Illinois Civil War Muster and
Descriptive Rolls Database:
Grover, David G. - CPT -
Co E - 64 IL US INF
Residence, Joliet, Will Co, IL; Join,
23Oct1861; Age, 28; Born, West Dryden, Tompkins, NY
Height, 5' 7"; Hair, brown; Eyes, blue;
Complexion, fair; Married; Lawyer
Killed in battle 11 Oct 1862
Honor Roll of State of Illinois, Illinois Veteran's
Commission, Oct 1, 1956:
Grover, David R. -
Capt.- Co E - 64 IL INF
Died, 10 Oct 1862; Buried, Oakwood Cemetery,
Joliet, IL
Headstone Reading,
Will County Illinois USGenWeb
Necrologist Reports (© 2002
The ILGenWeb Project All Rights
Reserved):
Published Obituaries:
The mournful task devolves upon us
of announcing the death of our most intimate and new friend, Captain D. G.
Grover, of Co. E, Yates’ Sharpshooters.
This painful event occurred at Corinth,
on the 10th inst., from a mortal wound received in
the late terrible
battle at that place. He fell while he
was gallantly leading his company against one of the batteries of the
enemy. The fire upon his little band was
most destructive, only 13 escaping unharmed out of 55.
Capt. Grover was one of the first to
volunteer in the
service of his country. He took an
active part in recruiting his company and was unanimously elected
Captain by
the men. He was in several engagements
and after the retreat of Beauregard from Corinth;
his company was the first to enter that place.
The tidings of his death has spread deep gloom throughout the
city.
He was a young man of rare promise and
possessed the noblest of hearts. In
whatever circle he moved – as a lawyer, a soldier, a citizen, and in
the dearer
relations of social life – he was beloved.
He leaves an affectionate young wife to mourn his death. May her
grief be softened by the sympathies
of a feeling community. We learn that
his body will be brought to this city for burial.
Source: Joliet Signal, Tuesday,
October 14, 1862, page 2
The funeral
of Capt.
D. G. Grover of the Yates’
Sharpshooters, took place in this city on
last Tuesday. The services were in the
Congregational church, and were conducted by Rev. John Kidd, assisted
by the
Reverends Patterson of the Baptist church, and Lathrop of the Methodist
church.
An eloquent
and touching address was delivered by Mr. Kidd.
It was indeed most appropriate to the solemn occasion. The
reverend gentlemen’s remarks affected the
in(unreadable
) audience to tears. In our next
issue we shall give a synopsis of the (unreadable
)
The
Masonic Fraternity, of which Capt.
Grover was an honored
member, took charge of the body after the services were concluded at
the
church, when the procession led by the Joliet Cornet Band which played
music
suitable to the occasion, moved toward Oakwood cemetery. After
arriving at the grave, the solemn and
impressive ceremonies of that ancient Order took place over the remains
of the
young hero when they were lowered to their last resting place.
The death
of Captain Grover is deeply
regretted by the whole community while the loss by
his friends and bereaved family is (unreadable
).
He was noble, kindhearted, generous and brace – the idol of his friends
and esteemed by all his acquaintances.
He fell while gloriously leading his men against the enemy and his
memory
should be cherished by his country. We
shall not attempt to write his eulogy but shall leave that melancholy
task to
some abler pen. The historian of this
war will record his patriotic deeds and hand his memory down to a
grateful
future.
Source: Joliet Signal - Tuesday, October
28, 1862
Additional Biographical Material:
David G. Grover (Biography)
There
are still left of the early settlers of this city a few –a very few—who
remember that in 1835 or 6, a family of the name of Grover,
located in Joliet,
and lived in a house on the edge of the bluff, or the lot now occupied
with the
residence of Mrs. Strong. The family
then, or subsequently, consisted of Mr. and Mrs. Grover, two sons and
one girl,
all three quite young. One of these
boys, the subject of this sketch, was then but two years of age, and
was born
in Milford, Penn. Two years
after coming here Mr. Grover died, and two years subsequently Mrs.
Grover also
died, thus leaving the children to an early orphanage.
