Sgt. Glover's Second Marker
The Daughters of the War of 1812 will rededicate the marker of Sergeant James Nettle Glover, one of three confirmed War of 1812 veterans buried in Minneapolis Pioneers and Soldiers Memorial Cemetery. The other two veterans, Asa Clark Brown and Walter P. Carpenter, will be honored in 2011 and 2012 respectively. John Carpenter, Walter”'s brother, may well turn out to be a War of 1812 veteran as well. If that turns out to be the case, four of the approximately 200 War of 1812 veterans known to have died in Minnesota will be buried in Pioneers and Soldiers Cemetery.
All of these veterans were interesting men, perhaps none more so than James Nettle Glover. Mr. Glover was born in Fort Tobacco, Maryland, in 1793. When the War of 1812 began, Mr. Glover enlisted; he was eventually promoted to sergeant.
Following the war, Mr. Glover and all of his siblings, moved to St. Louis, Missouri. It was there that he met and married Elizabeth Dozier. One of the compensations that veterans received was 160 acres of land. Mr. Glover claimed his land and began farming. Although Missouri was admitted to the union as a slave state in 1820, Mr. Glover did not use slave laborers on his farm: all of the men who worked for him were paid for their work. In 1820, anti-slavery and pro-slavery congressmen reached an agreement under which Missouri was admitted to the union as a slave state.
A deeply religious man, Mr. Glover reached the decision that he could no longer participate in slavery in any form. In 1845, he became one of several Missouri residents who pulled up stakes and moved to Grant County, Wisconsin, an area that became known as “Abolition Hollow.” Many of those who migrated brought their former slaves with them, emancipated them and helped them establish farms in the region. The area became an important stop on the Midwest”'s Underground Railroad.
In their old age, James and Elizabeth Glover, moved to Minneapolis to stay with Sophie Jodon, the eighth of their twelve children. In 1870, Elizabeth Glover went on a trip back to Missouri. While she was there visiting with friends, she died unexpectedly. Mr. Glover continued living with his daughter and her husband, George Jodon. Mr. Jodon was civil engineer whose accomplishments included constructing a crystal dome on the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. The dome was destroyed in the 1906 San Francisco earthquake.
On May 31, 1873, Mr. Glover died following a stroke. He is buried next to his granddaughter, Catherine May Jodon, who died in 1885, from an abscessed liver; she was 14 years old. Mr. Glover”'s son-in-law, George Jodon, who died in December 1888, from heart disease at the age of 56, is also buried in the family plot.
This year, Sergeant James Nettle Glover will be honored by the Daughters of the War of 1812, a volunteer service organization, dedicated to preserving the memory of War of 1812 veterans. Mr. Glover has two markers: one a family marker and the other a military marker that was placed on his grave in 1942. The rededication ceremony will take place at 9 a.m. on Monday, May 31st (Memorial Day). Please join us in honoring a man who followed his heart and principles.
