A final salute: Civil War soldier receives belated headstone in Marine on St. Croix

MARINE ON ST. CROIX - Atop a cemetery hill, amid dark and crumbling headstones, now stands a solitary white reminder of a soldier's Civil War service.

The gravestone is 85 years late. The soldier, Pvt. James G. Ward, died in 1922 and was buried in the Oakland Cemetery of Marine on St. Croix without a headstone.

In a ceremony Saturday to dedicate a new headstone for Ward, family members gathered at the family plot to hear the story of their grandfather, great-grandfather or great-great-grandfather.

With the help of a Civil War re-enactor, Ora Ward Mooney, James Ward's only surviving granddaughter placed a wreath at the grave to dedicate the headstone. Ora celebrated her 90th birthday Sunday, the day after the ceremony.

A color guard from the 2nd Minnesota Civil War Re-enactors Group stood at attention behind the gravestone, holding the flags of the Union and the state of Minnesota. In a final salute to Ward's service, the volunteers loaded their muskets and fired three volleys into the air.

Even without a headstone, Ward was never forgotten. Two Marine on St. Croix men, Gary Campbell, who used to bring students to the cemetery for tours, and Ralph Malhberg who places the flags over veteran's graves every Memorial Day, got together and decided to find Ward a headstone.

"Marine has a habit of doing things not right on time," Campbell said after the pair was applauded at the ceremony.

Brian Mooney, Ora's son and the family's official historian, was also in pursuit of a gravestone for his grandfather. He was surprised to discover that one was already on is way. Mooney organized the event from his home in Boston, contacting the 50-person family through e-mail and telephone calls.

With very little pressure, the Minnesota Veterans Administration provided the standard white military headstone. The headstone is the same type used in all national cemeteries.

The ceremony was impressive, and family members agreed that Ward would have been proud. The Gettysburg Address was read, as was "Oh Captain, My Captain," by Walt Whitman, followed by a singing of "The Battle Hymn of the Republic."

"We're all speechless," said Ora Mooney when asked to speak. "This is a wonderful dedication to our family."

Ward was drafted into the Union Army in 1865 and assigned to Company A, 2nd Minnesota Infantry Regiment. Ward's service brought him from then Marine Mills, Minn., to Raleigh, N.C., in 1865. He then traveled to Richmond, Va., Washington, D.C. and finally home to Fort Snelling.

Ward joined the regiment at the tail end of its service in the Civil War. It was mustered out in June 1865. The 2nd Minnesota was heavily engaged in the Battle of Mill Springs, the Battle of Chickamauga and the Battle of Gettysburg. At the close of the war, the regiment participated in the grand review of the Army of the Republic in Washington.

Ward's life outside the military was remembered as well. He ran a tavern, was said to have mastered several Native American languages and was nicknamed "Candyman" by the local children for giving the sweets on their way to school.

After the ceremony, members of the family volunteered memories or stories they had heard about Ward. One woman reminded the family that on visits they would water their horses at the cement watering trough at the bottom of the hill.

"He hasn't died at all," said Brent Peterson, executive director of the Washington County Historical Society." "Your history keeps the history of Minnesota alive."

Ross Holtan is a freelance writer. He can be reached at ross.holtan@gmail.com.

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