Samuel Kirkham enlisted on August 23, 1862, and was mustered into Company C, 12th Kansas Infantry as a private on September 26, 1862, at Paola, Kansas. On April 15, 1863, he was promoted to corporal and to second lieutenant on October 30, 1864.

The 12th Kansas Infantry was organized in September 1862 at Paola, Kansas; the regiment saw action during the Camden Expedition and garrison duty at Fort Smith and Little Rock.

Kirkham mustered out with the regiment on June 30, 1865. He died in Healdsburg, California, on January 7, 1908.

Carte-de-Visite by William Brown.

Image Courtesy Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield; WICR 31781