Consider (Sid) was born in 1841 near Cleveland, Ohio. He was reared on a farm and had plenty of hard work to do. He was one of nine children. He attended public and select schools.
He was a teenage in the nine years leading up to the civil war, a period of great unrest for the nation. It must have been a troubling time for him. This was a period of growing support for abolition in the north. Was Sid an abolitionist? While there is no record of this, a major best seller in the north was Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin. Uncle Tom’s Cabin was so popular that when Pres. Lincoln met Mrs. Stowe, he said to her, “so you’re the little lady that caused this war”. If he read the book and sympathized with abolition, it may explain at least in part some of his actions later in life.
In 1859, at the age of 18, he moved to Illinois to teach school ; he also worked on a farm. It would be interesting why he moved to Illinois; quite a distance from home. Was there other family in this area? Thus far, I am not able to determine where in Illinois he resided. But he was in the same state as Abraham Lincoln in the year or two before the important election of 1860.
Literally within days of the firing on Fort Sumter, starting the Civil War, Sid volunteered for the war. On April 25, 1861, he enlisted with the 8th Illinois Infantry for 3 months (this was the standard length for volunteers at this time because the North thought the war would be over very quickly). According to his enlistment papers, his residence at this time was Bloomington, Illinois. After the great northern loss at the first battle of Bull Run, in July 1861, he re-enlisted in September 1861 with the 33rd Volunteers of Illinois, Company B. He served as one of number of Sergeants with his brother, Moses I Morgan, as Captain:
The company was mustered into service near Springfield, Illinois. They then moved to Ironton, Missouri where they stayed for the winter; drilling and guarding the local railway. In 1862 they served in Arkansas, then they marched through the swamps of Louisiana until they experienced numerous health issues. As a result, they were assigned to St. Louis, MO to recuperate. In the winter they participated in some long marches in Missouri. In March 1863, they arrived at Vicksburg, Mississippi. The 33rd’s main service in the War occurred her in Vicksburg. The battle over Vicksburg was under the direction of General Ulysses S. Grant. He commanded 70,000 federal troops. In May they participated in the failed attempt to take the fortifications around the city. Therefore, the city was kept under siege until its capture on July 4, 1863. This was one of the first major victories of Union in the war.Sid then became a Captain in the 48th United States Colored Troops Infantry Regiment. They had garrison duty at Vicksburg , Miss. Vicksburg Algiers Mobile April 12. Marched to Montgomery Mobile New Orleans , La. , thence to Texas Rio Grande
A Union colonel, in command of the 48th Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops, writes to his friend recounting his regiment’s part in the Battle of Fort Blakely. “We have had hard marching & hard fighting. A week in trenches & a successful charge. The 'Black bellied Yankees' made their mark … everyone gives us credit for doing well & I think we did excellently well. … My loss was not very heavy, not over thirty all told. The other Regts in my Brigade suffered much more severely on the last charge, I being held in reserve & not being under fire but a few moments, they did gallantly…”
The Siege and Battle of Fort Blakely, Alabama (April 2-9, 1865) was a significant aspect of the campaign, led by General E.R.S. Canby, to capture
Crandal’s official report (April 12, 1865) states: “…the Forty-eighth Regiment U.S. Colored Infantry arrived in front of Blakely on April 1. Went into camp and remained until Sunday morning, when skirmishing commenced in front. The regiment was ordered into line of battle, forming the left of the brigade, with one company of skirmishers in front covering the battalion. We moved forward, the skirmishers driving the enemy within about 500 yards of their works. The regiment lost fifteen men killed and wounded by the explosion of shell in the ranks. The regiment being in an exposed position was moved to the right into a ravine … Sunday night this regiment commenced work on the first parallel … Tuesday afternoon the regiment moved back a short distance into another ravine as a reserve, and remained there until Saturday, the 8th, with very heavy details working on battery for 30-pounder Parrott guns. Saturday moved up to the original position to support a battery, and remained there until Sunday afternoon at 5 o’clock, when the regiment was ordered up to support the Seventy-sixth and Sixty-eighth Regiments in the charge on the enemy’s works. The Forty-eighth participated in the charge with but slight loss, as it was not brought up under fire until the last rush was made… The men and officers deserve great praise for the cheerfulness with which they did hard and disagreeable work. All did well, and there was less skulking than is usual in actions of as great severity.”
The 1870 Census shows he was living in Illinois attending medical school. Around this time, he married Eleanor Taylor. The bore at least 4 children (Zetta, Emi, Engie and Sid O). At some point during this period he was in Wisconson. Then he moved back to Ohio. Then Eleanor passed away. He married Helen Williams and bore a daughter, Clara. Then in 1883 with many others, he took the railroad west. They organized the town of Glenn Ullin, North Dakota.
In 1883, Sid came in first group of residents of Glen Ullin; about 50 miles from Bismarck, ND. It is highly likely that the entire journey was by train. We do know that they arrived on May 8, 1883 in a Northern Pacific Railroad. There were about 40 of them. On the day they arrived, the train was moved to a side track and the residents sent the first night(s) in the train until their supplies arrived on a later train. As a new town, Sid experienced the dug-out and shanty periods of Glen Ullin. The residents slept in tents scattered without any order. It wasn’t until a few days later when they returned to Bismarck and filed land claims that there was some order to the town. It is claimed that he erected the first residence in Glen Ullin – a tent! Not enough business for his medical skills; he opened the first Post Office (his post office window is in the city's history museum) from 1883 to 1894. The PO was at his home, 201 North Ave, East. This was 250 feet north of the railroad tracks. It appears he was not that active as a doctor in Glen Ullin.
According to a history of a local group of German Catholic’s, the quantity of crops around Glen Ullin in 1886 were small; and in 1887, there wasn’t much of a crop at all. In 1889 and 1890 there were also crop failures and many people left the Glen Ullin area. As a result of the crop failures, individuals began to raise cattle and sheep. In 1885, the Catholic’s had about 15 families. In the next several years, immigrants increased their numbers to over 30 families. But due to the crop failures, by the end of 1890 there was only 15 families that remained. What made Sid strong enough to stay in the area when more than half moved away due to the drought conditions?
Sid was one of those that raised sheep, cattle and horses. He also owned land in Glen Ullin. He was active in political affairs. He served as the chairman of the republican county central committee for four years. He was also chairman of five republican county conventions. He was also a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. This organization’s state goal was to provide humanitarian service to those in need.
He died in 1902.As an aside, his son Sid O Jr, served in the Spanish American War in the Grigsby Rough Riders. This Sid may be able to say as did Mark Twain, 'the rumors of my death are greatly overstated'; as a book about the Grigsby Rough Riders has him dying in Hot Springs, Ark in 1898.
