Wheaton in DuPage County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Marcellus E. Jones

Photographed by Sean Flynn

1. Marcellus E. Jones Gravesite Marker

Inscription. Marcellus E. Jones
June 5, 1830 -- Oct. 9, 1900
Capt. 8th Illinois Cavalry, 1861-1865
Fired first shot
Battle of Gettysburg, July 1, 1863
Erected by The Civil War Roundtable of Chicago, Apr. 11, 1976

Erected 1976 by The Civil War Roundtable of Chicago.

Topics. This memorial is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • War, US Civil. A significant historical date for this entry is July 1, 1863.

Location. 41° 51.074′ N, 88° 6.762′ W. Memorial is in Wheaton, Illinois, in DuPage County. It can be reached from Warrenville Road north of Merrill Drive, on the right when traveling north. The marker is at Jones's gravesite at Wheaton Cemetery, near the first north-south roadway in the cemetery. Touch for map. Memorial is at or near this postal address: 1209 Warrenville Road, Wheaton IL 60189, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this memorial is in Greater Chicago.

It is also in the American Midwest

and on the Great Lakes.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Wheaton Cemetery (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Memorial to the Unknown Dead of the Civil War (about 500 feet away); Veterans Memorial (about 500 feet away); Warren L. Wheaton Home Site (approx. 0.8 miles away); Marcellus E. Jones House (approx. 0.9 miles away); May Theilgaard Watts

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(approx. 0.9 miles away); Helen Turner (approx. 0.9 miles away); Wheaton's Original Ten Blocks (approx. 0.9 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Wheaton.

More about this memorial. According to the Chicago Civil War Round Table newsletter from March 1976, Marcellus Jones's gravesite was left unmarked after he died in 1900, as his widow could not afford a headstone in addition to the funeral. The group hosted a ceremony for the new headstone at his grave on April 11, 1976, at 2 p.m. "It will not be an imposing monument," wrote Marshall Krolick, editor of the Chicago CWRT's newsletter, in March 1976, "just a simple marker to tell the world that he is there and we care."

Regarding Marcellus E. Jones. Marcellus E. Jones was a member of the 8th Illinois Cavalry regiment during the Civil War and is credited with firing the first shot of the Battle of Gettysburg, on July 1, 1863. Born in Vermont in 1830, Jones moved to Danby (now Glen Ellyn, immediately east of Wheaton) in DuPage County, Illinois, in 1858. In August 1861, Jones enlisted in E Company of the 8th Illinois Cavalry regiment, for whom he would fight until the close of the war.

On July 1, 1863,

Marcellus E. Jones Gravesite image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn

2. Marcellus E. Jones Gravesite

the 8th was part of the cavalry unit patrolling the area just west of Gettysburg, in south central Pennsylvania, where Confederate troops had been massing during an invasion of the North. That morning, Jones noticed a cloud of dust along the Chambersburg Pike. He borrowed the carbine of one his comrades and fired it at the oncoming Confederates, the opening salvo in a three-day battle that would become the largest ever fought in the Western Hemisphere. More than 50,000 soldiers were killed or wounded in the battle, which ended in a Union victory and a Confederate retreat back to Virginia.

After the war, Jones settled in Wheaton and was active in local politics, including stints as DuPage County sheriff and Wheaton postmaster. His home, which originally stood at 504 Naperville Road, was moved a few blocks away in 1977 to 221 E. Illinois, where it still stands today and is used as law firm offices.

Also see . . .
1. The Civil War Round Table of Chicago. Chicago's was the very first Civil War round table, founded in December 1940 and still active today. A description of the efforts to restore Jones's gravesite can be found in the March and April 1976 newsletters, which are found within the website's Newsletter Archives. (Submitted on December 14, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

2. Battle of Gettysburg: Who Really Fired the First Shot

Marcellus E. Jones image. Click for full size.

3. Marcellus E. Jones

A photo from later in Jones' life. He was an active political figure in Wheaton, including serving as the city's postmaster.

. From HistoryNet (Submitted on December 14, 2024, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

First Shot Marker at Gettysburg image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean Flynn, May 6, 2021

4. First Shot Marker at Gettysburg

Marcellus Jones is credited with firing the first shot of the Battle of Gettysburg on Chambersburg Pike outside of Gettysburg, on July 1, 1863. After a column of Confederate troops was spotted around 6:45 a.m. that morning, Lt. Jones borrowed a carbine from Sgt. Levi Shafer and fired at an officer on a white horse, missing the officer but opening what would become the largest battle ever fought on the Western Hemisphere. In 1886 Jones returned to Gettysburg with Shafer and Alex Riddler, also a veteran of the 8th, to erected the First Shot Marker at the site of his first shot. The memorial is composed of DuPage County limestone, from the Naperville quarry.

Credits. This page was last revised on May 29, 2026. It was originally submitted on July 20, 2023, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 1,183 times since then and 226 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on July 20, 2023, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.