Grave of unknown soldier in Greenville, Missouri, taken by Jennie Moore
Deep in the hills of southeast Missouri, lies a mystery that thousands unknowingly pass by everyday. Under the shade of a skyscraping, generations old pine tree, lies a man who's identity has been lost to time. Although we don't know his name, we do know pieces of his story. This story has resonated with the citizens around, who then came together to protect and pay respects to him and his sacrifice.
Just a few hundred feet from the northbound lanes of US Highway 67, about 3 and 1/2 miles from Greenville, the unknown man rests. Here he has his own piece of serenity, called the Lonesome Pine Memorial. Where he lay, sits a raw granite stone with a plaque that reads "Unknown US Soldier, Civil War". Nearby, a flagpole with the stars and stripes flies proudly in the breeze. A sidewalk leads from a small parking area, to a lookout point of the grave, shown in the photo above. The grave and surrounding area are maintained by Wappapello Eagles 4066, Piedmont Eagles 4227, Wayne County Eagles 4187, VFW Post 3416, and American Legion Post 281. They have done a fantastic job upkeeping, and upgrading the memorial.
Grave of unknown soldier, taken by Jennie Moore
When I first caught wind of this man, my first thought was "What do we know about him?", and the truth is, not much. Regardless of not knowing even the most basic details of the soldier's personal identity, we do know enough to conclude his heroic identity.
The first confirmed reports of the unknown soldier and his gravesite appear in 1917-18, when Highway 23, now US Highway 67, was being constructed. (The next account is vital to the story, but does vaguely describe the discovery of the grave. This may disturb some audiences. Feel free to skip to the next paragraph.) Jeff Garner says on Facebook, "My Grandfather, Charles Franklin Gibbons (born 1901) was working on that highway about that same time. His dad, Joseph T. (Gibbons) was one of the supervisors as I remember the story, and they had their MO mule teams. My grandfather was driving a team when the head mule fell in a giant hole. They had to unhook the mule and get him out of the hole. When they did, they discovered he'd fallen into a grave. My grandfather took the shovel and lifted up the legs. He said it was a Civil War soldier unknown. The uniform cloth and buttons were still visible. He said the mule team was straddling a young pine tree, and they left it as a marker as to where the grave was. They moved the road bed over a few yards to avoid the grave, and kept up their work. So, my grandfather discovered the grave at the Lonesome Pine Memorial on Highway 67. I am fairly certain he said it was a blue uniform of a Union soldier."
A cousin of Jeff's, Jim Gibbons says, "I heard much of the same story, and was told it was state route 23 at the time. Dad said Grandpa (Joseph Gibbons) was working off his property taxes by supervising the road work. When Highway 67 was widened some time in the 1950's the grave would have been on the right of way and was not marked on the maps. Dad told one of the state engineers (Charles Ellinghouse Jr.) about the grave and where it was. They moved the new road over and built the rock embankment around it."
The Historical Wayne County, Missouri Facebook page added some of their thoughts on the topic. “I believe there are probably 2 other soldiers there as well. There was a skirmish in Greenville during the war. 5 Confederates were killed and 3 Union. The Confederates were buried in town, and presently marked. The Union were camped on the south side of the river out of town. Those 3 Union soldiers had to be buried somewhere in the vicinity. Yes the 5 Confederate are at Old Greenville. It’s my belief the 3 Union are at this site."
I found this theory of Historical Wayne County, Missouri's very interesting, and very plausible. According to reputable sources, there were two skirmishes at Greenville, just six days apart from one another. The first took place on July 20th, 1862 when Confederate forces arrived in Greenville. Also in Greenville, was a Union camp occupied by the Twelfth Missouri State Militia Calvary Companies B and G. Upon learning of this camp, the Confederates carried out a surprise attack as daylight broke. This resulted in a Union loss, forcing them to retreat. The Confederates made off with most of their rifles, 16 Savage revolvers, 50 pairs of holster pistols, and all of their horses. Four were killed, and five were wounded.
