Captain JOHN F. FRENCH, Co. K, 86th Illinois
John F. French was born on Oct. 31, 1838 in Princeville, Illinois, the son of Stephen French & Anna (____________) French. In 1828, Stephen French was the first settler to move his family into what became known as Prince's Grove in in Peoria County. The settlement that eventually grew up here became what is now known as Princeville, Illinois in Princeville Township. John's older brother, Dimmick, is believed to be the first white child born in Peoria County, having been born about 1824. John F. French grew to manhood farming the land beside his father. He is found farming with his parents at the time of the 1860 census. John was well educated for his day and loved to read. John is believed to have started teaching school in Princeville about 1861. During the winter of 1861-62, he was teaching school in a school located about two miles west of Princeville, Illinois. John boarded in Princeville and rode a horse back and forth.
In the summer of 1862, after President Abraham Lincoln made his appeal for more soldiers, John F. French made the decision to try and raise a company of just Princeville boys. John got a couple early volunteers, but he officially started recruiting on August 7, 1862 and by the end of the first day, 40 Princeville men and boys had signed the recruitment roster.
A Stark County history has the following to say about the creation of Co. K. "The distinctively Princeville company was started in August, 1862. On that date Congressman Ebon Clark Ingersoll (brother to Bob) came out from Peoria to hold a "war meeting." Julius S. Starr accompanied him in the hope of getting recruits for a Peoria company, and recruit hunters were present also from Chillicothe and other places. The meeting was held in the old Methodist Episcopal Church, then on the corner southwest of the public square. The crowd was so large that the windows were taken to enable men to hear on the outside. After the speaking the crowd gathered on the public square, when Clark Ingersoll got on a wagon and proposed a Princeville Company. John McGinnis began fifing and led a march around the "liberty pole." Others fell in, a few at a time, until there were fifty men marching around and around the "liberty pole." Then they paraded to Dr. Charles's office, got out a table in the center of the room, and signed the muster roll. Within forty-eight hours the roll was increased to 98 men. This was Company K of the Eighty-Sixth Regiment, Illinois Infantry. John F. French was elected Captain, James B. Peet, First Lieutenant and H. F. Irwin, Second Lieutenant."
By the 13th day of August, including himself, 101 Princeville men and boys had volunteered. At 8:00 A.M. on August 13th, John formed up the Princeville volunteers. John's friend and colleague, Levi A. Ross, himself a Princeville area school teacher and a Princeville volunteer, started a journal the day he volunteered. Of that day Levi wrote, "Hundreds of citizens from the vicinity of Princeville came to town to see us start and bid us a tearful goodbye. Mothers, wives, sisters, lovers, friends, all, all mingled in one weeping, mourning throng." After several speeches and more goodbyes, 101 volunteers left Princeville, bound for the Peoria County Fairgrounds 20 miles away.
The Peoria County Fairgrounds had been selected as one of two sites in Peoria to assemble the various regiments. Initially called Camp Mather, now Camp Lyon, after General Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union General to be killed in combat in August of 1861, Camp Lyon was located about one mile from the Peoria Public Square, across the street from what is today Glen Oak Park. Levi A. Ross described the camp thusly. "Horse stalls for sleeping bunks. Plenty of straw. Comfortable quarters and plenty to eat."
The men received their first uniforms on the 15th of August and began learning the drills of the day. According to Levi A. Ross, who was soon elected to fill one of the Corporal postions, the majority of Co. K were "War or Douglas Democrats." In those days, Civil war companies elected their own officers. The elected officer had to be approved by the Regimental Commander, but, it was rair that an elected officer was disapproved. Ross states further that, "The result of the election of Company Officers was quite natural. Three Democrats were chosen, J. F. French, Captain; J. B. Peet, 1st Lieut.; H. J. Irwin, 2nd Lieut." Of Captain French, Levi A. Ross, who was also a Princeville area School Teacher and friend of John F. French, wrote on August 12, 1862 that, "French was a worthy young man who enjoyed the esteem and confidence of everybody. He and I were long-time friends......He and I were associated together as brothers, prodogogues, and in literary societies." Ross' opinion of Peet and Irwin was not the same.
