USA > Ohio > History of Ohio; the rise and progress of an American state, Volume Four > Part 18
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In the summer of 1864 a new and threatening force against the Union sentiment in Ohio was developed. This was a secret organization called the "Order of
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American Knights," or "the Sons of Liberty"; in some places it was known as the "Knights of the Golden Circle." It was clearly a secret treasonable organiza- tion formed to affiliate in the North with the Southern Confederacy. Its character was chiefly military. This was unmistakably evidenced by the records of the Order, seized by the Government. Its secret constitu- tion provided that the National head, the Supreme Commander, "shall be commander-in-chief of all the military forces belonging to the Order in the various states when called into active service," and that the State head, the Grand Commander, "shall be com- mander-in-chief of the military forces of the State." This military system prevailed down to the townships, the military organization of which was a "company." The "lodges" or "temples" of the Order were scattered through the states of Indiana, Ohio, Illinois, Missouri and Kentucky. They were also officially reported as being established to a less extent in Michigan and the other Western states, as well as in New York, Pennsyl- vania, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Delaware and Tennessee. The Supreme Commander of the Order was P. C. Wright of New York, editor of the New York News, who was in May, 1864, placed in arrest and confined in Fort Lafayette. His successor in office was Vallandig- ham, who had been elected at the annual meeting in February before. It was at this meeting that the Order declared for "a cessation of hostilities upon existing facts, and a convention of the sovereign states to adjust the terms of peace with a view to the restora- tion of the Union, entire, if possible, if not, so much
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and such parts as the affinities of interest and civiliza- tion may attract." Further details concerning this organization are not essential to this narrative. The reader who desires to acquaint himself with such will find them in the Report of the Judge Advocate General to the Secretary of War, dated October 8, 1864, in the records of the War Department, Bureau of Military Justice; also in "The Trials for Treason at Indian- apolis, Disclosing Plans for Establishing a Northwestern Confederacy," edited by Benn Pitman (Cincinnati, 1865). In these publications may be found the fullest details acquired by the Government through spies, detectives, witnesses and seizures, of the gigantic conspiracy to erect a new nation in the Northwest by secession.
The Confederate Government at Richmond was fully advised of the movements and purposes of the "Sons of Liberty." As early as March, 1864, Presi- dent Jefferson Davis of the Southern Confederacy determined to send North some of his officers to organize a movement to release the Confederate pris- oners, and these, with their allies, were to seize Northern cities and establish a new confederacy.
In September, 1864, at Camp Douglas, near Chicago, there were 5,140 prisoners; at Camp Chase, near Columbus, there were 4,778; at Camp Morton, near Indianapolis, 884; at Springfield, Illinois, 7,240; and at Johnson's Island, in Sandusky Bay, 2,662 officers were confined. The plan was to simultaneously release all these prisoners, and, with the aid of the "Sons of Liberty" in Ohio, Indiana and Illinois, occupy Chicago, Indianapolis and Columbus. Out of this general
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"rising" was to grow a new republic in the Northwest. Jefferson Davis selected to organize this movement Captain Thomas H. Hines of the Ninth Kentucky Cavalry (Morgan's Division). He had escaped with Morgan from the Ohio Penitentiary in November, 1863. In the Southern Bivouac, Louisville, Ky. (Volume II, Nos. 7, 8, 9, 11-1886-1887), Captain Hines has writ- ten a complete history of the Confederate negotiations in Canada relative to the Northwestern Conspiracy. With the commission of James A. Seddon, the Con- federate Secretary of War, Hines proceeded to Canada to commence operations and to confer with Jacob Thompson, the Special Commissioner of the Confederate States in Canada. Mr. Thompson had established himself in this capacity at Montreal on May 30th, and had deposited a large amount of money for his purposes in the Bank of Ontario in that city.
