(NOTE: Elisha Barnabee 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, Elisha, 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.
Elisha Barnabee survived the war and lived well into the 20th century. During his life, Elisha 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. However, at this point, I would be thrilled just 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)

Corporal ELISHA BARNABEE, Co B, 86th Illinois

Elisha Barnabee (also Barnaby) was born on August 20, 1834 in Indiana, the son of __________ Barnabee and __________ (__________) Barnabee. The Barnabee family moved west in 18__, settling in Saratoga Township in Marshall County, Illinois.
Elisha was married to Mary J. McVicker on February 21, 1858 in Saratoga Township in Marshall County, Illinois by George Scholes, Esq. Mary J. McVicker was born on __________ __, 18__ at __________, Ohio, the daughter of __________ McVicker and __________ (__________) McVicker. At least three children were born to them. They are;
1. Willis Hugh (or Hugh Willis) Barnabee, born November __, 1858 in Marshall County, Illinois; married to Emma Clara Cady on January 29, 1885 in Iroquios County; They had the following children;
A. Archie S. BARNABEE, born December __, 1885 in Illinois.

B. Clara B. BARNABEE, born December __, 1886 in Illinois.

C. Lottie M. BARNABEE, born April __, 1889 in Illinois.

D. Chester E. BARNABEE, born June __, 1894 in Illinois.

E. Ethel L. BARNABEE, born October __, 1895 in Illinois.

At the time of the 1900 census, Willis and his family are found in the village of Onarga, Onarga Township, Iroquois County, Illinois;
Willis H Barnabee Head M Nov 1858 42 Illinois
Emma C Barnabee Wife F Dec 1864 36 Illinois
Archie S Barnabee Son M Dec 1885 15 Illinois
Clara B Barnabee Daughter F Dec 1886 14 Illinois
Lottie M Barnabee Daughter F Apr 1889 11 Illinois
Chester E Barnabee Son M June 1894 6 Illinois
Ethel L Barnabee Daughter F Oct 1895 5 Illinois
Elishia Barnabee Father M Aug 1835 65 Indiana
Wm Philley Laborer M Unknown Indiana

2. Nora May Barnabee, born December __, 1866 in Illinois. Nora was married to Simon Peter Cady on February 11, 1886 in Iroquois County.
Four children were born to Nora and Simon;
A. Jesse R. Cady, born November __, 1886 in Illinois.

B. Harrison B. Cady, born October __, 1889 in Illinois.

C. Thomas S. Cady, born June __, 1891 in Illinois.

D. Okel H. Cady, born October __, 1893 in Illinois.

At the time of the 1900 census, Nora and her family are found in the village of Onarga, Onarga Township, Iroquois County, Illinois;
Simon Cady Head M Mar 1862 38 Illinois
Nora Cady Wife F Dec 1866 34 Illinois
Jesse P Cady Daughter F Nov 1886 14 Illinois
Harrison B Cady Son M Oct 1889 11 Illinois
Thomas S Cady Son M Jun 1891 9 Illinois
Okel H Cady Son M 7 Oct 1893 Illinois

Nora died on __________ __, 1941 and her mortal remains were laid in the Onarga Cemetery.

3. Emma M. Barnabee, born c. July __, 1872/74 in Stark, Illinois. Emma was married to Sylvester Eugene "Gene" Hyer on October 17, 1894 in Iroquois County, Illinois. Eugene was 23 at the time he was married and born in JAMESTOWN,Ohio, the son of Granville Hyer and Jane Richardson. Emma was 22 and the daughter of Elisha Barnabee and Mary Jane Mc Vicker.
Their children include;
A. Goldie I. Hyre, born September __, 1895 in Illinois.

B. Merritt E. Hyre, born April __, 1898 in Illinois.

C. Ray E. Hyre, born March __, 1900 in Illinois.

D. Leona J Hyre, born c. 1901 in Illinois.

E. Raleigh S Hyre, born c. 1904/05 in Canada.

F. Richard F Hyre, born c. 1906/07 in Minnesota.

At the time of the 1900 census, Emma and her family are found in the village of Onarga, Onarga Township, Iroquois County, Illinois. She has had five children at this time,only three of whom are living;
Eugene S Hyre Head M 28 Ohio
Emma M Hyre Wife F 28 Illinois
Goldie I Hyre Daughter F 5 Illinois
Merritt E Hyre Son M 2 Illinois
Noname Hyre Son M 0 Illinois

At the time of the 1910 census, Emma and her family are found in Township 160, Koochiching County, Minnesota;
Jean Hyre Head M 38 Nebraska
Emma M Hyre Wife F 37 Illinois
Goldie I Hyre Daughter F 14 Illinois
Merritt E Hyre Son M 11 Illinois
Ray E Hyre Son M 10 Illinois
Leona J Hyre Daughter F 9 Illinois
Raleigh S Hyre Son M 5 Canada
Richard F Hyre Son M 3 Minnesota

Emma M. Barnaby died on 1 May 1952 in Yamhill County, Oregon and her mortal remains were laid in the Evergreen Memorial Park in McMinnville, Yamhill County, Oregon. See her Find A Grave Memorial #193213969.

Now to continue with the biography of Elisha Barnabee;
On August 15, 1862, Elisha Barnabee volunteered to serve in a company which was being raised in the Henry, Illinois area of Marshall County, by a man by the name of Elias C. Brearley. At the time he volunteered he listed Saratoga Township as his residence.

