History
Battle of Wentzville
The following account of the Battle of Wentzville is based on information compiled by Gerry Matlock, former Wentzville Historical Society President, and from official Federal Government records. On July 15, 1861, four companies of the 2nd Missouri Infantry and two companies of the 8th Missouri Infantry left St. Louis by train, heading west on the [...]
Bellefontaine Cemetery and the Civil War
Last weekend I was in the St. Louis area for my nieces Communion. Afterwards we had lunch and then started our trek back to our home in south-central Missouri. However, we decided to make a pit stop along the way at Bellefontaine Cemetery in north St. Louis to visit a few Civil War graves. I [...]
Price and McCulloch: Rivalry in Missouri
After the victory at Wilson’s Creek in August of 1861, southern forces in Missouri under the command of Missouri Militia General Sterling Price and Confederate Brigadier General Benjamin McCulloch found a new sense of purpose in Missouri. Southern sympathizing Missourians found a renewed spirit and hope for their cause in Missouri. This lead to the Militia [...]
Bingham’s ‘Order No. 11’ argued for civil liberties
By Ted Stillwell The Examiner Independence, MO - Writer and artist George Caleb Bingham has long been one of my heroes. He lived in the house that carries his namesake on West Pacific Avenue during the Civil War era, the Bingham-Waggoner Estate, where he painted one of his most famous canvas, “Martial Law.” Bingham was born [...]
Battlefield Dispatches No. 212: ‘Bushwhackers in Yankee Blue!’
During the Civil War, it did not take long for Confederate Guerrillas / Bushwhackers in Missouri to learn that a successful way to deceive the “Blue Bellied Billy Yanks” was to wear the Yankee’s trousers and jacket and appear to be “Yanks.” This, of course, gave the guerrillas an added element of surprise when they [...]
Battlefield Dispatches No. 211: ‘Swarming Bushwhackers’
In the Spring of each year, during the Civil War, the Confederate and Union Guerrillas awoke from their partial winter hibernation to conduct their special type of warfare with a vengeance. Depending on the weather, guerrilla activity increased with the coming of the leaves in springtime. This being the middle of March and the month [...]
