Essex honored the 186 loyal sons of Essex who fought for the Union from 1861 to 1865, through a monument erected by the efforts of W.R.C. No. 114, and recalled their service at Antietam, Wilderness, Cedar Creek, Appomattox, Ressaca, Port Hudson, Gettysburg, New Orleans, Mobile, Fort Sumter, Bull Run, Fair Oaks, Newbern, and Malvern Hill.