The prime object of the Confederate Commissioner's Canadian mission was to endeavor to bring influence on President Lincoln with a view to peace between the North and South. He thought he could negotiate better in Canada and be closer to prominent Northern men, as well as be more easy of access. All efforts at peace failed because they were conditioned on the inde- pendence of the Southern Confederacy. He next turned his attention to utilizing the feeling engendered and represented by the "Sons of Liberty" into an active force for a military movement in the Northwestern states against the Government. On June 9th, Captain Hines was sent by Thompson to interview Vallandig- ham, who at that time was at Windsor, Canada, and to get specific information from him, concerning the
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Order of which he was the Supreme Commander. The result of this interview was that on June IIth Vallan- digham and Thompson met for a conference. On this occasion, according to Captain Hines, Vallandigham stated that the "Sons of Liberty" numbered 300,000, and that in Illinois there were 84,000, in Indiana 50,000 and in Ohio 40,000. At this time also Vallan- digham introduced to Thompson a member of high rank in the Order, and through this man was arranged a distribution of the funds for arming and mobilizing the organization. Captain Hines in his narrative of his mission says that "a subsequent investigation of the character and sentiment of the 'Sons of Liberty' confirmed perfectly all that Mr. Vallandigham had said, and revealed a feverish desire of the general membership to assert and maintain their rights."
On the night of June 14th, three days after this interview, Vallandigham left Windsor in disguise and on the next day he was at Hamilton, Ohio, where a convention to select delegates to the Chicago National Democratic Convention was in session. To this body he delivered his first speech after more than a year of exile, and was received with marked feelings of enthu- siasm. In this speech he referred to the Order of which he was the head, denying that it was a conspiracy, unpatriotic or treasonable. "This is," said he, "the sole conspiracy of which I know anything; and I am proud to be one of the conspirators. If any other exists, looking to unlawful armed resistance to the Federal or State authorities anywhere in the exercise of the legal and constitutional rights, I admonish al persons concerned that the act is treason and th
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penalty is death. But I warn also the men in power that there is a vast multitude, a host whom they cannot number, bound together by the strongest and holiest ties, to defend by whatever means the exigencies of the time shall demand, their natural and constitutional rights as freemen, at all hazards and to the last ex- tremity."
July 20 was the date first fixed upon for the release of the Confederate prisoners and the uprising of their allies in Illinois and Indiana. Commissioner Thomp- son, in his first report to the Confederate Cabinet at Richmond, thus outlined what was sought to be accom- plished: "Though intending this as a Western Con- federacy and demanding peace, if peace be not granted then it shall be war. There are some choice spirits enlisted in this enterprise, and what is needed for success is unflinching nerve. For our part it is agreed that Captain T. Henry Hines shall command at Chicago and Captain John B. Castleman at Rock Island. If a movement could be made by our troops into Ken- tucky and Missouri it would greatly facilitate matters in the West. The organized force of the Federal Government would thus be employed, and this would give courage and hope to the Northwestern people." Awaiting patiently these military movements, action was postponed, and on July 22 the Canadian Com- missioner and Captains Hines and Castleman met at St. Catherine's, Canada for further consultation. Dele- gates from the "Sons of Liberty" urged the revolt for August 22. All parted with the understanding that there would be another meeting on August 7th, when delegates from the State and county organizations
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should be present. On that date, accordingly, such a meeting was held at London, Canada, at which August 29, the day of the assembling of the Democratic National Convention at Chicago, was settled upon as the day of action. It was urged that the immense and excited crowds of that occasion would prove a dense cover under which a large body of Confederates and their Northern allies could be concentrated.
