Lyman G. Bennett
Lyman Gibson Bennett | |
|---|---|
 Lyman Gibson Bennett, 1863, as Major, 4th Arkansas Cavalry | |
| Born | 1 August 1832 Schuyler County, New York,United States |
| Died | 24 February 1904 Springfield, Missouri,United States |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/ |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1864 (USA) |
| Rank |  Major(USV) |
| Unit | 36th Illinois Volunteer Infantry 4th Arkansas Volunteer Cavalry |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
| Other work | Teacher, Surveyor, and Civil Engineer. |
Lyman Gibson Bennett(1832 – 1904) was an American teacher, surveyor, and civil engineer fromSchuyler County, New York,who served theUnion armyduring theAmerican Civil War.
Early life
[edit]Lyman Gibson Bennett was born on 1 August 1832, inSchuyler County, New York,the son of Charles Mitchell Bennett (11 May 1807 – 29 July 1882) and his wife Louisa Canfield (18 May 1810 – 14 April 1886).[1]He was educated inNew Yorkstate, then in 1849 when he was 17, his family moved toOswego,inKendall County, Illinois.[1]Bennett taught school there for five years, then trained as a surveyor and civil engineer. He worked as a railroad surveyor, and later served as the county surveyor of Kendall County, Illinois.
Bennett spent most of 1857 in Minnesota in an unrewarding attempt to homestead, first near Winona, then in the Faribault District near Ashland. He supported himself by selling maps through subscription and by employment as a member of the surveying team for the proposed Transit Railroad. He terminated his experience in Minnesota by returning to Illinois late in 1857 to resume teaching school.[2]On 18 December 1859 in Kendall County, Illinois, he married Melissa Emma Lyon (1838–1904).[3]
American Civil War
[edit]In 1861, Bennett enlisted as a Corporal in Co. E of the36th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment,a three-year unit known as the “Fox River Regiment.” Military authorities took advantage of his skills, assigning him to engineering duties at Rolla and St. Louis, Missouri throughout late 1861 and early 1862. His detached duty, which included map-making and work on fortifications, ended in time for Bennett to join his regiment for theBattle of Pea Ridge,Arkansas on March 7, 1862. He was permanently detached from the 36th Illinois after the battle to serve on the engineering staff ofBrigadier GeneralSamuel Ryan Curtis.He sketched the Pea Ridge battlefield and was the cartographer of theArmy of the Southwestas it marched across Missouri toHelena, Arkansas.In 1863, Bennett took a commission as major of the4th Arkansas Volunteer Cavalry Regiment (United States),which he helped raise and organize. He resigned and was honorably discharged in August 1864.
As a civilian, Bennett again joined the engineering department of General Samuel Curtis, then commanding theDepartment of Kansas.He mapped the 1864 battlefields ofPrice's Raid,and was sent to inspect the army's installations along the stage line to Denver, Colorado.[2]
Sioux Wars
[edit]In 1865,Major GeneralGrenville M. Dodgeordered thePowder River Expeditionas a campaign against the Sioux, Cheyenne, and Arapaho. It was commanded by Brigadier GeneralPatrick E. Connorand was to have three independently marching columns of soldiers. Bennett was given the position of chief engineering officer of ColonelNelson D. Cole's right, or eastern column of the expedition, which operated from July 1 to October 4, 1865. As the chief engineering officer, he worked to build roads and bridges along the route that could accommodate the columns' 140 wagons and pack train. Bennett also mapped their route, some of which had never been mapped before.
During the campaign, he participated in thePowder River Battlesat Alkali Creek (Sept. 1), Dry Creek (Sept. 8), and theLittle Powder River(Sept. 10). At Dry Creek, Bennett rode with groups of dismounted soldiers deployed in skirmish lines, which made him a conspicuous target. He was nearly hit by multiple bullets fired by Native American warriors, with one passing by his head, and another striking the ground under his horse. Bennett then led the final charge of the engagement in which the soldiers drove the remaining warriors off a bluff and away from the battlefield. On September 12, 1865, he was the first person to describe in writing theTerrett Butte,a landmark along the Powder River.[4]
Later life
[edit]Bennett left the army's employment in 1866 to return toIllinois.He moved toSpringfield, Missouri,in 1880, purchasing a farm on the western edge of the city. He continued to work as an engineer and surveyor, platting additions to the City of Springfield, and surveying railroad lines in Missouri and Oklahoma. Lyman Gibson Bennett died inSpringfield, Missourion 24 February 1904, and is buried there.[2]Bennett and his wife had four children.[5]
Legacy
[edit]The bookPowder River Odyssey: Nelson Cole's Western Campaign of 1865, The Journals of Lyman G. Bennett and Other Eyewitness Accountsby David E. Wagner (2009), was written almost entirely from the journal that Bennett kept in 1865.
See also
[edit]- 36th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment
- 4th Arkansas Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, (United States)
- Powder River Expedition
Notes
[edit]- ^abLyman G Bennett in the 1850 United States Federal Census,accessed 9 Feb 2018.
- ^abc"Bennett, L. G. (Lyman G.)"(PDF).Retrieved24 March2015.
- ^Lyman G Bennett in the Illinois, Compiled Marriages,accessed 9 February 2018.
- ^Wagner, David E.; Bennett, Lyman G. (2009).Powder River Odyssey: Nelson Cole's Western Campaign of 1865, The Journals of Lyman G. Bennett and Other Eyewitness Accounts.Arthur H. Clark Co.ISBN978-0-87062-370-7.
- ^Lyman G. Bennett in the 1880 United States Federal Census,accessed 9 Feb 2018.