Theodore Penland

 ??? 

Theodore Augustus Penland, age 101, of Portland, Oregon, and a resident of many states in the Union died September 13, 1950.

He was born January 23, 1849, in New Paris, Indiana, to John and Mary Penland. He was the father of ten children, eighteen grandchildren, nineteen great grandchildren and twelve great great grandchildren.

He saw men drafted for the first time during the Civil War, then again witnessed the nations second application of conscription for World War I, and also for the third registration as a prelude to mobilization of the country's manpower for World War II.

Mr. Penland enlisted in the Union Army at Goshen, Indiana, and was assigned with other volunteers to the Army of the Potomac with which he did guard duty along the Potomac for the remainder of the war. His father was killed in the Second Battle of Bull Run, and two of his brothers were prisoners of the Confederates at Andersonville Prison, dying shortly after the close of the war from hardships and under-nourishment.

He was mustered out of service in 1865 at Charleston, West Virginia, and returned to farming near Goshen, until 1868, when the lure of adventure in the west drew him to California. Enroute he went broke in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and walked 1400 miles over the old emigrant trail to Sacramento. From there he went to the Sierra Nevada Mountains, where he secured work on the Union Pacific Railroad. He remained with the railroad until the golden spike was driven at Ogden.

Returning to Indiana he resumed farming, made another trip west and lived in Missaukee County, Michigan, near Lake City. The lure of the west proved too strong however, and in 1915 he returned to California, living in Los Angeles. Later at San Diego, and finally he came to Portland, which he had previously visited in 1877.

At the age of seventy-five he made a trip to Australia and New Zealand, returning to settle in Portland, which he had learned to love. He attended the reunion of the Blue and Gray at Gettysburg and has yearly attended conventions in other states as well as being a very active member here.

In October 1940 he passed a thorough examination at the Battle Creek Sanitarium, Battle Creek, Michigan, being far above the average for his age. The keenness of his mind and business ability being remarkable.

In January of 1943 he suffered a broken hip and bruises but recovered sufficiently to enjoy a trip to the National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in September. This was far beyond even the expectations of the doctors.

He was ill before he went into the Army, then for eighty-five years did not require the aid of a doctor.

He was a member of thirty-two patriotic orders, many of them stemming from the Grand Army of the Republic.

He has attended all of the GAR Encampments, except two since the first one in 1866. He has served as Department Commander of the State of Oregon since 1935.

In 1941 he served as National Patriotic Instructor of the Grand Army. In 1946 he was elected Junior-Vice Commander, in 1947 Semi-Vice Commander and at the National Encampment in 1948 at Grand Rapids, Michigan, Theodore A. Penland was elected by his comrades to the high office of Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic.

At the Grand Rapids meeting it was agreed that the next Encampment in 1949 would be the last one since the Boys in Blue were becoming too feeble to travel. Only six members of the GAR were able to be at the Grand Rapids Encampment. During the year, which followed four of these comrades, passed on.

At the Indianapolis Encampment in 1949 there were also six members of the GAR able to attend. At this Encampment the six comrades present voted to have Commander Penland continue office as long as he lived, thus making Theodore A. Penland the last Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic.

Commander Penland enjoyed a very active life. He would rather be tired than be idle. His chief occupation in later years was to talk to people, relating his experiences of the Civil War, and offering his sound advice concerning “living carefully”. He was especially fond of telling of the time he saw President Abraham Lincoln. He liked to travel by air over the 1400-mile route he once hiked. He possessed a strong, clear voice and enjoyed singing his favorite songs to young and old. “Tenting Tonight on the Old Camp Ground” was one of his favorites.

He was always ready and willing to talk and sing over the radio, and had many opportunities to do so. Commander Penland liked people and knew how to get along well with them. While he always enjoyed talking with people who like himself had many years of experience, he was especially fond of talking to young people. This he did with them individually and in large groups. On several occasions he was the guest speaker before pupils, and teachers in the Hamtramck (Michigan) Public Schools when his grandson Eldon C. Geyer was a Superintendent of Schools in the city.