Cornelius D. Keepers[1]
Rank: Private
Born/died: January 8, 1843 –
September 4, 1910
Cause of death: Myocarditis
Residence at death: Ruthven, Iowa
Served: Company G, 69th Illinois Infantry
Age at enlistment: ?
Claim filed: December 2, 1910
Remarks:
His death certificate gave
his age at death as 67 years, 7 months, and 27 days. At death, he was described
as 6’ 2’’ tall, 175 lbs., blue eyes, gray hair, and with a light
complexion. Cornelius was never married
to anyone else. The death certificate was attested to by his brother, D. R.
(Daniel Reid) Keepers of Gardner, Illinois. Another brother, William A.
Keepers, served in Company A, 39th Illinois Infantry.
Included in the pension file
is the marriage certificate of Cornelius to Anna Bernhoft, on October 4, 1897,
in Algoma, Iowa. The certificate supports the information given by Mary
(Keepers) Helgevold for group 9.
In the pension file is a
letter, dated July 12, 1907, stating that Cornelius was a farmer at the time of
enlistment, lived principally in Kankakee, Illinois, and moved to Ruthven in
March,1900. Naomi I. Keepers was the
only child living, and she had been adopted.
The only child born to Cornelius and Anna died in infancy. In her widow’s application, dated December
2, 1910, Anna indicated that she had never been married to anyone else before,
or after his death. She also stated her
age as 44 years.
Anna’s application was denied
in a letter to her, dated March 29, 1911.
The reason given was that her marriage took place after June 27, 1890.