Birth: Oct., 1838, Ohio.
Death: Jan. 7, 1904, Warren County, Illinois.
Son of James Cochran Porter and Sarah E Patterson Porter
Married Frances F McClure (1846 - 1929). April 30, 1868 Keithsburg, Mercer County, Illinois.
Later his occupation: Teacher.
Parents: Sarah E. Patterson Porter (1828 - 1907).
Burial: Monmouth Cemetery, Monmouth, Warren County, Illinois.
LLINOIS STATE ARCHIVES.
Illinois Civil War Detail Report.
Name: PORTER, JOHN A. Rank: PVT. Company: C. Unit; 36 IL US INF. Personal Characteristics. Residence: SUMNER, WARREN CO, IL. Age: 24. Height: 5' 6. Hair: AUBURN. Eyes: HAZEL. Complexion: LIGHT. Occupation: TEACHER. Nativity: PREBLE CO, OH. Service Record: Joined When: JAN 1, 1864. Joined Where: BLAINS X ROADS. Period: 3 YRS. Muster In: JAN 25, 1864. Muster In Where: CHATTANOOGA, TN. Remarks: VETERAN PROMOTED 2LT FROM 1SGT.
A the of 22, he was a Sergeant, enlisted September 19, 1861, mustered in September 22, 1861, at Aurora, Illinois, re-enlisted as a veteran.
At the age of 26, he was a First Lieutenant, enlisted March 21, 1865, at Huntsville, Al., mustered in April 30, 1865, at Nashville, Tn., mustered out New Orleans, La.
Authors note. I looked over these records very carefully and this is the same man, but there is some confusion on his enlistments dates and age and so on. He needs more research..
Surgeon General Files.
CASE. Lieutenant John A: Porter, Co. C, 36th Illinois Volunteers, aged 23 years, in the engagement at Resaca, Georgia, May 15th, 1864, was struck on the head by a limb of a tree which had been cut oft by a solid shot He fell, senseless, the blood gushing from his mouth and nostrils. He remained in an unconscious state for forty-eight hours, when he was conveyed to the hospital at Chattanooga, Tennessee. On admission, he was speechless, and completely paralyzed in the upper extremities and in the muscles of the head and face. On June 18th, he was transferred to Hospital No. 1, at Nashville, whence he was furloughed on August 1st, 1864. At this date "the entire upper part of his body was paralyzed." He remained at his home until November 10th, when, having regained his strength, and, in a measure, the use of his upper extremities, he returned to the hospital, and thence to duty with his regiment at Pulaski, Tennessee.
He participated in the engagements at Spring Hill and Franklin, Tennessee, on November 29th and 30th, hoping that the excitement would restore his voice. He stated that the sound of musketry and artillery firing " almost burst his head." In the early part of December, 1864, after violent and repeated efforts to utter a sound, a copious hemorrhage took place from the fauces, and possibly the upper portion of the larynx, preceded by a feeling of "cracking and bursting, and a sense of " rushing upward in the head." The haemorrhage was followed by complete return of his voice, seven and one-half months after the reception of the injury. During this period tinnitus aurium and vertigo existed, at times, to such extent as to deprive him of sight and hearing. He was mustered out of service on October 8th, 1865, with his regiment. On June 13th, 1866, he was pensioned, to date from October, 1865. The examining surgeon reporting a concussion of the right hemisphere of the brain, which caused "general debility, affecting the right leg, arm, and eye"
He drew his pension at the Quincy Agency, Illinois, March 4th, 1869, and was then reported as permanently disabled. He resided at Little York, Warren county, Illinois, and wrote thence, in the spring of 1866, a very detailed account of his .accident, from which the above abstract is partially compiled. He stated that he suffered so much from dizziness, from flow of blood to the head, that he supposed he would never recover his health, and concluded : " I am unable, entirely, for manual labor ; yet my wound was received in a glorious cause, and one that I was willing to sacrifice my life for."
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