USA > Indiana > Sullivan County > A history of Sullivan County, Indiana, closing of the first century's history of the county, and showing the growth of its people, institutions, industries and wealth, Volume I > Part 8
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A camp meeting planned by the Democrats to take place in Jefferson township on August 19 was interfered with by heavy continuous rain, but on the following day part of the program was carried out, with Voorhees, Captain Puckett, of Clay county, Captain Van Fossen, and others, as speakers. While detained in Sullivan by the rain, Voorhees addressed the voters and arraigned the abolition party for their corrup- tion, extravagance and usurpations, and denounced their impudence in demanding to know of the Democrats what plan they would follow in restoring the Union, after the Republicans had made such a miserable failure of their attempt.
Naturally, the editor of the Democrat speaks slightingly of the Republican activities during the campaign. On September 29, 1864, he reports that "Governor Wright 'spoke his piece' last Thursday" (Sep- tember 22d), as also Dave Gooding, a renegade Democrat from Hancock county, and Colonel Washburn, their candidate for Congress. "The fact that the committee had advertised largely and arranged for meeting in the grove near town made apparent the smallness of the crowd. We have heard no one put the crowd on the grounds at more than 700.
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Colonel Jaquess made a very low-flung, abusive speech in this town last Friday (September 30th), having much to say of Jeff Davis."
The great presidential election of 1864 (in October) passed off quietly in Sullivan county. A light vote was cast, except in Hamilton township, where McClellan received 448 to Lincoln's 206. It was claimed that the Democratic soldiers were not allowed furloughs to come home and vote as were the Republicans in the ranks. But that mattered little so far as Sullivan county was concerned, since it continued to remain overwhelmingly Democratic. The vote for the principal state and county officers was as follows :
Governor-MacDonald, 2,187; Morton, 754.
Congressman-Voorhees, 2,181 ; Washburn, 750.
Circuit Judge-Eckels, 2,183 ; Brown, 751.
Prosecuting Attorney-Malott, 2,175 : Mulkey, 749. Common Pleas Judge-Patterson, 2,187 ; Maxwell, 749. Dist. Prosecuting Att'y-John T. Scott. 2.186; Boudinot. 750. State Senator-B. W. Hanna, 2,185; A. B. Crane, 750. Representative-S. G. Burton, 2,135; N. G. Buff, 747. Sheriff-Alex Snow, 2,184: William Purcell, 745.
Treasurer-John Giles, 2,181 ; T. B. Silvers, 742.
Coroner-B. B. Neal, 2,186 ; Loudermilk, 742. Surveyor-N. Thomas, 2,184; McBride, 743. Commissioner-I. W. Allen, 2,149; J. W. Hinkle, 749.
The economic aspects of the war were not less interesting and impor- tant than the political. Only those who lived through the conditions of the time can fully appreciate the stinting and deprivations that were imposed on the people. On the 3d of February, 1862, when the war had been in progress less than a year, at a sale of lands held for delin- quent taxes, the real estate of probably two hundred citizens was put
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up for sale to satisfy the taxes. The editor of the Democrat estimated that more than half of these persons allowed themselves to be returned delinquent from sheer inability to raise the money. "There is no actual suffering among our farmers, but it would astonish many to learn of the retrenchment that characterizes the household economy of the farmers of this county ; how they use rye coffee, sassafras tea, dispense entirely with sugar, etc." On another page of this same issue is printed a notice of the intention of the county commissioners to enforce the old law allow- ing the treasurer to levy on and sell personal property for taxes.
At a meeting of the citizens of Cass township in Center schoolhouse (December 8, 1862) resolutions were adopted declaring that in view of the high prices put upon goods by eastern manufacturers and speculators and the low prices brought by farm produce, that they would refuse to sell except when adequate price was paid, and that they could in large measure do without the manufactured goods of the east. They called upon other citizens of other townships to co-operate with them in this movement to resist the artificial and speculative business movements of the east. A humorous comment on this attempt appeared in the Louisville Journal, being quoted by the Democrat. "We suppose the women of Cass township," concludes the Louisville editor, "are expected to substitute tacks for pins, thorns for needles, barrel hoops for steel ones, and that the men, dispensing with buttons, mean to fasten up their breeches with tow strings."