ILLINOIS CIVIL WAR DETAIL REPORT
Name FRENCH, JOHN F
Rank CPT Company K Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL Age 23 Height 5' 10 Hair BROWN
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT Marital Status SINGLE Occupation FARMER
Nativity PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862 Joined Where PRINCEVILLE, IL
Joined By Whom CPT FRENCH Period 3 YRS
Muster In AUG 27, 1862 Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom N/A Muster Out N/A
Muster Out Where N/A Muster Out By Whom N/A
Remarks KILLED IN BATTLE OF AVERYSBORO NC MAY 16, 1865
On August 27, 1865, after being examined by a Regimental Surgeon, French and 95 of his volunteers were mustered into the service. French's name was the last of ten to be pulled out of a hat, so the Princeville company was assigned as Co. K of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry. On September 6, 1862, weapons were issued, the 86th receiving Model 1854 Austrian Lorenz Rifled Muskets. The following day at 8:00 A.M. September 7, 1862, over 1,800 soldiers of the 85th and 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Peoria and Camp Lyon, respectively, through the streets of Peoria to the Railroad Depot, bound for as Ross stated, "the seat of war in Kentucky."
On September 7, 1862, the men of the 86th Illinois marched, Capt. John F. French leading Co. K, out of Camp Lyon, through the streets of Peoria, with much fanfare, and boarded a train bound for Camp Joe Holt, Jeffersonville, Indiana. Two weeks later, the men of the 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Col. Daniel McCook's Brigade, chasing the last Confederate troops in Kentucky. On Oct. 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those troops in the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, the 86th Illinois suffering the first of many casualties to come. After the Union victory at Perryville, the Confederate Army withdrew from Kentucky and McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp.
During these next two and a half years, John led the Princeville boys as the men of the 86th served in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina. During this time, John was witness to and a participant in numerous battles and skirmishes, some of the bloodiest fighting in the Western Theatre of the war, including the Battles of Chicakamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia; Rome, Georgia, Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia; Peach Tree Creek, Georgia; Jonesboro, Georgia; to name a few and marched with Sherman to the Sea.
On March 16, 1865, during the Carolina Campaign that was to help bring the war to a close, the 86th was engaged in what became known as the Battle of Averysboro, NC (aka Averysborough, Smith's Mill, or Black River). Sgt. Ross made the following entry for the 16th of March. "A pretty serious day for Co. 'K'. We found the enemy strongly entrenched at Averysboro, N.C. Co. K was sent out to the skirmish line and soon provoked a fire from the enemy. A number of the boys were wounded and Capt. French killed. I hastened to his side. The ball entered at his shoulder and ranged downward. He was lying with his face down when hit, hence, the ball reached his vital parts. As I crawled to his side, he raised his hand to take mine, saying: 'Orderly, take good care of the boys. I've got my death shot.' Four of us carried him back to the tent hospital where he lingered until nearly midnight, going off to sleep under the influence of morphine. I undertook to watch by his side, and dropped off into a deep sleep. When I awoke my Captain and friend had also fallen into a deep sleep from which from which it will require the trump of Gabriel to awake him." Captain French had recruited and led this company of Princeville boys for nearly three years and now just days before the war would come to an end, Capt. French was dead. Capt. John F. French died about 4:00 A.M. in a field hospital on the Averysboro Battlefield. On March 17th, Ross wrote, "Buried Capt. French today on the field where he received the fatal shot. All of Co. K was in attendance, and our Chaplain (Joseph F. Millsap, also from Princeville) officiated. After the war, Ross made a note here. "After our return home in June, 1865, John Dukes was sent for the remains of Capt. French and Chas. Alter (who also was killed at the Battle of Bentonville, N. C. on March 19, 1865. This was the last battle of the for General Sherman's Army.), and both were buried in Princeville, Illinois.
One last note: On March 27, 1865, Levi A. Ross, made the following entry in his journal. "An election was had today by Co. K to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Capt. French. First Sergeant, Levi A. Ross was honored with a unanimous vote, by ballot, of his comrades composing Co. K to be Captain of his company. There was but one vote against me and that I cast myself, for that warm friend and sterling soldier, Corporal Patrick Burnes." Thus the surviving members of Co. K came home under the command of Captain Levi A. Ross, Captain John F. French's friend, colleague and fellow Princeville School Teacher.
(I am guessing that in late June or early July, Co. K's Wagoneer, John Dukes returned with the earthly remains of Capt. John F. French and Charles E. Alter. They were laid to rest in the Princville Township Cemetery. Capt. French and Pvt. Charles E. Alter were never married.)
by Baxter B. Fite III
(Baxter would enjoy hearing from anyone, especially descendants of the French family, who might be able to add to the biography of Capt. John F. French or the French family and would especially enjoy getting copies of other photographs of Capt. French for his Find A Grave site and for the Princeville Historical Society.)
