Douglass Cemetery: Former Residents

This is the tombstone of Samuel White and Rebecca Ann (Johns) Walthall, moved from Douglass to Chariton cemetery during 1919. Samuel's War of 1812 flag holder is at right.

Douglass Cemetery, located just southeast of Chariton along the Blue Grass Road, seems to have been abandoned entirely about the turn of the century, when Lucas County stopped using it as a potters field and began burying the indigent either in the new potters field in the southwest corner of the Chariton Cemetery or in the County Farm cemetery, just northwest of town. Families who could afford to bury their loved ones in some style had shifted their allegiance many years before to the Chariton Cemetery, established 1863-64.

As Douglass was allowed to go to rack and ruin, some families decided to move the remains of their loved ones. This probably began soon after the new cemetery was established and continued a grave or two at a time until after the turn of the century. It's useful to remember, however, that a vast majority of the Lucas County pioneers buried at Douglass remain buried there in graves now lost.

Descendants of Lucas County pioneers Samuel W. and Rebecca Ann Walthall moved three family members from Douglass during 1919, as reported in The Chariton Patriot of 2 October 1919 within an article headed, "Daughter of the Revolution Here:"

"Mrs. Ethel Smith, of Des Moines, accompaned by her aunt, Mrs. Fannie Walthall Hardin, of Denver, Colorado, were here the latter part of last week visiting the former's uncle, Jay J. Smyth, and attending to business matters. Mrs. Hardin was enroute from Columbus, Ohio, where she attended the national W.R.C. (Women's Relief Corps) encampment. She was a resident of this place many years ago, and she was here for the purpose of removing the remains of her father and mother, Samuel and Rebecca Ann Walthall, and her aunt, Nancy B. Chapman, who was the wife of Joshua P. Chapman, from the Douglass cemetery to the W.H. Smyth lot in the Chariton cemetery. Mr. Walthall was one of the very early pioneers of Lucas County and was buried in 1858, while his sister was buried two years later (actually two years earlier). He was a soldier in the war of 1812, and a bronze grave marker will be erected above his grave by the Society of 1812. This will be the only marker of this kind in the Chariton cemetery. Mr. Walthall was county clerk and recorder of this county about 1854. When he came here he brought with him a land warrant as payment for his service in the war of 1812, and entered the farm adjoining Spring Lake on the south, where he resided for some time."

William H. Smyth, on whose lot the Walthalls were reburied and where their tombstones, also brought from Douglass, were re-erected, had married Ida Malone, a granddaughter of Samuel and Rebecca, on 7 March 1880, Lucas County marriage records show.

Samuel and Rebecca, who died eight months apart, share a single tombstone. Samuel's inscription reads, "Samuel W. Walthall, Died Jan. 22, 1858, Aged 62 ys, 4 ms, 24 Ds."

Rebecca's inscription, below Samuel's, reads, "Rebecca A., Wife of S.W. Walthall, Died Sept. 12, 1858." Most likely, Rebecca's age was inscribed below her date of death, but the base of the stone was sunk into cement when it was re-erected, so that line was lost.

The War of 1812 marker mentioned in the preceding article is in fact an elaborate War of 1812 flag holder with the name "Samuel White Walthall" inscribed upon it.

The Walthall stone is well preserved and the inscription legible. The same cannot be said for Nancy's tombstone, located just north of her parents' stone. Probably made from a lesser grade of marble, it has eroded to the point of illegibility.

This is Nancy B. (Walthall) Chapman's tombstone, also moved from the Douglas to the Chariton cemetery during 1919.

Based upon my reading and earlier transcriptions, the inscription reads, "Nancy B., Wife of Joshua P. Chapman, Died Sept. 17, 1855, Aged 16 (or 17) Ys."

Lucas County marriage records show that Nancy married Joshua 13 July 1854. His age was given as 21 at that time and hers, as 16.

According to information about this family found within an online GEDCOM entitled, "The Johns Family History Association Genealogies" (most information about the Walthall family attributed to Eugene R. Walthall), Samuel White Walthall was born 29 August 1795 in Prince Edward County, Virginia, and married a cousin, Rebecca Ann Johns (born ca. 1808) in Prince Edward County on 30 May 1822.

The family moved to Hendricks County, Indiana, during the mid-1830s, and on to Lucas County about 1851.

Children of Samuel and Rebecca were (1) John Daniel, who died young in Indiana; (2) Mary Catherine (married William J. Hall and remained in Lucas County); (3) James Madison; (4) Elizabeth Jane Walthall (married a Mr. Ball), (5) Susan Edmund (married Thomas S. Peck), (6) Samuel Henry; (7) Nancy B. (married Joshua P. Chapman); (8) Adeline Rebecca (married Jacob Malone and remained in Lucas County); (9) Fannie D. (married George H. Hardin); (10) Martha Williams (married Charles Evans); and (11) Daniel Baum.

When the 1856 census of Lucas County was taken, Samuel W. Walthall headed Household Nos. 63/66 in Chariton (now Lincoln) Township. His occupation was given as farmer. In addition to his wife, "Rebecka," the household included their children Fanny, Martha and Daniel; their widowed son-in-law, J.P. Chapman, occupation given as land agent, and Cary Chapman, an 18-year-old male who may have been Joshua's brother.

The deaths of Samuel and Rebecca during the same year caused the famly to scatter widely as elder siblings assumed responsibility for the youngsters, then moved west. Lucas County marriage records show that Joshua P. Chapman married as his second wife Mary S. Vance on 10 September 1857, but he was living alone in Chariton during 1860, then seems to have moved on not long thereafter.

The War of 1812 veteran who owned south Chariton

Samuel White Walthall (1795-1858), portrayed by Mike Loew, arrived at Chariton with his family during the fall of 1851 and thus was the earliest Lucas County pioneer whose story was featured during the 18th annual Chariton Cemetery Heritage Tour, "Tales from South Hill," on Sunday, Sept. 17. Samuel also is one of three War of 1812 veterans buried in the cemetery.

The Walthall farm, which included much of Chariton south of Woodlawn Avenue, was visible just across Highway 14 to the east during Mike's presentation. Samuel and his wife, Rebecca, and their daughter, Nancy, were buried originally at Douglass Pioneer Cemetery, about half a mile southeast, but were removed to the Chariton Cemetery --- along with their tombstones --- by descendants during 1919.

Here's the script used by Mike during his presentation:

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My name is Samuel White Walthall and my descendants, hundreds of them by now, expect me to introduce myself as a veteran of the War of 1812 because that’s all they know about me.

