Nodaway County, Missouri - Chapter 10: Military History of Nodaway County, 1910

Chapter 10: Military History of Nodaway County

It is unfortunate for the author of a local history of any county in Missouri, in common with any state south of "Mason and Dixon's line," that no more accurate, detailed and complete record concerning the various regi¬ ments and companies of troops that served in the Civil war has ever been published. The only reason is a good one. generally speaking, for in states that had about as many men on the Confederate side as on the Union side, and who were contending as devastating forces on the very soil of the com¬ monwealth in which they enlisted, it is not to be wondered at that many of the rolls and muster sheets and other records of the military movements of such a state were lost and destroyed by battling armies during that memor¬ able four-year struggle. The county officers and the newspaper press of Missouri also paid but little attention to such matters, until it was too late to recover many valuable war records, which today would be greatly prized by the sons of the soldiers who fought in that great civil contest. In the utter absence of any history of the various companies that went forth from Noda¬ way county, on both the Union and Confederate sides, it is only possible to give the reader of local history a faint idea of the volunteer soldiers who went out from this county from April, 1861, to the close of the Rebellion. Nearly all of the old men are deceased and the state archives are silent as the tomb concerning rosters of men by counties. It is, therefore, left to a few who remember those trying days, and to the searcher who may be able to here and there secure a bit of history, found in illy-kept records or paper files, to furnish any clue for the present day writer to formulate a readable, in¬ telligent and authentic account of Nodaway county and the part she took in that fierce struggle. For an example, out of a charter membership of about fifty who organized the Maryville Grand Army of the Republic, in 1882, only four or five are now living.

Again, the usual manner of copying from local newspaper files for a list of commands, of officers and men, is in this instance thwarted by reason of the fact that "bushwhackers," during the first year of the war. came into the streets of Maryville and destroyed the only paper in existence in the county - destroying its machinery and files and throwing its type into the street. There was no further attempt at editing a paper until about 1866, after the war was ended ; hence there can be no knowledge gained from such sources commonly employed in compiling a roster of men.

Nodaway county was organized when it had but few settlers, in 1845, just prior to the war with Mexico (1846-48), hence but very few, if any, served as soldiers in that war. It is true, however, that quite a number of the later early settlers of the county had seen service in that struggle, but they have long since died, leaving behind no record of the command in which they served, while here and there in some lone, secluded spot in a country cemetery within the county may be seen mounds covering their forms, but usually unmarked by any tombstone or inscription noting that they took part in that war. It is safe to say that few, if indeed any, Mexican soldiers went as voluteers from this part of Missouri, for it was then a very new, thinly settled country.

Returning again to the subject of the Civil war, and what Nodaway county did in its behalf, either for or against the Union cause, it should be said that as a rule the county was loyal to the country's flag.

Among the scores of battles fought on Missouri soil, those nearest to Nodaway county were the engagements at Albany, Gentry county; Inde¬ pendence, east of Kansas City; Lexington, in Lafayette county, and the skirmish at Kirksville.

To give the reader an idea of the sentiment held in many parts of Mis¬ souri at that date, the response to the call for the first seventy-five thousand men asked for by President Lincoln, was answered as follows by Governor Jackson of this state:

"Sir: - Your dispatch of the 15th inst. making a call on Missouri for four regiments of men for immediate service, has been received. There can be, I apprehend, no doubt but these men are intended to form a part of the President's army to make war upon the people of the seceded states. Your requisition, in my judgment, is illegal, unconstitutional, and can not be com¬ plied with. Not one man will the state furnish to carry on such an unholy war.

On April 21, 1861, nine days after Fort Sumter was fired on, the United States arsenal at Liberty, Missouri, was seized by order of Governor Jackson. A military fund was raised by the state and on May 3, 1861, Camp Jackson was organized and one week later Sterling Price was appointed major-general of the State Guard. From that time on the citizens of Missouri took sides and hot was the contest.

It may be stated, in passing, that prior to the war this county had been fully two to one Democratic, but in 1865, after the conflict had ended, the county was in the hands of the Republican party. The change in sentiment was great, made so largely by the influx of returned soldiers from rhe Union ranks, who here sought a home and brought their politics along with them.

