In 1871, Benton County, Arkansas provided civilians with the opportunity to places grievances against the United State Army. The civilians provided a description, amount, and value of the property taken by Union Soldiers. Many claims list multiple witnesses attesting to the specifics of the theft and the names and affiliations of the soldiers. Oaths of loyalty accompany the claims attesting to the civilian’s loyalty to the Union.

The records include notation indicating whether the claim was paid or rejected. Not all of the claims were paid, and it is uncertain why some of the claims were rejected. Perhaps plaintiffs were Confederates seeking monetary revenge on the Union, or the appraisal value of the property was too high. Regardless, this collection provides valuable information about living conditions and market values in the Ozarks, and insight to the relationship between soldiers and civilians during the Civil War.

Contributed by the Benton County Archives

View this collection

The civil suits stemmed from the destruction of the mill, machinery, stored goods, and the three homes owned by the Bowers. The importance of regional grist mills to rural Ozarks communities cannot be overstated. Mills served myriad functions to the regional economy, and their preservation and continued operation was important to maintain a sense of hopefulness and security in the Ozarks during the War.

The first Bowers suit began on January 23, 1864, with the plaintiffs asking for roughly $32,000 in damages from 47 defendants. Depositions failed to produce a confession, and instead served to absolve certain defendants of association with the alleged crime. Defendant, Jess Newton Gotcher, noted the importance of the mill to his family living in the area, as evidence of his innocence.

(I) had no hand in it and (am) not guilty of any participation in the same (I am) opposed as a soldier and officer the robbing of private citizens non combatants and destruction of private property (I) regretted to hear of the plaintiffs mill being destroyed by any one as (my) Father lived in the neighborhood and depended on the mill for his breadstuff and (I) had…lived near the mill and was acquainted with the plaintiffs and regarded them as (my) personal friends though differing politically and (I) had no inclination to injure the plffs had (I) been present (I) would prevented so far as lay in(my)s power and injury to the person as property of the plaintiffs…
Deposition of Jesse Newton Gotcher, Paris, Texas, October 25, 1866

On October 18, 1865, the Bowers brought suit against Henry “Harvey” T. McCune for the destruction of their property. McCune’s son, Thomas, was a defendant in the first trial. The second suit did not proceed quickly, but it did produce results. Despite McCune’s death during the trial, the deposition continued, and the Bowers finally received a confession in 1869.

(I) was in Benton County Arkansas in September, 1863, and in September about the last of September 1863 (I) left Benton County with Gen Shelby’s Command, and proceeded to the State of Missouri and reached Lawrence County in the State of Missouri on or about the fifth day of October 1863, and…(I) together with one John Nelson Set fire to and Burned the Mills and Other buildings On Spring River in a little town known by the Name of Oregon. …(The) burning was done as Gen Shelbys Command pased North from Benton County Arkansas And…(I) knew at the time that…(if I) Burned the Mills and other buildings that it was in violation of Gen Shelbys orders And (I) was not ordered persuaded nor hired to burn said buildings but done it with (my) own free will and accord…(I believed at the mill)and other buildings was that the Malitia of Lawrence County Missouri made their head quarters at said Mills and other buildings and that (I) wanted to broke up their nests…
James Barnes, Dallas, Arkansas, October 15, 1869

James Barnes also implicated his partner in crime, James Dixson. The men believed Bowers Mill was a nest for the Enrolled Missouri Militia (EMM), and thus justified its destruction. The EMM stationed men around mills throughout the Ozarks to establish a safeguard for civilians and help alleviate fears of guerrilla attacks. The militia’s presence allowed for continued cultivation and provided a source of food for the men. The destruction of Bower’s mill hurt more than just George, John and William, as it impacted the lives of women, children and Union forces that depended on the mill for food.

Contributed by the Greene County Archives and Records Center

View this collection

everything is in an uproar…there is nothing to talk about here but war. I hate the war and all that is connected with it… from what I can learn the south has been behaving all the while it is the republicans that are doing the mischief I guess there will be a great deal of blood shed before the north whips the south some of the people around here thinks it will be a very easy matter to whip but I guess they will have a bitter pill to swallow first
Minerva Phillips, Central City, Illinois – January 26, 1862

Alexander served in the 3rd Infantry Regiment, 1st Division, Missouri State Guard. His initial post was Camp New Madrid, in southeastern Missouri. His service in the Missouri State Guard expired in late 1861, and Alexander joined the 2nd Missouri Cavalry as a 2nd Lieutenant. Alexander wrote home about news from the front and friends in the services. Soldiers often speculated about rumors and news in camp, and in one letter Alexander reflects on how President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation will impact the War.

