FOXBORO - Revolutionary War re-enactor Al Soucey was leafing through a book on the war a few months ago, when he saw a mention of Ezra Carpenter of Foxboro from the 13th Continental Regiment - the same regiment Soucey's Rehoboth Minutemen re-enact.
"I thought, 'Hey, he's one of us,'" said Soucey, a captain in the re-enactor regiment.
He started to further research Carpenter and found his pension application stating he served under Capt. Oliver Pond of Wrentham.
Carpenter missed the battle at Lexington and Concord, but witnessed the battle at Bunker Hill and took part in Washington's crossing of the Delaware and several other battles.
He also wintered at Valley Forge.
Two younger brothers also fought in the war.
Soucey said he found out Carpenter was from Foxboro and owned a home on South Street, which still stands.
But, nobody seemed to know where he was buried.
"You can't imagine how hard it is to find these guys," Soucey said. "It's easy to find the famous people, but it's hard to find a private because there are no records."
Soucey, an Attleboro resident, put another re-enactor, Tom Dietzel of Foxboro, on the case.
Dietzel said an 1890 book on the history of Foxboro stated Carpenter was buried about a mile from his home. Rockhill Cemetery met the criteria.
He searched the cemetery three times before coming across a white marble tombstone with the engraving of a solider on it. It was Carpenter.
"It was great to connect with someone we are re-enacting," Soucey said.
Carpenter apparently no longer has relatives in the area, so the regiment is adopting his gravestone for maintenance and will mark it on special occasions such as Memorial Day and Veterans Day.
At 10 a.m. Saturday, the regiment will gather at the grave to place a plaque touting Carpenter's service. The public is invited.
Meanwhile, Soucey said he is still searching for Oliver Pond's burial place.


(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.