Last Soldier Project

Iowa Miss

Private
Joined
Apr 13, 2016
Location
NC Iowa
Recognition for Last Soldiers of Black Hawk and Bremer Counties, Iowa




The Cedar Valley Civil War Roundtable has partnered with the Iowa Sons of Union Veterans to recognize Henry A. Bray and Martin L. Stebbins, the last Civil War veterans to die in Black Hawk and Bremer counties. Special markers will be placed at their graves on Saturday, April 27. The recognition program, conducted by the Sons of Union Veterans, is similar to the burial service for Civil War veterans. The color guard will be ROTC units from Waterloo's East and West High Schools.

Recognition for Henry Augustus Bray begins at 10:00 AM at Elmwood Cemetery, 225 Elmwood Street, Waterloo, Iowa. Bray served in Co. F 76th Illinois Infantry and relocated to Waterloo after the war. Mike Magee will give the tribute to Bray. In attendance will be Mary Yetter, a great niece of Bray. Direction signs will be posted at the cemetery entrance to help find the grave.

Recognition for Martin Lyman Stebbins begins at 1:00 PM at Harlington Cemetery, 4th Street SW and 8th Avenue SW, Waverly, Iowa. (4th Street SW is Business 218.) Stebbins served in Co. F 1st Iowa Cavalry. Terry Lindell will give the tribute to Stebbins. Direction signs will be posted at the cemetery entrance to help find the grave.

Both events are open to the public. Contact the Roundtable at: [email protected] or 319-984-9268 if further questions.
 
I imagine you already know this but:

From the official records:

Henry Bray: Enlisted as a private in Kankakee, Illinois on the 7th August 1862. Age not given. His residence was also listed as Kankakee, Illinois. Mustered out with his regiment in Galveston, Texas on the 22nd July 1865. Later a member of GAR Post 414 (Whipple), Kankakee, Illinois.

Martin Stebbins: Interestingly the Official Records seem to have him as Martin V Stebbins but typos are not uncommon. Enlisted as a private on the 5th January 1864 aged 18 with his residence given as Buchanan County, Iowa (however there is a note stating he was originally born in Ohio). Location of enlistment unusually not given. Mustered out 15th February 1866 at Austin, Texas.
 
We've been fortunate to locate a great deal of information on Bray and Stebbins for their tributes. We have some great genealogists and historians in our Roundtable who assisted with research.

I got sidetracked when researching Stebbins' time with the 1st Iowa Cav. The 1st Cav was put under Geo A Custer's command after the war and sent to Texas to help maintain order. If interested, an article from the Spring 1989 issue of Annals of Iowa features the role between state and federal authority over volunteers and then Custer's actions and demeanor with the troops in Texas. Here's the link to the 24 page article:

https://ir.uiowa.edu/cgi/viewconten...psredir=1&article=9349&context=annals-of-iowa
 
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