We are all well; there has been but little sickness in camp this winter so far. There is little to do now in camp and times are rather dull Since we returned from the Holly Springs Raid [MS] of which you have no doubt already heard at least the federal account: if you get the other letter you will find a Short description of that brilliant little affair…The Yankees are deserting very fast Several hundred have deserted and come to Grenada …I see by a paper which I have just been reading that at Baton Rouge Louisiana whole Regiments laid down their arms and refused to fight to carry out Lincolns Proclamation We have rumors of Illinois and Indiana withdrawing their Troops from the field and it is believed by a great many that a parts of [Ulysses S.] Grants army have gone back there to put down rebellion. it is also said that Kentucky has refused to aid in prosecuting the war unless the Proclamation is withdrawn. One thing is pretty sure, the yankee army is becoming or has already become very much demoralized, and from all that I can learn we will soon see the beginning of the end according to my opinion…..
Alexander Chadwell, Camp Buck Hill, Mississippi – February 8, 1863

As the War continued, Gideon received news from his friends and family throughout the Midwest. He received letters from soldiers in Arkansas about camp conditions, and others who were captured and sent to Union prisons. Gideon’s nephew in Illinois wrote about the passing of Union troops and their treatment of defiant civilians.

…there Was Some Rough times when they stayed At Centralia there was a man went There One day and there was A pointed Him out as a copperhed they arrested Him and used him Rough for A while And he got A way from them and there Was A Soldier Shot at him did not hit Him the Same day the cut the buttons Off A mans coat another Instance They was going to take a Mans Briches off because they were brown He drawed his Revolver and they Took It from him…
James M. Strong, Central City, Illinois – March 20, 1864

Beyond war and political news, the Chadwell Leavenworth Collection provides details about the family’s post-war life. Alexander worked was a surveyor and schoolteacher. By August 1881, he was teaching in Conway County, Arkansas. Martha married Joseph A. Leavenworth, who operated a sawmill in Leota, Mississippi. Their lumber contributed to the building of homes in Mississippi. The Chadwell Leavenworth Collection consists of correspondences from 1837 through 1944. Community and Conflict only included correspondences from 1861 through 1875. Researchers are encouraged to contact Western Historical Manuscript Collection for additional letters and document.

Contributed by the STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY of MISSOURI RESEARCH CENTER – ROLLA

View this collection

Huffman was born in Barren County, Kentucky on September 9, 1855. His family moved to Texas when he was three, and then 10 years later to Sebastian County, Arkansas. His family moved to Bentonville in 1873, where Huffman taught school for 5 years. In the letter Huffman noted his desire to teach school, and hoped to find an opening during the summer. Huffman married Georgette Jefferson on December 23, 1880. The couple had five children, two of which died in childhood. Huffman worked as a banker, merchant and farmer, and he was a Mason and member of the Knights of Pythias. Christopher Huffman died on November 30, 1912.

Contributed by the Shiloh Museum of Ozarks History

View this Letter

Introduction
Clinton Owen Bates

“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

the corn crop is as fine as iever Saw the wheat and oats hungarion [Hungarian wheat] timithy [Timothy grass] all good but no market for nothing no money I surpose with out adout of all the battle that has bin faught in Virginginia and at Springfield
Coleman Bruce Letter to William and Martha Jane Jackson. Aug. 20, 1861

Bruce’s sentence structure and phonetic spelling make his letter difficult to read; yet it provides a valuable insight to the written and verbal speech patterns of the 19th Century. In his letter Bruce calls northerners the pejorative term “dutch,” a corruption of “Deutsche,” meaning German. This term was commonly used in Missouri, as many associated the massive German migration to St. Louis and the city’s urban setting with other iconic northern cities. The use of such language shows that association with the rising immigrant class was viewed by many in Missouri as a detriment to American society.

we dont expect to live under the dutch nor the Yonkeys we pur fiting untell we die in prefance the north
Colman Bruce Letter to William and Martha Jane Jackson. Aug. 20, 1861

Bruce was very vocal with his disdain for Northern troops, which placed him in a precarious position during the war. On July 9, 1863, four witnesses filed affidavits with the Missouri Union Provost Marshal, citing Coleman Bruce with disloyalty to the government. A month prior to the accusations, James W. Sappington, a captain and member of the Missouri legislature and Major William Jackson, Bruce’s son-in-law, both testified that Bruce was a “true and loyal citizen.”2 During this period of hostility, anything a person wrote or said could become subject to scrutiny and could be used as evidence that the individual was disloyal. No evidence exists showing Union officials pursued Bruce any further about his loyalty to the state or the country.

