(NOTE: Ezekial Brown probably never had his portrait taken prior to the Civil War. However, during the 10 month period that the 86th Illinois was in the Nashville, Tennessee area in 1862-63, Ezekial, like most of the Union soldiers in the Nashville area, probably took the time to sit for a portrait to send home to the loved ones that he left behind. These portraits were most often printed in the form of what was called a CDV, a paper picture glued to a heavier card stock about the size of a modern day baseball card, and the soldiers didn't just have one or two copies made. Most of the time, they had a dozen or more made, so they could swap pictures with their tentmates, messmates and for their friends, in the 86th and back home.
Ezekial Brown survived the war and lived well into the 20th century. During his life, Ezekial probably had his picture taken dozens of times, if not hundreds of times. I would dearly love to see a copy of that CDV added to his Find A Grave site for all with an interest to see, but in the mean time, I would just be thrilled to see some pictures of him added to his Find A Grave Memorial, even ones of him as an old man. Can anyone help me? Thanks, Baxter)
Private EZEKIEL A. BROWN, Co. I, 86th Illinois
Ezekial Brown was born on July 15, 1837 in Jefferson County, Ohio, the son of Henry Allen Brown and Jane (Maple) Brown. Henry Allen Brown was born on ____________ __, 1793 in either Maryland or Pennsylvania, the 1850 census says Maryland, while Jane Maple was born c. 1804/05 in Ohio. Henry and Jane were married on December 16, 1821 in Jefferson County, Ohio.
At the time of the 1850 census, the Browns are found in Brush Creek, Jefferson County, Ohio;
Henry Brown M 56 Maryland
Jane Brown F 45 Ohio
George Brown M 18 Ohio
Margaret Brown F 17 Ohio
Isabel Brown F 16 Ohio
Ezekiel Brown M 14 Ohio
Catharine Brown F 9 Ohio
Sarah Brown F 6 Ohio
Alice Brown F 5 Ohio
Henry Allen Brown died on January 6, 1854 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio. See his Find A Grave Memorial# 68117365.
Jane (Maple) Brown was married 2nd on June 29, 1857 to William Bradford in Guernsey County, Ohio. William and Jane moved to Indiana where Jane died about 1870 in Richmond County Indiana. Her burial has not been located.
Now to continue with the biography of Ezekiel Brown;
Ezekiel Brown was married to Ruth Fuller on June 26, 1856 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Ruth Fuller was born on January 21, 1830 in Guernsey County, Ohio. She is believed to be the daughter of Thomas R. Fuller (1798 - 1877) and Mary (Johnston) Fuller (1796 - 1872).
At the time of the 1850 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thos R Fuller M 50 Virginia
Mary Fuller F 54 Unknown
Catharine Fuller F 30 Ohio
Sarah Fuller F 27 Ohio
Elisabeth Fuller F 25 Ohio
Ephraim Fuller M 23 Ohio
Susan Fuller F 18 Ohio
Jemima Fuller F 1 Ohio
Catharine Johnson F 75 Ohio
At the time of the 1860 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling Tp, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thomas R Fuller M 60 Pennsylvania
Mary Fuller F 65 Pennsylvania
Jemima Fuller F 22 Ohio
Ionis Fuller (Jonas?) M 15 Ohio
Samuel Fuller M 12 Ohio
Anne Fuller F 9 Ohio .
Ruth Fuller was the mother of two son's out of wedlock, before she married Ezekiel Brown in 1856. They were Jonas J. Fuller, born 2 Jan 1846 & Samuel A. Fuller, born about 1848. According to Ruth's will, Ruth had two illegitimate children when she was in her teens before her marriage to Ezekiel Brown. According to her Will, Jonas Fuller & Samuel Fuller are her two son's named "Fuller" before she married Ezekiel Brown. Sarah & Jonas followed the Brown's to Nebraska, but as passed down thru the family, Ezekiel Brown never allowed Jonas to be in his house. Ruth's will excluded Jonas & Samuel and their children from receiving any of the Ezekiel Brown's estate.
The children born to Ezekial and Ruth include;
1. Mary Jane Brown, born ___________ __, 1857 in Ohio. Jane was married to ___________ Lytle. Mary Jane (Brown) Lytle died on ____________ __, 1945.
2. Henry Brown, born July 29, 1859 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Henry died on July 3, 1861 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio next to those of his grandfather, Henry Allen Brown. See Henry Brown's Find A Grave Memorial# 68117634.
3. Margaret "Maggie" Brown, born July 16, 1862 in Peoria County, Illinois. Maggie never married. Margaret Brown lived alone in the village of Elk Creek, Nebraska in Johnson County and died on ____________ __, 1950, her mortal remains being laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial# 55518138.
4. Sarah Alice "Sallie" Brown Stover (1865 - 1951)
5. Grant William Brown (1867 - 1953)
6. George Thomas Brown (1869 - 1948)
7. Amy Catherine Brown, born July 24, 1872 in Johnson County, Nebraska. Amy was married to Sherman Fuller. Amy and Sherman were the parents of 9 children. At the time of the 1910 census, Amy and her family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska;
Shurman L Fuller Head M 45 Illinois
Amy Fuller Wife F 38 Nebraska
Ada Fuller Daughter F 16 Nebraska
Ruth Fuller Daughter F 14 Nebraska
Myrtle Fuller Daughter F 12 Nebraska
Daisy Fuller Daughter F 9 Nebraska
Charley Fuller Son M 7 Nebraska
Elmer Fuller Son M 5 Nebraska
Johnie Fuller Son M 2 Nebraska
Amy Catherine (Brown) Fuller died on 22 Feb 1962 in Tecumseh, Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial #55518187 for more information about her and her family.
(Note: Amy is Bob Fuller's grandmother. Bob stated that "I have a double line back to the Fuller's as Fuller cousins married.")
Ezekial and his family must be residing in Wheeling Township of Guernsey County, Ohio at the time of the 1860 census, but, I have been unable to locate them. Sometime between the summer of 1861 and the summer of 1862, Ezekial and Ruth moved their family west to Illinois, where they settled in southwest Peoria County, near the village of Lancaster, Illinois.
On August 7, 1862, Ezekial Brown volunteered at Lancaster, Illinois to serve in a company which was being raised in the Lancaster, Illinois/Timber-Hollis Township area of Peoria County by a well known business man and Lancaster area merchant, Allen L. Fahnestock for service in the Union army.
ILLINOIS STATE ARCHIVES
Illinois Civil War Detail Report
Name BROWN, EZEKIEL A Rank PVT
Company I Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence LANCASTER, PEORIA CO, IL
Age 25 Height 6' 1 1/2 Hair LIGHT
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT
Marital Status MARRIED Occupation FARMER
Nativity JEFFERSON CO, OH
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862
Joined Where LANCASTER, IL
Joined By Whom A L FAHNESTOCK
Period 3 YRS Muster In AUG 27, 1862
Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom
Muster Out
Muster Out Where
Muster Out By Whom
Remarks DISCHARGED JAN 22, 1865 AT MOUND CITY ILL FOR WOUNDS PVTD IN ACTION AT KENESAW MOUNTAIN GA
When Fahnestock had about 100 volunteers he led his company into Peoria, where they went into camp at Camp Lyon, near present day Glen Oak Park. Fahnestock was elected Captain of the men of the Timber Township company and on August 27, 1862, Fahnestock, and 96 of the other Timber Township volunteers, including now Private Ezekial A. Brown, were mustered in as Company I of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
The men of the 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Lyon on September 7, 1862, with much fanfare, through the streets of Peoria down to the railroad depot. Somewhere in the throng may have been Ezekial's wife, Ruth, who had just given birth to their 3rd child, less than two months before. At the depot, the men of the 86th were joined by the men of the 85th Illinois, who had been mustered into service at Camp Peoria. Together, at the depot, the men of the 85th & 86th Illinois boarded trains bound for Camp Joe Holt in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which was located across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. Three weeks later the men of the 85th & 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Colonel Daniel McCook's Brigade chasing Confederate troops. On October 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those Confederate troops during the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, suffering their first casualties. There would be many more in the next few years.
