| Notes |
- -from Civil War Soldiers of Madison County, Missouri, by Geraldine Sanders Smith. November 1997.
Benjamin Lewis
Born 1823, Tennessee, son of George and Elizabeth Lewis
Married: Naoma Huett
Enlisted: Confederacy – December 1862, Co. A, 15th Regiment, Missouri Cavalry.
Captured 25 Dec 1863 in Ripley County, Mo. at “battleground hollow” as part of the Major James Wilson massacre”.
Transferred 5 Jan 1864 from Pilot Knob to Gratiot Street Military Prison, St. Louis, Mo.
Died 30 Jan 1864 in prison of inflammation of the lungs, St. Louis, Mo.
- 1850 Federal Census - Madison County, MO:
Ben is listed as resident of Elihu Dunn household #489
Elihu Dunn - 28 - SC
Maria - 22 - TN
Mary - 6 - MO
Robert - 4 - MO
Adaline - 2 - MO
Biela - 11/12 - MO
Ben Lewis - 24 - TN
!CENSUS
1850 census ...Dist. No. 76, Reynolds County, Missouri ...Benjamin Lewis (age 24) cannot read or write. He was born in Tennessee and is a farmer. The head of the household is Issac W. Cotton (age 34) also a farmer from Tennessee. There are nine people in the household. One of the people is John C. Edwards (21) a school teacher also from Tennessee. (This is probably our Benjamin Lewis as his future wife, Naoma Hewit, was living in her father's household in Dist. No.16, Reynolds County, Missouri. Benjamin'sfather, George Lewis, was still on the 1850 Tennessee census. Ben's brother, Robert, and his family were already in Missouri.)
1860 census ...Liberty township, Iron County, Missouri ...Benj. Lewis (age 35) was a farmer with real estate valued at 1200 and his personal property valued at $400. Oma (age 33) and Ben were both born in Tennessee and neither of them could read or write.The six Lewis children were all born in Missouri: Elizabeth (age 8), Nancy (6), Daniel (5), Polly (3), Kesiah (female), and William (1 month old). Daniel, Nancy and Elizabeth attended school during the year.
!NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
ADMINISTRATOR'S NOTICE.--Letters of Administration of the estate of Benjamin Lewis, deceased, were granted to the undersigned, on the 23rd day of September, 1867, by the Clerk of the County Court of Iron County, Missouri. All persons having claims againstsaid estate are required to exhibit them for allowance, to the administrator, within one year after the date of said letters, or they may be precluded from any benefit of such estate; and if such claims be not exhibited within two years from the date of said letters, they well be forever barred.
John F.T. Edward; Administrator.
(IRON COUNTY REGISTER newspaper ...Ironton, Iron County Missouri ...December 5,
1867)
!NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
ORDER OF PUBLICATION
In the County Court of Iron County,
December ten, 1867.
(Estate of Benj. Lewis, deceased.]
John F. T. Edwards, Administrator of Benjamin Lewis, deceased, presents his petition to the court, praying for an order for the sale of so such of the real estate of said deceased as will pay and satisfy the remaining debts due by said estate, and yet unpaid for want of sufficient assets, accompanied by the accounts, lists, and inwentories, required by law in such case; on examination whereof it is ordered, that all persons interested in the estate of said deceased by notified that application as aforesaid has been made, and that unless the contrary be shown on or before the first day of the next term of this court to be held on Monday, the 2d day of March, next, an order will be made for the sale of the whole or so such of the real estate of said deceased as will be sufficient for the payment of said debts; and it is further ordered that this notice be published in some newspaper in this State for four weeks before the next term of this court.
A true copy. Attest:
feb6n31 JOS. Huff. Clerk
(IRON COUNTY REGISTER newspaper... Ironton, Iron Co., NO ...February 6, 1868)
!NEWSPAPER ARTICLES
ADMINISTOR'S SALE
By virtue of an order of sale made at the March term, 1868, of the Iron County Court, I will offer for sale, and sell, at public auction, at the east front door of the court house in Iron County, on Monday, the 1st day of June, 1868, between the hours of 9 o'clock a.m. and 5 o'clock p.m. of that day, and during the sitting of said Court, the following described real estate, belonging to the estate of Benjamin Lewis, deceased, to wit:
Se 114 of sw 1/4 sec. 20, and ne 1/4 nw 1/4 sec. 29, town. 32 range 3 east, containing 80 acres, situate in Iron County, Missouri, on the following terms to wit:
20 per cent, cash in hand, and the balance on a credit of 6 months; the purchaser to give note with approved security for the payment thereof; and a deed to be executed on the complete payment of the purchase money.
Apr 9 n 40 John F.T. Edwards, Administrator.
[IRON COUNTY REGISTER newspaper... Iron Co., Missouri ...May 7, 18681
!NOTES
APPLICATION FOR ADMINISTRATION. STATE OF MISSOURI, COUNTY ...Mr. John F T Edwards Says that to the best of his knowledge and belief the names of the heirs of the said Benjamin Lewis deceased and their places of residence are respectfully as follows: NancyLewis, Daniel Lewis, William Lewis, Kizie Lewis, Mary Lewis Oma Lewis that the said Benjamin Lewis died without a will; that he will make a perfect inwentory of, and faithfully administer, all the estate of the deceased and pay the debts as far as the assets will extend and the law direct, and account for and pay all assets which shall come to his possession or knowledge.
John F.T. Edwards
Subscribed and sworn to before me this 23rd day of November A.D. 1867.
By J. T. Ake, Dep
*****************************************************************************************************************
!NOTES
Now for my mother her name was Omay Lewis she was borned March 10 1861 I dont no grandma name but grandpa name was Ben Lewis he had lots of brothers and 2 Sisters: Andy, Bob, John, billie, jim, Elizabeth marrd tom jackson, Hepsie Lewis married will Ruble they are all gone
Ben had a family he died in Sivel War of pneaumonia they 2 boys
1) william-william was married twice had 2 familys
2) Daniel-married 2 time 4 children 2 boys 2 girls
3) Nancy-one time 6 children 2 girls 4 boys
4) Kizy-once ten children 6 boys 4 girls 2
5) polly-twice 2 familey first 1 boy 2 girls second 2 boys girl
6) omay-once 8 children 5 boys 3 girls
7) a baby
grandma died of child birth she was a hewitt she had several brothers but dont no of any girls. there harvey Esau these 2 I have hear my mother speak about (This information was written by Lucy May Abrams Cole, a daughter of Omay Lewis Abrams) (Bob Abrams sent a copy to Linda Lewis in 1990)
!NOTES
Ben Lewis kids was subpena to be at the Court, Centerville Mo for the May term 1894 circuit. I have not found out why. (Information in letter written to Linda Lewis by Loren Wayne Ruble)
!NOTES
It is thought that Oma Huett Lewis lived from around 1829 to 1863.
The above research notes courtesy of Linda E. Lewis, George Lewis Descendants, published October 1992.
Benjamin and his brothers John and Andrew all enlisted 22 Dec 1862 in Pocahontas, AR. Another brother, William, enlisted 4 Oct 1862 in Pocahontas. AR. All were in Co. A, 15th Regiment, Missouri Cavalry. A cousin, Robert R. Lewis (sone of John amd Emiline Dunn Lewis) enlisted
Enlisted: Confederacy - December 1862, Co. A, 15th Regiment, Missouri Cavalry.
Captured 25 Dec 1863 in Ripley County, Mo. at "battleground hollow" as part of the Major James Wilson massacre".
Transferred 5 Jan 1864 from Pilot Knob to Gratiot Street Military Prison, St. Louis, Mo.
Died 30 Jan 1864 in prison of inflammation of the lungs, St. Louis, Mo.
______________________
Benjamin Lewis enlisted during the Civil War in the Confederate Army . He joined Captain Timothy Reeves' Independent Company, Missouri Scouts in Pocahontas, Arkansas on December 22, 1862 for "3 years of this war". This company subsequently became company A, 15th Regiment, Missouri Cavalry. Benjamin was 39 years of age when he enlisted as a private. Pvt. Lewis was captured on December 25, 1863, in Ripley County, Missouri at Battle ground Hollow as part of the Wilson Massacre. As a prisoner of war, he was transferred to the Gratiot Street Military Prison, St. Louis, MO from Pilot Knob, MO on January 5 , 1864. He died of "Inflamation Lungs" in the Gratiot Street Prison on January 30 , 1864.
Source: Information from Richard Abrams and published in the book, The Supreme Sacrifice.
- Benjamin and Naoma Lewis’s children were raised by two of his brothers and a sister:
From 1870 Census:
William Lewis and wife Abigail raised Nancy and William
Andrew Lewis and wife Angeline raised Martha Mary “Polly” (listed as Mary in 1870 Census) and Daniel
Elizabeth Lewis and her husband Thomas Jackson raised Naoma, (Omy)
It is not known who raised the other children:
(Neither in 1870 Census)
Elizabeth
Kesiah “Kizzy” Kizzy married Andrew Ruble in 1877
- Brothers John and Andrew and Benjamin Lewis enlisted on the same day in Pocahontas, AR Dec 22, 1862, their brother William had enlisted Oct 4 in Pocahontas, AR.
- Christmas Day Massacre
http://dixieoutfitters.com/p/christmas-day-massacre?ol=no&pi=2662&ri=2649
A Christmas Day Massacre in the Southeast Missouri Ozarks
Friday, December 26, 2008
Clint E. Lacy
One of the most controversial pieces of work that late author and historian Jerry Ponder wrote was his account of the Wilson Massacre in Ripley County, Missouri; which occurred on December 25th 1863. On December 23rd, 1863, members of the 15th Missouri Cavalry, CSA, attacked and captured nearly 100 Union prisoners at Centerville in Reynolds County, Missouri; burning the courthouse down before they left. Ponder wrote that:
"An unusual group assembled at the Pulliam farm in southwestern Ripley County, Missouri for Christmas in 1863. Nearly 150 officers and men of the Missouri State Guard’s 15th Cavalry Regiment (Confederate); at least sixty civilians, many of them women and children; and 102 prisoners, officers and men of Company C, Missouri State Militia (Union).
The civilians were family members, friends, and neighbors. Confederate "hosts" and Union "guests" were all Missourians; but they were divided by perhaps the bitterest of all enmities-those of civil war.
The day’s activity was to begin with religious services conducted by the Reverend Colonel Timothy Reeves, commanding officer of the 15th Cavalry and a Baptist preacher of Ripley County. Then would follow Christmas dinner in the afternoon. The group at Pulliam’ s farm numbered above three hundred at the very least, if the figures on the record are to be believed. It was too many for a mere religious service and holiday dinner. Pulliam’s was one of Reeves’s regimental camps.
What began as a festive occasion ended in horror and tragedy. As the celebrants sat at dinner, their arms (rifles) stacked, they were surprised by two companies of the Union Missouri State Militia, more than 200 mounted cavalrymen. Only those guarding theprisoners, about 35 men, were armed. The Militia attacked without warning, shooting into the crowd, attacking with sabers, and killing at least thirty of the Confederate men instantly and mortally wounding several more. According to local tradition, many-perhaps most-of the civilians were killed or wounded as well.
The immediate cause of the Wilson Massacre was a series of events at Centerville, Reynolds County. Centerville Courthouse was some sixty miles north of Doniphan and twenty-five southwest of Pilot Knob. Late in 1863, Centerville was captured by the Union 3rd Cavalry from Pilot Knob. Company C was left as garrison. On December 21, while engaged in building stables on the courthouse grounds, they were surprised and surrounded by Company N of Reeves’s 15th Missouri Cavalry, under command of Captain Jesse Pratt, before the war the Baptist minister of Centerville. Company N was composed of farmers and merchants of Reynolds County. Probably Pratt and the Reeves brothers, also Baptist preachers, were long-time acquaintances. That Pratt was accorded the honor of recapturing his hometown was not accidental.
Captured were 102 Union men with their horses. Pratt took them south to Ripley County with a small group, leaving most of his men to garrison Centerville. He presented the prisoners to Reeves at Pulliam’s on Christmas morning, and joined his fellows of the regiment for the day’s festivities. One Union soldier had been allowed to escape at Centerville, doubtless to carry news of the event back to Pilot Knob. Reaction there was swift. Colonel R.G. Woodson, commander of the 3rd Missouri, ordered two mounted cavalry companies under Major James Wilson to pursue Pratt. They left Pilot Knob mid-morning on the twenty-third.
Wilson’s force rode swiftly, rising in the darkness of the twenty-fifth to be on the road at 3:00 AM. They passed through Doniphan that morning, and continued west toward Ponder, capturing pickets as they went, and descended on Colonel Reeve’s group and prisoners just as they were eating Christmas dinner" (1)
Mr. Ponder’s research on this subject can be found in his book: "History of Ripley County Missouri" , "A History of the 15th Missouri Cavalry Regiment, CSA: 1862-1865″ , in an article published in Ozark Watch magazine (Vol.IV, No.4, Spring 1991) entitled,"Between Missourians: The Civil War in Ripley County", as well as "The Civil War in Ripley County Missouri" (published by the Doniphan-Prospect News in 1992) His research was also convincing enough that author Paulette Jiles used it in her novel "Enemy Women".
It was during this time, that the controversy arose concerning Ponder’s research. Most of the criticism appears to have come from Ripley County Historian Ray Burson.
Mr. Burson contacted me several times and tried to convince me not to believe Mr. Ponder. He even sent me a packet of info that he has created to dissuade those who dare use Ponder’s research in their writings. Among the papers that Mr. Burson included inhis "packet" were pieces (that he put together) entitled: "Jerry Ponder’s Sources for the Wilson Massacre and Other Tales" and "Jerry Ponder On Providing His Sources".
Mr. Burson has also seemingly convinced historian and author Kirby Ross that Ponder’s account of the Wilson Massacre is fictitious. However, Ponder, shortly before his death in 2005 sent me two documents,
The two papers are:
"The Time of the War" By: Lindzy Dudley written in 1918. Dudley appears to have fought under Colonel Reeves. His name does not appear on the official records, however this is not uncommon. Many men "took to the brush" in order to defend their families from Yankee invasion. It is also my understanding that Confederate "Partisans" were not afforded the same pensions later in life as Union and regular Confederate troops were, therefore no pension records would exist to verify their service. In this piece Lindzy Dudley states (of the Wilson Massacre):
"Reeves was a Baptist preacher. He backed up every sermon with his pistol. Reeves men were mean. No quarter was given or asked. He had commanded a company till the end of 1863.
Colonel Righter was captured with General Thompson and Reeves was put in command of the 15th. In November a field hospital was attacked by colored cavalry and about 100 of Reeves’ men were killed. Reeves collected revenge but he never got over the loss ofsick and wounded not able to fight back. Just shot in their beds. He talked about that until he died. On Christmas, a month later, several companies were at the Pulliam farm for a service and feed with their families. This was on the old Tom Pulliam place northwest of Johnston’s Chapel and close to Oregon County and the Arkansas line. There was a big spring there on the Mill Branch where folks in that part had picnics. Reeves did a sermon and the group was ready to eat. The well known Major Wilson, the Yankee from Pilot Knob called "The Murderer", surrounded and attacked. The killed and the wounded were all over the field. Soldiers, their families, nearby families. All were killed. Those that could get across the creek and up the bluff on the so
It is interesting that Ray Burson of the Ripley County Historical Society, would question Dudley’s credibility in his account of the Wilson Massacre, yet in the book "History and Families of Ripley County Missouri" the historical society (who along with the publisher holds the copyright to the book) finds Dudley credible enough to relate who the first European settler of Ripley County was:
"In an interview with historian HUME in 1900, Lindzy DUDLEY reported that the first European resident was a "Wees RILEY" who arrived in 1802 with a Delaware Indian wife who soon died in childbirth" (3)
The other document was entitled: "Doniphan- No Man’s Land During the Civil War" By: T. L. Wright Jr. and was written in March ,1929. The paper appears to be one written for a High school assignment by T. L. Wright Jr.. On the copy that Mr. Ponder sent me "DONIPHAN PUBLIC LIBRARY" is stamped on the upper left hand corner of the page.
I was able to talk to Jerry Ponder over the phone, while he was in Texas (a few months before he died) and he told me that he found the documents after they had been discarded. During the time that he found the documents (1990-1991) the Doniphan Public Library and the Ripley County library were being consolidated.
In addition I contacted the Ripley County Library’s Doniphan Missouri location on Friday July 29, 2006 and talked to two separate librarians, Mr. Allen Rife and Mrs. Rebecca Wilcox. Both told me it was possible that the documents could have been discardedduring the consolidation. During a second phone interview conducted on August 7th, 2006 I talked to a third librarian Mrs. Patricia Robison, who told me that though she did not work at the library at the time of the consolidation, she is a life long resident of Ripley County it was "entirely possible" that documents were discarded during the consolidation of the two libraries in the early 1990’s.