Bruce’s letter mentions significant events and individuals of the War, such as action near Cair, Illinois and Birds point (an island on the Mississippi River opposite of Cairo). He also wrote about the death of Union General Nathaniel Lyon at the Battle of Wilson’s Creek. Bruce mistakenly reported Franz Sigel was also killed at the Battle. Lyon and Sigel surprised Confederate troops camped along Wilson’s Creek on the morning of August 10, 1861. While initially caught off guard, the Confederates were able to rally and repel the Union advance.

After Lyon’s death, Union forces retreated back to Springfield and eventually to Rolla, Missouri. Undoubtedly, Bruce was enthusiastic with the Confederate victory at Wilson’s Creek and their occupation of Southwest Missouri. Confederate control over the region caused difficulties for union civilians. Bruce noted that Sample Orr, an 1860 Missouri gubernatorial candidate, robbed a Springfield bank of $24,000. Allegedly, the bank was robbed to prevent the Confederates from securing the money to fund their army. The money was taken to Rolla to remain in Union hands. Little documentation on this event exists, although, Bruce discusses the matter as it was true fact:

Sample Orr robed the Springfield bank of 24000$ the you have ar will hear all about it
Colman Bruce Letter to William and Martha Jane Jackson. Aug. 20, 1861

Bruce encouraged his children to share this letter with their friends and family, perhaps in an attempt to persuade others to support the Confederacy. This letter draw attentions to the impact the War had on family dynamics as well as the crumbling economic condition in the country.

Contributed by a Private Collector

View this collection

1. 1860 United States Federal Census; Census Place: Township 47 Range 14, Moniteau, Missouri; Roll M653_634; Page: 648; Image: 148; Family History Library Film: 803634.
2. “Missouri’s Union Provost Marshal Papers, 1861-1868,” Missouri Digital Heritage, accessed October 20, 2010,http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/provost/results.asp?txtName=&txtKeyword=&radSearch=BEG&selCounty=Moniteau&offset=75.

Introduction
Louisa Cheairs McKenny Sheppard

A Confederate Girlhood, the memoir of Louisa Cheairs McKenny Sheppard, reflects upon the life of a young lady raised in the Ozarks during the Civil War. While her reminiscence is decidedly sentimental, it is a compelling representation of wartime and economic struggles and refugee life. Louisa wrote the memoir many years after the events took place. Researchers are reminded that the validity of the events recorded, as with any memoir, may be embellished and should be thoroughly researched.

Louisa Cheairs McKenny Sheppard, “Lou” or “Lulu,” was the fourth child of Talitha and E.D. McKenny. Talitha died during Louisa’s birth in 1848, and she was raised by her grandmother Louisa “Lucy” Terrell Cheairs. Lulu was twelve when the War began, and she recalled impact it had on Springfield and her family. Eventually, they were forced to flee Springfield, and her family left for uncle’s plantation in Mississippi. Over time the family moved to Arkansas, and did not return to Springfield until after the War. A Confederate Girlhood is a recollection of Louisa’s youthful adventures and a tribute to her beloved grandmother.

Contributed by the The History Museum for Springfield-Greene County

View this memoir

Coleman apparently had a high social status, as she claimed to have access to the Texas state legislature and frequently attended “meetings.”2 She was also working on creating a new flag that would fly at the state capital, she described the flag to her sister saying, “It has a blue centre with 7 stars of white in a circle and two red and one white stripes. Tomorrow the Legislature of Texas convenes, and it is to be raised tomorrow, as soon as we can get it done. We will soon have to add more stars. The Presidents message has caused one State to secede, Arkansaw and rumor says, Virginia. We know when Virginia leaves, all the rest will leave, except Missouri – that is uncertain. Then we shall have peace in our borders, and the northern people will then quarrel among themselves, as much as they please.”3