One result of the war was the interruption of traffic between the north and the south. The commodity of all others which was needed by the north, and which the blockade of the rivers and the seaports pre- vented the north from getting, was cotton. The lack of this staple caused the people of Sullivan county to resort to a branch of agriculture which had long been in disuse, practically since pioneer days. As elsewhere Vol. 1-7
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stated, cotton was raised on a few farms by the pioneers, but its cultivation had been unknown for many years. In view of this fact, the following notice in the Democrat of April 24, 1862, is interesting :
Mr. Briggs-Sir: You may say that I have a sack of cotton seed on hand for distribution among the farmers of this county. All information necessary as to mode of culture will be furnished by calling at the railroad office. JAMES KELLEY.
The same man advertised that he had flax seed to loan to farmers. These seeds were also distributed among northern farmers by the gov- ernment, the object being to offset the loss of southern production by growing these crops in the soil of the northern states that were adapted to such crops.
In the first months of the war the patriotism natural to every people and to Americans in particular had swept large numbers into the enlisted ranks. The enthusiasm of military preparation, the display and pomp of marching soldiers, and the fascination that war always exercises over men, were strong influences at the beginning of the war, but when the reality of military life was brought home, when death and disease and hardships at the front advanced into prominence and the glories of war receded, there was a subsidence of enthusiasm, and instead there arose the sense of duty and grim determination, which were the principal factors that brought about the final triumph of the north.
As already noted, there was a strong feeling opposed to the war, not only in Sullivan county, but throughout the state. One of the immediate causes of the war was the election of a Republican president in the fall of 1860. Admittedly, this had been accomplished by the division of the Democratic party, the factions of which, altogether, cast a larger popular vote than that received by Abraham Lincoln. For this
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reason, the war was considered a Republican party measure, and conse- quently not representative of the majority of the people.
Then, also, there were two issues that arose at the beginning of the war-the right of states to secede from the Union, and the abolition of slavery through federal power. In Sullivan county secession was regarded as a deplorable evil, one that should be avoided by every possible means, though perhaps the majority were in favor of almost unlimited concessions to the south rather than a resort to the coercion of arms. It was believed by many that rather than plunge the country into civil war, it was better to allow the southern states to withdraw. But the abolition of slavery did not make a popular appeal to Sullivan county people. It was not popular in many parts of the west, and par- ticularly in all the border states. This was illustrated during the early months of the war, when the untactful order of General Fremont, as commander of the Department of the West, freeing the slaves in Mis- souri, caused a quick reaction of sympathy for the southern cause, so that the order was quickly annulled by President Lincoln.
Before proceeding to note some of the incidents and manifestations of this condition of sentiment regarding the war in Sullivan county, a quotation from W. H. Smith's "History of Indiana" will give a general view of the subject in the state at large. He says :
"Perhaps there was not a northern state which held so many persons who sympathized with the south, as did Indiana. At least two causes existed for this. A large portion of the people of Indiana, at that time, were either directly from the south, or were descendants of those who immigrated from some one of the south- ern states. Also, much of the trade of the people had always been with the south, the Ohio river furnishing an outlet for the surplus product of the Indiana farms and factories. This sympathy broke out almost as soon as the war came, but for awhile it was smothered under the tide of patriotism which swept over the state, but as soon
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as that gave opportunity, the smoldering fires of opposition broke out. When the order of the Sons of Liberty [or Knights of the Golden Circle] was first instituted in Indiana, is not definitely known, but it is known to have been in existence as early as November, 1861. It was not strong in numbers then, but as the war was pro- longed, and the burdens on the people became more oppressive, its membership grew, until early in 1864 it counted forty-five thousand or more members capable of bearing arms.
