"A Campaign Incident"

(Library of Congress)

Henry Clinton "Clint" Parkhurst was born December 9th, 1844, in LeClaire, Iowa, which, incidentally, was Buffalo Bill Cody's hometown.  He began writing poetry at a young age and,  before the war, worked as a printer.  Once hostilities broke out, Parkhurst heeded Iowa's call and on February 12th, 1862, enlisted in Company C of the 16th Iowa Infantry.  He was 17 years old, 5'6" with blue eyes and blonde hair.

Parkhurst saw action in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Georgia with the 16th.  During the Atlanta campaign, he was taken prisoner and sent to Andersonville, Millen, and Florence.  Parkhurst survived the horrors of prison camp life  and was discharged on June 8th, 1865.

(Post war photo; Library of Congress)

 He returned to Iowa where he became a reporter for various newspapers.  He also worked on his memoirs, and published Songs of a Man Who Failed, a collection of his poems, in 1921.

 Parkhurst died on November 16th, 1933, at the Soldier's Home in Marshalltown, Iowa.