Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1912-05-22
GRANT COUNTY NOTED
FOR ITS PATRIOTISM
Its Part in the Civil War Re-
called with Pride.
r. w. Rood Writes Very Entertainingly
Of His Impressions Concerning
a Recent Visit Here.

r9. ". Rood Of Madison, patriotic in
structor and lecturer of the G. A. R. of Wis
consln. who recently paid a visit to LanCaS-
fer. on which occasion he delivered several
excellent addresses in the local schools, has
written very entertainingly concerning
Lancaster and Grant County for the Madi-
son democrat, from which we make the fol-
lowing excerpts ED. HERALD
do not suppose that in war times
the people in any county in our good
state Wisconsin were any more
patriotic than those of "Old Grant -
Because of the lead mines in that
region it was one of the earliest
settled counties and the sons of those
hardy pioneer miners had in them the
stuff out of which to make the best of
soldiers. Also many of our most
highly respected public men, men
who have given Wisconsin the best of
service as Legislators, judges, teachers,
have come to US from Grant county.
During the war that county was
asked to furnish for the preservation
of our union ,946 soldiers. The
number of enllstments for which it
received credit was 2,0O7, enough for
two full regiments. It had repre-
sentatives in more than thirty Wis
consin regiments, and few in those
Of Illinois and Iowa. 1t was quite
natural that some boys living close to
the state line should enlist with their
chums on the Illinois or Iowa side
The first company raised in Grant
county was Company q of the I'd in
fantry, every member of which, ex-
cepting half a dozen, enlisted from
the western portion of the county.
This regiment was a part of the
famous fighting Iron Brigade, and it
lost heavily in killed and wounded.
Also Company @ Of the Cd cavalry
came mostly from the western part of
Grant county.
The 18th infantry, another Iron
Brigade regiment, had in it three
companies, g T. and H, composed
almost entirely of Grant county men.
All these companies suffered severely
in the many battles in which they
were engaged Also. Company F of
the 10th infantry was made up
almost without exception Of Grant
county soldiers. They, too, suffered
many losses in battle. About one
half of the men in Company K of
the 18th infantry were enlisted FROM
the northern part of Grant county
and a goodly Number of Company | OF
the 10th infantry came from the south
eastern part of the same county.
Of the one hundred men in Com
pany Q Of the goth regiment all but
three or four enlisted from Grant
county, almost every person being
credited to Boscohel. Nearly every
memb Der of Company I of the same
regiment came from Grant county,
also a large number of those in Com
pany F.
Of General Jerry Rusk's regiment,
the 25th, companies G and Ell were
recruited mostly from the western
part of Grant county, Company E
from the vicinity Of Platteville and
Company K from the southern part OF
the county. And then four Of the
companies of the 23d came from the
same region. A from about Potosi
B and G from the vicinity of Bos-
cobel and G from around Tafton an6
Glen Haven. Also, the most of the
men in Company D of the 42d regi-
ment and B Of the 43d came from the
same county, as we'll as Company G
of the 41th.
But, besides the companies and
regiments I have mentioned, many
others contained soldiers who enlisted
from Grant county.
No other county was more ready tc
respond to the calls for defenders d
our union.
one Of the good things about Grant
county is the fact that the people
there. soon after the war began, tc
show their patriotic regard for their
soldier boys, undertook the erection
of a monument at Lancaster, the
county seat. in honor of those whose
lives should become a sacrifice on the
altar Of freedom. Soon after the close
of the war this monument was erect.
ed, and it was dedicated on the 4th Of
July in 1867-forty years ago.
It was the first civil war monument
in Wisconsin, and the people of thai
county think it was the first in the
United States.
This monument is of white cloudet
marble. It stands in the center of {
stone platform enclosed by eigh
square marble columns about FIVE fee