Coleman did not try and hide her hatred of President Lincoln and the Abolitionist movement citing, “I’m sure I dont want to see brother fighting against brother – as I am almost sure will be the case – now Lincoln has come into power he being the head and front of Abolitionism.”4 She also blamed those in Kansas for working with the Native Americans to gain horses from southerners. Before the Civil War began, violence erupted along the Kansas – Missouri border surrounding abolition and Kansas’ admission to the Union. Citizens from across the country were divided on the issue of slavery in Kansas. Thefts, murders, and destruction of property were prominent throughout the region as abolitionist and pro-slavery men attempted to physically force their political opponents from the territory. Coleman had obviously not forgotten about the “Bleeding Kansas Era.” It is unknown when Coleman’s family moved to Kansas, or if they were victims of the boarder war. Much is unknown about E. A. Coleman, but her letter provides interesting insight into her perspective of national and regional events in the early period of the war.

Contributed by the Pearce Civil War Collection, Navarro College

View this collection

1. 1860 United States Federal Census; Census Place: Jackson, Texas; Roll: M653_1298; Page: 370; Image: 193; Family History Library Film: 805298.
2. E.A. Coleman Papers, 1861, Pearce Civil War Collection, Navarro College, Corsicana, Texas, http://www.pearcecollections.us/fa_ind.php?fid=112
3. E.A. Coleman Letter to Lucinda, Mar. 9, 1861. Coleman (E.A.) Papers, 1861. 1996.060. Pearce Civil War Collection, Navarro College, Corsicana, Texas, pg 4.
4. E.A. Coleman Letter to Lucinda, Mar. 9, 1861. Coleman (E.A.) Papers, 1861. 1996.060. Pearce Civil War Collection, Navarro College, Corsicana, Texas, pg 1.

The Enrolled Missouri Militia, 4th Military District

On August 17, 1861 Missouri Governor Hamilton R. Gamble ordered a proclamation establishing the Missouri State Militia for defense of the State against guerrilla activity. Gamble soon realized the need for additional troops, and on July 22, 1862 he issued General Order Number 29 organizing the Enrolled Missouri Militia (EMM). General Colley B. Holland assumed command of the 4th Military district, consisting of the counties in southwest Missouri, on October 30, 1862. Based in Springfield, Missouri, roughly 2,500 men reported for duty, operating under the jurisdiction of the State of Missouri. Holland’s documented all activities related to his command in the enrolled Missouri Militia order book for the 4th Military District in Southwest Missouri, from November 1862 through May 1863. His reports covered the Battles of Springfield and Hartville and also include details about depredation in Southwest Missouri and the extensive guerrilla activity that took place in the region.

Colley B. Holland was made captain of Company D, in the famous Phelps Regiment, organized in the summer of 1861. He took part in the Battle at Pea Ridge, Arkansas, the heaviest battle west of the Mississippi. Holland was promoted to the position of lieutenant colonel of the reorganized Phelps Regiment, and in the fall of 1862 he aided in recruiting the Seventy-second Regiment, of Missouri State Militia, and was commissioned colonel of that organization, his commission bearing date of September 9, 1862.

Holland’s control over southwest Missouri was tested early as Gen. John. S. Marmaduke led confederate troops from Arkansas and assaulted Springfield on January 8, 1863. Marmaduke had hoped to surprise Springfield’s garrison, but Union Captain Milton Burch’s Company H, 14th Missouri State Militia Cavalry Regiment, while scouting near Dubuque, Arkansas, on January 6, 1863, detected Marmaduke’s movements. Burch then retreated with his company to Lawrence’s Mill in Douglas County, Missouri, before daylight of January 7. Captain Burch then sent a warning message: A Confederate force, estimated between 4000 and 6000 strong, was moving toward Springfield. This was alarming news for Union Brigadier General E. B. Brown’s Springfield & Ozark garrisons, whose commands included only 1,343 veteran soldiers. With suggestions from militia officers Holland, Henry Sheppard, and Doctor Samuel Melcher, General E. B. Brown called upon all available Enrolled Missouri Militia commanders to concentrate their regiments immediately at Springfield.

After fighting Union soldiers for several hours, Marmaduke realized that his force was too small to capture the Union garrison. He disengaged his Confederate forces about 11 p.m, and retreated from the battlefield on the morning of January 9. The Union won a major tactical victory since they successfully held onto the town and saved the Union Army of the Frontier’s winter supplies.

After the defeat at Springfield, General Marmaduke turned his sights towards Hartville. Marmaduke’s men were able to bypass the Union forces on the road and enter Hartville. Union troops raced to Hartville and formed a battle line on the high ground west of the courthouse. The Union forces had almost no time to prepare their position before Colonel Joseph Shelby and Colonel Joseph Porter’s commands engaged them in battle.

