Footnotes for Letters 29 - 35: 1861 -1865 - The Civil War Years (Revised 7/2006, 10/30/06)

Keep this reference page open as you read letters 29 - 35.

Letter 29

1. Elizabeth Ewing Berry Yocum Watts in Mariposa, California
2. neuralgia
3. Mary B. Berry Yager
4. At this time the Missouri Legislature was meeting at St. Louis and debating succession from the Union. Between January and April 1861 eleven southern states had succeeded from the Union. The opponents of succession prevailed but the violent actions of the Unionists and the retaliation by Missourians, both in Missouri and Kansas, put pressure on the legislature to call out the State Guards but this was not done at this time.
5. Missouri
6. Governor Jackson and the Legislature were working on a compromise that would emancipate the slaves by 1870.
7. freighter. Upton Hays was a wagonmaster and had government contracts to haul freight by wagon train to government outposts and Indian settlements west of Missouri.
8. Jennison the Redleg or Jayhawker abolitionist had been raiding the pro-slavery people of Missouri. He had captured one of Upton Hays’ wagon trains about 1860. The 1850 Federal Census lists Jennison as a doctor but the 1860 Census lists him as a wagonmaster. It seems possible that he would have liked to have the government freighting contracts to go along with his new business.
9. George Washington Rowland. He was married to Margaret’s half-sister Letty Watts.
10. The area around Mt. Pleasant, Cass Co., Missouri
11. Martha J. Moore Yocum Bane was the widow of Margaret’s half-brother Jesse Yocum.
12. John S. Watts, Jr. , Margaret’s half-brother.
13. Eliza C. Watts Dickerson of Howard Co., Missouri. She may have been a daughter of John S. Watts, Margaret’s father. Margaret and Eliza referred to each other as "Sister" in their letters.

Letter 30

14. Elizabeth Watts

15. connection –all her relatives.

16. The first shots fired in the Civil War were at Ft. Sumter, South Carolina on April 10, 1861.

17. James Henry Lane (1814-1866) was elected to the United States Senate when Kansas became a state in 1861.  He had served as Lieutenant Governor of Illinois before moving to Kansas to lead the Republican abolitionists in 1854. Lane's’s “take charge” disposition resulted in his commanding a group of men called “Lane's Brigade.” In attempting to keep  proslavery  Missourians out of Kansas, Lane went beyond simply protecting the borders. In September, 1861, Lane's Brigade invaded Osceola , Missouri , and, discovering rebel military supplies, ravaged the town. Townspeople from Osceola were robbed of their goods before the town was set afire. Lane’s fearless, ruthless actions helped earn him the nickname of “The Grand Chieftain.”  ( James Lane by Tom Mach, http://www.atlasbooks.com/hillsongpress/perspectives.htm )

18. Alexander Jackson Majors, a Westport freighter and founder of the Pony Express.

19. George Washington Rowland

20. Letty Watts Rowland

21. John Bunyan Rowland, Margaret's nephew.

22. John S. Watts, Jr.

23. Elizabeth Ann Lobb  Bryant, niece of James B. Yager

24. William W. Lobb, nephew of James B. Yager

25. James C. Lobb, nephew of James B. Yager. They were the children of Jaquiline Amber Lobb and Mary Ellen Yager, the sister of James B. Yager, Margaret's uncle and were also cousins of her mother, E. E. Watts..

26. Mary Elizabeth Hays

27. Mrs. Mary Cunningham was Margaret's companion who took care of the household.

26. St. Joseph, Buchanan Co., Missouri

29. Upton Hays

Letter 31

30. Elizabeth Watts

31. companies of the Missouri State Guards (Partisan Rangers).

32. William Clarke Quantrill (1837-1865) formed  a company  south of  Westport to protect the people from attacks by Kansas Jayhawkers. Upton Hays had the company in Westport that protected the area between Westport and Independence.

33. The Liberty Arsenal was the U. S. Army Arms Depot in Liberty, Clay Co., Missouri  a short distance north  of the Missouri River. It was seized by armed Confederate supporters on April 20, 1861.

34. The Independence Company was called the Independence Grays.

35. The arms were probably intended for the United States Army in the New Mexico Territory although there is a Mexico, Audrain Co.,  Missouri. The U. S. Government rightly assumed that the newly formed Confederate States of America would try to gain control of the Southwest.

