Another Alanson Tracy

Faithful readers may recall previous entries about an Alanson Tracy, and others in that family. This entry is about a descendant who had moved on from Scipio, then fought valiantly in the Civil War. Dying of his injuries, he returned to Scipio for his eternal rest.
This Alanson Tracy was 24 when he died, single, and a Lieutenant in the 3rd Michigan. The Scipio Clerk’s book says Alanson was born in Scipio in 1838. He was a Lieutenant in the 3rd Michigan Cavalry. He mustered in as a Lieutenant in October of 1861. He was single, and his father was Calvin Tracy. The Clerk Book says that Alanson died in Cincinnati of disease in June of 1862, and is buried in Scipio, Cayuga County, NY.

We know a little more due to the generosity of his descendants. They have shared a photo of Alanson, which we have on display right now in the History Corner at Scipio.
A dashing young man in his uniform with the bars on his shoulders, Alanson is the very embodiment of our romanticized idea of a Union soldier in the Civil War. We also learned that his mother was Lucilla, and that he was born at the Tracy homestead at Sherwood, Cayuga County, NY on September 15, 1837. He died June 18, 1862 of injuries received in the US Army before Corinth, Miss. and is buried in Aurora, Cayuga County, NY.

He had been living in Detroit at the time of his enlistment. Corinth, at the junction of the Memphis and Charleston and the Mobile and Ohio Railroads, was recognized by both Confederate and Federal Commanders as being of such strategic importance that the village was occupied by one or the other of the forces from 1861 - 1865.
Following the 2-day battle in April 1862 named for Shiloh Church, the Confederates were forced to withdraw to Corinth.
Following Shiloh, Corinth became a vast Confederate hospital center. Hotels, churches, residences, warehouses, and the college were filled with wounded; but, more troops died of sickness and diseases than wounds.

The Tracy family was one of the first to settle here and make Scipio their home. Search this blog for “Tracy” and you will find a few previous entries that demonstrate their importance in the early Scipio community.