John F. French was born on Oct. 31, 1838 in Princeville, Illinois, the son of Stephen French & Anna (____________) French. In 1828, Stephen French was the first settler to move his family into what became known as Prince's Grove in in Peoria County. The settlement that eventually grew up here became what is now known as Princeville, Illinois in Princeville Township. John's older brother, Dimmick, is believed to be the first white child born in Peoria County, having been born about 1824. John F. French grew to manhood farming the land beside his father. He is found farming with his parents at the time of the 1860 census. John was well educated for his day and loved to read. John is believed to have started teaching school in Princeville about 1861. During the winter of 1861-62, he was teaching school in a school located about two miles west of Princeville, Illinois. John boarded in Princeville and rode a horse back and forth.
In the summer of 1862, after President Abraham Lincoln made his appeal for more soldiers, John F. French made the decision to try and raise a company of just Princeville boys. John got a couple early volunteers, but he officially started recruiting on August 7, 1862 and by the end of the first day, 40 Princeville men and boys had signed the recruitment roster.
A Stark County history has the following to say about the creation of Co. K. "The distinctively Princeville company was started in August, 1862. On that date Congressman Ebon Clark Ingersoll (brother to Bob) came out from Peoria to hold a "war meeting." Julius S. Starr accompanied him in the hope of getting recruits for a Peoria company, and recruit hunters were present also from Chillicothe and other places. The meeting was held in the old Methodist Episcopal Church, then on the corner southwest of the public square. The crowd was so large that the windows were taken to enable men to hear on the outside. After the speaking the crowd gathered on the public square, when Clark Ingersoll got on a wagon and proposed a Princeville Company. John McGinnis began fifing and led a march around the "liberty pole." Others fell in, a few at a time, until there were fifty men marching around and around the "liberty pole." Then they paraded to Dr. Charles's office, got out a table in the center of the room, and signed the muster roll. Within forty-eight hours the roll was increased to 98 men. This was Company K of the Eighty-Sixth Regiment, Illinois Infantry. John F. French was elected Captain, James B. Peet, First Lieutenant and H. F. Irwin, Second Lieutenant."
By the 13th day of August, including himself, 101 Princeville men and boys had volunteered. At 8:00 A.M. on August 13th, John formed up the Princeville volunteers. John's friend and colleague, Levi A. Ross, himself a Princeville area school teacher and a Princeville volunteer, started a journal the day he volunteered. Of that day Levi wrote, "Hundreds of citizens from the vicinity of Princeville came to town to see us start and bid us a tearful goodbye. Mothers, wives, sisters, lovers, friends, all, all mingled in one weeping, mourning throng." After several speeches and more goodbyes, 101 volunteers left Princeville, bound for the Peoria County Fairgrounds 20 miles away.
The Peoria County Fairgrounds had been selected as one of two sites in Peoria to assemble the various regiments. Initially called Camp Mather, now Camp Lyon, after General Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union General to be killed in combat in August of 1861, Camp Lyon was located about one mile from the Peoria Public Square, across the street from what is today Glen Oak Park. Levi A. Ross described the camp thusly. "Horse stalls for sleeping bunks. Plenty of straw. Comfortable quarters and plenty to eat."
The men received their first uniforms on the 15th of August and began learning the drills of the day. According to Levi A. Ross, who was soon elected to fill one of the Corporal postions, the majority of Co. K were "War or Douglas Democrats." In those days, Civil war companies elected their own officers. The elected officer had to be approved by the Regimental Commander, but, it was rair that an elected officer was disapproved. Ross states further that, "The result of the election of Company Officers was quite natural. Three Democrats were chosen, J. F. French, Captain; J. B. Peet, 1st Lieut.; H. J. Irwin, 2nd Lieut." Of Captain French, Levi A. Ross, who was also a Princeville area School Teacher and friend of John F. French, wrote on August 12, 1862 that, "French was a worthy young man who enjoyed the esteem and confidence of everybody. He and I were long-time friends......He and I were associated together as brothers, prodogogues, and in literary societies." Ross' opinion of Peet and Irwin was not the same.
