Charles W. OurslerVeteran

everal members of the prominent

Oursler family are commemorated on this stunning monument including Charles W., a

Civil War soldier serving in the 1st Potomac Home Brigade who was killed at Maryland

Heights in 1862 just before the Battle of Antietam, and Elton Oursler who drowned

near Westminster in 1861.

The monument deserves attention for a number of reasons. Note its unique blue-grey color and excellent condition. The sharp lettering and raised designs show no sign of weathering. Between 1880 and 1910, monuments made of “white bronze” (really zinc) were quite popular in some parts of the United States. Families could buy them for less cost than a marker of similar dimensions

cut from granite or marble. White bronze markers ranged in size from a few inches to over 25 feet tall and were made to order. A buyer could choose many styles. Tap the Oursler memorial and you‟ll discover it is hollow.

There are a few other markers of white bronze in the cemetery, all in excellent condition with the same attractive color. You may notice them as you explore the cemetery further. Some cemetery companies banned them, probably at the urging of dealers in marble and granite. Manufacturers stopped making them at the outbreak of World War I when zinc was needed for military purposes.

Corporal Charles Oursler was born September 2, 1841. He enlisted on August 21, 1861 in Company B of the First Maryland Infantry Regiment, Potomac Home Brigade, also known as the 13th Maryland Infantry regiment.

He was mustered in on September 6, 1861 at Frederick, Maryland. Appointed a Corporal on February 1, 1862 he died on September 13, 1862 of a gunshot wound he received the previous day while fighting at Maryland Heights, during the Battle of Harper’s Ferry, prior to the Battle of Antietam which took place on September 17, 1862.