What happened to General Lyon after he was killed?
A. General Lyon was fatally wounded at about 9:30 a.m. on August 10, 1861. Those near him at the time of his death carried his body behind the Union line of battle and placed it in a wagon to be taken to Springfield. In the confusion of the Union retreat, however, his corpse was removed and left on the field. Later that day, Lyon was discovered by the Southerners and transported to the Ray House. Lyon’s body then made the journey to Springfield, where, accordingly to some sources, it was accidentally left behind again when the Union Army retreated to Rolla. Mary Phelps, wife of U.S. Representative John S. Phelps, cared for, guarded, and finally buried Lyon’s body on her family’s farm. Soon Lyon’s relatives arrived and transported the body to Connecticut for proper burial. On the long trip back to Connecticut, many people came to view the casket of a hero of the Union, the first Union general to die in the Civil War. Although buried in Connecticut, a monument was erected in his honor in
