From time to time I will find a few hours to sit at the computer and do some web based sleuthing on the subject of the military careers of my ancestors, the Ketchums. Many times I have come up empty handed or I do make a discovery, only to find out after double checking that I have made an errant connection. Today I made a discovery that I found to be very exciting. I discovered that William Scott Ketchum's younger brother James, who was also a West Point grad and a lieutenant in the US Army during the Second Seminole War, was more engaged in military action than had been previously thought. Not much has been documented regarding his service other than placing him at specific posts at a specific point of time and the fact that he ultimately resigned his commission under cloudy circumstances and that he committed suicide in a most horrible way weeks later in June of 1844. Today I found him mentioned in a correspondence within a book written in 1847 describing his part as a co-commander of an expeditionary force of both USMC troops and two companies of US Army artillery that ascended the Caloosahatchee River eastward to Lake Okeechobee, Florida in November of 1841. I am searching out more details to further verify the story. Until now, I could only speculate that his role as US Army officer had been one more of a clerical nature and not a tactical one. He came to command the artillery portion of the expedition due to his superior officer, Captain M. Burke, 3d Artillery, US Army falling ill leaving him unable to continue the expedition. He passed command down to Lt. James M. Ketchum, the most senior officer under him.