The Confederate army was represented from Nodaway county by at least a part of two companies. One was raised by and in command of an ex-sheriff of the county, Thomas J. McQuiddy, from the west part of the county, and many enlisted from about Quitman and Graham. At the present time there are a few of the best citizens of Maryville who believed in the right of secession and offered their services to the Confederate side; some of these went from this county, but, generally speaking, were volunteers from other parts of the country. But with the two opposing elements in Nodaway county during the never-to-be-forgotten years of the strife, communities were set one against another, churches were divided, lodges gave up their charters, schools were allowed to be closed, business was totally demoralized and unrest prevailed in all her borders. The allies of the South - the con¬ temptible organization, without law or authority, known as the "bush¬ whackers" - came in from other counties and had some following in this county, and they destroyed much valuable property and threatened death to the loyal citizens, thus making it a very uncomfortable section in which to reside. Again, many of the original settlers were from Southern states, and naturally were in full sympathy with the sentiments of secession Tin's had a tendency to make matters worse. When the war was over, then came the constitutional amendments to be voted upon, which made more local strife. Many of the pioneers were disfranchised by reason of their sympathy with the South during the war. Later, they were granted the right of suffrage and since then the topic of the war is seldom discussed, but he who wore the blue and he who donned the butternut-gray now reside in harmony, side by side, and work for the common cause of developing the unexcelled soil of Nodaway county and all of her various industries.

As to the number of soldiers who went into the Union army from this county, it is difficult to determine at this late date. There were parts of companies recruited from Maryville, and many citizens of this county enlisted at points outside the county, and hence are not properly credited in the adju¬ tant general's reports as being from Nodaway county. On the contrary, there were a good many men who drifted into this county, some from Iowa border counties, as well as from Nebraska and Kansas. The reports will show these names as from Maryville, when as a matter of fact they never resided in this county. Hence the confusion in trying to compile an accurate list.

It should be added that Missouri, while badly mixed in her "war opinions" from '61 to '66, showed a praiseworthy loyalty to the two prin¬ ciples that she espoused. More than fifty thousand entered the Confederate army from this state, while one hundred and nine thousand one hundred and eleven men are credited to the state as serving in the Union army, of which eight thousand three hundred and forty-four were colored men, most, if not all. of whom had been held as slaves on Missouri soil.

The Spanish-American War

The last great war in which soldiers were active from Nodaway county was that between the United States and Spain in 1898. The subjoined proclamation from William McKinley, President of the United States at the time, will serve as a preface to what will follow on this subject :

"Whereas, a joint resolution of Congress was approved on the twentieth day of April, 1898, entitled, 'Joint Resolution for the Recognition of the Independence of the People of Cuba, Demanding that the Government of Spain Relinquish Its Authority and Government in the Island of Cuba, and to Withdraw Its Land and Naval Forces from Cuba and Cuban Waters, and Directing the President of the United States to use his Land and Naval Forces of the United States to Carry These Resolutions Into Effect and,

"Whereas, by an act of Congress entitled 'An Act to Provide for Tem¬ porarily Increasing the Military Establishment of the United States in Time of War and for Other Purposes,' approved April 22, 1898, the President is authorized, in order to raise a volunteer army, to issue his proclamation call¬ ing for volunteers to serve in the army of the United States;

"Now, therefore, I, William McKinley, President of the United States, by virtue of the power in me vested by the constitution and the laws, and deeming sufficient occasion to exist, have thought fit to call forth and do hereby call forth, volunteers to the aggregate number of one hundred and twenty-five thousand, in order to carry into effect the purpose of the said resolution ; the same to be apportioned, as far as practicable, among the several states and territories and the District of Columbia, according to the popu¬ lation, and to serve two years, unless sooner discharged. The details for this object will be immediately communicated to the proper authorities through the war department.

"Done at the city of Washington, this twenty-third day of April, A. D. 1898, and of the independence of the United States the one hundred and twenty-second.

