The Eighth Illinois being the
first to go to the front, in a sense deserves to be noticed here
first. This remarkable regiment was developed out of the Ninth
Battalion, Illinois National Guard, and owes its origin to the
persistent efforts of Messrs. John R. Marshall, Robert R. Jackson,
Franklin Dennison, E.H. Wright, Rev. R.C. Ransom, Rev. J.W. Thomas,
S.B. Turner and doubtless many others whose names do not appear. These
gentlemen named called upon the Governor of their State the next day
after the President had issued his call for 175,000 volunteers, and
received from that official the assurance that if another call should
be made they should have the opportunity to recruit their battalion to
a regiment, and that he would "call that regiment first into the
service," and "that every officer in that regiment will be a colored
man."
After receiving this encouragement, the leaders began at once the work
of organizing and recruiting, and when the second call came, May 25th,
the regiment was well under way, and soon ready to go into camp to
prepare for service. On June 30th it assembled in Springfield from the
following places: Seven hundred men from Chicago; one hundred and
twenty from Cairo; a full company from Quincy, and smaller numbers
from Mound City, Metropolis and Litchfield, and nearly a company from
Springfield.
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