Dark Souvenirs of the Civil War

Members of the 19th Illinois Regiment, from The Nineteenth Illinois: a Memoir of a Regiment of Volunteer Infantry Famous in the Civil War, James Henry, 1912. At least eight Lake County men enlisted in this regiment.

A charged object or "dark souvenir" is an object collected to share as a witness to historic events such as a natural disaster or military battle. The term “charged object” is used by museums to denote artifacts “charged” or permeated with the energy of an event. These Victorian terms may sound odd to the modern ear, but still represent the sentiment of how people collected and preserved what affected them.

The bullet-ridden battle flags of the 96th Illinois Infantry as photographed for the History of the 96th Illinois Regiment, 1887. The regiment consisted of four companies from Lake County and six companies from Jo Daviess County, IL. 

Battle flags, also known as the colors of a regiment, were one of the most common objects collected during the Civil War. By preserving and commemorating flags, charged with the energy of battle, the veterans of the regiment were able to honor the memory of their bravery and of their dead comrades. 

The Dunn Museum has over two dozen charged objects in its permanent collections of which at least sixteen pertain to the American Civil War. In caring for these items, the museum takes into consideration age, condition, and provenance.

 

Provenance is particularly important, since without the object’s history we would not know its’ connection to an event or person. The Dunn Museum’s Civil War relics represent conflict, loss, suffering and death, and therefore need special consideration when exhibited. Collections staff take into account how to represent souvenirs of war to give proper context and respect for those involved.

Tree stump from Kelly Farm (cannonball fragment not shown), Battle of Chickamauga, Sept 18-20, 1863. A paper note identifying the object is attached to the front right of the stump and was likely placed there after it was collected from the historic battle site. Dunn Museum, 2006.0.6 (1958).

Battlefields are rife with the memory of loss and victory. One object in the Museum’s collections is a tree stump taken from the Kelly Farm on the site of the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia (September 18–20, 1863). The Battle of Chickamauga was especially significant to Lake County, since so many of its enlisted men fought there. 

George Smith of Millburn with the 96th Illinois, wrote to his sister Susie after surviving the battle: "When I get to thinking about it I will choke and tears of gratitude come into my eyes to think that one of us after feeling such a storm of lead and Iron should have escaped, but such is the chances of every battle." 

Chickamauga was the most substantial Union defeat in the Western Theater of the war, and had the second highest number of casualties of the war. At Chickamauga, the 96th Illinois suffered the third highest percentage of losses at 54 percent killed, wounded, or missing. The most casualties in a single battle of the war were sustained just two months earlier at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1–3, 1863.

The Kelly Farm tree stump has an additional identification painted on top: "From Kelly Farm Chickamauga." Dunn Museum curators suspect this was done by Charles S. Bentley of La Grange, IL when the object was added to his Civil War relics museum in the early 1900s. Dunn Museum 2006.0.6 (1958). 

Many veterans returned to the battlefields where they had fought to collect souvenirs such as bullets and tree stumps imbedded with shot. These items became touchstones for remembering and commemorating the war and were believed to be “charged” with the energy of the event.

According to historian Anna Denov Rusk, "soldiers collected items that told a specific story or part of their war experience."

• Andersonville Prison, Ga., August 17, 1864. East view taken from the stockade as photographed by A.J. Riddle (1828-1897). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 

• The deplorable conditions in prisons (both in the North and South) were a volatile subject during and after the war. William "Billy" Lewin of Russell, Illinois, served with the 96th Illinois and was a prisoner at Andersonville from May to September 1864. He recalled that he had “suffered even more than death [at] that prison, above all other prisons… [which has] no parallel in the world’s history.”
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• Camp Sumter in Georgia, commonly known as Andersonville, was used to imprison Union soldiers from early 1864 to May 1865. Though the prisoner camp was only in operation for fourteen months, 45,000 Union soldiers were imprisoned there, and nearly 13,000 died.
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• Wood from the stockade at Andersonville prison, presented to Charles S. Bentley in 1913. Dunn Museum 70.586 (1958).
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A section of a wooden post (shown above) was sawn from the Andersonville prison stockade as a souvenir by Corporal George W. Healey (1842-1913) of the 5th Iowa Cavalry, Company E. The cavalryman became a prisoner at Andersonville after he was captured at the Battle of Brown’s Mill in Georgia on July 31, 1864. Healy and Billy Lewin were imprisoned at Andersonville during the same period, but it is unknown if they ever met, since the prison held tens of the thousands of men. 