Some of my daughters, early in the 20th century, wanted a Revolutionary War ancestor. We had none in the Walthall family, so my 1812 service was a consolation prize. They celebrated it anyway and that is how I’m remembered.

There are three of us 1812 vets here in the Chariton Cemetery. The others are Caleb Proctor, a Massachusetts boy and a sailor by trade until he washed up in Chariton; and Henry Younkin, native to Pennsylvania. A dozen or more are buried elsewhere in Lucas County.

We get together sometimes and talk about this because our war wasn’t widely noted or long remembered by the American people then, or now --- even though the British burned Washington, D.C., during August of 1814 --- and many brave men fought and died. But even so, my term of service was brief, I didn’t encounter a single enemy soldier and there are other things I would like you to know.

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I was born during August of 1795 on a farm in Prince Edward County, Virginia, southwest of Richmond. My parents were John and Catharine Walthall, modestly successful farmers. And yes, they owned slaves --- 10 to a dozen during peak years. And I was a slave-owner, too, as a young man. I’m not proud of this, but it is a fact of my life.

When I was 19, in the days after the British burned the Capitol and the White House, there was considerable fear that Richmond would be attacked, too, and militia companies were formed to defend her. On the 30th of August, 1814, I enlisted in Capt. Josiah Penick’s company of light infantry and for the next six months we were based at Camp Carter and Camp Bottoms Bridge, both just a few miles from Richmond, while on patrol and in training.

The war ended with ratification of the Treaty of Ghent on Christmas Eve, 1814, but news spread slowly. So I remained in service until honorably discharged on Feb. 22, 1815.

After my discharge, I returned to Prince Edward County and the family farm, where I remained for seven years --- until my marriage on May 28, 1822, to Rebecca Ann Johns who, at age 15, was some 13 years my junior. You, I’m sure, would think she was too young for marriage; we thought little of it.

We started our family, in all 11 children born during the next 20 years, in Prince Edward, then moved to Botetourt County, where we lived for three years, and then to Montgomery County, where we lived until 1838.

During that year, we sold out in Virginia --- including land and two slaves to finance our move --- and headed for the far west, Danville in Hendricks County, Indiana, just west of Indianapolis. We lived there until 1850.

But the West still beckoned and during September of 1850, Congress passed a law awarding 80 acres of government land to any enlisted man who had served at least six months during the War of 1812 and who had not previously been entitled to a grant.

I had a choice --- Move west to claim my free 80 acres or sell the warrant at a big discount to someone else. We talked this over as a family. Indiana was becoming crowded, our sons wanted to farm and Iowa was wide open and waiting.

We sold in out in Indiana once our crops were harvested during 1851. Rebecca and I had purchased at discount a military warrant for 160 more acres that its owner could not use himself and we set out for Lucas County, Iowa, in ox-drawn wagons, carrying with us all we owned. The party included all of our married children and our grandchildren.

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Once we arrived at Chariton, Rebecca and I selected as our home farm the 160 acres you can see right now from here, just east and northeast across Highway 14, its western boundary. Our home was a quarter mile east, right on the Mormon Trail. Chariton’s current Woodlawn Avenue was the north boundary.

The land was prairie then with no timber on it, so we also purchased 40 wooded acres along the river down in Benton Township and 40 more acres along the White Breast northwest of town as a source of logs to build our cabins, rails for our fences and wood to burn.

There was hardly anything to Chariton when we arrived, but in 1853, the government land office was moved here from Fairfield and she began to boom. The courthouse was a log building on the east side of the square and there were more log business buildings and residential cabins scattered around the square.

During elections in August of that year, I was elected county recorder and treasurer by a 12-vote margin.

Our youngest son, Daniel, was born at Chariton during February of 1853 and two years later, on the 17th of September 1855, our middle daughter, Nancy died. Nancy had, like her mother, married at age 15, during 1854. Her husband was a land speculator named Joshua P. Chapman. Childbirth claimed Nancy little more than a year later. She was the first of the family to be buried in what you now call Douglass Pioneer Cemetery, near our cabin on the old Mormon Trail.

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Our years at Chariton, otherwise, were good ones. But when the territories of Nebraska and Kansas were created and opened to settlers in 1854, we began to look west again. I was a hardy 60 and Rebecca, in her 40s. Our adult children became increasingly anxious to set out for the West and it seemed likely that we would accompany them.

Then, I was struck down on the 22nd of January 1858 at the age of 62. Eight months later, on the 12th of September, Rebecca was gone, too. And so our dreams ended here. We were buried beside Nancy in the old Mormon Trail cemetery, older children took charge of the younger ones and the family scattered like buckshot.

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As the years passed, our final resting place fell into disrepair. This beautiful cemetery was opened during 1864 and most stopped using what you now call Douglass. Hiram Wilson, lynched for killing Sheriff Gaylord Lyman, was buried there in 1870 and, after that, the county used it as a potter’s field for a time.

But eventually it was abandoned, the grass grew tall and brush began to overtake it. Our children began to worry and decided eventually that our remains should be moved.

That was why our daughter, Fannie Hardin, then a prosperous widow living in Denver, Colorado, made a special trip to Chariton during late September, 1919, to make the arrangements. Dr. John E. Stanton, who then owned this cemetery, was paid to disinter our remains at Douglass on Oct. 15 and rebury them here. Our tombstones also were brought into town and reset.

And so we have reposed here ever since, within sight of the land we settled upon more than 170 years ago, far from Virginia, where our journeys began. (Research and script writing by Frank D. Myers.)

Please note that the War of 1812 flag holder at Samuel Walthall's grave (placed during 1919) belongs there, but the Spanish American War flag holder does not --- but I've not disturbed it. It most likely strayed from the nearby grave of Tom or Walter Black after being knocked loose and carelessly relocated during cemetery maintenance.

Henry Younkin and the War of 1812

The weathered marble obelisk here marks the grave of, among others, Henry Younkin --- the third (known) veteran of the War of 1812 buried in the Chariton Cemetery. I wrote a little yesterday about another, Caleb Proctor, and way back in 2005, about Samuel Walthall. It took a little more digging to come up with Henry, and it is possible that there are more --- but that's a project for another day.

Spring's here, but that's snow you see --- I ran out to the cemetery Monday afternoon to take this. It should all be gone by the end of the week and highs in the 50s are predicted.

I'll come back to Henry in a minute, but wanted to mention three other War of 1812 vets buried elsewhere in the county. These are carried in the online database of the Society of the War of 1812 in the state of Iowa, a state chapter of the national General Society of the War of 1812. You can access the Iowa  database, arranged by county, here.