After the Battle of Perryville, the Confederate forces withdrew from Kentucky, while the men of McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp. Of this time, Kinnear in his history of the 86th wrote, "On the 9th of December the command was marched to Nashville, taking up camp there, and put on duty about the city. About this time was led a sad and disagreeable life, even more so than at any other time. The boys were new in their profession and entirely ignorant as to what conveniences a soldier might have even under circumstances so trying, and in consequence, were compelled to render themselves most unhappy. Some twenty odd men would live in the same tent, cook from a camp kettle swung in the middle of it, make their beds on the damp ground, frequently without even straw or boards under them. Snow fell, and the cold, keen winds of winter whistled without, while the poor soldiers lay cold and damp within."
Kinnear continued, "Many were taken ill and died from this exposure; more died and were discharged during this winter than in all our previous and after term of service. The hospitals were yet without proper organization, the sick in them improperly cared for, for war was as yet a new thing poorly understood and carried on. The Icelander, in his frigid and icy home of the far north, in his primeval ignorance, could not have lived in greater exposure than did the soldiers at this time. The regiment was called upon to do a great deal of duty, such as picketing about the city---a business that is anything but pleasant where there are a number of generals and other fancy officers to be looked after. While on duty at this place the battles of Stone River were fought. There was an exciting time in Nashville during this eventful period; everything was hurry and bustle. The wounded and skulkers came back in great numbers, each bearing his own report."
Kinnear continued, "During these battles the troops in and about the city had to be in line of battle at 3 o'clock in the morning; it mattered not what was the condition of the elements, it was all the same thing; and certainly, if anything would provoke a soldier to feelings of wrath, this kind of business would. The first one is to be heard from who ever got used to it."
During the next two years, Private Ezekial A. Brown would serve faithfully in Co. I as the men of McCook's Brigade served in Tennessee and Georgia. During this time, Samuel 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 Chickamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia and Rome, Georgia. By the middle of June of 1864, General William T. Sherman's army, of which McCook's Brigade was a part, was closing in on the prize of the summer, Atlanta, Georgia, a key railroad hub.
On the morning of June 27, 1864, the men of McCook's Brigade found themselves in the trenches across from Cheatham Hill on Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia. The five Union Regiments of McCook's Brigade were formed in line of battle, one regiment stacked behind the other, the 86th Illinois third in line. It was hoped that this formation would allow the Union Brigade to punch a hole in the Confederate line, each regiment giving some protection to the regiment in back of it. At 8:00 a.m. when the signal gun fired, the men of the brigade stepped off and moved down a hill, crossed a small stream and then moved through a wheat field before beginning the climb up Cheatham Hill and the Confederate breastworks toward an angle in the Confederate line that was soon to be called "The Dead Angle." The following assault, which proved to be only partially successful, lasted less than 30 minutes. On the evening of June 27, 1864, Sgt. Levi A. Ross, a member of Co. K of the 86th Illinois, wrote the following of the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. "Our forces rushed upon the rebels five lines deep and in fifteen minutes were hurled back, by them, leaving 2500 brave Union Soldiers dead within twenty feet of the Enemy's works. The loss in the 86th was 106 -- in our Brig. over 400. Among the killed in Co. K was our Orderly Sergeant Buchanan, shot in the head and died without speaking. He was a brave man."
As the men of McCook's Brigade fell back from the Confedererate fortifications, they were forced to leave most of their dead and wounded behind. These bodies laid between the lines until the 29th when a truce was called so the Union could bury it's dead because the smell from the decomposing bodies became so horrible, that neither side could stand it any longer.
Company I suffered more than their share of the 106 casualties. In less than 30 minutes, Co. I had three men killed in action and had thirteen more wounded. Of the wounded, two would die of their wounds within a month. Among the wounded was Private Ezekial A. Brown, who was severely wounded in a shoulder, according to Allen L. Fahnestock's diary entry for the day. Which should is not listed.
Private Ezekial A. Brown was initially sent to the rear to a field hospital and then was soon sent back north to a General Hospital at Mound City, Illinois. By the middle of January of the year 1865, the army doctors felt Private Brown had recovered enough to be sent home and on January 22, 1865, after having served his country in uniform for almost 2 and a half years, Private Ezekial A. Brown was discharged from the service there at Mound City and he returned home to his family.
In the spring of 1870, Ezekial and Ruth again made the decision to move further west and they moved the family west to Nebraska, where they settled in Johnson County. At the time of the 1870 census, Ezekial and his family are found in Todd Creek Township, Johnson County, Nebraska;
E A Brown M 32 Ohio
Ruth Brown F 40 Ohio
Jane Brown F 13 Ohio
Margret Brown F 8 Illinois
Sarah A Brown F 4 Illinois
William Brown M 3 Illinois
George L Brown M 0 Illinois
At the time of the 1880 census, Ezekiel and his family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska, where he is farming;
Ezekial A Brown Self M 44 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F 47 Ohio
Margaret Brown Daughter F 17 Illinois
Sallie Brown Daughter F 15 Illinois
Grant Brown Son M 12 Illinois
George Brown Son M 10 Illinois
Amy Brown Daughter F 8 Nebraska
In 1887, some of the surviving members of the 86th Illinois organized and held a reunion of the old 86th during the week of August 27, 1887, the 25th Anniversary of the mustering in of the 86th back in 1862. More than 130 surviving members of the regiment attended that first reunion, which was such a success, that it was decided to continue those reunions as long as possible. The only reunion that Private Ezekial A. Brown was ever able to attend was the reunion of 1889. The distance to be traveled was undoubtedly a factor in this. At that 1889 reunion, 18 members of old "Co. I" attended that reunion, the most of any reunion held through the years. Private Ezekial A. Brown got to spend some time with some of his old mess mates, some of whom he had probably not seen since the war. It was, sadly, probably to prove to be the last time he would ever see most of them, if not any of them, when he left for his return to Nebraska.
