COL. SION S. BASS
COLONEL
SION S. BASS
1827-1862
Prepared by the Staff of the
Public Library of Fort Wayne and Allen County
1954
One of a historical series, this pamphlet is publishedunder the direction of the governing Boards of the PublicLibrary of Fort Wayne and Allen County.
BOARD·OF·TRUSTEES·OF·THE·SCHOOL·CITY·OF·FORT·WAYNE
- Mrs. Sadie Fulk Roehrs
- B. F. Geyer, President
- Joseph E. Kramer, Secretary
- W. Page Yarnelle, Treasurer
- Willard Shambaugh
PUBLIC LIBRARY BOARD FOR ALLEN COUNTY
The members of this Board include the members of the Board of Trustees of theSchool City of Fort Wayne (with the same officers) together with the followingcitizens chosen from Allen County outside the corporate City of Fort Wayne:
- James E. Graham
- Arthur Niemeier
- Mrs. Glenn Henderson
- Mrs. Charles Reynolds
FOREWORD
At the time of the War Between the States the name of ColonelSion S. Bass was well known in Fort Wayne; today few citizensof the Summit City recall his heroism. Only a bare outline of hislife can be constructed from the meager information available.Grace Leslie Dickerson, grandniece of the Colonel, assembledmost of the material for this biographical sketch. Supplementarydetails were found in the Fort Wayne newspapers of the Civil Waryears.
The Boards and the Staff of the Public Library of Fort Wayneand Allen County gratefully acknowledge the kindness of Mrs.Dickerson and other members of the Bass family. This biographyis presented in the hope that the life and sacrifice of Colonel Bass,Civil War hero, will become more familiar to his fellow citizens.
Not many years ago, the Fort Wayne post of the Grand Armyof the Republic was an active organization. Today that post, namedfor Sion S. Bass, is no longer in existence. His name, as well asCivil War terms like Shiloh, United States Volunteers, and Copperhead,has almost lost its significance for the average citizen.
The honorable causes espoused and defended in the tragicCivil War were championed by many men of heroic stature—menworthy of the unstinted admiration and respect of each succeedinggeneration. These were the soldiers who acquitted themselveshonorably in fighting for the causes they believed just. ColonelSion St. Clair Bass, a successful young man who could have avoidedmilitary service, was one of the many who gave their lives in thestruggle.
Colonel Bass was born on a farm near Salem, Kentucky, onJanuary 6, 1827. He was descended from a line of early settlersin Virginia, the Carolina