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Captured Freedom - Book Details Epic Civil War POW Escape

Captured Freedom on History Unplugged

Scott Rank—is a history professor and host of the podcast History Unplugged. Scott interviews Captured Freedom’s author on History Unplugged. From History Unplugged: Steve Procko is today’s guest, and he’s here to tell the story. He’s also the author of “Captured Freedom: The Epic True Civil War Story of Union POW Officers Escaping From a South Prison.” At the height of the Civil War in November 1864, nine Union prisoners-of-war escaped from a Confederate Prison known as Camp Sorghum in… Read More »Captured Freedom on History Unplugged

Author Steve Procko's Interview with Kansas Public Radio - Dan Skinner, "Conversations"

Interview with Kansas Public Radio

Captured Freedom’s author Steve Procko is interviewed by Kansas Public Radio host Dan Skinner for his show “Conversations“. Conversations – Kansas Public Radio https://kansaspublicradio.org/podcast/conversations/2023-08-21/captured-freedom-an-epic-true-civil-war-pow-story From Kansas Public Radio: On this edition of Conversations, Steve Procko talks with host Dan Skinner about “Captured Freedom.” This book was inspired by a photo of Civil War soldiers misidentified as Confederate soldiers, but in fact were Union Soldier who had escaped from a Confederate prison. Procko uncovered the true identities of the men and… Read More »Interview with Kansas Public Radio

Bassett, Hoffman, Page and Marshall all participated in the siege of Vicksburg

Vicksburg – July 4, 1863

The end of the siege of Vicksburg. Lieutenant Mark M. Bassett, Company E, 53rd Illinois, wouldn’t consider the irony of his situation until over a year later. “The negotiations were going on slowly. During the 2d and 3d of July we would get up on the works three or four times a day when the white flags were up and visit,” scribbled Private Ranstead of Company D, 53rd Illinois in his diary.  The men in blue and the men and… Read More »Vicksburg – July 4, 1863

The flag or colors of the 53rd Illinois with the blood of Sergeant George Poundstone still visible in the bottom right. The restored Civil War flag hangs on display at the Streator Public Library, Streator, Illinois, where it is on permanent loan from the Illinois State Military Museum. – Photo courtesy of David Reed

Flag Day

The flag or colors of the 53rd Illinois with the blood of Sergeant George Poundstone still visible in the bottom right.The restored Civil War flag hangs on display at the Streator Public Library, Streator, Illinois, where it is on permanent loan from the Illinois State Military Museum. – Photo courtesy of David Reed At around 9AM on the morning of Sunday, July 12, 1863, the incessant heat radiated down from the Jackson, Mississippi sun onto the men of the 53rd… Read More »Flag Day

Lieutenant Mark M. Bassett; 53rd Illinois. Cropped from the photograph taken January 2, 1865 by Theodore M. Schleier in Knoxville, TN. From the book "Captured Freedom".

Mark Bassett; 53rd Illinois

All indications pointed to a man who live in Peoria, Illinois after the war as the source for the copy photographs found at the Library of Congress, Chicago History Museum and Peoria Public Library. His name was Mark M. Bassett and he was a lieutenant in the 53rd Illinois. Promoted to Captain at the end of the war but never mustered. Bassett’s name is found with either the rank of Captain and Lieutenant attached to it in later years. Lieutenant… Read More »Mark Bassett; 53rd Illinois

Mark M. Bassett - Circa 1900-1910; Courtesy of the Peoria Public Library

Peoria Find

It didn’t take long until I found another copy of “the photograph”. A lead suggested that I search for records and photographs at the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) post in Peoria, Illinois. The GAR was the fraternal organization made up of Union Army veterans from the Civil War. Mark Bassett had been a member. The post was known as “Col. John Bryner Post, No.67“, with its historic Greenhut GAR Memorial building constructed in 1909, a year before Bassett’s death.… Read More »Peoria Find