Edward N. Kirk
Encyclopedia
Edward Needles Kirk was a Quaker school teacher, attorney, and then a brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...

 in the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

 during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

.

Early life and career

Kirk was born in rural Jefferson County, Ohio
Jefferson County, Ohio
Jefferson County is a county located in the state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 69,709. Its county seat is Steubenville and is named for Thomas Jefferson, who was at the time Vice President....

. He was educated at the Friends' Academy in Mount Pleasant, Ohio
Mount Pleasant, Ohio
Mount Pleasant is a village in Jefferson County, Ohio, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the village population was 535. It is part of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...

, and subsequently taught school. He studied law for two years in Cadiz, Ohio
Cadiz, Ohio
Cadiz is a village in Harrison County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,308 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Harrison County.-Geography:Cadiz is located at ....

, and passed the bar exam in 1853. He established a practice in Baltimore, Maryland. In the spring of 1854, he relocated to Sterling, Illinois
Sterling, Illinois
Sterling is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,370 at the 2010 census, down from 15,451 at the 2000 census. Formerly nicknamed "The Hardware Capital of the World", Sterling has long been associated with manufacturing and the steel...

. He married Marcella Cameron in Philadelphia
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...

 on October 17, 1855. The couple would have two sons. In 1857, with his business quickly prospering, Kirk built a large mansion
Mansion
A mansion is a very large dwelling house. U.S. real estate brokers define a mansion as a dwelling of over . A traditional European mansion was defined as a house which contained a ballroom and tens of bedrooms...

, now known as the Paul W. Dillon Home
Paul W. Dillon Home
The Paul W. Dillon Home, also known as the Colonel Edward N. Kirk House, is located in Sterling, Illinois. It was home to the late businessman Paul W. Dillon and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980...

.

Civil War service

At the start of the Civil War, Kirk recruited and organized the 34th Illinois Infantry
34th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 34th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, known as the "Rock River Rifles," was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:...

, serving as the regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...

's first colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...

 dating from September 1861. He saw duty in Kentucky and Tennessee. He commanded a brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...

 of four regiments during the Battle of Shiloh
Battle of Shiloh
The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6–7, 1862, in southwestern Tennessee. A Union army under Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had moved via the Tennessee River deep into Tennessee and...

, where he was wounded in the shoulder on April 7, 1862, and eventually shipped home to recuperate.

Following his lengthy convalescence, Kirk returned to the field in late August, although he was still partially invalided. He and his men participated in parts of the Kentucky Campaign. He was appointed as a brigadier general dating from November 29, 1862. A little more than a month later, he was severely wounded in the hip during the Battle of Stones River
Battle of Stones River
The Battle of Stones River or Second Battle of Murfreesboro , was fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the American Civil War...

 near Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Murfreesboro, Tennessee
Murfreesboro is a city in and the county seat of Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 108,755 according to the United States Census Bureau's 2010 U.S. Census, up from 68,816 residents certified during the 2000 census. The center of population of Tennessee is located in...

, the Minié ball
Minié ball
The Minié ball is a type of muzzle-loading spin-stabilising rifle bullet named after its co-developer, Claude-Étienne Minié, inventor of the Minié rifle...

 lodging near his spine. He was transported to a field hospital
Field hospital
A field hospital is a large mobile medical unit that temporarily takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent hospital facilities...

 and then eventually taken to the Tremont House
Tremont House (Chicago)
Tremont House was a leading hotel in Chicago, United States, that served as the Headquarters for the Illinois Republican Party during the 1860 Republican National Convention held at the nearby Wigwam as they lobbied for Abraham Lincoln's nomination. Both Lincoln and Stephen Douglas started...

 in Chicago, where he died several months later.

He is buried in the Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum
Rosehill Cemetery, Chicago
Rosehill Cemetery is a Victorian era cemetery on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois, USA, and at , is the largest cemetery in the City of Chicago. The name "Rosehill" resulted from a City Clerk's error – the area was previously called "Roe's Hill", named for nearby farmer Hiram Roe...

 in Chicago.

Battery Edward N. Kirk at Fort Stark in New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...

 was named in his memory. His son, Edward C. Kirk, became one of Pennsylvania's leading dental surgeons and medical educators.

See also

  • List of American Civil War generals

External links

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