Photos by jcurtis55
INDIANA SPIRIT QUEST #619 "The Fighting Swede"
This quest will bring you to the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis. Crown Hill is the third largest public cemetery in the United States with over 188,000 burials. There are several other caches in Crown Hill cemetery. It would be quite easy to spend a day here. The grounds open at 8:00AM and close at either 5:00 or 6:00PM, depending on the time of year. I would advise you check the Crown Hill web site if you plan on visiting late in the afternoon.
The posted coordinates will take you to a headstone for a 'Jacob Johnson'. This is actually the gravesite for John Swanson. Mr. Swanson was a Swedish immigrant who volunteered for service during the civil war. Image him saying his name with a thick Swedish accent and by the time the recruiter wrote down his name, it had changed from John Swanson to Jacob Johnson. Mr. Swanson is one of three Medal of Honor winners buried at Crown Hill.
You will need information from the headstone to calculate the coordinates for the final cache location. Here is the information you need:
Jacob Johnson date of death - ab/cd/efgh
Date of action for Medal of Honor - ijkl
The final coordinates are N39 48.JJB W086 10.LAK
John Swanson was a sailor in the US Navy. He was stationed on the USS Santiago de Cuba. Wilmington North Carolina was the last port in the Confederate's possession in the last years of the war. To complete the blockade of the south the Union made a big push to take Fort Fishers near the mouth of the Cape Fear River. There were two battles for Fort Fisher. The first failed and caused General Benjamin Butler to be relieved by US Grant. The 2nd Battle at Fort Fishers started with 56 Union ships bombarding the fort. 8000 troops were then put ashore and successfully captured the fort. John Swanson was one of a few sailors who went ashore with one of the generals to serve as a courier. Swanson and John Griffith of the USS Santiago were both awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions. Swanson's MOH citations reads as follows:" On board the U.S.S. Santiago de Cuba during the assault on Fort Fisher on 15 January 1865. As one of a boat crew detailed to one of the generals on shore, Swanson bravely entered the fort in the assault and accompanied his party in carrying dispatches at the height of the battle. He was 1 of 6 men who entered the fort in the assault from the fleet.
The cache container is A PEANUT BUTTER JAR.