BLACK HAWK GENERAL CIVIL WAR SHILOH COLONEL 61st IL INFANTRY SIGNED LETTER COVER

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BLACK HAWK GENERAL CIVIL WAR SHILOH COLONEL 61st IL INFANTRY SIGNED LETTER COVER:
$49.99

JACOB FRY

Commanded Abe Lincoln During the Black Hawk War!

(1799 - 1881)

CIVIL WAR BATTLE OF SHILOHUNION POW COLONEL and COMMANDER OF THE 61st ILLINOIS INFANTRY,

MAJOR GENERAL IN THE BLACKHAWK INDIAN WAR COMMANDING FUTURE PRESIDENT LINCOLN and PROMOTING HIM TOCAPTAIN

MEXICAN-AMERICAN WARCOLONEL!

Colonel Fry was acommander during the Black Hawk War and had under his command at that timeRobert Anderson (Ft. Sumter Commander), O. H. Browning (Browning repeating rifleand Mormon), Abraham Lincoln, and John Wood. Anderson who later would surrenderFt. Sumter at thebeginning of the War and later raise the Stars and Stripes once again above thefort at its\' surrender by the Confederacy. O. H. Browning is now famous for hiswork at the Rock Island Arsenal (contains a wonderful munitions museum of theCivil War now) and production of gun prototypes during the War Between the States.The Winchester repeating rifle is a copyright of his. Winchester himself diedof a heart attack, right before his meeting with Browning. Abe Lincoln waspromoted to Captain under Fry\'s leadership. John Wood would later becomeGovernor of Illinois. Col. Fry and his regiment never entered any armedconflict.

Colonel Jacob Fry organized the 61st in Carrollton and 3 full companies that were mustered Feb. 5, 1862.
Colonel Fry, an aged veteran of the Blackhawk War, was 61 years of age at the beginning of the war.
His notoriety followed him in being able to muster the 61st. He surely was close to Lincoln,
having commanded him in the Blackhawk War. He also was quite an orator from his political days.
He commanded the 61st in the battle of Shiloh, and on Oct. 10, 1862 Col. Fry was reassigned to
command the post at Trenton, where on the 20th of Dec., he was taken prisoner by Nathan Bedford Forrest and Paroled.

HERE’SA CIVIL WAR DATE SOLDIERS “DUE 3” COVER SIGNED BY JACOB FRY AS COLONEL OF THE61st ILLINOIS INFANTRY. FRY ENDORSE THE COVER IN HIS HAND:

“Soldiers letterJacob Fry Col. Commanding 61st Ill Vol”

THECOVER BEARS A CAIRO, ILLINOIS CIRCULAR DATE STAMP POSTMARK DATED JULY 15, 1862,AND CIRCULAR ‘DUE 3’ POST OFFICE HANDSTAMP.

The document cover measures5½” x 3” and is in Very Fine Condition.

ASCARCE ADDITION TO YOUR AMERICAN CIVIL WAR “COLONELS IN BLUE” MILITARYHISTORY AUTOGRAPH, MANUSCRIPT & EPHEMERA COLLECTION!

Biography of Union Colonel and Blackhawk War Gen.

Jacob Fry

General Jacob Fry, who built the first house in Carrollton and was one ofGreene county\'s most honored citizens, was born in Fayette county, Kentucky,September 20, 1799, spent the days of his boyhood and youth in his native stateand in early manhood went to Edwardsville. About 1819 he first visited Greene County,Illinois and at that time it is said that he made from boards split from awalnut tree the first coffin used in the county. Following his return to Alton,Illinois, he hewed the timber for the first millerected at that place. He had, however, been favorably impressed with Greenecounty and its possibilities and returned to this locality about the beginningof 1821.

He was a prominent man in the new county of Greene, promoting many of themovements which resulted in substantial growth and improvement and taking a veryactive part in its public life. He was a member of the first grand jury, wasdeputy sheriff in 1822 and was elected sheriff in 1828, filling the office forten years. He was married to Miss Emily.