As a side note, I was also able to check out a book from the Doniphan-Ripley County Library entitled "Doniphan and Ripley County History". There is no copyright date, but the earliest entries appear to be from the early 1900’s and the last entry appears to be in the early 1970’s and upon examination of the library stamp on this book, and the document that Jerry Ponder sent me, they are the same and one can clearly ascertain that the library stamp on the document Jerry Ponder sent me is valid.
T. L. Wright Jr.’s 1929 paper also gives long time residents accounts of the Wilson Massacre. Given the fact that this paper was written in 1929, it is possible that the accounts could have been eyewitness accounts. Certainly they could be accounts written by citizens who were living during the time of the "Wilson Massacre".
"On Christmas Day, 1863, Major James Wilson, later captured and executed by firing squad at Pilot Knob, and 200 Union troops from Fort Davidson at Pilot Knob, passed through Doniphan, traveling on a southeast course to Pulliam’s Farm, 17 miles from Doniphan where Colonel Reeves and his cavalry were encamped. A vicious, surprise attack ensued and 35 rebels were killed and 112 taken prisoner when the fighting had ended. But worse, families and neighbors were present and, in the heat of battle, Wilson’s soldiers killed over 50 civilians. Mrs. Betty Towell, Tom Pulliam and Ed Cline, long-time residents of the neighborhood, tell that the civilians killed, in camp for a Christmas visit, included women and children who were shot down the same as the rebel soldiers of Reeves’ Regiment. That action attests to the cruelty of the war." (4)
According to historian Kirby Ross, T.L. Wright Jr. was born in 1912. That would have made T.L. Wright Jr. 17 years of age at the time he wrote this document (which appears to be a high school paper). One of the criticisms that Mr. Ross has made in his attempt to discredit Jerry Ponder was posted on an online forum on August 14th, 2005. In it Mr. Ross states (in reference to the document written by T.L.Wright Jr. in 1929) that:
"…do you realize that this version of the T.L. Wright article has a four year old boy conducting complex historical interviews?" (5)
Ross continues by stating:
"Now as to Mr. Ponder’s fantabulous precocious four year old interviewer/historian, T. L. Wright, I refer you to Mr. Lacy’s posting that says:
"A major set-back was experienced by the Confederate Army on August 24, 1863, when General Jeff Thompson, Colonel William Righter and most of their staffs were captured at the hotel in Pocahontas while holding a planning meeting. General Thompson was taken to a military prison in Ohio and held there for over a year before he was released. Colonel Righter was taken to St. Louis by a circuitous route around Ripley County. He agreed to sign an alliance to the Union and put up $1,000.00 bond as assurance thathe would not fight again. The Colonel told me."
That last sentence bears repeating: "The Colonel told me."
Ponder is offering this to show that T.L. Wright personally interviewed Col. William H. Righter. This passage is so ridiculously bad that it is laugh out loud funny and begs to be repeated, for you see, T.L. Wright was born Feb. 15, 1912 and William Harmon Righter passed away on November 26, 1916." (6)
This criticism by Ross bears examination. First of all, as stated before, T.L. Wright Jr. was 17 years of age when he wrote his 1st version of "Doniphan: No Man’s Land in the Civil War" in 1929 and the words "The Colonel told me" seems to be more of a recollection of a story that William Harmon Righter told him when he was a young boy. Nowhere has Jerry Ponder ever wrote that T.L.Wright Jr. was conducting "complex interviews" at 4 years of age. It is also important to note that T. L. Wright Jr.’s 1929 version of "Doniphan: No Man’s Land During the Civil War", matches Lindzy Dudley’s 1918 version of what occurred at Pulliam’s Farm on December 25, 1863.
On the same online forum posted by Kirby Ross on Wednesday August 31st, 2005, Ross states:
"And with this published account of the document in question, if Jerry Ponder’s version of "the Wilson Massacre" is to be accepted, one must also accept that Wright participated in part of the massive cover-up of the massacre that Jo Shelby and Jeff Thompson would have also been a part of." (7)
There is no way that Confederate General M. Jeff Thompson of the Missouri State guard could be involved in the Wilson Massacre or have known about it because he was captured on August 22, 1863. The Wilson Massacre occurred on December 25, 1863. General M.Jeff Thompson was in a Yankee prison in the North at the time that the "Wilson Massacre" occurred. (7)
It is possible that after General Thompson’s release in 1864, that he had no doubt heard about the atrocities being committed in Ripley County and the surrounding areas, after he made his way back to Missouri just in time to participate in General Price’s1864 Missouri Expedition.
On the same August 31’st, 2005 online forum post Kirby Ross offers another version of T.L. Wright Jr.’s "Doniphan: No Man’s Land in the Civil War" which he claims is the "real" T.L. Wright Jr. document and was published in Doniphan Prospect-News Doniphan,Missouri Thursday, April 2, 1970. Ross states:
"By the way, note that Wright doesn’t refer to William H. Righter as being one of his sources in this article, or of having interviewed him when he was four years old." (8)
This is true, T.L. Wright Jr. does not make mention of Colonel William H. Righter as one of his sources in the 1970 Prospect-News newspaper article. However one must remember that there is a 51 year difference between the article written in 1970 , and theone written in 1929.Mr. Ross claims that the 1970 Doniphan Prospect News article is the "real" T.L. Wright Jr. article. Yet there is a third version of the T.L. Wright Jr. article that appeared in the Ripley County Library book, "Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War", there is no date on this piece, but it appears to be written around the same time period as the 1970 article. Like the 1970 article there is no mention of civilians killed or Colonel Righter. But there are areas in which the T.L. Wright Jr. article found in the book "Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War" differ from the version published in the Doniphan – Prospect news in 1970. Is it not legitimate as well?
It appears that in later years T.L. Wright Jr. decided to cite more official sources for his revised work, "Doniphan: No Man’s Land in the Civil War" and his version of the Wilson Massacre seems to follow other versions in the "Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War" book found in the Ripley County Library. This does not make his original version any less valid. Remember the 1929 version quoted long time residents of Ripley County who lived in the area.
No one knows why T.L. Wright Jr chose not to include these sources in the two other versions of his paper in later years.
Mr. Burson’s criticism seems to be centered around Colonel William H. Righter himself and whether or not he was a real Colonel. In a personal letter sent to me by Ray Burson entitled: "Jerry Ponder’s Sources for the Wilson Massacre and other Tales" Bursonwrites:
"The tale: That William Harmon Righter was the founder and Colonel of the 15th Missouri Cavalry, CSA , captured at Pocahontas , AR with Gen. Jeff Thompson and then sat out the rest of the war in St. Louis. Righter is a prominent figure in Ponder’s books on the 15th Missouri Cavalry, The Battle of Chalk Bluff and Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke.
Historians have not found any record of Righter’s service in the CSA and there is not mention of it in his biographic sketches and three obituaries. He is not mentioned in the OR with the Capture of Thompson or elsewhere. He was merely a Southern sympathizer. Ponder got the VA {Veterans Administration} to provide a headstone which he had placed in the Doniphan City cemetery for Righter without providing Righter’s service record" (9)
A "Post It" note was attached to the letter which reads:
"Mr. Lacy , Here’s the real scope of Ponder’s mischief. See IV- what does creating fake colonels add to the story of Southern valor during the Civil War? Regards, Ray Burson"
The fact that Burson has stated that no service record of Righter in the CSA has been found doesn’t mean that Righter did not serve in some capacity. As stated at the beginning of this article, this was not uncommon, many men "took to the brush" and fought as informal companies of partisans. It is extremely doubtful that the Veterans Administration would have provide a headstone for Colonel Righter, free of charge, without some kind of documentation that Righter served in some capacity during the war.
In Jean Ponder’s story "Doniphan During the Civil War", she states that:
"There is an amusing anecdote told about a group of southern sympathizers who lived in Doniphan. Living in the town at that time was a man by the name of W.H. Ryder, who claimed he was from Virginia. – ‘A gentleman from Virginia – drunk or sober.’ One dayall of these southern sympathizers were gathered in the town. Suddenly, without any warning, a division of the Union Army marched into town. Caught unprepared, the Southerns had to ‘take to the bushes’ for their lives. As Ryder was the fastest runner of them all and got to safety first, the rest of them immediately made him their colonel." (10)
If these men were ordinary citizens, then why were they afraid, why did they run? If they were nothing more than ordinary citizens, then why were they gathered in town? What was the intention of the gathering?
The fact that obituaries about Righter did not mention any military service is not proof positive that he did not fight. After all Colonel Timothy Reeves, after the war, was reluctant to discuss his war time experiences, stating that "he wished to be remembered as a good preacher, not a civil war hero", obituaries about him made no mention of his military experience. (11)
Jerry Ponder said in his research that Righter’s commission came from Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson. Ponder’s critics state that Thompson made no record of this. Is it possible that this could have happened? It is entirely possible. In his book "Thisis the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", Thompson himself writes that:
"About the 1st of July 1861, Cyrus Black and Miles Ponder of Ripley County, Missouri came down to Pocohontas {Arkansas} to inform me that the citizens of Ripley and Carter counties were meeting at Martins-burg to organize a Battalion and desired me to come up and take command" (12)
Thompson further states that he was elected to command the battalion and that Aden Lowe was not a candidate because of the strict discipline that he enforced before Thompson’s arrival. One of Jeff Thompson’s first acts as commander of the Ripley County Battalion, was to, start enlisting men as Partisan rangers. Thompson writes:
"I saw at this time the necessity of mounted troops even for my small command, and I authorized James F. White to raise as many men to act as Partizans and Flankers , as he could find with good horses: (13)
Sam Hildebrand, who later became known as a Missouri Bushwhacker, is another partisan that was given a commission by General M. Jeff Thompson. In his autobiography Hildebrand wrote:
"As soon as I could gain admission to the General’s headquarters I did so, and he received me very kindly. He listened very attentively to me as I proceeded to state my case to him – how my brother had been murdered, how I had barely escaped the same fate, and how I had finally been driven from the country.
General THOMPSON reflected a few moments, then seizing a pen he rapidly wrote off a few lines and handing it to me he said, "here, I give you a Major’s commission; go where you please, take what men you can pick up, fight on your own hook, and report to me every six months." (14)
Even though Hildebrand received a Major’s commission from Thompson, the act is not mentioned in "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson". Nor is it mentioned in "General M. Jeff Thompson’s Letter Book July 1861-June1862″, written by Jim McGhee, therefore the fact that there is no record of Righter’s commission, doesn’t mean that he was not given one by Thompson.
Yet there is another possibility in this story. If there was a record of Colonel Righter’s or Sam Hildebrand’s commissions given by M. Jeff Thompson, the records might have very well been destroyed at the time of M. Jeff Thompson’s capture in Pocahontas, Arkansas, on August 22, 1863. In the book, "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", Thompson writes:
"Kay spread out my maps to examine them and by -the -way I had the best set of maps that I saw during the war, for I had all kinds of military information on them, and the name and status of nearly every man in Southeast Missouri. I sat down in my shirt sleeves to copy some drawings, about 4 P.M. We heard horses running. I did not look up, but Kay did and shouted ; "By George , here’s the Feds." I sprang to my feet, and sure enough they were within forty yards, with a string of them as far as the eye could reach, all coming at full speed. I gasped as if my heart would jump out of my mouth, but instantly sat down again, and said:, Kay, burn those maps." (15)
The only flaw in the Linzy Dudley, T.L Wright Jr.’s 1929 document, and Ponder’s writings that I could find is the fact that Righter was not captured directly with Thompson. Again quoting "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson" Thompson writes of being brought to Doniphan , Missouri in route to Pilot Knob, Missouri that:
"There were only five military prisoners, being Kay, Train, McDonald , Miller and myself, but there were a large number of people , men and boys, brought into camp to prevent them from carrying the news". (16)
Righter could have very well have been in the latter group. Perhaps this is the reason that Lindzy Dudley told Charles Booker in 1918 that:
"Colonel Righter was captured with General Thompson" (17)
In the book "The Civil War in Ripley County , Missouri" it states that Colonel W.H. Righter following his capture was:
"…was taken to Gratiot Prison in St. Louis. There he agreed not to further take up arms and was paroled. He remained in St. Louis the remainder of the war, reading law. His wife, Anna Wright Righter, died there in February 1864. When the war ended, Colonel Righter returned to Ripley County and, in 1866, was elected as the state representative from Ripley County. Because of his Confederate service, the General Assembly refused to seat him and appointed a "stand -in" to represent the county…In 1867 Colonel Righter went to Mississippi and raised cotton, but he returned to Ripley County the same year and built the Bay City Mils on Current River" and that, "As soon as the Missouri constitution permitted former Confederates to practice law in the state Righter leased the mills and opened a law office in Doniphan. He was considered an excellent lawyer and had a large practice. He was elected prosecuting attorney for Ripley County in 1876″ (18)
The Thursday Sept. 2d, 1909 issue of "Twice a Month Magazine" confirms that Righter:
"returned to St. Louis October 1863, planted cotton in Mississippi in 1866-67 and returned to Ripley County in 1868″ (19)
"Twice a Month Magazine" also stated that :
"Colonel Righter is a typical Southern gentleman possessing nearly all their strongest characteristics. During the Reconstruction days of the late 60’s and early 70’s he had many "warm skirmishes" with the "carpet baggers" his county contained about 300 Democratic voters who were "slow to come under the ban". Leaving it in the hands of about 12 Republicans to handle its affairs". (20)
Righter was elected to the State Legislature in 1882, after Reconstruction, when former Confederates were once again allowed to hold office. (21)
Even without the discussion of what role Colonel William Harmon Righter played in the War Between the States, there is plenty of other evidence that proves the "Wilson Massacre" could have happened. Yankee atrocities happened throughout the Missouri Ozarks during the war and fighting between warring factions was both personal and brutal.
On a U.S. Forestry Service website entitled, "History of the Irish Wilderness", a detailed description of Union policy toward Missouri Southerners living in the Southeast Missouri Ozarks is given.
The website cites the War of the Rebellions: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, one entry in particular shows proof that the women of the area were looked down upon and treated badly by the occupying Union soldiers. Captain Robert McElroy of the 3rd Missouri State Militia (Union) wrote that:
"I am of the opinion that the women in that region are even more daring and treacherous, and in fact, worse than the men, as we found in their possession a number of newly made rebel uniforms, etc. (22)
Jerry Ponder’s critics cite eye-witness accounts of Union soldiers who were present at the Wilson Massacre and stated that all of the prisoners were well cared for. But reading through the U.S. Forestry Service’s "The History of the Irish Wilderness" , which cites the official records of the War of the Rebellions, one will find that anyone who was even "suspected" of being a "Bushwhacker" was taken prisoner. In Captain Boyd’s (who was a Union Scout) report he states that:
"…found fresh trail of horses, followed them on Jack’s Fork to the residence of Miles Stephens and brother, Jack Stephens, whom’ I’m satisfied were Bushwhackers. Burned the house." (23)
Anyone "suspected" of harboring or aiding a Bushwhacker had their property burned, furthermore, in Captain John Boyd’s report of the 6th Provisional Regiment EMM (Union) one will find between November 4 – 9 , 1863 ,there were over 23 houses burned , and 10 men killed, by these Union troops, the majority of which were prisoners who "tried to escape" and were shot. (24)
All of this occurred little over a month before the "Wilson Massacre" and we are supposed to believe that the Union militia treated Reeves men and local civilians any better on December 25, 1863?
There are other pieces of evidence that suggest that the "Wilson Massacre" did happen. At the Stoddard County Civil War Cemetery in Bloomfield, Missouri, there are monuments erected in honor of Southern soldiers and civilians who were killed during the War Between the States. The monuments are unique due to the fact that they have detailed information about the individual on the front of the monument, name, rank unit, etc. and on the back of the monument a detailed description of where and how the individual died.
One states on the front of the monument: "PVT. , Thomas McKinney, Co. A, 15th Mo. Reg. Cav. CSA. July 16, 1845 – Dec. 25, 1863." The back of the monument reads: "Killed in Action, Ripley County, Mo".
Another monument is more specific. The front reads: "In memory of , PVT. , Jacob Foster, Co. A, 15th Mo. Cav. , April 18, 1830- December 25, 1863."
The back of the monument reads: "Died of Wounds, Received At, Christmas Dinner, Doniphan Mo., "Wilson Massacre" (25)
If one looks at the events following the "Wilson Massacre" a clear picture begins to develop that something "very significant" happened on December 25, 1863 in Ripley County , Missouri. An event so drastic, that the effects of it would be felt throughout the rest of the War Between the States in Missouri, and even after the war had ended.
First of all something must have been weighing very heavily upon Major Wilson’s mind for in March of 1864 he told his nephew, while he was on furlough:
"If you ever hear of me being taken prisoner by the guerilla Tim Reeves you may count me as dead. I know I shall never get away from him alive. I have broken up his recruiting operations three times." (26)
Was Wilson worried about his life because he had broken up Reeves’ recruiting operations? Or did he fear retribution for something much worse, that he did not want his family to know about?
