Judge John McLean ~ Part of the Story

Wyoming [Ohio] - A week after Americans began a new war, those who trained for a past war were remembered during a park dedication.

Wyoming welcomed Camp John McLean Memorial Park on Bonham Road with re-enactors of the 75th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the unveiling of a markers, and a 21-gun salute.

Representatives from the Daughters of the Union and the Sons of Union Veterans were there. So was a descendent of John McLean and a descendant of one of the 75th soldiers.

Called Camp John McLean, farmland on what is now Springfield Pike and Bonham Road was the training ground for Union soldiers in the 75th Ohio Volunteer Infantry between October 1861 and January 1862, according to Todd Williams, a member of the Wyoming Historical Society.

McLean was one of two Supreme Court Justices who sided with Dred Scott in 1857. The anti-slavery proponent also served in the U.S. House of Representatives and on the Ohio Supreme Court.

McLean died in April 1861, shortly before the start of the Civil War. That summer his son, Nathaniel, and Robert Reily started getting the 75th Infantry together, selecting the Wyoming farmland as a training site.

"I think it's all to easy these days to not remember things like this," Williams said. "Many areas are very historic, and you don't need to build over them and never remember..."

"These guys were volunteers, went of to fight to preserve the union and they all trained there and we should remember that. A thousand guys trained there."

Coming up with the park's name was easy, the mayor said: "What else would you name it?" he asked.

(c) Tri-County Press, 24 Oct 2001¹

Appreciated Source