Sunset Cemetery plays host to over 293 deceased Civil War veterans, some of which died in battle, and others that lived on past the war. During Saturday morning’s tour-“The Blue and the Grey: Stories of Civil War Soldiers in Sunset Cemetery”, Riley County Historical Museum Director, Cheryl Collins shared stories of some of those soldiers.
The tour began at 10:30 at the front gate of the cemetery. Attendees were able to hear stories about:
- Lou Gove, Kansas’s Gove County is named after
- Doctor John Robinson, first Kansas Secretary of State
- Louis Marchant, served in union army
- Charles Frederick Little, Doctor and Congress candidate
Some stories were longer than others, as some produced more history and interesting facts.
Charles Allen was one of those, as his brothers were in the war with him as well. Allen and his two brothers survived the war and Allen Road, here in Manhattan, is named after them.
Benjamin Palmer fought in the Battle of Bull Run during the war. Collins shared a story she found about Palmer, saying he was once a Manhattan city commissioner but was expelled for coming to a meeting drunk.
This tour was sponsored by the Kansas Corral of the Westerners. A few members of the corral were in attendance, as this is one of their nine events to attend this year. There next program will be held in Atchison, KS where they will tour the Amelia Earhart Birthplace Museum.