One must not discount the fact that that during the General Sterling Price’s Missouri Expedition of 1864, at the Battle of Pilot Knob, Missouri:
"Maj. James Wilson, Third Cavalry Missouri State Militia, after being wounded was captured on Pilot Knob, and subsequently with six of his gallant men was brutally murdered by order of a rebel field officer of the day." (27)
In an article entitled: "No Heroes On Either Side" written by Ponder critic Ray Burson and published in the Prospect-News (Doniphan Missouri’s local newspaper) and dated Wednesday, July 16,2003 , another Ponder critic Kirby Ross attributes Major Wilson’sdeath to the burning of Doniphan, Missouri.
"Ross , whose article on the burning of Doniphan will be in an upcoming issue of North – South magazine, linked Wilson’s death to the destruction of Doniphan "which had taken place earlier, two weeks to the day." (28)
However, in the "Report of Confederate General J.O. Shelby C. S. Army, Commanding Division. AUGUST 29-DECEMBER 2, 1864. Price’s Missouri Expedition."
It appears that General Shelby administered justice to the perpetrators who were responsible for the of burning Doniphan, almost as quickly as the act was committed. Shelby wrote that:
"On the 12th of September I moved camp from Sulphur Rock, Ark., toward Pocahontas in anticipation of the arrival of the army, and on the 19th, after having received my instructions, started for Missouri, and encamped in Doniphan. Before arriving there, however, couriers from Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson, of Marmaduke’s command, brought information that 100 Federals were in the town and pressing him back. I immediately started forward sufficient re-enforcements, but the enemy fled before reaching them, burning the helpless and ill-fated town. That night I dispatched 150 men under Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson to pursue the vandals. They came upon them early the next morning [20th], attacked, scattered, and killed many of them. I pushed on then rapidly for Patterson, destroying on the way the bloody rendezvous of the notorious Leeper, and on the morning of the 22d I surrounded and charged in upon the town. Its garrison, hearing of my advance, retreated hastily, but not before many were captured and killed,
Confederate General M. Jeff Thompson offered another reason for the execution of Major James Wilson. As mentioned earlier in this article, Thompson was in a Union prison at the time of the "Wilson Massacre", but he was exchanged in time to make his way back to Missouri to join Confederate General Sterling Price’s 1864 Missouri Expedition.
In May of 1865 Thompson surrendered 10,000 men at Jacksonport , Arkansas. Out of those 10,000 men, only one was not paroled. Confederate Colonel, Timothy Reeves, Commander of the 15th Missouri Cavalry, CSA. Thompson wrote that:
" In a few days we finished all the paroles , except that of Timothy C. Reeves, whom Col. Davis would not agree to parole , considering him outlawed for the shooting of Major Williams { Major Wilson, this was a misprint} and five men on the Price Raid; but I must state for Col. Reeves, that he was as good a man and soldier as any in the command , and his shooting of that party was entirely justifiable; only that it should have been by such an order and form that retaliation would have been avoided.
I solicited to have this party turned over to me, that I might have them shot in due form, and Reeves men refrained from killing them for three days in hopes that I would get them; but responsibilities of this kind were not to our commanders liking , and they were turned over to Reeves to guard, with a pretty full knowledge that they would be shot.
I knew Reeves men , nearly everyone of them, and the provocation was bitter, for I had seen the blackened ruins and lonely graves in Ripley county with my own eyes." (30)
Thomas Lowry in his book, "Confederate Heroines" confirms that the burning of Doniphan was only one of the reasons for Reeves’ execution of Wilson. In fact according to Lowry, Wilson’s burning of Doniphan was a reprisal for how quickly Reeves reformed hiscommand in the wake of the massacre. Lowry writes:
"At Christmas, 1863,Reves-officially Captain Reves,15th Missouri Cavalry (Confederate)-was holding a large conclave at Pulliam Spring, just south of Doniphan, Missouri. The gathering contained both men from his command and other units, together with theirwives and children and a number of Union prisoners, as dinner cooked, no less than 5 preachers exhorted the crowd to their Christian duties. Foremost among them was the Reverend Captain Reeves who preached to his Yankee prisoners, "all afternoon".
As the preaching proceeded and the dinner cooked, Major James S. Wilson of the Third Missouri State Militia Cavalry (Union), who had been tracking Reves for days, surrounded the camp meeting. Just as Christmas Dinner was served, the Yankees attacked. In addition to the 30 Confederate soldiers killed and 112 captured, 60 civilians, many of them unarmed women and children, were killed and wounded. This outrage so inflamed Southern sympathizers that the influx of new volunteers into Reves’ unit outweighed the Rebel loss. With his new recruits, Reves raised such havoc, burning Union farms and killing Union men, that Wilson returned a few months later and burned the entire town of Doniphan to the ground.
This set the final stage for Wilson and Reves. Wilson was captured in late September, 1864, at the Battle of Pilot Knob. A few days later, Reves took Wilson and six of his men to a little clearing and shot them dead" (31)
The 2002 publication of Lonnie Speer’s "War of Vengeance" carries the testimony of testimony of several Union captives who were present when Reeves caught up to the captives as Price’s army was moving west after the battle. The eye witness accounts suggest that Reeve’s was very selective about who was to be executed when he arrived in Franklin County, Missouri, Speer’s writes:
"As their journey continued, Wilson and the other prisoners remained silent. Each of their faces reflected some degree of indifference, resignation or deep thought. Many were consumed with thoughts of their families or loved ones back home while others were consumed with what loomed ahead. The only sounds heard were the rustle of clothing, the squeak of saddle leather and the occasional bark of demands as the procession moved down the road. It wasn’t long, though, before their quite thoughts were rudely interrupted.
"Halt!" commanded Lt. Col. John T. Crisp, the Confederate officer in charge of the prisoners, as he road along the right flank of the procession. By this time the group was about ten miles south of Union, Missouri in Franklin County.
As the captives stood on the road, facing north, they could hear the pounding of horses’ hooves approaching from the south, a short distance behind them. Within moments a small band of riders rode up to the procession and quickly reigned to a halt stirring up a cloud of dust. Slowly the lead rider rode past the prisoners and slowly drew up close to Crisp; they began to talk quietly. Some of the prisoners recognized this new arrival as Col. Timothy Reves {Reeves} a guerrilla leader attached to Fagan’s division. Crisp and Reves reigned their horses to one side and rode a few yards away from the group to continue their conversation in low voices.
"Line up single file!" Crisp ordered as he rode slowly back toward the group.
The prisoners reluctantly fell prisoners as he passed. Upon arriving at the end of the line , he turned his horse and into line along the center of the road as Reves road up and down the column looking over rode past the prisoners again,glaring into theireyes and looking over their uniforms one by one.
"Soldier, what’s your name?" Reves demanded upon noticing the shoulder strap insignias on the major’s jacket.
"James Wilson" came the reply.
"What regiment?" Reves shot back.
Proudly and defiantly Wilson replied:" The {3’rd} Missouri Cavalry State Militia".
"Step forward!" Reves demanded.
Wilson took two steps forward as Reves continued riding down the line.
"What’s your regiment?" Reves demanded of another
"Third Missouri State Militia", answered Cpl William Gourley.
"Step forward!", Reves again demanded and continued down the line."
Although no one seemed to know much about Reves , he appeared to be in his mid to late-thirties and, with his thick black beard ,dark piercing eyes and large build, he was an imposing and intimidating figure as he sat on his horseback nearly six feet above the prisoners, glaring down on them.
Upon reaching the middle of the line, Reves again turned his horse and halted, facing the prisoners. Slowly and deliberetly he leaned forward and his saddle and , resting his arms across the pommel, ordered the prisoners to call out their regiments in succession.
As they did, each prisoner giving the "{3rd} Missouri State Militia" was ordered to step forward. These included William Grotts, William Skaggs, John Shew and John Holabaugh. One prisoner a man of eighteen to nineteen years of age wearing the insignia ofan artillery bugler and believing members of the Third Regiment were possibly being singled out for parole lied and claimed to be a member of "Company H {3rd} Missouri State Militia." To this day his true identity is unknown. He too, was told to step forward
As they continued down the line each prisoner called out his regiment, Hiram Berry and Oscar Gilber near the center hastily agreed to give a different command.
"Seventh Illinois Cavalry" each of them said as their turn came.
Upon hearing this William Axford, farther down the line began to panic. "I don’t like this" he muttered to the prisoner on his right. "They’re singling out members {of the 3’rd}! What should I do?"
"Give the same regiment and company I do" the prisoner whispered out the side of his mouth as he continued facing forward.
"Company B {14th} Iowa Infantry" the prisoner answered as his turn came.
"Company B {14th} Iowa Infantry" Axford repeated and was relieved when Reves gave no response.
Upon hearing some of his troops give different regiments began to sense what might be happening and was concerned about those who hadn’t.
"It’s me you want" Wilson called out at his looked down the line at Reves. "Have the others step back in line."
"I will do no such thing Major!" Reves blurted as he glared back at Wilson. " Now stand there and shut up!" Turning toward one of his troops, Reves ordered, "Put a double guard on that damned Major!"
After the last prisoner in line called out his regiment, Reves men directed their horses to the lead and flanking position around the seven who had been separated from the others, doubling up around Wilson.
Crisp then rode up to the remaining prisoners and released them on parole after they took an oath to never bear arms against the Confederacy again and after they promised to leave on a northerly route out of the area. After signing a roll, the parolees quickly departed.
"Lead ’em off!" Reves called out when the other prisoners were out of sight and Crisp had begun to lead his men out of the area in another direction.
As the Major and six additional prisoners passed by , being led off in a southwest direction , Reves glared at Wilson and pulled his horse in behind the group, taking up the rear position to follow them out across the flat land toward a small ridge…
As the prisoners crossed over the ridge and approached a stand of trees boarding a small stream, prisoners Gourley, Grotts, Skaggs, Shew and Holabaugh probably couldn’t help but think about their families at home. Perhaps they were wishing to be back on their farms or wondering how long it would be before they got to see their families again. Whatever they were thinking, their thoughts were quickly interrupted.
"Halt!" Reves ordered.
As the prisoners stood their, next to a ravine that led down toward the creek, they could hear their rider-escort dismounting.
"About face!" Reves called out.
As the prisoners turned, for just one split second they probably saw the gaping ends of the gun barrels. Whatever they saw, in that instant after they turned around it was over. As the gunshots echoed down through the timber and across the creek, seven bodies crumpled like rag dolls and collapsed in a heap across the ground. One soldier ran over and shot Wilson’s prone body twice more in the head.
Calmly, the soldiers climbed back onto their horses and rode off over the ridge out of sight"
Is it possible that Jerry Ponder made some mistakes in his research? Yes. Everyone makes mistakes. But Jerry Ponder was a retired military intelligence officer, and far from inept.
Is it possible that his two greatest critics Ray Burson and Kirby Ross are biased in their research?
In an online webpage entitled, "The Military Record of Major James Wilson", author Willard S. Bacon writes that:
"Mr. Kirby Ross who had many relatives, who served in the 3rd MSM, provided immeasurable help, in finding obscure sources and documents, from many repositories." (33)
(Major Wilson, was the commander of the 3rd Missouri State Militia, which attacked Pulliam’s Farm on December 25, 1863)
Friends of Jerry Ponder have also told me that Ray Burson, was not originally from Ripley County, Missouri, but from a Northern state, and that it is rumored his wife is a descendant of one of the 14 families in Ripley, County Missouri that were pro-Union during the war. I have attempted to contact Burson in the hopes that he could shed some light on this subject. But as of yet he has not provided any answers to this question.
Perhaps Jerry Ponder said it best when he said that:
"Some questions will probably never be satisfactorily explained" (34)
That being said, there are numerous accounts of the events that happened at Pulliam’s Spring, on Christmas Day, 1863, some official, some unofficial. Much time has passed and it is like trying to piece a puzzle together.
While we might not have all of the pieces to complete the puzzle (at this time) there are enough pieces to give us a clear picture about what happened. The testimony revealed in Speer’s book, "War of Vengeance" of captured Union soldiers that were turned over to Colonel Reeves, gives us perhaps the best perspective.
If Reeves was retaliating against the burning of Doniphan, Missouri, then why did he simply parole Union prisoners who were not in {or pretended not to be part of} the Third Missouri State Militia?
Reeves, "glared" at Wilson, he singled out members of the Third Missouri State Militia. Months before, Wilson gave his watch to his nephew with the grim message that if he were ever caught by Reeves, he would be killed.
Even after the members of the Third Missouri State Militia were executed, for good measure, one of Reeves men shot Wilson two more times in the head.
There was a hatred for Wilson that went beyond burnt buildings and farmsteads. Reeves was a Baptist preacher, and no doubt Wilson and the other men who were executed were done so by the code of Biblical justice, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.
Clint E. Lacy-is a Southern author and activist, a Historian for the John T. Coffee Camp, Missouri Sons of Confederate Veterans and currently serves as an alderman for the City of Marble Hill, resides in the Ozark Foothills of Southeast Missouri.
Sources:
1. "Between Missourians: Ripley County in the Civil War" , Ponder, Ozark Watch Magazine , Vol. IV, No. 4, Spring 1991 a.Linzy Dudley: The Time of the War pgs. 1,15 1918
2. "Doniphan: No Man’s Land During the Civil War" T.L. Wright Jr. ,1929, Doniphan High School
3. Article entitled "First Settlers of Ripley County" found in the book "History and Families of Ripley County Missouri", Ripley County Historical Society
4. Kirby Ross post made August 14th ,2005 on the Missouri in the Civil War message board.
5. Ibid.
6. posted by Kirby Ross on Wednesday August 31’st, 2005, Missouri in the Civil War message board.
7. M. Jeff Thompson"This is the Story of the War Experiences of Brig. General M. Jeff Thompson", pg.103, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University
8. posted by Kirby Ross on Wednesday August 31’st, 2005, Missouri in the Civil War message board.
9. Personal correspondence from Ray Burson, Ripley County Historical Society entitled, "Jerry Ponder’s Sources for the Wilson Massacre And Other Tales"
10. Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War, Ripley County Library, Doniphan, Missouri
11. "War Hero Timothy Reeves wanted to be remembered as ‘good preecher’,Daily American Republic Newspaper
12. "This is the War Experiences of Brig. General M. Jeff Thompson", M. Jeff Thompson, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University, pgs. 21-22
13. Ibid
14. "The Legend of St. Francois County: Sam Hildebrand’s Confession", Chapter 6, Reprinted from the County Advertiser by Farmington News Printing Company September 26, 1979
15. "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", Thompson, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University, pg.103
16. "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", Thompson, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University, pg.104
17. "The Time of the War" by: Linzy Dudley as told to Charles Booker, 1918, pgs. 1,15 (document sent to me by Jerry Ponder shortly before his death)
18. "The Civil War in Ripley County Missouri", The Prospect News, pgs.27-28
19. "Twice a Month" magazine, Sept. 2’cd,1909 pgs. 27-28
20. Ibid.
21. Missouri State Legislators 1820-2000, information obtained from the Missouri Secretary of State office.
22. Information obtained from the U.S. Forestry Service Website entitled, "The History of the Irish Wilderness" found at the following internet web address in pdf format: Irish Wilderness Country.pdf also found in the War of the Rebellions, Official Records, Volumes XXII, Part 1. Page 744
23. Information obtained from the U.S. Forestry Service Website entitled, "The History of the Irish Wilderness" found at the following internet web address in pdf format: Irish Wilderness Country.pdf also found in the War of the Rebellions, Official Records, Volumes XXII, Part 1. Pages 746-747
24. Ibid.
25. Research conducted by author at the Stoddard County Civil War Cemetery, Bloomfield, Missouri
26. "The Military Record of Major James Wilson", compiled Willard S. Bacon, and found at the following internet web address: http://www.rootsweb.com/~molincol/misc/ms-military-record-wilson.htm and from Dr. Joseph Mudd’s notes for the publication , "The History of Lincoln County", Powell Memorial Library, Troy , Mo.
27. "Report of Brig. Gen. Thomas Ewing, jr., U. S. Army, Commanding District of Saint Louis. AUGUST 29-DECEMBER 2, 1864 Price’s Missouri Expedition.", Official Records, War of the Rebellions.
28. "No Heroes On Either Side", Ray Burson, The Prospect – News, Doniphan , Missouri, Wednesday, July 16, 2003
29. Report of Brig. Gen. Joseph O. Shelby, C. S. Army, Commanding Division. AUGUST 29-DECEMBER 2, 1864. Price’s Missouri Expedition.
30. "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", M. Jeff Thompson, Kent State Library, Southeast Missouri State University, Pg. 155
31. "Confederate Heroines:120 Southern Women Convicted by Union Military Justice", Thomas Lowry, LSU Press, 2006 pgs. 7-8
32. "War of Vengeance: Acts of Retaliation Against Civil War POWs", Lonnie Speer, Stackpole Books, 2006 pgs. 1-8
33. "The Military Record of Major James Wilson", compiled Willard S. Bacon, and found at the following internet web address: http://www.rootsweb.com/~molincol/misc/ms-military-record-wilson.htm
34. The Ponder-Bradbury-Flanders Correspondence, Ozark Watch Magazine, Vol. IV, No. 4, Spring 1991/Vol. V, No.1, Summer 1991, Pg. 4.