General Fry served first as a Colonel in the Black Hawk War, while afterits close he was elected a major general of the militia. Further officialhonors awaited him, for in 1837 he was appointed commissioner of the Illinois& Michigan Canal and in 1856 was Collector of Customs at Chicago.

During the Rebellion he commanded a regiment which did valiant service at thebattle of Shiloh. In 1850 he crossed the plains to California and assisted J.D. Fry in the conduct of a store in the mining districts for a time.Subsequently they sold out and removed to Sacramento, where they opened ageneral mercantile establishment, which they conducted for some time.

In 1856, he and his son, Captain Fry returned to Illinois and for twoyears the General resided in Ottawa, La Salle county, but in 1858 he againlocated on the old homestead, six miles south of Carrollton, where he died in1882. The important part which he bore in the early development and latergrowth and progress of his county entitled him to distinctive mention as one ofits most honored pioneers and one to whom the county owes a debt of gratitude.

In his family were five children, but Captain William Fry is the onlysurviving son. James B., who was a graduate of the West Point Military Academyand continued in the regular army, took an active part in the war of theRebellion, during which time he was provost marshal general with headquartersat Washington, D. C. He was also actively engaged in the war. Sarah was thesecond of the family and William M. the third. Edward became a resident ofChicago and afterward of San Francisco, Cal.

Source:Past and present of Greene County, Illinois By Edward Miner, 1905

Gen. Fry was an original Democrat in his political views, and cast hisfirst vote for President Monroe. Soon after the organization of Greene County,he was made the first constable in the county, and later the first DeputySheriff, and held both offices simultaneously for six years.

At the outbreak of the Black Hawk war he became Lieutenant Colonel of Col.J. D. Henry\'s regiment, attached to Gen. Joseph Duncan\'s brigade. After theviolation of the first Black Hawk treaty Gen. Fry became the commander of aregiment under Gen. Whiteside. The term of service of this regiment expired,and Fry assisted to raise another, which was mustered into service by Maj.Robert Anderson, of Fort Sumter fame, and which contained a private soldier ofno less note in the later history of the State and country than AbrahamLincoln. In one of the former regiments commanded by him in this war the Hon.O.H. Browning, Judge Archibald Williams, the late Gov. John Wood, and others ofsubsequent distinction in our history, served as privates. At the close of theBlack Hawk war, Col. Fry returned to Greene County. During the session of theLegislature for 1836-7 he was appointed Commissioner of the Illinois andMichigan Canal, and then he took up his home at Lockport. He was reappointed atthe session of 1838-9, and again in 1840-1. He was closely allied with thehistory of the canal enterprise. When the canal passed into the hands of thebondholders he was made the Commissioner on the part of the State to settle upthe business and dispose of the forfeited property, the proceeds of whichamounted to $287,000. Under a new organization of the Canal Commissioners hewas made Trustee on the part of the State by appointment of Gov. Ford, andfinally retired in 1847 after having served in connection with the canalenterprise for ten years.

He went to California in 1850 and remained three years, during which timehe was elected to the Legislature of that State. He returned to Illinois in1853, and some few years later discovered and exposed the great canal-scripfraud, one of the loudest scandals known in the history of this State. In 1857Buchanan made him Collector of the Port of Chicago, a place he lost the nextyear through the jealousy of some of the President\'s friends, it was alleged,on account of the friendship existing between Fry and Douglas.

Fry then returned to Greene County and in 1861 raised the Sixty-firstregiment, and went into the service in March, 1862. He was in the battle ofShiloh, and was captured by Forest at Trenton, Tenn. In 1863 he resigned onaccount of ill health and failing sight and a year or two later he becameentirely blind.

Gen. Fry\'s wife was a daughter of Gen. James Turney, of Carrollton. His eldestchild is the wife of J. D. Fry, a wealthy Californian. His eldest son, Gen.James B. Fry is a West Point graduate, and has distinguished himself in thecountry\'s service. The second son, William M., is a citizen of Greene county,and the third of San Francisco.