This is a good old boys group (women need not apply, although there is a counterpart for females). Still, the site is interesting and informative.

It lists three War of 1812 vets in addition to Walthall (and the links here lead to their Find-A-Grave memorial pages): Nathaniel Goltry at Lagrange, Aaron Kendall at Greenville and Isaac Renfro at Brownlee. Now back to Henry.

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Henry Younkin arrived in Chariton rather late in life. His son, Charles H. Younkin, had opened a book and stationery store in Chariton during the mid-1860s, coming here from Cambria in Wayne County, where he had taught school.  During 1867, Charles brought Henry and his two maiden sisters, Caroline and Mary, to Lucas County from Fairfield, where they had lived previously. Henry was by trade a tailor; Caroline and Mary, milliners.

Henry died in Chariton during June of 1877. Obituaries at that time tended to be brief primarily because all type had to be hand set. The Patriot of June 20, 1877, carried this brief notice under "Deaths":

"YOUNKIN --- In Chariton, on Saturday, June 16th, 1877, Mr. Henry Younkin, aged 84 years.

"The deceased was a Virginian by birth, but at an early age removed to Ohio, where he lived until eleven years ago, when he removed to Iowa. His children number ten, six living and four dead."

No mention was made of his service in the obituary, nor have I been able to find any record of it during a quick search. That is not unusual when War of 1812 service is involved.  However, it was widely acknowledged both in Chariton and among family members.

Memorial Day used to be a huge event in Chariton, and on May 28, 1903, The Chariton Herald's front page featured a two-column display from top to bottom honoring "Our War Heroes" and stating that "The following soldiers are buried in the Chariton Cemetery and their graves will be decorated on next Saturday in the order found below." Seventy-eight veteran names then were listed, most from the Civil War.

Among the names listed were those of Henry Younkin and Caleb Proctor, both "War of 1812." Samuel Walthall's remains would not be moved from the pioneer Douglass Cemetery into the Chariton Cemetery until 1916.

A Grand Army of the Republic flag holder remains near Henry's grave --- the only type of flag holder available at that time. It has never been replaced by a War of 1812 holder.

When Henry's daughter, Mary, died during 1922, her obituary (Herald-Patriot of May 25) contained the following sentence, "She came to Chariton with her father, Henry Younkin, a veteran of the war of 1812, and her sister, Caroline, in 1867."

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Family researchers have identified Henry as the third son of Rudolph and Elizabeth (Hockman) Younkin, native Pennsylvanians who apparently passed through Virginia before arriving in Perry County, Ohio, prior to 1830. Henry married Sarah Ann Bartlett in Muskingum County, Ohio, on Feb. 15, 1821, and all 10 of their children were born there. Sarah died at Zanesville during August, 1846, and Henry and all but one of his surviving children still were living in Muskingum County when the 1850 federal census was taken.

It seems likely that Henry served in a Virginia militia unit during the War of 1812, although Ohio is a possibility. Further research might turn up some record of this.

Of the six Younkin children who lived to become adults, Caroline (born ca. 1824) apparently was the eldest. She worked with her sister, Mary, as a milliner in Chariton until her death during 1891 and was buried near her father in the Chariton Cemetery. She did not marry.

Robert, born Feb. 17, 1826, was the second child. According to his obituary, "for a number of years he worked with a government surveying corps and traveled over a large portion of the United States." He joined his family in Chariton soon after 1870, when in his early 40s, perhaps because of failing eyesight. He soon became entirely blind and spent the remainder of his years in Chariton, dying during March of 1896. He is buried elsewhere in the Chariton Cemetery with his sister, Mary. Robert did not marry.

Elizabeth, born ca. 1832, was the third child and I've not tracked her down. I believe she married and moved to Fairfield in Jefferson County, but need to look into that a little farther.

The fourth child was Hester Ann, born during 1835. She married Sanford M. Boling on Jan. 17, 1865, in Fairfield not long after he returned from Civil War service. Sanford was a Fairfield businessman and veteran of the Iowa Senate when he died at Fairfield on Oct. 18, 1893, just short of 60. Hester brought his body to the Chariton Cemetery for burial, then moved here herself with their daughter, Bess. Hester died during 1927 and Bess (Milliken), during 1936. Both are buried with Sanford.

Charles, born June 22, 1836, married three times --- first to Matilda Miskimins (died at Chariton 1868), then to Emily Miskimins (died at Chariton 1870) and finally to Nancy Ann Newcomer, who outlived him. Charles eventually left Chariton and moved to Ottumwa, where he was operating a cigar store late in life. He died Jan. 1, 1923, and is buried in the Ottumwa Cemetery.

Mary, born June 22, 1839, was the youngest of the Younkin children. She worked as a milliner in Chariton, making her home until death with her sister, Hester Boling. Mary died May 19, 1922, and was buried near her brother, Robert, in the Chariton Cemetery.

Holding the flag(s) high

U.S. flags were flying Saturday evening in the Chariton Cemetery at the graves of my great-uncle, Jeremiah Miller, in a World War I holder, and immediately to the north, in a similar Korean War holder, at the grave of his son, Warren.

Memorial Day at any Iowa cemetery is loaded with symbolism, bright flags held erect at veteran gravesites in holders unique to the war or the era in which he or she served. In the Chariton Cemetery and several others nearby, the mix is enriched by distinctive Chariton Volunteer Fire Department flags in considerably more elaborate holders bearing distinctive red flags with Old Betsy emblazoned upon them. Every deceased veteran of the fire department back to the beginning is honored each year in that way in Chariton, at Oxford, Waynick and elsewhere.

Lt. George W. Alexander's gravesite is a perfect storm of symbolism. Alexander, attorney and popular Chariton mayor, died during 1916. The tombstone with pointed top and Southern Cross of Honor identify him as a Confederate veteran (Co. 3, 31st Tennessee Infantry), but the flag holder is Grand Army of the Republic (Union) and the flag, U.S. The Chariton Volunteer Fire Department holder and flag tell us that he was a veteran of that organization, too. Alexander is buried on the lot of his friend and colleague, Napoleon B. Branner, also a Confederate veteran. You'll find more about Alexander here.

Here's a closeup of the distinctive CVFD holder on the grave of a cousin, Wilberforce Coles, also a Civil War veteran. In some cases, graves otherwise unmarked are identified by their fire department holders, each of which names the honoree. A contemporary adaption of this holder still is used by firefighters.