ILLINOIS CIVIL WAR DETAIL REPORT
Name BARNABEE, ELISHA
Rank PVT Company B Unit 86 IL US INF

Personal Characteristics
Residence SARATOGA, MARSHALL CO, IL Age 28 Height 5' 11 Hair DARK
Eyes HAZEL Complexion LIGHT Marital Status MARRIED Occupation FARMER
Nativity IN

Service Record
Joined When AUG 15, 1862 Joined Where MARSHALL CO, IL
Joined By Whom CPT BREARLEY Period 3 YRS
Muster In AUG 27, 1862 Muster In Where PEORIA, IL
Muster In By Whom N/A Muster Out MAY 30, 1865
Muster Out Where NEW YORK CITY, NY Muster Out By Whom LT KINNEY
Remarks APPOINTED CORPORAL

When Brearley had about 100 volunteers, he led the Marshall County company into Peoria where they went into camp at Camp Lyon, near present day Glen Oak Park. On August 27, 1862, Brearley and 88 of his volunteers were mustered into service as Co. B of the 86th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry. Brearley was elected Captain of Co. B.
On September 7, 1862, the men of the 86th Illinois marched out the gates of Camp Lyon, through the streets of Peoria, with much fanfare, and boarded a train bound for Camp Joe Holt, Jeffersonville, Indiana. Three weeks later, the men of the 86th were in the field in Kentucky as part of Col. Daniel McCook's Brigade, in pursuit of Confederate troops. 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 their first casualties. There would be many more to come. After the Battle of Perryville, the Confederate troops withdrew from Kentucky and the men of McCook's Brigade marched on to Nashville, Tennessee where they would go into winter camp.
During the next two and a half years, Private Elisha Barnabee served faithfully in Co. B as the men of the 86th served in Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. During this time, Elisha 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 and Peach Tree Creek, Georgia, Jonesboro, Georgia, Averasborough, North Carolina and Bentonville, North Carolina and marched with Sherman on his infamous "March to the Sea."
At some point during the war, Elisha was elected and promoted to fill a vacancy in among the Corporals as a sign of his dedication to service and to the men of Co. B. Also at some point during the war, probably late in the war, Elisha was either wounded or sick as it appears that he was not with the unit at least the last few months of the war. After the war came to a close, the surviving members of the 86th that were still with McCook's Brigade marched on to Washington City (now D.C.) where they were mustered out of the service on June 6, 1865. They were soon on a train bound for Chicago, Illinois, where they were discharged from the service.
But it appears that Elisha had been sent north to New York City, most likely to one of the large Union Hospitals there. Elisha was mustered out of the service there after he had regained his health on May 30, 1865, seven days before the 86th was mustered out of the service in Washington D.C. In any case, by the end of June, Corporal Elisha Barnabee was most likely back home in Marshall County along with the rest of the surviving members of Co. B.
Sometime before 1880, Elisha and Mary are known to have moved their family to Iroquois County, Illinois where he continued to farm for a living. At the time of the 1880 census, Elisha and his family are found residing in Douglas Township in Iroquois County, Illinois where he is farming. He is listed as being born in Ireland. This is almost certainly an error, but his parents are also listed as being born in Ireland and this may be correct;
E Barnabee Self M 46 Ireland
Mary J Barnabee Wife F 46 Ohio
Hugh W Barnabee Son M 21 Illinois
Nora M Barnabee Daughter F 13 Illinois
Emma M Barnabee Daughter F 6 Illinois

In 1887, some of the surviving members of the 86th organized and held a reunion in Peoria, Illinois for the veterans of the 86th Illinois during the week of August 27, 1887, the 25th anniversary of the mustering of the 86th back in August of 1862. More than 130 veterans of the 86th, with their families, attended this reunion, which was such a hit that they decided that they would hold a reunion every year on that anniversary in Peoria as long as veterans would attend. The reunions continued to grow for a number of years as more and more veterans were located, yet some were never located. The reunions were held year in Peoria through the year 1923, when it was tearfully decided by the 20 veterans, who were able to make it to that reunion, that they were too old and too few to continue to hold them after 1923. The men of Co. B never seemed to get into the reunions like some of the men in the other companies. Elisha Barnabee never attended any of the reunions, though as he was living in Illinois, and was located in Onarga, Illinois early in the process of searching for the veterans of the 86th.

At the time of the 1900 census, Elisha is found widowed and living with his son, Willis, and his family in the village of Onarga, Onarga Township, Iroquois County, Illinois;
Willis H Barnabee Head M Nov 1858 42 Illinois
Emma C Barnabee Wife F Dec 1864 36 Illinois
Archie S Barnabee Son M Dec 1885 15 Illinois
Clara B Barnabee Daughter F Dec 1886 14 Illinois
Lottie M Barnabee Daughter F Apr 1889 11 Illinois
Chester E Barnabee Son M June 1894 6 Illinois
Ethel L Barnabee Daughter F Oct 1895 5 Illinois
Elishia Barnabee Father M Aug 1835 65 Indiana
Wm Philley Laborer M Unknown Indiana

At the time of the 1910 census, Elisha is found widowed and lodging with the Lowe family in Onarga, Iroquois County, Illinois;
Geo Lowe Head M 40 Indiana
Laura Lowe Wife F 29 Illinois
Georgia E Lowe Daughter F 0 Illinois
Charles Gaines Lodger M 37 Indiana
Elisha Barnaby Lodger M 75 Indiana
John Meadows Lodger M 38 Indiana

Elisha Barnabee died on November 6, 1917 in Askum Township in Iroquois County, near Onarga, Illinois. His earthly remains were laid to rest in the Onarga Cemetery in Onarga, Illinois.

by Baxter B. Fite III

(Baxter would love to hear from anyone, especially descendants of the Barnabee family, who might be able to add to the biographical material that we have on Elisha and the Barnabee family. Baxter would also love to see copies of any photographs of Elisha Barnabee that may have survived the years, especially any showing him in uniform from his days in the service, added to his Find A Grave site for all to see.)