The death of Gen. Fry removes one of the remakable men of the State. Thereare, indeed, few men left of the stock that flourished in Illinois when he wasin his prime.

Fry died on Jan. 27, 1881 and is buried in Oak Ridge Cemetery,Springfield, Sangamon County, Illinois (Block 7, 36).

Source:IL State Journal, Springfield, IL 1-29-1881; and Find a Grave.

SIXTY-FIRST INFANTRY
(Three Years)

Sixty-first Infantry. - Cols., Jacob Fry, Jerome B. Nulton;

Lieut.-Cols., Jacob Fry, Simon P. Ohr, Daniel Grass; Majors,

Simon P. Ohr, Daniel Grass, Jerome B. Nulton, Daniel S.

Keeley. This regiment was organized at Carrollton, three full

companies being mustered on Feb. 5 1862. On Feb. 21 the regi-

ment, still incomplete, moved to Benton barracks, Mo., and

there a sufficient number of recruits joined to make nine full

companies. On the first day at Shiloh 400 men of the 61st were

formed in line in time to receive the first assault of the en-

emy and they stood their ground for an hour and a quarter, un-

til every other regiment in the division had given way, when

they were ordered back. They were then ordered to support a

battery of the 1st Mo. artillery, and at 1 P.M.. were ordered

to the support of Gen. Hurlbut - coming to his support at a

very critical moment, and maintaining his line until relieved

by a fresh regiment, their ammunition being entirely exhausted.

When the second line was broken the regiment retired in good

order and took a position supporting the siege guns. Its loss

in this engagement was 80 killed, wounded and missing, includ-

ing 3 commissioned officers. In December 240 men of the regi-

ment proceeded by rail to Jackson, Tenn., where they moved out

on the Lexington road with the 43d Ill. and a detachment of

cavalry and took position at Salem cemetery. On the morning of

the 19th this force repulsed the enemy under Forrest, with 3

pieces of artillery and on receiving reinforcements from Gen.

Sullivan pursued the enemy some distance, after which they

returned to Bolivar. In Aug 1863, the regiment was ordered to

Arkansas, where it remained until Aug., 1864. It participated

in the combat at Clarendon on the White river, which resulted

in raising the blockade of that river made by the Confederate

Gen. Jo. Shelby. In the early part of the year 1864 enough of

the men re-enlisted to enable the regiment to retain its or-

ganization as a veteran regiment and on March 20 Co. K joined

the regiment from Camp Butler, Ill. On Aug. 14, the veterans

started to Illinois on veteran furlough leaving Co. K and the

recruits and non-veterans in camp at Devall\'s Bluff, Ark.

Returning to the front, the regiment was ordered to Tennessee,

and on Dec. 4 was engaged in the combat of Overall\'s creek, 3

miles from Murfreesboro. Three days later it was engaged in

the battle of Wilkinson\'s pike, or the \"Cedars,\" near Murfrees-

boro, where it signalized itself by a gallant charge over the

enemy\'s rail and dirt breast works, capturing the colors of a

Florida regiment and a number of prisoners. Out of about 200

men engaged the regiment lost in killed and wounded about 30.

The last action in which the regiment was engaged was on Dec.

15, 1864, when, numbering about 175, with a small squad of dis-

mounted cavalry and one company of the 1st Mich. engineers, it

was attacked about 8 miles out of Murfreesboro by an overwhelm-

ing force of Confederates under the command of Forrest. Over

half of the regiment were killed, wounded or taken prisoners.

In the latter part of June, 1865, the recruits of the 83d,

98th, and 123d Ill. infantry were transferred to the 61st,

filling its ranks nearly to the maximum, and on Sept. 8, 1865,

the regiment was mustered out at Nashville and started home.

Source: The Union Army, vol. 3

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