9781893114555

In early 1861, most Missourians hoped they could remain neutral in the upcoming conflict between North and South. In fact, a popularly elected state convention voted in March of that year that "no adequate cause" existed to compel Missouri to leave the Union. Instead, Missourians saw themselves as ideologically centered between the radical notions of abolition and secession. By that summer, however, the situation had deteriorated dramatically. Due to the actions of politicians and soldiers such as Missouri Gov. Claiborne Jackson and Union Gen. Nathaniel Lyon, Missourians found themselves forced to take sides. Campaign for Wilson's Creek is a fascinating story of high- stakes military gambles, aggressive leadership and lost opportunities. It is also a tale of unique military units, untried but determined commanders, colorful volunteers and professional soldiers. The first major campaign of the Civil War west of the Mississippi River guaranteed that Missourians would be engaged in a long, cruel civil war within the larger, national struggle.

Jeffrey L. Patrick is the National Park Service librarian at Wilson's Creek National Battlefield. He is the author of numerous articles on various aspects of American military history, and is the editor/coeditor of two Civil War diaries and a World War I period memoir. He lives in Republic, Missouri.

List of Biographical Sketches, Maps, Photographs, and Major Players	p. 7
Introduction	p. 13
Enter the Protagonists	p. 17
Saint Louis Prepares for War	p. 23
Blood on the Streets	p. 27
Aftermath	p. 39
ôThis Means Warö	p. 49
Sweeny and Sigel	p. 61
Lyon's Forced March	p. 77
The Southern Valley Forge	p. 87
The Armies Collide	p. 93
Lyon's Difficult Decision	p. 113
The Armies Prepare	p. 119
Lyon's Advance	p. 129
Bloody Hill Earns Its Name	p. 139
The Cornfield	p. 149
The Sharp Farm	p. 157
The Struggle for Bloody Hill Continues	p. 167
The Final Attack and the End of the Battle	p. 181
ôA Savage and Desperate Courageö	p. 189
Notes	p. 203
Credits	p. 213
Index	p. 215
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

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On the morning of June 11, 1861, Brig. Gen. Nathaniel Lyon strode through the Planters’ House Hotel in Saint Louis, accompanied by Maj. Horace Conant, his aide, and US Representative Francis “Frank” P. Blair. The trio were on their way to meet Missouri Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson; Maj. Gen. Sterling Price, the commander of the Missouri State Guard; and Thomas L. Snead, one of Jackson’s aides. The Planters’ House Conference, as it came to be called, was a last desperate effort to prevent Missouri from sliding into full-scale civil war.

Even though the Missouri legislature had authorized Governor Jackson to raise and organize a state militia, the governor agreed in the meeting to disband the pro-Southern Missouri State Guard units that had been formed since early the previous month; to guarantee the protection of pro-Union Missourians; and to prevent Confederate troops from entering the state. Lyon and Blair were asked in return to muster out the pro-Union Home Guard companies they had organized and to guarantee that Federal troops did not occupy any properties beyond those they now held. Price supported the agreement. Although initially quiet, the passionate Lyon soon entered the fray. He doubted Governor Jackson’s desire for peace and questioned whether Missouri’s Unionists could be protected with or without the State Guard. The idea that Jackson could prevent Confederate forces from entering Missouri proved to Lyon that the governor was openly negotiating with those in rebellion against the Union. The general could tolerate no one dictating terms to the national government, telling him what a soldier of the US Army could or could not do. Brigadier General Lyon was negotiating from a position of power, and he saw an opportunity to use that power to defeat the governor and his supporters. After four or five hours of discussion, Lyon had had enough. Although still seated, he spoke slowly, deliberately and, as Snead remembered, “with a peculiar emphasis” to the three Missourians. “‘Rather than concede to the State of Missouri for one single instant the right to dictate to my Government in any matter however unimportant, I would’ (rising as he said this, and pointing in turn to every one in the room) ‘see you, and you, and you, and you, and you, and every man, woman, and child in the State, dead and buried.’” He then turned to Governor Jackson and ended the meeting with these chilling words: “This means war. In an hour one of my officers will call for you and conduct you out of my lines.” Lyon then marched out of the room, followed by Major Conant, leaving Representative Blair to bid farewell to the others.

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Campaign for Wilson's Creek : The Fight for Missouri Begins

Campaign for Wilson's Creek : The Fight for Missouri Begins

1893114554

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