Nov. 12, 2025 - Did you ever have a hero you never met? After discovering his great-grandfather's recollections and poems about his time in the Civil War, Frederick E. Leickly of Columbus, Indiana, strongly considers William Henry Harrison Polhamus in that category. In Recollections of the Civil War: The life of a soldier in the  Ohio 2nd Volunteer Cavalry - 1861-1865, Leickly pays homage to his ancestor, a most unique writer in the style of the late 1800s who shares his courage, escapades and dedication to his comrades and his country. The stories always have Polhamus as the hero or the one in charge of the situation. With the sagas tending to be somewhat surreal, Leickly was obliged to verify as many as possible. A member of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, Leickly painstakingly researched everything his ancestor wrote and adds his own commentary to explain to readers what could be verified and what could not.

At right> Frederick E. Leickly