ILLINOIS CIVIL WAR DETAIL REPORT
Name FRENCH, JOHN F
Rank CPT Company K Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL Age 23 Height 5' 10 Hair BROWN
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT Marital Status SINGLE Occupation FARMER
Nativity PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862 Joined Where PRINCEVILLE, IL
Joined By Whom CPT FRENCH Period 3 YRS
Muster In AUG 27, 1862 Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom N/A Muster Out N/A
Muster Out Where N/A Muster Out By Whom N/A
Remarks KILLED IN BATTLE OF AVERYSBORO NC MAY 16, 1865
On August 27, 1865, after being examined by a Regimental Surgeon, French and 95 of his volunteers were mustered into the service. French's name was the last of ten to be pulled out of a hat, so the Princeville company was assigned as Co. K of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry. On September 6, 1862, weapons were issued, the 86th receiving Model 1854 Austrian Lorenz Rifled Muskets. The following day at 8:00 A.M. September 7, 1862, over 1,800 soldiers of the 85th and 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Peoria and Camp Lyon, respectively, through the streets of Peoria to the Railroad Depot, bound for as Ross stated, "the seat of war in Kentucky."
On September 7, 1862, the men of the 86th Illinois marched, Capt. John F. French leading Co. K, out of Camp Lyon, through the streets of Peoria, with much fanfare, and boarded a train bound for Camp Joe Holt, Jeffersonville, Indiana. Two weeks later, the men of the 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Col. Daniel McCook's Brigade, chasing the last Confederate troops in Kentucky. On Oct. 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those troops in the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, the 86th Illinois suffering the first of many casualties to come. After the Union victory at Perryville, the Confederate Army withdrew from Kentucky and McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp.
During these next two and a half years, John led the Princeville boys as the men of the 86th served in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina. During this time, John was witness to and a participant in numerous battles and skirmishes, some of the bloodiest fighting in the Western Theatre of the war, including the Battles of Chicakamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia; Rome, Georgia, Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia; Peach Tree Creek, Georgia; Jonesboro, Georgia; to name a few and marched with Sherman to the Sea.
On March 16, 1865, during the Carolina Campaign that was to help bring the war to a close, the 86th was engaged in what became known as the Battle of Averysboro, NC (aka Averysborough, Smith's Mill, or Black River). Sgt. Ross made the following entry for the 16th of March. "A pretty serious day for Co. 'K'. We found the enemy strongly entrenched at Averysboro, N.C. Co. K was sent out to the skirmish line and soon provoked a fire from the enemy. A number of the boys were wounded and Capt. French killed. I hastened to his side. The ball entered at his shoulder and ranged downward. He was lying with his face down when hit, hence, the ball reached his vital parts. As I crawled to his side, he raised his hand to take mine, saying: 'Orderly, take good care of the boys. I've got my death shot.' Four of us carried him back to the tent hospital where he lingered until nearly midnight, going off to sleep under the influence of morphine. I undertook to watch by his side, and dropped off into a deep sleep. When I awoke my Captain and friend had also fallen into a deep sleep from which from which it will require the trump of Gabriel to awake him." Captain French had recruited and led this company of Princeville boys for nearly three years and now just days before the war would come to an end, Capt. French was dead. Capt. John F. French died about 4:00 A.M. in a field hospital on the Averysboro Battlefield. On March 17th, Ross wrote, "Buried Capt. French today on the field where he received the fatal shot. All of Co. K was in attendance, and our Chaplain (Joseph F. Millsap, also from Princeville) officiated. After the war, Ross made a note here. "After our return home in June, 1865, John Dukes was sent for the remains of Capt. French and Chas. Alter (who also was killed at the Battle of Bentonville, N. C. on March 19, 1865. This was the last battle of the for General Sherman's Army.), and both were buried in Princeville, Illinois.
One last note: On March 27, 1865, Levi A. Ross, made the following entry in his journal. "An election was had today by Co. K to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Capt. French. First Sergeant, Levi A. Ross was honored with a unanimous vote, by ballot, of his comrades composing Co. K to be Captain of his company. There was but one vote against me and that I cast myself, for that warm friend and sterling soldier, Corporal Patrick Burnes." Thus the surviving members of Co. K came home under the command of Captain Levi A. Ross, Captain John F. French's friend, colleague and fellow Princeville School Teacher.
(I am guessing that in late June or early July, Co. K's Wagoneer, John Dukes returned with the earthly remains of Capt. John F. French and Charles E. Alter. They were laid to rest in the Princville Township Cemetery. Capt. French and Pvt. Charles E. Alter were never married.)
by Baxter B. Fite III
(Baxter would enjoy hearing from anyone, especially descendants of the French family, who might be able to add to the biography of Capt. John F. French or the French family and would especially enjoy getting copies of other photographs of Capt. French for his Find A Grave site and for the Princeville Historical Society.)