As the Confederates discovered the precise location of the Union battle line, they began concentrating their fire from the buildings in town. A portion of the Union line began to break and elements retreated, including the Union’s artillery. Confederate commanders noted the Union withdrawal, and presumed victory. The Union position west of the courthouse, however, was covered by ample brush and trees. While some Union forces indeed retreated from the battlefield, the 21st Iowa Infantry did not receive the order to retreat, so they held their ground in the bush. As Colonel Porter and his column reached the courthouse they realized their mistake as the enemy, only 50 yards away from his men, opened fire. Porter was wounded in the leg and hand.

Lieutenant Colonel Cornelius Dunlap, of the 21st Iowa Infantry, extended his line of defense and increased his regiment’s rate of fire to mask his weakness from the Rebel forces. The Confederates made three additional advances before sundown, all of which were repelled. Dunlap later reported, “My men all acted finely, and were cool and active when they learned that they were left alone in front of a rebel horde of 5,000 men.”1 After darkness, Dunlap retreated with the other Union forces toward Lebanon.

Along with calling upon men to fight in combat, General Holland’s responsibilities also included protecting the citizens of Southwest Missouri from guerrilla fighters as Col Henry Sheppards replied to General Holland the need for mounted men was great, “ It is mounted men that are wanted, to distribute them in the Counties of Newton, Jasper, Lawrence, Dade, Cedar, and Barton in the West, and in Christian Stone and Taney in the South, for in many localities in the counties named are bands of Guerrillas. Unless the loyal citizens in those Counties have some protection, they will be overrun and driven from their homes; and have their property destroyed.”2

Management of rebel civilians became a difficult issue for the Enrolled Missouri Militia and Holland. Holland issued General Orders No. 4, which required all able-bodied men between the ages of 16 and 55 years, residing in the Springfield area, to report for work on fortification and other necessary duties for the EMM. “All able-bodied men” did not discriminate among political affiliations and oaths of loyalty. Captured rebel prisoners began work on fortifications, a pragmatic use of idle manpower. Claims of maltreatment from rebel civilians by the Enrolled Missouri Militia reached Holland and General Egbert B. Brown, in which Holland responded:

Many complaints are made to me by persons who admit they have been active rebels, or that they sympathize with those in rebellion. They complain of depredations on their property by the Enrolled Militia. In many cases I find the complaints groundless… I am ready to sustain all measures which you may consider necessary for the public good; and to have maintained in the Enrolled Militia the strictest discipline. To disarm and disband any portion, because of alleged misdemeanors or crimes, is in my judgment not only irregular, but will tend to destroy all military discipline.
Colley B. Holland to Egbert B. Brown, December 15, 1862

By the end of the war, over 52,000 men were mustered into 70 regiments of the EMM. While plagued with a stereotype created by its notorious elements, many Enrolled Missouri Militia regiments “became professional in their demeanor and execution, defended their home areas with distinction, even won acclaim for occasional combat, and often performed these feats with their own private weapons, clothing, and horses.”3

This collection represents the bureaucratic task of organizing, supplying, training, disciplining, and maintaining a military presence in the Ozarks.

Contributed by the STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY of MISSOURI RESEARCH CENTER – Columbia

View this collection

1. U. S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series 1, Volume XXII, Part 1 (Washington D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1880-1901), 193.
2. Order Book Enrolled Missouri Militia, 4th Military District, pg 5.
3. Bruce Nichols, Guerrilla Warfare in Civil War Missouri, 1862 (Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 2004), 103.

Introduction
George Falconer & Albert Ellithorpe

This extraordinary diary contains entries written by both Union and Confederate soldiers. It originally belonged to George Falconer, enrolled in Col J. J. Clarkson’s Confederate Cavalry. During the Battle of Locust Grove, 3 July 1862, Falconer was taken prisoner, and Maj. Albert Ellithorpe, Indian Home Guards, 1st Kansas Infantry, captured the diary. Most of the entries are written by Ellithorpe, who described engagements with Confederate soldiers, Kansas politicians and bushwhackers. Ellithorpe participated in several battles including Locust Grove, Cane Hill, Prairie Grove and a smaller engagement with Thomas Livingston’s bushwhackers.

Contributed by Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield

Click here to view this collection