Pontiac Civil War Memorials
South Side Cemetery Memorial
The first of two Civil War monuments erected in Pontiac is located in South Side Cemetery. The monument, featuring a standing Union soldier, was completed in 1901 and was sponsored by the local post of the Illinois Grand Army of the Republic (GAR Post #105), and the women’s auxiliary group associated with that organization, the Women’s Relief Corps No. 15.
The statue is surrounded by a group of headstones, but no soldiers’ bodies are buried at the site. Rather, the soldiers remembered by the engraved stones were buried on or near the battlefields where they fell. The stone markers were erected by the families who lost husbands, fathers, or sons during the war. However, not every family could afford a stone marker, so not every soldier lost from the Pontiac area is represented.
Livingston County Courthouse Memorial
At the meeting of the Livingston County Supervisors in June 1901, a committee was appointed looking to install a monument honoring all Civil War veterans of the county. At a subsequent committee meeting, the location for the monument was determined and the contract awarded to Merkle & Sons of Peoria on their bid of $12,153.50, the total cost of the monument.
The monument was erected in spring 1903 and was ready for unveiling in June. It is one of the most beautiful soldier and sailor monuments in the state, standing 56 feet over the courthouse lawn. The bottom base is 14 feet wide by 14 feet long, and the statue at the top is 9 feet high. The monument weighs 337,255 pounds, or 168 tons.
Upon completion of the monument, a committee drawn from the various Grand Army posts all over the county was appointed to look after the unveiling. President Theodore Roosevelt was invited to deliver the address on the occasion and promptly accepted. On June 3, 1903, Pontiac was crowded with old soldiers and citizens from all over the county and the residents of Pontiac had made great preparations for the event. However, the weather was against the proceedings; a severe rainstorm accompanied by thunder and lightning arrived about two hours prior to Roosevelt’s arrival. When the president’s train arrived at the Alton depot, the storm was at its height. Rain poured in torrents and the streets were inundated. Notwithstanding this, President Roosevelt alighted from the train and asked for the mayor. Mayor Silas A. Rathbun was soon at his side, a carriage was provided, and Roosevelt driven uptown to the stand erected on the east side of the courthouse. Mounting the platform and facing an audience of less than a dozen people, Roosevelt delivered the following address:
“Mr. Mayor and Fellow Citizens: I shall not try to make an extended speech. In the name of the people of Livingston County, by whom it has been erected, I dedicate this monument to those who have deserved it. I greet you all and thank you for coming out in this rain; and I especially greet the members of the Grand Army of the Republic and these National Guards.”
The address was completed. Then Roosevelt was escorted to his carriage and driven to the depot, not having been in Pontiac more than 15 minutes. The unveiling was finished, and the small crowd soon dispersed.