"It is just to say that not every one who became enrolled as a member endorsed the treasonable plans. They had joined it from one motive or another, but when they found what its real aims were, they ceased attending the meetings or taking any part with it, but they did not expose it. During the years 1862, 1863 and 1864 numerous outrages were perpetrated, in different parts of the state, on the persons or property of men known to be active adherents of the Union. Enrolling and draft officers were assaulted, and in some cases killed. Early in 1864 Governor Morton became fully advised of the existence of the order, its strength and its objects. It had become so bold then as to be in correspondence with southern commanders, and arranging for invasions of the state. Hitherto it had confined itself to resisting the draft, encouraging desertions and concealing deserters, and committing outrages on Union men, but it had grown strong enough to enter into more active assistance of the south. An invasion of the state was arranged for, when the members of the order were to rise and overthrow the state govern- ment, release the prisoners confined in Camp Morton, and then march to Kentucky to take possession of that state.
"As has been said, Governor Morton became advised of the existence of the order and its purposes. He had also received information that 30,000 revolvers had been bought and paid for, in New York, to be shipped to this state. They were marked 'Sunday school books.' Thirty-two boxes so marked were found. and contained 400 revolvers, with 135,000 rounds of ammunition. Harrison H. Dodd, of Indianapolis, Horace Heffren, of Salem, Andrew Humphreys, of Greene county, Lamdin P. Milligan, of Huntington, William A. Bowles, of Orange county, Stephen Horsey, of Martin county, and one or two others were arrested and confined in the military prison at Indianapolis. Heffren and one or two
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others were released without trial; Dodd escaped from prison and fled to Canada, while his trial was progressing. The others were tried before a military commission appointed by the president. Bowles, Milligan and Horsey were condemned to death, and Humphreys was released on an order to confine himself during the continuance of the war to his own county. The three condemned men received from President Johnson a commutation of their sentence to life imprisonment in the Ohio penitentiary. After the close of the war they applied for a writ of habeas corpus, and after a lengthy hearing, by the supreme court of the United States, were released. The arrest of these men, and the rapid successes of the Union armies, effectually put a stop to all further direct opposition to the government, but there was still a strong undercurrent of opposition existing. After the close of the war a number of suits were brought against army officers, who had taken part in the arrest and trial of those charged with opposing the government, but they all came to naught."
In applying this description to Sullivan county it will be necessary to consider one or two factors in the situation, which are not mentioned by Mr. Smith, but which are in fact offsets to the charge of disloyalty. in this county at least.
In the first place, the acts of lawlessness cannot be charged to any political party, nor to the element opposed to the continuance of the war, nor even to the disloyal order above mentioned. There can be no doubt that the divided state of opinion with regard to the war produced conditions in which such acts were more easily committed and more easily escaped of sure punishment. But so far as the testimony shows, the lawlessness in Sullivan county may be traced to the viciousness which, in civil peace, is suppressed, but in war rises to the surface of society. There were outlaws in Sullivan county during the war, and for the accomplishment of their purposes and to cloak their crimes they professed affiliation without regard for principles. The cause of law
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and order was supported by citizens generally in the county, irrespective of their political affiliation or attitude toward the war.
. Without condoning the treasonable designs of the Knights of the Golden Circle, so far as they were directed to the invasion of Indiana by southern troops, it must be said as a matter of justice that the secret nature of the order, which was considered so offensive, was also char- acteristic of the Loyal League organizations which existed in the county and state. Both orders were conducted in a manner to do more harm than good to the causes they represented, and they served to increase the alarm and feeling of insecurity in the county.
The drafting of men for military service was the most unpleasant feature of the war, and it resulted in disturbances in every state of the Union. In Sullivan county the draft, the arrest of deserters, the out- breaks of lawlessness, resulted in a number of incidents which belong to the history of the period, and which are more important features of Sullivan county during the war than the operations of the armies on the battlefields of the south.
September 1, 1862, was the first day for the draft commissioners to examine those claiming exemption from draft. The Democrat says that the day was characterized by the most disgraceful scenes that ever occurred in this town. Probably one thousand people were in town. Not being a "public day," the saloons were open, and riotous conditions prevailed. A man named Hammond beat an old man seventy years old, and this engendered a number of fights. Sheriff McCammon was unable to quell the disturbance, and was himself very roughly handled.
