Roll of Honor
“When you go home, tell them of us and say, for their tomorrow, we gave our today.” – The Kohima Epitaph
When the Revolutionary War was fought, Illinois did not exist as a state or even as a U.S. territory. It was part of the Province of Quebec and under the rule of the British. But seven of the men who helped forge the very foundation of our nation relocated to this area after helping win our freedom from Britain. And here they helped forge the future of Jersey County by building cabins, clearing the land, raising their children, and planting the seeds of civilization.
Since the birth of our great nation, thousands of Jersey County residents have fought to defend her freedom and to promote her democratic ideology throughout the world. And hundreds of them paid the ultimate price by giving their lives for our freedom.
Here we pay tribute to this extraordinary group of individuals. Click on each of the wars below to learn more about the local “boys” who fought in them.
American Revolution (1775-1783)
| Last Name | First Name | Year of Death | Buried at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Armstrong | Joshua | 1844 | Armstrong in Jersey County |
| Bates | William | 1848 | Lockhaven in Jersey County |
| Chandler | Joseph | 1844 | Noble in Jersey County |
| Cooper | Jonathon | 1845 | Falkner in Jersey County |
| Crain | Silas | 1762 | Lax in Jersey County |
| Cummings | Josiah | 1829 | Cummings in Jersey County (no stone) |
| Gillham | William | 1825 | East Newbern in Jersey County |
William Bates was married four or five times and became a father for the final time at the age of 69. His family was friends with Daniel Boone, and when Boone moved west, Bates followed with his family. While Bates and his family lived near Wood River Creek, near the present site of the Alton State Hospital, two of his grandsons were killed by Indians during the 1814 Wood River Massacre. His daughter’s life was spared only because she turned back shortly before the ambush. Bates and his family settled on Piasa Creek near Lockhaven in present-day Jersey County in about 1817.
According to Joseph Chandler’s headstone, he was “sixth in descent from Myles Standish and John Alden.”
Like William Bates, Jonathon Cooper followed his friend Daniel Boone to Kentucky before moving to Illinois in 1835.
William Gillham served in the Revolutionary War with his father, six brothers, and two brothers-in-law. Five of the Gillham brothers traveled west to Madison County, Illinois in 1802, and in 1816, William continued north, settling on Lofton’s Prairie near Otterville in Mississippi Township in Jersey County.
War of 1812 (1812-1815)
| Last Name | First Name | Year of Death | Buried at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams | Nevel L. | 1876 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Askew | Josiah | 1845 | Jersey County, near Elsah |
| Babcock | Henry | ||
| Belt | Horatio N. | 1870 | Jersey County, Belt-Salem |
| Brown | John | 1878 | Jersey County, Pruitt/Hawkins |
| Colean | Francis | 1846 | Jersey County, Old City Cemetery |
| Finne | George | Jersey County, Hartford | |
| Fuller | Richard C. | 1850 | Jersey County, Newbern |
| Gilbert | David | 1842 | Jersey County, Hartford |
| Gilham | Thomas J. | ||
| Gowin | Nathan | 1879 | Jersey County, McDow |
| Grimes | Philip | 1851 | Jersey County, Grimes Neely |
| Stafford | William | Jersey County, Hartford | |
| Trabue | Aaron | 1877 | Jersey County, Paradise-Chapman |
| Watson | Jesse | 1838 | Jersey County, Richwood township? |
| Wedding | James H. | 1837 | Jersey County, Rosedale |
Mexican War (1846-1848)
| Last Name | First Name | Year of Death | Buried at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brigham | Edward R. | 1902 | Jersey County, Fieldon |
| Eastman | Henry | 1876 | Jersey County, Hartford |
| Ellis | Samuel C. | 1907 | Jersey County, Scenic Hill |
| Falkner | James | 1888 | Jersey County, Falkner |
| Falkner | William | 1889 | Jersey County, Falkner |
| Free | Issac | 1900 | Jersey County, Salem |
| Funk | Hezekiah | 1878 | Jersey County, Funk-Schlansker |
| Martin | James | Source: History of Jersey County, 1919 | |
| McFarland | Robert | Source: History of Jersey County, 1919 | |
| McManus | Thomas | Jersey County, St. Mary’s | |
| Nihles | M.M. | Jersey County, Oak Grove | |
| Rue | William | 1927 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Russell | R.R. | Jersey County, Newbern | |
| Slaten | W. Harrison | Source: History of Jersey County, 1919 | |
| Smith | John | 1901 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Suddeth | James E. | Source: History of Jersey County, 1919 | |
| Waldorn | Elias | 1896 | Jersey County, Lax |
Civil War (1861-1865)
When Abraham Lincoln called for volunteers for the Union Army, the men of Illinois responded enthusiastically. In fact, only three other states (New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio) had more men in blue than the Land of Lincoln. Of the more than 250,000 soldiers from Illinois, more than 1,200 hailed from Jersey County.
We will work to add more information about these soldiers to our site. In the meantime, the Illinois GenWeb project has a wonderful website on Illinois in the Civil War, including a search engine that allows you to search for soldiers by county. The website can be found at www.civilwar.ilgenweb.net.