© 2008 Southeast Missourian
On The Web: http://www.semissourian.com/article/20081226/BLOGS0142/812269977
- Civil War in Ripley County:
http://sites.google.com/site/rcmacw/official-records/1863/1863-dec-23-25-pulliams
Wilson Massacre:
http://thelibrary.org/lochist/periodicals/ozarkswatch/ow404i.htm
http://sites.google.com/site/rcmacw/pulliam-springs-incident
Gratiot Street Prison
http://www.civilwarstlouis.com/gratiot/gratiot.htm - list of prisioners does not include Benjamin Lewis. None of the prisoners listed were captured 25 Dec 1863 in Ripley County.
All of the Lewises are on the roster for Price's Raid.
About Price's Raid: http://bobcivilwarhistory.blogspot.com/2010/01/on-margins-of-war-prices-raid.html
- Enrolled in Confederate Army:
John and Andrew and Benjamin Lewis enlisted on the same day in Pocahontas, AR Dec 22, 1862, William had enlisted Oct 4 in Pocahontas, AR.
- From the Official Record of the War of Rebellion
Christmas 1863 , Pulliam's Farm, Ripley County, Missouri
The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies. ; Series 1 - Volume 22 (Part II), pages 749-750
PILOT KNOB, Mo., December 23, 1863. General Fisk: GENERAL: It is reported to me today that Centreville was attacked and captured yesterday by Reves, 200 strong, and that he immediately retreated south. I have a battalion on his trail today.
R. G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding Post. **** SAINT Louis, Mo., December 23, 1863. Col. R. G. WOODSON: I cannot see how Reves could get at Centreville without the knowledge of Captain Leeper. I can’t credit the report. You will at once organize an expedition that will go in search of Reves, and follow him. It seems to me that with proper vigor he might be exterminated or driven out of Southeastern Missouri. You have sufficient force to enable you to keep after him until he will trouble us no more.
CLINTON B. FISK, Brigadier General. **** Note.The expedition is already on the road. H. G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding. **** PILOT KNOB, Mo., December 23, 1863.
Lient. W. T. CLARKE, Aide-de.Camp: In answer to yours of this date, I have to state that at present I am unable to give many particulars. My information of the catastrophe at Centreville comes from a citizen living near. He states that Reves (estimated atfrom 200 to 400) came into Centreville yesterday about 2 o’clock, completely surprising the garrison, taking them all prisoners, and again immediately moved on to the south.
H G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding Post.* *** PILOT KNOB, Mo., December 24, 1863.
General FISK: Major Wilson, with all the effective force of the Third, is after Reves, about 200. My instructions are to follow him to hell, and get the prisoners back, at least. A few of them have come in. It is even so Company C is captured, excepting a few men. I hardly believed it when I telegraphed you yesterday. They were surprised, building stables. No light, a few scattering shots, and a few wounded; none killed. A boy, just reported says he was shot at; returned the fire with small shot, wounding a rebel; he escaped on foot. I have sent a reconnoitering party to Centreville to report the state of affairs there. I will know this evening. Had not I better go this evening?
H G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding Post. **** HEADQUARTERS SAINT LOUIS DISTRICT, Saint Louis, Mo., December 24, 1863.
Col. H. G. Woodson, Pilot Knob:
I am greatly mortified with the Centreville affair. Where were Captain [S. A. C.] Bartlett’s pickets? I fear that the most criminal neglect has allowed this disaster to come upon us. I trust that there will be no failure in wiping out the apparent disgrace. Take hold of the pursuit and extermination yourself.
CLINTON B. FISK, Brigadier General. ****
The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies. ; Series 1 - Volume 22 (Part I ) Page 783-784
DECEMBER 23-25, 1863. Attack on Centreville, Mo., and pursuit of the Confederates, including skirmish (25th) at Pulliams.
REPORTS. No. 1. Maj. Oliver ID. Greene, Assistant Adjutant-General, U. S. Army. No. 2.Maj. James Wilson, Third Missouri State Militia Cavalry.
No. 1. Report of Maj. Oliver D. Greene, Assistant Adjutant General, U. S. Army. HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI, Saint Louis, December 28, 1863.
GENERAL: An entire company of the Third Missouri State Militia was captured at Centreville, Reynolds County, by guerrillas, under Reves, on the 23d instant. Major Wilson, of the Third Missouri State Militia, followed the party, and, at 3 p. m. Christmas day, he overtook and attacked; killed and wounded 35, captured 150 prisoners (13 officers), all equipage and ammunition, and 125 horses; recaptured all prisoners. Our loss, 1 killed and 8 wounded.
OLIVER D. GREENE, Assistant Adjutant General. Major General SCHOFIELD, West Point, N. Y No. 2. Report of Maj. James Wilson, Third Missouri State Militia Cavalry. HDQRS: THIRD MISSOURI STATE MILITIA CAVALRY, Pilot Knob, Mo., December 30, 1863.
SIR: In compliance with your orders of the 23d instant, I left Pilot Knob, in command of 200 men, about 10 a. in. December~23, 1863, arriving at Patterson at 9 p. m. Left there at daylight on the 24th, and encamped at Long’s at 9 p. m., having traveled 35miles. Marched again at 3 a. m. 25th instant; passed through Doniphan, taking a southwesterly direction toward the Arkansas line. Eight miles from Doniphan, I captured 2 pickets; 2 miles farther I captured one other post, and still 2 miles farther on came upon a rolling picket or patrol, and run them off of the road, capturing 1 and compelling him to lead us to the camp of Reves.* Arriving at the camp, I divided my men into two columns, and charged upon them with my whole force. The enemy fired, turned, and threw down their arms and fled, with the exception of 30 or 35, and they were riddled with bullets or .pierced through with the saber almost instantly. The enemy lost in killed about 30; wounded mortally, 3; slightly, 2; total killed and wounded
James Wilson, Commanding Third Missouri State Militia Cavalry.
Col. H. G. Woodson, Commanding Post, Pilot Knob, Mo.
At Pulliams, 17 miles southwest of Doniphan.
- HEAD QUARTERS POST,
Pilot Knob, Mo, Jan 1st, 1864 Gen. C.B. Fisk, Comdg. St. Louis District
Sir,
I will enclose Capt Leeper’s comments on some of the prisoners, sent here.
For your information, and will also have Lt. Macklind send a copy of the same to the Pro. Mar. Gen. for such action as you and he think necessary.
I prefer sending them to St. Louis to keeping them here, for further inquiry, for several reasons, 1st as they know every foot of ground from here to Central Arkansas. Escape would be much easier from this point. My guard house is so open and facilities for warming it so poor, I cannot keep them here during such severe weather, without extreme suffering, and possibly Capt. L. carries his personal feelings of animosity towards his potential enemies a little too far, but still as he has personal knowledge of nearly all these men, I think his information entitled to considerable weight. You will find his comments confined to two companies that of Reeves and Cunningham, who are mostly Missourians, the others from Arkansas, Israel or Hardens, he says he knows but little about, Some others have violated their oath and several were wearing Federal uniforms.
Most Respectfully, ( )
Col 3rd Cav. Comg. Post
- Iron County Missouri Deed
transcribed by
Notha Stevens
Iron County, Missouri Deeds
This indenture made and entered into this thirtieth day of March in the year our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty eight by and between Benjamin Lewis and Maoma his wife of the County of Iron and State of Missouri of the first part and Joseph Bollinger of the County of Madison and State of Missouri aforesaid of the second part witnesseth: that the said party of the first part for and in consideration of the sum of Forty nine Dollars and twelve cents to them fully paid by the said party of the second part the receipt of which is hereby acknowledged have granted bargained sold and conveyed and by these present do grant bargain Sell and convey unto the said party of the second part the following tracts or parcels of land situate lying and being insaid County of Iron to wit: the South half of the North west quarter, the East half of the South west quarter and the west half of the South East quarter of Section twenty nine on Township thirty two north of Range three East containing two hundred
forever and we the said party of the first part hereby convenant and agree to and with the said party of the second part his heirs and assigns that ____ warrant and forever defend the title to the said Lands and appurtenances against the claim or claims of all persons -
Benjamin X Lewis (seal)
Maoma X Lewis (seal)
State of Missouri
County of Iron
Be it Remembered that Benjamin Lewis and Naoma his wife who are personally known to the undersigned a Justice of the Peace within the aforesaid County to be the persons whose names are Subscribed to the foregoing Deed as parties hereto this day appearedbefore me and acknowledged that they executed and delivered the same as their voluntary act and Deed for the uses and purposes therein contained and the said Maoma being by me made acquainted with the contents of said Deed acknowledged and relinquished her Dower in the Real Estate therein mentioned freely and without compulsion or undue influence of her said husband.
Given under my hand this 30th day of March 1858
Wm. Suits Justice of the Peace
Filed for Record may the 18th 1858 recorded may the 28th A.D. 1858
John Edwards Clerk
By J. Huff, D C
- Jerry Ponder's book: A History of the 15th Missouri Calvary Regiment, C.S.A.
He has lists of:
Those captured at Wilson's Massacre - includes Benjamin Lewis
Unit Roster of the 15th Cav. showing - note - author states that this is an all encompassing list...names may be listed in more than one company, but as need arose men were moved, often promoted:
• Benjamin, John, William Lewis. Andrew Louis - all in Company A. William Chitwood and Sampson Lewis in Co. B.
• Co. C: John Lewis - 2nd Lieutenent, D. Lewis, William Lewis
• Co. M: Andrew Lewis
Muster Roll Reeves' Company - Missouri independent Scouts, CSA Aug 1 - 30, 1863
• 57. Lewis, Benjamin - Pvt. - age 39 - no status
• 58. Lewis, Andrew - Pvt - age 21 - detailed to hospital, Little Rock
• 59. Lewis, John - Pvt - age 33 - Detailed with Capt. Cunninham
• 60. Lewis, William - Pvt - age 30 - Left sick at Little Rock August 9
Muster Roll Reeves' Company - Missouri independent Scouts, CSA Dec 31, 1863 - Feb 29, 1864, 1863
• Lewis, Benjamin - no longer listed
• 32. Lewis, Andrew - Pvt - with Captain Reeves recruiting
• 33. Lewis, John - Pvt - with Captain Reeves recruiting
• 34. Lewis, William - Pvt - with Captain Reeves recruiting
- Ozarks Watch Vol. IV, No. 4, Spring 1991 / Vol. V, No. 1, Summer 1991
Between Missourians Civil War in Ripley County
Based on Jerry Ponder, "The Wilson Massacre," and "The Burning of Doniphan," previously unpublished articles submitted to OzarksWatch.
Part I: The Wilson Massacre
An unusual group assembled at the Pulliam farm in southwestern Ripley County, Missouri for Christ-mas in 1863. Nearly 150 officers and men of the Missouri State Guard's 15th Cavalry Regiment (Con-federate); at least sixty civilians, many of them women andchildren; and 102 prisoners, officers and men of Company C, Missouri State Militia (Union).
The civilians were family members, friends, and neighbors. Confederate "hosts" and Union "guests" were all Missourians; but they were divided by perhaps the bitterest of all enmities--those of civil war.
The day's activity was to begin with religious services conducted by the Reverend Colonel Timothy Reeves, commanding officer of the 15th Cavalry and a Baptist preacher of Ripley County. Then would follow Christmas dinner in the afternoon. The group at Pulliam' s farm numbered above three hundred at the very least, if the figures on the record are to be believed. It was too many for a mere religious service and holiday dinner. Pulliam's was one of Reeves's regimental camps.1
What began as a festive occasion ended in horror and tragedy. As the celebrants sat at dinner, their arms stacked, they were surprised by two companies of the Union Missouri State Militia, more than 200 mounted cavalrymen. Only those guarding the prisoners, about 35 men, were armed. The Militia attacked without warning, shooting into the crowd, attacking with sabers, and killing at least thirty of the Confederate men instantly and mortally wounding several more. According to local tradition, many--perhapsmost---of the civilians were killed or wounded as well.2
The Union force had no casualties, suggesting the possibility that the Confederates may not have fired a shot. The survivors--some 112 officers and men, with their horses, arms, and equipment--were captured and taken out of the War for good, some to die in prison. Colonel Reeves, however, escaped.3
The official report of the Union Commander, Major James Wilson, confirms the quick, bloody character of the event: "I divided my men into two columns and charged upon them with my whole force. The enemy fired, turned, and threw down their arms and fled, with the exception of 30 or 35 and they were riddled with bullets or pierced through with the saber almost instantly." Wilson's account did not explain why, if the enemy fired, no bullet shot at point-blank range found its mark; nor, if the rest "fled," why they were all captured. Neither did Wilson mention the presence of civilians, nor harm done to them.4
The Union force was a quick-moving raiding party, sent out on December 23 from the Union stronghold at Pilot Knob in Iron County, some eighty miles to the north. Their purpose: recapture of the Union prisoners. They retired the next morning taking the freed personnel of Company C, MSM, and the new Confederate captives of the 15th Cavalry, MSG.
The stunned survivors were left to bury the dead and reflect on the carnage. About half of those killed, both soldiers and civilians, were taken to Doniphan and buried in the Old Doniphan Cemetery south of the courthouse. Tradition is that the graves were dug by a few Negro men, and the bodies were wrapped for burial by town women. Other bodies were buried near where they fell in the Ponder and Union Grove Cemeteries .5
In Ripley County, well seasoned to the war, the incident was no doubt taken in stride. But it was not forgotten, and not forgiven. It remains in the collective memory as the Wilson Massacre, memorializing in infamy the commanding officer of the Union force. It became part of the vengeful guerrilla warfare in the eastern Ozarks.
The Wilson Massacre exemplifies the fact that the Civil War in Missouri was often a war between Missourians themselves. Major James Wilson was from Lincoln County on the Mississippi River just above St. Louis. The Union State Militia and the Confederate State Guard were both Missouri forces drawn from and fighting in behalf of the divided populous. The events leading up to the Wilson Massacre provide insight into that internal war.
Union sentiment was strong in St. Louis, especially among Germans and Irish. It was also strong in the river counties where Germans were numerous, and across much of the Missouri Ozarks. Confederate sentiment was strong in the Arkansas Ozarks; and Missouri counties close to the state line tended to have more Confederate sentiment than those farther north. Especially was this true in the southeast Missouri Ozarks.
Ripley County was on the Arkansas border, and its historic trade and travel routes ran south to Arkansas and the lower Mississippi Valley. Ripley County was a Confederate place. The Pulliam farm was but a few miles from the state line.
[14]
Union control of St. Louis and of Jefferson Barracks had been crucial at the outset of the war, in part because two Ozarks railroads radiated from there. The one to the southwest terminated a hundred miles out near Rolla. The one to the south, the Iron Mountain Road, terminated some eighty miles out at Pilot Knob in Iron County. The Federals established strong points at the ends of those lines, and their spheres of military influence radiated from them. The Wilson Massacre was one of many events in the continuing struggle between those Union strongholds and the Confederate-sympathizing countryside.
The unusual, and unusually brutal, characteristic of that war was not just that military lines were ill-defined to non-existent but that the citizens themselves, the local residents, were peculiarly involved. The case of Ripley County illustrates the point.
In the summer of 1861 practically every man in Ripley and neighboring Missouri counties answered the call of Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson and joined the Missouri State Guard. Jackson was a secessionist and the State Guard was considered the legitimate state force by those who supported secession and the Confederate cause. One of the principal Ripley officers was the famous Timothy Reeves, whose story follows.
After their six months enlistments expired, those of the State Guard interested in extended soldiering join, joined the regular Confederate army and left for other battle areas, especially those east of the Mississippi. Some units manned defensive positions in southeast Missouri for a time on a line New Madrid-Bloomfield-Doniphan-Greenville-Alton. In Ripley County, they built and manned a fortified position, Fort Currentview, at the state line near the strategic Current River.