During the two days preceding the Convention the Confederates detailed for leading the dangerous and important service began to arrive in Chicago. They traveled in small parties, and to all appearances were in attendance to participate in the political proceed- ings. By arrangements made in advance, most of them stopped at the Richmond House. These leaders were sixty in number, and Captain Hines in his narra- tive gives their names. He says: "The men chosen for this work were no mere adventurers; they had enlisted in an enterprise where they knew success was doubtful and that failure meant probably death; and these men have since shown by their success in civil life that they were men of no ordinary capacity." However, he does not speak so highly of the "Sons of Liberty." "For notwithstanding," he says, "that Mr. Vallandigham's representatives were furnished means of transportation and had ample time to make proper distribution and explanation to the more faith- ful and courageous county commanders why the rank and file should come to Chicago and resist any further attempt upon the liberties of the citizens. * * * it must be confessed that events fully justified the belief
WILLIAM STARKE ROSECRANS
Born in Kingston, Ross county, Ohio, September 6, 1819; was graduated from the United States Military Academy, 1842, and continued in the army till 1854, when he resigned; for some years afterward was engaged in professional and business enterprises in Cincinnati and in Virginia; early in the Civil War was appointed Colonel of an Ohio regiment, and was successively pro- moted to Brigadier General of the regular army (May, 1861), Major General of volunteers (March, 1862), and Brevet Major General of the regular army (March, 1865); resigned from the army, March 28, 1867; declined Demo- cratic nominations for Governor of California (1867) and Ohio (1869); Minister to Mexico, 1868-69; member of Congress from California, 1881-85; Register of the Treas- ury, 1885-89; died near Los Angeles, California, March II, 1898.
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arrive, in icago. traveled in small parties, and to all appeagainres we in attendance to participate in the political proces ings By arrangements made in advance, most them stopped at the Richmond House. These leader wert sixty in number, and Captain Hines in his nar tive gives their names. He says: "The men chos. for the work wore nu mere adventurers; they h elisted in an alterpras where they knew success w doubtful and that bilure meant probably death; a these men have ffer thow by their success in ci Te that they were mau of no ordinary capacity However, he does not speak so highly of the "Sons Liberty." "For notwithstanding," he says, "tl Mr. Vallandigham's representatives were furnish means of transportation and had ample time to ma proper distribution and explanation to the more fai ful and courageous county commanders why the ra and file should come to Chicago and resist any furt' attempt upon the liberties of the citizens, must be confessed that events fully justified the bel
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that some of the principal agents employed were lack- ing either in fidelity or courage, or both."
The story of the collapse of a movement that in the secrecy of lodges and on paper assumed gigantic proportions, can best be given by Captain Hines him- self, who could truly say, "All of which I saw and part of which I was."
Of the prospects of success, he says: "Men com- mended to us by Mr. Vallandigham had been intrusted with the necessary funds for perfecting the county organizations; arms had been purchased in the North by the aid of our professed friends in New York; alliances offensive and defensive had been made with peace organizations, and though we were not misled by the sanguine promises of our friends, we were con- fident that with any sort of cooperation on their part success was reasonably possible. During the excite- ment that always attends a great political Convention, increased as we supposed it would be by the spirit of opposition to the Administration, we felt that we would be freer to act unobserved, and that we could move with promptness and effect upon Camp Douglas. With nearly five thousand prisoners there, and over seven thousand at Springfield, joined by the dissatis- fied elements in Chicago and throughout Illinois, we believed that at once we would have a formidable force, which might be the nucleus for a much more important movement. Everything was arranged for prompt action, and for the concentration and organization of all these bodies. It was, as we felt, the first step that was the most difficult and the most serious. Success
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was only possible by prompt and concerted action during the Convention. The Confederates were ready."
Of the preparations for action, he says: "Arms were ready, and information had been conveyed to the prisoners of war of our intention. Chicago was thronged with people from all sections of the country. And among this vast crowd were many of the county officers of the secret organization on whom we relied for resistance. Most of these present at our Chicago conference were from Illinois; men well known in their own localities, whose influence, once they were com- mitted to our plans by some overt act, would be of vast service. It was essential to the success of any under- taking for us to know definitely what armed forces the representatives of Mr. Vallandigham could provide. For this, a meeting of the officers of the organization was held at the room of Hines and Castleman at the Richmond House the night before the Convention, August 28, 1864."
