Bonaventure Magazine: Summer 2015 Page 16

Frank said Dunkelman sent copies of

his publications over the years, which
he continues to do.

2013, Dunkelman donated a
large portion of documen-
tary elements, which in-

cluded photographs and records of the
members of the regiment.

St. Bonaventure student interns have

already begun to scan some of the ma-
terial to make it available in digital for-
mat, Frank added.

"Our hope is to eventually have the

complete collection digitized and avail-
able on the Internet to make access
easier for researchers," said Frank.
"Meanwhile, the entire collection is
available for research by the university
and wider communities by appoint-
ment."

At present, the collection is housed in

the Archives' vault in the library.

In addition, Dunkelman has loaned

the Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts
many of his artifacts, which largely
consist of letters, diaries and photo-
graphs.

Evelyn Penman, assistant director of

the Quick Center, said the items will be
displayed in an exhibition in the The-

ater Atrium and in two galleries adja-
cent to the atrium, the Paul and Toni
Branch Gallery and the Front Gallery.
The exhibition opened Aug. 1 and
closes Nov. 15, at which time the
items will be returned to Dunkel-
man. She said museum officials
hope to include the exhibit on mu-
seum tours.

The opening date of the exhibi-

tion coincides with the 30th an-
nual reunion of the descendants
of the 154th regiment, which was
held at the university.

The Aug. 1 reunion included a

panel discussion and barbecue.
Buffalo band Rush the Growler
performed musical pieces

based on poems and letters writ-
ten by members of the 154th
regiment.

"You can learn a lot about a

lot of subjects," Dunkelman
said of his work. "I like to think
of this (the 154th regiment) as a prism
through which I examine the Civil War,
and now other people can do the
same."

Dunkelman said eventually his entire

collection -- both artifacts and re-
search material -- will be donated to
the university.

For more information about the

154th regiment and Dunkelman's col-
lection, visit his website at www.hard-
tackregiment.com.

SUMMER 2015

Joseph Cullen (above) was
born May 16, 1838, in Upton,
Nottinghamshire, England.
At age 21, he enlisted at Lit-
tle Valley to serve three years
in the 154th. He was cap-
tured in action March 27,
1865, near Snow Hill, S.C.,
and paroled May 5. Cullen
mustered out June 29, 1865,
in New York City.

ON DISPLAY:

These are some of the artifacts on loan to the Quick Center for its exhibition on the 154th regiment

This tintype is of 1st Lt. Alexan-

der Bird from Ellicottville wearing a
Twentieth Corps star badge (also
pictured next to the frame). Pho-
tography evolved rapidly during
the Civil War Era. Daguerreotypes,
ambrotypes and ferrotypes (tin-
types) were superseded by photo-
graphs produced by the wet-plate
process, which allowed for dupli-
cates to be made.

Learn more about the regiment at

www.hardtackregiment.com

This ribbon of

GAR membership in
the regiment was
manufactured by F.
Brueschwyler of
Salamanca. Veter-
ans of the 154th
New York reunited
in the postwar years
at meetings of local
posts of the Grand
Army of the Repub-
lic -- the greatest
Union veterans or-
ganization -- and
at annual regimen-
tal reunions.

Devillo Wheeler, a 15-year-old

private, sent this print of Camp
Seward, Va., home to his family
in Allegany. Wheeler was cap-
tured at Gettysburg and died as
a POW in Richmond. Louis
Rosenthal of Philadelphia pro-
duced this and other prints in
1862 depicting regimental
camps near Washington, D.C.