At the time of the 1900 census, Ezekiel and Ruth are found in Todd Creek Precinct, Elk Creek village, Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth is listed as being the mother of 7 children total, six of whom are living. If she had two children before she was married, she is not claiming them or is not being allowed to claim them;
Ezekiel A Brown Head M Jul 1837 63 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F Jan 1830 70 Ohio
Private Ezekiel A. Brown died on December 1, 1911 in ___________, Nebraska and his mortal remains were laid in the Grand View Cemetery in Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth (Fuller) Brown died on November 1, 1916 in Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid beside those of her husband of 55 years.
by Baxter B. Fite III and Bob Fuller, whose email address is [email protected]
Ezekial Brown survived the war and lived well into the 20th century. During his life, Ezekial probably had his picture taken dozens of times, if not hundreds of times. I would dearly love to see a copy of that CDV added to his Find A Grave site for all with an interest to see, but in the mean time, I would just be thrilled to see some pictures of him added to his Find A Grave Memorial, even ones of him as an old man. Can anyone help me? Thanks, Baxter)
Private EZEKIEL A. BROWN, Co. I, 86th Illinois
Ezekial Brown was born on July 15, 1837 in Jefferson County, Ohio, the son of Henry Allen Brown and Jane (Maple) Brown. Henry Allen Brown was born on ____________ __, 1793 in either Maryland or Pennsylvania, the 1850 census says Maryland, while Jane Maple was born c. 1804/05 in Ohio. Henry and Jane were married on December 16, 1821 in Jefferson County, Ohio.
At the time of the 1850 census, the Browns are found in Brush Creek, Jefferson County, Ohio;
Henry Brown M 56 Maryland
Jane Brown F 45 Ohio
George Brown M 18 Ohio
Margaret Brown F 17 Ohio
Isabel Brown F 16 Ohio
Ezekiel Brown M 14 Ohio
Catharine Brown F 9 Ohio
Sarah Brown F 6 Ohio
Alice Brown F 5 Ohio
Henry Allen Brown died on January 6, 1854 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio. See his Find A Grave Memorial# 68117365.
Jane (Maple) Brown was married 2nd on June 29, 1857 to William Bradford in Guernsey County, Ohio. William and Jane moved to Indiana where Jane died about 1870 in Richmond County Indiana. Her burial has not been located.
Now to continue with the biography of Ezekiel Brown;
Ezekiel Brown was married to Ruth Fuller on June 26, 1856 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Ruth Fuller was born on January 21, 1830 in Guernsey County, Ohio. She is believed to be the daughter of Thomas R. Fuller (1798 - 1877) and Mary (Johnston) Fuller (1796 - 1872).
At the time of the 1850 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thos R Fuller M 50 Virginia
Mary Fuller F 54 Unknown
Catharine Fuller F 30 Ohio
Sarah Fuller F 27 Ohio
Elisabeth Fuller F 25 Ohio
Ephraim Fuller M 23 Ohio
Susan Fuller F 18 Ohio
Jemima Fuller F 1 Ohio
Catharine Johnson F 75 Ohio
At the time of the 1860 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling Tp, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thomas R Fuller M 60 Pennsylvania
Mary Fuller F 65 Pennsylvania
Jemima Fuller F 22 Ohio
Ionis Fuller (Jonas?) M 15 Ohio
Samuel Fuller M 12 Ohio
Anne Fuller F 9 Ohio .
Ruth Fuller was the mother of two son's out of wedlock, before she married Ezekiel Brown in 1856. They were Jonas J. Fuller, born 2 Jan 1846 & Samuel A. Fuller, born about 1848. According to Ruth's will, Ruth had two illegitimate children when she was in her teens before her marriage to Ezekiel Brown. According to her Will, Jonas Fuller & Samuel Fuller are her two son's named "Fuller" before she married Ezekiel Brown. Sarah & Jonas followed the Brown's to Nebraska, but as passed down thru the family, Ezekiel Brown never allowed Jonas to be in his house. Ruth's will excluded Jonas & Samuel and their children from receiving any of the Ezekiel Brown's estate.
The children born to Ezekial and Ruth include;
1. Mary Jane Brown, born ___________ __, 1857 in Ohio. Jane was married to ___________ Lytle. Mary Jane (Brown) Lytle died on ____________ __, 1945.
2. Henry Brown, born July 29, 1859 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Henry died on July 3, 1861 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio next to those of his grandfather, Henry Allen Brown. See Henry Brown's Find A Grave Memorial# 68117634.
3. Margaret "Maggie" Brown, born July 16, 1862 in Peoria County, Illinois. Maggie never married. Margaret Brown lived alone in the village of Elk Creek, Nebraska in Johnson County and died on ____________ __, 1950, her mortal remains being laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial# 55518138.
4. Sarah Alice "Sallie" Brown Stover (1865 - 1951)
5. Grant William Brown (1867 - 1953)
6. George Thomas Brown (1869 - 1948)
7. Amy Catherine Brown, born July 24, 1872 in Johnson County, Nebraska. Amy was married to Sherman Fuller. Amy and Sherman were the parents of 9 children. At the time of the 1910 census, Amy and her family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska;
Shurman L Fuller Head M 45 Illinois
Amy Fuller Wife F 38 Nebraska
Ada Fuller Daughter F 16 Nebraska
Ruth Fuller Daughter F 14 Nebraska
Myrtle Fuller Daughter F 12 Nebraska
Daisy Fuller Daughter F 9 Nebraska
Charley Fuller Son M 7 Nebraska
Elmer Fuller Son M 5 Nebraska
Johnie Fuller Son M 2 Nebraska
Amy Catherine (Brown) Fuller died on 22 Feb 1962 in Tecumseh, Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial #55518187 for more information about her and her family.
(Note: Amy is Bob Fuller's grandmother. Bob stated that "I have a double line back to the Fuller's as Fuller cousins married.")
Ezekial and his family must be residing in Wheeling Township of Guernsey County, Ohio at the time of the 1860 census, but, I have been unable to locate them. Sometime between the summer of 1861 and the summer of 1862, Ezekial and Ruth moved their family west to Illinois, where they settled in southwest Peoria County, near the village of Lancaster, Illinois.
On August 7, 1862, Ezekial Brown volunteered at Lancaster, Illinois to serve in a company which was being raised in the Lancaster, Illinois/Timber-Hollis Township area of Peoria County by a well known business man and Lancaster area merchant, Allen L. Fahnestock for service in the Union army.
ILLINOIS STATE ARCHIVES
Illinois Civil War Detail Report
Name BROWN, EZEKIEL A Rank PVT
Company I Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence LANCASTER, PEORIA CO, IL
Age 25 Height 6' 1 1/2 Hair LIGHT
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT
Marital Status MARRIED Occupation FARMER
Nativity JEFFERSON CO, OH
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862
Joined Where LANCASTER, IL
Joined By Whom A L FAHNESTOCK
Period 3 YRS Muster In AUG 27, 1862
Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom
Muster Out
Muster Out Where
Muster Out By Whom
Remarks DISCHARGED JAN 22, 1865 AT MOUND CITY ILL FOR WOUNDS PVTD IN ACTION AT KENESAW MOUNTAIN GA
When Fahnestock had about 100 volunteers he led his company into Peoria, where they went into camp at Camp Lyon, near present day Glen Oak Park. Fahnestock was elected Captain of the men of the Timber Township company and on August 27, 1862, Fahnestock, and 96 of the other Timber Township volunteers, including now Private Ezekial A. Brown, were mustered in as Company I of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
The men of the 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Lyon on September 7, 1862, with much fanfare, through the streets of Peoria down to the railroad depot. Somewhere in the throng may have been Ezekial's wife, Ruth, who had just given birth to their 3rd child, less than two months before. At the depot, the men of the 86th were joined by the men of the 85th Illinois, who had been mustered into service at Camp Peoria. Together, at the depot, the men of the 85th & 86th Illinois boarded trains bound for Camp Joe Holt in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which was located across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. Three weeks later the men of the 85th & 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Colonel Daniel McCook's Brigade chasing Confederate troops. On October 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those Confederate troops during the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, suffering their first casualties. There would be many more in the next few years.