The finale is thus described: "The evening of the twenty-ninth of August came, but on the part of the timid, timidity became more apparent, and those who were resolute could not show the strength needed to give confident hope of success. The reinforcements sent by the Administration to strengthen the Chicago garrison had been vastly exaggerated, and seven thousand men was the number rumor brought to the ears of the 'Sons of Liberty.' Care had been taken to keep informed as to what troops came to Camp Doug- las, but the statement made by Hines and Castleman to the effect that only three thousand were present did not counteract the effect produced by the rumor that
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the Federal forces numbered more than double that number. When, therefore, a count was taken of the number of the 'Sons of Liberty' on whom we could rely, it seemed worse than folly to attempt to use them. There were not enough to justify any movement which would commit the Northwestern people to open resist- ance, and not even enough to secure the release and control the organization of the prisoners at Camp Douglas as the nucleus of an army which would give possible relief to the Confederacy."
With all hope of success abandoned, Captains Hines and Castleman, together with their associate Con- federate officers, left Chicago. The celerity of their departure was increased when they became aware of great vigilance and activity on the part of the agents of the Government.
. During all this time Vallandigham was in Chicago as a delegate to the Convention from the Third Congres- sional district of Ohio. He opposed the nomination of General McClellan for the Presidency and was defeated for the position of Chairman of the Committee on Resolutions.
Notwithstanding the fiasco at Chicago, it was deter- mined to attempt to release the prisoners at Johnson's Island, in Sandusky Bay, and at Camp Chase, near Columbus. It was a bold and daring project and came perilously near succeeding. This was undertaken by Captain Charles H. Cole, a Confederate officer of General Forrest's cavalry, and Captain John Yates Beall of the Confederate Navy. The plan was to capture the gunboat Michigan, carrying eighteen guns, the only armed vessel on the Lakes, and thus give the
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Southern Confederacy practical supremacy on those waters. If this was accomplished the cities in New York, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Michigan, and Wiscon- sin, which were upon the Lakes, would be at the mercy of and under tribute to the Confederates. As a sequence to this, it was planned to release the twenty- six hundred prisoners at Johnson's Island, seize San- dusky, and by train pour these forces into Columbus and release the prisoners, nearly five thousand, at Camp Chase.
The whole plot was daring to the point of rashness, but the men engaged were fully equal to their task and save for treachery they would probably have succeeded. The story of the conspiracy and the remarkable effort to consummate it, reads like a chapter from a novel, and, with the thrilling adventures of the "Andrews Raiders," it ranks as one of the romances of the Rebellion.
Captain Cole came to Sandusky in the early summer of 1864, ostensibly from Philadelphia, as the secretary and representative of the Mount Hope Oil Company of Titusville, Pennsylvania. His genial bearing and gentlemanly accomplishments soon won him friends. His oil company was successful and the investors soon received dividends which gave him a creditable stand- ing as a business man. He maintained a respectable deposit in a Sandusky bank, and while not reckless or dissipated he dispensed his hospitality in a way con- sistent with a well-bred gentleman. Gradually, he attained a social standing and in time became the friend and associate of the officers of the Michigan. Indeed, he was a guest of the officers in a tour around the Lakes,
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during which he acquired much knowledge, which he reported to the Confederate Commissioner, Jacob Thompson. Captain Cole in return wined and dined the officers with magnificent but not ostentatious hospitality. Similar social relations were developed with the Federal officers on Johnson's Island, and so close did they become that Captain Cole, in a sympa- thetic way, was permitted to hold free converse with the Confederate officers imprisoned on the island. In fact, his genial and generous nature soon made him a privileged character on lake and land. These congenial associations he did not fail to turn to account. He secured the enlistment of ten Confederates as members of the Federal Regiment doing duty on John- son's Island, and two more of his "friends" were kindly taken care of by being enlisted as seamen on board the Michigan.