By 1862 the demand for manpower elsewhere had drained these Confederate positions. Ripley and adjacent counties were left without adequate defense. In this situation local militia began to organize. They considered themselves primarily defenders of their homes and families. But by the North they were termed irregulars or guerrillas, outlaw units .6
In Ripley County two such units were formed. The Reverend Timothy Reeves, Baptist minister in the county seat of Doniphan, raised Reeves's Independent Company of Missouri Scouts, which was attached to the command of Confederate General John Sappington Marmaduke, a Missourian from Saline County. Men joined from Stoddard County on the east to Oregon County on the west, and north toward the Union fort at Pilot Knob. Reeves was able to keep Marmaduke apprised of practically all Union troop movements in the region. His command were also charged with helping maintain civil order, a job he took with extreme seriousness.7
The second unit in Ripley was raised by Reeve's neighbor, William Righter. Righter, concerned that Reeves was often absent, raised a company whose express purpose was defending local citizens against Union raids or outlaw activity. Righter soon found himself with a much larger job. What began as one company grew to several from Ripley County and one or more from each county in the region. Righter' s troops were strictly citizen soldiers who refused to be sent to service elsewhere. They would fight only to defend their home area.8
Righter's commission came from Missouri State Guard Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson. Thompson had failed to receive a regular CSA commission, despite repeated attempts. Consequently, Righter denied in later years that he was ever a Confederate colonel,and had been only a Missouri colonel, because Thompson had the power only to issue a Missouri commission.9
Righter and Reeves did a creditable job of maintaining local order. When large Northern units raided, they of necessity adopted guerrilla tactics of fight and retreat, returning after the Yankees were gone. Usually they retreated to Confederate strongholds in Arkansas; but they also had some safe havens locally or in the swamps of the nearby Bootheel lowland.
Righter was not safe on one occasion in Arkansas, however. He was captured along with Jeff Thompson during a Union raid on Pocohontas, some thirty miles down Current River from Doniphan, in July 1863. He went to Gratiot Prison in St. Louis, was paroled, and spent the rest of the war in the city reading law. He consequently missed the fateful Christmas massacre. 10
[15]
After the Thompson-Righter capture, the Reverend Reeves combined his Independent Scouts with Righter's cavalry, and took command of a united 15th Missouri Cavalry Regiment. Together with remnants of Missouri units that had fought in Arkansas (Battle of Helena, July 1863) and many new recruits, Reeves's new regiment had as many as twenty full companies--actually a brigade-strength command. Colonel Reeves's brother William, from neighboring Butler County and also a Baptist minister, was his adjutant. 11
The county-based companies under Reeves were widely spread; no doubt command was difficult. Mostly farmers and merchants, the men were mobilized only when necessary for defense of the region. However, permanent posts were maintained: at Doniphan, the fords of Current River, Fort Currentview, along main roads, and elsewhere.12
The immediate cause of the Wilson Massacre was a series of events at Centerville, Reynolds County. Centerville Courthouse was some sixty miles north of Doniphan and twenty-five southwest of Pilot Knob. Late in 1863, Centerville was captured by the Union 3rd Cavalry from Pilot Knob. Company C was left as garrison. On December 21, while engaged in building stables on the courthouse grounds, they were surprised and surrounded by Company N of Reeves's 15th Missouri Cavalry, under command of Captain Jesse Pratt, before the war the Baptist minister of Centerville. Company N was composed of farmers and merchants of Reynolds County. Probably Pratt and the Reeves brothers, also Baptist preachers, were long-time acquaintances. That Pratt was accorded the honor of recapturing his hometown was not accidental.
Captured were 102 Union men with their horses. Pratt took them south to Ripley County with a small group, leaving most of his men to garrison Centerville. He presented the prisoners to Reeves at Pulliam's on Christmas morning, and joined his fellows of the regiment for the day's festivities.13
One Union soldier had been allowed to escape at Centerville, doubtless to carry news of the event back to Pilot Knob. Reaction there was swift. Colonel R.G. Woodson, commander of the 3rd Missouri, ordered two mounted cavalry companies under Major James Wilson to pursue Pratt. They left Pilot Knob mid-morning on the twenty-third.
Wilson's force rode swiftly, rising in the darkness of the twenty-fifth to be on the road at 3:00 AM. They passed through Doniphan that morning, and continued west toward Ponder, capturing pickets as they went, and descended on Colonel Reeves's group and prisoners just as they were eating Christmas dinner.14
Wilson probably was able to follow the tracks of the captured Union Company C and their guard. One hundred and fifty horses would leave a trail in December mud. However he accomplished it, he went to Reeves like an arrow to its target. His report said, "...eight miles from Doniphan, I captured 2 pickets; 2 miles farther (and only some five miles from Reeves) I captured another post, and still 2 miles farther we came upon a rolling picket on patrol and ran them off the road, capturing 1 and compelling him to lead us to the camp of Reeves." The "rolling picket" who escaped obviously was unable to bring a warning to Reeves in time. 15
During the Battle of Pilot Knob the following month, Major James Wilson was captured by elements of General Shelby's command. Shelby ordered an immediate military court for Wilson and two others captured with him. Major Wilson and the two soldiers were found guilty of murder for the Christmas Day, 1863, massacre and were ordered to be shot to death. No record has been found to prove who shot Wilson and his men, but the consensus is that members of the 15th Missouri Cavalry Regiment made up the firing squad. No doubt there were plenty of volunteers for the job. After the war ended Colonel Reeves was charged with the act, but later released. 16
The massacre site has gone by many names since: Battle Hollow, Battleground Hollow, and Battlefield Hollow. It is no longer listed on maps, but residents of southwest Ripley County know the location and story. The action has become known as The Wilson Massacre. It was the bloodiest day of the war for Ripley County.
Part II: The Burning of Doniphan
On September 19, 1864, some one hundred mounted Union Cavalry burned the town of Doniphan. It was an action associated with the beginnings of Price's Raid, which culminated in the Battle of Pilot Knob the following month. But the torching of Doniphan was primarily an act of vengeance, without military significance, and was in effect an afterclap of the Wilson Massacre ten months earlier. It was a measure of the hatred the Yankees had for Timothy Reeves and his "guerrilla band," as the 15th Cavalry Regiment was known.
Later Union accounts of events in Ripley County that September focused on the bloody skirmishes connected with Price's invasion of Missouri. They ignored or covered up the burning. Only 39 years later, when a Union veteran participant, William Nevin, wrote a more complete account, did the Northern written record show what Ripley Countians had known all along. 17
By mid 1864 the war was going badly for the Confederacy in Missouri and Arkansas. Southern commanders decided upon a bold stroke: an invasion from Arkansas of eastern Missouri, aimed at St. Louis. It would also rally support for the Southern cause and recruit new troops, by then desperately needed. Major General Sterling Price, CSA, from Chariton County, Missouri, would command a three-division strike force. The intrepid Brigadier General Jo Shelby, CSA, of Lafayette County, Missouri, would command one ofthem. Independent units like Reeves's regiment would be attached to Price's force for the operation.
[16]
But the burning of Doniphan had other causes. In late August or early September of 1864 a party of a half dozen Union soldiers, Illinoisans paroled in Arkansas, were making their way from Little Rock to St. Louis. They were on foot, having given their "parole" (i.e. their word) not to fight again until officially exchanged. They were hot, ragged, tired, and hungry. When they reached Doniphan they went to the hotel and asked for a meal and lodging.
The hotel keeper was one Lemuel Kittrel, a Confederate veteran forced to return home because of wounds. His brother-in-law was Confederate Colonel Willis Ponder. Kittrel was a successful businessman and merchant, an ardent Confederate, and, like most Ripley Countians, still enraged by the Christmas massacre.
Kittrel turned the Union men out unfed and unhoused. They slept that night in a field north of Doniphan, doubtless nursing their grudge against rebel Missourians.18 They were to receive the same treatment as they continued north; and by the time they reached the Federal garrison at Patterson, some fifty miles away in Wayne County, they were barefoot, almost naked, and nearly starved. The officer of the group, a Colonel G.W. Mitchell, is reported to have requested of the 3rd Cavalry at Pilot Knob that theybum the town of Doniphan if they ever had the opportunity. 19
Mitchell and other informants apprised the Union command of Price's impending invasion, including the fact that Jo Shelby's division planned to head north on a line through Ripley County. On September 18, a Lieutenant Eric Pape was sent south from Pilot Knob with a hundred mounted men to determine Shelby's location and strength. According to the 1903 Nevin account, he also had been ordered by Major James Wilson to bum Doniphan. Pape's company arrived in the town about five o'clock the morning of September19.20
A company of Reeves's 15th Missouri Cavalry Regiment, all Ripley men, were deployed over the county as an advance party of Price's army. (The 15th Cavalry Regiment was by now attached to Price's command and integrated into his plans for the invasion.) About 40 of them were in Doniphan that morning. Pape attacked the little force three times, after which they retreated south on the road to Kittrel's Mill, burning the bridge over Quick Creek behind them. Pape's company crossed Current River at the Doniphan ford and rode south to the Arkansas border, the Confederates retreating in front of them. Pape then returned to Doniphan about noon.
William Nevin, who was a soldier in Pape's company, went to the home of a widow Lowe, and asked for a noon meal. (His companion was Sergeant Steakly, one of the diarists of the action.) Though the widow's husband, Colonel Aden Lowe, had been killed at Fredericktown, Madison County, in 1861, she agreed to feed them. Just as dinner was ready, she looked out the window and saw the town ablaze. She sensed instantly what was happening and turned to her guests, beseeching them to intercede to have her house spared. Of all the buildings in Doniphan, only the Lowe house and the Methodist Church (ironically built in 1847 by Lemuel Kittrel) escaped the flames that day. Nevin also reported that the smaller Confederate force returned and attacked the Yankees while they were firing the town, but were driven off by the superior Union numbers and the Federal repeating rifles.21
[17]
Jerry Ponder at the site of old road down which Wilson's cavalry charged into Reeves's encampment, background. Behind fringe of trees is Mill Branch of Fourche Creek. Steep wooded hillside beyond might have been escape route for survivors. OzarksWatch photo.
Pape's Yankees withdrew east and north toward Butler County, stopping to burn every house and outbuilding along the road. (Nevin, however, wrote that no houses were destroyed outside of Doniphan.)22
General Jo Shelby, leading the westernmost of Price's three divisions just south of Ripley, doubtless heard of the burning and hastened to Doniphan with a force of cavalry, arriving at the town in the afternoon. He was furious. He had friends and relatives there, and had recruited in the vicinity several times with good results. He dispatched 150 men under Lieutenant Colonel Hector Johnson to run down Pape's company. They were able to follow the line of destruction.
Price, traveling farther east with the central division of his command, was perhaps as close to Pape as Shelby. Upon hearing of the burning, he, too dispatched a force to chase the Yankees. His adjutant' s report later described witnessing women and children going through the still smoking ashes of their houses and barns, searching for food.23
Johnson's pursuing force from Shelby's division found Pape's company in the dark of night on the ridge back of Ponder' s Mill, near present Fairdealing. Nevin wrote that Pape' s men could hear the Confederates getting into position in the darkness; bur Pape, doubtless dead tired, did not take it to be a serious threat.
It was serious. At daybreak, Johnson attacked. The repeating rifles held him off for a time; but when the force from Price's central division arrived, the Yankees were overwhelmed. Forty-seven of the original hundred were killed; the rest fled into the woods.24
Ripley County spent the remainder of the war without significant intervention from Union troops. Doniphan, an important town before the war, rebuilt when the war ended. But it was well over twenty years before it reached its pre-war size and never again was the regional center of importance it had been. After the war a small group of Union soldiers under the command of Captain W.A. Naylor was sent to Doniphan to govern the county and appoint officials to act as county commissioners. Naylor became a leading citizen of Ripley; the present town of Naylor is named for him.
Many former Northern troops moved to Ripley County after the War, and while trouble continued through the 1870s between the two factions, by the mid-1880s little trace remained of the war. It was many, many years however, before a Republican would be elected to office in Ripley County. As far as can be learned, not one of the survivors of
Lieutenant Pape's command that burned Doniphan was ever in Ripley County again.
Notes for "Between Missourians"
1 Compiled service record of Major James Wilson, Record Group 94, National Archives, Washington, D.C.M. Jeff Thompson, The Civil War Reminiscences of General M. Jeff Thompson, ed. by Donal J. Stan-ton, Goodwin F. Berquist, and Paul C. Bowers (Dayton, Ohio: Momingside, 1988), 16-17, 65-68. Jerry Ponder, The History of Ripley County, Missouri (Doniphan Missouri: Ponder Books, 1987), 27, 58. War Department correspondence file for 1863, National Archives microfilm publication M1064. T.L. Wright, Jr.,"Doniphan--No Man' s Land During the Civil War," 1929, Doniphan Public Library, Doniphan, Missouri.
2 ponder, History of Ripley County, p. 52.
3 One of the captives was Lieutenant Amos T. Ponder who had served in the 9th Missouri Infantry Regiment, but had resigned due to illness. Though a civilian at the time, he was treated as a military captive. Another, Elijah Dalton, was home on leave from the 9th Missouri. He subsequently died in the Federal prison at Alton, Illinois. Compiled service record of First Lieutenant Amos F. Ponder, Sr., Record Group 94, National Archives; St. Louis Prison records, National Archives microfilm publication M598-0072. Compiled service record of Private Elijah Dalton, Record Group 94, National Archives; Alton, Illinois Prison records, National Archives microfilm publication M598-0014.
4 Report of Major James Wilson to Colonel Richard G. Woodson, December 30, 1863, in United States War Department, The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (130 vols., Washington DC, 1880-1902), Series 1, XXXIV, Pt. l, 784. Hereafter cited as OR., All citations are from Series 1.
5 Interview with Mrs. Wash Harris by Dr. John Hume, 1889; Jean Ponder, "Doniphan During the Civil War," 1950, Doniphan Public Library.
6 M. Jeff Thompson, Civil War Reminiscences, 16-17, 65-68.
7 Letters of Captain Timothy Reeves to Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke, November 14, 1862 and June 11,1863, Library of Congress, Washington DC; reports of Captain Timothy Reeves to Colonel John Q. Burbridge, May 31, 1863, and to "Colonel Commanding" at Batesville, Arkansas, August 22, 1863, in "Loose Military Records," National Archives.
8 Address of Captain W.C.S. Lackey to a meeting of Ripley County Confederate veterans in 1901, a newspaper clipping in the Doniphan Public Library, Doniphan, Missouri.
9 W. R. Ponder, "Colonel William H. Righter," Twice-A-Month Magazine, (St. Louis), September 2, 1909, pp. 5, 6, 16.
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10 Thompson, Reminiscences of M. Jeff Thompson, 202-210; Ponder, "Colonel William H. Righter;" St. Louis prison records, National Archives microfilm publication M598-0072.
11 Confederate Organizations--Missouri, a microfilm publication of the United States Army Historical Unit, Washington, DC. Letter of Francis Tate to Jerry Ponder, 1987; report of Captain Abijah Johns to Colonel Richard G. Woodson, February 28, 1864, OR, Pt. 1, 154. By these events, Reeves seems to have advanced in rank from captain to colonel.
12 One battalion-sized unit withdrew to Coon Island in the lowlands of eastern Butler County. Them, surrounded by swamps, they carried on almost a normal life even during the war, and returned home after it ended. Their commander, George Thannisch, was killed from ambush January 1864, the month after the Christmas Massacre, by troops of the 3rd Cavalry Regiment from Pilot Knob. Their report of "Captain Thannisch and two soldiers" was subsequently changed to read "three bushwhackers." Personal communication from Francis Tate to Jerry Ponder regarding Captain George Thannisch, 1987.
13 personal communication from James E. Bell to Jerry Ponder, 1987; historical information at the Reynolds County Courthouse, Centerville, Missouri.
14 Report of Major James Wilson to Colonel Richard G. Woodson, December 30, 1864, OR, XXII, Pt. 1,784; interview with Mrs. Wash Harris by Dr. John Hume, October 1889, Missouri Historical Society, St. Louis.
15 Colonel R.G. Woodson wrote his superior, General Fish, as follows: "Official dispatches from Major Wilson inform me that he attacked Reeves seventeen miles southwest of Doniphan, Ripley County, Missouri, about three o'clock Christmas Day; killed and wounded 35 of the enemy, captured 115 prisoners, including 13 Commissioned Officers, with all their equipment, ammunition and campage and 125 horses; also recaptured every man of Company C, captured at Centerville with their arms and campage. Wilson says that the 3rd behaved splendidly, officers and men." Daily Missouri Democrat, St. Louis, December 29, 1863.
Wilson's report to Woodson is.as follows: "Pilot Knob, Missouri, December 30, 1863, To: Colonel R.G. Woodson, Commanding Post Pilot Knob, Missouri. Sir: In compliance with your orders of the 23rd instant, I left Pilot Knob, in command of 200 men, about 10:00 AM December 23, 1863, arriving at Patterson at 9:00 PM. Left there at daylight on the 24th and encamped at Long's at 9:00 PM, having traveled 35 miles. Marched again at 3:00 AM 25th instant; passed through Doniphan, taking a southwesterly direction towards the Arkansas line. Eight miles from Doniphan, I captured 2 pickets; 2 miles further I captured one other post, and still 2 miles further we came upon a rolling picket on patrol and ran them off the road, capturing 1 and compel
ling him to lead us to the camp of Reeves. Arriving at the Camp, I divided my men into two columns and charged upon them with my whole force. The enemy fired, turned, and threw down their arms and fled, with the exception of 30 or 35 and they were riddledwith bullets or pierced with the saber almost instantly. The enemy lost and killed about 30; wounded mortally 3, slightly 2, total killed and wounded 35. Prisoners captured 112; horses, besides those of Company C, 75; also their arms, ammunition and campequipage. On morning of 26th, I started for Pilot Knob, arriving here about 4:00 PM on the 29th of December, 1863. I cannot speak in too high terms of praise of the officers and men under my Command. There was no loss on our side in killed or wounded. James Wilson. Commanding, Third State Militia, Major James Wilson to Colonel Richard G. Woodson, December 30, 1863, OR, XXII, 784.