After the Battle of Perryville, the Confederate forces withdrew from Kentucky, while the men of McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp. Of this time, Kinnear in his history of the 86th wrote, "On the 9th of December the command was marched to Nashville, taking up camp there, and put on duty about the city. About this time was led a sad and disagreeable life, even more so than at any other time. The boys were new in their profession and entirely ignorant as to what conveniences a soldier might have even under circumstances so trying, and in consequence, were compelled to render themselves most unhappy. Some twenty odd men would live in the same tent, cook from a camp kettle swung in the middle of it, make their beds on the damp ground, frequently without even straw or boards under them. Snow fell, and the cold, keen winds of winter whistled without, while the poor soldiers lay cold and damp within."
Kinnear continued, "Many were taken ill and died from this exposure; more died and were discharged during this winter than in all our previous and after term of service. The hospitals were yet without proper organization, the sick in them improperly cared for, for war was as yet a new thing poorly understood and carried on. The Icelander, in his frigid and icy home of the far north, in his primeval ignorance, could not have lived in greater exposure than did the soldiers at this time. The regiment was called upon to do a great deal of duty, such as picketing about the city---a business that is anything but pleasant where there are a number of generals and other fancy officers to be looked after. While on duty at this place the battles of Stone River were fought. There was an exciting time in Nashville during this eventful period; everything was hurry and bustle. The wounded and skulkers came back in great numbers, each bearing his own report."
Kinnear continued, "During these battles the troops in and about the city had to be in line of battle at 3 o'clock in the morning; it mattered not what was the condition of the elements, it was all the same thing; and certainly, if anything would provoke a soldier to feelings of wrath, this kind of business would. The first one is to be heard from who ever got used to it."
During the next two years, Private Ezekial A. Brown would serve faithfully in Co. I as the men of McCook's Brigade served in Tennessee and Georgia. During this time, Samuel 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 Chickamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia and Rome, Georgia. By the middle of June of 1864, General William T. Sherman's army, of which McCook's Brigade was a part, was closing in on the prize of the summer, Atlanta, Georgia, a key railroad hub.
On the morning of June 27, 1864, the men of McCook's Brigade found themselves in the trenches across from Cheatham Hill on Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia. The five Union Regiments of McCook's Brigade were formed in line of battle, one regiment stacked behind the other, the 86th Illinois third in line. It was hoped that this formation would allow the Union Brigade to punch a hole in the Confederate line, each regiment giving some protection to the regiment in back of it. At 8:00 a.m. when the signal gun fired, the men of the brigade stepped off and moved down a hill, crossed a small stream and then moved through a wheat field before beginning the climb up Cheatham Hill and the Confederate breastworks toward an angle in the Confederate line that was soon to be called "The Dead Angle." The following assault, which proved to be only partially successful, lasted less than 30 minutes. On the evening of June 27, 1864, Sgt. Levi A. Ross, a member of Co. K of the 86th Illinois, wrote the following of the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. "Our forces rushed upon the rebels five lines deep and in fifteen minutes were hurled back, by them, leaving 2500 brave Union Soldiers dead within twenty feet of the Enemy's works. The loss in the 86th was 106 -- in our Brig. over 400. Among the killed in Co. K was our Orderly Sergeant Buchanan, shot in the head and died without speaking. He was a brave man."
As the men of McCook's Brigade fell back from the Confedererate fortifications, they were forced to leave most of their dead and wounded behind. These bodies laid between the lines until the 29th when a truce was called so the Union could bury it's dead because the smell from the decomposing bodies became so horrible, that neither side could stand it any longer.
Company I suffered more than their share of the 106 casualties. In less than 30 minutes, Co. I had three men killed in action and had thirteen more wounded. Of the wounded, two would die of their wounds within a month. Among the wounded was Private Ezekial A. Brown, who was severely wounded in a shoulder, according to Allen L. Fahnestock's diary entry for the day. Which should is not listed.
Private Ezekial A. Brown was initially sent to the rear to a field hospital and then was soon sent back north to a General Hospital at Mound City, Illinois. By the middle of January of the year 1865, the army doctors felt Private Brown had recovered enough to be sent home and on January 22, 1865, after having served his country in uniform for almost 2 and a half years, Private Ezekial A. Brown was discharged from the service there at Mound City and he returned home to his family.
In the spring of 1870, Ezekial and Ruth again made the decision to move further west and they moved the family west to Nebraska, where they settled in Johnson County. At the time of the 1870 census, Ezekial and his family are found in Todd Creek Township, Johnson County, Nebraska;
E A Brown M 32 Ohio
Ruth Brown F 40 Ohio
Jane Brown F 13 Ohio
Margret Brown F 8 Illinois
Sarah A Brown F 4 Illinois
William Brown M 3 Illinois
George L Brown M 0 Illinois
At the time of the 1880 census, Ezekiel and his family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska, where he is farming;
Ezekial A Brown Self M 44 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F 47 Ohio
Margaret Brown Daughter F 17 Illinois
Sallie Brown Daughter F 15 Illinois
Grant Brown Son M 12 Illinois
George Brown Son M 10 Illinois
Amy Brown Daughter F 8 Nebraska
In 1887, some of the surviving members of the 86th Illinois organized and held a reunion of the old 86th during the week of August 27, 1887, the 25th Anniversary of the mustering in of the 86th back in 1862. More than 130 surviving members of the regiment attended that first reunion, which was such a success, that it was decided to continue those reunions as long as possible. The only reunion that Private Ezekial A. Brown was ever able to attend was the reunion of 1889. The distance to be traveled was undoubtedly a factor in this. At that 1889 reunion, 18 members of old "Co. I" attended that reunion, the most of any reunion held through the years. Private Ezekial A. Brown got to spend some time with some of his old mess mates, some of whom he had probably not seen since the war. It was, sadly, probably to prove to be the last time he would ever see most of them, if not any of them, when he left for his return to Nebraska.
At the time of the 1900 census, Ezekiel and Ruth are found in Todd Creek Precinct, Elk Creek village, Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth is listed as being the mother of 7 children total, six of whom are living. If she had two children before she was married, she is not claiming them or is not being allowed to claim them;
Ezekiel A Brown Head M Jul 1837 63 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F Jan 1830 70 Ohio
Private Ezekiel A. Brown died on December 1, 1911 in ___________, Nebraska and his mortal remains were laid in the Grand View Cemetery in Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth (Fuller) Brown died on November 1, 1916 in Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid beside those of her husband of 55 years.
by Baxter B. Fite III and Bob Fuller, whose email address is [email protected]
(NOTE: Ezekial Brown probably never had his portrait taken prior to the Civil War. However, during the 10 month period that the 86th Illinois was in the Nashville, Tennessee area in 1862-63, Ezekial, like most of the Union soldiers in the Nashville area, probably took the time to sit for a portrait to send home to the loved ones that he left behind. These portraits were most often printed in the form of what was called a CDV, a paper picture glued to a heavier card stock about the size of a modern day baseball card, and the soldiers didn't just have one or two copies made. Most of the time, they had a dozen or more made, so they could swap pictures with their tentmates, messmates and for their friends, in the 86th and back home.
