By Beacon Staff
Speaking with a distinguished southern drawl folded over a baritone voice, Sid Champion is more than a Civil War historian. A Mississippi native and resident, he’s directly descended from the Confederate side of the Civil War history.
“I’m looking for the busted knuckles version of history. Not the embellished history,” he said. “The right side won the war.”
Champion spoke on March 10 at Messiah Lutheran Church on invitation from the Southeast Iowa Civil War Round Table. Indulging in a private Civil War-themed potluck with the round table before the presentation, Champion spoke about his family history.
“I’ve been doing this (Civil War presentations) for about 17 or 18 years, and I did private tours of the land. I’ve also been doing multiple tours every year for military outfits,” he said.
The great-great-grandson of Sid and Matilda Champion, he still lives near the land they settled in 1853 in Mississippi.
He has a treasure trove of Civil War letters written between his great-great-grandparents, portraying a couple caught up in the ravages of war.
“I see him (Sid) as a man who gave his all for his country as he saw it, and was sorely disillusioned, even though he still believed in the cause,” he said.
When the Civil War erupted in 1861, Sid, 38, joined the 28th Mississippi Cavalry and left for Vicksburg to participate in the war.
For the first time since their marriage, Matilda was left alone with four young children to care for and 65 enslaved people to manage.
With the help of the overseer, operations continued as usual until May 16, 1863. That is when the war came to Champion Hill. The Champion house was taken over and used as a Union hospital.
From that point on, Matilda’s life would never be the same.
Ironically enough, the original Sid Champion was not at the Battle of Champion Hill.
“He was close by the battle, and went back to Vicksburg for the siege,” Champion said.
Sid remained in Vicksburg with the 28th Mississippi Cavalry. Matilda and the children returned to Brae Mar to live with her parents. Soon after the fall of Vicksburg, she learned that her house had been burned as General Sherman and his men marched back to Jackson.
Matilda, now homeless, took the children to Rankin County, where Sid purchased property to be used as a refuge. Sid remained in the Confederate army from 1862 to 1865. Matilda and the children scraped out a miserable existence in Rankin County.
In May 1865, after three long years of war, Sid was mustered out of the army and returned to his wife and children. They sold the Rankin County property and returned to Midway Station, now known as Champion Hill, to start over again.
“He (Sid Champion) died in 1868 of what sounded like lead poisoning, leaving Matilda to raise four children,” Champion said, noting that Matilda held onto the land and became a well-known, public figure locally.