Since ages
past, eagles have stood as symbols for armies, countries, and modern-day sports
teams.
The eagle’s
fearlessness, courage, and strength has led to their image being adorned on the
shields of Roman Soldiers, a double-headed eagle was woven onto the banners of
Russian czars, and the backside of the country of Kyrgyzstan’s currency carries the image of an
eagle hunting.
The most
iconic eagle symbol is the Bald Eagle of the United States of America. With its striking white head and tail,
and distinctive yellow beak and feet, the Bald Eagle appears on coins, paper
bills, flags, and stamps. The Bald
Eagle has also represented military groups.
Perhaps, the
most famous bald eagle in U.S. history is Old Abe, the War Eagle. While there
is some disagreement among historians as to the sex of the bird, most accounts
refer to “Old Abe” as male. He became the living mascot for a
Union infantry company during the Civil War.
Caught by a Lac du Flambeau Ojibwe cheif in 1861,
he was traded to Daniel McCann, a tavern owner, for a bushel of corn. He subsequently offered to sell the eagle to Company C of
the Eighth Regiment of Wisconsin for $2.50. Thus, Old Abe joined the enlisted soldiers for a three-year
tour in the south and participated in 42 battles. When the company marched, Abe sat on a perch, with a shield
underneath, carried by a chosen bearer or caretaker at the front of the
company.
Early on in
the company’s tour, a band played the song “Yankee Doodle” causing Abe to get
excited, and grabbing a flag located near him in his beak, he waved it while
flapping his wings (or so the story goes). This incident was perhaps the start of Abe’s fame as
newspapers raved about the incident as a good sign for the Union.
Old Abe drew
the attention of visitors and locals everywhere they traveled, because people
wanted to see the live eagle. In
time the company would be known as the “Eagle Regiment.”
A memorial commemorating the Battle of Vicksburg with a likeness of Old Abe at the top (photo: The wikipedia files)
In one of his first major battles, Old Abe and his handler were ordered to the rear
for protection. When the company
laid low to the ground from Confederate artillery fire, Old Abe joined them on
the ground from his perch even though he was safely out of range. His handler put Abe back on his perch, only to have him jump back down to flatten himself to the ground with his wings spread out. After several attempts trying to keep
the eagle on his perch, his handler joined him in taking cover on the
ground. Once the regiment rose
from their cover, Old Abe then hopped back his on perch.
One contested story goes that ....at the battle of Corinth, MS, Old Abe had his famed flight over the
battlefield when a mini ball from a confederate musket severed the cord
connecting the eagle to his perch. He flew overhead the battle
lines with his handler chasing after him.
Confederate soldiers attempted to shoot Old Abe down when he came into
their line of sight. Supposedly,
one Confederate general issued a bounty to any soldier who could capture Old
Abe, dead or alive. To the
general, Old Abe was worth more to the morale of Union soldiers than a whole
brigade of soldiers.
Old Abe was
never injured in any battles during his three-year tour, as the company was very careful in
protecting their comrade. His only losses were several wing and
tail feathers from the mini ball at the battle of Corinth. However, his handler, David McLain, maintained that even though he would get very excited in battle and spread his wings and scream, he never flew over the battle lines.
In quieter
times, Old Abe was granted the occasional liberty of wandering the company’s
camp. Taking advantage of such
liberty, the eagle was prone to causing mischief. Old Abe was fascinated by the fire pails full of water
around the camp and often tipped them over, driving soldiers crazy as they would
then have to refill them. The bird chased after flying insects flying past. Supposedly Old Abe would play catch with soldiers as they
rolled bullets across the ground, attacked clean laundry left out to dry and frequently raided food he found in tents and by
campfires throughout the camp boundaries.
A lone sculpture of Old Abe rests at the top of the Camp Randall Memorial Arch for Civil War Veterans. (photo: The wikipedia files)
When the
Eighth regiment returned to Wisconsin in 1864, the men chose not to reenlist
Old Abe. In selecting a permanent
home for the eagle, the whole regiment unanimously voted to give Old Abe to the
State of Wisconsin. State
officials declared Old Abe a “war relic” and created an “Eagle Department” in
the capitol building, which included a two-room apartment complete with custom
bathtub for the eagle and a full time caretaker.
Between the
time of Old Abe’s enlistment and his death in 1881, Abe was a resident at the Wisconsin Capitol Building and received
thousands of visitors wanting to see the famous Wisconsin Eagle. Old Abe attended conventions, functions, fairs,
and celebrations during his retirement.
Frequently, he was present for charities raising money to help support hospitals caring for Civil
War Veterans.
Sadly in February, 1881, a small fire broke out in the basement of the capitol building, for which Old Abe raised an alarm. The fire was quickly put out, but the eagle had inhaled a large amount of thick black smoke. About a month later he began to decline. On March 26, 1881, Old Abe died in the arms of his last caretake, George Gilles.
Old Abe
became a legend and symbol of the Civil War, imbued with patriotism and
bravery. He is still remembered to this day
in the state of Wisconsin with a mounted eagle representing Old Abe in state
buildings. A monument stands in
Vicksburg, MS, where Abe saw action and at Camp Randall where the Eighth Regiment
trained in Madison, WI.
The
inspiration of Old Abe was one of the contributing factors in the drive to protect our nation’s
symbol. Today, the Bald Eagle
population, once greatly endangered, now thrives and continues to grow to
become a more common sight throughout the country.
To learn
more about the American Bald Eagle, visit the World Bird Sanctuary to see Bald
Eagles on display and speak to one of our dedicated staff members about the
Bald Eagle’s natural history and recovery from being endangered.
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