Richard D. Bishop’s Second Great Grandfather:
Dr. Henry L. Hickman:
Dr. Henry L. Hickman:
Dr. Hickman was born near
Georgetown, Floyd County, Indiana as one of eight children of Jesse Hickman and
Mary Moser. Family records point out that Henry, along with his siblings, was
raised by relatives within the Hickman clan in rural Floyd County and received
sufficient education to enter medical school at Louisville KY. He worked for a
time on an Indian Reservation after receiving his medical certification and
then emigrated west to take up residence in Sidney, Champaign County, Illinois.
He married Martha Ann Crook in Homer IL. Dr. Hickman enlisted as a Private in
the 2nd IL Cav on 6 Aug 1861 and was assigned to Co I, probably
performing service as both a surgeon and veterinarian. Henry saw action during
the battle of Shiloh in Tennessee and was captured at Holly Springs MS during a
successful confederate raid on 20 Dec 1862 where he was taken prisoner and held
by confederate forces in Richmond VA until he was paroled (released to Union
control) on 6 May 1863. Henry had by this time been serving as the Assistant
Regimental Surgeon of the 2nd IL Cav. He later participated in
the Red River Campaign before being mustered out of the Army on 11 Aug 1864.
At war’s end, Dr. Hickman returned to Illinois and set up a medical practice in the village of Newman, Douglas County, Illinois. Along with his wife, Dr. Hickman’s family included Louia [aka: Lou and L.C.], born 20 Oct 1858; Logan D., born on 18 Sep 1864, and Lyman Trumbull, born on 18 Sep 1876. Dr. Hickman probably enjoyed a position of social prominence in Newman indicated by his residence in the Southeast part of town where the most affluent homes were located. A fire destroyed the family residence on 29 Oct 1882. According to a news story in the family records, Dr. Hickman aroused his family from sleep and alerted the town by ringing the bell of the Christian Church near his residence and was helped by the arrival of the midnight train which alerted the town people with its whistle and bell. Seeing the house could not be saved as Newman had no organized fire department, neighbors began to save what they could including a fine piano, a watch and chain, a large part of the doctor’s remedies, medical books and instruments. The origin of the fire may have been the work of an arsonist according to a published news account written in the 30 Oct 1882 issue of the Danville Illinois News. According to a journal entitled “These I Remember” written by Dr. Hickman’s granddaughter Ruth, Louia’s oldest daughter: “Dr. Hickman performed his share of kitchen table surgery during the civil war – when things got too bad and it had to be done, he used kitchen knives to cut off badly wounded arms and legs.”
After the fire in Newman, Dr.
Hickman moved to Longview IL with his wife and youngest son. Later the good
doctor followed his older sons west ending up for a while in Wichita KS and
then on to Lacey OK Territory. According to Greta Hickman Jones, a 2nd Great
Granddaughter, Dr. Hickman came to Lacey as a result of answering an ad for ‘an
honest doctor.” Henry continued to practice medicine in Lacey and the
surrounding community for the rest of his life. The Doctor was nearly blind
when he died of heart failure on 18 July 1907.
Submitted By: Richard
D. Bishop
Member -
Sons of Veterans of the Civil War
Major
General Thomas H. Ruger Camp #1