16 Cyrus A. Peterson, "The Capture and Murder of Major James Wilson," January 26, 1906, Pike County Historical Society, Bowling Green, Missouri.
17 Sergeant James C. Steakley, "The Story of Price's Raid," Thomas Ewing, Jr., papers, Library of Congress, Washington, DC. Letter from William Nevin to Cyrus A. Peterson, 1903, Ewing papers. Official reports are lacking and few participant accounts agreeon factual details regarding the military action at the town and the burning. Two Union sergeants later published a"diary" which obstinately provided only a biased account, failing to mention the burning. Most writings were based on those accounts until publication of the 1903 Nevins letter.
18 "Lemuel Kittrell," Genealogical Society of Butler County, Missouri, Area Footprints (August-November 1990), 91; Jerry Ponder and Eldon Dow Vandiver, The Family of Abner Ponder (Doniphan, Missouri: Ponder Books, 1989), 82, 96, 176, 305. One report had it that Kittrell had earlier poisoned the food of Union men eating in his hotel.
19 Same Rowe, "My Recollection of the Events Leading Up to, During and Following the Battle of Pilot Knob," n.d., Ewing papers; letter from William Nevin to Cyrus A. Peterson, 1903, Ewing papers.
20 Ibid.; an undated newspaper clipping from The Prospect (Doniphan, Missouri), Doniphan Public Library. Nevin to Peterson, 1903 Ewing papers. Papes men were drawn from companies O, I, and K, 3rd MSM, and Company JA, 47th Missouri Infantry Regiment. All were mounted.
21 M. Jeff Thompson, Reminiscences; Wright, "Doniphan--No Man's Land"; letter of William Nevin to Cyrus Peterson, 1903, Ewing papers. Most descriptions of this action are confused. Sergeant James Steakley's account in the Ewing papers mentions a bridge across the Current River which was allegedly destroyed by Confederate troops, but no bridge existed at this location until 1899. Not even a ferry operated there until 1867. William Nevin states that the bridge was on the road to Kittrell's Mill, which indicates that a small bridge spanned Quick Creek on the south edge of Doniphan. The road passed Kittrell's Mill about one mile south of Doniphan and continued down the east side of the Current River to Indian Ford, which was the location where General Sterling Price and General James B. Fagan's division crossed the river and encamped on the night of September 19, 1864. Price and Fagan marched from Indian Ford to Martinsburg by a secondary road. The Butterfield Stage used the Kittrell's Mill route and Indi
[19]
22 Letter of William Nevin to Cyrus A. Peterson, 1903, Ewing papers; Benjamin LaBree, The Confederate Soldier in the Civil War (Louisville, Kentucky: Courier-Journal Job Printing Co., 95), 286.
23 L.A. MacLean, "Price's Army Daily Journal," September 20, 1864, Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
24 Steakiey, "The Story of Price's Raid," Simon U. Branstetter diary, and letter of William Nevin to Cyrus A. Peterson, all in the Ewing papers; Major James Wilson to Brigadier General Thomas Ewing, Jr., September 20, 1864, OR, XLI, Pt. 1,454; Morning Reports, Various Missouri Posts and Units, Microfilm Series 617, Reel 180, Numbers 1040, 1066, 1077, and 1531, United States Army Historical Unit, Washington DC; War Department correspondence file for 1864, National Archives microfilm publication M 1064; Genealogical Society of Butler County, Butler County, Missouri II (Poplar Bluff, Missouri: Taylor Publishing Co., 1988), 8-9.
Two of the Confederates were killed and four were wounded. The dead were buried at the site, the Yankees in a mass grave on the west side of the Military Road, and the Confederates in individual graves on the east side. The Confederate site became a cemetery which was used well into the present century, known as The Military Cemetery.
Editor's Post Script
Writers in addition to Ponder have noted the final Reeves-Wilson encounter. Excerpts from three of them follow. All appear to be authoritatively documented:
--From Joseph Conan Thompson, "The Great-Little Battle of Pilot Knob. (Part II)," Missouri Historical Quarterly, April, 1989,283 n:
After their capture [at Pilot Knob], Major Wilson, Captain Dinger and the others were led to [nearby] Ironton. There they assembled with the other prisoners. After being stripped to the waist and forced to relinquish their boots, the prisoners marched barefooted behind General Fagan's column to a farm located 10 miles west of Union and 15 miles southwest of Washington [in Franklin County, some 70 miles north of Ironton]. While on the farm, Confederate Colonel Tim Reeves singled out Major Wilson and five other men, chosen at random, and had them executed by firing squad. All of the others were paroled. No explanation for the major's murder has ever been offered.
--From Michael Fellman, Inside War: The Guerrilla Conflict in Missouri During the American Civil War (New York: Oxford University Press, 1989), p. 182:
Union Major Wilson died a good death at the hands of Reeves' guerrilla band....Two southern men on their way back...to their homes [perhaps among those paroled in Franklin County?] stopped off at Mr. Alexander's house in Greenville [Wayne County] and reported Major Wilson's honorable death. At the execution Reeves said to Wilson, "'Major, you are a brave man--but you never showed my men quarter.' At the execution Major Wilson himself commanded: 'ready, aim, fire!' Those two men," Alexander wrote, "though [Wilson's enemies], praised his bravery."
Fellman proposes that a"central metaphor of war [is] the great hunt," which could be stretched to include war by stealth-----common in guerrilla warfare: There were few opportunities for courageous and manly engagement with an enemy who was almost always unseen, who rarely came out to fight in the serried ranks of storybook wars. In such a nasty war [as guerrilla war in Missouri], it was unusual to look the enemy in the face, to discover in him the manly foe truly worthy of your honorable battle. Still, if you did capture the enemy, you would execute him and want him to die nobly; and if you were captured, you would be shot and would want to die an honorable death. That was the fit end of the great hunt.
Thus Fellman' s characterization of Wilson' s end as a"good death," and an"honorable death," and his context for the witnesses' report to Mr. Alexander of Reeves's chivalrous salute to Wilson and the condemned man's command of the firing squad.
--From Andy Collins, "To the Victor Belong the Spoils," Missouri Historical Quarterly, January, 1986, pp. 191,192:
As a result of the Battle of Pilot Knob, Colonel Tim Reves [sic] acquired the eternal hatred of the Union forces in Southeast Missouri. According to witnesses, Major James Wilson and six of his men...had allegedly been turned over to Tim Reves, who...had them shot. On October 24 (1864), the bodies...were found by a farmer near Washington, Missouri.
[20]
Collins writes that at the close of the war 7454 Confederate regulars and irregulars surrendered at Wittsburg and Jacksonport, Arkansas. "Of this number,'' he writes, "the Union forces refused to parole only one man. This man was Colonel Timothy Reves." But he was soon able to return home nevertheless.
In 1867, [Reeves] was back in Ripley County, when...he performed two marriage ceremonies in his capacity as a minister. The rest of his life seems to have been that of a semi-itinerant minister. In October, 1867, he married a Carter County widow and...officiated at marriages [there] from 1867-1869. Marriage books from Butler County show Reeves as a minister there in 1877....His short obituary in the Doniphan Prospect News (1885) did not even mention his Civil War exploits. (pages 194, 195)
Jerry Ponder is a retired military intelligence officer, a Ripley County native, and author of writings on the history of that area. His ancestors were participants in the events described in this article.
[Editor's note: Mr. Ponder and OzarksWatch are grateful for the advice and assistance of Mr. John Bradbury, Western Historical Manuscripts Collection, Rolla, in the preparation of the following article.]
- THE WILSON MASSACRE
“The Story of Union Brutality in the Southeast Missouri Ozarks” By: Clint E. Lacy
One of the most controversial pieces of work that late author and historian Jerry Ponder wrote was his account of the Wilson Massacre in Ripley County, Missouri; which occurred on December 25th 1863. On December 23rd, 1863, members of the 15th Missouri Cavalry, CSA, attacked and captured nearly 100 Union prisoners at Centerville in Reynolds County, Missouri; burning the courthouse down before they left. Ponder wrote that:
"An unusual group assembled at the Pulliam farm in southwestern Ripley County, Missouri for Christmas in 1863. Nearly 150 officers and men of the Missouri State Guard's 15th Cavalry Regiment (Confederate); at least sixty civilians, many of them women and children; and 102 prisoners, officers and men of Company C, Missouri State Militia (Union).
The civilians were family members, friends, and neighbors. Confederate "hosts" and Union "guests" were all Missourians; but they were divided by perhaps the bitterest of all enmities--those of civil war.
The day's activity was to begin with religious services conducted by the Reverend Colonel Timothy Reeves, commanding officer of the 15th Cavalry and a Baptist preacher of Ripley County. Then would follow Christmas dinner in the afternoon. The group at Pulliam' s farm numbered above three hundred at the very least, if the figures on the record are to be believed. It was too many for a mere religious service and holiday dinner. Pulliam's was one of Reeves's regimental camps.
What began as a festive occasion ended in horror and tragedy. As the celebrants sat at dinner, their arms stacked, they were surprised by two companies of the Union Missouri State Militia, more than 200 mounted cavalrymen. Only those guarding the prisoners, about 35 men, were armed. The Militia attacked without warning, shooting into the crowd, attacking with sabers, and killing at least thirty of the Confederate men instantly and mortally wounding several more. According to local tradition, many--perhapsmost---of the civilians were killed or wounded as well.
The immediate cause of the Wilson Massacre was a series of events at Centerville, Reynolds County. Centerville Courthouse was some sixty miles north of Doniphan and twenty-five southwest of Pilot Knob. Late in 1863, Centerville was captured by the Union 3rd Cavalry from Pilot Knob. Company C was left as garrison. On December 21, while engaged in building stables on the courthouse grounds, they were surprised and surrounded by Company N of Reeves's 15th Missouri Cavalry, under command of Captain Jesse Pratt, before the war the Baptist minister of Centerville. Company N was composed of farmers and merchants of Reynolds County. Probably Pratt and the Reeves brothers, also Baptist preachers, were long-time acquaintances. That Pratt was accorded the honor of recapturing his hometown was not accidental.
Captured were 102 Union men with their horses. Pratt took them south to Ripley County with a small group, leaving most of his men to garrison Centerville. He presented the prisoners to Reeves at Pulliam's on Christmas morning, and joined his fellows of the regiment for the day's festivities. One Union soldier had been allowed to escape at Centerville, doubtless to carry news of the event back to Pilot Knob. Reaction there was swift. Colonel R.G. Woodson, commander of the 3rd Missouri, ordered two mounted cavalry companies under Major James Wilson to pursue Pratt. They left Pilot Knob mid-morning on the twenty-third.
Wilson's force rode swiftly, rising in the darkness of the twenty-fifth to be on the road at 3:00 AM. They passed through Doniphan that morning, and continued west toward Ponder, capturing pickets as they went, and descended on Colonel Reeve’s group and prisoners just as they were eating Christmas dinner" (1)
Mr. Ponder's research on this subject can be found in his book: "History of Ripley County Missouri" , "A History of the 15th Missouri Cavalry Regiment, CSA: 1862-1865" , in an article published in Ozark Watch magazine (Vol.IV, No.4, Spring 1991) entitled,"Between Missourians: The Civil War in Ripley County", as well as "The Civil War in Ripley County Missouri" (published by the Doniphan-Prospect News in 1992) His research was also convincing enough that author Paulette Jiles used it in her novel "Enemy Women".
It was during this time, that the controversy arose concerning Ponder's research. Most of the criticism appears to have come from Ripley County Historian Ray Burson.
Mr. Burson contacted me several times and tried to convince me not to believe Mr. Ponder. He even sent me a packet of info that he has created to dissuade those who dare use Ponder's research in their writings. Among the papers that Mr. Burson included inhis "packet" were pieces (that he put together) entitled: "Jerry Ponder's Sources for the Wilson Massacre and Other Tales" and "Jerry Ponder On Providing His Sources".
Mr. Burson has also seemingly convinced historian and author Kirby Ross that Ponder's account of the Wilson Massacre is fictitious. However, Ponder, shortly before his death in 2005 sent me two documents,
The two papers are:
“The Time of the War" By: Lindzy Dudley written in 1918. Dudley appears to have fought under Colonel Reeves. His name does not appear on the official records, however this is not uncommon. Many men "took to the brush" in order to defend their families from Yankee invasion. It is also my understanding that Confederate "Partisans" were not afforded the same pensions later in life as Union and regular Confederate troops were, therefore no pension records would exist to verify their service. In this piece Lindzy Dudley states (of the Wilson Massacre):
“Reeves was a Baptist preacher. He backed up every sermon with his pistol. Reeves men were mean. No quarter was given or asked. He had commanded a company till the end of 1863.
Colonel Righter was captured with General Thompson and Reeves was put in command of the 15th. In November a field hospital was attacked by colored cavalry and about 100 of Reeves’ men were killed. Reeves collected revenge but he never got over the loss ofsick and wounded not able to fight back. Just shot in their beds. He talked about that until he died. On Christmas, a month later, several companies were at the Pulliam farm for a service and feed with their families. This was on the old Tom Pulliam place northwest of Johnston’s Chapel and close to Oregon County and the Arkansas line. There was a big spring there on the Mill Branch where folks in that part had picnics. Reeves did a sermon and the group was ready to eat. The well known Major Wilson, the Yankee from Pilot Knob called “The Murderer”, surrounded and attacked. The killed and the wounded were all over the field. Soldiers, their families, nearby families. All were killed. Those that could get across the creek and up the bluff on th
It is interesting that Ray Burson of the Ripley County Historical Society, would question Dudley's credibility in his account of the Wilson Massacre, yet in the book "History and Families of Ripley County Missouri" the historical society (who along with the publisher holds the copyright to the book) finds Dudley credible enough to relate who the first European settler of Ripley County was:
"In an interview with historian HUME in 1900, Lindzy DUDLEY reported that the first European resident was a "Wees RILEY" who arrived in 1802 with a Delaware Indian wife who soon died in childbirth" (3)
The other document was entitled: "Doniphan- No Man's Land During the Civil War" By: T. L. Wright Jr. and was written in March ,1929. The paper appears to be one written for a High school assignment by T. L. Wright Jr.. On the copy that Mr. Ponder sent me "DONIPHAN PUBLIC LIBRARY" is stamped on the upper left hand corner of the page.
I was able to talk to Jerry Ponder over the phone, while he was in Texas (a few months before he died) and he told me that he found the documents after they had been discarded. During the time that he found the documents (1990-1991) the Doniphan Public Library and the Ripley County library were being consolidated.
In addition I contacted the Ripley County Library's Doniphan Missouri location on Friday July 29, 2006 and talked to two separate librarians, Mr. Allen Rife and Mrs. Rebecca Wilcox. Both told me it was possible that the documents could have been discardedduring the consolidation. During a second phone interview conducted on August 7th, 2006 I talked to a third librarian Mrs. Patricia Robison, who told me that though she did not work at the library at the time of the consolidation, she is a life long resident of Ripley County it was "entirely possible" that documents were discarded during the consolidation of the two libraries in the early 1990's.
As a side note, I was also able to check out a book from the Doniphan-Ripley County Library entitled "Doniphan and Ripley County History". There is no copyright date, but the earliest entries appear to be from the early 1900's and the last entry appears to be in the early 1970's and upon examination of the library stamp on this book, and the document that Jerry Ponder sent me, they are the same and one can clearly ascertain that the library stamp on the document Jerry Ponder sent me is valid.
T. L. Wright Jr.'s 1929 paper also gives long time residents accounts of the Wilson Massacre. Given the fact that this paper was written in 1929, it is possible that the accounts could have been eyewitness accounts. Certainly they could be accounts written by citizens who were living during the time of the "Wilson Massacre".
