A "Dutchman" for Dixie

Joseph Blenker was born January 19, 1836 in Germany.  His father was also named Joseph Blenker.  Young Joe Blenker came to America some time before the start of the Civil War.  He was living in St. Louis when the war began.  Unlike many of his fellow German immigrants, who chose the Union side in the conflict, Blenker decided to throw in with the South.  He left St. Louis and enlisted in John Bowen's 1st Missouri Infantry Regiment in August 1861 as a private in Captain Robert Duffy's Company B. 

Blenker fought in the Battle of Shiloh and was wounded.  Afterwards he appears to have been transferred to the Trans-Mississippi for is records relate that he participated in the battles of Helena, Arkansas and Mansfield, Louisiana.  According to his Missouri Confederate Home application he was on a special mission to St. Louis on behalf of the Confederate government when the war ended and he received no parole or discharge from the army.

Dining Room of Mississippi Steamboat

Blenker remained in St. Louis after the war.  He became a riverman and was a cook on a steamboat for many years.  He was admitted to the Confederate Home in October 1899.  He was in reasonably good health at the time and was quite popular at the Home.  The old private soldier was affectionately known as "Colonel Joe".  He made several trips back to St. Louis over the years to visit with his many friends and relatives living there.  His favorite beverage was a scotch highball.  He was one of several Confederate Home residents who attended the St. Louis World's Fair in 1904.  He received the Southern Cross of Honor in 1901.

Joe Blenker passed away at the Confederate Home from heart failure on August 7, 1914.  He had suffered from heart disease for quite a while.  He had recently fallen and fractured his hip.  The resulting confinement from the injury contributed to his ultimate demise. He was 78 years old and single at the time of his death.