In a previous post, I show a picture of the artillery officers examining the Dictator in the summer of 1864. All of the officers in the photograph were identified, in the book, “The photographic History of the Civil War,” except one. Since the Captain Osborne, who was in command of the Dictator was not among those identified, I guessed that the unidentified officer might be him.

I did a little more investigation and was surprised to find that after the war, Captain Osborne became a significant figure in the community of Derby, Connecticut. One of his great achievements was the establishment Derby Neck Library. The establishment of this library included a donation from non other than Andrew Carnegie. Captain Osborne must have been some kind of mover and shaker in order to solicit a donation from such a significant figure.

Captain Osborne’s daughter, Mrs. Frances Osborne Kellogg, took over the family business when he died in 1907. She expanded the successful businesses and accumulated additional property. She had no children, and outlived her husband. When she died, she arranged that the 350 acre property was given to the state, and it has become Osbornedale State Park. The house they both lived in is open to tours. Captain Osborne’s obituary makes for some interesting reading. It can be found at the Derby Historical Society Website

.

The kind people at the park answered an inquiry of mine and provided a picture of Captain Osborne taken later in life. I have used a photo editing application to put the photo they sent me with an enlargement of the original photo of the officers at the dictator.

I can’t say for sure whether the two individuals are the same, but I would say that there is a good resemblance. What are your thoughts?

One last thing, Derby, Connecticut, is really close to Milford, Connecticut, where the SCELBI computer was developed. In fact, at one point, Terri Wadsworth taught at Derby High School. Sometimes, it’s a really small world.