Community and Conflict » University of Arkansas Fayetteville, Special Collections

Clinton Owen Bates Memoir

briang — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 19:20:20 +0000

Chapters

“Old Age,” written by Clinton Owen Bates in 1949, reflects on the life of a young boy growing up in Arkansas during the Civil War, and his career as a teacher. Bates was born in 1857, and grew up on a farm in Fayetteville. The Bates family had split loyalty among the North and South, and even as a young child, Bates remembered the tension that the War brought into their home. Bates recalled the bloody conflict along the border of Missouri and Kansas, encounters with runaway slaves, and various Trans-Mississippi Theater battles. After the War, Bates began his career as a teacher. He taught at the Cherokee Headquarters on the Tahlequah Indian Reservation and later held a position in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Contributed by the University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections
Manuscript Collection MC 594

View this collection

Minos Miller Letters, 1860-1866

briang — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 01:37:03 +0000

The Minos Miller letters are a collection of correspondence written by Miller to his mother, Martha Hornaday, in Indiana. Miller served in the 36th Iowa Infantry, and his letters home describe the strange and often life altering events that he experiences in the Arkansas. Miller spent his first six months in the Union Army at Camp Lincoln, near Keokuk, Iowa. His early letters are particularly detailed with regard to camp layout, operation, and the monotony of drilling and the “finery” of dress parade.

The 36th Iowa Infantry eventually traveled southward toward Helena, Arkansas, stopping in St. Louis at Benton Barracks. While stationed at Helen, Arkansas, Miller resigned from the 36th Iowa Infantry, and accepted a commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 2nd Arkansas Infantry (African Descent). He wrote about the condition and development of the African American soldiers in his letters home. Miller participated in the Battle of Helena on July 4, 1863, and described the Battle to his mother. The remainder of the War, Miller served in support capacity, stationed at Pine Bluff, Little Rock, and Fort Smith, Arkansas. At the end of the War, when Miller was finally eligible for discharge, he elected to continue his career as a military officer. Miller’s letters tell a remarkable story, and provide a rare glimpse of life in the Ozarks during the Civil War.

Contributed by the University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections
Manuscript Collection MS M58

View this collection

Rebecca Stirman Davidson Family Papers

briang — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 18:51:51 +0000

Chapters

Introduction
Erasmus Stirman

The Stirman Davidson Collection is a spirited group of letters written to Rebecca Stirman Davidson, of Fayetteville, Arkansas. The bulk of the letters are from her brother Erasmus “Ras” Stirman, while serving in the Civil War. The letters tell the story of Erasmus service in the Confederate Army, his fears and doubts about winning the War, and leading his company of sharpshooters into certain death. Erasmus loved meeting new women, and his letters to Rebecca are full of candor and humor, often telling a larger tale of the social and cultural customs of the era to which he opportunistically flaunted. Erasmus’ successes in the military, coupled with his family’s access to political and societal privilege, combine to tell a wonderful story of upper class life in the Civil War of the Ozarks.

Contributed by the University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections
Manuscript Collection MC 541

View this collection

Sarah Jane Smith Collection

briang — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 20:08:56 +0000

The Sarah Jane Smith collection consists of documents related to her imprisonment for guerrilla activity in Southwest Missouri. Sarah destroyed the telegraph line between Rolla and Springfield twice in 1864. Sarah’s family lived in Washington County, Arkansas. She traveled to Missouri with her cousins, who were noted guerrilla, in May 1864. They camped outside of Springfield and destroyed three to four miles of telegraph wire, and cut down several telegraph poles. The group was captured and placed in prison for three weeks. They were then sent to Rolla, Missouri and paroled. In September of 1864, she met two Confederate men outside of Rolla who propositioned her to destroy the telegraph wire in return for cash payment. She traveled six miles outside of Rolla and destroyed the wire as they agreed. Upon her return to Rolla, she was arrested by federal authorities and never paid.

This collection includes Sarah’s statements to Union authorities about the events and her motives. On October 20, 1864, Sarah was found guilty of violating Order No. 32, which forbids civilian destruction of communication and transportation property, an action that is punishable by death. Sarah was sentenced to “hang by the neck till dead.” Before her sentence was carried out, two physicians examine Sarah. Both physicians found her to be unaware of her actions and mentally incapable of taking responsibility for her actions. On November 10, 1864, Sarah’s sentence was commuted to imprisonment at Alton Military Prison in Illinois for the duration of the War. Like many other prisoners of that day and age, Sarah fell gravely ill during her confinement. Sarah’s “extreme ill health” and the imminent end of the War may have expedited her release, as she was paroled on April 13, 1865.

Contributed by the University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections
Manuscript Collection MC 736

View this collection