Dowd Family Papers (LC.00055)

Jefferson Smith Dowd enlisted in Company D of the 66th Illinois Infantry on September 23, 1861. The 66th Illinois formed as a specialized sharpshooter regiment meant for skirmishing on the Western Front. It drew soldiers from a number of states and Company D was drawn almost exclusively from Michigan. Some records indicate Dowd was transferred to Company H, but it seems more likely he remained in Company D for his term of service. Dowd was wounded at the Battle of Shiloh on April 6, 1862, but recovered quickly and briefly served as a nurse in the hospital at Jefferson Barracks near St. Louis, Missouri. When his term expired, he was mustered out on September 17, 1864. Jefferson married Olive P. Fox on April 5, 1865, in Hartford, Van Buren County, Michigan, and they had three daughters and four sons together.