John Rudolph

John and Joseph Rudolph brothers of First Lady Lucretia Garfield

NPS

Quick Facts

Significance:

Brother of First Lady Lucretia Garfield

Place of Birth:

Garrettsville, Portage County, Ohio, USA

Date of Birth:

July 22, 1835

Place of Death:

Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky, USA

Date of Death:

August 12, 1862

Place of Burial:

Hiram, Portage County, Ohio, USA

Cemetery Name:

Fairview Cemetery

John Rudolph was born on July 22, 1835, three years after his sister, Lucretia. He worked on the family farm in Garrettsville, Ohio. John and his sister Lucretia attended district schools and were then enrolled at the new Western Reserve Eclectic Institute in Hiram. Little else is known of his young life. He married Martha Lane on October 28, 1856 in Cleveland, Ohio, and set off on an adventure west to Iowa. Their first child, Adelaide, was born in Iowa. They moved back east to Princeton, Illinois where their next child, Gilbert was born. John had taken a job as a clerk while living in Illinois.

By 1861, John and his family moved back to Hiram, Ohio. When they arrived, he was broke and desperate for a new career. He wanted to join the army, but had a young family to think about. In 1862 he, like many other Hiram boys had the chance to join his brother-in-law's regiment, the 42nd OVI, but decided to answer an advertisement to drive wagons for the Ohio Quartermaster Corps. This led John to a job as a wagon master where he would be in command of drivers and supplies vital to the Union army. 

Private Rudolph led twelve supply wagons to eastern Tennessee, then on to the Cumberland Gap on the border of Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. Union General George Morgan and his troops were holding the major passageway, but were in desperate need of food. Among the regiments at the gap were the 42nd OVI and John’s brother, Joe Rudolph. It is not recorded, but quite likely the two brothers had a chance to visit for a brief moment. If they did, it was the last time the two would ever see each other. After the journey to Cumberland Gap, John became seriously ill. High fever, severe diarrhea and bouts of delirium set in. He was sent to the army hospital in Lexington, Kentucky. Further examination revealed typhoid fever, for which there was no effective treatment.

During the course of the war thousands of soldiers on both sides were struck down with typhoid, usually dying within four to six weeks. Many of the soldiers drank tainted water which carried the deadly bacteria. John’s time was short, and his wife Marthawho had four-week old twins, Ernest and Lewis, was unable to make the trip to see her husband. John died on August 12, 1862. His mother Arabella brought his body back to Hiram for the funeral because John's wife was not able to travel. He is buried in Fairview Cemetery in Hiram.  

Learn more about John's Civil War service here.