"On Christmas Day, 1863, Major James Wilson, later captured and executed by firing squad at Pilot Knob, and 200 Union troops from Fort Davidson at Pilot Knob, passed through Doniphan, traveling on a southeast course to Pulliam’s Farm, 17 miles from Doniphan where Colonel Reeves and his cavalry were encamped. A vicious, surprise attack ensued and 35 rebels were killed and 112 taken prisoner when the fighting had ended. But worse, families and neighbors were present and, in the heat of battle, Wilson’s soldiers killed over 50 civilians. Mrs. Betty Towell, Tom Pulliam and Ed Cline, long-time residents of the neighborhood, tell that the civilians killed, in camp for a Christmas visit, included women and children who were shot down the same as the rebel soldiers of Reeves’ Regiment. That action attests to the cruelty of the war." (4)
According to historian Kirby Ross, T.L. Wright Jr. was born in 1912. That would have made T.L. Wright Jr. 17 years of age at the time he wrote this document (which appears to be a high school paper). One of the criticisms that Mr. Ross has made in his attempt to discredit Jerry Ponder was posted on an online forum on August 14th, 2005. In it Mr. Ross states (in reference to the document written by T.L.Wright Jr. in 1929) that:
"…do you realize that this version of the T.L. Wright article has a four year old boy conducting complex historical interviews?” (5)
Ross continues by stating:
"Now as to Mr. Ponder's fantabulous precocious four year old interviewer/historian, T. L. Wright, I refer you to Mr. Lacy's posting that says:
"A major set-back was experienced by the Confederate Army on August 24, 1863, when General Jeff Thompson, Colonel William Righter and most of their staffs were captured at the hotel in Pocahontas while holding a planning meeting. General Thompson was taken to a military prison in Ohio and held there for over a year before he was released. Colonel Righter was taken to St. Louis by a circuitous route around Ripley County. He agreed to sign an alliance to the Union and put up $1,000.00 bond as assurance thathe would not fight again. The Colonel told me."
That last sentence bears repeating: "The Colonel told me."
Ponder is offering this to show that T.L. Wright personally interviewed Col. William H. Righter. This passage is so ridiculously bad that it is laugh out loud funny and begs to be repeated, for you see, T.L. Wright was born Feb. 15, 1912 and William Harmon Righter passed away on November 26, 1916." (6)
This criticism by Ross bears examination. First of all, as stated before, T.L. Wright Jr. was 17 years of age when he wrote his 1st version of "Doniphan: No Man's Land in the Civil War" in 1929 and the words "The Colonel told me" seems to be more of a recollection of a story that William Harmon Righter told him when he was a young boy. Nowhere has Jerry Ponder ever wrote that T.L.Wright Jr. was conducting "complex interviews" at 4 years of age. It is also important to note that T. L. Wright Jr.'s 1929 version of "Doniphan: No Man's Land During the Civil War", matches Lindzy Dudley's 1918 version of what occurred at Pulliam's Farm on December 25, 1863.
On the same online forum posted by Kirby Ross on Wednesday August 31st, 2005, Ross states:
"And with this published account of the document in question, if Jerry Ponder’s version of “the Wilson Massacre” is to be accepted, one must also accept that Wright participated in part of the massive cover-up of the massacre that Jo Shelby and Jeff Thompson would have also been a part of." (7)
There is no way that Confederate General M. Jeff Thompson of the Missouri State guard could be involved in the Wilson Massacre or have known about it because he was captured on August 22, 1863. The Wilson Massacre occurred on December 25, 1863. General M.Jeff Thompson was in a Yankee prison in the North at the time that the "Wilson Massacre" occurred. (7)
It is possible that after General Thompson's release in 1864, that he had no doubt heard about the atrocities being committed in Ripley County and the surrounding areas, after he made his way back to Missouri just in time to participate in General Price’s1864 Missouri Expedition.
On the same August 31'st, 2005 online forum post Kirby Ross offers another version of T.L. Wright Jr.'s "Doniphan: No Man's Land in the Civil War" which he claims is the "real" T.L. Wright Jr. document and was published in Doniphan Prospect-News Doniphan,Missouri Thursday, April 2, 1970. Ross states:
"By the way, note that Wright doesn’t refer to William H. Righter as being one of his sources in this article, or of having interviewed him when he was four years old." (8)
This is true, T.L. Wright Jr. does not make mention of Colonel William H. Righter as one of his sources in the 1970 Prospect-News newspaper article. However one must remember that there is a 31 year difference between the article written in 1970 , when T.L. Wright Jr. was 58 years of age and the one written in 1929 when he was 17 years of age. Mr. Ross claims that the 1970 Doniphan Prospect News article is the "real" T.L. Wright Jr. article. Yet there is a third version of the T.L. Wright Jr. article thatappeared in the Ripley County Library book, "Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War", there is no date on this piece, but it appears to be written around the same time period as the 1970 article. Like the 1970 article there is no mention of civilians killed or Colonel Righter. But there are areas in which the T.L. Wright Jr. article found in the book "Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War" differ from the version published in the Doniphan - Prospect news in 1970. Is it not legitimate as wel
It appears that in later years T.L. Wright Jr. decided to cite more official sources for his revised work, "Doniphan: No Man's Land in the Civil War" and his version of the Wilson Massacre seems to follow other versions in the "Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War" book found in the Ripley County Library. This does not make his original version any less valid. Remember the 1929 version quoted long time residents of Ripley County who lived in the area.
No one knows why T.L. Wright Jr chose not to include these sources in the two other versions of his paper in later years.
Mr. Burson's criticism seems to be centered around Colonel William H. Righter himself and whether or not he was a real Colonel. In a personal letter sent to me by Ray Burson entitled: "Jerry Ponder's Sources for the Wilson Massacre and other Tales" Bursonwrites:
"The tale: That William Harmon Righter was the founder and Colonel of the 15th Missouri Cavalry, CSA , captured at Pocahontas , AR with Gen. Jeff Thompson and then sat out the rest of the war in St. Louis. Righter is a prominent figure in Ponder's books on the 15th Missouri Cavalry, The Battle of Chalk Bluff and Maj. Gen. John S. Marmaduke.
Historians have not found any record of Righter's service in the CSA and there is not mention of it in his biographic sketches and three obituaries. He is not mentioned in the OR with the Capture of Thompson or elsewhere. He was merely a Southern sympathizer. Ponder got the VA {Veterans Administration} to provide a headstone which he had placed in the Doniphan City cemetery for Righter without providing Righter's service record" (9)
A “Post It” note was attached to the letter which reads:
"Mr. Lacy , Here's the real scope of Ponder's mischief. See IV- what does creating fake colonels add to the story of Southern valor during the Civil War? Regards, Ray Burson"
The fact that Burson has stated that no service record of Righter in the CSA has been found doesn't mean that Righter did not serve in some capacity. As stated at the beginning of this article, this was not uncommon, many men "took to the brush" and fought as informal companies of partisans. It is extremely doubtful that the Veterans Administration would have provide a headstone for Colonel Righter, free of charge, without some kind of documentation that Righter served in some capacity during the war.
In Jean Ponder's story "Doniphan During the Civil War", she states that:
"There is an amusing anecdote told about a group of southern sympathizers who lived in Doniphan. Living in the town at that time was a man by the name of W.H. Ryder, who claimed he was from Virginia. -- 'A gentleman from Virginia - drunk or sober.' One day all of these southern sympathizers were gathered in the town. Suddenly, without any warning, a division of the Union Army marched into town. Caught unprepared, the Southerns had to 'take to the bushes' for their lives. As Ryder was the fastest runner of them all and got to safety first, the rest of them immediately made him their colonel." (10)
If these men were ordinary citizens, then why were they afraid, why did they run? If they were nothing more than ordinary citizens, then why were they gathered in town? What was the intention of the gathering?
The fact that obituaries about Righter did not mention any military service is not proof positive that he did not fight. After all Colonel Timothy Reeves, after the war, was reluctant to discuss his war time experiences, stating that "he wished to be remembered as a good preacher, not a civil war hero", obituaries about him made no mention of his military experience. (11)
Jerry Ponder said in his research that Righter's commission came from Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson. Ponder's critics state that Thompson made no record of this. Is it possible that this could have happened? It is entirely possible. In his book "Thisis the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", Thompson himself writes that:
"About the 1st of July 1861, Cyrus Black and Miles Ponder of Ripley County, Missouri came down to Pocohontas {Arkansas} to inform me that the citizens of Ripley and Carter counties were meeting at Martins-burg to organize a Battalion and desired me to come up and take command" (12)
Thompson further states that he was elected to command the battalion and that Aden Lowe was not a candidate because of the strict discipline that he enforced before Thompson's arrival. One of Jeff Thompson's first acts as commander of the Ripley County Battalion, was to, start enlisting men as Partisan rangers. Thompson writes:
"I saw at this time the necessity of mounted troops even for my small command, and I authorized James F. White to raise as many men to act as Partizans and Flankers , as he could find with good horses: (13)
Sam Hildebrand, who later became known as a Missouri Bushwhacker, is another partisan that was given a commission by General M. Jeff Thompson. In his autobiography Hildebrand wrote:
"As soon as I could gain admission to the General’s headquarters I did so, and he received me very kindly. He listened very attentively to me as I proceeded to state my case to him - how my brother had been murdered, how I had barely escaped the same fate, and how I had finally been driven from the country.
General THOMPSON reflected a few moments, then seizing a pen he rapidly wrote off a few lines and handing it to me he said, “here, I give you a Major’s commission; go where you please, take what men you can pick up, fight on your own hook, and report to me every six months.” (14)
Even though Hildebrand received a Major's commission from Thompson, the act is not mentioned in "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson". Nor is it mentioned in "General M. Jeff Thompson's Letter Book July 1861-June1862", written by Jim McGhee, therefore the fact that there is no record of Righter's commission, doesn't mean that he was not given one by Thompson.
Yet there is another possibility in this story. If there was a record of Colonel Righter's or Sam Hildebrand's commissions given by M. Jeff Thompson, the records might have very well been destroyed at the time of M. Jeff Thompson's capture in Pocahontas, Arkansas, on August 22, 1863. In the book, "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson", Thompson writes:
"Kay spread out my maps to examine them and by -the -way I had the best set of maps that I saw during the war, for I had all kinds of military information on them, and the name and status of nearly every man in Southeast Missouri. I sat down in my shirt sleeves to copy some drawings, about 4 P.M. We heard horses running. I did not look up, but Kay did and shouted ; "By George , here's the Feds." I sprang to my feet, and sure enough they were within forty yards, with a string of them as far as the eye could reach, all coming at full speed. I gasped as if my heart would jump out of my mouth, but instantly sat down again, and said:, Kay, burn those maps." (15)
The only flaw in the Linzy Dudley, T.L Wright Jr.'s 1929 document, and Ponder's writings that I could find is the fact that Righter was not captured directly with Thompson. Again quoting "This is the War Experiences of Brigadier General M. Jeff Thompson" Thompson writes of being brought to Doniphan , Missouri in route to Pilot Knob, Missouri that:
"There were only five military prisoners, being Kay, Train, McDonald , Miller and myself, but there were a large number of people , men and boys, brought into camp to prevent them from carrying the news". (16)
Righter could have very well have been in the latter group. Perhaps this is the reason that Lindzy Dudley told Charles Booker in 1918 that:
"Colonel Righter was captured with General Thompson" (17)
In the book "The Civil War in Ripley County , Missouri" it states that Colonel W.H. Righter following his capture was:
"…was taken to Gratiot Prison in St. Louis. There he agreed not to further take up arms and was paroled. He remained in St. Louis the remainder of the war, reading law. His wife, Anna Wright Righter, died there in February 1864. When the war ended, Colonel Righter returned to Ripley County and, in 1866, was elected as the state representative from Ripley County. Because of his Confederate service, the General Assembly refused to seat him and appointed a "stand -in" to represent the county...In 1867 Colonel Righter went to Mississippi and raised cotton, but he returned to Ripley County the same year and built the Bay City Mils on Current River" and that, "As soon as the Missouri constitution permitted former Confederates to practice law in the state Righter leased the mills and opened a law office in Doniphan. He was considered an excellent lawyer and had a large practice. He was elected prosecuting attorney for Ripley County in 1876" (18)
The Thursday Sept. 2d, 1909 issue of "Twice a Month Magazine" confirms that Righter:
"returned to St. Louis October 1863, planted cotton in Mississippi in 1866-67 and returned to Ripley County in 1868" (19)
"Twice a Month Magazine" also stated that :
"Colonel Righter is a typical Southern gentleman possessing nearly all their strongest characteristics. During the Reconstruction days of the late 60's and early 70's he had many "warm skirmishes" with the "carpet baggers" his county contained about 300 Democratic voters who were "slow to come under the ban". Leaving it in the hands of about 12 Republicans to handle its affairs". (20)
Righter was elected to the State Legislature in 1882, after Reconstruction, when former Confederates were once again allowed to hold office. (21)
Even without the discussion of what role Colonel William Harmon Righter played in the War Between the States, there is plenty of other evidence that proves the "Wilson Massacre" could have happened. Yankee atrocities happened throughout the Missouri Ozarks during the war and fighting between warring factions was both personal and brutal.
On a U.S. Forestry Service website entitled, "History of the Irish Wilderness", a detailed description of Union policy toward Missouri Southerners living in the Southeast Missouri Ozarks is given.
The website cites the War of the Rebellions: Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, one entry in particular shows proof that the women of the area were looked down upon and treated badly by the occupying Union soldiers. Captain Robert McElroy of the 3rd Missouri State Militia (Union) wrote that:
"I am of the opinion that the women in that region are even more daring and treacherous, and in fact, worse than the men, as we found in their possession a number of newly made rebel uniforms, etc. (22)
Jerry Ponder's critics cite eye-witness accounts of Union soldiers who were present at the Wilson Massacre and stated that all of the prisoners were well cared for. But reading through the U.S. Forestry Service's "The History of the Irish Wilderness" , which cites the official records of the War of the Rebellions, one will find that anyone who was even "suspected" of being a "Bushwhacker" was taken prisoner. In Captain Boyd's (who was a Union Scout) report he states that:
"…found fresh trail of horses, followed them on Jack's Fork to the residence of Miles Stephens and brother, Jack Stephens, whom' I'm satisfied were Bushwhackers. Burned the house." (23)
Anyone "suspected" of harboring or aiding a Bushwhacker had their property burned, furthermore, in Captain John Boyd's report of the 6th Provisional Regiment EMM (Union) one will find between November 4 - 9 , 1863 ,there were over 23 houses burned , and 10 men killed, by these Union troops, the majority of which were prisoners who "tried to escape" and were shot. (24)
All of this occurred little over a month before the "Wilson Massacre" and we are supposed to believe that the Union militia treated Reeves men and local civilians any better on December 25, 1863?
There are other pieces of evidence that suggest that the "Wilson Massacre" did happen. At the Stoddard County Civil War Cemetery in Bloomfield, Missouri, there are monuments erected in honor of Southern soldiers and civilians who were killed during the War Between the States. The monuments are unique due to the fact that they have detailed information about the individual on the front of the monument, name, rank unit, etc. and on the back of the monument a detailed description of where and how the individual died.
One states on the front of the monument: "PVT. , Thomas McKinney, Co. A, 15th Mo. Reg. Cav. CSA. July 16, 1845 - Dec. 25, 1863." The back of the monument reads: "Killed in Action, Ripley County, Mo".
Another monument is more specific. The front reads: "In memory of , PVT. , Jacob Foster, Co. A, 15th Mo. Cav. , April 18, 1830- December 25, 1863."
The back of the monument reads: "Died of Wounds, Received At, Christmas Dinner, Doniphan Mo., "Wilson Massacre" (25)
If one looks at the events following the "Wilson Massacre" a clear picture begins to develop that something "very significant" happened on December 25, 1863 in Ripley County , Missouri. An event so drastic, that the effects of it would be felt throughout the rest of the War Between the States in Missouri, and even after the war had ended.
First of all something must have been weighing very heavily upon Major Wilson's mind for in March of 1864 he told his nephew, while he was on furlough:
"If you ever hear of me being taken prisoner by the guerilla Tim Reeves you may count me as dead. I know I shall never get away from him alive. I have broken up his recruiting operations three times." (26)
Was Wilson worried about his life because he had broken up Reeves' recruiting operations? Or did he fear retribution for something much worse, that he did not want his family to know about?
One must not discount the fact that that during the General Sterling Price's Missouri Expedition of 1864, at the Battle of Pilot Knob, Missouri:
"Maj. James Wilson, Third Cavalry Missouri State Militia, after being wounded was captured on Pilot Knob, and subsequently with six of his gallant men was brutally murdered by order of a rebel field officer of the day." (27)
In an article entitled: "No Heroes On Either Side" written by Ponder critic Ray Burson and published in the Prospect-News (Doniphan Missouri's local newspaper) and dated Wednesday, July 16,2003 , another Ponder critic Kirby Ross attributes Major Wilson'sdeath to the burning of Doniphan, Missouri.
"Ross , whose article on the burning of Doniphan will be in an upcoming issue of North - South magazine, linked Wilson's death to the destruction of Doniphan "which had taken place earlier, two weeks to the day." (28)
However, in the "Report of Confederate General J.O. Shelby C. S. Army, Commanding Division. AUGUST 29-DECEMBER 2, 1864. Price's Missouri Expedition."
