USA > Kansas > Bourbon County > History of Bourbon County, Kansas. To the close of 1865 > Part 11
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On the Iothi of May, 1862, a small newspaper called the Fort Scott Bulletin was established.
In the spring of 1862 the people of Fort Scott let the city election go by default, and it was not until in August that they discovered they had missed a chance to vote. Then the council ordered an election to be held on the 25th. J. S. Miller was elected Mayor, H. T. Wilson, P. P. Elder, William Smith and C. F. Drake, Councilmen; J. E. Dillon, clerk: J. F. White, Marshal; C. W. Goodlander, Treasurer; A. R. Allison, Assessor, and J. G. Stuart, Street Commissioner.
On the Ist of Juue Lieutenant Colonel Lewis R.
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VARIOUS THINGS.
1862]
Jewell was placed in command of the Post of Fort Scott.
About July, 1862, Rube Forbes, whom we have already had occasion to mention, and a man named Troy Dye robbed the store of E. S. Scott, at Xenia. This caused a great commotion among the settlers of that neighborhood, and they raised a posse, headed by Captain Vansycle, late of Co. "I," Sixth Kansas, and Lieutenant Ford of the same company. They got after the thieves in close chase. Dye got away but they run Forbes into a very dense brush patch about four miles south of Mapleton, where he was sur- rounded. The brush was so thick they could not see Rube but they charged in as far as they could and fired. Rube instantly returned the fire and Captain Vansycle fell dead. He fired again and Lieutenant Ford fell badly wounded. The lieutenant was at once taken up by Charles Love, J. R. Anderson and others, and carried on a coat to a house about half a mile distant, and was soon afterward taken to his home near Union- town where he died. At the third fire by Rube, E. C. Buck was badly wounded in the neck, and came near dying. About that time a company of soldiers arrived, who fired a volley into the brush where Rube was and his dead body was dragged out.
On the 15th of July, 1862, the first number of the Bourbon County Monitor was issued at Marmaton by David B. Emmert.
The Second Kansas Battery was raised in Bourbon County by C. W. Blair, early in the summer. The officers were C. W. Blair, Captain ; E. A. Smith,
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY.
[1862
D. C. Knowles, A. G. Clark, and A. Wilson, Lieutenants. This was known through the war as "Blair's Battery."
FALL ELECTIONS.
The general election in the State was held on the 4th of November, 1862. Thomas Carney, Republican, of Leavenworth, was elected Governor. He received exactly 10,000 votes. The opposition candidate was W. R. Wagstaff, of Paola. His vote was 5,463.
The vote in Bourbon County for Governor was 413 to 86. This county was the Fourteenth Senatorial District. Isaac Ford was elected Senator by 431 votes, against 33 votes for E. Williams. There were four Representative Districts in this county, the 50th, 51st, 52nd and 53rd. In the 50th D. B. Jackman received 41 votes, L. D. Clevenger, 26. In the 51st J. Hawkins, 62; W. T. Jones, 37. In the 52nd, D. R. Cobb received the entire vote, 97. In the 53rd, C. F. Drake received the entire vote, 205.
CITY HALL AND COURT HOUSE, 1865.
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COUNTY SEAT RETURNED.
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CHAPTER XXVI.
COUNTY SEAT RETURNED TO FORT SCOTT.
T THIS session of the Legislature C. F. Drake introduced and had passed a general county seat law, providing for elections for county seats on petition to the County Court, etc. On the passage of that law the City Council of the City of Fort Scott, of which Mr. Drake was also a member, proposed to the County Court that the city would build a City Hall and in the event that the people, at the proposed election, voted to re-locate the county seat at Fort Scott the use of the City Hall would be given to the county for county purposes. The proposition was accepted by the Board of County Commissioners, and a special election for county seat was held on the 11th day of May, 1863. The result of the election was as follows : Fort Scott received 700 votes ; Centerville, on Mill Creek, 279 votes; Mapleton, 14 votes; Fort Lincoln, I vote, and at a meeting of the Board of County Com- missioners on the 16tli of May 1863, the last one held at Marmaton, Fort Scott was by proclamation declared the county seat. At this meeting there were present T. W. Tallman, Isaac Ford and E. A. Toles, Commis- missioners and David R. Cobb, County Clerk.
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY. [1863
The city council then took steps for the erection of the City Hall. The location decided on was the South-east corner of Locust and Jones streets, now Second Street and National Avenue. The building was to be of stone, two stories high. The contract was let to Goodlander & Allison for the sum of $3,900. It was completed that fall, except the railing around the spiral stairway, which was never finished. Good- lander made one for it but it didn't fit, and he threw it under the work bench, then he convinced the council that railings were out of style, anyhow.
