Jump into local history by visiting the Soldiers' Plot in Clinton, Illinois, to learn about the lives and deaths of local soldiers buried there. The Soldiers' Plot at Woodlawn Cemetery contains 80 gravesites, each representing a unique story of a soldier's death. Although not all of their stories are known, here are a few, ranging from battle injuries to being crushed by collapsing buildings here at home.
There are 80 gravesites in the Soldiers’ Plot at Woodlawn Cemetery, some which represent soldiers who died during Civil War years and others belonging to veterans of the war who died later. It is estimated that roughly two thirds of all Civil War soldiers died from disease, and that percentage is reflected in the first 38 men buried here who died between 1861 and 1865. While the cause of death is not known for each one, only thirteen are known to have been killed in action or died shortly after being wounded in battle. At least seventeen of them succumbed to one of the several communicable diseases that ran rampant through military encampments. Some do not have an accounting of their cause of death or their military record simply states “Disease” or “Discharged for disability,” which could mean either illness or wound, though illness is more likely.
Dr. Evan Richards is one who was killed in action. He left his thriving medical practice to volunteer in 1861 and achieved the rank of Lieutenant Colonel for his bravery and leadership at the Battle of Fort Donelson. About a year later, in May of 1863, he was fatally wounded at the Battle of Raymond, Mississippi, during the Vicksburg Campaign.
John Macon (AKA/Wood) died of wounds received in a military action at Perry’s Ferry on the Coldwater River in Mississippi. His medical record states he died on 19 Apr 1863 at a regimental hospital of “Vulnus Sclop” which is an abbreviated form of vulnus sclopetarium, the Latin term used in the medical field at the time for gunshot wound.
Six soldiers were killed during the Battle of Fort Donelson, Tennessee, in February of 1862. They were Joshua Carter, Samuel Day, Daniel Malone, Spencer Page, Locklin Rogers and Samuel Walcott. The interment of five of them next to Edwin Gideon on “Gideon’s Hill” is what transformed a family plot into the Soldiers’ Plot. (Side note: Rogers’ brother Henry is also buried here, having survived the war, and who died in 1871 of unknown causes.)
Another five men died after the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, more commonly referred to as the Battle of Shiloh, which took place over two days in southwestern Tennessee in April, 1862. They were William Bradford, Benjamin Brown, John Cain, James Gandy, and Stephen Robb. John Cain was first reported as having a severe wound in his right arm, which was amputated, but he later succumbed. William Bradford was “severely wounded in neck, arm and foot” and died about a week after receiving his injuries.
Thomas Nicholson’s military record states he died on or about the last of November 1863 at Glasgow, Kentucky, but does not indicate if his cause of death was illness or battle wound. He was a member of the 107th Illinois Infantry, which was stationed at Glasgow earlier that year, so one might deduce that Nicholson was too incapacitated to move on with his unit and was left in the camp hospital there. There are a number of interesting things about this man’s profile apart from his manner of death, however. He was born in England but enlisted in 1862 as a resident of Clinton (not so unusual – many Clinton residents around that time were born in England). He volunteered on August 15th, wrote his last will and testament on August 22nd and was officially mustered in on September 4th. His probate record is on file at the DeWitt County Genealogical Society, including his will, in which he bequeaths his 80-acre farm in Michigan to his sister, who lives in Canada! Why was he living in Clinton if he had a farm in Michigan and family in Canada? We’re not likely to ever know.
Many Civil War soldiers died from typhoid, mumps, measles, malaria, consumption (tuberculosis), lung fever (pneumonia), chronic diarrhea or dysentery (which have similar symptoms, but different causes), infection after amputation and even sexually transmitted disease, for which there was no effective treatment. Diagnosis of disease was difficult in those days, as bacteria and its effects were yet to be discovered. There were no cultures taken or lab tests performed then to achieve a positive identification of disease. The “Germ Theory of Disease” was introduced by Louis Pasteur in the 1870’s and it required decades of scientific proof before it was universally accepted. Penicillin, which probably would have cured most of these illnesses, was not discovered until 1928 by Alexander Fleming.
Chronic diarrhea, the most common illness among these first casualties from DeWitt County, is easy to diagnose, but the actual source of the condition might not be. Others died from typhoid fever, dysentery, pneumonia or simply “disease.” As we know, the first soldier buried here, Edwin Gideon, died in 1861. One accounting of his death indicates he had typhoid fever, another says pneumonia. They might both be correct, as pneumonia is typical of end-stage typhoid.
There were three who survived the war only to be killed at home soon after. James Scott was discharged for disability in Feb 1863 then struck by a train in Dec 1864. Mordecai Piatt was also discharged in Feb 1863 then died in a building collapse in Feb 1864. John Short was discharged for disability in Jan 1863 then shot dead in May of 1868 (more about that next month).
