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death of Colonel Elmer E. Ellsworth in Alexandria, Virginia,
was one of the sensational flash points at the start of the
Civil War. Ellsworth was the first Union officer to be killed
in the four-year-long struggle. He commanded the 11th New
York Fire Zouaves, which participated in the invasion of northern
Virginia on May 24, 1861. His death at the hands of a local
innkeeper made him a martyr in the North. His funeral services
were held in the White House, where thousands of mourners
viewed his corpse lying in state in the East Room. Throughout
the conflict, his name, face, and heroism would be recalled
on stationery, in sheet music, and in memorial lithographs.
One New York regiment, the 44th Volunteer Infantry, would
dub themselves the Ellsworth Avengers. Francis
E. Brownell, the soldier who personally killed Ellsworths
assailant, bequeathed several artifacts to the Smithsonian
Institution, including the weapons used in the incident and
his congressional Medal of Honor.
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