At a meeting of the City Council held on December 14, 1863, it was on motion, ordered "That the City Marshal notify the county officers that the City Hall was in readiness, and request them to occupy the same."
The county officers then moved in. The County Clerk, Treasurer and Register of Deeds occupied the lower story. The District Court was held in the upper story. And that was the Bourbon County court house for nearly thirty years. When court was not in session the upper story was subject to be used for iniscellaneous purposes. Religious services were held there nearly every Sunday by some Denomination which had, as yet, no home of their own. Political meetings and con- ventions caucused and pulled wires, and long-haired itinerant cranks would occasionally loosen the plaster- ing in expounding their wonderful theories. During the 60's amateur dramatic clubs often "played" under the management of John R. Morley, Geo. Clark and Ken Williams, in a repertoire from "Black-eyed Susan" to "Hamlet." A "Masquerade Ball " was
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COUNTY SEAT RETURNED.
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given at least once a year. The "Masques" were varied, most life-like, and always thoroughly original.
But few incidents of local interest transpired during the year 1863. There was not much done in the way of improvement either in the town or county. The erection of the woollen factory by Geo. A. Crawford was the most important. Fort Scott being a military post, a telegraph line was constructed from Fort Leav- enworth, and the people had means of communication with the outside world, without having to depend on the often delayed trips of the old "jerky" stage, which the boys said was a "tri-weekly, -it went out one week and tried to get back the next." Sometimes it didn't do it. The stage fare between Kansas City and Fort Scott was "ten dollars and carry a rail." Sometimes, when the roads were real good, a man passenger would not have to walk and carry a rail more than a third of the time. When they were very bad he walked all the way, carried his rail, and paid his ten dollars just the same. So. But then he had the privilege of being whirled into town and landed at the Wilder House with a grand flourish. That was worth something.
A good portion of the men of Bourbon County, in common with those of the balance of the State, were in the army. The total number of Kansas troops in the field by the middle of this year was 9,600. A large number went in after that date. Nearly every man living in Kansas during the war was in the service in some shape. If not in the volunteer service he was in the home guards or State militia.
On the 4th of July, 1863, E. A. Smith was pro-
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY.
[1863
moted to Captain of the 2nd Kansas, or Blair's Battery, and Blair was assigned to the 14th Regiment of Kansas Volunteers as Colonel. He was soon after promoted to Brigadier General, and ordered to Fort Scott as com- mandant of the post. He remained in command of this post until April 28th, 1865, when he was succeeded by Gen. U. B. Pearsall, who remained in command until the close of the war.
ELECTIONS.
The general election in the State was held on the 3rd of November. District Attorneys, Legislators, and a part of the county officers were to be chosen. Samuel A. Riggs was elected District Attorney for the Fourth Judicial District, consisting of the counties of Allen, Anderson, Bourbon, Douglas, Franklin, Johnson, Linn and Miami. The Representatives for Bourbon County were Wm. Stone, R. P. Stevens, D. R. Cobb and J. G. Miller. County Treasurer, James Aitkin; Sheriff, H. G. Moore; Probate Judge, Wm. Rose; Register of Deeds, E. B. Norcross. The new County Board was organized on the next January: T. W. Tallman, E. A. Toles and J. F. Holt, Commissioners, and J. S. Em- mert, County Clerk.
٢٧,٦٠
FORT BLAIR, Built in the Street at the Corner of Scott Avenue and First Street in the Spring of 1864.
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POLITICAL FEELING.
1864]
CHAPTER XXVII.
FORTIFICATIONS.
N the early part of 1864 several extensive fortifica- tions were commenced, and finished that spring. These were quite heavy, well constructed earth. works. "Fort Henning" was located on Second street, between National Avenue and Judson street. "Fort Blair" was on First street between Main street and Scott Avenue, and contained the block house now standing across from the post office. "Fort Insley" was on the extreme point northeast of the Plaza. There were some barracks and fortifications commenced on the hill southeast of town, and some rifle pits on what we now call Tower Hill. The old Government Hospital building was used for a hospital, and the old guard house was again utilized for the original purpose.
Dr. Van Duyn was the surgeon in charge of hospitals at this post during 1864.
POLITICAL FEELING.
There was but little partisan political feeling in this County at that time. Public sentiment may have found vent, to some extent, in the action of the City Council at a meeting held January 2, at which Coun-
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY.
[1864
cilmen Dimon, White and Drake caused the following order to be spread upon the minutes :
"Ordered: That the Street Commissioner cause a sidewalk to be built from the corner of Wall Street, etc., and provided, that said walks be of two planks one foot wide, 12 inches apart, 21/2 inches thick, slightly elevated, and pinned to terra firma like h-1."