Joseph Moore survived the war and afterward returned to his profession of teaching in Clinton. In June of 1869 he married, and just three months later, he suddenly died. His obituary says he had inflammatory rheumatism, though that in itself is not fatal. Presumably, that condition brought about an acute event, such as a heart attack. He was just 30.
Joseph Morrison survived a year as a prisoner of war at Andersonville in Georgia. He was about 70 years old when he died in 1908, cause of death reported as “acute indigestion.” There are a couple others listing this cause of death, but one has to wonder if it was something that produced symptoms like indigestion, such as a ruptured aortic aneurism. Indigestion may feel like it’s going to be fatal, but is not ordinarily!
Many veterans carried their disability home with them, and an obituary for James P. Cross is one example. It states that in 1864, while away at war, Cross “had a severe attack of camp diarrhea from which he never recovered.” His illness became chronic, and he suffered from it for 22 years. He was denied a disability pension, probably because he didn’t claim his illness until years after the war had ended. He died in 1887 at age 41, leaving a wife and children with no means of support.
James McCoy’s obituary says he spent three years and three months in Civil War service, being discharged “completely broken down in health. He never recovered the vigor of life.” At the age of 38, he came down with lung fever (pneumonia) which rapidly overwhelmed his weakened body. He died in 1882.
William Alsup’s profile is an especially sad one. When William volunteered in 1862, he left behind his wife and two sons, a third son having been born and died in 1860. His wife died in 1863, and the two remaining sons lived with his sister and her husband, who moved to Missouri. After the war, William joined them there, where they all appear together in the 1870 Census. By 1880, however, William is living in Wapella with a widowed cousin and her 19-year-old son. The cousin is listed as head of household, even though William owns the house. He is recorded as a carpenter who suffers from chronic diarrhea, probably since his time in military service. His sons, now in their early 20’s, are recorded as living in the McLean County Almshouse (poorhouse) and are marked as “idiots from birth.” One son died there in Jul 1885, and the other son must have died sometime prior to that, because William died in Sep 1885 leaving no heirs. His probate record is on file with the DeWitt County Genealogical Society, and it shows that he left his house to the cousin and his horse, wagon and harness to her son. He was about 55 years old.
John Spradling’s military record states he was “discharged for disability Apr 3, 1864 of wounds recd in action at Black River Bridge Miss.” His obituary states that a ten-pound shell “tore his right side and leg to pieces.” He spent 20 days in a camp hospital before being removed to a hospital in Memphis, where he spent the next year. (For an interesting look at a Civil War era military hospital, visit Memphis and The Civil War - in Vintage Drawing and Photos at historic-memphis.com - scroll down to Hospitals). Because he was forced to lie on his left side, he developed bed sores on his left leg, which became infected and eventually had to be amputated. After returning to Clinton, John tried to find work any way he could, at one time running a small news stand. Eventually, life was just too much for his body to sustain, and he took to bed to await his demise. He passed in Sep of 1872 at approximate age 32, leaving a wife and two children. John’s brother, James Spradling, survived the war without injury, but he also suffered a tragic end. James had been working at replacing the foundation of a house and had propped up the porch portion, which somehow fell on him. It broke his spine and left him paralyzed from the waist down. One obituary says he was bedridden for two years, another says three. At any rate, he finally expired in May 1883 at the age of 39, leaving a wife and six children. Both brothers are buried at the Soldiers’ Plot.
Henry Harrison Brittin was born on 24 Mar 1841 in Champaign County, Ohio. Just three months later, his mother died, leaving behind six children in addition to Henry (who was commonly called Harrison). It looks as though he was taken in by a wealthy farmer named Isaac Cook. Even though his father remarried in 1844, Henry H. remained in the Cook household, where he was recorded in the 1850 and 1860 Censuses. In 1850, he is listed as a 9-year-old school boy, and in 1860, a 19-year-old apprentice farmer. By 1860, his father and most of his siblings had relocated to DeWitt County, Illinois. Henry H. volunteered for military service in 1861 and served with Company D of the 40th Ohio Infantry. On 20 Sep 1863, he was wounded at Chickamauga, Georgia. The nature of his wound is unknown, but he was discharged from duty for disability in April of 1864. This is likely when he came to DeWitt County, where he died at the home of his brother, John E. Brittin, three years later.
While his cause of death is unknown, it seems likely that it was the end result of his debilitating wound. Even though he did not own property at the time of his death, he does have a probate record on file with the DeWitt County Genealogical Society. His only assets were a military pension and his enlistment bounty, valued together at $360. He died 25 Nov 1867 at the age of 26.
George Crowden’s cause of death as reported in his obituary was rheumatism, which he felt he developed from exposure, “sleeping in the mud and under the snow without shelter” during his time in the service. After the war, he had worked his way up to engineer for the Illinois Central Railroad, but had to give that up about ten months before he died because of his disability. He was just 40 when he died in 1883, leaving a wife and at least one child.