And there once were more flags, all in distinctive holders, used by members of various fraternal and patriotic orders to memorialize once yearly their former members. Only the Fraternal Order of Eagles maintains that tradition now, but the holders of long-vanished organizations continue to dot the cemetery.

This is not a comprehensive collection of flag holders. I stopped at the cemetery Saturday evening after the trip out to Salem, but ran out of light before I ran out of holders.

Of all the lodges that once flourished in Chariton, only the Fraternal Order of Eagles continues the tradition of marking members' graves with distinctive flags for Memorial Day.

The prettiest flag holders in the cemetery are located at the graves of Rebekahs, members of the I.O.O.F. auxiliary organization. The faded pink rose was attached several years ago by a lovely lady from rural Humeston, whose task it was to track down and so decorate the graves of all Rebekahs in Lucas and Wayne counties. Sadly, she now has died --- and there will be no more roses once this one is gone.

There are at least three varieties of flag holders for I.O.O.F. members themselves, but this is the most elaborate. There seems to be no one left, however, to fill the holders.

The redoubtable Daughters of the American Revolution once was a force to be reckoned with in Chariton --- but no more. Their flag holders remain empty. This is one of two located on adjoining graves of Dungan sisters.

The Womens Relief Corps, an auxiliary of the Grand Army of the Republic, was created in 1883 specifically to to perpetuate the memory of the G.A.R.

This is Samuel Walthall's War of 1812 flag holder, but the hole intended to support a flag is far too small to support a contemporary flag. Samuel, who died during 1858, was buried first in the Douglass Cemetery, but moved into Chariton with his wife and a daughter during 1919, when this holder was acquired. You can read more about Walthall here.For some reason, the operable flag holder located on Walthall's grave is for a Spanish-American War veteran. I suspect it was moved by mistake from the nearby grave of an actual veteran of that war, but need to check this out.

I'm sure there are other flag holders at the cemetery, so keep your eyes open if you're wandering around out there this weekend.

Whoops. I forgot the Knights of Pythias. We used to have lots of knights --- and their ladies, the Pythian Sisters. Now, there are no more.

Fourteen War of 1812 veterans in no time flat ...

I bragged somewhere the other day that I'd be able to come up with 12 War of 1812 veterans buried in Lucas County in no time flat, then --- as rarely is the case --- was able to live up to and exceed the brag, in no time flat.

Known War of 1812 veterans are a little scarce here for a couple of reason, but primarily because these men were born in the late 18th century and already were in their 50s and less inclined to resettle by the time Lucas County opened to EuroAmerican pioneers in 1846.

In addition, many served in state militias, so records are scattered; some were brought west as old men by their families, died soon and then were largely forgotten; others lived in Lucas County for a time, then moved on west.

I was counting on my old friend Joel Lowder being buried in an unmarked grave at Bethel Cemetery, for example --- his son, Nelson, was the first to be buried there. Unfortunately, for my purposes, he turns up in Harrison County, age 81, during 1872 --- and so most likely is buried in an unmarked grave there. So he got away.

Nine of the veterans, four of whom I've already written about, turned up when we untangled old state veteran graves registration records at the genealogical society library (they had been alphabetized after being originally categorized, so the few 1812 veterans had become almost invisible among hundreds of Civil War veterans; we found an early set of records categorized by war). 

So here are the nine on record for the county: Nathaniel Goltry, Lagrange Cemetery; Joseph Howard, Newbern Cemetery; Aaron Kendall, Greenville Cemetery; Caleb Proctor, Chariton Cemetery; Jacob M. Taylor and Benjamin Tracy, Goshen Cemetery; William Tilford, Fletcher Cemetery; and Samuel Walthall and Henry Younkin, Chariton Cemetery.

I already knew that Isaac Renfro, buried in Brownlee Cemetery, also was a War of 1812 veteran and located Daniel Musselman at Mount Zion a couple of years ago. I confirmed service of the other three by locating the military bounty land warrants (for War of 1812 service) available via the federal Bureau of Land Management that they used to buy Lucas County land --- Joseph Mitchell, Chariton Cemetery; James Irons, Strong Cemetery; and John May, also in Greenville Cemetery.

That's Joseph Mitchell's tombstone (above) in the Chariton Cemetery. He died at age 67 on Nov. 14, 1861, after arriving at Chariton with his family during 1852 and using a military land warrant to claim 40 acres at the northwest corner of town. I'll have more to say about Joseph and his family another time, but here's the warrant he used. Note that it identifies him as a private in Capt. John Haden's company of Kentucky Mounted Volunteers.

I'm confident that there are other War of 1812 veterans scattered in Lucas County's cemeteries, but digging them out (figuratively speaking, of course) will take a while.

The hard-luck Halls and their obituaries

Find a Grave photos by Doris Christensen

Elizabeth Jane "Jennie" Hall was only 16 when she died in Chariton three days after Christmas, on Dec. 28, 1867, most likely of tuberculosis. She has the dubious distinction of being the subject of the first obituary of any length that appears in surviving issues of Chariton newspapers. The Patriot had been published since 1857, but early editions have vanished. The Democrat was in its early months when Jennie's death occurred.

There were various reasons for brevity in all newspapers of that era --- most deaths, when noted at all, merited only a sentence or two unless the deceased was a person of considerable consequence. One was the fact all type had to be hand-set, letter by letter and space by space, a time-consuming process. Among the others --- editor John V. Faith preferred to fill his local columns with inch after inch of editorializing rather than news.

Jennie's obituary, which arrived in The Democrat office --- then housed in rented office space in the courthouse --- in the form of a letter signed "E.M.C.," perhaps the family's pastor, was not published until Feb. 1, 1868, as follows:

OBITUARY

Chariton, Iowa, Jan. 29, 1868

Editor, Chariton Democrat --- Our friends are all aware, doubtless, of the death of the late Miss Jennie Hall, of this place, which occurred December 28th, 1867. It is but proper to say, that she was a young lady of bright intellect; of good education, and refinement. We must all join in saying that Chariton has lost one of its brightest flowers.

The grim monster, death, has been among us, and taken one of the fairest from our midst. Among her circle of friends and associates she was a shining star, by her innocent and happy merriment. Among the sick, she was an angel of mercy. She was kind and gentle, and there was none but what hoped that she might long be spared to render happy and joyful the home she adorned, and the circle to which she was so deeply attached. She has gone, but her many virtues will live, and follow after her.