Captain JOHN F. FRENCH, Co. K, 86th Illinois
John F. French was born on Oct. 31, 1838 in Princeville, Illinois, the son of Stephen French & Anna (____________) French. In 1828, Stephen French was the first settler to move his family into what became known as Prince's Grove in in Peoria County. The settlement that eventually grew up here became what is now known as Princeville, Illinois in Princeville Township. John's older brother, Dimmick, is believed to be the first white child born in Peoria County, having been born about 1824. John F. French grew to manhood farming the land beside his father. He is found farming with his parents at the time of the 1860 census. John was well educated for his day and loved to read. John is believed to have started teaching school in Princeville about 1861. During the winter of 1861-62, he was teaching school in a school located about two miles west of Princeville, Illinois. John boarded in Princeville and rode a horse back and forth.
In the summer of 1862, after President Abraham Lincoln made his appeal for more soldiers, John F. French made the decision to try and raise a company of just Princeville boys. John got a couple early volunteers, but he officially started recruiting on August 7, 1862 and by the end of the first day, 40 Princeville men and boys had signed the recruitment roster.
A Stark County history has the following to say about the creation of Co. K. "The distinctively Princeville company was started in August, 1862. On that date Congressman Ebon Clark Ingersoll (brother to Bob) came out from Peoria to hold a "war meeting." Julius S. Starr accompanied him in the hope of getting recruits for a Peoria company, and recruit hunters were present also from Chillicothe and other places. The meeting was held in the old Methodist Episcopal Church, then on the corner southwest of the public square. The crowd was so large that the windows were taken to enable men to hear on the outside. After the speaking the crowd gathered on the public square, when Clark Ingersoll got on a wagon and proposed a Princeville Company. John McGinnis began fifing and led a march around the "liberty pole." Others fell in, a few at a time, until there were fifty men marching around and around the "liberty pole." Then they paraded to Dr. Charles's office, got out a table in the center of the room, and signed the muster roll. Within forty-eight hours the roll was increased to 98 men. This was Company K of the Eighty-Sixth Regiment, Illinois Infantry. John F. French was elected Captain, James B. Peet, First Lieutenant and H. F. Irwin, Second Lieutenant."
By the 13th day of August, including himself, 101 Princeville men and boys had volunteered. At 8:00 A.M. on August 13th, John formed up the Princeville volunteers. John's friend and colleague, Levi A. Ross, himself a Princeville area school teacher and a Princeville volunteer, started a journal the day he volunteered. Of that day Levi wrote, "Hundreds of citizens from the vicinity of Princeville came to town to see us start and bid us a tearful goodbye. Mothers, wives, sisters, lovers, friends, all, all mingled in one weeping, mourning throng." After several speeches and more goodbyes, 101 volunteers left Princeville, bound for the Peoria County Fairgrounds 20 miles away.
The Peoria County Fairgrounds had been selected as one of two sites in Peoria to assemble the various regiments. Initially called Camp Mather, now Camp Lyon, after General Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union General to be killed in combat in August of 1861, Camp Lyon was located about one mile from the Peoria Public Square, across the street from what is today Glen Oak Park. Levi A. Ross described the camp thusly. "Horse stalls for sleeping bunks. Plenty of straw. Comfortable quarters and plenty to eat."
The men received their first uniforms on the 15th of August and began learning the drills of the day. According to Levi A. Ross, who was soon elected to fill one of the Corporal postions, the majority of Co. K were "War or Douglas Democrats." In those days, Civil war companies elected their own officers. The elected officer had to be approved by the Regimental Commander, but, it was rair that an elected officer was disapproved. Ross states further that, "The result of the election of Company Officers was quite natural. Three Democrats were chosen, J. F. French, Captain; J. B. Peet, 1st Lieut.; H. J. Irwin, 2nd Lieut." Of Captain French, Levi A. Ross, who was also a Princeville area School Teacher and friend of John F. French, wrote on August 12, 1862 that, "French was a worthy young man who enjoyed the esteem and confidence of everybody. He and I were long-time friends......He and I were associated together as brothers, prodogogues, and in literary societies." Ross' opinion of Peet and Irwin was not the same.
