USA > Missouri > Livingston County > History of Caldwell and Livingston counties, Missouri, written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of their townships, towns and villages, together with a condensed history of Missouri; a reliable and detailed history of Caldwell and Livingston counties--their pioneer record, resources, biographical sketches of prominent citizens; general and local statistics of great value; incidents and reminiscences > Part 82
USA > Missouri > Caldwell County > History of Caldwell and Livingston counties, Missouri, written and compiled from the most authentic official and private sources, including a history of their townships, towns and villages, together with a condensed history of Missouri; a reliable and detailed history of Caldwell and Livingston counties--their pioneer record, resources, biographical sketches of prominent citizens; general and local statistics of great value; incidents and reminiscences > Part 82
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As Mr. Avery did not return home, his wife became uneasy and alarmed the neighborhood, and there was a general search for the missing man. His body was discovered the next day and when it was found that he had been foully murdered, there was great indignation,
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although it had been already generally believed from the first that this had been bis fate. Esquire R. B. Moss, acting as coroner, held an inquest. The jury was composed of J. P. Hutcherson, J. M. Hutcher- son, Andrew Anderson, John M. Crews, John Simpson and James Nave, and their verdict was that the deceased had "come to his death by being shot with a shot-gun ; he had six holes in his breast and neck, and his jaw bone was broke."
Suspicion at once fell upon Husher and Henry Cooper as the mur- derers, and they were taken into custody. The latter had some blood spots on his clothing, but he accounted for them by proving that the previous day he had butchered a sheep ; he was discharged. No evi- dence of guilt was ever proved against him, and no one had the least doubt of his innocence.
Husher was tried by a sort of lynch court, partly legal and largely illegal. A sort of informal venire of twenty-four good and reputable citizens of the neighborhood, without distinction of party, opinion, or any other, save that they were all reputable men, was returned, and Husher was allowed to choose from among them twelve men to serve as his jury. The trial came off at Spring Hill before this jury and two magistrates, Esqs. Samuel Pepper and William Lewis.
Very strong and convincing testimony was produced. The threats of Husher against Avery were proven ; his shot-gun was produced and examined and found to be double-barreled, with one empty and one loaded barrel, and in the latter were found slugs similar to those found in Avery's body. But the strongest proof against him was furnished by his daughter, a young girl of 12 or 14 years of age, who testified in a manner that convinced all who heard her that she told the truth, that on the evening of the murder her father came home with his gun and with his clothes spattered over with blood ; that he took off these clothes and burned them, and then warned her never to tell what she had seen .
There were no continuances, changes of venue, dilly-dallying, or subterfuges, tolerated in that court. Everything was done fairly but promptly. No injustice was shown to the prisoner. He was allowed to cross-examine the witnesses against him, to introduce others, to plead his case, and he did not complain that his trial was not fair. The jury did not deliberate long ; they were empowered not only to decide upon the guilt or innocence of the accused, but if they found him guilty they were to fix the penalty. They soon returned. Their verdict was brief and emphatic - guilty! Their sentence was
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severe but satisfactory - " Death by hanging within the next 24 hours ! "
The verdict and the sentence were applauded by nearly every man in the county ; the verdict was universally approved. The murder of Avery following so soon after that of Elisha Boucher, in the same neighborhood, and the escape of Tom Snead, the murderer, deter- mined the people to see to it that there was no miscarriage of justice in the present case. Husher murmured at his fate, but prepared to meet it. He gave directions concerning his property, and had Rich- ard Reeves make his coffin.
The hanging took place September 4. The gallows was set up on the spring branch near the big spring, a little east of south, but almost within the confines of the village of Spring Hill. Hundreds of per- sons were present, but there was no disorder, and the proceedings were conducted quietly. Husher's son was on the ground, and wit- nessed the execution. Husher himself protested to the last that he was innocent, but no one believed him, and his execution received almost universal approval.
Sometime afterward Esq. Moss, who was a stickler for the forms of law, procured the indictment of certain parties who had taken part in the hanging of Husher, but these indictments were quashed and the accused never brought to trial.
Subsequently Mrs. Husher married Andrew Prager, and yet resides in the vicinity of Spring Hill. The daughter who testified against her father now resides in Caldwell county.
THE M'WILLIAMS AND SNEAD TRAGEDIES.