The results of the enrollment of the county military showed that the county had, by September, 1862, furnished 1,098 volunteers to the war. At the same time the militia of the county (that is, men under
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forty-five who were liable for military duty) numbered 2,276, the exemp- tions reducing this number to about 1,760.
The men appointed in Sullivan county for the task of enrolling and drafting were: William Wilson, draft commissioner ; W. D. Moore, provost marshal; John M. Hinkle, surgeon ; and a deputy for each town- ship-Fletcher Freeman for Cass, Lafayette Stewart for Hamilton, Mr. Watson for Jefferson, J. Davis for Haddon, J. W. Reed for Fairbanks, Robert Carrithers for Turman, G. H. O'Boyle for Gill, James T. Spencer for Curry, and W. N. Patton for Jackson.
The first draft was made in the early days of October, and passed off without special incident. Blindfolded, F. Basler drew lots from the militia list for the required number to fill the quotas. But six men were drafted, four from Cass and two from Jefferson township, the other townships filling their quotas without recourse to this method.
It was not until 1863 that the unrest and opposition to the war began to result in serious disturbance. The principal events growing out of these causes, so far as recorded in the files of the Democrat, will be given.
The arrest of Daniel Case, in March, 1863, on charge of desertion from the Ninety-seventh Regiment, at his home in Cass township, caused criticism of certain men in that township on the charge that they were aiding deserters. This incident had a partisan political aspect. At a meeting of citizens, the resolutions passed declared that the Democratic party did not wish to encourage desertion (as evidently had been charged) and would not protect any deserter nor interfere with his arrest by the proper authority. It was reported that 500 people attended the meeting. Andrew Humphreys, of Greene county, made a speech characterized by calmness and moderation in discussing the attitude of citizens toward the government and the war.
In a few days (April 10) the county was aroused by the arrest
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of nine citizens residing about the northeast corner of the county. The arrest followed an indictment by the grand jury of the United States district court of Indiana on the charge of conspiracy. A deserter had testified that these men belonged to an organization, one of whose objects was to prevent arrest of deserters and aid them if arrested. The indicted men were taken to Indianapolis and released on bail. A few days before this occurrence James Herriford, Mike Evans and. Fletcher Freeman had been arrested on charge of desertion. Some irregularity in their dis- charge papers was the cause of the arrest.
The general distrust that prevailed in the county is shown in the arrest, in April, of Nelson Osborn, who, having returned to Sullivan after an absence of two or three years, was supposed to be a spy from the Confederacy. He was of a somewhat roving disposition, and his return at this time was regarded with suspicion of secret motives that would never have occurred to anyone in times of peace. After being held about a month, Osborn was released, nothing having been found to con- firm the charge.
Some deserters found refuge in Sullivan county. Also some crim- inals from civil justice kept their haunts about the county during the ivar. At various times parties of soldiers were dispatched to the county for the purpose of arresting deserters, to preserve order, and to guard against infractions of military discipline. Occasionally the soldiers con- ducted themselves with the insolence and license that often characterized detached squads when not directly under the restraint of strict discipline. In nearly every case the enforcement of a military order in the county was accompanied by disturbance of the civil community and left wounds and bitterness that many years failed to entirely heal.
