It soars 30 feet above a mound on the west side of Woodland Cemetery. It's made of white Vermont marble, and it was lovingly restored a few years ago. We know it as the Civil War monument, but it had a different name when dedicated 142 years ago today.

I was there Friday, watching the Mississippi River roll by, feet sinking into the rolling terrain after a day of rain. An older man was standing by the monument, looking up at the eagle on the top.

He was about 5-foot-10, wearing a long black coat, with a gray beard and a wise face. He seemed startled when he turned to find a visitor.

"Beautiful spot, isn't it?" I said.

"You have no idea," he said in a low gravelly voice.

I asked him who he was.

"John Tillson," he said with a slight smile. "General John Tillson. At your service, and trying hard to remember, at the moment."

I rubbed my eyes and stepped back. John Tillson? THE John Tillson? One of Quincy's most prominent residents in the 1800s? Former alderman, state politician and a genuine Civil War hero?

"That's me," he said. "I can read minds, too."

I gave up trying to comprehend and seized the moment. Gen. John Tillson, who marched with Sherman to the sea and was in some of the fiercest fighting in the Civil War, led the Soldiers and Sailors Monument dedication parade down Fifth Street on Oct. 31, 1867.

"It was quite a day," he said, still staring at the top of the monument. "Warmer than it had been. We all gathered at the courthouse. Remember where that was? Right off the square, across from where President Lincoln and Stephen Douglas had their debate. The Needle Pickett and the Sisters of Good Samaritan ladies were the ones who donated the money for the monument, they were in carriages. The boys themselves lined up by the post office at Sixth and Maine.

"And off we went."

The parade was about half a mile long, he said. Down and up they marched on Fifth Street. They got to the Woodland entrance, headed west toward the river.

"The terrain is the same, but there were a lot more trees, and there was a creek going through the cemetery down on the other side," Tillson said. "We came up on the monument and it was quite a scene, old Cornelius Volk's work of art."

The Rev. Sidney Corbett gave the opening invocation. Tillson gave a short speech, as did others. The band played "Home Sweet Home."

In one of the corners of the monument base, items were placed, including newspapers, a photo of Volk, Good Samaritan records and a copy of the state fair program, which had just been in Quincy.

"Can't tell you which corner. My mind isn't as sharp as it once was," Tillson said with a grin.

He said he had to go. I asked him if he had any last words.

"Tell Quincy it's a good thing to remember," he said.

And he walked away, hands in pockets, a smile still on his face.

-- rhart@whig.com/221-3370