ILLINOIS CIVIL WAR DETAIL REPORT
Name FRENCH, JOHN F
Rank CPT Company K Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL Age 23 Height 5' 10 Hair BROWN
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT Marital Status SINGLE Occupation FARMER
Nativity PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862 Joined Where PRINCEVILLE, IL
Joined By Whom CPT FRENCH Period 3 YRS
Muster In AUG 27, 1862 Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom N/A Muster Out N/A
Muster Out Where N/A Muster Out By Whom N/A
Remarks KILLED IN BATTLE OF AVERYSBORO NC MAY 16, 1865
On August 27, 1865, after being examined by a Regimental Surgeon, French and 95 of his volunteers were mustered into the service. French's name was the last of ten to be pulled out of a hat, so the Princeville company was assigned as Co. K of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry. On September 6, 1862, weapons were issued, the 86th receiving Model 1854 Austrian Lorenz Rifled Muskets. The following day at 8:00 A.M. September 7, 1862, over 1,800 soldiers of the 85th and 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Peoria and Camp Lyon, respectively, through the streets of Peoria to the Railroad Depot, bound for as Ross stated, "the seat of war in Kentucky."
On September 7, 1862, the men of the 86th Illinois marched, Capt. John F. French leading Co. K, out of Camp Lyon, through the streets of Peoria, with much fanfare, and boarded a train bound for Camp Joe Holt, Jeffersonville, Indiana. Two weeks later, the men of the 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Col. Daniel McCook's Brigade, chasing the last Confederate troops in Kentucky. On Oct. 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those troops in the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, the 86th Illinois suffering the first of many casualties to come. After the Union victory at Perryville, the Confederate Army withdrew from Kentucky and McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp.
During these next two and a half years, John led the Princeville boys as the men of the 86th served in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina. During this time, John was witness to and a participant in numerous battles and skirmishes, some of the bloodiest fighting in the Western Theatre of the war, including the Battles of Chicakamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia; Rome, Georgia, Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia; Peach Tree Creek, Georgia; Jonesboro, Georgia; to name a few and marched with Sherman to the Sea.
On March 16, 1865, during the Carolina Campaign that was to help bring the war to a close, the 86th was engaged in what became known as the Battle of Averysboro, NC (aka Averysborough, Smith's Mill, or Black River). Sgt. Ross made the following entry for the 16th of March. "A pretty serious day for Co. 'K'. We found the enemy strongly entrenched at Averysboro, N.C. Co. K was sent out to the skirmish line and soon provoked a fire from the enemy. A number of the boys were wounded and Capt. French killed. I hastened to his side. The ball entered at his shoulder and ranged downward. He was lying with his face down when hit, hence, the ball reached his vital parts. As I crawled to his side, he raised his hand to take mine, saying: 'Orderly, take good care of the boys. I've got my death shot.' Four of us carried him back to the tent hospital where he lingered until nearly midnight, going off to sleep under the influence of morphine. I undertook to watch by his side, and dropped off into a deep sleep. When I awoke my Captain and friend had also fallen into a deep sleep from which from which it will require the trump of Gabriel to awake him." Captain French had recruited and led this company of Princeville boys for nearly three years and now just days before the war would come to an end, Capt. French was dead. Capt. John F. French died about 4:00 A.M. in a field hospital on the Averysboro Battlefield. On March 17th, Ross wrote, "Buried Capt. French today on the field where he received the fatal shot. All of Co. K was in attendance, and our Chaplain (Joseph F. Millsap, also from Princeville) officiated. After the war, Ross made a note here. "After our return home in June, 1865, John Dukes was sent for the remains of Capt. French and Chas. Alter (who also was killed at the Battle of Bentonville, N. C. on March 19, 1865. This was the last battle of the for General Sherman's Army.), and both were buried in Princeville, Illinois.
One last note: On March 27, 1865, Levi A. Ross, made the following entry in his journal. "An election was had today by Co. K to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Capt. French. First Sergeant, Levi A. Ross was honored with a unanimous vote, by ballot, of his comrades composing Co. K to be Captain of his company. There was but one vote against me and that I cast myself, for that warm friend and sterling soldier, Corporal Patrick Burnes." Thus the surviving members of Co. K came home under the command of Captain Levi A. Ross, Captain John F. French's friend, colleague and fellow Princeville School Teacher.
(I am guessing that in late June or early July, Co. K's Wagoneer, John Dukes returned with the earthly remains of Capt. John F. French and Charles E. Alter. They were laid to rest in the Princville Township Cemetery. Capt. French and Pvt. Charles E. Alter were never married.)
by Baxter B. Fite III
(Baxter would enjoy hearing from anyone, especially descendants of the French family, who might be able to add to the biography of Capt. John F. French or the French family and would especially enjoy getting copies of other photographs of Capt. French for his Find A Grave site and for the Princeville Historical Society.)