Healy likely collected the dark souvenir as a veteran returning to the site. In 1913, he presented it to Charles S. Bentley (1839-1924), veteran of the 2nd Wisconsin Cavalry, Company D, who had a Civil War museum in his home in La Grange, Illinois. The object came into the Dunn Museum’s possession through Robert Vogel, who purchased it at the auction of Bentley’s collection in 1958. Vogel, who founded the county's first history museum, undoubtedly understood the object's significance and connection to those who had served from Lake County.

One of the most compelling charged objects in the Dunn Museum’s collections relates to the funeral of President Abraham Lincoln. Just five days after General Robert E. Lee’s surrender to General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, President Lincoln was fatally shot at Ford’s Theater on April 14, 1865. 



Floral and textile remnants from President Lincoln's funeral catafalque, 1865. 
Dunn Museum 70.29.2



• Charles Partridge of Waukegan with the 96th Illinois remembered the soldiers’ reactions to the terrible news: “The day before had seemed to these brave veterans the gladdest in all their lives; and now an unspeakable grief had blotted out their happiness and a gloom that seemed well-nigh impenetrable was upon them.”

   

  Citizens were desperate to make sense of the tragedy and millions stood along the route of the president’s funeral train as it made its way to his hometown of Springfield, Illinois. On May 1, the train made a scheduled stop in Chicago. 
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  “President Lincoln's Funeral—The Catafalque at the City Hall, Chicago” as sketched by William Waud on May 1, 1865. Published in Harper's Weekly May 20, 1865. Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress. 
  
  

• An estimated 125,000 mourners viewed the late president’s “mortal remains” at the Cook County Courthouse in Chicago. The framed ribbon and floral remnants are from the decorated platform, known as a catafalque, on which President Lincoln’s coffin rested. People eager to find solace in their grief and overwhelmed by the tragedy of the president's death solidified the moment by taking bits of the decorations from the platform. 

  Leonard Doolittle of Fremont Township, Lake County was convalescing at the U.S. Army Hospital in Chicago after being wounded at Chickamauga while serving with the 96th Illinois. Doolittle left the hospital on crutches to go "down to the city" for the viewing. He remarked in a letter that "I think that I never saw as many men women and children at one time in my life... as I saw today." Though the dark souvenir in the Dunn Museum's collection is not directly associated with Leonard Doolittle, the object's provenance suggests that the materials were collected at the viewing of the late president's remains in Chicago. 

  According to historian, Robert I. Girardi, while the Civil War was not fought in Illinois, “the state was actively and vitally a participant in every aspect of the conflict.” Illinoisans “sent more men per capita into the army than any other state.” These men collected souvenirs charged with the events they had seen and experienced. 

  Dark souvenirs can teach us about history and human nature. They are a window into the lives of those who experienced these events and spent their lives trying to come to terms with them. It is important for museums to collect such objects in order to preserve the memory of what "our boys" went through in the Civil War and to explore the war's continuing significance.

• For more on the 96th Illinois Infantry, read The Bonds of War: A Story of Immigrants and Esprit de Corps in Company C, 96th Illinois Volunteer Infantry by Diana Dretske. Available from SIUPress.com.

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• - Diana Dretske, Curator ddretske@lcfpd.org
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• Sources: 
  • Bess Bower Dunn Museum, Libertyville, Illinois. www.lcfpd.org/museum
  • Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., online collections.  
  • Ancestry.com. 
  • Letter of George Smith to Susie Smith, October 6, 1863, Bess Bower Dunn Museum (93.45.460).  
  • Letter of Leonard Doolittle to David Minto, May 1, 1865, Bess Bower Dunn Museum (93.45.407). 
  • "150 Year Old Items Go On Auction Block: Historical Collection to Be Sold Today," Chicago Tribune, February 2, 1958. 
  • Girardi, Robert I. "Illinois and the Memory of the Civil War." Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1998-) Vol. 104, No. 1/2, Civil War Sesquicentennial Issue (Spring-Summer, 2011), pp. 8-13.
  • Rusk, Anna Denov. "Collections the Confederacy: The Civil War Scrapbook of Henry M. Whitney." Winterthur Portfolio, Vol. 47. No. 4 (Winter 2013), pp. 267-296. 
  • Wilson, R.C. "Gen. Bentley Has Real Museum: La Grange Man Has Wonderful Collection of Photographs, Letters, Fire Arms and Articles of Historic Interest." Uncited newspaper.  
  • Dretske, Diana L. The Bonds of War: A Story of Immigrants and Esprit de Corps in Company C, 96th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press, 2021.
  • Partridge, Charles A. History of the Ninety-Sixth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Chicago: Historical Society of the Regiment, 1887. 
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Captain Blodgett's Roster