On the 10th of August, 1861, a man named Elisha Boucher was killed by his brother-in-law, Thomas Snead, in what is now Sampsel township. Boucher had married Martha J. Snead, a sister of his slayer. Boucher was a rough character, and addicted to drink, and he and his wife did not live pleasantly together. On the evening of the tragedy he came home drunk and a quarrel between husband and wife resulted. Tom Snead was chopping wood for his sister, and when the altercation took place he ran up, knocked Boucher down and chopped off his head with the ax. Many persons believed that the killing was the result of a plot between Mrs. Boucher and her brother, and it is asserted that the woman held her husband by his coat while her brother assaulted him.
It was war times then, and amid the excitement prevailing in the county no arrests were made. Snead left the country and joined the Confederate army, and was finally killed in one of Gen. Johnston's
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battles in Georgia, in 1864. A year or so after the killing of Boucher his widow married John Mc Williams.
May 7, 1863, Mr. MeWilliams killed his wife and another of her brothers, named John Snead. The circumstances, as related by McWilliams and generally believed, were that for some time, and from certain evidences, McWilliams believed that his wife and her brother had designs on his life, and meant to kill him. He therefore always went armed and kept a close watch over himself. He said that his wife admitted to him that she had assisted in the murder of her former husband, Boucher, and that she had begun the quarrel with him in order to afford a pretext for putting him out of the way. Afterward Mc Williams became afraid that he too would be " removed," and passed much of his time in apprehension and fear.
On the evening of the day mentioned McWilliams said he returned home, and almost immediately his wife began a quarrel with him. They were standing in the door yard, when suddenly John Snead appeared on the scene, armed with an ax, and instantly Mrs. McWill- iams caught her husband by the coat and held him, as, it is said, she caught and held Boucher on a former and similar occasion. Before Snead with his ax could reach him McWilliams drew his revolver and shot his wife, the ball taking effect in the nose near her right eye, killing her instantly.
Mc Williams now ran into the house, pursued by Snead. There was a desperate conflict. Snead dealt terrific and rapid blows at his brother-in-law, who, however, contrived to avoid every one of them. The floor was marked in many places with large and deep gashes, or ax-prints. All the time, however, MeWilliams was using his pistol to the best advantage. He shot Snead once through the shoulder, but failed to bring him down. At last, in dodging a blow, he sunk to the floor, and while in this position he fired the fatal shot. The ball struck Snead in the head, above the ear, ranged upward and came out near the center of the skull, splitting and shattering the skull and scattering the brains about the room.
This latter tragedy occurred abont one mile and a half east of where is now Sampsel Station. McWilliams at once made known what he had done, and told his story. There was some sort of investigation before Esq. R. B. Moss, and a coroner's inquest over the body of Mrs. Mc Williams rendered a verdict that she had " come to her death by being shot in the side of the nose, near the right eye." Who fired the shot the jury did not say. Soon after McWilliams entered the Federal service, in which he continued during the remainder of the war, and was never arrested.
CHAPTER VII.
LEADING EVENTS DURING THE YEAR 1862.
The 1st and 3d Regiments M. S. M .- Assassination of Col. Wm. O. Jennings -The Attack on the Medicine Creek Bridge - Poindexter's Raid - The Fate of Some Confederate Partisans-Joe Kirk and his Operations-Organization of the En- rolled Militia - List of the "Disloyal " - First Emancipation Meeting.
THE M. S. M.
In the winter of 1861-62, by an arrangement between Gov. Gamble and the War Department at Washington, the organization of the Mis- souri State Militia was begun. This force was to be enlisted for three years, was to be composed of cavalry regiments, or mounted men serv- ing as cavalry, and was to be armed, clothed, subsisted, transported and paid by the United States, and to co-operate with the Federal forces in the repression of Confederate invasion into Missouri and the sup- pression of rebellion. It was not to be ordered out of Missouri, " except for the immediate defense of said State."
Col. James McFerran, a prominent lawyer of Gallatin, became colonel of the 1st regiment of cavalry of the Missouri State Militia (commonly called the " M. S. M." ), and Alex. M. Woolfolk, a young attorney of Chillicothe and member of the State Convention, was commissioned lieutenant-colonel. The regiment was made up of men from this quarter of the State, and a few were from Livingston. It took the field early in April, 1862, and a detachment operated in this and Daviess county in scouting the country after Davis' and Joe Kirk's forces.
In April the 3d regiment, M. S. M., was organized at Chillicothe, with Col. Walter King, a Chillicothe lawyer and son of ex-Gov. Austin A. King, as its commander. More than 200 Livingston men at once entered this regiment, which, however, was never a full regi- ment and was broken up and the nine companies composing it dis- tributed among other regiments of the M. S. M. J. H. Shanklin, of Grundy, was at first lieutenant-colonel of the 3d M. S. M.
