Earl C. Crippen was born on May 29, 1838, in Ohio to William and Elvira Crippen. His father was a farmer who owned $3,000 of real estate and $700 of personal property by 1860. He grew up and attended school in Rome, Ohio, and by 1860, he was working as a farm laborer.

 

He enlisted in the Union army on October 26, 1861, and he mustered in as a private in Company F of the 73^rd Ohio Infantry on December 30. The regiment took part in the Second Battle of Manassas, the Battle of Chancellorsville, the Battle of Gettysburg, the Atlanta campaign, and the March to the Sea. He apparently deserted the regiment during the winter of 1863-1864. President Abraham Lincoln issued a pardon on January 16, 1864, “upon condition that [he] returns to his regiment, within a reasonable time, and faithfully serves out his term.” He eventually rejoined the regiment, and he was wounded at Kennesaw Mountain in June 1864. He mustered out on January 4, 1865.

 

He returned to Rome, Ohio, after the war, and he married Cordelia Mulnix on March 9, 1865. They had at least four children: Carlton, born around 1866; Eunice, born around 1867; Catherine, born around 1868; and Randolf, born around 1874. He earned a living as a farmer and laborer. He applied for a federal pension in March 1867 and eventually secured one. The family moved to Belpre, Ohio, in the 1870s. He died in Ohio on June 15, 1884.

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