Sons of Union Veterans conducted a Last Soldier Ceremony for Private Charles Watson (1840-1936) Sunday afternoon at the Evergreen Memorial Cemetery, Superior. They were dressed in period costume. Included in the picture are Keith Rockefeller, Eric Bachenbery, both from Lincoln, John Surman, Eagle, Patricia Wagner, McCool Junction, Paul Hadley, Lincoln. Paul Burright, Omaha, and Gary Roth. Several of the men are part of the James C. Welstead Camp No. 3 Department of Nebraska and the Dakotas Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. Wagner is president of Kady Brownell Tent No. 25, Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War. Watson lived much of his life near Edgar. He served in the 13th Indiana Volunteer Infantry. The event was hosted by the Nuckolls County Historical Society.
John Surman (right), past department commander of the Jamaes C. Welstead Camp No. 3 Department of Nebraska and the Dakotas Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, visits with John Price Jr. prior to the Last Soldier Ceremony for Private Charles Watson held Sunday afternoon at Evergreen Cemetery near Superior. Price, a board member of the Nuckolls County Historical Society, read Charles Watson's biography at the service.
The American Civil War ended more than 150 years ago but the sacrifices made by those on both sides of the dispute have not been forgotten.
Eighty-eight Union Army veterans are buried in Superior's Evergreen Cemetery and more are buried elsewhere in Nuckolls County. Many county residents have among their treasured collections items like an ancestor's Civil War medal or a uniform button.
Superior's Old Abe Post of the Grand Army of the Republic, marked the members' graves in Evergreen with a medallion. One of those medallions was recently offered for sale by a southern antique store for more than $100. A viewer of that advertisement wondered who stole the medallion and from whose grave?
Sunday descendants of Civil War veterans and others interested in this country's history gathered at the cemetery for a graveside salute to those who served in the Union Army.
The service was held near the grave of Pvt. Charles Watson, the last Civil War veteran known to have been buried in Nuckolls County. He wasn't the last Civil War veteran to die in the county, that honor goes to another but that veteran was buried in Colorado.
The graveside service was sponsored by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, Department of Nebraska and the Dakotas. The service included patriotic music, re-enactors dressed in Civil War uniforms, a gun salute and the playing taps.
John Price Jr., a member of the Nuckolls County Historical Society, read a story about Watson's life and members of the historical society served refreshments.
John Surman, a past department commander, delivered the opening remarks and the colors were presented before the pledge of allegiance was recited.
Patrica Wagner, president of the Kady Brownell Tent No. 25, Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War, laid a memorial wreath on Watson's grave prior to the singing of America.
Paul Burright, department senior commander, offered a prayer.
The Nebraska Rangers placed a symbol of the army honoring Private Watson on the grave.
Following the uncovering of the Last Soldier Marker, the Battle Hymn of the Republic was sung.
The Nebraska Rangers, using authentic replicas of Civil War guns, fired the gun salute. This was followed by a bugler and the playing of Taps.
Paul Burright delivered the benediction and John Surman gave the closing remarks.
The service was patterned after services the GAR performed at Veterans' funerals.
The Sons of Union Veterans are holding similar services in 92 of Nebraska's 93 counties. One county, that being sparsely populated Arthur County, lacks a Civil War veteran's grave.
In each of the counties, a medallion with a QR code placed on the last veteran's grave will take visitors to a website with updated information about the state's Civil War veterans.
Sunday's service was the 48th such service held in Nebraska. More are planned.
The following story about the late Charley Watson, the Civil War veteran whose memories was honored Sunday afternoon at Evergreen Cemetery appears in The Superior Express published on May 9, 1929. The story was read by John Price, Jr., a member of the Nuckolls County Historical Society during the Sunday service.
Looking over the calendar causes Charley Watson to realize it will be 65 years ago tomorrow that he, while a soldier in the 13th Indiana Infantry, received the most serious wound of his army experience. The 13th Infantry was storming Dewey Bluffs, in the engagement later to be know as the Battle of Chester Station, when Charley was struck in the left limb with an open bullet. Badly cutting and lacerating the member. In the confusion of battle, the retiring troops failed to notice their wounded comrade and he lay all day and all night, suffering intense pain and without any one to offer him aid or solace. Charley said it was the longest day and night he ever experienced.
The following day, he was discovered and brought to Fort Monroe for treatment. Youthful army surgeons thought it would be necessary to amputate the injured limb but the young soldier induced them to wait until he was sent to the base hospital at New York City. There it was found unnecessary to perform the amputation which had at first been advised. By August the patient had completely recovered.
His enlistment, having expired during his confinement in the hospital, he was dispatched to Indianapolis and discharged. He demonstrated his patriotism by immediately reenlisting, this time in the 9th Michigan cavalry, serving until the completion of hostilities.
Being wounded at Chester Station was an unpleasant, although not unfamiliar experience for Comrade Watson. He had previously been twice wounded, once by a bullet which plowed a furrow across his head from which Charley could still feel a depression in his cranium, and once by a spent bullet which struck him in the right chest, failing to break the skin but causing severe burns. Not withstanding these three narrow escapes, he was saved for more years of service for his country.
