“As all veterans are aware, a soldier cannot leave his post without being properly relieved. PVT John Henry Allbee, you are now relieved. I have the post. Rest in Peace.”
Allbee, a soldier in Battery M of the 1st IL Light Artillery Regiment of the Union Army, was honored for his efforts in the Civil War, during a ceremony June 12, at the Harvard Cemetery.
He is the last Civil War soldier to be recognized and honored by the Daughters and Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War in Clay County.
Pat Wagner with Kady Brownell, Tent No. 25, Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War, and Val Schmiedeskamp with Shiloh Camp No. 2, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, conducted the ceremony, honoring Allbee with their words and a patriotic wreath.
Allbee was born April 13, 1845 in Farmington, ME, before moving to Illinois.
He served in the Union Army for 18 months, receiving an honorable discharge. After his discharge, Allbee married Celia Thatcher March 6, 1869, and they settled near Harvard in 1874.
They had six children and were married 54 years before Celia died in August 1923.
Allbee passed away at 98 years old Nov. 12, 1943.
J. H. Albee family. FIND A GRAVE | CLAY COUNTY NEWS