There were at least three veterans who suffered from addiction. One of them, Dominick Curry, was a well-loved and respected old soldier, but was also apparently the “town drunk.” As a young man, Curry had enlisted in the U. S. Army in the state of New York and was involved in fighting Indians both in Florida and the Northwest as well as serving in the Mexican-American War in the 1840’s. He was living in Clinton by the time the Civil War broke out and served in that war for three years. He afterward returned to Clinton and either began his drinking habit or continued it. In 1880, the army granted him a monthly pension and a lump-sum of $1080 retroactive to 1865. Within a week, a petition was filed in DeWitt County court requesting the appointment of a conservator for the estate of Dominick Curry, “alleged to be a drunkard.” It looks as though that petition was denied, as by 1882, Curry was known to be sleeping in the train station, presumably having squandered his windfall. He did live to be about 77 years old, the last couple years of his life having been taken in by an area resident. During that time, he was said to be afflicted with asthma and dropsy (edema or swelling). While his obituary is lengthy and flattering, it also states that at the time of his death, he possessed just $2.25. He never married and had no known family.
Thomas Jamison lived in Watseka when he volunteered for military service, and he became acquainted with some DeWitt County men who served in the 20th Illinois Infantry with him. He suffered a severe chest wound during that time but was able to return to duty, though the healed wound continued to cause him pain in years to come. After the war, he went to Chicago and was employed as a policeman. One night, he was involved in hand-to-hand combat with some burglars who left him with permanent damage from knife and pistol wounds. Not long after this, he came to Clinton, already with a dependence on “stimulants” (morphine?) for pain. His old comrades got him hired on as the night policeman, but his addiction prevented him from retaining employment. Finally, in May of 1877, he was “seized with paralysis” resulting in his death. About 43 years old, he left no wife or family.
Frank McCaffrey’s death was held up as a cautionary tale in the local newspaper. He died suddenly in 1872, and an inquest was held. It was concluded that he had been in a “continual state of intoxication” for a week, and combined with a history of inebriation, it resulted in his death. Temperance had been a frequent subject in the paper for years, and prohibition was already being discussed long before it became law in 1920. Printed articles placed at least some of the blame on establishments selling liquor and politicians who were anti-prohibition, as well as the citizens who voted them into office. McCaffrey was about 31 years old and left behind a wife, but it is unknown if he had any children.
Israel Johnson’s obituary says he was the picture of health in the morning but then took ill while digging potatoes, and by 8 pm he was dead. His death in 1885 was attributed to painter’s colic, which was a term that referred to lead poisoning from exposure to lead-based paint. Lead poisoning typically builds over time and produces a variety of symptoms rather than being an acute condition, but that was the conclusion. He was about 57 years old.
Frank Lange was wounded twice during his Civil War service – a debilitating bayonet wound to his left hand and a musket shot to the head. He survived, and the 1880 Census shows him and his family living in DeWitt County. In 1885, he contracted malaria and died, leaving his wife and seven children, two of whom were also suffering from malaria. In spite of his battle wounds, he received just a $2 monthly pension. He was 40.
At the time of William Dillavou’s death, he was considered the oldest man in DeWitt County and the oldest Civil War veteran in the state. His obituary does not list his cause of death, though at 98 one might simply say he died of old age. The last veteran to be interred at the Soldier’s Plot was Alfred Hutson, who claimed to be related to Buffalo Bill. Hutson died at John Warner Hospital in 1924 at age 84.
Our dead are never dead to us,
until we have forgotten them.
-George Eliot
Sources:
DeWitt County newspaper archives on microfilm
Terri Lemmel was born and raised in DeWitt County near Kenney. Upon completing her education at Clinton High School, she lived in Bloomington for several years before returning to Clinton in 1990. Her interest in genealogy was piqued in the mid-90s when she found unidentified obituaries in her late grandmother's scrapbook that family members could not identify. While she initially dabbled in the subject, it wasn't until her retirement in 2018 that she jumped in with both feet. Terri joined the Genealogical Society and has been serving as its President since 2022. Research is a passion of hers, and there are lots of interesting stories to uncover! You can find Terri in the DeWitt County Genealogical Society room at the Vespasian Warner Public Library every Thursday completing research and helping others with their family and local history research.
To learn more about the DeWitt County Genealogical Society, feel free to reach out to them via phone at 217-935-5174, email at dewittcgs@gmail.com, their website, or their Facebook page.
The Vespasian Warner Library, located at 310 N. Quincy St. in Clinton, IL, features an extensive collection of local history and archives. To learn more, visit our Local History Page on the website or stop by in person! We are always excited to showcase our local history resources and discuss DeWitt County's local history.
Until Next Time Library Friends!
Comments