The Strange Tale of Col. Dahlgren's Prostheic Leg-- Part 2: The Leg That Served Both North and South

Union Colonel Ulric Dahlgren lost a leg in battle and acquired a new one .  After he was killed in his famous raid on Richmond, his leg was taken and displayed in  a Richmond department store.  Soon thereafter, Confederate Lieutenant James Pollard, who had led the unit that killed Dahlgren,  lost a leg.

He claimed Dahlgren's leg as a war prize.  When it didn't fit him, he gave it to Confederate Captain John N. Ballard of Mosby's Rangers.

So, the leg served both North and South.

Captain Ballard had lost his leg  in a skirmish with a small party of Union cavalry at Ewell's Chapel, east of Bull Run Mountains.  After the war, he married  Miss Thrift, and the Thrift Farm on the site of the Battle of Chantilly became known as the Ballard Farm.

--Old Secesh

The Strange Tale of Col. Dahlgren's Prosthetic Leg-- Part 1: Served Union and Confederate

From Civil War Talk.

We may not know for sure what happened to Col. Ulric Dahlgren's real leg, but more is known about his prosthetic one.

When Confederate Captain John Newton Ballard of Mosby's Raiders lost his leg in battle in 1863, he quickly acquired a second hand artificial leg and got back to action.  However, at Halltown, Virginia, his horse collided with that of a Union cavalryman and his artificial leg was crushed.  This probably made him the only Civil War soldier to lose the same leg twice.

However, he was about to have some luck  In March 1864, Union Col. Ulric Dahlgren was killed near Richmond leading a cavalry raid.  He too had lost a leg in action in 1863 (and we know about it being buried in the Washington Navy Yard).

Dahlgren's body was found by a 13-year-old Confederate, who took the wooden leg as a souvenir.  This prosthetic eventually made its way to  John Ballard, who wore it until the end of the war.

--Old Secesh

Some More On Col. Ulric's Replacement Leg-- Part 3: What Happened to His Replacement Leg?

And, yet, the story of the luckless colonel's leg does not end here.  There is yet the story of what happened to the artificial leg Ulric Dahlgren was wearing when he was killed.  I have seen it referred to as a cork and now a wooden leg in different sources..

That wooden leg, apparently, was not returned with the colonel's body.  It was later said that one of John Mosby's Rangers, himself missing a leg, took it and wore it for many years.

An article in the  Bennington, Vermont, Evening Banner on September  18, 1922,  said that Captain John Ballard "probably will carry it with him to his grave."

Keeping Up With Ulric's Legs.  --Old Secesh

Col. Ulric Dahlgren's Prosthetic Leg-- Part 1: Saw Service In Both Union and Confederate Armies

Well, maybe we don't know for sure where Col. Dahlgren's real leg is, but his prosthetic one also has an interesting story.

From the May 7, 2014, Civil War Talk "This prosthetic leg  served in both the Confederate and Union armies."

When Confederate Captain John Newton Ballard of Mosby's  Rangers lost a leg in battle in 1863 he acquired a second-hand artificial one and got back into the war.  Unfortunately for him, this one was crushed  when his horse collided with  a Union cavalry man's steed and his prosthetic was crushed, making him probably the only Civil War soldier to lose the same leg twice.

However, he was about to have a stroke of luck.    In March 1864, Union  Colonel Ulric Dahlgren was killed near Richmond, Virginia, during a cavalry raid.  He too has lost a leg and was wearing an artificial limb.
Dahlgren's body was found by a 13-year-old Confederate who kept it as a souvenir.  It eventually got to Ballard, who wore it until the end of the war.

--Old Secesh