USCT Soldier

Tbrd35

Private
Joined
May 12, 2011
Location
Dixon, Illinois
To All or Any:smile:
I am searching for info on a soldier from Carroll County Illinois by the name of Thomas P. Milderdan. He registered for the draft in July of 1863 and I can find nothing else about him. He is listed as being buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Dixon Illinois with no date of death or ANY other info except USCT. I do that he died before May 28 1873 but that is it. It is quite possible he died in the war, just a gut feeling. He is in an unmarked grave and I am attempting to get a VA Marker for him. So far I have done about 25 of these and he is by far the toughest. I have search the USCT Rosters and written to the National Archives but still nothing.,....help!

Pat
 
He is here, age 15, in the 1860 U.S. Census for Salem, Carroll Co., Illinois.

1860 Census.jpg


And here in 1850, at Plum River in Jo Davies County, Illinois:

1850 Census 02.jpg

1850 Census.jpg
 
To All or Any:smile:
I am searching for info on a soldier from Carroll County Illinois by the name of Thomas P. Milderdan. He registered for the draft in July of 1863 and I can find nothing else about him. He is listed as being buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Dixon Illinois with no date of death or ANY other info except USCT. I do that he died before May 28 1873 but that is it. It is quite possible he died in the war, just a gut feeling. He is in an unmarked grave and I am attempting to get a VA Marker for him. So far I have done about 25 of these and he is by far the toughest. I have search the USCT Rosters and written to the National Archives but still nothing.,....help!

Pat

I was unable to find ANY Union soldier with that surname. Alternate spelling maybe ?
 
Thank you all for the help/suggestions BUT I have looked at these site so many times with spelling differentiation what is left of my hair is almost gone:frown: I have NOT yet tried the Lowcountryafricanna site but will today.

Here is a link to all the regiments and I have been through all of them and starting on my second time through I started over with the first name of Thomas and am searching the "M's"
 
Pat, given that there seems to be virtually nothing out there, is it possible that the identification of Milderdan as a USCT is incorrect?
 
I don't have any intel on your soldier, but as someone who an amateur research I can't tell you even with a tombstone and a name, you sometimes can't find zero on that USCT soldier. Come across those who control sheet have a unit and they are nowhere in the unit. Or zero beyond the name on the tombstone. Just want to make you pull your hair out
 
It IS entirely possible as I have found errors in the listing that I found him in. BUT How would he get that designation and how would a Black Man/ OR soldier for that matter end up being buried in Dixon when his family is in Carroll Co. almost 50 miles away from Dixon.

Tomorrow I am going to Mount Carroll where they have a monument if the town square of those that died from Carroll Co. I don't hold out much hope but it's worth a shot. I beats going through the Microfilm of our local paper page by page & day by day in hopes I can find an Obit. PLUS the Dixon paper for the war years vanished years ago:smile: IF he lived past 1869 and did not die in the war I have a chance otherwise I am out o luck I'm thinking. THEN I flip for cost of the marker. I have a total of 5 CW soldiers that are buried in Oakwood that I can find NO connection to Dixon OR any definitive service records that I can use to get VA Markers. I have a friend that runs a monument Co. and they have small stones for $250 each I have already bought 2 for 2 WWI soldiers so another $1250 is what it will be, a small price see below.

EXAMPLE: One of the 5 is a John Russell who served with the PA. infantry and was a Dixon Fireman who died in 1886....nuttin much in his obit. GREAT BUT there were 25 or so in the Pa. Inf. and I cannot find anything to tie anyone of them to Dixon:frown: The Other was James Layton from NJ Only 4 or 5 five of him with NO middle initial. he died of Jaundice in a sleeping car on a train outside Pittsburgh on July 14th 1879. THAT was the extent of his obit other than he was buried in Dixon. JW Scott Graham's Independent Calvary, taken prisoner at Lexington but I cannot prove it and the final one is Coleman O. Smith a photographer who died in Dixon on June 13th 1868 BUT no tie to military service and NO obit just a will.. I think too he may have been with the USCT. This is why I have no hair:smile:

Pat
 
My SUVCW camp takes care of a private cemetery here in Dayton, in which over 150 CW soldiers were buried. It, at one time, was the Dayton Soldiers Home cemetery owned by the government. Once it was filled, they gave the responsibility for caretaking to a civilian. The man who is responsible now has failed in his responsibility so we take care of it. That might be what happened with these people since some are from out of the area. If there is a VA in the area or there used to be a Soldiers Home in the area they may have grave records. Just a possibility. Good luck.
 
To All,
I know this is an OLD post BUT I have found Thomas P. Milderdam. First of all my source for the initial info about Thomas was a burial book that lists all the veterans buried at our local cemetery. As time went on I found it had more holes than a politicians stories. I decided to redo the book on my own in digital form and when I got down to Thomas I vowed I would find him. Low and behold he was a Landsman in the US Navy not the USCT as the book stated. Correct me if I am wrong but USCT is an Army term NOT Navy.
ANYWAY that is the good news, the bad news is that he served aboard the General Lyon. MORE bad news, there were two of them Gen Loyon) and now I search to see if he died in the fire similar to that of the Sultana or served on the other one. Either Way I now have enough info to get the young man a VA Marker:smile:
Sailor Detail
Return to Results

Melderdam, Thomas P.
PLACE OF BIRTH:

AGE:


18

COMPLEXION:

Colored

OCCUPATION:

Laborer

HEIGHT:

5' 6"

PLACE OF ENLISTMENT:

Chicago

DATE OF ENLISTMENT:

Sep 10, 1864

TERM OF ENLISTMENT:

1

RATING:

Landsman

DETAILED MUSTER RECORDS:

DateVessel
Oct 1, 1864General Lyon
Jun 15, 1865General Lyon
Aug 7, 1865General Lyon
Dec 31, 1864General Lyon
Mar 31, 1865General Lyon
 
Ancestry.com shows Thomas P. Melderdam on a 7 August 1865 muster roll in their US, African American Civil War Sailor Index, 1861 - 1865. That muster also shows him as a landsman on the General Lyon.

The USS General Lyon was a river steamer built in New Albany IN. It was originally named DeSoto, operated out of New Orleans until the Civil War and used by the Confederates until surrendered at Island No. 10. General Lyon reported to Cairo IL in February 1865, was decommissioned on August 3, 1865 and sold off two weeks later.
 
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