Memorial for Pvt. Lewis Martin, 29th Infantry, USCT: Nov 2, 2013, Springfield, IL

Yulie

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Headstone Memorial Marker Service for Pvt. Lewis Martin

Saturday November 2, 2013
10 am
Oak Ridge Cemetery Springfield, Illinois
Pvt. Martin served with the 29th Infantry, United States Colored Troops (USCT). He was recruited in Upper Alton, Illinois, where he resided after escaping slavery in Arkansas. Pvt. Martin was wounded at the Battle of the Crater in Petersburg, Virginia resulting in amputations to his right arm and left leg. He is buried in an unmarked grave at Oak Ridge Cemetery in the shadow of Abraham Lincoln’s Tomb. A head stone and memorial marker honoring his contribution to what President Lincoln called the “Nation’s new birth of freedom,” will be unveiled at his grave site during this memorial service.​

A reception immediately following the service will be held at the
Otis B. Duncan American Legion Post 809
Corner of Capitol Street and Martin Luther King Drive
Springfield, Illinois

All events are free and open to the public.

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Comment

The photograph accompanying this invitation is probably one of the most famous photographs of a USCT soldier. Lewis Martin was a private in the 29th USCT, Co. E, and sustained traumatic injuries during the Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864, in Petersburg, Virginia. Unfortunately, like many African American Civil War veterans, he did not receive a military honor recognizing his service upon his death in 1892 in Springfield, Illinois. He was not forgotten as his picture has become a familiar symbol of the tragedies and scarifies of warfare. Pvt. Martin survived the war and lived the remaining days of his life in Springfield, Illinois. He left no direct descendants and was buried in an unmarked grave in the same cemetery as President Abraham Lincoln.

For more information information on Lewis Martin and the 29th USCT, see the following:


http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=24589557

http://usctchronicle.blogspot.com/2011/01/they-were-men-who-suffered-and-died.html

http://cwmemory.com/2008/07/30/144th-anniversary-of-the-crater/

-Yulanda Burgess
 
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The State Journal-Register recently published an article: "Public comes through for Civil War icon"

It’s appropriate that people in Springfield have rallied to honor the memory of Civil War icon Lewis Martin. Those who lived here when Lewis came back from that war did not treat him well
Lewis was a member of the 29th U.S. Colored Infantry and fought at the Battle of the Crater in 1864. He lost a leg and an arm in the war. A famous photograph of him was taken by Dr. Reed Bontecu, surgeon at Harewood U.S. Army General Hospital in Washington, D.C. That photograph symbolizes not only Lewis’s sacrifice, but the sacrifice of African-American soldiers and all soldiers in that murderous war. The photo of the wounded Springfield man has been used in books and is in the National Archives.

But when Lewis returned to Springfield, he was the victim of discrimination and public humiliation. He had been a slave in Arkansas, so it wasn’t the first time.

After the war, he was unable to work because of his disabilities and slid into alcoholism. He was found dead in a
home on West Jefferson in January 1892. The newspapers of the day noted his death with the headline: “Died from exposure & drink.” The news stories noted his drinking as much as his war service and reported that most of his pension “went to local saloon keepers.”​

Read more: http://www.sj-r.com/bakke/x452551251/Public-comes-through-for-Civil-War-icon#ixzz2ieFsiaGJ
 
I had the pleasure of attending the ceremony honoring Private Lewis Martin on Saturday, Nov. 2, 2013, in Oak Ridge Cemetery (Springfield, Illinois). It was a very emotional ceremony. Prayers, songs, tributes, wreaths and rosemary were placed, a twenty-one gun salute and taps were played over the grave of this Civil War veteran who finally received a tombstone with his name, rank and regiment. A marble plaque which includes his famous picture is placed in front of the tombstone summarizing Pvt. Martin’s military record. Several people who contributed to securing the marker where in attendance and endowed to become his honorary descendants and continue to remember Pvt. Martin by placing flowers at his grave and talk about his life.

See: http://www.sj-r.com/photo_galleries/x450316096/Ceremony-honoring-Pvt-Lewis-Martin-Civil-War-veteran and http://www.sj-r.com/top-stories/x450316226/We-righted-a-wrong-today

Private citizens raised the funds for the plague and Arnold Monument donated the headstone.

Two people were instrumental in locating Pvt. Martin’s grave and setting in place the funding of his tombstone and marble plaque: Robert Davis and Kathleen Heyworth. They are both the best advocates to telling Pvt. Martin’s story. But, in their absence here is a summary:

Lewis Martin was known to be Civil War veteran by the residents of Springfield, Illinois. He was a member of a black GAR post located there and had received some publicity in the newspapers. He successfully sued the government for his back pay. With this back pay and his pension, Lewis Martin bought property in Springfield and should have been able to support himself during the rest of his natural life. Instead, a personal representative took charge of his estate and she, along with others, stole those funds. Furthermore, neither the black or white GAR camps ensured that their comrade received a proper burial in either the GAR section of Oak Ridge Cemetery or at Camp Butler Cemetery. Instead, he was placed in the farthest section of Oak Ridge in the paupers section and his grave was unmarked. Instead of honoring him as a Civil War veteran, newspaper articles said he squandered his money at the local saloons. These newspaper articles published during his life time are not consistent with the court records and other primary sources. There are a lot of “insteads” attached to Pvt. Martin. Although the neglect of his burial was been corrected, there is more housecleaning to do.

Please note that the recent newspaper articles and the newsfeeds dwell on old articles highlighting the claim that Pvt. Martin was an alcoholic. Furthermore, they pick up the misinformation that Pvt. Martin became impoverished. It is undoubtedly that Pvt. Martin suffered the psychological and physical effects of battle that could not be totally compensated by the medical treatments of his era. This is compounded by other factors. The time period of cradle to grave needs to be corrected. There appears to been some court filings after his death. Therefore, continued research and publication is needed to complete the story of his life for the masses. We have his picture and a life's story needs to be attached to it.

Pvt. Martin's grave is located in the small area of Block 4 (west of the road and Block 5), and south of the Friendless Memorial. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=24589557

-Yulanda Burgess
 
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