She was too sensitive a flower for the rude winters of time. She bore her sickness and long suffering with the fortitude of a christian and died happy and triumphant in the Lord. What a comfort and consolation for a loving mother, to know that her darling daughter is wearing a crown of glory, in her eternal home, where dwelleth the upright in heart. And when the clouds shall have rolled and passed away, and the mist cleared from our eyes, shall we not behold her beautiful as she was on earth, with a golden wreath on her pure brow. And may the guardian angel that watched over, protected and kept her pure on earth, comfort and console her father, mother, brothers and sisters until their Father shall call them hence to meet their loved one. Well may we say:

"Dearest sister, thou hast left us,

Here thy loss we deeply feel;

But 'tis  God that has bereft us,

He can all our sorrows heal.

"Peaceful be thy silent slumbers,

Peaceful in the grave so low;

Thou no more shalt join our numbers,

Thou no more our songs shall know."

The obituary lacks biographical information, but Jennie was young and so there was little of that to begin with. She born April 2, 1851, on a farm near Chariton, the first child of William J. and Mary Catherine (Walthall) Hall born in Iowa after the couple and their older children had moved here from Indiana during 1850.

Nor does the obituary tell us that her death occurred during a period of great sadness for the family. A younger sister, Ida May, had died on Aug. 1, 1867, at the age of 7; an older brother, William F., was seriously ill and would died on Aug. 27, 1868, at the age of 22.

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When Jennie died, her father was considered to be an influential man. He had been elected county sheriff in 1853 and served as town marshal for a number of years thereafter, engaging in a variety of businesses as well. When the 1860 census was taken, he owned real estate valued at $6,000 and personal property, at $1,000, not huge amounts but reflecting relative affluence for the time.

But at some point, things began to go badly wrong --- and it's tempting to wonder if grief might have had something to do with his alcoholism and related difficulties. He survived his children by many years, until age 72, but by that time was was broke and estranged from his wife and their children.

His death was reported in The Chariton Herald of July 4, 1895, as follows:

W. J. Hall, commonly known as Jack, died Sunday morning at 5:15 o'clock after a lingering illness, interment taking place the same afternoon at 2 o'clock from the Kelly house, under the direction of Seth Lewis, overseer of the poor, assisted by Rev. A. Jacobs. Deceased was an early settler in Lucas county, and in 1853 was elected sheriff of the county, later serving in other public capacities. He was raised and married in Indiana. He was a queer character in the community and probably abused himself more than anyone else. He was the father of four or five bright children who have for some years lived apart from their father, in the far west. Rev. Jacobs will preach his funeral sermon at the Baptist church next Sunday evening.

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Mary Catharine Hall was living in Denver, Colorado, when William died as were several of her surviving children --- Margaret, Byron and Joshua. Another son, James, continued to live near Chariton. She died in Denver at the age of 86 on March 11, 1913, and her remains were returned to Chariton for burial.

Chariton Cemetery Heritage Tour only a week away

We're less than a week away now from the 18th annual Chariton Cemetery Heritage Tour, "Tales from South Hill," scheduled for 4 p.m. next Sunday in the southeast hilltop section of the cemetery.

Here's hoping we have weather to match that of  the perfect late summer (or early autumn) day we enjoyed yesterday when the brave volunteers who will portray our five subjects gathered in late afternoon on the front porch of the shelter to rehearse.

They are (from left) Mike Loew (portraying Samuel White Walthall, a War of 1812 veteran), Dave Threlkeld (portraying his great-great-grandfather, Isaac Newton Threlkeld), Trish McKinley (portraying Isabelle Greer Redlingshafer, my great-great grandmother), Deb Black (portraying Mabel Ann Black who also will tell the stories of her two brothers) and Willy Black (portraying Lewis Bonnett, one of Lucas County's most prominent late 19th century livestock producers).

The tour is open to the public without charge. Seating will be provided in the presentation area, but you're welcome to bring your own.

The annual tour is a project of the Chariton Historic Preservation Commission. The park-like cemetery itself, established in 1864 to replace two earlier graveyards, is listed as the Chariton Cemetery Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places.

Chariton Cemetery Heritage Tour set for Sept. 18

The annual Chariton Cemetery Heritage Tour, sponsored by the Chariton Historic Preservation Commission, is less than a month away. Hard to believe time moves this fast!

This year's tour, focused on what we've declared to be "South Hill" --- atop the hill in the southeast corner of the cemetery --- will begin at 4  p.m. on Sunday, Sept. 18, in that area of the cemetery.

Five volunteers will portray five figures from Lucas County's past whose remains are buried there --- Mabel Ann Black, a nurse, who will tell her own story and that of her two brothers, Tom and Walter, two of the county's four Spanish American War losses; Lewis Bonnett, among the most  prominent of our early farmers; Isabelle Greer Redlingshafer, a Benton Township pioneer; Isaac N. Threlkeld, a Lincoln Township pioneer; and Samuel White Walthall (left), one of three War of  1812 veterans buried in the cemetery.

Admission is free, but free-will donations to support Preservation Commission projects will be accepted. Now go mark this date on your calendar!

 

How many War of 1812 veterans would it take?

Conversation in the genealogy room turned to War of 1812 veterans the other day and, before it started to snow, I hurried out to the cemetery to take a picture of Caleb Proctor's War of 1812 tombstone. There are at least two War of 1812 vets out there. You can find out more about another one, Samuel Walthall, here.

The problem is, we really don't know how many War of 1812 veterans there are in Lucas County --- mostly because they don't get no respect, as they say, so no one's ever bothered to find out.

Back in the day, when Daughters of the American Revolution sailed stately through the land, the premium was on, as might be expected, Revolutionary War ancestors. Revolutionary bones always have been highly prized in Iowa, which didn't become a state until 70 years after that war,

No doubt there was considerable hand-wringing within Chariton's Old Thirteen Chapter, D.A.R., when Monroe County snapped up William Crockett, the old revolutionary who could have been ours, dug up bones south of Albia that allegedly were his and planted them under a big boulder in that city's Oak View Cemetery.

I'm trying to figure now how many War of 1812 veterans one of those fortunate counties that has two or three would take in trade for a set of more exalted patriotic bones. In the mean time, we'll just have to do with who we've got.

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We can prove William Crockett was here --- and Monroe County can't --- because of the 1850 census. In the enumeration of what now would be called the Bethel neighborhood --- out east of Chariton and north of Russell --- William Crockett, age 97, born in Virginia, was on the 14th of December, 1850, living right next door to Cedar Township's first settler, William McDermott. Others in the Crockett household were another William Crockett, this one age 40 and born in Kentucky; Susannah Crockett, age 50, born in Kentucky, too; and Nancy Crockett, age 27, born in Indiana.

