Iowa Time Machine ⏰: On July 18, 1893, Civil War hero and Iowa’s 6th Governor William Milo Stone passed away. A prisoner of war after the Battle of Shiloh and leader of the 22nd Iowa Volunteer Infantry, Stone rode his wartime fame to Iowa’s highest office.
Born in Jefferson County, New York, Stone arrived in Knoxville, Iowa, to open a law practice in 1854. Soon after, he bought the local newspaper. A delegate to the convention that formed the Republican Party, Stone went on to work as an Iowa district court judge before enlisting in the Union Army as a private during the early days of the Civil War. Promotions soon followed, from private to captain and from captain to major in Company B of the 3rd Iowa Volunteer Infantry.
Stone sustained an injury in the Battle of Liberty but returned to the field for the Battle of Shiloh. Captured, Stone spent time in a Confederate prison camp before Jefferson Davis sent him to Washington D.C. while negotiating a prisoner exchange. When the agreement failed, Stone returned to captivity. A later exchange finally led to his release. Iowa’s newspapers reported widely on Stone’s captivity, and he gained a measure of fame before returning to the Union ranks.
Promoted to colonel of the 22nd Iowa Volunteer Infantry, Stone led his men in the Vicksburg Campaign. He returned to Iowa after being wounded once more in an assault during the Seige of Vicksburg. Nominated by the Republican Party for the governor’s office in 1863, Stone defeated Union General James M. Tuttle by a wide margin. Although the war dominated Stone’s four years in office, he also gained distinction as a meaningful advocate and protector of African-American voting rights in Iowa. #IowaOTD #IowaHistoryDaily #IowaHistoryCalendar
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