ASSASSINATION OF COL. WM. O. JENNINGS.
On the evening of the 30th of January, 1862, some unknown miscreant assassinated Col. William O. Jennings on the street
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
after dark as he was going home, by shooting him down with a revolver or musket. He died next day in great agony. The shoot- ing occurred on Calhoun street, a little northwest of the present county jail. Col. Jennings was one of the best known citizens of the county. He was the first sheriff, and had served a long term of office in that capacity. It was he who commanded the Missourians at the massacre at Haun's mill, during the Mormon War. Although a " Southern " man it was not generally believed that his politics had aught to do with his murder. It was believed to have been the work of a personal enemy. At the time of his death, Col. Jennings was over 60 years of age.
ATTACK ON MEDICINE CREEK BRIDGE.
On the night of the 8th of April an attack was made on the guard at the Medicine creek railroad bridge by a party of Con- federate bushwhackers. The guard, a portion of the 3d M. S. M., had not retired into the block house, but were seated around a camp-fire near by, when a volley, apparently discharged by eight or ten persons, was poured into them. One man was killed and three others wounded. The unwounded returned the fire, and there was a spirited little interchange of shots, which lasted for some minutes, when the bushwhackers retreated.
Hearing of the affair, Col. Walter King, then in command at Chil- licothe, sent scouting parties throughout the country to search for the bushwhackers, but they were not overtaken, and their identity was never discovered. They were evidently a small number of irregular partisans, banded together with no nobler purpose than to kill a few " Feds," no matter how or by what means the killing was done.
POINDEXTER'S RAID.
The most notable event, in the line of military operations, in this ยท county during the year 1862, was the raid of Col. J. A. Poindexter through the county, in the first part of the month of August. Col. Poindexter had entered the Southern army at the beginning of hostili- ties as captain of a company from Randolph county. After the fall of Corinth, Miss., about June 1, and when the one year's enlistment of the Missouri State Guard had expired, Gen. Price gave to a number of his recruiting officers commissions, authorizing them to return to Missouri and recruit troops for the Confederate service. Among those who came on this mission during the summer were
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
Poindexter, Cols. Jo. C. Porter, Jo. O. Shelby, J. V. Cockerell, John T. Hughes, John T. Coffee and Gid. Thompson.
It was stated at the time that Col. Poindexter came from Memphis, Tenn., by steamboat to St. Louis, and from thence to Renick, a station on the old North Missouri Railroad. Being disguised, he repre- sented himself to be a Mr. Arnot, of St. Louis, and procuring a horse he rode into the Randolph hills in safety. He at once began his work of recruiting a regiment for the Confederate army, intending when the time came to cut his way through to the Confederate lines in Arkansas. His arrival in Randolph was some time in the month of June.
By the last of July Col. Poindexter concentrated all of his outlying detachments, and in a few days, at the head of about one thousand men -who were mostly from the counties of Boone, Howard, Ran- dolph and Chariton - set out for Dixie. He designed crossing the Missouri either at Brunswick or Waverly.
About this time Capt. Logan Ballew, Capt. John L. Mirick, and Capt. Robt. Austin, of Carroll, had recruited companies of Confeder- ates, and were skirmishing with the Federals under Capt. D. H. David in the river bottoms of Carroll county. Anstin's men had cap- tured the steamer " War Eagle " a few days previously. In Ballew's company were a few men from Livingston, and this company had united with Mirick in the northern part of Carroll about July 27, the two companies then proceeding through Carrollton to join Austin in the Missouri bottom. In Carrollton they did no damage beyond destroying the office of the Carrollton Democrat.
The Federals under Capt. David, - whose regiment, the 5th M. S. M., " Penick's men," had an uneviable reputation and left an unsa- vory memory - at last drove the Confederates out of the bottom and they started for Poindexter, known to be in the northern part of Randolph or Chariton. They passed through Carrollton without halt- ing, the Federals in close pursuit. On the morning of August 1, Capt. David came up with Mirick and Ballew, northeast of Carrollton, and two or three slight skirmishes took place ; two Confederates were killed. Mirick and Ballew passed on, intending to cross Grand river at Compton's Ferry.
David was falling back to Carrollton when he was re-enforced by about two hundred and twenty-five enrolled militia under the com- mand of Maj. Thos. B. Biggers, also of the 5th M. S. M. The latter had 100 Ray county militia under Capt. Clayton Tiffin, and 100 enrolled militia and 10 M. S. M., under Lieut. Thos. Doyle,
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
of the 1st M. S. M., who had left Breckinridge July 30, and united with Maj. Biggers at Carrollton. The latter had made a night march from Richmond to re-enforce David.