Ezekial Brown survived the war and lived well into the 20th century. During his life, Ezekial probably had his picture taken dozens of times, if not hundreds of times. I would dearly love to see a copy of that CDV added to his Find A Grave site for all with an interest to see, but in the mean time, I would just be thrilled to see some pictures of him added to his Find A Grave Memorial, even ones of him as an old man. Can anyone help me? Thanks, Baxter)
Private EZEKIEL A. BROWN, Co. I, 86th Illinois
Ezekial Brown was born on July 15, 1837 in Jefferson County, Ohio, the son of Henry Allen Brown and Jane (Maple) Brown. Henry Allen Brown was born on ____________ __, 1793 in either Maryland or Pennsylvania, the 1850 census says Maryland, while Jane Maple was born c. 1804/05 in Ohio. Henry and Jane were married on December 16, 1821 in Jefferson County, Ohio.
At the time of the 1850 census, the Browns are found in Brush Creek, Jefferson County, Ohio;
Henry Brown M 56 Maryland
Jane Brown F 45 Ohio
George Brown M 18 Ohio
Margaret Brown F 17 Ohio
Isabel Brown F 16 Ohio
Ezekiel Brown M 14 Ohio
Catharine Brown F 9 Ohio
Sarah Brown F 6 Ohio
Alice Brown F 5 Ohio
Henry Allen Brown died on January 6, 1854 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio. See his Find A Grave Memorial# 68117365.
Jane (Maple) Brown was married 2nd on June 29, 1857 to William Bradford in Guernsey County, Ohio. William and Jane moved to Indiana where Jane died about 1870 in Richmond County Indiana. Her burial has not been located.
Now to continue with the biography of Ezekiel Brown;
Ezekiel Brown was married to Ruth Fuller on June 26, 1856 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Ruth Fuller was born on January 21, 1830 in Guernsey County, Ohio. She is believed to be the daughter of Thomas R. Fuller (1798 - 1877) and Mary (Johnston) Fuller (1796 - 1872).
At the time of the 1850 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thos R Fuller M 50 Virginia
Mary Fuller F 54 Unknown
Catharine Fuller F 30 Ohio
Sarah Fuller F 27 Ohio
Elisabeth Fuller F 25 Ohio
Ephraim Fuller M 23 Ohio
Susan Fuller F 18 Ohio
Jemima Fuller F 1 Ohio
Catharine Johnson F 75 Ohio
At the time of the 1860 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling Tp, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thomas R Fuller M 60 Pennsylvania
Mary Fuller F 65 Pennsylvania
Jemima Fuller F 22 Ohio
Ionis Fuller (Jonas?) M 15 Ohio
Samuel Fuller M 12 Ohio
Anne Fuller F 9 Ohio .
Ruth Fuller was the mother of two son's out of wedlock, before she married Ezekiel Brown in 1856. They were Jonas J. Fuller, born 2 Jan 1846 & Samuel A. Fuller, born about 1848. According to Ruth's will, Ruth had two illegitimate children when she was in her teens before her marriage to Ezekiel Brown. According to her Will, Jonas Fuller & Samuel Fuller are her two son's named "Fuller" before she married Ezekiel Brown. Sarah & Jonas followed the Brown's to Nebraska, but as passed down thru the family, Ezekiel Brown never allowed Jonas to be in his house. Ruth's will excluded Jonas & Samuel and their children from receiving any of the Ezekiel Brown's estate.
The children born to Ezekial and Ruth include;
1. Mary Jane Brown, born ___________ __, 1857 in Ohio. Jane was married to ___________ Lytle. Mary Jane (Brown) Lytle died on ____________ __, 1945.
2. Henry Brown, born July 29, 1859 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Henry died on July 3, 1861 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio next to those of his grandfather, Henry Allen Brown. See Henry Brown's Find A Grave Memorial# 68117634.
3. Margaret "Maggie" Brown, born July 16, 1862 in Peoria County, Illinois. Maggie never married. Margaret Brown lived alone in the village of Elk Creek, Nebraska in Johnson County and died on ____________ __, 1950, her mortal remains being laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial# 55518138.
4. Sarah Alice "Sallie" Brown Stover (1865 - 1951)
5. Grant William Brown (1867 - 1953)
6. George Thomas Brown (1869 - 1948)
7. Amy Catherine Brown, born July 24, 1872 in Johnson County, Nebraska. Amy was married to Sherman Fuller. Amy and Sherman were the parents of 9 children. At the time of the 1910 census, Amy and her family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska;
Shurman L Fuller Head M 45 Illinois
Amy Fuller Wife F 38 Nebraska
Ada Fuller Daughter F 16 Nebraska
Ruth Fuller Daughter F 14 Nebraska
Myrtle Fuller Daughter F 12 Nebraska
Daisy Fuller Daughter F 9 Nebraska
Charley Fuller Son M 7 Nebraska
Elmer Fuller Son M 5 Nebraska
Johnie Fuller Son M 2 Nebraska
Amy Catherine (Brown) Fuller died on 22 Feb 1962 in Tecumseh, Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial #55518187 for more information about her and her family.
(Note: Amy is Bob Fuller's grandmother. Bob stated that "I have a double line back to the Fuller's as Fuller cousins married.")
Ezekial and his family must be residing in Wheeling Township of Guernsey County, Ohio at the time of the 1860 census, but, I have been unable to locate them. Sometime between the summer of 1861 and the summer of 1862, Ezekial and Ruth moved their family west to Illinois, where they settled in southwest Peoria County, near the village of Lancaster, Illinois.
On August 7, 1862, Ezekial Brown volunteered at Lancaster, Illinois to serve in a company which was being raised in the Lancaster, Illinois/Timber-Hollis Township area of Peoria County by a well known business man and Lancaster area merchant, Allen L. Fahnestock for service in the Union army.
ILLINOIS STATE ARCHIVES
Illinois Civil War Detail Report
Name BROWN, EZEKIEL A Rank PVT
Company I Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence LANCASTER, PEORIA CO, IL
Age 25 Height 6' 1 1/2 Hair LIGHT
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT
Marital Status MARRIED Occupation FARMER
Nativity JEFFERSON CO, OH
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862
Joined Where LANCASTER, IL
Joined By Whom A L FAHNESTOCK
Period 3 YRS Muster In AUG 27, 1862
Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom
Muster Out
Muster Out Where
Muster Out By Whom
Remarks DISCHARGED JAN 22, 1865 AT MOUND CITY ILL FOR WOUNDS PVTD IN ACTION AT KENESAW MOUNTAIN GA
When Fahnestock had about 100 volunteers he led his company into Peoria, where they went into camp at Camp Lyon, near present day Glen Oak Park. Fahnestock was elected Captain of the men of the Timber Township company and on August 27, 1862, Fahnestock, and 96 of the other Timber Township volunteers, including now Private Ezekial A. Brown, were mustered in as Company I of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
The men of the 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Lyon on September 7, 1862, with much fanfare, through the streets of Peoria down to the railroad depot. Somewhere in the throng may have been Ezekial's wife, Ruth, who had just given birth to their 3rd child, less than two months before. At the depot, the men of the 86th were joined by the men of the 85th Illinois, who had been mustered into service at Camp Peoria. Together, at the depot, the men of the 85th & 86th Illinois boarded trains bound for Camp Joe Holt in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which was located across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. Three weeks later the men of the 85th & 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Colonel Daniel McCook's Brigade chasing Confederate troops. On October 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those Confederate troops during the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, suffering their first casualties. There would be many more in the next few years.
