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288 The Union Cause in St. Louis in 1861.
SOUTHEAST MISSOURI.
In the previous mentioned report to Washington, Colonel Harding
laid great stress upon the needs of the Union defenses in Southeast
Missouri, where he claimed that a large force with Artillery and
Cavalry may hereafter be necessary. He referred chiefly to the low-
land Counties of Southeast Missouri, which, however, were largely
protected by nature, having the Mississippi River on the East and
communicational lines, broken by bayous, swamps and lakes, which
made the advance of larger bodies of troops extremely difficult.
These lowlands stretch far into Arkansas, but in Missouri alone they
extend over 75 miles to the South, by about 35 miles in width and
cover over 2,500 square miles. Their topography had been changed
by the great New Madrid earthquake, still their elevation is so uni-
form that the overflow water of the Mississippi near Commerce runs
inland nearly 60 miles, and returns to the Mississippi with the
White River, after a course of 200 miles. For these reasons the
policy of occupying Cairo, Cape Girardeau, Iron Mountain and
points where the bluffs of the Ozarks sink into the lowlands answered
all defensive purposes, at least as-long as an advance down the Mis-
sissippi River, for political as well as military reasons, was still out
of question. But the reports did not cease, that troops are concen-
trating in Arkansas for an attack upon Southeast Missouri. S.S.
Williams, McClellan's Adjutant General, informed General Lyon
on July 15 from Cincinnati that Bragg's Battery, four 32-pounders,
three 64-pounders and one Regiment were embarked on a steamer
in Memphis, with the destination of Pocahontas on the Black River;
that they expected to find 6,000 Missouri and Arkansas troops at the
latter place, which was only 100 miles from Sikeston, the terminus
of the Cairo & Fulton Railroad. The route of these troops was to be
down the Mississippi to the mouth of White River and upstream on
the latter and Black River to Pocahontas. Corroborating the above
report as it would appear, was a letter dated July 16 from M. Jeff
Thompson ("The Swamp Fox"), which letter was found on a captive
and in which Thompson wrote: "I am advancing and General Yell
will follow me in a few days with 5,000 men. He will take position
between Rolla and Ironton. General Watkins will move up, sus-
tained by General Pillow, and if proper energy is exercised, we can
Object Description
| Title | The Union cause in St. Louis in 1861, an historical sketch |
| Author | Rombauer, Robert J. (Robert Julius), 1830-1925 |
| Subject.LCSH |
Missouri -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 Saint Louis (Mo.) -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Regimental histories Missouri -- Militia |
| Coverage | United State -- Missouri |
| Source |
475 p. : front., illus. (maps, plans) pl., ports. ; 24 cm. St. Louis, Mo. : Press of Nixon-Jones prtg. co., 1909 |
| Language | English |
| Date.Original | 1909 |
| Date.Digital | 2004? |
| Type |
Books and pamphlets |
| Format | JPEG |
| Collection Name | Civil War in Missouri - Monographs |
| Editorial Note | All blank pages have been eliminated |
| Publisher.Digital | University of Missouri Digital Library Production Services |
| Rights | These pages may be freely searched and displayed. Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically. Please contact contributing institution for information. |
| Contributing Institution |
University of Missouri--Columbia. Libraries |
| Copy Request | Contact Ellis Library Special Collection, University of Missouri - Columbia at (573) 882-0076 or email: SpecialCollections@missouri.edu |
Description
| Title | civm000005p0288 |
| Description | 288 The Union Cause in St. Louis in 1861. SOUTHEAST MISSOURI. In the previous mentioned report to Washington, Colonel Harding laid great stress upon the needs of the Union defenses in Southeast Missouri, where he claimed that a large force with Artillery and Cavalry may hereafter be necessary. He referred chiefly to the low- land Counties of Southeast Missouri, which, however, were largely protected by nature, having the Mississippi River on the East and communicational lines, broken by bayous, swamps and lakes, which made the advance of larger bodies of troops extremely difficult. These lowlands stretch far into Arkansas, but in Missouri alone they extend over 75 miles to the South, by about 35 miles in width and cover over 2,500 square miles. Their topography had been changed by the great New Madrid earthquake, still their elevation is so uni- form that the overflow water of the Mississippi near Commerce runs inland nearly 60 miles, and returns to the Mississippi with the White River, after a course of 200 miles. For these reasons the policy of occupying Cairo, Cape Girardeau, Iron Mountain and points where the bluffs of the Ozarks sink into the lowlands answered all defensive purposes, at least as-long as an advance down the Mis- sissippi River, for political as well as military reasons, was still out of question. But the reports did not cease, that troops are concen- trating in Arkansas for an attack upon Southeast Missouri. S.S. Williams, McClellan's Adjutant General, informed General Lyon on July 15 from Cincinnati that Bragg's Battery, four 32-pounders, three 64-pounders and one Regiment were embarked on a steamer in Memphis, with the destination of Pocahontas on the Black River; that they expected to find 6,000 Missouri and Arkansas troops at the latter place, which was only 100 miles from Sikeston, the terminus of the Cairo & Fulton Railroad. The route of these troops was to be down the Mississippi to the mouth of White River and upstream on the latter and Black River to Pocahontas. Corroborating the above report as it would appear, was a letter dated July 16 from M. Jeff Thompson ("The Swamp Fox"), which letter was found on a captive and in which Thompson wrote: "I am advancing and General Yell will follow me in a few days with 5,000 men. He will take position between Rolla and Ironton. General Watkins will move up, sus- tained by General Pillow, and if proper energy is exercised, we can |
| Source | The Union Cause in St. Louis in 1861 |
| Type | Books and monographs |
| Format | JPEG |
| Identifier | civm000005p0288.jpg |
| Collection Name | Civil War in Missouri - Monographs |
| Editorial Note | All blank pages have been eliminated |
| Publisher.Digital | University of Missouri Digital Library Production Services |
| Rights | These pages may be freely searched and displayed. Permission must be received for subsequent distribution in print or electronically. Please contact koppk@umsystem.edu for more information. |
| Copy Request | Contact Ellis Library special collection at: SpecialCollections@missouri.edu |
