This page is for descendants of men who did not serve in any of the Federal regiments mentioned previously, and were not engaged in the battle of Milliken’s Bend in June 1863. They may have served in the general vicinity, however.  This page also is for individuals who may have been hospitalized at Van Buren General Hospital (for whites) or Contraband General Hospital (for blacks). Both of these Union hospitals were at Milliken’s Bend.  Please note that although many thousands of Union soldiers passed through Milliken’s Bend, only the regiments listed on the preceding page were engaged in the battle on June 7.


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Descendants – Other Union soldiers — 33 Comments

  1. My great grandfather, George Coleman (Union) died there March, 1863 from illness-?disentery. Do you know where he might have been buried? Thanks for any help.

    • My understanding is that most of the Union burials in the area of Milliken’s Bend were reinterred at Vicksburg National Cemetery. I have also been told that some (I think from further westward in the state) may have been buried in the Alexandria (Louisiana) National Cemetery. You might want to check at those locations.

      • I just read your message about history of Millimens Bend and would appreciate anything. I found somewhere that some remains were transferr (I think) to Fort Cambell,?Ky.

        • I’ve never heard anything about remains going to KY. If soldiers were evacuated to other hospitals (and then died), most often it would have been to Memphis. There is a national cemetery there, too. Some might have gone as far north as Cairo, IL; Keokuk, IA; or St. Louis, MO.
          You may have in mind Camp Nelson, KY, which served as a “contraband camp” for fleeing slaves from that general region.

  2. My 2nd great grandfathers brothers Albert Hildreth & Levi served in the 10th Infantry G company at Millikens Bend. Albert was killed there and I have searched the two above mentioned cemeteries, Alexandria National Cemetery and Vicksburg National Cemetery with no such luck. Would you have another suggestion for where to look for his grave site?
    Thank you Jennifer Terrio

    • Jennifer – Thanks for stopping by. Those would be the two main National Cemeteries – it’s entirely possible – and I might even say, likely – that he could be buried at Vicksburg National Cemetery in a grave marked “unknown.” Most of the reburials took place after the war, and by then, any markers (probably wooden) that may have been erected in 1863 could have rotted away – or in the case of Milliken’s Bend – been taken away by floodwaters. I assume that you are referring to the 10th Louisiana Infantry, African Descent, correct? They were actually not at Milliken’s Bend, but a bit north, near Lake Providence. It’s possible that Albert may have been treated at one of the hospitals at Milliken’s Bend. Do you have any further details at all about his death? Does it give a hospital? Some of the wounded were evacuated by hospital boat,so if that was the circumstance, he may have been buried elsewhere. Also, it may depend too on his race – was he a black enlisted man, or a white officer?

      • A lot of locals who fought at Milliken Bend, may have been buried in AA cemetaries along with other family members. I heard my GG grandfather’s brother was. Both fought at Milliken Bend.

  3. Again a story of a split family. My g-g-grandfather, Archibald Hoover was killed at Sharpsburg as a member Co.C, 48th Regiment NC Troops and 2 brothers were wounded with 1 taken prisoner. Yet another brother was John Jefferson Hoover, died in Mar 1863 of Smallpox, at Milliken’s Bend, Louisiana as a member of the Union forces before the main battle.

    • John Jefferson Hoover is my ggg grandmother. I’m doing doing family history and this adds much to the story of Millliken’s Bend. Thanks, Cousin John!

  4. Three of my GG Grandfather’s brothers were in Company H, 32nd Missouri Regiment. One, Samuel Wolfe, died from Scurvy and Dysentery at Millikin’s Bend LA, one died at Vicksburg and is buried at the National Cemetery there, and one made it all through the war. I am planning a trip to Vicksburg in April to see the Cemetery and Battlefield. I have been trying to find where Samuel would have been buried. Its sad to think he may have been washed away. I will check the national cemeteries but not holding out much hope. Is there anything left of the area where the hospital would have been?

    • It’s very possible that Samuel’s body may have been moved after the war from the Milliken’s Bend area to the Vicksburg National Cemetery. If you are unable to find his name on the grave locator on line, it’s equally possible that he may be one of the many unknowns that are buried there. I am not aware of the site of the hospital or its burying grounds surviving to today.

  5. My relative, Prvt Squire Thompson is recorded to have died at Milliken’s Bend, LA. Prvt Squire Thompson is listed as killed on two different dates, May 11, 1863 and August 3, 1863. He was in the Ohio 89th Regiment, Company G.

    • Thanks Mitch. I’m not sure how to explain the two different dates, though I imagine he was probably in the hospital at Milliken’s Bend and died there, probably of disease. There’s nothing to indicate he was involved in the actual fighting of June 7, as the 89th Ohio was not a regiment involved or stationed at Milliken’s Bend at the time of the battle.
      (I’ve moved your comment to this page for “Descendants of Other Union Soldiers” because it was originally posted on the page for the 23rd Iowa Infantry).

  6. My ancestor, who came to Milliken’s Bend to die on 5 May 1863, did die in the battle, but what was going on there in May? Joshua Clevenger probably died of disease, as did his brother, Seth, in Murfreesboro the following year.

