John Henry Kirk was born 10 January 1831, in Clarion County, Pennsylvania. He moved with his family to Adams County, Ohio in 1845.

John Henry Kirk was one of "Adams County's Firstborn" to serve in the American Civil War. Although the Ohio Adjutant General mistakenly left him off the post-war roster, John H. Kirk enlisted at West Union, Ohio, for three years service. Governor William Dennison designated the company he joined as Company D, 24th Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Kirk, then 32 years of age, mustered in as a private on 18 July 1861, at New Camp Jackson (renamed Camp Chase), Columbus, Ohio.

Private Kirk was very patriotic, for he reenlisted at Whiteside's, Tennessee, on 31 December 1863. As a result of Special Order Number 375, War Department, Adjutant General's Office dated 31 October 1864, he transferred to Company D, 18th Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry Regiment, November 20, 1864. The veteran detachments of the First, Second, Thirteenth, Twenty-fourth, and Thirty-fifth Regiments, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, remaining in service were consolidated to form the 18th Regiment Ohio Veteran Volunteer Infantry. He mustered out of service with Company F, 18th O.V.V.I., at Augusta Georgia, on October 9, 1865.

Following his war service, John Henry Kirk received a special war veteran's medal from the State of Ohio in grateful acknowledgement of his war serivce. The medal was issued only to Ohio veterans who reenlisted before their first three year term of service ended.

By 1889, John Henry Kirk was living in Kansas. Unfortunately, he was living so far from Ohio that he did not keep in close contact with the surviving members of the 24th Ohio Infantry Regiment. He remained patriotic, however. There, he filed for a war veteran's pension.

John Kirk moved further west, and was residing in California late in life. He died 26 April 1917, at Ontario, California, while on leave from the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, Pacific Branch, Sawtelle, California. John Henry Kirk is buried in Bellevue Memorial Park (Grave 5 Lot 50 Section D), 1240 West G Street, Ontario, California 91762.

Sources:

24th O.V.I. Pension Index.
Ohio Adjutant General's Roster of Ohio Troops.
Whitelaw Reid, "Ohio in the War."
Evans and Stivers, "History of Adams County, Ohio." Additional biographical information provided by
Submitted by: William E. Kirk, great-grandson of John Henry Kirk
Email: w.kirk@worldnet.att.net).

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