Confederate Memorial - Alton, Illinois
Posted by: 
paulspaper
N 38° 55.083 W 090° 11.700
15S E 743190 N 4311423
Monument to Confederate soldiers who died in the infamous Alton, Illinois, Civil War prison.
Waymark Code: WM24XE
Location: Illinois, United States
Date Posted: 09/04/2007
Views: 53
A smallpox virus spread rapidly through the Alton Prison in 1863, killing more than 1,435 captured soldiers. The soldiers are laid to rest here and each of their names is commemorated at the Memorial. The Alton Prison and Confederate Cemetery are some of the rare northernmost monuments to the Confederate Soldier.
Plaque reads: "Erected by the United States to mark the burial place of 1,354 Confederate Soldiers who died here and at the Smallpox Hospital on the adjacent island while prisoners of war and whose graves cannot now be identified."
The 40 foot high granite obelisk was completed in 1909.
Located at Rozier St. (2 blocks west of State St.) in Alton, IL 62002
Date Installed or Dedicated: 01/01/1909
Name of Government Entity or Private Organization that built the monument: Sam Davis Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy
Union, Confederate or Other Monument: Confederate
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Related Website: [Web Link]
Photo or photos will be uploaded.: yes
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