Asiel Z. Blodgett (1832-1916) of Waukegan understood the importance of being a good leader.

During the Civil War, he served as the main recruiter and Captain of Company D, 96th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He prided himself on knowing each of the men in his command.

Asiel Z. Blodgett, print from a glass negative taken in Waukegan, circa 1875. 

Dunn Museum 2011.0.86

While at Wartrace, Tennessee in the summer of 1863, he was given a challenge. An officer from another company asked, "Captain Blodgett, I am curious to know whether or not you have memorized your roster."

Blodgett replied, "I am of the opinion that I have memorized it."

The officer bet Blodgett that he could not "call it correctly."

That day, Captain Blodgett was sitting in front of his tent, using the drummer boy's drum as a writing surface to make out his reports. He had set the drum on top of a camp stool, and with the challenge made, brushed aside his reports.

He wrote directly on the drum head from left to right, carefully listing every man's name from memory. All 98 men of Company D, plus the eight men who had died in the company's first year of service. Blodgett won the bet.

At the request of Lake County Historian Bess Bower Dunn, Blodgett's son, sent a copy of the "drum head roster."

Shortly after making the roster, the 96th Illinois fought in the Battle of Chickamauga, September 18 - 20, 1863. The battle was the most significant Union defeat in the Western Theater of the Civil War, and had the second highest number of casualties in the war following the Battle of Gettysburg two months earlier.

The 96th's Company D lost five men (killed) and 18 wounded. Among the injured was Blodgett, who was wounded twice on September 20. Early in the engagement he was shot in the shoulder and though the wound hurt him greatly, he remained with the command.

Hill Two from the Vittetoe Road. Chickamauga after the battle. Signal Corps U. S. Army

According to the Regimental history, on Sunday afternoon, September 20th, Blodgett was "thrown to the ground by the fall of a heavy tree-top which, striking his head and back, rendered him unconscious." This happened in the midst of the battle, leaving Blodgett temporarily within Rebel lines. "When the Union lines advanced in a second charge" the men removed the tree and "he was released from his perilous position."

The drum was lost in the confusion of battle.

Blodgett recovered only partially from his injuries and reluctantly had to resign his position in August 1864. Years later, he received an official package from the U.S. War Department. Opening it, he found the drum head on which he had written the names of his men.

In 1939, Bess Bower Dunn, contacted one of Blodgett's sons about the story. John H. Blodgett replied with a copy of the "drum head roster" and the full account.

Blodgett's son wrote: "It occurred to me that possibly some of the relatives of the men who were with Dad are still around and if so might be interested in looking it over. If Frank Justice [sic] cares to say anything about it in his paper I would like to have you send me a copy."

Indeed, Frank Just, the editor of the Waukegan Daily Sun, was very interested and ran a long article on Blodgett and the 96th Illinois.

Excerpt of article by Athlyn Deshais on Blodgett and the 96th Illinois. 

Waukegan Daily Sun, 1939.

Athlyn Deshais wrote in her article: "They are gone now, those gallant soldiers who marched and fought beneath the banner on which was inscribed the magic figures, 96.... The day of the eye-witness reminiscences belongs to the past."

Related blog posts: Asiel Z. Blodgett and the 96th Illinois at the Battle of Chickamauga.

For more on the 96th Illinois Infantry, read The Bonds of War: A Story of Immigrants and Esprit de Corps in Company C, 96th Illinois Volunteer Infantry by Diana Dretske. Available from SIUPress.com. 

