McCraken Family Honor Roll of Civil War Veterans

John Harmon McCracken was born 4 June 1836 in Daviess County, indiana. His parents were William McCracken and Mary Ann Webber. On 16 August 1858 John married Delana Hill.

John was drafted 23 December 1864 and mustered in 29 December 1864 as a private in Company "D" 13th Regiment of Indiana Volunteers. At the time he was 28 years old. He and Delana had had three children, but only one child was living. One bay died soon after birth in 1861 and another child died at the age of 2 1/2 just a few months before John was drafted.

It is interesting to note that at the time John was drafted, his brothe Charles had been wounded, hospitalized for one and a half years and discharged: his first cousin richard McGehee had been killed at the Battle of Stones River: his cousin John James McCracken had been wounded and discharged: his cousin Thomas McCracken had been wounded and discharged: his cousin William Nelson McCracken had been discharged because of illness: and his brother-in-law Gabriel Moots had been killed at the Battle of Resaca. It must have been very hard for John Harmon McCracken to leave his wife and family and enter the Army.

Shortly after having entered the sevice, John was at Indianapolis in early January of 1865. His feet were frostbitten--the effects of which bothered him during all of marching that he did during his term of service. Early in the spring of 1865 the 13th Indiana was a part of The Campaign in the Carolinas. They marched in the mud from Wilmington, North Carolina to Raleigh during very cold and rainy weather. John, kike many other soldiers, became ill during this time and was treated by the regimental sureon.

Confedrate General Robert E. Lee surrendered to General U.S. Grant at Appomatox Court House, Virginia on 9 April 1865. The 13th was present five days later when Cofederate General Joseph E. JOhnston surrendered to General William T. Sherman near Durham Station, North Carolina.

The war was over, but John Harmon McCracken remainded on duty until 5 September 1865 when he was discharged at Goldsboro, North Carolina.

John returned to his family and he and Delana had five more children. they also raised thier granddaughter Emma McCracken Emma was the daughter of Henry Hill McCracken whose first two wives died, leaving infant children. Emma's mother died ten days agter giving birth. Henry's second wife, Lydia Villwock, died soon after giving birth also. The second baby was raised by Henry and Sesta (McCracken) Villawock who were both related and were childless. His name was Loren Villwock.

John and Delana McCracken were members of Mount Olive Baptist Church where John served as Deacon.. John died 3 November 1910 and Elana died 7 January 1929. They both are buried in Veale Creek Baptist Church Cemetery.

George W. Coup was born 10 october 1845 in Daviess County, Indiana. His parents were John Coup and Nancy McCracken. Until his enlistment, he lived with his parents southeast of Washinton, Indiana. On 25 January 1865 he enlisted as a private in Company "K" 143rd Regiment of Indiana Volunteers for one year. He was 19 years old. The 143rd was assigned to provost duty in Tennessee--mostly in the area of Nashville, Clarksville and Fort Donelson.

While the 143rd was at Fort Donelson from June to October 1865, about 32 members of the unit were mounted. The did picket duty, scouting, and carried the mail between Clarksville, Tennessee and Fort Donelson. In the fall of 1865, Henry Clark, John Allen and George W. Coup were pursing horse thieves and guerillas. they were out all night, and about 2:00 a.m. they had a horse thief cornered in a house. He jumped from the window and ran for another house. the patrol from the 143rd gave chase and George W. Coup's hourse ran over a gate and fell with him and on him, injuring his left shoulder. George was able to ride the horse back to Fort Donelson (about 25 miles) and assist in delivering the prisoners to the stockade.

George W. Coup was discharged from the Army on 17 October 1865 and returned home to Daviess County. From 1866 until 1890 George spent summers traveling with various circuses and winters at home in Daviess County, although the winters of 1885,86 and 87 were spent in New York City. Some of the circuses that he worked for were: Robinson's Circus and Menagerie, Barnum's Gratest Show on Earth, W.C. Coup's New Minstrel and Monster Show, Coup's Chicago Museum, and Harmon and Pirrepont's "Battle of Gettysburg". At the time of the 1880 census, George Coup gave his occupation as "advance man for shows". Some of the Daviess County men who traveled with George were:Peter M. Clark, John P. Seay, Thomas Fairchild and Jesse McGehee. W.C. Coup, who became famous in the Circus business, was a half-brother of George.

George W. Coup and Ella (or Eldorado) Bell were married 29 December 1868. They had four daughters: Arlie, Sula, Ella and Rosa. Circus life must not have made domestic life very pleasant as George and Ella were divorced in 1883. In his pension records, George claimed to have never been married, but at the time of his death his next of kin was named as Mrs. F.H. Haering of Bloomington, Illinois and identified as his daughter. It is presumed that George Coup did not want to get into the "red tape" of producing a marriage and divorce record as a part of his pension application.

From 1906 until 1915 George lived in various National Military Homes in Kansas, Tennessee, Illinois and Indiana. He also claimed to have lived three years in Missouri and two years in New Mexico. George W. Coup died 4 May 1920 in the Western Branch National Military Home in Leavenworth, Kansas, at the age of 74. He is buried in Leavenworth National Cemetery.

James Milton McGehee was born 1 January 1833 in Mayslick, Kentucky. His parents were Jesse McGehee and Sarah McCracken. They moved to Daviess County, Indiana when James was a small child and lived in Barr Twonship near Sarah (McCracken) McGehee's brothers and sisters.

The first wife of james M. McGehee was Sarah Hunter. They were married 20 February 1857 and had two children before Sarah died in July of 1860. An infant daughter also died in 1860. On 29 December 1861 James married Elizabeth Stafford.

At the time of his enlistment, James M. McGehee was 32 years old and the father of two living children. He enlisted in Company "K" 143rd Regiment of Indiana Volunteers on 25 January 1865 at Washington, and was mustered in on 4 February 1865 at Evansville. During the time of his service, the 143rd was assigned to provost duty in Kentucky and Tennessee. James was discharged 17 October 1865 in Nashville, Tennessee, having served eight months of his one year enlistment.

James M. McGehee returned to his family and he and Elizabeth had seven more children. About 1867 the McGehhess moved to Neosha County, Kansas, where they lived until after 1880. Elizabeth died in Pittsburgh, Crawford County, Kansas about 1885-88. James McGehee married a third time to Jane (Hagan) Holt and they lived together in Pittsburgh, Kansas,until Jane died in January of 1897. James lived in Crawford and Chatauqua Counties, Kansas until he entered the National Military Home at Leavenworth, Kansas in 1905 at the age of 72. he lived in the Military Home until 1914 or 1915 when he married his fourth wife, Julia Ann (VanWinkle) Jones. He was then 81 years old and she was about the same age having survived four husbands. It is not known when Julia Ann died, but James was a widower by 1921 when he was living with his dauhter, raos Hobaugh, in Bramman, Oklahoma. James M. McGehee died 21 March 1927 in Pittsburgh, Kansas, at the home of his son, Charles, having reached the age of 94.