LAST CIVIL WAR SOLDIER BURIED IN MURRAY COUNTY HONORED ON APRIL 30

Private Edwin Wheeler, the last Civil War veteran buried in Murray County, was honored in a ceremony at 11:00 am on Saturday, April 30, 2022 at the Slayton Cemetery on Highway 59 (1/4 mile north on Highway 59 on the east side.)

The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War (SUVCW) is conducting the ceremony with the assistance of the American Legion Post 64, the Murray County Historical Society, and some surprise visitors who will make this ceremony unique.

The SUVCW, with great assistance by the Murray County Historical Society, did extensive research to find this last American Civil War hero. Walk and Search Specialist Chuck Lursen, from Fulda, did extensive work looking at historical records and walking through Murray County cemeteries to find Civil War veterans and the data on their service. The original list provided to Chuck and his support team only had three veterans listed, they found more than 50!

Edwin Wheeler, who was born April 21, 1842, enlisted on December 10, 1864 into the Wisconsin 44th Infantry Regiment. The 44th Wisconsin served in Tennessee and Kentucky, participating in the Battle of Nashville and providing garrison and guard duty at Nashville and Paducah, Kentucky, Private Wheeler was mustered out with his regiment on August 28, 1865 at Paducah, KY. It lost one officer and 57 enlisted men who died from disease. Edwin Wheeler died June 9, 1940 at age 98.

There is an interesting mystery about this solder we need help on. According to pension documents from the National Archives, he enlisted under the alias of Frank W. Taylor. Why would a 22-year old soldier enlist under an alias?

SUVCW William Colvill Camp #56, Department of Wisconsin, will be presiding over the ceremony. The ceremony will feature the Last Soldier dedication ritual of the SUVCW and includes the placing of a Last Soldier Marker on the veteran’s grave. Camp #56 of the Department of Wisconsin, whose territory is the entire states of Wisconsin and Minnesota supports the national goal of identifying and placing a marker on the grave of the last Union veteran buried in each of Minnesota’s 88 counties. The members of Camp #56 consider the Last Soldier ceremony an honor and a fitting tribute for a Union solder whose service helped preserve the liberties Americans enjoy as a nation today.

The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War is a national veterans organization made up of the descendants of Union soldiers who fought in the Civil War. The SUVCW has more than 6,000 members across the country and is the successor to the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R), the veterans organization formed after the Civil War by soldiers who served in the Union Army. The last member of the G.A.R., Albert Woolson from Duluth, died in 1956.

Visit www.suvcw.org for more information.