DUV Schedules Union Veteran's Funeral In Missouri
By Deborah Fitts
April 2005
MEMPHIS, Mo. - The Daughters of Union Veterans (DUV) are
organizing what may be "the last funeral and burial of a Union
veteran," the focus of an event-filled Memorial Day weekend that will
be open to reenactors and spectators alike.
Patricia Mullenix, a member of the DUV's local Charlotte Harrison
Boone Tent in Kahoka and third-in-command of the national DUV, said
the little town of Memphis (pop. 2,000) "is just jumping about this.
They are just so excited."
Mullenix is spearheading arrangements for "The Last Farewell" in
cooperation with descendants of the veteran, Cpl. John P. Byrne of
the 21st Missouri Infantry. The Sons of Union Veterans, Camp No. 62,
are building the coffin and planning full military rites.
Byrne died in California in 1920 and was cremated but never buried.
His urn was placed on a cemetery storage shelf, only coming to light
recently when a great-great-great granddaughter of Byrne's brother,
Harrison, instituted a search.
"The niece felt John had to come back home," Mullenix explained, and
be buried in the Memphis City Cemetery next to his brothers, Harrison
and Lucian, also Union veterans. "I talked to the family and offered
to do this for them, and they were more than willing, and pleased. Of
course, we do it right."
Mullenix said in a statement that family members "are most graciously
permitting us to claim John as one of our own, so that we may use
this as an educational example of our Civil War history. Cpl. Byrne's
funeral and burial will bring to light our plight to save our
historic sites, cemeteries, monuments and battlefields."
According to Mullenix, Byrne's family migrated to Missouri from
Virginia in 1852 and became prominent in the Memphis area. John and
Harrison joined the Home Guard, which evolved into the 21st Missouri.
John was wounded in fighting on the Mississippi River, aboard the
Gen. William Wallace, where his hands were severely crippled and he
was struck in the thigh. After a lengthy convalescence he was
mustered out in 1864 and returned to Memphis, but left for California
after seven years. Another brother, Charles, fought for the 27th
Virginia Infantry and became a notorious Southern spy.
The Memorial Day events will include a wake and vigil - Mullenix said
it will actually be "more of a joyful time" - from noon on Friday,
May 27, to noon Saturday at the courthouse at the center of Memphis
and an adjacent funeral home. Speakers on Friday evening will address
Memphis during the war and the history of the 21st Missouri. The
Missouri Medical Brigade will discuss the medical nature of Byrne's
injuries, and musicians and singers will perform period music.
Saturday's funeral parade will begin at 1 p.m. and proceed a mile and
a half to the cemetery, with Byrne's remains carried in an original
horse-drawn hearse. Pallbearers will include descendants of Byrne's
family and of other 21st Missouri veterans.
Graveside events will include speakers and a cannon salute.
Reenactors will guard the grave "around the clock" through Memorial
Day, Mullenix said. DUV national president Ozzie Thompson, from
Wisconsin, will be among the dignitaries.
In hopes of recruiting a strong turnout, Mullenix, a sutler with long
ties to the reenactor community, has announced the event to reenactor
groups. "We have support wherever we go," she said.
On the other hand, she cautioned, Memphis has only two hotels with 18
rooms each, which are already booked. The nearest town, Kirksville,
Mo., is 40 miles away. "We're really dealing with backwoods here,"
she explained.
Information on the event, including opportunities for reenactor
involvement and camping locations, is available at the DUV's website,
www.duvcw.org. To defray costs, the DUV is selling "Last Farewell"
T-shirts and soliciting contributions to the John P. Byrne Memorial
Fund, care of the Community Bank of Memphis, 112 E. Madison, Memphis,
MO 63555.
The DUV has about 4,000 members nationwide, according to Mullenix.
They place wreathes and flags on Memorial Day and work to commemorate
Civil War veterans and support the veterans of all wars. |
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