George Washington Dunham was a resident of Mansfield on August 11, 1862 when he enlisted as a Private in Co. D of the 21st Regiment Connecticut Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered out June 16, 1865.

The descriptive muster roll of the 21st Regiment Connecticut Volunteer Infantry lists his age as 33 and his occupation as farmer.  He is described as being 5’ 9” tall with a fair complexion and black hair and dark eyes.  His marital status is married.

He was born January 18, 1829 in Mansfield to Ebenezer and Orilla (Hanks) Dunham. His brother, Norman Dunham, also served in the 22nd Regiment. In the 1860 U.S. census in Mansfield, he is a 30 year old farmer and head of household. George Dunham married Mary Ann Sweet on May 25, 1853 in Mansfield. Children include: Julia B. Dunham, born about 1854 and Ada Dunham, born about 1867. In the 1870 U.S. census, he was a wagon maker in Hartford and by the 1880 U.S. census he had moved to Coventry where he was a carriage maker. 

On December 23, 1891, he applied for an invalid pension, No. 1,083,014 that was granted under certificate No. 827,175.

George W. Dunham died on November 24, 1906 in Coventry and is buried at the Nathan Hale Cemetery in Coventry, Connecticut.