When war was declared in April 1861, Richard Yates, Governor of the State of Illinois and Commander-in-Chief of the Militia, called for volunteers to enlist. The “gallant sons” of McLean County answered the call. More than 6,866 McLean County soldiers served in many regiments, mostly Illinois regiments but also the 55th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment (13 African American recruits), the 29th United States Colored Infantry Regiment (26 Bloomington-area soldiers), and the Eighth Missouri Infantry, led by Lieutenant Colonel Giles Smith of Bloomington (121 soldiers from McLean County). For a list of the companies where McLean County soldiers served, see It Is Begun! The Pantagraph Reports the Civil War, ed. Don Munson, Bloomington: McLean County Historical Society, 2001. [List also in Folder B1]
The Civil War Collection is divided into four major categories: Efforts by the United States generally; about Illinois and McLean County; military units in which McLean County men served; and individual soldiers. Items in the United States category include songs, general information about soldiers’ pensions, and the work of the U. S. Sanitary Commission and the Ordnance Office.
Specific information about McLean County soldiers and civilians comprises the remainder of this collection and may serve to supplement or give a personal voice to military information available in books and other published sources. In folders relating to military units and individual soldiers, one may find some original documents, such as letters written by soldiers to family back home. Most often, there are only one or two items connected with any individual, so we organize those items in alphabetical, not individual, folders. The finding aid describes each item.