Charles P. Jeannin

Charles Philippe Jeannin was born in New York City on March 14, 1837 to a Swiss father, also believed to have been named Charles and Catherine (Pilliard) Jeannin. Soon thereafter, Charles father either died or left and his mother remarries. Together with her new husband Jean Georges Panchot, she had twelve more children. The first four were males and like Charles Jeannin, also served in the Civil War. His step-father also enlisted and served in the War. In 1853 the family moved from New York to Wisconsin. They stayed there about three years before moving to Hastings, Minnesota.

On April 29, 1861, Charles Jeannin answered the call for volunteers and took a ninety day enlistment in Minnesota Volunteer Infantry 1^st Regiment. He was honorably discharged on May 15, 1861. He returned to Hastings to care for his mother and defend their home during the Indian uprising of 1861.

On February 14, 1862, Charles Jeannin married Jane Brunell. They had one daughter, Ellen Jane. However on April 19, 1862, Charles Jeannin enlisted in the Minnesota 5^th Volunteer Infantry and did not see her again until after the war, at which time they divorced.

The regiment participated in the Battle of Corinth in October 1862. During the battle a shell exploded above Charles Jeannin which ruptured his left eardrum and knocked him unconscious. Not wanting to accept a discharge, he took an assignment in the Pioneers Corp, the equivalent of today’s battlefield engineers. He was assigned to dig trenches and earthworks during the Siege of Vicksburg. In June 1864 Charles Jeannin returned to duty with the 5^th. It was during the time the veterans of the regiment were given a month-long furlough. Charles Jeannin did not receive that furlough and along with the remaining members of the 5^th participated in the Battle of Tupelo, where he received a wound in the leg. After the battle he rode to Memphis on an ammunition wagon. The 5^th was under the command of General A. J. Smith and where part of his XVI Corps. The XVI had been ordered to go to Atlanta to reinforce General Sherman. But Confederate activity in the West necessitated sending a division under General Mower to fight the Confederates under General Price. From September 15 until October 5, the Minnesota 5^th marched 800 miles through the Arkansas and Missouri, covering swamps and mountains in almost uninhabited areas in pursuit of the Confederates.

The 5^th was then ordered to Nashville to join General Thomas’s command for the Battle of Nashville. At the Battle of Nashville, General Thomas handed the Confederates the most decisive tactical defeat of the War. The Confederate Army of Tennessee was virtually destroyed. And the Minnesota 5^th was in the center of the main battle line at Nashville.

Charles Jeannin returned to Hastings, Minnesota where on June 22, 1865 he married Louisa Barrington. They raised a family of eight children. Due to his poor health resulting from his three injuries, his doctor’s advised him to move south from Minnesota. He first moved to Manchester, Iowa. He then moved to Waverly, then Cedar Falls and finally settled in Waterloo in about 1883. He worked part-time as a carpenter and was very dependant on his Veteran’s pension to survive. By 1908 he had deteriorated to the point that he was moved to the Soldier’s Home in Minneapolis. He remained there until his death on December 19, 1911. He is buried in Oakland Cemetery in St. Paul.

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