After the Battle of Perryville, the Confederate forces withdrew from Kentucky, while the men of McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp. Of this time, Kinnear in his history of the 86th wrote, "On the 9th of December the command was marched to Nashville, taking up camp there, and put on duty about the city. About this time was led a sad and disagreeable life, even more so than at any other time. The boys were new in their profession and entirely ignorant as to what conveniences a soldier might have even under circumstances so trying, and in consequence, were compelled to render themselves most unhappy. Some twenty odd men would live in the same tent, cook from a camp kettle swung in the middle of it, make their beds on the damp ground, frequently without even straw or boards under them. Snow fell, and the cold, keen winds of winter whistled without, while the poor soldiers lay cold and damp within."
Kinnear continued, "Many were taken ill and died from this exposure; more died and were discharged during this winter than in all our previous and after term of service. The hospitals were yet without proper organization, the sick in them improperly cared for, for war was as yet a new thing poorly understood and carried on. The Icelander, in his frigid and icy home of the far north, in his primeval ignorance, could not have lived in greater exposure than did the soldiers at this time. The regiment was called upon to do a great deal of duty, such as picketing about the city---a business that is anything but pleasant where there are a number of generals and other fancy officers to be looked after. While on duty at this place the battles of Stone River were fought. There was an exciting time in Nashville during this eventful period; everything was hurry and bustle. The wounded and skulkers came back in great numbers, each bearing his own report."
Kinnear continued, "During these battles the troops in and about the city had to be in line of battle at 3 o'clock in the morning; it mattered not what was the condition of the elements, it was all the same thing; and certainly, if anything would provoke a soldier to feelings of wrath, this kind of business would. The first one is to be heard from who ever got used to it."
During the next two years, Private Ezekial A. Brown would serve faithfully in Co. I as the men of McCook's Brigade served in Tennessee and Georgia. During this time, Samuel 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 Chickamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia and Rome, Georgia. By the middle of June of 1864, General William T. Sherman's army, of which McCook's Brigade was a part, was closing in on the prize of the summer, Atlanta, Georgia, a key railroad hub.
On the morning of June 27, 1864, the men of McCook's Brigade found themselves in the trenches across from Cheatham Hill on Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia. The five Union Regiments of McCook's Brigade were formed in line of battle, one regiment stacked behind the other, the 86th Illinois third in line. It was hoped that this formation would allow the Union Brigade to punch a hole in the Confederate line, each regiment giving some protection to the regiment in back of it. At 8:00 a.m. when the signal gun fired, the men of the brigade stepped off and moved down a hill, crossed a small stream and then moved through a wheat field before beginning the climb up Cheatham Hill and the Confederate breastworks toward an angle in the Confederate line that was soon to be called "The Dead Angle." The following assault, which proved to be only partially successful, lasted less than 30 minutes. On the evening of June 27, 1864, Sgt. Levi A. Ross, a member of Co. K of the 86th Illinois, wrote the following of the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. "Our forces rushed upon the rebels five lines deep and in fifteen minutes were hurled back, by them, leaving 2500 brave Union Soldiers dead within twenty feet of the Enemy's works. The loss in the 86th was 106 -- in our Brig. over 400. Among the killed in Co. K was our Orderly Sergeant Buchanan, shot in the head and died without speaking. He was a brave man."
As the men of McCook's Brigade fell back from the Confedererate fortifications, they were forced to leave most of their dead and wounded behind. These bodies laid between the lines until the 29th when a truce was called so the Union could bury it's dead because the smell from the decomposing bodies became so horrible, that neither side could stand it any longer.
Company I suffered more than their share of the 106 casualties. In less than 30 minutes, Co. I had three men killed in action and had thirteen more wounded. Of the wounded, two would die of their wounds within a month. Among the wounded was Private Ezekial A. Brown, who was severely wounded in a shoulder, according to Allen L. Fahnestock's diary entry for the day. Which should is not listed.
Private Ezekial A. Brown was initially sent to the rear to a field hospital and then was soon sent back north to a General Hospital at Mound City, Illinois. By the middle of January of the year 1865, the army doctors felt Private Brown had recovered enough to be sent home and on January 22, 1865, after having served his country in uniform for almost 2 and a half years, Private Ezekial A. Brown was discharged from the service there at Mound City and he returned home to his family.
In the spring of 1870, Ezekial and Ruth again made the decision to move further west and they moved the family west to Nebraska, where they settled in Johnson County. At the time of the 1870 census, Ezekial and his family are found in Todd Creek Township, Johnson County, Nebraska;
E A Brown M 32 Ohio
Ruth Brown F 40 Ohio
Jane Brown F 13 Ohio
Margret Brown F 8 Illinois
Sarah A Brown F 4 Illinois
William Brown M 3 Illinois
George L Brown M 0 Illinois
At the time of the 1880 census, Ezekiel and his family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska, where he is farming;
Ezekial A Brown Self M 44 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F 47 Ohio
Margaret Brown Daughter F 17 Illinois
Sallie Brown Daughter F 15 Illinois
Grant Brown Son M 12 Illinois
George Brown Son M 10 Illinois
Amy Brown Daughter F 8 Nebraska
In 1887, some of the surviving members of the 86th Illinois organized and held a reunion of the old 86th during the week of August 27, 1887, the 25th Anniversary of the mustering in of the 86th back in 1862. More than 130 surviving members of the regiment attended that first reunion, which was such a success, that it was decided to continue those reunions as long as possible. The only reunion that Private Ezekial A. Brown was ever able to attend was the reunion of 1889. The distance to be traveled was undoubtedly a factor in this. At that 1889 reunion, 18 members of old "Co. I" attended that reunion, the most of any reunion held through the years. Private Ezekial A. Brown got to spend some time with some of his old mess mates, some of whom he had probably not seen since the war. It was, sadly, probably to prove to be the last time he would ever see most of them, if not any of them, when he left for his return to Nebraska.
At the time of the 1900 census, Ezekiel and Ruth are found in Todd Creek Precinct, Elk Creek village, Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth is listed as being the mother of 7 children total, six of whom are living. If she had two children before she was married, she is not claiming them or is not being allowed to claim them;
Ezekiel A Brown Head M Jul 1837 63 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F Jan 1830 70 Ohio
Private Ezekiel A. Brown died on December 1, 1911 in ___________, Nebraska and his mortal remains were laid in the Grand View Cemetery in Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth (Fuller) Brown died on November 1, 1916 in Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid beside those of her husband of 55 years.
by Baxter B. Fite III and Bob Fuller, whose email address is [email protected]
Ezekial Brown survived the war and lived well into the 20th century. During his life, Ezekial probably had his picture taken dozens of times, if not hundreds of times. I would dearly love to see a copy of that CDV added to his Find A Grave site for all with an interest to see, but in the mean time, I would just be thrilled to see some pictures of him added to his Find A Grave Memorial, even ones of him as an old man. Can anyone help me? Thanks, Baxter)
Private EZEKIEL A. BROWN, Co. I, 86th Illinois
Ezekial Brown was born on July 15, 1837 in Jefferson County, Ohio, the son of Henry Allen Brown and Jane (Maple) Brown. Henry Allen Brown was born on ____________ __, 1793 in either Maryland or Pennsylvania, the 1850 census says Maryland, while Jane Maple was born c. 1804/05 in Ohio. Henry and Jane were married on December 16, 1821 in Jefferson County, Ohio.
