More Civil War Veterans in My Hometown

In August 2009, my first set of postings included a two part series that featured Civil War veterans buried in Fairview Cemetery in my hometown of Pryor Creek, Oklahoma. When I visited the cemetery a few weeks ago, I was surprised to find three more Civil War veterans. Fairview Cemetery is a bit unusual in its arrangement. As a veteran cemetery tramper, I’ve noticed that the “older” section gradually progresses to the newer sections. Fairview Cemetery has two “older” sections: one on the east side and one on the west side. Not sure why the cemetery developed in that fashion, but the soldiers featured in this posting are buried on the east side of the cemetery. All three were Union veterans, and I was able to find some additional facts about two of the men.

William H. Pearson served in the 6^th Illinois Cavalry, a regiment that saw much duty in the western theater.

Mathias Washam, a farmer, enlisted at age 22 on September 7, 1863 in the 11^th Tennessee Cavalry, later being transferred to the 9^th Tennessee Cavalry. His descriptive record states that he had blue eyes, light hair, and stood five feet eight inches tall. After being paid a $25 bounty, Washam went absent without leave until he was restored to duty in late February 1864; he lost his pay for the forty-nine days that he was absent. From that point on, Washam served faithfully even being promoted to sergeant and then appointed as quartermaster sergeant. The military mustered him out in Knoxville, Tennessee, on September 11, 1865.

Initially, Corporal Samuel Johnson puzzled me as no Samuel Johnson served in the 17^th Missouri Infantry as his marker so plainly notes. The 1900 census listed a Samuel Johnson, a native of Michigan, living in the Cherokee Nation. Could he have served in the 17^th Michigan? Indeed, after searching in various records, I concluded that he did. Johnson enlisted in Company I on August 16, 1862 in Dundee, Michigan. At some point during the war he was promoted to corporal and was mustered out in Washington, D. C. on June 3, 1865. One of Fox’s “Three Hundred Fighting Regiments,” the 17^th Michigan Infantry served in the IX Army Corps and saw much hard service.

Trawling through the Cemetery

Regular readers will not be surprised to learn that I have visited yet another cemetery. This one, though, is one that I have visited many times—namely Fairview Cemetery in Shawnee, Oklahoma, the town where I grew up. While growing up, I was fascinated by a section of the cemetery (shown above) that marked the final resting place of a number of Civil War veterans. One time I made a complete list of all of the Civil War veterans and researched all of the military units represented by them. I often pondered why Parker Wilson, a veteran of the 12^th Vermont Infantry, moved to central Oklahoma. And what exactly drew 1^st Sergeant W. E. Murry, a former member of the 51^st New York Infantry, to Shawnee? The same could be asked of 13^th Maine Infantry veteran, Charles Styles. Did John W. Wheeler (4^th Wisconsin Cavalry) think longingly of the cool summers that he left behind? Certainly, though, there are Midwesterners represented at Fairview Cemetery…J. N. Talbott (1oth Kansas Infantry), Robert Deer (14^th Kansas Cavalry), Samuel J. Turner (48^th Illinois Infantry), and Frank Fox (1^st Iowa Battery).

And in amongst them are some Confederate veterans like J. C. Tyrone who served in the 1^st Mississippi (McNair’s) Cavalry. Did Union and Confederate veterans socialize much in Shawnee? Did they trade war stories with each other? I’d like to think that they did, and I have a feeling they helped name two of the major streets in Shawnee. No doubt those northern veterans suggested naming a street “Union,” and those Confederate veterans? Intriguingly there is a street named “Independence,” and it intersects with Union Street. These veterans are in the west part of the cemetery not far from an Oklahoma Historical Society sign that notes the resting place of Dr. Brewster Higley who may have written the song, Home on the Range.

Do You Have Any Civil War Veterans in Your Town?

In the cemetery that is…

I grew up in Shawnee, Oklahoma, a town in the central part of the state. There were a number of Civil War veterans (mostly Union) whose final resting place was in the city cemetery in Shawnee. While growing up, I liked to ride my bicycle to the cemetery and look at the headstones. At one point I even wrote down the names of all of the Civil War veterans buried in the cemetery and did some research on the military units listed on their markers.

Yesterday, I drove into Pryor’s Fairview Cemetery to take photographs of the grave sites of Civil War veterans. It didn’t me long to notice that I was the only visitor at the cemetery. Perhaps this was due to the strong south wind and the nearly 100 degree temperature? The grass is starting to look scorched in the cemetery due to our recent hot temperatures. In a highly unscientific and incomplete survey, the eleven graves that I located in Pryor were divided between four Union and seven Confederate soldiers. The Union veterans were:

Private Andrew B. Collins, Company I, 3^rd Missouri Cavalry [This unit campaigned mostly in Arkansas and Missouri.]. According to cemetery records available through the Thomas J. Harrison Public Library website, Private Collins died on 9 June 1904.

Private William B. Collins, Company D, 10^th Tennessee Infantry [Organized in 1862, this regiment spent the war on guard duty in Tennessee.] He died on 9 December 1905.

Private Joseph Lewis, Company L, 8^th Iowa Cavalry [Organized in 1863, the 8^th Iowa campaigned in Georgia and Tennessee primarily.] According to cemetery records, Private Lewis died on 23 January 1903.

Private John D. Wilkins, Company F, 29^th Iowa Infantry [This regiment saw quite a bit of service including the battles of Helena, Jenkins Ferry, and actions around Mobile, Alabama.] There is no record of Wilkins' date of death in the cemetery records.

Three of these veterans died before statehood. I wonder what brought them to the Indian Territory? Next time…Confederate Veterans in Pryor