James Moses Smart was born on August 27, 1834 in Edgar County.

[Illinois birth certificates available only from 1916 onward]

His father, Joseph, died when James, the second oldest son, was only eleven years old.

At the start of the Civil War James was 27, unmarried, and had no children. He was probably a farmer like his father. In fact, I think he was deemed more useful to the service of the Union during the Civil War raising produce than fighting.

Learn more about his: Family Wife Children Latter Life