M, #4850, b. 16 October 1838, d. 25 October 1910
| Birth* | 16 October 1838 | Robert was born on 16 October 1838. |
| | He was the son of William L. Lamping and Julia Mcguire. |
| Baptism | 30 December 1838 | He was baptized at St. Patrick Church on 30 December 1838. Religion: Roman Catholic.1 |
| Marriage* | 10 April 1860 | He married Hannah Cushing at St. Rose of Lima Church on 10 April 1860. |
| Death* | 25 October 1910 | Robert died 25 October 1910 at IL Sailors' and Soldiers' Home at age 72. |
| Burial* | | His body was interred at Mt. Olivet Cemetery. |
| Illness | | He was ill with heart disorder/stroke; Heart Disease was the cause of death. |
| Illness | | He was ill with According to Robert's Civil War Pension papers he suffered from deafness, possibly as a result of the skull fracture he sustained and also rhuematism. |
| Religion* | | He was Roman Catholic. |
| Language* | | He speaks (an unknown value.) |
| Illness* | | He was ill with bones; During his time in the service Robert suffered a skull fracture from a blow from the butt of a pistol or rifle and the loss of the tip of the third finger of his left hand when a rifle discharged in his hand. |
| Description* | | He was described as 5 feet, 7 inches, Brown hair, Blue eyes, Fair skin. |
| Biography* | | He came to Joliet, IL with his parents, in the early 1840's. Soon after the family settled south of Joliet in Wilmington. He was a man of short stature. He measured 5' 6 1/2" and weighed in at 145lbs. He was of fair complexion with blue eyes and brown hair, which turned gray later on in life. Sometime before 1880 Robert moved out of the house and in 1880 was living as a boarder of Adam Robinson in Wilmington. Hannah, his wife has the children at home. |
| Employment* | | He was employed. |
| Mlt induction* | June 1862 | He was inducted into the military in June 1862. In June of 1862 Robert James Lamping joined the Army in Chicago along with three of his brothers-in-law, Edmund, Patrick and Garrett Cushing. In June of 1862 Robert went to fight in the Civil War enlisting as a Private in Company B of the 23rd Illinois Infantry Volunteers at Chicago, IL, under the command of Captain Michael Gleason. Three of his brothers-in-law, Edmund, Garrett and Patrick Cushing, also of Wilmington, joind with him. He served until June 1865 when he was discharged at Richmond, VA. In the 1880 Census Robert is living as a boarder of one, Adam Robinson. Sometime after his second application for pension in 1896 and his third in 1902, Robert moved to Braidwood, IL. Robert received wounds in the line of duty on two seperate occasions while serving in the War. While serving at Petersburg, WV in August 1863 he received a gunshot wound to the left hand causing loss of part of the third finger when a rifle which he was removing from a wagon discharged, and while guarding the commisary stores at New Creek, WV in May 1864 he received a rifle or pistol blow to the back of the head resulting in a skull fracture and deafness in the right ear. Robert said that he thought the person was a citizen and not a soldier, but the identity of the assailant was never known. The wound was dressed by Dr. John S. Taylor, the surgeon of the regiment. Robert filed a Declaration for Invalid Army Pension on May 2, 1891 due to disability caused by these injuries. His attorney was P. H. Fitzgerald, a Pension Claim Agent in Indianapolis, IN. There was an investigation by the Pension Board when Robert applied for a pension for his military service. The claim was rejected on October 24, 1895 on the grounds that the investigation found no clear evidence that the wounds were indeed sustained in the line of duty. On February 27, 1896, with the help of Fitzgerald & Delp of Indianapolis, IN (succeeding P. H. Fitzgerald, who had retired) Robert appealed his case and filed a second Declaration for Invalid Pension on the grounds that the rejection was "contrary to evidence." On June 18, 1896 the rejection of Robert's pension was reaffirmed. On January 20, 1902, at the age of 64, Robert once again filed a Declaration for Invalid Pension. In February 1902, Robert received an order from the Pension Department in Washington D.C. directing him to go before the medical examiners of the Department in Kankakee, IL. Due to the poor condition of the roads between Braidwood and Kankakee he purchased a ticket on the Chicago & Alton Railroad to Gardner, IL. When he arrived in Gardner he was too late to secure his connection on the Kankakee & Seneca Railroad and was unable to comply with the Pension Departments wishes. He was granted a pension of $6 per month due to senile debility and disease of the heart according to the Act of June 27, 1890. On February 28, 1903, Robert signed an affidavit stating that he was now able and willing to go to Kankakee and comply with any wishes of the Pension Department. He further states that he had lost the original order and after a diligent search was unable to find it. (Periodic physical examinations were necessary in order to maintain the pension and receive increases.) This amount was increased to $8 on January 9, 1904 and to $10 on November 1, 1905. The skull fracture caused Robert a lot of difficulty in later years. Because of it he suffered from and complained of headaches and dizziness and was not able to work much. He had been a blacksmith and according to the testimony of a few, a good one. There were also some doubts about his sanity at times from some of his family and friends. He was described by several as a stout, healthy man before going into the Army. When Robert came home from the war his family was frought with problems. The extent to which the Civil War was the cause is impossible to say.. |
| Mlt discharge* | June 1865 | He was released from active duty in June 1865. |
| (father) Baptism | February 1885 | As Robert James Lamping's father, Robert presented him at his baptism at St. Rose of Lima Church in February 1885. |
Robert James Lamping