Crockett kinfolk have twisted themselves into all sorts of odd shapes over the years trying to explain how these four Crocketts were related. Personally, I think William Jr. and Susannah were siblings, rather than husband and wife, both children of William Sr. Who Nancy was I can't say, but do point a shaming finger toward those who have added 10 years to her age to make her fit in more conveniently as another daughter of the old man.

Somehow or another --- or so we have been told --- what was left of the senior William ended up in Monroe County --- he either was taken there to die or was removed from Lucas County feet-first, then snatched from his original resting place once it was located by those wiley Albia Daughters in the 1920s. William Jr., Susannah and Nancy had moved on from Lucas to Decatur county by 1856.

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Considerably more is known about Caleb Proctor. He was born Aug. 4, 1795, in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, according to his obituary, and did indeed serve as a private in Capt. William Nye's company of Fairhaven infantry "in defence of our seacoast" during the summer of 1814 at New Bedford. He would have been 19 at the time. Both his obituary and official records show that late in life, when pensions were granted, he received one for disabilities incurred during that service.

By trade, Caleb was a mariner. According to his obituary, he "followed a sea-faring life twenty-five years, commanding a vessel most of the time." During his last years (1857-1884) in Chariton, he always was known as "Capt. Proctor."

On Aug. 24, 1834, when he was nearly 40, Caleb married Myra Sampson, 25, at Middleborough, Mass. They became the parents of four daughters, Eliza S., Susannah S., Abby K., and Myra S., before moving during 1849 to Berea, Ohio, now a western suburb of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County. They were charter members there of First Congregational Church. Daughter Myra died at Berea at age 4 on Aug. 31, 1849, and is buried in Adams Street Cemetery.

During 1857, Caleb and Myra along with Abby accompanied their daughter and son-in-law, Susannah and Isaac Kneeland, west to Chariton. Kneeland, a physician, dispatched two of the Proctor daughters who now would be considered shockingly young in his quest for heirs.

Isaac, age 32, married Eliza S. Proctor, then 15, on Oct. 12, 1851, in Cuyahoga County. She died at Berea on Aug. 17, 1852, of complications following the birth of a daughter, who survived. Almost immediately, Isaac married the second Proctor daughter, Susannah, also 15. She produced three surviving sons before dying in Chariton after giving birth to twin daughters during December of 1862.

A year later, on Oct. 7, 1863, Isaac married a 24-year-old widow, Eleanor M. (Brooks) Crawford, and by her had four additional children. After practicing medicine in Chariton for about 20 years, the Kneelands moved to Burr Oak, Kansas, where he died during 1886. Eleanor outlived him by 30 years, dying during 1917 in Oregon. The bodies of both Isaac and Eleanor were returned to Chariton for burial.

The Proctors' youngest surviving daughter, Abby Kingman Proctor, married Warren S. Dungan at Chariton on April 3, 1859. Dungan, an attorney, became one of Chariton's most prominent citizens, serving both in the state Legislature and as lieutenant governor.

Abby gave birth to seven children, but became critically ill when about 40 and died two years later, of "paralysis" and pneumonia, on Sept. 21, 1881.

Having outlived his children, Caleb Proctor died at Chariton on Jan. 22, 1884, age 89. He was, according to his obituary, "held in universal respect for the sterling integrity of his character, that he was a just and honest man is his highest and most eloquent eulogy."

Myra Proctor outlived her husband by several years before dying, also in Chariton, on Oct. 12, 1892, age 83.

Tombstone Iconography: Caleb Proctor's 1812 marker

At least a dozen veterans of the War of 1812 are buried in Lucas County, but the graves of only two --- Caleb Proctor in the Chariton Cemetery and Aaron M. Kendall at Greenville --- are marked with stones provided by the federal government. Other War of 1812 veterans buried in the Chariton Cemetery --- with civilian markers --- include Henry Younkin and Samuel Walthall.

The government got into the tombstone business after the Civil War when faced with the need to mark hundreds of thousands of graves in new national cemeteries. It soon became apparent that wood wouldn't do in the long run and the design for what still is known as the Civil War type --- upright, slightly curved top, white marble with a recessed panel where information is inscribed in raised lettering --- was adopted in 1873.

The use of this type of tombstone also was authorized to mark the previously unmarked graves of other veterans --- of the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, Mexican War and Indian campaigns. It wasn't thought necessary to inscribe "Civil War" on the stones that marked the graves of  Union veterans, but abbreviations noting the conflict were added to the others. 

The size of these stones was increased slightly during 1903 and, during 1906, a similar design with pointed top was authorized for Confederate veterans. The "Civil War" style also had been adopted for veterans of the Spanish American War.

After World War I, the "general" type of marker still in use today was adopted. Although similar, the recessed panel and raised lettering were eliminated, the amount of information about the deceased inscribed on the stones increased and symbols of faith were authorized for those who wished them.

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There's a footnote to Mr. Proctor's tombstone --- its placement bent rules in place at the time. These stones were intended to mark only previously unmarked graves, not to supplement tombstones already in place. But Caleb and his wife, Myra, already had a substantial marker when this one was erected and, although not visible here, his small white marble civilian headstone is immediately behind the military stone.

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Mr. Proctor was born Aug. 4, 1795, in Fairhaven, Massachusetts, according to his obituary, and served as a private in Capt. William Nye's company of Fairhaven infantry "in defence of our seacoast" during the summer of 1814 at New Bedford. He would have been 19 at the time. Both his obituary and official records show that late in life, when pensions were granted, he received one for disabilities incurred during that service.

By trade, Caleb was a mariner. According to his obituary, he "followed a sea-faring life twenty-five years, commanding a vessel most of the time." During his last years (1857-1884) in Chariton, he always was known as "Capt. Proctor."

On Aug. 24, 1834, when he was nearly 40, Caleb married Myra Sampson, 25, at Middleborough, Mass. They became the parents of four daughters, Eliza S., Susannah S., Abby K., and Myra S., before moving during 1849 to Berea, Ohio, now a western suburb of Cleveland, Cuyahoga County. They were charter members there of First Congregational Church. Daughter Myra died at Berea at age 4 on Aug. 31, 1849, and is buried in Adams Street Cemetery.

During 1857, Caleb and Myra along with Abby accompanied their daughter and son-in-law, Susannah and Isaac Kneeland, west to Chariton. Kneeland, a physician, dispatched in his quest for heirs two of the Proctor daughters who now would be considered shockingly young..

