Amazing Animals Old Abe the Eagle Civil War Veteran

About the amazing animal Old Abe the Eagle who fought bravely in the Civil War somehow.

OLD ABE, EAGLE MASCOT

With red, white, and blue ribbons around his neck, Old Abe the Eagle was sworn into service in the 8th Wisconsin Regiment in April,1861. From then on, Old Abe played his part to the hilt. It was said that as the soldiers marched, drums beating and flags flying, Old Abe flew from his perch to the metal standard holding the flag, grabbed Old Glory in his beak, and helped carry it through the streets. In a battle at Farmington, Miss., Old Abe broke his cord and flew screaming above the men. Throughout the war, Old Abe took part in 36 battles and 50 skirmishes, each time flying above the troops screaming his war cry. Once a spent bullet hit his chest, and several times his tail feathers were shot off, but he was not killed nor were any of the standard-bearers who carried him. This was strange, for the Confederates, who dreaded what they called the "Yankee Buzzard," had put a price on his head. "I would rather capture or kill that eagle than take a whole brigade," said Gen. Sterling Price, of the Confederate Army. During inspections, the eagle came to attention, and he tried to sing "Yankee Doodle" and "John Brown's Body" when the band played. After the war, he toured the country raising money (over $18,000) for wounded war veterans. His quills were used for signing State documents. He lived in a large cage in the basement of the State capitol in Wisconsin, and died from smoke from a fire which broke out there in March, 1881.

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