William Lundy

William Lundy (May 1848 – September 1, 1957) was a former claimant of the last living Confederate veteran of the American Civil War, having claimed to have served with the Alabama Home Guard in 1865. He was later discredited however, after an investigation into census records would reveal his date of birth as May 1860, rather than his claimed birth as 1848. His status was subsequently discredited along with the remaining other two surviving veterans' at that time, being John B. Salling and Walter Williams.^{[citation needed]}

Biography

William Lundy was allegedly born near Troy, in Pike County, Alabama, on January 18, 1848 (also reported at Coffee Springs, Coffee County). He is said to have enlisted in the last days of March 1864, at age 16; Company D (Brown's), 4th Alabama Cavalry Regiment (Home Guard) at Elba; and to have been honorably discharged at Elba in May 1865, on account of close of war. He moved his family to Laurel Hill in 1890, where he and wife, Mary Jane Lassiter, raised ten children. He was granted a Confederate soldiers pension in Florida, no. 8948, of $600 per annum was awarded to be paid effective from June 12, 1941. At some point the pension increased to $75 per month ($900 per annum), and finally, in 1953, it was increased to $150 per month ($1800 per annum). Source: Florida Pension Records On January 18, 1955, the Boston Traveler published an article, "Reb on T.V.", of which William Allen Lundy was the subject; making mention of the 107 year old Confederate veteran being on television in Pensacola.

By a Joint Resolution of Congress of July 18, 1956, a gold medal was authorized to be struck and presented to the only four surviving Civil War veterans; One Union veteran, and three Confederate veterans. The Union soldier died before the medals could be presented.

He was the last surviving Confederate soldier residing in Florida, and one of three (all Confederate) Civil War veterans in the United States.

At the ostensible age of 109, Private Lundy died at Crestview, Okaloosa County, on September 1, 1957. He is interred at Almarant Cemetery, Laurel Hill.

See also

• Last surviving United States war veterans

Further reading

• Linedecker, Clifford L., ed. Civil War, A-Z: The Complete Handbook of America's Bloodiest Conflict. New York: Ballentine Books, 2002. ISBN 0-89141-878-4

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