Originally aired on November 21, 1997 - In part 169 of our Civil War series, Virginia Tech history professor James Robertson discusses the mascot of the 8th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
#169 – Old Abe
The most famous mascot in the Civil War was not a dog or cat, chicken or pig, it was a male bald eagle and it belonged to a Wisconsin unit. The bird’s life was a remarkable combination of inspiration and pity.
Early in 1861, Wisconsin settlers obtained an eaglet in the swap of goods with Chippewa Indians. Civil war came shortly thereafter. A company of recruits accepted the eagle mascot, named the bird “Old Abe” and went off to war as part of the 8th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment.
In some ways the bird was a pitiful sight. He was bound by a strong cord to a perch atop a wooden pole borne by a succession of four soldiers. People clipped his wings continuously to keep him from flying away. A captive bird could never fly any great distance and hence was never able to soar free as eagles so majestically do.
“Old Abe” had nothing to say about his itinerary. On the other hand, the eagle’s fame spread throughout Union armies in the western theatre. He was a curiosity as well as a motivation. The 8th Wisconsin quickly became known as “The Eagle Regiment”.
When the army was marching “Old Abe” was always to the left of the color guard. In battle two soldiers were assigned to protect the bird. “Old Abe” was in three dozen engagements that included Farmington, Corinth, Vicksburg, the Red River campaign, Price’s Missoula Expedition, LaGrange, and Nashville.
The bird found battle stimulating and reacted by flapping its wings and screeching loudly. “Old Abe” never received a battle wound. This is astounding. Not nearly because “The Eagle Regiment” was in so many fights, but also because the bird like any human color bearer was a prime target for Confederate sharpshooters.
Southern soldiers sought to belittle the eagle with shouts of, “wild goose” and “Yankee crow”. At war’s end survivors of the 8th Wisconsin took the bird home. “Old Abe” lived thereafter in a cage in the capital building at Madison. But he spent barely half his time there.
By then the fame of the eagle was nationwide. He became a coveted guest of honor at veteran’s reunions and other patriotic meetings. Thousands of people cheered at the sight of the bird. Of course, legends about “Old Abe” abounded.
In campaigns it was said the eagle made aerial reconnaissance missions, and then, how was never explained, passed the information along to Union generals. One oft told story had “Old Abe” swoop down upon a Confederate council of war and deftly steal the battle map from the table. The best tale was in battle the eagle would make dive-bombing attacks on Confederate generals. None of these accounts was true, but they made for lively telling and enhanced “Old Abe’s” reputation.
In March, 1881, the eagle died in the arms of its keeper. No burial came to the quaint hero. The animal was stuffed and displayed inside a glass case at the Wisconsin capital. Thirteen years later fire swept through the building, the glass case melted. “Old Abe” was destroyed.
A nation mourned what one official termed “the irreparable loss of our most treasured emblem of liberty”. Yet two enduring memorials exist of that particular eagle. One is the Wisconsin state monument on the Vicksburg battlefield. It is a granite column 57 ½ feet tall. On top of it is a 6 foot bronze statue of “Old Abe”. The other memorial originated in World War II and is still in use by the U. S. Army. It is the insignia worn by the 101st Airborne Division. The shoulder patch is a black shield on which is the head of a bald eagle. The 101st proudly calls itself “The Screaming Eagles”. “Old Abe” would like that.
