Born on March 3, 1837, in Springfield, Clark County, Ohio, Milton Lee was a farmer in Danville, Vermillion County, Illinois, by 1860.

He enlisted in Company I, 35th Illinois Infantry on July 3, 1861, in Catlin, Illinois, and was mustered into service on August 24, 1861, at St. Louis. Promoted to second lieutenant in October 1861, and to first lieutenant in December 1862, Lee served until mustered out with the regiment in September 1864.

The 35th Illinois fought at Pea Ridge, Perryville, Stones River, Chickamauga, Chattanooga, and in the Atlanta Campaign.

Following the war, Lee became prominent in the Grand Army of the Republic, a leading member of the Republican Party in Illinois, and served in the Illinois House of Representatives from 1888-90. He died on November 24, 1891, in Rossville, Illinois. The Reverend James Miller, who gave the sermon at Lee’s funeral, described him as “a brave patriot, a noble citizen, devoted husband and father and a pure man.” Lee is buried in the Rossville Cemetery.

Carte-de-Visite by unknown photographer.

Image Courtesy Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield; WICR 12052