Milton Frazer entered the hostilities of the Civil War on July 30, 1861. He enlisted as a captain with Company I in the 3rd Kentucky Infantry Regiment. Although Kentuckians fought for both the Union and Confederacy, Kentucky never seceded from the Union and the 3rd Kentucky Infantry Regiment fell under the Union Army. Being a physician, Capt. Milton Frazer was assigned as the company doctor. While serving with his regiment he became ill, and returned home to Mount Vernon, Ky., to try to recuperate. While at home he succumbed to his illness on May 13, 1862.
Fast-forward 156 years to 2018, when American Legion Post 143 in Schulenburg, Texas, was placing flags on veterans' graves at local cemeteries in preparation for Memorial Day. The post places over a thousand flags at numerous cemeteries in the area, the small Navidad Baptist Cemetery being one of them. As flags are placed, it’s common to read the veteran’s headstone and ponder their service or fate. This being south Texas, it’s highly unusual to place a flag on a Civil War Union soldier grave – especially one who died during the war. So while placing a flag on Capt. Frazer’s grave, it aroused suspicion. Especially since the other 10 or so headstones around him were Confederate Texas and Alabama Calvary soldiers. The odd headstone was mentioned to the cemetery administrators, who were just as baffled as to why the Union soldier was there. Researching Capt. Frazer revealed yet another twist: that he was actually buried at Elmwood Cemetery in Mount Vernon – his hometown. He rests in the older part of the cemetery near a section where unknown Union soldiers are interred. The mistaken headstone in Texas was apparently erected in a family plot when the cemetery was reclaimed from years of neglect in the mid-1980s, and they assumed he was buried there. Wanting to correct this mistake, American Legion Post 143 researched the possibility of having Capt. Frazer’s headstone moved to Kentucky. With donations from the community the headstone was successfully moved and set. And since this was a veteran’s headstone, Post 143 wanted to ensure Capt. Milton Frazer was given military honors in Texas when his headstone was removed on Nov. 30, 2022, and in Kentucky on Dec. 15 when it was reset. These are values of The American Legion – honoring those veterans who came before us and ensuring they are never forgotten.