Irving Washington Elliott was born January 2, 1846, at Tacheedah, Wisconsin, the son of George Washington and Julianna Crofoot Elliott. His father was a surveyor who came to Wisconsin from New York state with the territorial governor, Doty. The family's traditions, as well as the naming of the male line, were intertwined with American history. The first Elliott came to Swampscott, Mass., in 1628, seven years after the landing of the Pilgrims on Plymouth Rock.

15-year-old Elliott was in Appleton, working as a printer's devil on the old Crescent when he heard the drums beats of the Civil War. The boy was fired with fervor to enlist, but his father, a veteran of the Mexican War, dragged the unwilling youth from Appleton to Algoma.

The elder Elliott was unsuccessful, if he had any idea that he could keep his son out of the war. Appleton and Oshkosh men were organizing the 32nd Wisconsin Infantry. Young Elliott knew the captain of Company I.

Between them, they hoodwinked the elder Elliott. The youngster, the father was told, was not joining the army. He was to go as a drummer boy. A few weeks later, young Elliott put aside his drum and became a regular soldier. In a few more weeks he became a corporal.

There was trouble later, when General Sherman started his march to the sea. He wanted only strong, mature men to accompany him. Elliott was among those who were to be left behind, but after much argument, he was permitted to go along. Corp. Elliott was there when Savannah fell. He was with the troops that marched northward to Washington, D.C. He shouted with the others as Abraham Lincoln passed on his way to Ford's Theater. He wept with the rest of the soldiers as they passed Lincoln's bier.

Corp. Elliott was mustered out of the U.S. Army in Milwaukee on June 28, 1865, and went back to the family home in Algoma. In 1869, he joined the Masonic order and was perhaps the oldest Mason in the state in years of membership. On February 4, 1871, he married Sarah Hall, who preceded him in death in April 1939.

He was a printer all his life and published the Algoma Record from 1907 to 1918.

He lived in Algoma until the last four years of his life when he went to Wauwatosa to live with his son, Frank Elliott. He died early Tuesday morning, December 23, 1941 at age 95. He was buried in Algoma's Evergreen Cemetery.

Besides his son, he was survived by two sisters, Mrs. Nellie Hayes and Mrs. Belle Severance. Two brothers were killed in action in the Civil War.

There had been an Eliott fighting in every one of the country's wars from the American Revolution onward until World War I. Son Frank was too old for that. But the continuity was picked up again with a grandson, Sgt. David Severance who served with the parachute troops in WWII.

Information Sources:
Milwaukee Journal, December 23, 1941

Contributed by PCinC Steve Michaels

Last Updated: 28 Feb 2024