William Clifton Mansfield

Originally submitted to the ECHGS Newsletter by Sonja Crowe Estes
of Irvine, KY, and used with permission of the ECHGS

William Clifton Mansfield was born March 11, 1844 in Madison County, KY. He was the son of Allen and Jane Winkler Mansfield. William was a nice looking young man standing 5 ft. 11 in. tall, dark hair and eyes and a fair complexion. All of his pension papers list his occupation as a farmer.

On the 23rd of September, 1861, when he was 17 years old, William Clifton was enrolled in Company C, 8th Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Infantry to serve 3 years in the Union Army under Captain John Wilson. Soon after his enrollment an epidemic of measles broke out at the encampment at Estill Springs, Irvine, KY. William fell ill with the disease and was placed in the hospital department at Estill Springs.

When the regiment was ordered to Lebanon, KY, the sick soldiers were hauled there in wagons. William's brother-in-law, Richard M. Crowe, was one of the drivers and William was one of the soldiers he transported. At Lebanon, KY, William was placed in a Methodist Church which was being used as a hospital. Richard M. Crowe visited him there in February of 1862 and found him suffering from a relapse of the measles. In the spring of 1862 when his regiment marched out of Lebanon, William was left convalescing in the hospital.

In the summer of 1863, he was with his regiment at McMinnville, Tennessee. At the time he was complaining of impaired eyesight, especially night blindness. About the 1st of September, he marched with his regiment through Sequatohie Valley, Tennessee, but was ordered to the rear of the company with the Wagon trains, and was not returned to his own regiment until after the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia, which took place September 19-20, 1863.

During January of 1864, Companies B and C were consolidated forming Company A, 8th Battalion Volunteer Infantry. Company A muster-out rolls dated November 17th, 1864 show that William Clifton Mansfield was mustered out with his company at Chattanooga, Tennessee.

According to an affidavit signed by James Crowe, Richard M. Crowe, John Shelton and William's sister, Martha Jane Crowe, on his discharge from service, William came directly to the home of his sister and her husband, Richard M. Crowe, on Clear Creek. At that time, he was in very bad health suffering from chronic diarrhea and disease of the eyes. To their knowledge his illness was due, also, to unwholesome food and bad water. He suffered the remainder of his life with the diarrhea, hemorrhoids, problems with his eyes and sinus which he felt was a direct result of measles.

In 1865, William was in the state of Indiana and on the 13th day of September, 1865, he married Zerelda Richardson at Franklin, Dearborn County, Indiana.

On the 5th day of September, 1879, William filed for a medical pension giving Winston, KY, as his mailing address. Over the following months he was examined by several doctors and some of them declared him to be two-thirds disabled while one said he was only physically able to work one-fourth of the time. He eventually received a small medical pension, number 27430.

William and Zerelda lived the remainder of their lives in the Witt Springs area of Sand Hill in Estill County, KY. They were the parents of the following children:

Elbridge - born 04 Sep 1866
Artinsia - born 05 Feb 1868
John Nelson - born 13 Dec 1869
Thomas G. - born 04 Sep 1871
Mary Lucy - born 24 Jan 1873
William Clifton Jr. - born 13 Aug 1874
Joseph F. - born 26 Sep 1876
Eliza Jane - born 24 Nov 1878
Emma - born 04 Apr 1881

Zerelda died 25 June 1886 and is buried in the Mansfield-Richardson Cemetery on Sand Hill. On January 31st, 1889, William remarried to Mary Eliza Walton at home of her mother, Margaret Walton. William and Mary E. were the parents of Arthur, born 13 Jan 1890 and Andrew Jackson, born 11 Jun 1891.

William Clifton died just one month short of his 50th birthday on February 9, 1893. He would not allow a physician to attend him during his last illness. He told his family repeatedly that it would do no good to have a doctor because his old disease would finally kill him. He was buried on the 11th of February in the Mansfield-Richardson Cemetery. A Civil War tombstone marks his grave site.

(Information taken from military and pension records, marriage records, Bible records, and information from William's granddaughter, Deluth Witt)