Augustus Louis Chetlain Augustus Louis Chetlain ( December 26 , 1824 – March 15 , 1914 ) was an United States Army soldier – the first man in Illinois to volunteer at the outbreak of the American Civil War . He served as a Union Army general . Early life and career . Chetlain was born in St . Louis , Missouri . His parents were Swiss , and they came to the United States by the way of Canada . As an infant , he was taken to Galena , Illinois . He studied at local schools in Galena , and later became a clerk . In 1852 he started a career in business , and by 1859 , he became wealthy . He sold his business in the U . S . and traveled in Europe . Upon returning , Chetlain participated in the 1860 U . S . presidential campaign . Civil War service . When the American Civil War began in 1861 , Chetlain chose to follow the Union cause . He was said to have been the first man in Illinois to volunteer for the Civil War . On April 16 he was part of a meeting held in Galena to raise a volunteer company , and with Ulysses S . Grant was prominent in its creation . When Grant declined the post ( and at his suggestion ) Chetlain was elected as the company ' s captain . In Springfield in late April the 12th Illinois Infantry was organized , and Chetlain ' s company was added to it . On May 2 he entered the Union Army as captain of the 12th Illinois , and the next day he was elected the regiment ' s lieutenant colonel . Shortly afterward the 12th Illinois was ordered to Cairo , and that September it was part of the force used by Grant in the expedition against and capture of Paducah . Then Chetlain was given command of Smithland , Kentucky , where he constructed fortifications to defend part of the Cumberland River . In January 1862 he rejoined his regiment , and led it during the expedition up the Tennessee River , was at the capture of Fort Henry on February 6 , and led his command during the Battle of Fort Donelson from February 12 to 16 . On April 6 , 1862 , Chetlain led his regiment with distinction during the Battle of Shiloh . In the fight he lost about a quarter of his men , and Chetlain was wounded when both his face and chest were seriously bruised . On April 27 he was promoted to colonel for gallantry during the action at Fort Donelson . That May his command participated in the Siege of Corinth and then the battle there on October 3 and 4 , during which Chetlain was again highly praised for his performance . Chetlain was then given command of Corinth , Mississippi , where he began to organize and train black soldiers for Union Army service . This assignment lasted until May 1863 , and on December 18 he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general . On the advice of Grant , Chetlain was given the task of raising black troops in Tennessee and Kentucky , with his headquarters located in Memphis . By October 1864 he had trained a force of about 17 , 000 men that were " well armed , drilled , and disciplined . " On June 18 , 1865 , Chetlain was brevetted to the rank of major general . Between 1865 and 1866 he commanded at Memphis and then at Talladega , Alabama On January 26 , 1866 , Chetlain was mustered out of the Union Army . His war - time performance has been described as : Postbellum . After the American Civil War , Chetlain was assessor of Internal Revenue for the district of Utah from 1867 – 69 . From 1869 – 72 , he was at U . S . consul in Brussels . In 1872 , he established himself in the banking business in Chicago and also as a stock broker . He was president of the Home National Bank , organizer of the Industrial Bank of Chicago , director of the Chicago Stock Exchange , and member of the Board of Education . He was also an active philanthropist . He was prominent in the Military Order of the Loyal Legion and the Grand Army of the Republic for many years . In 1893 he wrote " Recollections of Seventy Years " . On March 15 , 1914 he died in Chicago . He was buried in Greenwood Cemetery , Galena .