Photo provided in early 2005 by Patrick Hoffman, descendant of Irish immigrant Andrew Nolan.
He said it is of "Peter Nolan, son of Andrew and Maria Haas Nolan, first from the left, and John Nolan,
son of John and Bridget Nolan, fourth from the left. I suppose the recruits were in training up near Neenah,
Wis., in the summer of 1898. Someone, probably my great-grandmother, wrote "Peter Nolan" and "John
Nolan" below their images. Who the other men are I don't know, but probably other Sparta-area boys." Peter
was killed in Puerto Rico during the Spanish-American War and was buried April 4, 1899, in
the St. John's Cemetery near the family farm. The back of the photo has a handwritten note
saying "Co. L, 3rd Wisconsin Volunteer
Infantry." Peter's cousin John survived the short war and subsequently tried homesteading
in North Dakota before returning to Wisconsin, where he worked
for his uncle's drayage business.
George Napjus of Maryland and Lithuania, like Patrick a great-great grandson of Andrew Nolan,
responded to Patrick's request for information by writing that he believes "Peter Nolan was
not killed in the war but rather died of yellow fever while in Cuba."