Town of Lake’s Civil War draft

Volunteer or be drafted. That was the message barely beneath the surface of Wisconsin Civil War recruitment posters like the one that shouted, “Arouse! Volunteers Wanted!”

Wisconsin, like other states, was having difficulty filling its volunteer quota set by the federal government. The recruitment posters alone did not spur enlistments, so President Lincoln mandated that any state unable to provide its quota of men through voluntary means by Aug. 15, 1862 had to draft men between the ages of 18 to 45 to make up the difference. Wisconsin failed to fill its quota by that date, so draft lotteries took place around the state.

Three Years with a Draft

On Nov. 19, 1862, the first Milwaukee County draft lottery took place at the Milwaukee County Courthouse. A quota had been set for each of the Milwaukee County townships-Milwaukee (north of what was then the city of Milwaukee), Granville, Wauwatosa, Greenfield, Franklin, Oak Creek, and Lake (see sidebar), as well as a number of wards in the City of Milwaukee.

Town of Lake, which then included what is today Bay View, had a considerable number of local men who had already enlisted. Because of the high enlistment rate for this still mainly rural area, Town of Lake’s draft quota was lower than the other townships. For the first draft lottery in 1862, Town of Lake had a quota of 18 men. These draftees were to serve 90 days.

The Milwaukee Sentinel described the draft lottery process at the courthouse on Nov. 20, 1862. Twelve boxes were lined up on a table, one for each of the townships and wards, with each box containing ballots with the names of residents from that township who were eligible for the draft.

A large 18-by-8-inch black walnut box was used for drawing the draft lottery ballots. Each township box was emptied separately into this box. “Mr. Milman handled the big box and shook up the ballots well before each draw,” reported the Sentinel. Daniel McCarty, a “young lad,” was blindfolded and drew the names. Each ballot name was read aloud and was recorded by two clerks.

Thousands of people, including representatives from each township, witnessed the procedure. After ballots from each of the townships were drawn, the list of draftees was read. “The reading of the list was listened to with the best of good feeling,” according to the Sentinel, “and at the conclusion of each reading, cheers were given.”

In 1863 and 1864 draft lotteries were also conducted. Town of Lake had to meet a quota of 50 men in 1863, and a quota of 36 men in 1864. Over the three-year period from 1862 to 1864, 104 men were drafted from Town of Lake.

According to the Wisconsin Historical Society’s website, only a small number of the draftees actually served in the war. In 1864, for example, only about 20 percent of the 17,534 Wisconsin men drafted were actually mustered into service. About 40 percent “claimed exemption from service” and the other 40 percent “simply failed to report for duty.”

Draft Drama

Draftees were allowed to hire substitutes, whose going rates ranged from $200 to $350. Several advertisements appeared in local papers, in which individuals offered themselves as substitutes. Some draftees were disqualified due to physical disabilities and some paid a $300 commutation fee or got an exemption due to family hardship. In December 1863, a draft dodger list was issued, which included 15 men from Town of Lake.

The clergy was not exempt from the draft lottery process. Procurator Father Joseph Salzmann of the St. Francis Seminary on S. Lake Drive secured a substitute for $300 and was exempt from military duty for three years.

Professor Mathias Gernbauer, knowing the anxiety seminarians felt about the draft, played a practical joke by having two older students dress up as recruiting officers. As students gathered at the front entrance of the seminary building, Gernbauer had the two imposters walk up the pathway. Word rapidly spread among the students that the recruiters were coming and “all who were Americans and old enough [for the draft], disappeared in a grand stampede for the safety of cellars and other hiding places,” wrote Reverend Peter Leo Johnson in his seminary history, Halcyon Days. By May 1864, half of the seminary students had fled, some to Canada. Six of the eligible seminarians were drafted that year.

Town of Lake

Town of Lake was formed Jan. 2, 1838 by an act of territorial legislation and was located in what is now Milwaukee County. By the middle 1840s the boundaries of Town of Lake were Greenfield Avenue to the north, Lake Michigan to the east, 27th Street to the west, and College Avenue to the south. In 1879, the Village of Bay View was carved out of Town of Lake.

Over the years the territory of Town of Lake was reduced due to incorporations and annexations of its land. The incorporation of the Village of Bay View reduced the size of the town in 1879, and shortly after that the City of Milwaukee annexed the area between Lincoln and Greenfield avenues. The incorporation of the Village of Cudahy in 1895 again reduced the size of the town. In the early 1900s, the City of Milwaukee annexed Town of Lake’s Fernwood neighborhood south of E. Oklahoma Avenue, and then the area south and west of Humboldt Park. The incorporation of the City of St. Francis in 1951 further reduced Town of Lake, and finally, in 1954, the City of Milwaukee annexed the remaining portion.

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