The following biography is of one of the men who served with the Second Minnesota Artillery during the Civil War. For more information regarding the men who served during the war, please contact us.
John H. Arnell was born in Monroe, New York in 1836. He was a harness maker living in Hassen Township, Hennepin County, Minnesota when he joined the Battery on March 6, 1862. He was 28 years old, stood 5'7" tall, had hazel eyes, light hair and a sandy complexion. He was married.
John's job with the battery probably saw him fixing a lot of harnesses as he was listed as Battery Artificer.
Army life was hard on his health as he was left sick at Winchester, Tennessee on August 17, 1863. He returned to the Battery and re-enlisted in March of 1864. His health evidently did not improve. He was discharged for disability on February 16, 1865.
John returned to Minneapolis and received a pension of $14.00 per month in 1883. His disability was listed as "lung dis. & pleurisy". He was living on Central Ave in Minneapolis in 1890.
John died on March 17, 1917. He is buried in the family plot in Lakewood Cemetery, Minneapolis, Hennepin County, Minnesota. He has a flat foot stone as well as a larger, upright family stone. He is in lot 272, section 9, grave #3, not far from the GAR area.
