CHELSEA, Maine — The remains of a Maine man who fought with the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the Civil War will be returned from Oregon to his home state this week as members of the Patriot Guard Riders participate in a “Pony Express” relay via motorcycle.
At 9 a.m. Monday, a ceramic urn containing the cremated remains of Pvt. Jewett B. Williams were due to leave Salem, Oregon, where Williams died in 1922, according to a report in the Statesman Journal.
Mike Edgecomb, state captain for the Maine Patriot Guard Riders, told the newspaper he expects hundreds, if not thousands, of Patriot Guard members across at least 19 states and more than 3,200 miles to participate.
According to the report, Williams has no known living relatives. His remains, among others, were stored on the grounds of the Oregon State Hospital until a memorial was built in 2014. An Oregon woman discovered his enlistment record and included the information on an online database of cemetery records, where they were discovered by an author and historian in Maine, according to the publication.
Edgecomb plans to meet the escort in Appomattox, Virginia, and guide them to the Maine border, then to Togus National Cemetery in Chelsea on Aug. 22. The remains will be interred with full military honors on Sept. 17 as part of a 150th anniversary celebration at Togus, according to the Statesman Journal.