Born: Jan. 27, 1839 Died: Aug. 15, 1915 Biography: John Charles Black was born January 27, 1839 in Lexington, Mississippi. When John was 8 years old his father, a Presbyterian minister, moved the family to Danville, Illinois. Black attended Wabash College until the Civil War began. On April 14, 1861, Black and his brother William enlisted with the 11th Indiana Volunteers as Privates. Only three months after their enlistment, the two brothers organized Company K of the 37th Illinois Volunteer infantry. On December 7, 1862, John Black led his men against a fortified position in the Battle of Prairie Grove. It was for his actions in this battle that he received the Congressional Medal of Honor, shown above. His brother William also received the Medal of Honor, making them the first of 5 pairs of brothers to win the medal as of 2005. By the end of the war Black had risen to a rank of Brevetted Brigadier General. After the war, Black practiced law and became a U.S. District Attorney in Chicago, Illinois. Running as a Democrat, Black was elected to the 53rd U.S. Congress, and served from 1893-1895. In 1903, he was honored with the role of Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of the Republic, the veterans organization for Civil War veterans of the Union Army. From 1904-1913, Black served as President of the U.S. Civil Service Commission. John C. Black died August 15, 1915, in Chicago, Illinois. He was buried at Spring Hill Cemetery in his hometown of Danville, Illinois.