas, to the legislature of Kansas. In 1868 he supported Grant for president, but with considerable misgivings on account of the financial policy and the reconstruction measures of the republican party, which he bitterly opposed. He was thoroughly disgusted with the carpet-bag policy in the South, and with the administration of Grant generally; and believing as he did that the republican party had abandoned its early principles, and was no longer the party of 1856 and the war, he with such men as Seward, Chase, Curtin, Sumner, Fessenden, Trumbull, Julian, Palmer and nearly all the old founders of the republican party, supported Greeley for the presidency, in opposition to Grant, in 1872. Colonel Bierer supported all the democratic nominees for the presidency thereafter.
He became a member of Fort Necessity Lodge, No. 254, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, at Uniontown, in February, 1852: subsequently he joined the Encampment branch, has been district deputy grand master and district deputy grand patriarch of the order in Fayette county, and member of the Grand Lodge and Grand Encampment of Pennsylvania. He also became a Mason at Uniontown, and is versed in all the mysteries of the Blue Lodge, Royal Arch Chapter, Commandery and historical degrees of Masonry.
Colonel Bierer was all his life a careful student of the Bible, and was well acquainted with the other religious systems of the world, especially Buddhism, Mohammedanism and Confucianism. He believed in the inspiration of the moral and religious teachings of the Bible, the divine Sonship of Jesus and the efficacy of His life and teachings for the purposes of redemption; but he did not believe in the doctrines of the Trinity, vicarious sacrifice and eternal punishment. He accepted a salvation by conduct as well as belief, and included all in the family of the Universal Father, who act according to their highest conceptions of life, right and duty, whatever may be their creed or religious belief.
He and his wife had eight children.