Friedrich Franz Karl Hecker, 1811-1881
CITY:
Summerfield
COUNTY:
St. Clair
DEDICATED BY:
Col. Hecker Camp #443 S.U.V.C.W. Dept. of Illinois in Memory of Hecker Post #443 G.A.R., Family and Friends of Hecker, Village of Summerfield/Horner Park Board, and the Illinois State Historical Society.
DEDICATION DATE:
March 25, 2023 at 5:00:00 AM
The marker is located in front of the pavilion in the Summerfield City Park on Mitchell Street in Summerfield.
Born in Angelbachtal, Baden-Wurttemberg in present-day Germans, Hecker studied law at the University of Heidelberg.
Hecker was one of the leaders who championed for democratic reforms in the 1848 uprisings in Germany. Like many other “Forty-eighters”, he eventually immigrated to the United States. He settled on a farm near Summerfield in the fall of 1848.
A strong abolitionist, Hecker helped found and organize the Illinois Republican Party in 1858.
During the Civil War, Hecker commanded the 24th and 82nd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiments.
He died on March 24, 1881, and was buried in the Summerfield Cemetery.