The old party organizations were kept up, but the sentiments of all were simply for the Union and for the suppression of the rebellion.
At a large Democratic convention held May 23rd, 1864, in the City Hall, for the purpose of electing a delegate to the State Democratic Convention to be held at Topeka, the following resolution, among others, was passed :
"Resolved, That we will vote for no man for Presi- dent or Vice-President who is not pledged to devote all his powers to the suppression of the rebellion, and maintain and defend the Constitution of the Union from all aggression from secession traitors of the Southi and conspirators of the North."
The meeting was presided over by Robert Blackett. O. Dieffenbaugh was secretary. Charles Bull was chosen delegate to the State Convention.
John E. Himoe, of Mapleton, brother of Dr. S. O. Himoe, while on a trip up the Missouri river, about April 1, 1864, was taken down with the smallpox. He was landed at Boonville with a nurse. While there lie became delirious and one night, escaping from the house in that condition, he tried to break in through the window of a neighboring house, and the man inside
SCENE ON DRYWOOD, NEAR SOUTH LINE OF THE COUNTY.
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RAIDS ON DRYWOOD.
1864]
naturally took him for a burglar and shot him dead. Mr. Himoe was at that time County Surveyor of this county.
RAIDS ON DRYWOOD.
About the 20th of May, 1864, Henry Taylor, a noted guerrilla of Vernon County, Mo., made a raid in the Drywood valley. He had a large company with him, some say as many as eighty men. He entered Bourbon County on the south, and first went to the house of William Custard, about ten o'clock at night. Custard had been in bed, but by some means he got warning of their approach, and he and his brother, Rufus, made their escape, just in the nick of time. Taylor run into the house and, in the search, he felt in the warm bed, which Custard had just left.
Taylor then robbed several families and committed other depredations. Finally, on his return out of the county he went to the house of Louis L. Ury, at the place where Garland is now, and surrounded it. There were in the house, Mr. Ury and his wife, his son Joe Ury, and the young children, Newt and the two girls, now Mrs. Homer Pond and Mrs. John Withers, and a Mr. T. Cartmell. Taylor had witlı him Mike Kelley, John Gwynn and several other prisoners that he had picked up, and intended to get Mr. Ury and his son Joe. After capturing the men folks he moved Newt and the two girls out into the corner of the yard preparatory to burning the house. Just then George Pond, James Pitts and Fred Carpenter, a scouting party from the 3d Wisconsin Cavalry, run onto them and
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[1864
HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY.
commenced firing, and Joe Ury, as soon as he heard the guns, picked up a stick of wood and knocked Taylor down. When Taylor got up, he called out "shoot the prisoners," and made for his horse. Some of the others of the gang fired at the prisoners, two balls striking Mr. Louis Ury, who was standing in his door. Then the entire party lit out for Missouri, leaving all the prisoners. Mr. Ury's wounds were found to be very serious. His leg had to be amputated and he lingered until the 2nd of July, when he died.
The summer before this occurred, this same Taylor captured a man by the name of Tom Whitesides from the house of Mrs. Beal's, east of Fort Scott, and took him to near the "Line House " and killed him, firing twelve shots into him. After the war Taylor was elected sheriff of Vernon county.
About June 1, 1864, a dozen or more bushwhackers made a raid into the county, up on the head of Pawnee Creek, and captured Rev. Mr. Harryman, Mr. Potter, and two or three colored people, and robbed and burned Mr. Harryman's house. The robbers took aların at the approach of some parties and hastily left without their prisoners.
RAILROADS-POLITICS.
On the Ist day of June, 1864, a railroad convention in the interest of the Border Tier railway was held at Paola. The delegates from Bourbon County were Geo. A. Crawford, Geo. Dimon, H. T. Wilson, Isaac Stad- den, Dr. Freeman and A. Danford. D. P. Lowe and J. D. Snoddy were among those from Linn County.
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THE PRICE RAID.
1864]
This was the first concerted effort in the direction of building railroads in this section of the State. Speeches were made and various committees appointed. One committee was appointed to memorialize Congress to grant lands to a border road, setting forth in their me- morial the vast importance of such a road in a military point of view. The people had sat down to an indefi- nite siege of war. The end seemed far off in the dim future, and they had come to accept it as almost the natural condition.
President Lincoln was nominated for re-election. An immense ratification meeting was held on the 20th day of June, 1864, at Fort Scott. T. T. Insley was Presi- dent, and J. R. Morley, J. F. White, W. A. Shannon, B. P. McDonald, S. A. Manlove, and Wm. Margrave were Vice-Presidents.