    • Ellen –
      I’ve moved your inquiry to the “Other Union Descendants” page, rather than the geographical page about Milliken’s Bend. I am assuming you ancestor was a Union soldier if he died at Milliken’s Bend since there was a Union hospital there. The main battle at Milliken’s Bend occurred on June 7, 1863. If your ancestor died on May 5, then he may have been wounded at Port Gibson (May 1), as Grant’s army crossed into Mississippi. It seems likely that some of the casualties may have been evacuated to Milliken’s Bend. If you have the regiment that your ancestor served in, seek out a regimental history to learn more about where they served and what actions they were involved in. The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors system – with a link for regiments – can be a great place to start: https://www.nps.gov/civilwar/soldiers-and-sailors-database.htm

  7. My Great,Great Grandfather Thomas Jefferson Lind was with D company of the US 13th infantry. He was hospitalized April 3rd 1863 to June 11th 1863 and again June 18th 1863 to September 4th 1863. He survived the war but his illness caught up with him in 1881.

  8. James D. Maynard died 25 March 1863 from typhoid fever on the Floating Ship Nashville in the State of Louisiana. The military has the record, his widow was notified but his grave has never been found. Is it possible dead soldiers from the hospital ship were buried in Milliken’s Bend or vicinity in this time frame?

    • Hi Shirley, thank you for your inquiry. I’ve moved your inquiry to this descendants page since many others here have similar questions. I think it is possible that he could have been buried at Milliken’s Bend, because there was a hospital there, and therefore undoubtedly a burial site, but I think it is also equally possible that he could have been buried just about anywhere there was a Union army outpost along the river. There was also a hospital at Young’s Point, just downriver; burials could have also been made as far north as Memphis or St. Louis, since his death occurred aboard a hospital ship on the Mississippi River. I think the key will be to try to find out exactly where the Nashville was on his date of death. A suggestion would be to inquire with the National Archives https://www.archives.gov/contact and see if you can get information or a copy of the logbook from the Nashville for the week of his death. That might give you some good info in terms of where to look. Keep in mind that many wartime burials were after the war then reinterred at National Cemeteries, sometimes quite far from the original place of interment. Also, by the time of the reburials, many men were listed simply as “unknown” since any grave markings had deteriorated by then.

  9. My 3X great grandfather was Walter K Lowery. He and his brother Francis M Lowery were both in the 69th Indiana Volunteers Company I. Their unit was suppose to be involved in the Battle of Milliken’s Bend. Francis M Lowery was wounded there. The information I was told was that the 69th Indiana Volunteers were a part of the Battle of Milliken’s Bend as well as the assault at Vicksburg on May 22, 1863. On May 23,1863, another 3X great grandfather, John McKinnsey, who was in the same unit (69th Indiana Volunteers Company I) died from the injury he received on May 22, and he is buried at the Vicksburg’s National Cemetery. Can you confirm that the 69th Indiana Volunteers Company I participated in such an important battle?

    • No, the 69th was not in the battle of Milliken’s Bend on June 7, 1863. However, they were at that location in the spring of 1863. There was a Federal hospital there, and it could be that Francis was at the hospital at some time, as well. Milliken’s Bend was a major staging area for Grant’s army prior to their crossing into the state of Mississippi in early May. Dyer’s Compendium is my source for confirming the 69th’s locations

  10. Hi, My ancestor, Pardy Isaac Wood died of smallpox at Millikens Bend before the battle. He was a sgt with the Iowa 31st company c. Is there or was there a cemetery there that he might be interred in? He died in March of 1863 and I know the battle was in June. Thank you for any information.
    Allen

    • Hi Allen – I’ve moved your comment here to information about other Union soldiers not present at the battle on June 7. There are several possibilities for his burial – but the most likely would be that he was reinterred after the war at Vicksburg National Cemetery. If you have not already, I would encourage you to request his service records from the National Archives.

  11. My gr-gr-gr grandfather James Madison Rowley died in the Van Buren Hospital June 4, 1863. He was in the 10th Missouri Infantry Company H. I believe I found his grave at Vicksburg National Cemetery, however his last name is spelled Rouley on his headstone. He left behind an orphan daughter, my gr-gr- grandmother. I obtained copies of some letters he had written while waiting outside of Memphis December 1862 through February 1863. Fascinating stuff.

  12. I am looking for decedents of Major David B Briggs, 113 regiment, I believe in company C. He died in the Van Buren hospital at Millikan Bend in December 1864. His wife’s name was Olive and he had 3 children who’s names were Ida,Dudley, and Jenny.

    • Hi Debi – Thanks for stopping by. I’m afraid I don’t know anything about other men who died at Van Buren General Hospital, but you may wish to check with Vicksburg National Cemetery. Men who died in the region were later reinterred there, although many of them are now marked “unknown.” Best wishes in your search.

  13. Hello all,

    I just discovered my 2nd great granduncle, Benjamin Flickinger, of 120th Ohio Infantry, Company G, died 15 Apr 1863 at Milliken’s Bend due to disease. I am assuming based on this he was probably at Van Buren Hospital. I tried to look him up at the Vicksburg Military Cemetery, but there are no Flickinger’s buried there. I’m guessing he was listed as unknown, which would be too bad since his military records confirm his death location.

    Christina

    • Hi Christina – Thanks for stopping by and writing about Benjamin. Van Buren Hospital seems to have been a large operation, with thousands of soldiers coming through there. Of course, many did not survive. I think you are likely correct in assuming that he may be buried as “unknown” at Vicksburg. Most of the soldiers who had been buried near the hospital during the war were not reinterred at Vicksburg National Cemetery until 1866-1867. Given the humidity and frequent floods in the area, by that time, it is very likely that any rudimentary headstone (probably a simple wooden board) would have decayed or been obscured by the time of disinterment.

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