The state of Missouri sent to this war (which was brought on over the sinking of the United States battleship "Maine,'' in the waters of Havana harbor, April, 1898) a total number of eight thousand one hundred and nine soldiers, made up of almost six regiments of infantry, cavalry and artillery. The President made a second call for seventy-five thousand men and this was responded to quickly by Missouri and recruits went forth from Nodaway to make up the quota. These men were made up from the National Guards of the state, who, almost to a man, enlisted as soldiers in the cause, hence really the National Guards made up, for the most part, the volunteer Ameri¬ can soldiery in the late war with Spain.

The Fourth Missouri Regiment was the one in which the men from Nodaway county served, and Company E, under Capt. I. V. McMillan, of Maryville, was the company in which they served until the close of the war, which was short, but very decisive in its far-reaching results on the history of nations. The American flag has stood far higher in the eyes of all coun¬ tries since that glorious victory in 1898, when gallant Dewey sunk the entire Spanish fleet in Manila bay.

As has been indicated, the Fourth Regiment was organized from the Fourth Regiment Infantry, National Guards of Missouri, and was mustered into the service of the United States at Benton Barracks, Missouri, May 16, 1898, to serve for two years unless sooner discharged. Company E was re¬ cruited at Maryville and all but a few of its members were citizens of Nod¬ away county at the date of the war. Capt. Ira V. McMillan, who headed the

National Guard and had drilled the company for years and had kept it up as against all kinds of discouragements in way of state appropriations, by giving local talent entertainments in order to meet the actual expenses, made an effi¬ cient officer and his record is one he may well be proud of. He still resides at Maryville, Missouri. He also later acted as judge advocate for the Fourth Regiment Missouri National Guards. It was said by a celebrated military man and one who had traveled and seen splendid bodies of soldiers on drill and in parade, in both American and foreign lands, that the Fourth Missouri Regiment in the Spanish-American war was the finest set of men he had ever witnessed in military bearing.

Roster Of Company E.

Ira V. McMillan, captain; N. Paul Sisson, first lieutenant; William H. Critchfield, second lieutenant; Harry D. Snyder, first sergeant; Ross H. McMillan, quartermaster sergeant; Charles A. Await, sergeant; William T. Porter, sergeant ; Orville A. Bennett, sergeant ; Alvin R. Reasoner, sergeant ; Henry Moore, sergeant; Lewis H. Munn, corporal; Elmer H. Foresman, cor¬ poral; James F. Pixler, corporal; Arthur Miller, corporal; Victor L. Haw¬ kins, corporal; Victor L. Cooper, corporal; Follis A. Wood, corporal; Marvin E. Donahue, corporal ; William G. McCracken, corporal ; Robert Adams, corporal; William O. Await, corporal; Frank Butherus, musician; William A. Lippman, musician; Todd Johnston, artificer; James W. Wilson, wagoner.

The Fourth Regiment

From official reports, the following is gleaned concerning the history of the Fourth Missouri Regiment, including Company E, from Nodaway county : Company A was made up at Carrollton ; Company B, at Mound City; Company C, at St. Joseph; Company D. at Bethany; Company E, at Maryville; Company F. at Hannibal; Company G, at Chillicothe ; Company K. at St. Joseph.

All the commissioned officers of the Fourth Regiment Missouri National Guard, excepting the commanding officer of Company F, volunteered under orders from the adjutant-general of Missouri, dated April 2, 1898. The several companies were ordered to their armories and rationed and lodged by company officers and held in readiness for the call of the President. By telegraphic orders, dated May 9, 1898, the regiment was rendezvoused at Camp Stephens, Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and mustered into the service by First Lieutenant Hardman of the Tenth LTnited States Cavalry, assistant inspector National Guard of Missouri, on the 16th day of May, 1898. and was composed of forty-eight officers and five hundred and fifty-nine enlisted men. The regiment was then sent to Camp Alger, Virginia, leaving Jefferson Barracks May 25th, arriving at Dunn Loring, Virginia, at eleven o'clock in the morning of May 27th, marching from there to camp, a distance of two miles and a half. A week was taken to clean the camp grounds of pine thicket obstructions. The regiment was assigned to the Second Brigade, the corps commander being Major-Gen. William M. Graham; the division command was Gen. George W. Davis; the brigade commander was Col. John W. Schall, of the Sixth Pennsylvania Regiment, which was a part of this corps.