BOSTWICK CEMETERY
Sephus C. Harris - Civil War
HARDY CITY CEMETERY
John W. Beavers - Civil War
Elijah Spencer Blauvelt - Civil War
John Buss - Civil War)
Joseph I. Craig - Civil War
Charles T. Forsha - Civil War
John Richard Glascock - Civil War
Levi Hayes - Civil War
Henry Clay Hutchinson - Civil War
Hiram H. Kimball - Civil War
Arthur L. Skeels - Civil War
John R. Weimer - Civil War
William Wilkinson - Civil War
LAWRENCE EVERGREEN CEMETERY
S. Peter Christenson - Civil War
Dr. R.A. Hawthorn - Civil War
Joshua Smith Helton - Civil War
Thomas C. Laird - Civil War
William Redinger - Civil War
MT. ZION CEMETERY
Francis Marion Baker - Civil War
Oliver Baker - Civil War
William L. Davis - Civil War
Peter Hoffman - Civil War
Albert Aldrich Joy - Civil War
James M. Sims - Civil War
NELSON CEMETERY
John Benjamin Adamson - Civil War
Relzy Mitchell Aikin - Civil War
Francis Marion Archer - Civil War
Isaac Newton Atkisson - Civil War
William Alexander Baker - Civil War
William P. Baker - Civil War
Daniel R. Ball - Civil War
Voltaire Barker - WW I
Byron B. Bathrick - Civil War
Malcolm O. Bennett - Civil War
William G. Bradley - Civil War
Edgar DeWitt Brown - Civil War
Joseph Riley Buffington - Civil War
Daniel W. Burd - Civil War
James A. Campbell - Civil War
Jonas Carter - Civil War
William F. Carter - Civil War
Milburn Chapman - Civil War
Neri Conner - Civil War
Moses DeHart - Civil War
Jacob Franklin Diehl - Civil War
Elbridge L. Downing - Civil War
John Green Dunken - Civil War
William Hardin Elledge - Civil War
Ira George Foster - Civil War
Alvin Galley - Civil War
Jacob Galley - Civil War
John R. Galusha - Civil War
J. W. Gammill - Civil War
Earlis Burr Gardner - Civil War
Michael Cotton Gress - Civil War (Con-
federate)
Charles Gress - Civil War
Michael Cotton Gress - Civil War
Joshua Cottingham Harritt - Civil War
Francis Johnston - Civil War
Mark R. Jones - Civil War
William Kinney - Civil War
John W. Kinnison - Civil War
Enos H. Kirk - Civil War
John D. Kirkman - Civil War
Pitheous D. McKinney - Civil War
Alexander Morgan - Civil War
James Blackburn Nesbitt - Civil War
William Wesley Norwood - Civil War
Robert W. Nutter - Civil War
Leonard Phillips - Civil War
Joseph H. Pritts - Civil War
John Randell - Civil War
John Henry Rausher - Civil War
Joseph Washington Register - Civil
War (Confederate)
Jacob Ritterbush - Civil War
Alfred G. Robinson - Civil War
Joseph Lafayette Rogers - Nebraska
National Guard
George Washington Rouse - Civil War
James H. Ruddell - Civil War (Confed-
erate)
William Smith - Civil War
Abraham Stahl -Civil War
Aaron Stanturf - Civil War
Clark Rodger Stone - Civil War
Albert Edgar Thurber - Civil War
Martin L. Unger - Civil War
Horace H. Warren - Civil War
Jesse Watson White - Civil War
NORA CEMETERY
Solomon Cloud - Civil War
Aaron Day - Civil War
William Fink - Civil War
James Hanthorn - Civil War
Emery Wickliff Lynch - Civil War
Preston H. Williamson - Civil War
OAK GROVE CEMETERY
James M. Allen - Civil War
Job Allen - Civil War
Christopher Columbus Fletcher - Civil
War
Robert Hollingworth-Civil War (Navy)
Richard "Dick" H. Jones - Civil War
Daniel Webster Lacey - Civil War
David W. Worden - Civil War
Landa R. Young - Civil War
SACRED HEART CEMETERY
Robert Doran - Civil War
Joseph McIntire - Civil War
SAINT STEPHENS CEMETERY
John Dean - Civil War
Leopold Weick - Civil War
SMITH CEMETERY
John Brush Harris - Civil War
David Weiler Smith - Civil War
SPRING CREEK CEMETERY
Isaac N. Keller - Civil War
William A. Majors - Civil War
Byron Moore - Civil War
Carl Victor Rasmussen - Civil War I
John S. Tipton - Civil War
SUPERIOR EVERGREEN CEMETERY
Thomas E. Baker - Civil War
Henry Clay Boden - Civil War
Edward Bosserman - Civil War
Francis Newton Brokaw - Civil War
Ezra P. Camp - Civil War
John C. Carpenter - Civil War
Aaron M. Clark - Civil War
William Crone - Civil War
John W. Cuff - Civil War
James W. Edenburn - Civil War
William Dysart - Civil War
William Oliver Edersole - Civil War
Thomas Wilsonn Egbert - Civil War
William Foster - Civil War
John Hearne - Civil War
Henry F. Heltman - Civil War
William L. Hilyard - Civil War
William W. Hopper - Civil War
Robert B. Irwin - Civil War
Lorenzo R. King - Civil War
William H. Lamb - Civil War
John A. Larmon - Civil War
George W. Lozier-Civil War (Confed-
erate)
Albert Marshall Lunt - Civil War
Isaac N.W. Mahaffey - Civil War
Benjamin J. McConnell - Civil War
John William Mitchell - Civil War
Frederick "Fred" Moeder - Civil War
William A. Phillips - Civil War
Stephen A. Signor - Civil War
Mathew W. Speer - Civil War
John D. Stine - Civil War
Kellis Madison Tarter - Civil War
Benjamin Thompson - Civil War
David Mann Warren - Civil War
James H. Warren - Civil War
Charles Watson - Civil War
O.C. Williams - Civil War
William A. Wright - Civil War
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