Isaac, age 32, married Eliza S. Proctor, then 15, on Oct. 12, 1851, in Cuyahoga County. She died at Berea on Aug. 17, 1852, of complications following the birth of a daughter, who survived. Almost immediately, Isaac married the second Proctor daughter, Susannah, also 15. She produced three surviving sons before dying in Chariton after giving birth to twin daughters during December of 1862.

A year later, on Oct. 7, 1863, Isaac married a 24-year-old widow, Eleanor M. (Brooks) Crawford, and by her had four additional children. After practicing medicine in Chariton for about 20 years, the Kneelands moved to Burr Oak, Kansas, where he died during 1886. Eleanor outlived him by 30 years, dying during 1917 in Oregon. The bodies of both Isaac and Eleanor were returned to Chariton for burial.

The Proctors' youngest surviving daughter, Abby Kingman Proctor, married Warren S. Dungan at Chariton on April 3, 1859. Dungan, an attorney, became one of Chariton's most prominent citizens, serving both in the state Legislature and as lieutenant governor.

Abby gave birth to seven children, but became critically ill when about 40 and died two years later, of "paralysis" and pneumonia, on Sept. 21, 1881.

Having outlived his children, Caleb Proctor died at Chariton on Jan. 22, 1884, age 89. He was, according to his obituary, "held in universal respect for the sterling integrity of his character, that he was a just and honest man is his highest and most eloquent eulogy."

Myra Proctor outlived her husband by several years before dying, also in Chariton, on Oct. 12, 1892, age 83.

The genealogy of Mary C. Hall's legendary old house

The old house at the intersection of South Main Street and Linden Avenue --- a block south of the southwest corner of the square --- was a worn out but respected landmark of Chariton's earliest days when it was taken apart and recycled during October of 1923.

Recycled because much of the lumber used to build it back in the 1850s was walnut, harvested and milled along Little Whitebreast Creek northeast of town. Recycled, too, because there was less waste 120 years ago than now.

But the young men who had organized Carl L. Caviness American Legion Post 102 during 1919 had purchased the building in 1920, intending to use it as temporary headquarters and then demolish it so that a new legion hall could be built on the lot.

By 1923, Chariton architect William L. Perkins had prepared plans for the new building and the decision was made to clear the lot that fall so construction could begin in 1924. Fund-raising was completed during the summer of 1924, excavation began in the early fall and during October, a year after the lot had been cleared, the cornerstone was laid for the new post home.

When the new building was finished, furnished and dedicated during 1925, this image of the old house --- framed in walnut lumber reclaimed from the structure --- was installed as a remembrance. The "new" Legion Hall remains in use nearly a century later, as Veterans Day approaches in the fall of 2022, but the old photograph now hangs in the library of the Lucas County Historical Society Museum.

And I was happy the other day to stumble across a report in The Herald-Patriot of Oct. 4, 1923, that told as much of the old house's history as could be discovered at the time. So here's the text of that article, published under the headline, "Post Home Was an Old Landmark." I'll have more to say another time about Mary C. Hall, owner of the building during almost 30 of its best remembered years.

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The home of the Carl L. Caviness Post, American Legion, an early landmark in Lucas County, is this week being torn down. With it go the associations of many years, in fact the activities which centered around this building date back to the fifties. The old structure is to be removed to make room for a new, modern Legion Hall. It has weathered the storms and served well its purpose. It has lived long, yet has not become old in the sense of usefulness. Now it must give up its place.

The early history of this house is vague. In fact, considerable search and inquiry fail to bring to light the year of its erection. While different and conflicting statements have been made as to the date of construction, it is known that the house was built before 1860. It has been said by some that a structure had its place on this lot as early as 1846. However, this is not borne out by records, which show that no entry was made on this or any land in the vicinity nor was there any activity here until the late forties. The tract in which this particular lot, lot one in block 18, original town of Chariton, is situated was not entered until 1852. It is believed that Dr. Wyatt Waynick in the early fifties erected the building which has since occupied the corner. the lumber for the building was native in Lucas county and came from the farm of J. C. Maloney on Little Whitebreast Creek in English township. The weather boarding in this building, it has been found, is most all of walnut. Some white pine was obtained for rafters, local builders say.

According to records, this lot was granted by the County Judge of Lucas County on December 6, 1852, to Elijah K. Robinson. In 1854, it was granted by Mr. Robinson to Joseph Headly. In the same year, Wm. McDermott came into possession of the land. In 1855 the lot was transferred to Beverly Searcy. In that same year, the title was given to Jacob Wiant. Again in the late fall of that year another transaction took place and the lot passed once more into the possession of Joseph Headly who on the same day give deed for this description to Alcana Malone. This was a year in which land changed hands rapidly, and within another month, in this same year, 1855, the title was given to Joshua P. Chapman.

In 1856, the land was granted to Samuel W. Walthall. In 1860, Daniel Shamburg became owner. It passed from him in 1863 to Mary C. Hall. The title was held by Mrs. Hall for nearly 28 years, or until July 13, 1891, when the owner became Isaac M. Funk. On April 1, 1914, Mr. Funk and wife sold the lot to J.E. Holmberg. Up to this time the lot had been transferred each time in its original length of 165 feet. No divisions or separations had been made by its owners.

On January 5, 1918, J. E. Holmberg and wife sold the west seventy feet to Henry Hand. The east ninety-five feet were sold on December 16, 1920, to Carl L. Caviness Post No. 2, American Legion, Department of  Iowa. The local Legion still holds the corner site. The west seventy feet of the original lot has since passed into the hands of C.H.  and E.E. Webb.

Thus the story of book entries is brought from nearly three-fourths of a century past to date. It is believed that several court records figure in the history of the land, although these are not indicated on the records from which the above figures were taken. Only the dates which marked certain changes in the passing years, however, are cited on the books. Nothing is told in these records of traditions, memories and accounts which attach in the minds of older residents to this place on the corner of Main street and Linden avenue. The house when erected became known throughout the country as a place of shelter for the traveler and as a boarding house in the later years --- yet the object of appreciation by now older citizens who regularly patronized the table of Mrs. Hall.

It is said that this house of hewed lumber was a regular boarding place for juries. In the sixties and seventies, there were but one or two other eating houses here. In fact, the only other place which catered to the traveler or Lucas county trader was a combined saloon and restaurant which according to the information flourished for some years. On some weekend days, it is told, 40 or 50 Lucas County families would gather to eat at the noon meal time at the corner home.

