Nathaniel Lyon, Civil War Union General
N 37° 10.433 W 093° 15.820
15S E 476593 N 4114194
This monument remembers General Nathaniel Lyon,West Point Class of 1841, who participated in the Seminole, Mexican and the Civil War.
He died in the Battle of Wilson's Creek on August 10,1861. He was the first Union General to die in battle.
Waymark Code: WM9FA8
Location: Missouri, United States
Date Posted: 08/12/2010
Views: 7
Brigadier General Nathaniel Lyon was the commanding general at the American Civil War battle of Wilson's Creek. The date of the battle near today's Republic, Missouri was August 10, 1861. Today it is administered by the National Park Service. Many of the Union and Confederate dead are buried in the Springfield National Cemetery established in 1867 and the Confederate Cemetery in 1871. However, neither Lyon or General Sterling Price of the Confederate forces are buried here. Price is buried in St. Louis, Missouri.
Lyon's cenotaph monument-- he is not buried here-- but in his home state of Connecticut. He was a West Point Academy graduate, Class of 1841. Before the civil war he served in the Seminole and Mexican Wars.
The Lyon Monument is approximately 12-14 feet tall with a knight's helmet, a battle axe and a wreath on top of a four-foot pillar.
Though the Union forces were outnumbered at Wilson's Creek, Franz Sigel,a colonel under Lyon had a plan of surprise attack that almost worked.My interest in the Battle Of Wilson's Creek stems from the fact that my great grand uncle was a private in Company E of Sigel's Fifth Missouri Volunteers. Though he suffered two gunshot wounds and a saber cut, was captured and later repatriated, he lived a long life after the war.
On a similarly hot August day a few years ago, I visited the Wilson Creek battlefield and looked up from the Wire Road at the "Bloody Hill". I conclude that my relative and those others who survived that experience were pretty amazing guys.
Website pertaining to the memorial: [Web Link]
List if there are any visiting hours:
Spingfield National Cemetery, Monday through Friday dawn to dusk with office open from 8AM to 5PM.
Entrance fees (if it applies): none
Type of memorial: Monument
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