The Last Soldier Project: Jefferson County, Wis.
Christian Friedrich Holzhueter

The following information was transcribed from Christian Holzhueter's newspaper obituary:

County's Last Civil War Veteran Dies; Was 94 Years Old

Jefferson County's last Civil War veteran, 94-year-old Christian Holzhueter, died at 5:30 o'clock Tuesday afternoon (Sept. 23, 1941) at the home of his daughter, Mrs. Henry Febock.

Mr. Holzhueter had the distinction of having stood guard at the funeral of Abraham Lincoln, according to his pastor, the Rev. Walter Zank of Newville.

Christian and Amelia HolzhueterBorn in Stolzhagen, Germany, on Jan 1, 1847, he came to America as an immigrant with his parents in 1857. He was the son of Christian Holzhueter and Dorothea Albrecht.

When they first came to America, they settled on a farm near Hubbleton. Later the family moved to the Town of Deerfield, where they lived on various farms.

In 1875, he was married to Amelia Berndt of Columbus. She preceded him in death 44 years ago. For a while Mr. Holzhueter lived with a daughter in the Town of Deerfield, and for the past 11 years he lived with Mrs. Henry Febock.

Six of his children are living, all daughters, and they are Mrs. August Graffin of the Town of Deerfield; Mrs. Elsie Schlueter, Deerfield; Mrs. Amelia Smith, Deerfield; Mrs. Helen Febock, London; Mrs. Bertha Gallagher, Sun Prairie, and Mrs. Viola Grossman, Cottage Grove. A sister, Mrs. August Hein, Waterloo, survives. There are 19 grandchildren and 34 great grandchildren.

It was in 1864 that he enlisted in the Army during the Civil War. He was 17, left his father's farm near Hubbleton and joined the 1st Wisconsin Heavy Artillery.

And because he joined the artillery and not the 35th Regiment, as he had intended, he never saw action. Instead he served his enlistment with the Company M near Fort Weed, five miles from Washington, D.C.

(Holzhueter was a private, serving from Aug. 27, 1864, to June 26, 1865).

After that Mr. Holzhueter purchased a 190-acre farm near Kroghville for $10 an acre.

Like most Civil War Union soldiers, he joined the Grand Army of the Republic. When the last comrade in Waterloo died, he joined the Cambridge Post. Then even the Cambridge Post disappeared, and Mr. Holzhueter remained alone with his many interesting memories of the Civil War days.


More about the 1st Heavy Artillery at http://civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/unwiarty.htm#1sthvy



Sources:
Lake Mills Leader, September 1941
Wisconsin State Journal, Sept. 25, 1941, Page 2
Find-s-Grave Memorial #11370091


Researched and submitted by Tom Mueller, PCC and Department GRO


divider line

Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War
Department of Wisconsin

SUVCW Logo

Comments to

Last Updated: 7 Nov 2022