Albert Woolson
Encyclopedia
Last surviving United States war veterans
This is an incomplete list of the last surviving veterans of American wars. The last surviving veteran of any particular war, upon his death, marks the end of a historic era. Exactly who is the last surviving veteran is often an issue of contention, especially with records from long-ago wars...
member of the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
, which fought in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. He was also the last surviving Civil War veteran on either side whose status is currently undisputed. (At least three men who followed him in death claimed to be Confederate veterans, but their status as Civil War veterans is in dispute.)
Biography
Woolson was born in AntwerpAntwerp (town), New York
Antwerp is a town in Jefferson County, New York, USA. The population was 1,846 at the 2010 census. The town is named after Antwerp in Belgium, the home of one of the early investors in the town....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. His father, Willard Woolson, enlisted in the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
. Willard was wounded at the Battle of Shiloh
Battle of Shiloh
The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6–7, 1862, in southwestern Tennessee. A Union army under Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had moved via the Tennessee River deep into Tennessee and...
and was transported to an Army hospital in Windom
Windom, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 4,490 people, 1,910 households, and 1,195 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,263.6 people per square mile . There were 2,089 housing units at an average density of 587.9 per square mile...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
, where he eventually died of his wounds. Albert and his mother moved to Windom to accompany Willard. Albert enlisted as a drummer boy in Company C, 1st Minnesota Heavy Artillery Regiment
1st Minnesota Heavy Artillery Regiment
The 1st Minnesota Volunteer Heavy Artillery Regiment was a regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 1st Minnesota Heavy Artillery mustered in at St. Paul, and Rochester, Minnesota, between November 1864 and February 1865...
on October 10, 1864, becoming the company's drummer. The company never saw action, and Albert Woolson was discharged on Sept. 7, 1865.
Woolson returned to Minnesota, where he lived the rest of his life. He was a carpenter
Carpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
and later a member of the Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic
The Grand Army of the Republic was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army, US Navy, US Marines and US Revenue Cutter Service who served in the American Civil War. Founded in 1866 in Decatur, Illinois, it was dissolved in 1956 when its last member died...
, a powerful political organization made up of Civil War veterans where he became senior vice commander in chief in 1953.
In his final days, he lived at 215 East Fifth Street in Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth, Minnesota
Duluth is a port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seat of Saint Louis County. The fourth largest city in Minnesota, Duluth had a total population of 86,265 in the 2010 census. Duluth is also the second largest city that is located on Lake Superior after Thunder Bay, Ontario,...
. Woolson died at St. Luke's Hospital in Duluth on August 2, 1956, at what was thought to be the age of 109
Centenarian
A centenarian is a person who is or lives beyond the age of 100 years. Because current average life expectancies across the world are less than 100, the term is invariably associated with longevity. Much rarer, a supercentenarian is a person who has lived to the age of 110 or more, something only...
, of a "recurring lung congestion condition". Woolson was buried with full military honors by the National Guard
United States National Guard
The National Guard of the United States is a reserve military force composed of state National Guard militia members or units under federally recognized active or inactive armed force service for the United States. Militia members are citizen soldiers, meaning they work part time for the National...
and is buried at Park Hill cemetery. Following his death, then-President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
said:
"The American people have lost the last personal link with the Union Army ... His passing brings sorrow to the hearts of all of us who cherished the memory of the brave men on both sides of the War Between the States."
Life magazine ran a seven-page article upon the death of Albert Woolson, in the August 20, 1956 issue. The article included much information about the G.A.R., with pictures or drawings of several encampments (conventions). Also included are photos of the last three living Confederate soldiers (disputed): William Lundy
William Lundy
William Lundy was a claimant of the last living Confederate veteran of the American Civil War, having claimed to have served with the Alabama Home Guard in 1865.-Biography:...
, 108; Walter Williams, 113; and John Salling, 110.
In mid-2006, new census research indicated that Albert Woolson was actually only 106 years old, being listed as less than one year old in the 1850 census. Previous research in 1991 has suggested he was younger than claimed (However census data is well known to be incorrect by two or three years in thousands of verified cases, but with the later mentioned CSA veterans we run into the problem of 10 to 15 years), although this does not affect his veteran status.
After his death, the Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic
The Grand Army of the Republic was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army, US Navy, US Marines and US Revenue Cutter Service who served in the American Civil War. Founded in 1866 in Decatur, Illinois, it was dissolved in 1956 when its last member died...
was dissolved because Woolson was its last surviving member.
The 2011-12 Minnesota Legislative Manual was dedicated to him.
See also
- Last surviving United States war veteransLast surviving United States war veteransThis is an incomplete list of the last surviving veterans of American wars. The last surviving veteran of any particular war, upon his death, marks the end of a historic era. Exactly who is the last surviving veteran is often an issue of contention, especially with records from long-ago wars...
- 1st Minnesota Heavy Artillery Regiment1st Minnesota Heavy Artillery RegimentThe 1st Minnesota Volunteer Heavy Artillery Regiment was a regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 1st Minnesota Heavy Artillery mustered in at St. Paul, and Rochester, Minnesota, between November 1864 and February 1865...
External links
- Albert Woolson image at CorbisCorbisCorbis Corporation is an American company, based in Seattle, Washington, that licenses the rights to photographs, footage and other visual media...
- Sons of Union Veterans biography
- Photographs of Memorial
- "Bust of Albert Woolson Given To GAR Museum" Article in the Civil War News.
- "Depot salutes last Union vet" Article in the Duluth News Tribune, June 10, 2004.