Ferdinand McWilliams

Ferdinand McWilliams was born in Ireland. In the 1870 Census he reported his age as 41, which suggests a birth year of 1828 or 1829, although other sources list 1820 and 1830. He traveled to California by way of Cape Horn during the 1849 gold rush to seek his fortune. After striking it rich, he began the journey home, but while crossing the Isthmus of Panama he was robbed, shot, and left for dead. He survived and eventually returned to Gloucester City.

He married in the 1850s. His first son, James Gavan, was born around 1860. Two more sons followed: Thomas Francis about two years later, and George Bruce around 1867. His wife, Mary McWilliams, died sometime in the 1870s.

When the Civil War began, McWilliams enlisted in Company D, Fourth New Jersey Volunteers. He entered service as a Lieutenant 2nd Class, or Ensign, at Trenton on April 27, 1861, for a three‑month term. The regiment left New Jersey for Washington on May 3 with 37 commissioned officers and 743 non‑commissioned officers and privates, a total of 777 men. They reached the capital on the evening of May 5 and went into camp at Meridian Hill on May 9, where the entire brigade soon assembled. On May 12 the president visited the camp and complimented the troops. On the evening of May 23 the regiment joined the 2nd and 3rd New Jersey units and, around midnight, marched in silence toward the Potomac. They crossed the bridge at 2 a.m. on May 24. The 2nd Regiment was posted at Roach's Spring, while the 3rd and 4th took positions about half a mile farther along the Alexandria road. On July 16, a guard was detailed from the 4th to protect a section of the Orange & Alexandria Railroad. One company guarded the Long Bridge, another was stationed at Arlington Mills, and the remainder of the regiment, along with the 2nd, was ordered to Alexandria. With its term of service expired, the Fourth New Jersey returned home and was mustered out at Trenton on July 31, 1861.

After the war, McWilliams returned to Gloucester City, where he lived on Mercer Street above Willow Street. He worked for many years as a box‑maker at the Gloucester Print Works and served as a Democratic councilman. He applied for his Civil War pension on June 17, 1890.

Ferdinand McWilliams died on September 1, 1908, at his home in Gloucester City.