At the Democratic Convention of Topeka, J. Thomas Bridgens of Fort Scott, was appointed one of the can- didates for Presidential Elector.
A Republican State Convention met at Topeka on the 8th of September, 1864. On the first ballot for candidate for Governor, George A. Crawford was in the lead, but the opposition concentrated on Samuel J. Crawford, and on the sixth ballot the vote stood: Sam- uel J. Crawford, 51; Geo. A. Crawford, 31; and Samuel J. Crawford was declared the nominee.
THE PRICE RAID.
In October, 1864, what is called the Price Raid took place. General Price passed up from Arkansas through
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY. [1864
Central Missouri, in the direction of Lexington, on the Missouri river. He recruited his army as he advanced until he had about 20,000 effective men. General S. R. Curtis was at Leavenworth, in command of the Depart- ment of Kansas. General Curtis's command consisted of part of the 14th and all of the 15th and 16th Kansas, a battalion of the 3rd Wisconsin, a section of the 2d Kansas Battery, a Colorado battery, and the 9th Wis- consin Battery, a total of about 4,500 men. On the 8th of October he proclaimed martial law, and ordered all the U. S. troops into the field to resist Price. Governor Carney called out the State Militia, and ordered them to the Border under General Deitzler, Major General of State Militia. At Fort Scott there were assembled from various points 1,050 men. The most of these were formed into the 24th Regiment of State Militia, with the following field and staff officers : Colonel, Isaac Stadden ; Lieutenant Colonel, Jolın Van Fossen ; Major, Joseph Ury; Adjutant, A. Danford ; Quartermaster, J. Thomas Bridgens ; Surgeons, B. F. Hepler and S. O. Himoe.
The companies in the 24th Regiment were officered as follows : Company A, John F. White and C. B. Hay- ward ; Company B, W. C. Dennison and R. D. Lender ; Company C, J. B. Skeen, Thomas Barnes and C. B. Maurice ; Company D, J. C. Hinkley and Robt. Stalker ; Company E, H. T. Coffman, R. Adams and W. P. Gray; Company F, J. C. Ury, J. B. Cabiness and S. Streeter.
Lieutenant Colonel George P. Eaves, of Uniontown, had a battalion of mounted men, which he raised in the various townships of the county, consisting of seven
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THE PRICE RAID.
1864]
companies, which had the following named officers : Company A, D. D. Roberts, I. Burton and C. W. Camp- bell; Company B, Dyer Smith, D. R. Radden and B. R. Wood; Company C, Jolin J. Stewart, John Blair and E. M. Marshall ; Company D, S. B. Mahurin, John Ham- ilton and J. C. Andrick ; Company E, B. F. Gumm, Nathan Baker and William Goff; Company F, Isaac Morris, R. S. Stevens and A. S. Potter ; Company G, W. A. Shannon, N. J. Roscoe and D. McComas.
These troops were soon reinforced by militia from Allen and Coffey counties, under Colonel Twiss and Major Goss.
With Colonel Eaves' force and all the mounted troops he could pick up, General Blair left for the field to join Blunt's division, then near Westport, Missouri.
Generals Pleasanton and Sanborn, with about 4,000 men had left Jefferson City, to join the general pursuit.
On the 20th, 21st and 22d, engagements took place respectively at Lexington, Little Blue and Big Blue. The Union troops were victorious. Price was rapidly retreating down the Missouri border, fighting almost continuously. He had 15,000 veteran troops, plenty of field artillery, and such lieutenants as Shelby, Mar- maduke, Cabell, Slemmon, Fagan and Graham. Price's army first entered Kansas in Linn county, and a part of it camped, on the 24th of October, just north of the Trading Post, on the exact spot at the base of the big mound near old Jackey Williams' farm, where, on that beautiful May day in 1858, the forerunners of this army of invasion had enacted the prologue of the bloody and disastrous scene which was to follow on the next day.
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY.
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The old gray haired General could still see on that hallowed ground
"The blush as of roses Where rose never grew ; Great drops on the bunch grass But not of the dew."
And in his troubled sleep that night, when the lights burned blue, at the dead of midnight, there may have come to him the visions of those murdered men, as
"With no vain plea for mercy, No stout knee was crooked; In the mouths of the rifles Right manly they looked. How paled the May sunshine, Green Marais du Cygne, When the death-smoke blew over Thy lonely ravine!"