Spanish-American War (1898-1902)
| Last Name | First Name | Year of Death | Buried at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams | Thomas G. | Jersey County, Oak Grove | |
| Beneke | Clarence | 1955 | Jersey County, Scenic Hill |
| Boswell | Llyod C. | 1940 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Brady | Groom Texas | ||
| Cadwallader | Jesse E. | 1926 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Calendar | Henry B. | 1900 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Callaway | Mason | 1952 | Jersey County, Scenic Hill |
| Callendar | William | 1886 | |
| Crull | James L. | 1953 | Jersey County, Scenic Hill |
| Evans | William | 1934 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Garber | George | 1903 | |
| Grafford | Walter | 1912 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Hamilton | Henry B. | Arlington National | |
| Hansell | George S. | 1913 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Hansell | William | 1872 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Killion or Killian | Claude D. | 1955 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Long | John B. | 1944 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Murphy | Madison | Jersey County, Hartford | |
| Pirtle | William H, | 1911 | Jersey County, Medora |
| Schneider | William | 1955 | Old Sailors and Soldiers Home, Quincy |
| Shoemaker | Charles | 1909 | Jersey County, Falkner |
| Smith | James Elbert | 1948 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Sparks | David A. | 1928 | Jersey County, Medora |
| Waddle | Arron | 1939 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Waggoner | Benjamin F. | 1932 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
| Woods | Charles P. | 1935 | Jersey County, Oak Grove |
World War I (1917-1918)
James A. Bray
James Russell Brock
LaVerne “Larry” Chappell
Emmanuel L. Cline
James D. Coleman
Matthew F. Coleman
Lester J. Cory
Leslie A. Cray
Jacob F. Dunsing
Charles W. Ewin
John F. Ferenbach
John E. Fitzgibbons
Robert Fitzgibbons
Carl J. Giers
Ralph E, Giers
Hershell L Gill
Douglas Gray
Charles G. Hagen
Walter Jokers
Arch F. Keehner
Charles F. Kruse
Robert L. Lahey
Marion H. Lynn
Walter H. Maxeiner
Isaac F. McCollister
John Oscar
John N. Powers
Joseph Rivard
Francis V. Robb
Herbert L. Ross
Edwin L. Spriggs
Thomas M. Whalen
Marcus G. Woods
Fred Worthey
Harold Worthey
World War II (1941 –1945)
John C. Agee
Wilburn Baldwin
Peter Baron
Edward M. Bechtold
Terrence F. Brady
William H. Breeding
John C. Breitweiser
George Brown
Thomas Burch
Herbert W. Callahan
John W. Cannon
William T. Carter
Frank L. Christen
Arnold Cisco
George Cisco
Tunis Craig
Lawrence Crawford
Everett Dabbs
Billy C. Davis
Alfred Dean
Claude DeVerger
Paul Doerr
Raldon Evans
Pearl Foster
Frank Fulkerson
Roy Gallop
Paul T. Gray
Ralph Greenwalt
Emmett E. Griffin
Albert D. Hanes
Gilbert F. Henderson
Floyd P. Heneghan
Timothy Heraty
John E. Hewitt
Samuel Hoff
Lawrence B. Kallal
Austin F. Karr
Edward Keyes
Arthur C. Kraushaar
John L. Lammy
Harold W. Long
Danny McFain
Aubrey Means
Forest S. Medford
Frederick A. Miller
John C. Meuth
Harold Naylor
Harold N. Newberry
Jesse Petton
Clyde M. Reddish
Robert E. Reddish
Andrew Richardson
Kenneth Ridenour
John W. Robinson, Jr.
George R. Scoggins
Andrew W. Scribner
Omer L. Shaw
Herschel Sinclair
George H. Smith
Henry L. Smith
Paul T. Smith
Oliver E. Spears
Harry L. Spriggs
Herman Stanka
William L. Thomas
James O. Thompson
Leslie J. Tucker
Richard J. Walsh
Arthur Warren
Harold D. Wayham
Albert E. Wendle
Vincent J. Wendle
Clarence L. Wheaton
Robert E. Windle
Hollan T. Woolsey
Murray L. Voorhees
Korean War (1950-1953)
William A. Burke
Howard L. Carr
Elmer J. Carstens, Jr.
David Dell
Paul E. Depper
John D. Drainer
Darrell M. Duff
Edward Ennis
Thomas J. Fitzgibbons
Jack Forrester
Scott G. Gier
Joseph C. Johnson
John T. McCann
Howard W. Niemeyer
Everett L. Shaw
John T. Shelley
John J. Tracy
Everett H. Wade
Harold L. Waters
Vietnam War (1964-1975)
Thomas Abbot
Ernest H. Beneke
Dale P. Berthoux
Richard E. Branham
Delmiss O. Calvin
Ronald C. Criswell, Jr.
Aaron L. Darr
Eskell M. Daves
Robert C. DeCourcy
Hubert E. Gordon
David L. Hampton
Robert W. Hughes
Noel Hurley
Henry J. Kruse
Robert W. Madson
John A. Marsh
Val G. Meyer
Michael D. McClain
William F. Miller
Joseph J. Molloy
Howard W. Niemeyer
Robert A. Nelson
Leslie D. Nickels
Robert L. Paynter
Ronald E. Powers
Ivan Roth
John D. St. Peters
James O. Thomas
George C. Tohill, Jr.
Arthur L. Tucker
Gary L. Weller
Carl J. Wieneke
Joseph M. Williams
Jersey County Historical Society
601 N. State St.
Jerseyville, IL 62052
618-498-3514