An affair occurred in Cass township that illustrates this point. About the first of June, 1863, reports reached Sullivan that the brothers
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of a deserter named Bennett had shot two soldiers sent to arrest him, but later reports showed that the brothers had only threatened to shoot and that the soldiers had desisted from their object. A few days later a party of sixty soldiers were sent down, presumably for the purpose of arresting Bennett. Instead, they conducted a search through Cass town- ship and parts of Greene county for United States arms. The intrusion produced a great commotion in the eastern part of the county. No doubt the actions of a searching party, however decorously conducted, would have aroused resentment, but the soldiers were charged with several acts that apparently went beyond the warrant of their duty. Some provisions were taken, it was said, a horse was impressed for the use of a sick soldier. Houses along the route were searched for arms. Horses were picked up along the road and taken with the company. As Joseph Pigg passed by the spot where the troops were encamped for the night, he was stopped, but was allowed to proceed when he explained he was on an errand for a sick child. Galloping on, he was shot at by another sentry because he did not halt at once. This brought the people together in an excited assemblage to defend their rights. A deputation was sent to the camp, and at their demands the stolen horse was returned with apologies. The Democrat editor stated that the consensus of opinion in Cass was that when troops who conducted themselves properly were sent for deserters, the aid of the citizens would be afforded the troops, since the presence of prowlers from the army was not desired.
Another incident, illustrative of certain political bitternesses that sometimes became acute and cankered the relations of an entire com- munity, was described in the Democrat of June 11, 1863, under the title of "Disgraceful Affair." "At a largely attended funeral at the Little Flock meeting house last Sunday, as the body was being lowered into the grave a woman named Jewell seized the opportunity to snatch a
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butternut ornament from a young man named Burch. A big strapping fellow immediately commenced an attack on a boy who wore a similar badge of his Democracy. We are mortified to say that a regular fist fight ensued. One of the champions of the ring handed the woman who had so unsexed herself a dollar as reward for her conduct." Other occurrences of this nature were not infrequent.
From the facts that have been observed concerning the state of feeling in Sullivan county, the causes that produced the most tragic event in the county during war times are readily understood. The death of Fletcher Freeman will always be associated with the political discord and the opposition to the war and draft that marked this period in Sullivan county.
Fletcher Freeman, as above noted, was deputy enrolling officer for Cass township. On the morning of June 18, 1863, he was shot from ambush and killed, though at that time he was not actively engaged in duties pertaining to his military office. He had started for a rendezvous of road hands, a summons having been issued for the working of the roads in that particular district. Meeting two men, Shaw and Rusher, who were bound on similar business, he sent them back to his house for tools. They had retraced their steps by a short distance when they heard the report of a gun. One of them, having been in the army, recognized the cries as those of a man who had been shot. Hurrying back, they found Mr. Freeman lying in the road, in the agonies of death. A brief examination of the surroundings showed that a blind of branches and brush had been built near the roadside about twenty or twenty-five feet to the side. Scraps of meat and bread and piles of whittlings indi- cated that the place had been occupied by perhaps three persons for one or two weeks. There was no clue to the murderers. Mr. Freeman had several years before been proprietor of the American Hotel at Sullivan,
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and was a former Republican nominee for the office of sheriff. He had assisted in raising the Thirteenth Battery of light artillery, and expected to be commissioned an officer. He was declared unfit for duty and was honorably discharged. One of the men who had been induced to enlist by Mr. Freeman deserted, and because compelled to remain in the service, he threatened to shoot Freeman, who had escaped duty. This was a possible cause of the assassination, but whether it was a case of individual malice or was in part the result of the prejudice existing against the draft act and all agents connected with carrying it out, was never determined. Several threatening letters had been sent because of his work as enrolling officer.
On the Saturday following the tragedy a hastily called meeting was held in the court house. James W. Hinkle was chairman, A. Van Fossen secretary. Those participating in the proceedings on this occasion indicated the general condemnation passed upon the deed by all the representative class of citizens. Addresses were made by James C. Allen, a member of Congress from Illinois, and Willis G. Neff. The committee on resolutions were H. K. Wilson, George Parks, William Stansil, Daniel Herbert, Joseph W. Wolfe, Murray Briggs and John T. Gunn. The resolutions as adopted say Mr. Freeman was shot in con- sequence, "as we have every reason to believe, of the recent faithful discharge by him of the duties of enrolling officer under the conscript act." The committee urged the necessity of appealing only to the ballot box and the courts for relief from the burdens entailed by the acts of war; that the duty of every law-abiding citizen was to endeavor to dis- cover and aid officers of justice in arresting the perpetrators of this crime.
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