At the time of the 1850 census, the Browns are found in Brush Creek, Jefferson County, Ohio;
Henry Brown M 56 Maryland
Jane Brown F 45 Ohio
George Brown M 18 Ohio
Margaret Brown F 17 Ohio
Isabel Brown F 16 Ohio
Ezekiel Brown M 14 Ohio
Catharine Brown F 9 Ohio
Sarah Brown F 6 Ohio
Alice Brown F 5 Ohio
Henry Allen Brown died on January 6, 1854 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio. See his Find A Grave Memorial# 68117365.
Jane (Maple) Brown was married 2nd on June 29, 1857 to William Bradford in Guernsey County, Ohio. William and Jane moved to Indiana where Jane died about 1870 in Richmond County Indiana. Her burial has not been located.
Now to continue with the biography of Ezekiel Brown;
Ezekiel Brown was married to Ruth Fuller on June 26, 1856 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Ruth Fuller was born on January 21, 1830 in Guernsey County, Ohio. She is believed to be the daughter of Thomas R. Fuller (1798 - 1877) and Mary (Johnston) Fuller (1796 - 1872).
At the time of the 1850 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thos R Fuller M 50 Virginia
Mary Fuller F 54 Unknown
Catharine Fuller F 30 Ohio
Sarah Fuller F 27 Ohio
Elisabeth Fuller F 25 Ohio
Ephraim Fuller M 23 Ohio
Susan Fuller F 18 Ohio
Jemima Fuller F 1 Ohio
Catharine Johnson F 75 Ohio
At the time of the 1860 census, Thomas Fuller and his family are found in Wheeling Tp, Guernsey County, Ohio;
Thomas R Fuller M 60 Pennsylvania
Mary Fuller F 65 Pennsylvania
Jemima Fuller F 22 Ohio
Ionis Fuller (Jonas?) M 15 Ohio
Samuel Fuller M 12 Ohio
Anne Fuller F 9 Ohio .
Ruth Fuller was the mother of two son's out of wedlock, before she married Ezekiel Brown in 1856. They were Jonas J. Fuller, born 2 Jan 1846 & Samuel A. Fuller, born about 1848. According to Ruth's will, Ruth had two illegitimate children when she was in her teens before her marriage to Ezekiel Brown. According to her Will, Jonas Fuller & Samuel Fuller are her two son's named "Fuller" before she married Ezekiel Brown. Sarah & Jonas followed the Brown's to Nebraska, but as passed down thru the family, Ezekiel Brown never allowed Jonas to be in his house. Ruth's will excluded Jonas & Samuel and their children from receiving any of the Ezekiel Brown's estate.
The children born to Ezekial and Ruth include;
1. Mary Jane Brown, born ___________ __, 1857 in Ohio. Jane was married to ___________ Lytle. Mary Jane (Brown) Lytle died on ____________ __, 1945.
2. Henry Brown, born July 29, 1859 in Guernsey County, Ohio. Henry died on July 3, 1861 in Guernsey County, Ohio and his mortal remains were laid in the Worthing Cemetery in Guernsey County, Ohio next to those of his grandfather, Henry Allen Brown. See Henry Brown's Find A Grave Memorial# 68117634.
3. Margaret "Maggie" Brown, born July 16, 1862 in Peoria County, Illinois. Maggie never married. Margaret Brown lived alone in the village of Elk Creek, Nebraska in Johnson County and died on ____________ __, 1950, her mortal remains being laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial# 55518138.
4. Sarah Alice "Sallie" Brown Stover (1865 - 1951)
5. Grant William Brown (1867 - 1953)
6. George Thomas Brown (1869 - 1948)
7. Amy Catherine Brown, born July 24, 1872 in Johnson County, Nebraska. Amy was married to Sherman Fuller. Amy and Sherman were the parents of 9 children. At the time of the 1910 census, Amy and her family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska;
Shurman L Fuller Head M 45 Illinois
Amy Fuller Wife F 38 Nebraska
Ada Fuller Daughter F 16 Nebraska
Ruth Fuller Daughter F 14 Nebraska
Myrtle Fuller Daughter F 12 Nebraska
Daisy Fuller Daughter F 9 Nebraska
Charley Fuller Son M 7 Nebraska
Elmer Fuller Son M 5 Nebraska
Johnie Fuller Son M 2 Nebraska
Amy Catherine (Brown) Fuller died on 22 Feb 1962 in Tecumseh, Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid in the Grandview Cemetery in Elk Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska. See her Find A Grave Memorial #55518187 for more information about her and her family.
(Note: Amy is Bob Fuller's grandmother. Bob stated that "I have a double line back to the Fuller's as Fuller cousins married.")
Ezekial and his family must be residing in Wheeling Township of Guernsey County, Ohio at the time of the 1860 census, but, I have been unable to locate them. Sometime between the summer of 1861 and the summer of 1862, Ezekial and Ruth moved their family west to Illinois, where they settled in southwest Peoria County, near the village of Lancaster, Illinois.
On August 7, 1862, Ezekial Brown volunteered at Lancaster, Illinois to serve in a company which was being raised in the Lancaster, Illinois/Timber-Hollis Township area of Peoria County by a well known business man and Lancaster area merchant, Allen L. Fahnestock for service in the Union army.
ILLINOIS STATE ARCHIVES
Illinois Civil War Detail Report
Name BROWN, EZEKIEL A Rank PVT
Company I Unit 86 IL US INF
Personal Characteristics
Residence LANCASTER, PEORIA CO, IL
Age 25 Height 6' 1 1/2 Hair LIGHT
Eyes BLUE Complexion LIGHT
Marital Status MARRIED Occupation FARMER
Nativity JEFFERSON CO, OH
Service Record
Joined When AUG 7, 1862
Joined Where LANCASTER, IL
Joined By Whom A L FAHNESTOCK
Period 3 YRS Muster In AUG 27, 1862
Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom
Muster Out
Muster Out Where
Muster Out By Whom
Remarks DISCHARGED JAN 22, 1865 AT MOUND CITY ILL FOR WOUNDS PVTD IN ACTION AT KENESAW MOUNTAIN GA
When Fahnestock had about 100 volunteers he led his company into Peoria, where they went into camp at Camp Lyon, near present day Glen Oak Park. Fahnestock was elected Captain of the men of the Timber Township company and on August 27, 1862, Fahnestock, and 96 of the other Timber Township volunteers, including now Private Ezekial A. Brown, were mustered in as Company I of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry.