David
was taken by his grandfather Grover who resided at West Dryden, N.Y.,
and by
him cared for during his childhood. At
the age of eighteen he returned to Joliet. He found
employment for a time with James T. McDougall, who was then merchant
and post
master. Subsequently young Grover
entered the office of S.W. Bowen, Esq., and engaged in the study of
law,
completing his course at the law school in Cincinnati.
After
his graduation he went into partnership with his former instructor, and
was
engaged in the successful prosecution of his profession when the war
broke
out. In the summer of 1859, he had been
united in marriage with Miss Eliza S. McGinnis, who still survives him
with two
daughters. But although thus happily
situated in respect to his business and domestic relationts, --
although his
young family seemed to demand his care, and engage his affections, and
although
he had been politically opposed to the party in charge of the
government, --the
country’s need and the country’s danger seemed to call him with a voice
which
he could not resist. He immediately set
about raising and organizing a company for the “Yates Sharp Shooters,”
the 64th,
and was commissioned captain of the same (Co. E) in Dec. 1861. The history of Captain Grover was
thenceforth
identified with the64th, until his death, and we refer to that
history for his military record. From
that record it will be seen that Capt. Grover was killed in the second
battle
of Corinth, October 4th, 1862. The 64th was
on the skirmish line, and lay between both armies, and the fire of
their
artillery. Capt. Grover was struck while
cheering on his men. He was struck twice
by fragments of shell, about 4 o’clock p.m. He was picked
up and carried out of the reach of the fire by Michael Fuller, of Co.
F, and
there remained until night, under the burning sun, and in hearing of
the fierce
combat.
It
was hoped that Capt. Grover would recover.
He
was taken to the hospital in the evening. But
the shock was so severe that on the
evening of the 10th he died about 9 o’clock. He lived
however, to know that the victory was ours, and that his life had not
been
sacrificed in vain. Before going into
the fight he seemed to have a foreboding of his fate, and so expressed
himself
to a brother officer, telling him that is he fell to tell his wife that
he
“died at the head of his company, fighting for his country.” His brother officer advised him not to go
into the fight if he felt thus. But the
idea of shirking duty or avoiding exposure was spurned, and he fell
while
cheering on his command. He was buried
by his men. One of them writes home next
day, “I helped to bury our gallant little captain.
I may well call him gallant, for a braver man
never drew a sword.”
A
few days after, his business partner, S.W. Bowen, Esq., reached the
front, and
the body was exhumed and brought to Joliet, arriving here the 20th. Funeral services
were had that next day at the Congregational church.
The services were conducted by Mr. Kidd,
assisted by the pastor of the Methodist and Baptist churches, at which
there
was a large attendance of our citizens, who deeply sympathized with his
family
and friends, while they also mourned the loss to the cause of so brave
and
accomplished an officer. The Will county
bar at its next meeting passed resolutions of respect, and Judge Parks
pronounced an eloquent and just eulogy. The
body was taken in charge by the Masonic fraternity,
and it was
deposited in our beautiful Oakwood with Masonic and military honors.
A
tasteful monument of Joliet marble erected by the loving hands of
Messrs. Odell
& Jamison, marks the spot where sleep the ashes of the gallant Capt.
D.G.
Grover.
Source: Fifteen
Years
Ago, or The Patriotism
of Will County - by George H. Woodruff:
64th Illinois Infantry
(Yates' Sharpshooters)
December 1861
-
Organized with four companies at Camp Butler [Springfield]
December 16, 1861 - Two additional companies
mustered into service
March 14, 1862 - Capture of New Madrid, MO
April 8, 1862 - Capture of Island No. 10,
Mississippi River
April 17-22 -Siege of Corinth, MS
September 19, 1862 - Battle of Iuka,
MS
October 3-4, 1862 - Battle of
Corinth,
MS
October 5-12, 1862 - Pursuit to the
Hatchie River
(July 11, 1865 - Regiment mustered out
of service,
Louisville, KY)
(July 14, 1865 - Final payment and
discharge,
Chicago, IL)
Sources: Illinois
Adjutant General's Report and National Park Service -
Regiments
Histories