Roger Davis, Keokuk
Civil War historian, recently gave me a list of Lee County veterans
from that conflict. On the list was the name John Drain, a man who
served with the 65th U.S. Colored Infantry. What got my attention
wasn't the name or the unit with which he served, but his death date of
February 28, 1940.
Intrigued by the fact that a man who served in a conflict nearly 150
years ago died just seven years before I was born, I went to the
library and looked up his obituary and discovered that Drain led a long
and remarkable life.
According to the Daily Gate City obituary of February 29, 1940, Drain
was born a slave on January 9, 1844, in Clark County, Mo. Owned by a
Judge Llewlyn, Drain lived on his master's farm until the judge moved
from Clark to Montgomery County. At age 18 he ran away from the slave
home and traveled under the cover of darkness through bitterly cold
weather to reach Union forces at Wellsville, Mo.
Shortly after enlistment Drain, with about 150 other recruits, traveled
by box car with no heat and only straw on the floor to St. Louis. Drain
and the others were mustered into the 67th Regiment of U. S. Colored
Volunteers. After training, the soldiers were shipped to Helena, Ark.,
where the regiment engaged with Rebel forces in several small
skirmishes. Later, the regiment was nearly annihilated by Confederate
forces at Port Hudson. All the officers were killed and the men were
run over by the Rebel cavalry and were cut to pieces. Drain escaped by
running into a bayou.
From there he made his way to the Mississippi River where he walked and
crawled under the bank of the river until meeting up with Union forces
farther upriver. Drain later saw combat in several other battles until
the regiment was sent to New Orleans. Eventually, Drain was mustered
out of the service at Baton Rouge in January 1867.
Upon returning to civilian life, Drain took up farming in Missouri and
eventually helped to found Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo.
Much of his later life was spent in Keokuk where he was an active
member of the Bethel A.M.E. Church. According to the obituary, one of
Drain's most treasured memories was when he traveled to the Gettysburg
battlefield in 1938 with his son where he encamped with thousands of
other Civil War veterans.
Drain died February 28, 1940, at the home of his daughter in Montgomery
City, Mo. His body was returned to Keokuk where it laid in state at
Greaves Mortuary until buried in Keokuk's Oakland Cemetery.
The Lee County Veterans Project will conduct a brief ceremony at
Drain's grave at 9 a.m. Saturday. The public is invited to attend this
tribute to Lee County's last surviving Civil War veteran.
With the Civil War sesquicentennial only three years away, it would be
fitting if local historical groups would gather together and start
planning festivities to commemorate this important period in our
history. Keokuk played a significant role in the struggle that occurred
from 1861 to 1865. More than 300 Civil War veterans are buried in
Keokuk's Oakland Cemetery and hundreds more in the National Cemetery,
making it quite possible that Keokuk could hold the distinction of
having more burials from that conflict than any other town our size in
the United States.
Hopefully, we can honor these men that lie within our city with
ceremonies and tributes that will bring honor and glory for the
sacrifices these men made in the War of the Rebellion.
The Grand Army of the Republic is a patriotic association, organized in
the interest of the survivors of the military and naval forces of the
Civil War.
Name of Post, Pratt; Location, Keokuk; Commander, John Drain; Members,
15
From IAGenWeb's Iowa
in the Civil War
**********************************************
Lee County Honors Civil War Veteran
Daily Gate City
Friday, June 6, 2008
A ceremony honoring John Drain, Lee County's last Civil War veteran,
was conducted April 26 at Oakland Cemetery, Keokuk.
The event, complete with taps, remarks and wreath placement at Drain's
grave, was sponsored by the Lee County Veterans Project.
John Drain was born a slave on Jan. 9, 1844, in Clark County, Mo.,
according to a biography furnished by the Lee County Veteran's Project.
We've gathered today to pay a long overdue thank you to a most
remarkable man who escaped the shameful sin of slavery, the memory of
which still shackles the spirit of America's past, said Terry
Altheide, member of the Veterans Project and president of the Lee
County Pioneer Cemetery Association.
According to the biography, on a January night during the Civil War,
the 18-year-old Drain ran away from his home at the Clark County farm
and joined nearby Union Army forces.
He traveled by box car to St. Louis, Mo., for military training and was
shipped, along with the soldiers of the 67th Regiment of the U.S.
Colored Volunteers, to Helena, Ark.
There, Drain and his fellow soldiers skirmished with Rebel forces.
The 67th Regiment later was nearly wiped out by Rebel Calvary at the
battle of Port Hudson, La. The battle was one of many that would give
control of the Mississippi River to the Union.
Officers were cut down and many of the enlisted men were cut to pieces
by the rampaging (Cavalry) soldiers, according to the biography.
Drain escaped and made his way to the Union Army, fought in later
battles and was discharged in 1867.
After farming for a while and helping found Lincoln University in
Jefferson City, Mo., he moved to Keokuk and lived there for several
years.
Later he moved to Montgomery County, Mo., to live with his daughter.
Two years before he died, Drain and his son, Alonzo, attended a reunion
at the Gettysburg Battlefield, camping with thousands of Civil War
veterans.
He died on February 28, 1940, in Montgomery at the age of 96.
Drain was laid in state at Greaves Mortuary, Keokuk, prior to his
burial at Oakland Cemetery, according to the biography.
During the ceremony for Drain, the Rev. Deb Letcher, pastor of Bethel
Church, Keokuk, led the invocation. Delores Bradley of Keokuk placed
the wreath and Basil Reed of V.F.W. Post 3508 presented the flag.
The 2nd Iowa Artillery comprised the honor guard and Taylor Young of
Donnellson played Taps.
The Lee County Veterans Project can be contacted at 524-8772 and P.O.
Box 201, Keokuk, IA 52632.
Contributed by Terry Altheide, a member of the Lee County Pioneer
Cemetery Association |
