| Interment Location | Visited | |
|---|---|---|
| Springfield, IL | August 20, 2004 |
All of these pictures were taken on August 20, 2024, exactly two decades after my father and I first trekked to Oak Ridge Cemetery. There are no still photographs of me with Tanner’s tomb from my initial visit in 2004. However, there is some video footage of my nine-year-old self exploring the sepulcher. Click here to watch.
Fast Facts
Born: April 4, 1844 in Warrick County, Indiana
Spouses: Lauretta Ingraham Tanner (m. 1866-1887); Cora Edith English Tanner (m. 1896-1901)
Military Branch: U.S. Army
Political Affiliation: Republican Party
Gubernatorial Tenure: 1897-1901
Died: May 23, 1901 in Springfield, Illinois
Cause of Death: Rheumatism of the Heart
Age: 57
Interment: Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois
"Another characteristic of John R. Tanner was his great energy and will power and capacity for work. Whether as a boy clearing away the forest from his small farm in Southern Illinois, or as Governor of the state, guiding the destinies of the commonwealth he bent all his energies to the accomplishment of what he sought to do. Conservative to a remarkable degree he generally considered carefully any policy which he proposed to himself, but having once decided course, he followed it inflexibly. Of his personal honesty and official integrity no man ever made question."
Chicago Inter Ocean
May 1901