The Federal force, now about four hundred strong, pushed rapidly forward and came up with Mirick and Ballew at Compton's ferry on Grand river. Ballew had crossed the stream to the east bank, and Mirick was guarding the rear. A brisk little skirmish resulted. The Confederates were driven across the stream. On the east bank Ballew released three Federal prisoners which he had captured, disbanded his men, and made good his escape. Here some wagons, provisions, arms, camp equipage, etc., were abandoned to the Federals. Mirick, with the greater part of his company, got across the stream and kept on for Poindexter.
The three released Federal prisoners came over to the Federal force and reported, and Maj. Biggers camped at the ferry for the night. The next morning he sent half his force, under Capt. David, up the west side of Grand river to scour the country, while he himself crossed to the east side with the remainder of his force, swimming the stream. Biggers scoured the bottoms as far north as the Linn county line, when he turned west, through the southeastern portion of this county, swam Grand river again and soon joined Capt. David. Lieut. Doyle now returned to Breckinridge, while Biggers and David went back to Carrollton.
The morning after Mirick and Ballew had been driven across Grand river, Capt. David perpetrated an act which called down upon him- self almost universal censure. The previous day he had captured some prisoners from the force he was fighting, and had also recovered some of the stores which had been taken from the " War Eagle." Three of these prisoners were named Arch. Austin, - Walden and Green Wallace. The latter was a young man whose home was in the southern part of Livingston county.
Ballew had released on parole the three Federal prisoners in his hands, but the very next morning Capt. David determined to shoot the prisoners that he held, claiming that they were guerrillas, had fired on and plundered the " War Eagle," etc. Of this charge young Wallace at least was innocent ; Austin may have been guilty.
The men were led out, placed in line, and at the crack of the guns of the firing party all four fell. Strangely enough, however, not all were killed. Austin and Walden were killed instantly, but Wallace was not seriously hurt; the ball grazed the top of his head, bringing blood and felling him to the ground, where he lay stunned and
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
insensible for some time, and was greatly surprised when, upon regaining consciousness, he found his comrades dead and himself com- paratively unhurt. His captors and would-be executioners had gone, and he lost no time in getting away and keeping away from the dreaded " Penick's men." Afterwards he voluntarily surrendered himself to Col. J. B. Hale, and was released on bond ; but before the war closed he again entered the Confederate army, and lived to return to his home in Livingston county, and is now a citizen of Caldwell county.
August 5, an inquest was held on the bodies of the three men killed, by Esq. A. F. Walden, and the jury found that they had come to their deaths " by being shot with musket balls by some parties un- known."
From some papers found one of the men was supposed to be Archi- bald Allen, of Carroll county. The names of the others were not ascertained. One of the bodies was that of a man 20 or 25 years of age, with light hair, and dressed in white flannel shirt, mixed cotton pants, plow shoes, white socks, drab hat, and with $4 in money in his pockets. The second was that of a man 30 or 35 years of age, sandy hair and whiskers, wearing a blue-mixed jeans coat, cotton shirt with Marseilles bosom, gray tweed pants, brown jeans suspenders, calf boots, checkered cap, and with an account in his pocket due J. L. Deatherage & Co., of Carrollton. The third was that of a young man, 18 or 20 years old, dressed in a brown jeans coat with the skirt lined with red flannel, hickory shirt, blue cotton pants, a pair of com- mon shoes, black socks and a drab colored hat.
On Monday night, July 28, a message came to Col. Woolfolk, at Chillicothe, from Maj. A. W. Mullins, at Brunswick, that a force of 400 Confederates was three miles east of Keytesville, threatening an attack on Brunswick, where there was but a small force of 75 Fed- erals. Woolfolk set out at once for Brunswick with a part of two com- panies of the 1st M. S. M. The next day Woolfolk and Mullins with 212 men, including 60 E. M. M. under Capt. Moberly, attacked the Confederate camp near Clark's mill, on the Chariton river, and com- pletely broke it up. The Confederates numbered only about 60 men. Eight of them were killed and a number wounded. No quarters were shown them by Woolfolk's orders. No Federals were hurt. The Confederates included some guerrillas, but the majority designed joining Poindexter, and the company was expected to capture Bruns- wick and the ferry when the time came to go South.