- Diana  Dretske, Curator ddretske@lcpd.org

Sources:
"History of the 96th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry," Charles A. Partridge, editor, 1887.
Letters of John H. Blodgett to Bess Bower Dunn, 1939. Bess Dunn Collection, Dunn Museum.
"Capt. Blodgett Honored by His Brave Soldiers," by Athlyn Deshais, Waukegan Daily Sun, 1939.

John Y. Taylor of the 96th Illinois Regiment

Research of an unidentified soldier pictured in a tintype in the museum's collection has revealed the forgotten story of a young Scottish immigrant and Civil War soldier, John Y. Taylor (1842-1863).

John Y. Taylor is pictured top right in this 1862 tintype with his fellow 96th Illinois Regiment comrades. Seated left to right: William B. Lewin, Laughlin Madden, Edward Murray; standing left to right: James Murrie and John Y. Taylor. The tintype was donated to the museum in 1962 by Lee Simmons, a grandson of Edward Murray. (Dunn Museum BBDM 62.41.2)

Of the five men (all from Newport Township), only Lewin, Murray and Murrie survived the Civil War, and even they were wounded. John Y. Taylor and Laughlin Madden were not as fortunate.

Taylor, who was young and not yet well established when he died in the war, was difficult to research. Using the History of the Ninety-Sixth Regiment, and letters in the museum's collection and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library collection, I was able to confirm he is the young man pictured at top right.

Detail of John Youngson Taylor from group image (left) and photo provided by his brother for the 96th Illinois Regimental history (right).

John Y. Taylor was the son of Samuel Taylor (1781-1858) and Isabella Lawrence Taylor (unknown-1845). He was born in New Byth, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. His father was a bookbinder and bookseller, and assisted in the establishment of a circulating library.

The first of the Taylor clan to come to Lake County was John's older half-sister Isabella (1822-1897), who immigrated from Scotland in 1844. It is believed that the Taylors were cousins to the Thain family of Antioch, and she may have come at their invitation. Isabella married James Low in early 1845. The couple settled northeast of Millburn in Newport Township (part of today's Tempel Farms in Old Mill Creek).

In 1854, at the age of twelve, John joined his sister in the new country. He was accompanied by two older siblings: Mary (1832-1915), who married James Bater, and James M. (1839-1921).

It is probable that the siblings lived together in the Low home until at least 1856 when Isabella and her husband sold their farm and moved to O'Plain (Gurnee).

In the 1860 census, John Y. Taylor lived on his own with the David White family near Millburn. John was not related to the Whites, but was working for them as a farm laborer. Some of John's and James's letters imply that in addition to farming, the brothers attended school and were teachers.

John Y. Taylor's signature from an 1863 letter (BBDM 93.45.490.2)

On April 12, 1861, John wrote to David Minto of Millburn while living with the John Murrie family in Newport Township and working as their farm laborer. Today, the Murrie farm would be located on the south side of Russell Road and just west of the Des Plaines River in Sterling Lake Forest Preserve.

John wrote of his new situation: "I know all of you have a great deal better accommodation then I have at present. A small log house occupied by a very large family [eight children]... Still it makes a very good home. The folks I like first rate... a very frank accommodating boss." (LCDM 93.45.570.2)

Excerpt from John Taylor's letter of April 12, 1861: "... a couple of days and last Friday we sowed about 2 acres of wheat and dragged or rather mudded it in. The weather looks more favorable today. I hope we have a spell of drouthy [sic] weather so as to get the crops in." (BBDM 93.45.570.2)

An envelope addressed to David Minto from John Y. Taylor, and posted at Kenosha, Wisconsin, May 20, 1861. Note Taylor's initials on the lower right. (BBDM 93.45.568.1)

In 1861, John commented that not many volunteers had gone to the war from Newport Township. “We have weekly meetings to aid in the cause,” and some men “have formed a militia company.” (BBDM 93.45.568.2)

The following year, when more troops were needed, the 96th Illinois was formed and John Taylor enlisted with his brother James on August 1. A month later, the men who had enlisted and returned to their homes were “ordered and required to report themselves in person at the city of Waukegan.” They arrived promptly and began drilling exercises on the courthouse grounds and race track.