John F. French was born on Oct. 31, 1838 in Princeville, Illinois, the son of Stephen French & Anna (____________) French. In 1828, Stephen French was the first settler to move his family into what became known as Prince's Grove in in Peoria County. The settlement that eventually grew up here became what is now known as Princeville, Illinois in Princeville Township. John's older brother, Dimmick, is believed to be the first white child born in Peoria County, having been born about 1824. John F. French grew to manhood farming the land beside his father. He is found farming with his parents at the time of the 1860 census. John was well educated for his day and loved to read. John is believed to have started teaching school in Princeville about 1861. During the winter of 1861-62, he was teaching school in a school located about two miles west of Princeville, Illinois. John boarded in Princeville and rode a horse back and forth.
In the summer of 1862, after President Abraham Lincoln made his appeal for more soldiers, John F. French made the decision to try and raise a company of just Princeville boys. John got a couple early volunteers, but he officially started recruiting on August 7, 1862 and by the end of the first day, 40 Princeville men and boys had signed the recruitment roster.
A Stark County history has the following to say about the creation of Co. K. "The distinctively Princeville company was started in August, 1862. On that date Congressman Ebon Clark Ingersoll (brother to Bob) came out from Peoria to hold a "war meeting." Julius S. Starr accompanied him in the hope of getting recruits for a Peoria company, and recruit hunters were present also from Chillicothe and other places. The meeting was held in the old Methodist Episcopal Church, then on the corner southwest of the public square. The crowd was so large that the windows were taken to enable men to hear on the outside. After the speaking the crowd gathered on the public square, when Clark Ingersoll got on a wagon and proposed a Princeville Company. John McGinnis began fifing and led a march around the "liberty pole." Others fell in, a few at a time, until there were fifty men marching around and around the "liberty pole." Then they paraded to Dr. Charles's office, got out a table in the center of the room, and signed the muster roll. Within forty-eight hours the roll was increased to 98 men. This was Company K of the Eighty-Sixth Regiment, Illinois Infantry. John F. French was elected Captain, James B. Peet, First Lieutenant and H. F. Irwin, Second Lieutenant."
By the 13th day of August, including himself, 101 Princeville men and boys had volunteered. At 8:00 A.M. on August 13th, John formed up the Princeville volunteers. John's friend and colleague, Levi A. Ross, himself a Princeville area school teacher and a Princeville volunteer, started a journal the day he volunteered. Of that day Levi wrote, "Hundreds of citizens from the vicinity of Princeville came to town to see us start and bid us a tearful goodbye. Mothers, wives, sisters, lovers, friends, all, all mingled in one weeping, mourning throng." After several speeches and more goodbyes, 101 volunteers left Princeville, bound for the Peoria County Fairgrounds 20 miles away.
The Peoria County Fairgrounds had been selected as one of two sites in Peoria to assemble the various regiments. Initially called Camp Mather, now Camp Lyon, after General Nathaniel Lyon, the first Union General to be killed in combat in August of 1861, Camp Lyon was located about one mile from the Peoria Public Square, across the street from what is today Glen Oak Park. Levi A. Ross described the camp thusly. "Horse stalls for sleeping bunks. Plenty of straw. Comfortable quarters and plenty to eat."
The men received their first uniforms on the 15th of August and began learning the drills of the day. According to Levi A. Ross, who was soon elected to fill one of the Corporal postions, the majority of Co. K were "War or Douglas Democrats." In those days, Civil war companies elected their own officers. The elected officer had to be approved by the Regimental Commander, but, it was rair that an elected officer was disapproved. Ross states further that, "The result of the election of Company Officers was quite natural. Three Democrats were chosen, J. F. French, Captain; J. B. Peet, 1st Lieut.; H. J. Irwin, 2nd Lieut." Of Captain French, Levi A. Ross, who was also a Princeville area School Teacher and friend of John F. French, wrote on August 12, 1862 that, "French was a worthy young man who enjoyed the esteem and confidence of everybody. He and I were long-time friends......He and I were associated together as brothers, prodogogues, and in literary societies." Ross' opinion of Peet and Irwin was not the same.
