News : Shellsburg students hear story of Iowa soldier who fought for South in Civil War

Lucas Maynard wears the blue uniform of the North during a Civil War presentation in Shellsburg.

Barry Grove re-enacts the role of Confederate soldier Lewis David Baker, who lived in Marion.

Shellsburg Elementary students heard a unique historical presentation on Thursday, when a retired Cedar Rapids teacher told them of a Civil War veteran who had fought for the South before moving to Iowa.

Barry Grove was a history teacher and administrator in the C.R. district before becoming a Civil War and Colonial history presenter. He now shares his lessons throughout eastern Iowa.

During his presentation at Shellsburg, Grove re-enacted the story of Lewis David Baker, who died in Marion in 1941. Baker, the son of a slave owner who lived a few miles south of Cincinatti, was believed to be the only Confederate veteran living in Marion at the time.

Grove told Baker’s story in a southern accent; he described how Baker was shot in the hand and later fled from a military hospital because he believed doctors were about to amputate his right arm. He had joined with Company G in 1843, fought in several battles during the Civil War then moved to Iowa when he began working for the railroad.

He also told the students how later Baker said he hoped the "Iowa boys" wouldn't hold it against him that he fought for the other side.

In a 1928 interview, Baker said he had been a friend of Buffalo Bill. Grove told the students that Baker died by getting hit by a car.

See Baker’s gravestone HERE.