On June 6, 1898, a new camp was started, this being ordered made in a piece of heavy timber a half mile to the south of the first camp. This con¬ sumed weeks of time, but was cheerfully done by the men, who needed the exercise and discipline. To go no more into detail, it may be said that Com¬ pany E was not called from this country into actual battle service, and that the following dates will show where they were stationed :

Left Maryville, Missouri, May 10, 1898; stationed at Camp Stephens, Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, from May nth to May 25th; at Camp Alger, Virginia, from May 27th to August 20th; at Camp Meade (near Middletown), Pennsylvania, from August 21st to November 14th, 1898. They were detached from the regiment from September 3d to September 29th, as "bakery guard." Were then camped at Wetherill. South Carolina, from No¬ vember 16, 1898, to February io, 1899. and were mustered out of service on the last named date.

Of the transfers and casualties, it may be stated that Charles A. Await, of Maryville, was transferred to the United States Signal Corps, June 22, 1898; Russell W. H. Cleary, transferred to the Hospital Corps June 25, 1898; William E. Gordon, of Maryville, transferred to the United States Signal Corps June 22, 1898, and died after the war. November 11, 1902; John W. Goforth, returned, but died June 7. 1904; Chandler P. Kinsey died Tune 6, 1898; Ira F. Kiser died February 5, 1905; Charles F. Lippman was transferred to the band; Hubert J. Reese was also transferred to the band service. There was one desertion in this company. All returned except the one just stated as having died in service.

Grand Army Of The Republic

At various times this military fraternity, the organization of the Union veterans of the Civil war, has had numerous posts in Nodaway county, but with the lapse of more than forty years since the Southern Confederacy sur¬ rendered to the Union forces, in the spring of 1865, the great majority of old Phiion soldiers have answered the last roll-call and passed on to their eternal camping grounds.

At this date (spring of 1910) there are three posts in existence in this county and one outpost, that of Ravemvood. The posts now in operation are the one at Maryville, the one at Burlington Junction and the one located at Hopkins.

on its rolls, at one time and another, three hundred and seventy-six different soldiers who wore the loyal blue between the years of 1861 and 1865. There are at present only one hundred members in the post in good standing. The remainder have either died or removed from the county. The present officers are George A. Hartman, commander, and Charles Hyslup, adjutant. The following have been commanders and are now titled "past commanders'' : Lyman Parcher (deceased), Scribner R. Beech, 1. B. Morrison, M. D., Ira K. Alderman, Jesse M. Goodson, M. D., Charles Hyslop, John G. Grems, Fred L. Shade, F. M. Cooper, H. E. Robinson (deceased), B. J. Benbow, Reuben Brown, John M. Kirkpatrick (deceased), Charles W. Messenger (de¬ ceased), N. Sisson, S. R. Rowley (deceased), John W- Evans, A. R. Sowers, Charles Hyslop, N. Sisson, George A. Hartman. Several of these command¬ ers have served more than one term, succeeding themselves in office in several instances.

The posts at both Burlington Junction and Hopkins are weak and in all probability will soon have to surrender their charters on account of small membership. The several Womans' Relief Corps of these various posts have for years been strong auxiliaries, and the members of the posts have greatly encouraged and benefited them by their presence. The camp-fires of these once strong posts are becoming dim with the passing of the years, but as a fraternity, America has never had a better, more patriotic and praiseworthy fraternity.

Missouri National Guard

Maryville is the home of Company F, Fourth Regiment Missouri Na¬ tional Guard. This is a military company, taking the place of old Company E, that was stationed here before the Spanish-American war. It is a well equipped, finely drilled company and it was organized June 25, 1909, with sixty-one members, including officers. They have their annual encampments and are frequently inspected by a regular United States army inspector. The state furnishes the commissary supplies, while the general government finds the arms and ordnance supplies. The company use a business block for their drill-room. The guns with which they are supplied are of the latest make and will carry a ball fully five miles, being of the improved Springfield make.

The officers of the company are as follows : Captain, E. S. Cook ; first lieutenant, C. W. Bennett ; second lieutenant, Ezra Phipps ; first sergeant. Lester A. Bennett: sergeants, Ed. E. Moore. Thurman L. Marsh, Burt C.