The recruits were quartered in citizens' homes and at hotels such as the Sherman House (above), located at South Genesee and Lake Street in Waukegan. (BBDM 94.14.102)

On September 5th, four Lake County companies met at the train depot and departed at 7 p.m. for Chicago where they were sworn into service. It is easy to imagine that John and James's sister Isabella Low was present to say farewell. It would be the last time she saw her youngest brother, John, alive.

On March 1, 1863, John wrote to Isabella from Nashville, Tennessee: “Nashville is a very pretty place... Bro James is 1st corporal. I still enjoy myself performing the duties of a high private in the rear ranks.” (Original in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library)

He wrote to his sister Mary Bater on April 24, 1863: “I have been down to the cars [railroad cars] and seen the prisoners off for Nashville that our boys captured today… all from Texas, the regarded Texan Rangers... Most of them were quite sociable, occasionally one hot-blooded fellow among them.” (Original in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library)

Over the course of his year in service with Company C, John suffered many illnesses that he described as general fatigue and fever, but he always recovered within a few days under the care of an army surgeon. Camp illnesses were common, but some severe enough that men needed to be discharged such as John's closest friends David Minto and Andrew White.

John Taylor wrote his last known surviving letter to one of his sisters on September 18, 1863. He was in Rossville, Georgia, having arrived from Estella Springs after several days of marching and riding on a freight train.

Although the Battle of Chickamauga began on September 18, not all of the 96th Regiment's men went onto the field. Those who were sick or too worn down from the march were left in camp, which may explain why John wrote such a pleasant letter on the first day of the battle:

“My Dear Sister… I am well and feel as hearty and strong as need be... There is a nice spring of water in the cave where we filled our canteens. The cave is at a place called Shell Mound… we have seen a great many caves and other sublime sceneries of nature – worth the time spent in marching to see them.” (Original in the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library)

Two days later, things would change drastically. According to the regimental history, “Chickamauga was a terrible blow to this Company [Company C]." The company went into battle on Sunday, September 20th and “Corporal John Y. Taylor had his right hand shattered at the wrist."

Corporal J.A. Robison of Company F, wrote in the regimental history that while he was at Hospital No. 16 in Nashville, recovering from wounds, “I visited Corporal Taylor, of Company C, who had lost an arm, and who died in a short time.” According to this account, it appears that the surgeons amputated John’s right arm in an attempt to save his life. He died on November 24, 1863.

In December 1863, William Lewin (pictured with John Taylor in tintype) wrote to David Minto: “We were all very sorry to hear of J.Y. Taylor’s death.” (BBDM 93.45.518.2)

Excerpt from William Lewin's letter with regrets about John Taylor. (BBDM 93.45.518.2)

John Taylor was buried in the temporary burial grounds at the army's Nashville general hospitals. In July 1866, the Nashville National Cemetery was created and the hospital interments were transferred there. Taylor is buried in Section D Site 3260.

Entrance arch at Nashville National Cemetery, courtesy of the Department of Veterans Affairs National Cemetery Administration History Program.

John’s brother, James, who was wounded on May 9, 1864 and had his right arm amputated, returned to Millburn for Fourth of July celebrations in 1865. Susie Smith (Minto) wrote in her diary of the day's events, including a reference to James and his deceased brother:

"... we went talking, thinking along, thinking O. so joyfuly. O, so thankfuly for by our sides sat those brave hero boys who, one year ago, were engaged amid the din and cloud of battle fighting for their much loved country."

(above) "One poor fellow [James], who had loved a much loved brother [John] in the strife for Freedom, and whose own right arm had been lifted up, for this our own proud land." (BBDM Smith diary 93.45.290)

Although John Taylor’s life ended tragically, it is important to remember his sacrifice and heartening to bring his story to light. From reading these letters, I met a young man who was good-natured, generous of spirit, interested in learning, and considerate of his friends and family.

The story of John Y. Taylor and his comrades is now featured in the book The Bonds of War by Diana Dretske (2021). The book was inspired by the commemorative portrait in the Dunn Museum's collection, and is available at the Dunn Museum's gift shop and SIUPress.

Special thanks to Glenna Schroeder-Lein and all the great staff at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library for facilitating my research in the James M. Taylor Papers and for information on the Taylor family.