It appears that General Shelby administered justice to the perpetrators who were responsible for the of burning Doniphan, almost as quickly as the act was committed. Shelby wrote that:
"On the 12th of September I moved camp from Sulphur Rock, Ark., toward Pocahontas in anticipation of the arrival of the army, and on the 19th, after having received my instructions, started for Missouri, and encamped in Doniphan. Before arriving there, however, couriers from Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson, of Marmaduke's command, brought information that 100 Federals were in the town and pressing him back. I immediately started forward sufficient re-enforcements, but the enemy fled before reaching them, burning the helpless and ill-fated town. That night I dispatched 150 men under Lieutenant-Colonel Johnson to pursue the vandals. They came upon them early the next morning [20th], attacked, scattered, and killed many of them. I pushed on then rapidly for Patterson, destroying on the way the bloody rendezvous of the notorious Leeper, and on the morning of the 22d I surrounded and charged in upon the town. Its garrison, hearing of my advance, retreated hastily, but not before many were captured and killed, a
Confederate General M. Jeff Thompson offered another reason for the execution of Major James Wilson. As mentioned earlier in this article, Thompson was in a Union prison at the time of the "Wilson Massacre", but he was exchanged in time to make his way back to Missouri to join Confederate General Sterling Price's 1864 Missouri Expedition.
In May of 1865 Thompson surrendered 10,000 men at Jacksonport , Arkansas. Out of those 10,000 men, only one was not paroled. Confederate Colonel, Timothy Reeves, Commander of the 15th Missouri Cavalry, CSA. Thompson wrote that:
" In a few days we finished all the paroles , except that of Timothy C. Reeves, whom Col. Davis would not agree to parole , considering him outlawed for the shooting of Major Williams { Major Wilson, this was a misprint} and five men on the Price Raid; but I must state for Col. Reeves, that he was as good a man and soldier as any in the command , and his shooting of that party was entirely justifiable; only that it should have been by such an order and form that retaliation would have been avoided.
I solicited to have this party turned over to me, that I might have them shot in due form, and Reeves men refrained from killing them for three days in hopes that I would get them; but responsibilities of this kind were not to our commanders liking , and they were turned over to Reeves to guard, with a pretty full knowledge that they would be shot.
I knew Reeves men , nearly everyone of them, and the provocation was bitter, for I had seen the blackened ruins and lonely graves in Ripley county with my own eyes." (30)
Is it possible that Jerry Ponder made some mistakes in his research? Yes. Everyone makes mistakes. But Jerry Ponder was a retired military intelligence officer, and far from inept.
Is it possible that his two greatest critics Ray Burson and Kirby Ross are biased in their research?
In an online webpage entitled, "The Military Record of Major James Wilson", author Willard S. Bacon writes that:
"Mr. Kirby Ross who had many relatives who served in the 3rd MSM, provided immeasurable help, in finding obscure sources and documents, from many repositories." (31)
(Major Wilson, was the commander of the 3rd Missouri State Militia, which attacked Pulliam's Farm on December 25, 1863)
Friends of Jerry Ponder have also told me that Ray Burson, was not originally from Ripley County, Missouri, but from a Northern state, and that it is rumored his wife is a descendant of one of the 14 families in Ripley, County Missouri that were pro-Union during the war. I have attempted to contact Burson in the hopes that he could shed some light on this subject. But as of yet he has not provided any answers to this question.
Perhaps Jerry Ponder said it best when he said that:
"Some questions will probably never be satisfactorily explained" (32)
Sources:
“Between Missourians: Ripley County in the Civil War” , Ponder, Ozark Watch Magazine , Vol. IV, No. 4, Spring 1991 a.Linzy Dudley: The Time of the War pgs. 1,15 1918
"Doniphan: No Man's Land During the Civil War" T.L. Wright Jr. ,1929, Doniphan High School
Article entitled “First Settlers of Ripley County” found in the book “History and Families of Ripley County Missouri”, Ripley County Historical Society
Kirby Ross post made August 14th ,2005 on the Missouri in the Civil War message board.
Ibid.
posted by Kirby Ross on Wednesday August 31'st, 2005, Missouri in the Civil War message board.
M. Jeff Thompson “This is the Story of the War Experiences of Brig. General M. Jeff Thompson”, pg.103, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University
posted by Kirby Ross on Wednesday August 31'st, 2005, Missouri in the Civil War message board.
Personal correspondence from Ray Burson, Ripley County Historical Society entitled, “Jerry Ponder’s Sources for the Wilson Massacre And Other Tales”
Doniphan and Ripley County in the Civil War, Ripley County Library, Doniphan, Missouri
“War Hero Timothy Reeves wanted to be remembered as ‘good preecher’, Daily American Republic Newspaper
“This is the War Experiences of Brig. General M. Jeff Thompson”, M. Jeff Thompson, Kent Library, Southeast Missouri State University, pgs. 21-22
Benjamin Lewis died as a POW in St. Louis after being captured at a Christmas dinner with Confederate soldiers, family, and Union POW's. Wilson attacked and killed many.
- The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies. ; Series 1 - Volume 22 (Part II), pages 749-750
PILOT KNOB, Mo., December 23, 1863.
General Fisk:
GENERAL: It is reported to me today that Centreville was attacked and captured yesterday by Reves, 200 strong, and that he immediately retreated south. I have a battalion on his trail today. R. G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding Post. ****
SAINT Louis, Mo., December 23, 1863.
Col. R. G. WOODSON: I cannot see how Reves could get at Centreville without the knowledge of Captain Leeper. I can’t credit the report. You will at once organize an expedition that will go in search of Reves, and follow him. It seems to me that with proper vigor he might be exterminated or driven out of Southeastern Missouri. You have sufficient force to enable you to keep after him until he will trouble us no more.
CLINTON B. FISK, Brigadier General.
****
Note.The expedition is already on the road. H. G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding. ****PILOT KNOB, Mo., December 23, 1863. Lient. W. T. CLARKE, Aide-de.Camp: In answer to yours of this date, I have to state that at present I am unable to give many particulars. My information of the catastrophe at Centreville comes from a citizen living near. He states that Reves (estimated at from 200 to 400) came into Centreville yesterday about 2 o’clock, completely surprising the garrison, taking them all prisoners, and again immediately moved on to the south. H G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding Post.****
PILOT KNOB, Mo., December 24, 1863.
General FISK:
Major Wilson, with all the effective force of the Third, is after Reves, about 200. My instructions are to follow him to hell, and get the prisoners back, at least. A few of them have come in. It is even so Company C is captured, excepting a few men. I hardly believed it when I telegraphed you yesterday. They were surprised, building stables. No light, a few scattering shots, and a few wounded; none killed. A boy, just reported says he was shot at; returned the fire with small shot, wounding a rebel; he escaped on foot. I have sent a reconnoitering party to Centreville to report the state of affairs there. I will know this evening. Had not I better go this evening?
H G. WOODSON, Colonel, Commanding Post.
****
HEADQUARTERS SAINT LOUIS DISTRICT,
Saint Louis, Mo., December 24, 1863.
Col. H. G. Woodson, Pilot Knob:
I am greatly mortified with the Centreville affair. Where were Captain [S. A. C.] Bartlett’s pickets? I fear that the most criminal neglect has allowed this disaster to come upon us. I trust that there will be no failure in wiping out the apparent disgrace. Take hold of the pursuit and extermination yourself.
CLINTON B. FISK, Brigadier General.
****
The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies. ; Series 1 - Volume 22 (Part I) Page 783-784
DECEMBER 23-25, 1863.Attack on Centreville, Mo., and pursuit of the Confederates, including skirmish (25th) at Pulliams.
REPORTS.
No. 1. Maj. Oliver ID. Greene, Assistant Adjutant-General, U. S. Army.
No. 2.Maj. James Wilson, Third Missouri State Militia Cavalry.
No. 1. Report of Maj. Oliver D. Greene, Assistant Adjutant General, U. S. Army.
HEADQUARTERS DEPARTMENT OF THE MISSOURI, Saint Louis, December 28, 1863.
GENERAL: An entire company of the Third Missouri State Militia was captured at Centreville, Reynolds County, by guerrillas, under Reves, on the 23d instant. Major Wilson, of the Third Missouri State Militia, followed the party, and, at 3 p. m. Christmas day, he overtook and attacked; killed and wounded 35, captured 150 prisoners (13 officers), all equipage and ammunition, and 125 horses; recaptured all prisoners. Our loss, 1 killed and 8 wounded.
OLIVER D. GREENE, Assistant Adjutant General.
Major General SCHOFIELD, West Point, N. Y
No. 2. Report of Maj. James Wilson, Third Missouri State Militia Cavalry.
HDQRS: THIRD MISSOURI STATE MILITIA CAVALRY, Pilot Knob, Mo., December 30, 1863.
SIR: In compliance with your orders of the 23d instant, I left Pilot Knob, in command of 200 men, about 10 a. in. December~23, 1863, arriving at Patterson at 9 p. m. Left there at daylight on the 24th, and encamped at Long’s at 9 p. m., having traveled 35miles. Marched again at 3 a. m. 25th instant; passed through Doniphan, taking a southwesterly direction toward the Arkansas line. Eight miles from Doniphan, I captured 2 pickets; 2 miles farther I captured one other post, and still 2 miles farther on came upon a rolling picket or patrol, and run them off of the road, capturing 1 and compelling him to lead us to the camp of Reves.* Arriving at the camp, I divided my men into two columns, and charged upon them with my whole force. The enemy fired, turned, and threw down their arms and fled, with the exception of 30 or 35, and they were riddled with bullets or .pierced through with the saber almost instantly. The enemy lost in killed about 30; wounded mortally, 3; slightly, 2; total killed and wounded
* At Pulliams, 17 miles southwest of Doniphan.
- This essay contains a short paragraph about the circumstances surrounding Ennis Hooper's capture on Christmas Day, 1863. Doniphan Prospect-News Doniphan, Missouri Thursday, April 2, 1970 page 7 Ripley Recalled RIPLEY COUNTY--NO MANS LAND IN THE CIVILWAR By T.L. Wright
In Missouri, the Civil War was neither lost nor won. In fact, neither the Confederate nor the Union Government considered activities west of the Mississippi River of any significance. However, to those thousands who gave their lives at Wilson’ s Creek, Pilot Knob, Westport, and at many unnamed skirmishes, those encounters were most significant. Missouri had more participants in the great conflict in proportion to her population than did nay other state in the nation, North or South. One hundred thirty thousand men, or sixty percent of the eligible Missouri males, were in service. They favored the Union almost four to one.
Throughout the four years of the war [sic], the vicinity of Doniphan and Ripley County was a virtual no man’s land. There were no major battles--only skirmishes. Both Union and Confederate troops operated in and around the area, since Doniphan and Pitman’s Ferry were vital geographic locations because of their necessary Current River crossings: Pitman’ s Ferry on the Nachitoches Trail, presently known as the Old Military Road, and Doniphan on the Greenville-to-Pocahontas road. These roads were Southeast Missouri’ s main highways. The Official Record of the War of the Rebellion contains many items of local interest to Ripley County residents. Brigadie r General M. Jeff Thompson organized and commanded the Ripley County Battalion of the Confederate Army. This unit was active for the most part at Bloomfield, New Madrid, Cape Girardeau, Sikeston, Fredericktown, Pitman’ s Ferry and at Pocahontas, Ark.
In the Battle of Fredericktown, October 21, 1861, Col. Aden Lowe of Doniphan was leading an assault with his Confederate Infantry Regiment on a large force of Union troops when he was hit in the head by musket fire. He was killed instantly. Col. Lowe was the great grandfather of Chester “Bud” Ponder, current publisher of The Prospect News. Also mentioned for gallant action in this battle were Colonels Waugh and Hedgepeth of Doniphan. After this battle, the Rebels withdrew to Pitman’ s Ferry.
During the winter of 1861-62, numerous skirmishes occurred over the occupation of Doniphan. The area was stripped of all produce, and many families suffered for the lack of the necessities of life. Doniphan inhabitants, mostly Rebel sympathizers, feared the Federal troops would destroy the town (a catastrophe which later happened), though Captain W.T. Leeper had promised destruction would not take place so long as the townspeople remained loyal to the Union. General Jeff Thompson, in writing of the severewinter of 1861-62, mentioned men with names familiar today, such as Kelley, Peterson, Wise and Brannon, as ( patriotic gentlemen who are willing to serve anytime, anywhere) , and who had remained with him though others had left for their homes when the regiment disbanded at the end of their original enlistment.
On April 1, 1862, a skirmish of considerable size took place at the Doniphan Ford on Current River. This engagement lasted for two days, and many men on both sides were killed, wounded or captured. This action followed an order from Major General H.W. Halleck of St. Louis to Col. W.P. Carlin at Pilot Knob to occupy Doniphan and capture Pocahontas. A month earlier, Col. Carlin had reported that the Rebels had removed all ferries on the Current River.
Forces led by Capt. Leeper, a Union officer from Wayne County, and Col. Timothy Reeves, a Rebel from Ripley County, were often engaged in battle. It is reported that one cold, wintry night Reeves caught Leeper above Doniphan and made the Captain and his troops swim across the river in their underwear, despite the cold. For the November Election of 1863, Federal troops were dispatched to Poplar Bluff, Doniphan and Alton for the express purpose of guarding the polls and stopping the bushwhacking in and around Doniphan.
The worst incident of bloodshed in Ripley County during the entire war followed this order. On Christmas Day, 1863, Major James Wilson and 200 Union troops from Fort Davidson passed through Doniphan traveling on a southwesterly course toward the Pulliam Farm, 17 miles from town near Warm Springs, Ark., where Confederate Col. Reeves and his cavalry were celebrating the holiday. Major Wilson’ s forces surprised the Confederates at dinner, killing 35 and taking 112 prisoners.
Almost a year later, Major Wilson met his fate while defending Fort Davidson against Confederate troops during Col. Price’ s Rebel invasion of Missouri. The Major became trapped in a ravine on the east slope of Sheppard’ s Mountain. Moments later, when his identify became known, he was summarily shot by a hastily formed Rebel firing squad. In the squad were some of the survivors of Price’ s [sic] Christmas Day assault on the Pulliam Farm.
By the summer of 1864, the Confederate Army had suffered defeat on all fronts. In desperation, Lt. Gen. E. Kirby Smith, Commander of the Trans-Mississippi Department of the Confederate Army, issued orders to Maj. Gen. Sterling Price to invade Missouri andtake possession of the State. In Southwest Arkansas, Price organized his army of 12,000 men and 14 pieces of artillery, and left Camden on August 28 to rendezvous at Pocahontas in two weeks with three Confederate Divisions commanded by Major Generals James F. Fagan, John S. Marmaduke and Brig. Gen. Joseph O. Shelby. After three days in war-torn Pocahontas, repairing more than 300 wagons and shoeing cavalry horses, the Rebels began their invasion of Missouri.
They advanced in three columns, intending to junction at Fredericktown. Marmaduke entered the State at Pitman’ s Ferry near Current View and traveled North along the Old Military Road. By September 19, he was encamped at Poplar Bluff. Gen. Price’ s Headquarters Column, with Fagan’ s Division, moved up the center, camping that same night on the old Indian Ford, six miles downstream from Doniphan. Today, this place is known as the Ruff’ s Ferry area. Gen. Jo Shelby’ s Cavalry Division took the left route, the old Doniphan-to-Pocahontas road. They arrived in Doniphan via the Current River Ford at 3 p.m. on September 19 to find the town in flames. Only the Methodist Church, which had been converted into a hospital, and the residence of Col. Aden Lowe’ s widowhad been spared. The town had been fired that morning by a scouting party of 100 Union troops of the Third Missouri Militia Cavalry led by a Lt. Pape who had been warned of the Rebel invasion. Gen. Shelby dispatched 150 cavalrymen under Lt
Early next morning the Rebels came upon the Union scouts encamped at Ponder’ s Mill on Little Black River. They attacked, and killed or captured all but ten of the Federal troopers.; The dead of that fight are buried in the old military Cemetery northeastof Fairdealing. Two days later, Shelby’ s forces destroyed the Union fort at Patterson. On September 24, Shelby’ s Cavalry was dispatched from Fredericktown toward Farmington and Potosi with orders to destroy the railroad from St. Louis to Pilot Knob.
Meanwhile, the Divisions under Fagan and Marmaduke made an assault on Fort Davidson near Pilot Knob. During the brief 20 minutes of battle, 1500 men were killed. Most were Confederates. The remaining Confederates regrouped and prepared to attack again at dawn. That night, Brig. Gen. Thomas Ewing, Commander of the Union Fort, quietly withdrew, leaving behind only a small detail of horsemen to blow up the ammunition magazine before daybreak.
The Pilot Knob battle marked the beginning of the end of Price’ s invasion of Missouri. Conditions worsened until Price was literally chased back into Northwest Arkansas. He reached that state only through the gallant protection afforded him by Gen. Jo Shelby’ s Cavalry, the same Unit which had avenged the destruction of Doniphan a few weeks earlier.
This account is based upon the “ War Of The Rebellion”, Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, published in 1885 by Government Printing Office, as well as the following books: “Shelby And His Men” by John Edward’ s, and “ Pilot Knob, The Thermopylaeof the West” by Cyrus A. Peterson and Joseph Mills Hanson.
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1826 - 1864 (38 years)