Word of Col. Poindexter's movements reached the Federal military
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authorities and on the 8th of August Col. Odon Guitar, of the 9th M. S. M., lauded at Glasgow with a force from Jefferson City to take the field against him. Guitar's force was composed of two companies and four detachments of his own regiment; about 100 of Merrill's Horse, under Maj. C. B. Hunt ; Co. D, 13th M. S. M., Capt. Ward ; Co. D, 7th M. S. M., Capt. Turley, and two pieces of cannon belong- ing to Capt. Wachsman's battery, M. S. M., - in all about 550 men.
Poindexter moved out to the westward at once, designing to cross Grand river at Compton's Ferry and the Missouri at Waverly. His force numbered about 800 men, nearly all mounted, but composed for the most part of farmers and farmers' boys, armed with shot- guns and revolvers, and some of them were not armed at all. Their organization and discipline were imperfect, and they were poorly prepared to encounter a fighting force of Federals.
On the 11th of August the hack from Chillicothe to Brunswick, with Richard Silvey, the driver, and U. S. Deputy Marshal Saml. L. Harris as a passenger, drove into Poindexter's forces east of Comp- ton's Ferry. The hack and its occupants were not molested, but Poindexter learned from the latter that there was no Federal force at the Ferry, and pushed on.
The same evening, about dark, Guitar overtook Poindexter at Compton's Ferry. A portion of the latter's forces had already crossed the river (by means of the single small flat-boat and some by swimming) but a considerable number, with some wagons and bag- gage, were yet to cross. Guitar at once opened with his artillery and ordered his troops to charge, which they did. The effect was dis- astrous. The Confederates made no fight worth mentioning. Many in their eagerness to escape plunged into the river and were swallowed up by the waters. Some crossed in safety ; others abandoned their horses and fled on foot. Perhaps a dozen were shot dead. The cannon caused great demoralization and the Federal cavalry, well armed and mounted, charged upon the flying, confused masses and completed their discomfiture. Quite a number of the Confederates were made prisoners, and many horses, mules, guns and equipments, together with the wagons and provisions, were captured. The Con- federate loss was never accurately known. Perhaps 30 were killed and drowned ; the citizens in the vicinity buried 17 bodies that were taken out of the river. Not one Federal was killed or seriously wounded.
The night after the fight Poindexter, with the greater number of his men, marched up the west side of Grand river a few miles and
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camped ; a portion of his forces remained near the ferry. The next morning Poindexter, having now about 500 or 600, came rapidly up into the southern portion of Livingston, taking the road known as the old Mormon trace. Turning westward the Confederates passed through where Avalon now stands, crossed Shoal creek at Dawn and struck northward. Crossing the railroad and West Grand river at Utica, they rode forward to Spring Hill, where they halted a short time for dinner.
It was now Poindexter's intention to march eastward into Macon county and effect a junction with the forces under Col. Jo. Porter. This was his only hope of future safety and success. But at Spring Hill he learned that a week before ( August 6) Porter had been dis- astrously defeated by Gen. McNeil at Kirksville. He learned, too, that everywhere the newly enrolled militia and the Federal detachments were swarming about him, and " the dark hour fell upon Saul." His only hope now was to save the lives and persons of his men, and to effect this no plan seemed better than to regain as soon as possible the coverts of the Chariton bottoms and the Randolph hills.
Setting out from Spring Hill, Poindexter crossed East Grand river at McGee's mill, passed through Rich Hill township, ship, north of Chillicothe, crossed Medicine creek at White's ford, and then turned toward the southeast through the southwest corner of Linn. The greater portion of his force passed Bottsville (now Meadville ) about midnight, and soon were in Chariton county. All along the march from Spring Hill, and even from Compton's Ferry, there were stragglings and desertions. During the night march there were a great many. Fatigue and hunger accomplished more of the destruction of Poindexter's forces than did the Federals. Tired and weary, hungry and dispirited, and half delirious from want of sleep, the poor farmers' boys became disgusted with a " soldier's life" and longed for the square meals and soft beds of their homes.
Mr. H. K. Pearl, a well known Union citizen, and especially obnox- ious to certain Confederate people, was in Spring Hill when Poindex- ter arrived, and was pressed by the raiders to guide them to a ford across Grand river. When across the river he was released, but on his return was chased into Spring Hill, his horse shot, and he proba- bly would have been killed but for the intervention of Maj. W. F. Miller, a returned ex-Confederate officer. He was again taken to Poindexter, who gave him a written pass and again released him when he made his way to Chillicothe.
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