The men of the 86th Illinois marched out of the gates of Camp Lyon on September 7, 1862, with much fanfare, through the streets of Peoria down to the railroad depot. Somewhere in the throng may have been Ezekial's wife, Ruth, who had just given birth to their 3rd child, less than two months before. At the depot, the men of the 86th were joined by the men of the 85th Illinois, who had been mustered into service at Camp Peoria. Together, at the depot, the men of the 85th & 86th Illinois boarded trains bound for Camp Joe Holt in Jeffersonville, Indiana, which was located across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky. Three weeks later the men of the 85th & 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Colonel Daniel McCook's Brigade chasing Confederate troops. On October 8, 1862, the men of McCook's Brigade were engaged with those Confederate troops during the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, suffering their first casualties. There would be many more in the next few years.
After the Battle of Perryville, the Confederate forces withdrew from Kentucky, while the men of McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee, where they went into winter camp. Of this time, Kinnear in his history of the 86th wrote, "On the 9th of December the command was marched to Nashville, taking up camp there, and put on duty about the city. About this time was led a sad and disagreeable life, even more so than at any other time. The boys were new in their profession and entirely ignorant as to what conveniences a soldier might have even under circumstances so trying, and in consequence, were compelled to render themselves most unhappy. Some twenty odd men would live in the same tent, cook from a camp kettle swung in the middle of it, make their beds on the damp ground, frequently without even straw or boards under them. Snow fell, and the cold, keen winds of winter whistled without, while the poor soldiers lay cold and damp within."
Kinnear continued, "Many were taken ill and died from this exposure; more died and were discharged during this winter than in all our previous and after term of service. The hospitals were yet without proper organization, the sick in them improperly cared for, for war was as yet a new thing poorly understood and carried on. The Icelander, in his frigid and icy home of the far north, in his primeval ignorance, could not have lived in greater exposure than did the soldiers at this time. The regiment was called upon to do a great deal of duty, such as picketing about the city---a business that is anything but pleasant where there are a number of generals and other fancy officers to be looked after. While on duty at this place the battles of Stone River were fought. There was an exciting time in Nashville during this eventful period; everything was hurry and bustle. The wounded and skulkers came back in great numbers, each bearing his own report."
Kinnear continued, "During these battles the troops in and about the city had to be in line of battle at 3 o'clock in the morning; it mattered not what was the condition of the elements, it was all the same thing; and certainly, if anything would provoke a soldier to feelings of wrath, this kind of business would. The first one is to be heard from who ever got used to it."
During the next two years, Private Ezekial A. Brown would serve faithfully in Co. I as the men of McCook's Brigade served in Tennessee and Georgia. During this time, Samuel 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 Chickamauga, Georgia; Resaca, Georgia and Rome, Georgia. By the middle of June of 1864, General William T. Sherman's army, of which McCook's Brigade was a part, was closing in on the prize of the summer, Atlanta, Georgia, a key railroad hub.
On the morning of June 27, 1864, the men of McCook's Brigade found themselves in the trenches across from Cheatham Hill on Kennesaw Mountain, Georgia. The five Union Regiments of McCook's Brigade were formed in line of battle, one regiment stacked behind the other, the 86th Illinois third in line. It was hoped that this formation would allow the Union Brigade to punch a hole in the Confederate line, each regiment giving some protection to the regiment in back of it. At 8:00 a.m. when the signal gun fired, the men of the brigade stepped off and moved down a hill, crossed a small stream and then moved through a wheat field before beginning the climb up Cheatham Hill and the Confederate breastworks toward an angle in the Confederate line that was soon to be called "The Dead Angle." The following assault, which proved to be only partially successful, lasted less than 30 minutes. On the evening of June 27, 1864, Sgt. Levi A. Ross, a member of Co. K of the 86th Illinois, wrote the following of the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. "Our forces rushed upon the rebels five lines deep and in fifteen minutes were hurled back, by them, leaving 2500 brave Union Soldiers dead within twenty feet of the Enemy's works. The loss in the 86th was 106 -- in our Brig. over 400. Among the killed in Co. K was our Orderly Sergeant Buchanan, shot in the head and died without speaking. He was a brave man."
As the men of McCook's Brigade fell back from the Confedererate fortifications, they were forced to leave most of their dead and wounded behind. These bodies laid between the lines until the 29th when a truce was called so the Union could bury it's dead because the smell from the decomposing bodies became so horrible, that neither side could stand it any longer.
Company I suffered more than their share of the 106 casualties. In less than 30 minutes, Co. I had three men killed in action and had thirteen more wounded. Of the wounded, two would die of their wounds within a month. Among the wounded was Private Ezekial A. Brown, who was severely wounded in a shoulder, according to Allen L. Fahnestock's diary entry for the day. Which should is not listed.
Private Ezekial A. Brown was initially sent to the rear to a field hospital and then was soon sent back north to a General Hospital at Mound City, Illinois. By the middle of January of the year 1865, the army doctors felt Private Brown had recovered enough to be sent home and on January 22, 1865, after having served his country in uniform for almost 2 and a half years, Private Ezekial A. Brown was discharged from the service there at Mound City and he returned home to his family.
In the spring of 1870, Ezekial and Ruth again made the decision to move further west and they moved the family west to Nebraska, where they settled in Johnson County. At the time of the 1870 census, Ezekial and his family are found in Todd Creek Township, Johnson County, Nebraska;
E A Brown M 32 Ohio
Ruth Brown F 40 Ohio
Jane Brown F 13 Ohio
Margret Brown F 8 Illinois
Sarah A Brown F 4 Illinois
William Brown M 3 Illinois
George L Brown M 0 Illinois
At the time of the 1880 census, Ezekiel and his family are found in Todd Creek, Johnson County, Nebraska, where he is farming;
Ezekial A Brown Self M 44 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F 47 Ohio
Margaret Brown Daughter F 17 Illinois
Sallie Brown Daughter F 15 Illinois
Grant Brown Son M 12 Illinois
George Brown Son M 10 Illinois
Amy Brown Daughter F 8 Nebraska
In 1887, some of the surviving members of the 86th Illinois organized and held a reunion of the old 86th during the week of August 27, 1887, the 25th Anniversary of the mustering in of the 86th back in 1862. More than 130 surviving members of the regiment attended that first reunion, which was such a success, that it was decided to continue those reunions as long as possible. The only reunion that Private Ezekial A. Brown was ever able to attend was the reunion of 1889. The distance to be traveled was undoubtedly a factor in this. At that 1889 reunion, 18 members of old "Co. I" attended that reunion, the most of any reunion held through the years. Private Ezekial A. Brown got to spend some time with some of his old mess mates, some of whom he had probably not seen since the war. It was, sadly, probably to prove to be the last time he would ever see most of them, if not any of them, when he left for his return to Nebraska.
At the time of the 1900 census, Ezekiel and Ruth are found in Todd Creek Precinct, Elk Creek village, Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth is listed as being the mother of 7 children total, six of whom are living. If she had two children before she was married, she is not claiming them or is not being allowed to claim them;
Ezekiel A Brown Head M Jul 1837 63 Ohio
Ruth Brown Wife F Jan 1830 70 Ohio
Private Ezekiel A. Brown died on December 1, 1911 in ___________, Nebraska and his mortal remains were laid in the Grand View Cemetery in Johnson County, Nebraska. Ruth (Fuller) Brown died on November 1, 1916 in Johnson County, Nebraska and her mortal remains were laid beside those of her husband of 55 years.
by Baxter B. Fite III and Bob Fuller, whose email address is [email protected]
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