ILLINOIS CIVIL WAR DETAIL REPORT
Name FRENCH, JOHN F
Rank CPT Company K Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL Age 23 Height 5' 10 Hair BROWN
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT Marital Status SINGLE Occupation FARMER
Nativity PRINCEVILLE, PEORIA CO, IL
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862 Joined Where PRINCEVILLE, IL
Joined By Whom CPT FRENCH Period 3 YRS
Muster In AUG 27, 1862 Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom N/A Muster Out N/A
Muster Out Where N/A Muster Out By Whom N/A
Remarks KILLED IN BATTLE OF AVERYSBORO NC MAY 16, 1865
On August 27, 1865, after being examined by a Regimental Surgeon, French and 95 of his volunteers were mustered into the service. French's name was the last of ten to be pulled out of a hat, so the Princeville company was assigned as Co. K of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry. On September 6, 1862, weapons were issued, the 86th receiving Model 1854 Austrian Lorenz Rifled Muskets. The following day at 8:00 A.M. September 7, 1862, over 1,800 soldiers of the 85th and 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Peoria and Camp Lyon, respectively, through the streets of Peoria to the Railroad Depot, bound for as Ross stated, "the seat of war in Kentucky."
On September 7, 1862, the men of the 86th Illinois marched, Capt. John F. French leading Co. K, out of Camp Lyon, through the streets of Peoria, with much fanfare, and boarded a train bound for Camp Joe Holt, Jeffersonville, Indiana. Two weeks later, the men of the 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Col. Daniel McCook's Brigade, chasing the last Confederate troops in Kentucky. On Oct. 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those troops in the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, the 86th Illinois suffering the first of many casualties to come. After the Union victory at Perryville, the Confederate Army withdrew from Kentucky and McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp.
During these next two and a half years, John led the Princeville boys as the men of the 86th served in Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and North Carolina. During this time, John was witness to and a participant in numerous battles and skirmishes, some of the bloodiest fighting in the Western Theatre of the war, including the Battles of Chicakamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia; Rome, Georgia, Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia; Peach Tree Creek, Georgia; Jonesboro, Georgia; to name a few and marched with Sherman to the Sea.
On March 16, 1865, during the Carolina Campaign that was to help bring the war to a close, the 86th was engaged in what became known as the Battle of Averysboro, NC (aka Averysborough, Smith's Mill, or Black River). Sgt. Ross made the following entry for the 16th of March. "A pretty serious day for Co. 'K'. We found the enemy strongly entrenched at Averysboro, N.C. Co. K was sent out to the skirmish line and soon provoked a fire from the enemy. A number of the boys were wounded and Capt. French killed. I hastened to his side. The ball entered at his shoulder and ranged downward. He was lying with his face down when hit, hence, the ball reached his vital parts. As I crawled to his side, he raised his hand to take mine, saying: 'Orderly, take good care of the boys. I've got my death shot.' Four of us carried him back to the tent hospital where he lingered until nearly midnight, going off to sleep under the influence of morphine. I undertook to watch by his side, and dropped off into a deep sleep. When I awoke my Captain and friend had also fallen into a deep sleep from which from which it will require the trump of Gabriel to awake him." Captain French had recruited and led this company of Princeville boys for nearly three years and now just days before the war would come to an end, Capt. French was dead. Capt. John F. French died about 4:00 A.M. in a field hospital on the Averysboro Battlefield. On March 17th, Ross wrote, "Buried Capt. French today on the field where he received the fatal shot. All of Co. K was in attendance, and our Chaplain (Joseph F. Millsap, also from Princeville) officiated. After the war, Ross made a note here. "After our return home in June, 1865, John Dukes was sent for the remains of Capt. French and Chas. Alter (who also was killed at the Battle of Bentonville, N. C. on March 19, 1865. This was the last battle of the for General Sherman's Army.), and both were buried in Princeville, Illinois.
One last note: On March 27, 1865, Levi A. Ross, made the following entry in his journal. "An election was had today by Co. K to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Capt. French. First Sergeant, Levi A. Ross was honored with a unanimous vote, by ballot, of his comrades composing Co. K to be Captain of his company. There was but one vote against me and that I cast myself, for that warm friend and sterling soldier, Corporal Patrick Burnes." Thus the surviving members of Co. K came home under the command of Captain Levi A. Ross, Captain John F. French's friend, colleague and fellow Princeville School Teacher.
(I am guessing that in late June or early July, Co. K's Wagoneer, John Dukes returned with the earthly remains of Capt. John F. French and Charles E. Alter. They were laid to rest in the Princville Township Cemetery. Capt. French and Pvt. Charles E. Alter were never married.)
by Baxter B. Fite III
(Baxter would enjoy hearing from anyone, especially descendants of the French family, who might be able to add to the biography of Capt. John F. French or the French family and would especially enjoy getting copies of other photographs of Capt. French for his Find A Grave site and for the Princeville Historical Society.)
Inscription
26 Yrs, 4 Ms, 18 Ds
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