| Birth: | Apr. 12, 1831
Putnamville
Essex County
Massachusetts, USA | | Death: | Jan. 3, 1916
Council Bluffs
Pottawattamie County
Iowa, USA | 
Grenville Dodge passed through Council Bluffs, Iowa in August 1859 on a surveying job to find the best route to lay railroad tracks through Nebraska. He first met Abraham Lincoln at the Pacific House, an early hotel in the city, during that visit. Lincoln was at the time an undeclared candidate for president for the 1860 elections, and was in Council Bluffs to take a look at a piece of land he'd acquired through a debt. Dodge told Lincoln everything he knew about the surrounding country, which Lincoln kept in his memory till he needed someone to take over the management of the laying of railroad tracks for the Union Pacific lines. In 1863, Lincoln summoned Dodge from his post as Major General in the Union Army during the Civil War to take over the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad. He reached the 100 meridian on October 6, 1866, well before the opposition. Because of this, Dodge can be credited with putting Union Pacific and Omaha, Nebraska in the history books, despite his living and dying in Council Bluffs, since Union Pacific chose Omaha for their headquarters and assured it's continued existence. The General Dodge house is located in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and is a magnificent example of a Victorian mansion, and is open to daily tours.
Family links:
Spouse:
Ruth Ann Brown Dodge (1833 - 1916)
Children:
Lettie Dodge Montgomery (1855 - 1935)*
Eleanor Dodge Pusey (1858 - 1931)*
Anne Dodge (1866 - 1950)*
*Calculated relationship
Search Amazon for Grenville Dodge | | | Burial:
Walnut Hill Cemetery
Council Bluffs
Pottawattamie County
Iowa, USA
Plot: Section 5, Lot 2 |
Maintained by: Find A Grave
Record added: Sep 17, 2000
Find A Grave Memorial# 12605 |
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(3.9 after 37 votes)