Two men present during the attack spoke on the event soon after. E. Francis, First Lieutenant Company B, Twelfth Regiment Cav., Mo. S. M. says, "Leeper's brother came in from Black River and reported that Deas and Reeves, or a part of their bands, had been and took some horses from him. They belonged to the same party that attacked the camp next morning. There had been guards on the east side of the camp, but were withdrawn after Major Lazear left. I know of no other cause for the guard being withdrawn than the confidence of the commanding officer that he could whip 500 men. I think that if the camp had been guarded as it should have been, and as there were men sufficient to have guarded it, that we could not have been surprised and could have whipped the rebels. The attack came from the southeast side of the camp. If a guard had been where it usually was I do not think a body of men could have passed them without being seen. There were over 100 men in camp at that time, but I cannot remember exactly the number reported."
October 29th, 1862 copy of New York Times newspaper
Sergt. James M. L. Jamieson, of lawful age, being sworn, says, "I reside in Saint Francis County, Missouri. Am now first Sergeant of Company B, Twelfth Regiment Cavalry, Missouri State Militia, commanded by Captain William T. Leeper. I was in camp near Greenville, Mo., on the morning of July 20, at the time the attack was made on said camp. I was in camp all the night before. On the night before the attack there were 3 pickets between the camp and town at the spring, and 3 on the Fredericktown road, up the river from the camp. The first 3 were on the river below the camp, and 3 camp guards and 1 corporal. This was all the guards that I have any knowledge of being out that night. These were the only guards we had out after Major Lazear left the camp, or at least there were no others out that night or the night before. I think Major Lazear left the camp some time between July 10 and 20. Some few days before the camp was attacked Captain Leeper said to me that we would have to keep a sharp lookout, for that we would be attacked, for they knew our strength, and that would be the place they would attack. I don't think a proper guard was kept at that point. There were at that time considerably over 100 men in camp."
The second skirmish took place on July 26th, 1862, however, I could not find as many details on the matter. We do know that the skirmish involved the Third and Twelfth Missouri State Militia Calvary. It was another Union loss, with two more men killed, and six wounded.
The chances of the unknown soldier being one of these Union casualties, is fairly high. If that is the case, we can add another piece to the puzzle, as we know which regiments, even down to the possible company, he may have belonged to. We can imagine what life would have been like for the unknown soldier, by analyzing the lives of men in the Union Army during this time.
Another reason I believe may contribute to the lack of information on the identity and burial of the soldier (along with the other unaccounted for Union casualties) is the poor luck of the Wayne County Courthouse in Greenville. In 1866, records were stolen from the courthouse, and never recovered. Then on December 14th, 1892, a fire broke out, destroying a portion of the records. Perhaps any documentation containing the names, burials, or acknowledgements of the unknown soldier were lost during these events.
Myself leaving a flower arrangement at the grave, photographed by Colleen Gallagher
Even with the information we do have, it tends to leave us with more questions than answers. We may never know the true identity of the unknown soldier, but that isn't a requirement when preserving his memory. His identity, or lack of thereof, doesn't subtract from the sacrifice he made. Our soldier is one who left behind all he had, to fight for unity, and a better future for the United States. He may have wondered as he passed that day if what he had done was worth the hardship, or if his one life made a difference. I hope he is able to watch the visitors pay their respects, and thank him, to answer that question. Even without a name, or details of his life, he brings our community together 160 years later. That is a true hero.
Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed. This article was a bit different than my past work, because it involves a bit more hypothesis opposed to solid facts. Though this site spoke to me, and I knew I had to write a piece on it. I feel it is worth sharing, regardless of what we are missing. If you are interested in visiting the Lonesome Pine Memorial, I will leave the directions below!
Directions: If you are traveling south on Highway 67, you will have to drive about a mile past the site and then return on the north bound lanes to access it. You will see the large pine tree in the clearing before you reach the right turn. Parking is available at the site.
Coordinates: 37°5'37"N 90°27'23"W
