Monday, November 10, 2008

General Henry A. Axline, “Father of the National Guard of Ohio”


Henry A. Axline was the youngest soldier to serve in the Civil War from Muskingum County. He served in Company G of the 159th Ohio Volunteer Infantry.

After the Civil War, Henry A. Axline held the positions of Captain, Major, Lieutenant Colonel, and Colonel of the Ohio National Guard. During the Spanish American War, Henry Axline was Colonel of the Tenth Ohio Volunteer Infantry, taking command at Camp Bushnell. During the Johnstown flood, Henry A. Axline took the first relief train of Ohio troops to that city.

General Axline was the Adjutant General of Ohio from 1886 to 1890, and again from1896-1898. William Taylor Alexander, author of The Centennial History of Columbus, called Henry A. Axline “the father of the National Guard of Ohio.”

Active in Veterans’ organizations, General Axline was often a speaker at Campfires, military reunions, and Memorial Day exercises. The Sandusky Daily Register of May 18, 1914, reported that “as a public speaker General Axline had but few equals.” At the time of his death he was chief of staff of the national encampment of the G.A.R. Henry A. Axline died May 18, 1914 in Zanesville, Ohio. He is buried in Oakland Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio. (He was buried in Sandusky because his daughter and son-in-law were residing in Sandusky at the time of his death.) Henry A. Axline married Helen Westlake in 1874. They were both graduates of Ohio Wesleyan University. Their daughter Tella Axline was married to Claude B. Dewitt, pictured below. (They later divorced.)

3 comments:

mădălina said...

Your blog is fantastic! I will be sure to pass this along to my roommate who is fascinated by this stuff:)

Tree said...

Interesting. Henry Axline was my great-great-great (?) uncle. I have some books with his name in them and a photo of him as a younger man. Thanks for the research. Tree Riesener

Anonymous said...

Is this the General Axline who was sent to Antwerp, OH during the Reservoir War of 1887? I assume that it is. If so, I'd be interested in hearing more about his role in that.