The  possession was taken of the home by the local  Legion post on Armistice day, 1920. All energies of the organization on this day were turned to the work of repairing and furnishing the home of future meetings and activities. The day, a memorable one and the second anniversary of an event in which Legion men find not a little importance, was therefore spent in Chariton not in marching in parades but in handling hammers, saws and paint brushes for a general renovation of the place. Vast improvements were wrought in general appearance throughout the interior and the building was brought to the state of comfortable quarters. This, however, was temporary.

The Chariton organization of the Woman's Relief Corps, the Women's Christian Temperance Union and the American Red Cross at the invitation of the post all made use of the home during the several years that the headquarters were here established.

The old structure has been sold by the post to local parties who will make use of all fit materials. Work is now under way on the tearing down of the building.

The 140th anniversary of Memorial Day in Chariton

Had a Memorial Day program been held in Chariton this year --- and plans were cancelled because of the COVID-19 situation --- it would have been the 140th anniversary event in a string that stretches back to the first, held on a rainy Saturday, May 29, 1880.

Among the 14 Union veteran graves that were decorated that year in the Chariton Cemetery was that of Austin Wayland (left), who had died on April 10, 1877, at the age of 35. His tombstone also serves as a memorial to his twin brother, Elijah, who died in combat at Vicksburg on July 1, 1863, and is buried with the unknowns in what now is Vicksburg National Cemetery.

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Memorial Day had originated as Decoration Day 12 years earlier, during 1868, when the newly organized Grand Army of the Republic's commander, General John A. Logan, declared May 30 a day to decorate the graves of fallen Union soldiers with flowers. Various groups had been decorating graves in various places --- including the former Confederate States --- at various times during the years immediately after the war. But this formalized the observance in the North.

It's believed May 30 was selected as the date because it was thought the most flowers would be in bloom then --- the date itself had no significance. The term "Memorial Day" was used first, so far as anyone can determine, in 1882. But it still was Decoration Day in many places until after World War II. Those flag holders and miniature flags came along later, too. The original focus was on flowers.

From the beginning, it became customary to decorate the graves of all Union veterans, in part because the remains of most who had died in service were not buried near their homes. Instead, the remains had been gathered from scattered battlefields and temporary cemeteries and re-interred in national cemeteries throughout the war zone. Additionally, most of the veterans buried near their homes by 1868 had died of complications of diseases or wounds related to their service.

A century later, during 1968, congress moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May in order to create a three-day weekend.

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Chariton was not on the cutting edge of Decoration Day observances --- a fact noted by several editors of The Patriot as the 1870s advanced. 

"Next Friday, May 30th, is Decoration Day. We have not heard of any arrangements being made to honor the soldier dead buried at Chariton. Great preparations are being made everywhere else," The Patriot editor noted in his edition of May 28, 1872.

Two years later, on May 27, 1874, the lament in The Patriot was similar: "Next Saturday, May 30th, is the day set apart for strewing or decorating with flowers the graves of soldiers who died in the war of the rebellion. Neighboring towns have made the necessary preparations for a suitable observance. Will Chariton permit the day to pass with observing it?"

The answer was, "Yes."

The next year, The Patriot editor devoted several inches of type to a lengthy complaint, commencing: "Have we no soldiers buried in our cemetery? If so, would it not be well to honor their memories by scattering a few flowers on their graves the 30th inst.? Every other town almost, observes Decoration Day with some appropriate ceremony and by adorning the graves of Union soldiers with a few flowers. Why not Chariton?"

Why not, indeed.

The answer, it would seem, was the absence of an organization willing to take on the job. That gap was not filled until Oct. 18, 1879, when Daniel Iseminger Post No. 18, Grand Army of the Republic, was organized. Chariton observed Decoration Day for the first time the following May as a result.

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Chariton's first Decoration Day observance was scheduled for Saturday, May 29, 1880 --- most likely to avoid conflicts with church services on the Sabbath, May 30.

The skies opened and rain poured down on the scheduled date, however. "Saturday was the gloomiest day of the year, and all thoughts of observing Decoration Day were wholly abandoned by the largest proportion of our citizens," The Leader of June 5 reported.

"But late Sunday morning a few started out notifying others to meet and form in procession, which resulted in a fine display and a creditable attendance."

The Patriot of June 2 attributed the success of the observance to D.M. Galloway, "who at an early hour on Sunday morning took the initiatory steps for carrying out the program. Mr. Galloway also went to the cemetery east of town (Douglass Pioneer) and decorated two graves."

"The flowers for the decoration were mostly furnished through the efforts of Mr. Galloway, who with the assistance of a few comrades tended largely to make the decoration a success," The Patriot added.

The procession from town square to the cemetery "was headed by the Consolidated Band, followed by the Knights of Pythias in uniform, Fire Companies, Grand Army of the Republic and citizens. Eloquent addresses were delivered at the cemetery by Col. Dungan and J.C. Mitchell."

According to The Leader, 14 Chariton Cemetery graves were decorated and "the whole was under the direction of Capt. McCormick and J.H. McFarland."

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Oliver Coffman's grave would have been one of the two decorated by Galloway at Douglass Cemetery. His tombstone has survived. We don't know who the other might have been, although a War of 1812 veteran, Samuel W. Walthall, had been buried there after his death on Jan. 22, 1858, and it's possible honors were extended to him (his remains were removed to the Chariton Cemetery in 1919).

Two years later, a list of the 15 graves decorated during 1882 in the Chariton Cemetery --- and by then Decoration Day observances were well established --- was published in The Patriot so we can be fairly sure that 14 of these were the first to be decorated as Chariton began, somewhat belatedly, to observe Decoration Day:

Austin Wayland, Co. E, 34th Iowa Infantry

William S. Henry, Co. L, 4th Indiana Cavalry

William F. Hall, Co. K, 34th Iowa Infantry

Lieut. Frank Nolan, Co. E, 34th Iowa Infantry

Major Joseph R. Jay, surgeon, U.S.A.

Major Henry W. Jay, surgeon, 34th Iowa Infantry

Sergeant John S. Birkhead, Co. H, 1st Iowa Cavalry

Volney D. Douglass, Co. F, 17th Iowa Infantry

John H. Stanley, Co. C, 13th Iowa Infantry

John Scott, Co. F, 3rd Iowa Cavalry

Noah N. Larimer, Co. B, 6th Iowa Infantry

Frank Savacool, Co. K, 46th Iowa Infantry

James Mitchell, Co. F, 6th Iowa Infantry

Harry K. Morgan, Co. E, 19th Iowa Infantry

David T. Mitchell, Co. F, 17th Iowa Infantry.