Hagerstonians in the Civil War

Hagerstonians in the Civil War. Dr. John Absalom Wroe, 1817-1874. This home was constructed around 1838. During the Civil War, it was the home of Dr. John Absalom Wroe and his family. A native of Virginia, Wroe helped to treat wounded Confederate and union soldiers who were left in the City when the rebel army evacuated Hagerstown in July, 1863. Family lore states the Wroes hosted General Robert E. Lee and his staff for dinner during the Confederate occupation of the town. The Wroe children pranked the Confederate officers by hiding their side arms, which they removed for dinner, in a barn in the back yard. The Wroe family opened their home to Major Henry D McDaniel of the l1th Georgia Infantry after he was wounded at the Battle of Funkstown in the retreat from Gettysburg. They cared for him until he was sent to a prisoner of war facility. Major McDaniel later served as Governor of Georgia., In 1923 the Womens club of Hagerstown purchased the property. A service club that was created during World War 1, the Womens Club converted the home for use as a boarding home for ladies, containing 21 guest rooms, a dining hall and a small auditorium., Fascinating Fact , In 1901, Hagerstown resilient Mary Landon Mason married the aged former Confederate General Edward Porter Alexander. In her old age, Mrs. Alexander lived here at the Womens Club until her passing in 1946. She was one of the last surviving widows of a Confederate general.