Finally all the plans had been laid, and the time arrived for action. In The Firelands Pioneer (New Series, Vol. I, June, 1882), Captain Cole graphically describes his part in this enterprise. Of the purpose, he says: "Our plans were finally matured, and it was decided to make the attack on Monday, the nineteenth day of September. The intention was, the moment the Michigan was captured and the Confederate officers released, to cut all the telegraph wires leading out of Sandusky, seize a railroad train, run down to Columbus, assist in releasing the prisoners there, then run back to Sandusky and establish temporary headquarters of the Confederate Department of the Northwest. General Trimble of Maryland, who was the ranking Confederate officer confined on Johnson's Island, was
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to be made Commander-in-Chief, and I had in my pocket a commission from the Confederate Govern- ment, appointing him to that position the moment he was released. I was supplied with other commissions in blank, all properly signed and attested, to give to all other men who enlisted in the Confederate Army for this service. This was done to make them regular Confederate soldiers, so that their services would be legitimate acts of warfare as long as they obeyed orders. "
A few days before action, Captain John Yates Beall met Captain Cole at the West House in Sandusky, and the details were all gone over. It was then decided that Beall, with twenty Confederates, should go to Detroit and at that place board the passenger steamer Philo Parsons, take possession of the boat, put the passengers ashore at some convenient point, and then steam ahead as if bound for Sandusky. The Michigan lay in the bay, and when near her the Philo Parsons was to run alongside and capture the gunboat. The preparation for this capture and the arrangements at the Sandusky end were to be taken care of by Captain Cole, who was to send a messenger to Bass Island to notify Beall of his progress.
These arrangements were changed so that Beall, on September 19th, boarded the vessel at Sandwich, a small town on the Canadian side. When Malden, on the same side, was reached, twenty-five men came aboard; they were dressed roughly in citizen's attire. The only baggage of this party was an old trunk, which, as developed afterwards, contained revolvers and hatchets. The Philo Parsons proceeded on her
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way to Sandusky. She stopped at Kelley's Island to unload freight and take on passengers, and after leaving that point, when about four miles off the Ohio main shore, Beall and his companions took possession of the vessel in the name of the Confederate States. They then made for Middle Bass Island and put the passen- gers ashore. While the Philo Parsons was lying there the Island Queen, a passenger boat plying between the Islands and Sandusky, came alongside to land, when she was immediately boarded by Beall's men and her crew and passengers made prisoners. On board the Island Queen were thirty-five members of Company K, One Hundred and Thirtieth Regiment, Ohio National Guard, who, having been mustered out, were unarmed. These, with the passengers, were permitted to go ashore. The boat was then lashed to the Philo Parsons, which quickly got under way and stood out for Sandusky. When about three miles out, the Island Queen was scuttled and drifted on a reef. Steaming in the direc- tion of Johnson's Island, the daring young Confederate proceeded to carry out the vital but the most dangerous part of his programme. This was to lay within sight of the Michigan until he received the agreed signal from Captain Cole, and then steam alongside the gun- boat and, with his band, board her, and thus open Ohio to Confederate invasion.
In the placid waters of Sandusky Bay Beall, with strained anxiety, viewed the outlines of the Michigan in the moonlight, but there was no signal from Captain Cole, whom he supposed was aboard and in possession of the gunboat. To add to his misery, he was con- fronted with another and more serious danger. Out
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of his crew of twenty, seventeen mutinied. In a formal writing, while expressing admiration for their comman- der for his skill and courage, they said: "But believ- ing and being well convinced that the enemy is already apprised of our approach, and is so well prepared that we cannot by any possibility make it a success, and hav- ing already captured two boats, we respectfully decline to prosecute it any further." Left in this helpless position, and unable to enforce his orders, Beall steamed for Sandwich, where he discharged his crew and destroyed his boat.
While the work allotted to Beall was being carried out successfully, Captain Cole was preparing to do his share. This was to secure possession of the Michigan, or at least put her in form so there would be the least resistance when Beall lay to with the Philo Parsons to board. Cole arranged for a champagne supper on the evening of September 20th, to be given to the officers. A few of Cole's friends, "Sons of Liberty," were also to be present. At about midnight he expected the Philo Parsons in the bay within hailing distance. The wine was to be drugged and by this means, at the appointed time, the officers would be incapable of resistance. With the assistance of his secret allies aboard he expected to gain control of the vessel and notify Beall to finish the plot. The dinner came off as planned, "There was a sound of revelry by night," and joy was unconfined. The Captain saw as in a vision the important consequences of his plans. But alas! for the best laid plans of men. He was in the midst of the drinking and was just making an excuse to go on deck to give the signal to the Philo
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