On the 25th of October, after a sharp skirmish, the rebel forces retreated to the south side of the Marais des Cygnes, and the entire army was brought to bay, and was formed in line of battle in Mine Creek Valley, near where now stands the City of Pleasanton. It was a grand field for a battle. The open prairie was four or five miles in extent, with only gentle undulations, and the entire force, as well as all the maneuvers of either army, could be plainly seen. The troops under Gen- eral Blair, Colonel Moonlight and Colonel Crawford were in position nearly on the left flank of the enemy, with Generals Pleasanton, Sanborn, McNiel and Ben- teen on the center and right. The engagement was general, and for some hours well and hotly contested.
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RAIDS BY GUERILLAS.
1864]
Finally, a brilliant movement was made by Colonels Philips and Benteen, and a brigade under General Cabell of nearly 1000 men was captured, together with nine pieces of artillery. Generals Marmaduke, Cabell, Slemmer and Graham were also taken prisoners. The enemy now rapidly retreated, their deflection into Mis- souri, to the southeast, being forced in a great measure by the field maneuvers of General Blair and Colonel Crawford.
Another stand was made by the enemy on the Little Osage in Bourbon County, but McNiel and Pleasanton, who were in advance, soon routed them out ; and still another on Shiloh Creek in this county, where we captured two pieces of artillery.
RAIDS BY GUERILLAS.
On the 20th of October, just before the battle of Mine Creek occurred, a squad of about twenty-five men, belonging to the command of the old guerilla, Jo Shelby, struck the Osage river about the State line, and went up on the north side. When they got up to Fort Lincoln, they halted in front of the store in that place, owned by Knowles & Green. Andrew Stevens and W. H. Green were near the store door. The bush- whackers at once opened fire on the two men, and Stevens was instantly killed. Green escaped by slip- ping down under the river bank and making for the brush. Then they plundered the store and burned the building, and the residences of Mr. Knowles, Mr. Green and Mr. Hopkins, after robbing Mrs. Hopkins.
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HISTORY OF BOURBON COUNTY.
[1864
They then crossed the river, and robbed all the families living as far west as Primm's and Armstrong's, and burned the dwellings, hay stacks, and barns belonging to Dick Stafford. Turning back down the Osage, and dividing up into squads, they killed Mr. Woodall and Mr. Miller.
MARMATON MASSACRE.
Another raid by guerrillas was made into Bourbon County on the 22nd of October, 1864. On Saturday night of that date, about midnight a company of frony forty to sixty men, under cominand of Allen Matthews and Major Courcey, came up from a southern direction to the neighborhood of Marinaton. Before they reached town some of the neighboring farmers had discovered them and came in ahead and gave the alarmn. That night there were about thirty Home Guards quartered in the church, under command of Captain Harding, First Lieutenant Ramsey, and Second Lieutenant J. G. Roush. By order of Captain Harding these men were scattered out in squads of eight or ten to picket the several roads leading into town. In the meantime, the guerrillas, presuming such would be the case, left the main road and charged across lots into town, which they thus found without any defense at all. They then com- menced capturing every man they could get hold of, and firing on any they saw trying to run away. They first picked up Colonel Horatio Knowles, Daniel M. Brown, Dr. L. M. Chadwick, Joseph Stout, Abner McGonigle and Warren Hawkins. These men they murdered in the most cold-blooded manner, as fast as
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1864]
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MARMATON MASSACRE.
they came to them, in some instances taking hold of their victim with one hand and putting a bullet through his head from a revolver in the other. In other cases they would repeatedly shoot into their prisoners while they were down and begging for mercy.
Nelson Ramsey, Wm. Holt, brother of Judge Holt, Rev. Mr. Prigmore, and others, were on the street, and were repeatedly fired at, but they slipped away some- how and hid in the deep ravines near by.
The stores in town were those of Aitkin & Knowles, and Cobb & Jones. These they robbed and then burned. The residence of Mrs. Schoen, widow of Lieutenant Schoen, of Company E, Ioth Kansas, the Methodist church, and other buildings were burned.
As soon as possible after the attack, Lieutenant Roush started for Fort Scott to give the alarm and get help in the pursuit of the ruffians. Some of them discovered him and gave hint close chase as far as the Catholic Cemetery, when they probably concluded they were near the Fort Scott picket line, and turned back. Lieu- tenant Roush reported the affair to Colonel Stadden, who ordered out a force in pursuit, but the bush- whackers had too much the start, and being well mounted they got away. In passing out of the county, near Cato, they killed another man, a Mr. Simons, whom Matthews liad a special grudge against. They then continued their flight into th .. Cherokee Nation.
Reliable information is furnished that this Matthews with about twenty of his men, left soon after for the Rocky Mountains, going in a north-westerly direction into the country of the Osage Indians. At a crossing 13
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