36. Kansas Territory.

37. Kansas volunteer militia loyal to the United States.

38. United States Army troops

39. vigilant

40. California

41. Richard C. Berry

42. Mary B. Berry Yager

43. Leek Moore. The Moore's were former neighbors of Margaret's family in Cass Co.

44. Possibly Thomas A. Yocum

45. James C. Lobb was James B. Yager's nephew and a cousin of Margaret's.

46. John Nathan Hays

47. Sowing corn by hand

48. Mrs. Mary Cunningham

49. Upton Hays

50. Alexander Jackson Majors

51. The Liberty Arsenal was seized by Secessionists on April 21, 1861.

52. Slaves belonging to Margaret's mother who were left with Margaret and Upton when she emigrated to California in 1852.

Letter 32

53. Elizabeth Watts

54. Claiborne Fox Jackson (1806-1862)

55. Missouri State Guards (MSG).   The Missouri Legislature called out the Militia on May 15, 1861 and appointed General Sterling “Pap” Price as commander. Men were enrolled and could be called up to serve the State of Missouri if needed for the protection of  it's citizens or government. After the Federal forces were in control of Missouri the Missouri Provisional Legislature (Union) which replaced the elected legislature authorized the enrollment of men in the Missouri State Militia (MSM). 

56. Thomas A. Yocum

57. Clayton Bane

58. William W. Young

59. Jane Bowlar Yocum Young

60. The children were Charles G. Young and a daughter

61. George Washington Rowland

62. Arkansas

63. The Cherokee Indians

64. Shawnee Indians

65. Elihu Coffee Rice (1824-1903) a well-to-do farmer of Van Buren Township, Jackson County, Missouri.

66. Richard C. Berry

67. Mrs. Mary Cunningham

68. John Nathan and Mary Elizabeth Hays

69. John S. Watts, Jr.

70. Slaves

Letter 33

71. Elizabeth Watts

72. James B. Yager

73. Dr. Michjah  Pendleton.  He was a cousin of Elizabeth Watts and a former neighbor of the Watts in Washington Co., Kentucky.

74. Richard Francis Yager

75. Missouri State Guards

76. Morristown, Cass Co., Missouri was named for John Calvin Morris, the local miller.

77. Richard C. Berry

78. Morristown was attacked in July of 1861 by men of  Lane's brigade, Kansas Volunteers led by Colonels Hampton Johnson and Colonel James Montgomery. Johnson and one trooper were killed in the charge. They drove out the Missouri State Guards then  plundered  and burned the business portion of the village. The  7 men as prisoners  were  immediately court-martialed and sentenced to death. Their graves were dug and they were forced to kneel down beside them then they were blindfolded and shot. (Thanks to Bryce Benedict for most of this information.)

Another account of the Battle of Morristown: "The battle of Morristown, from all documentation, appears to have been spread out over some space. First there was the establishment of Colonel Hugh Irwin's recruiting camp for the Missouri State Guard at Morristown. Then Colonel Hampton P. Johnson, 5th Kansas Cavalry approached the town on horseback and attacked the Missouri State Guard. The battle was fought through the town and the Guard was posted in a ravine during the initial phases of a rash cavalry charge when Colonel Johnson was killed. Then Colonel James Montgomery's Third Kansas approached the town from another direction and the Missouri State Guard retreated. Morristown was destroyed after the battle, however there are references to Union troops being posted at Morristown off and on throughout the war." (Missouri in the Civil War Message Board, Tony Gentile, 2004 http.//history_ sites/mb///cw/mocwmb)

79. Missouri State Guards

80. Bob Hamilton. Probably Robert S. Hamilton (1841-1861). a brother of Uncle Dick Berry's wife.

81. John Edward and James Samuel Berry

82. Carthage, Jasper Co., Missouri. The Battle of Carthage was fought on July 5, 1861 http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/battles/mo002.htm

83. Col Upton Hays

84. Springfield,  Missouri. Margaret probably means the Battle of Wilson’s Creek which was fought in Greene and Christian Counties, Missouri on August 10, 1861 (http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/battles/mo004.htm)

85. Fort Scott, Bourbon Co., Kansas

86. Lexington, Lafayette Co.,  Missouri

87. Union troops were blockading the  ports along the Missouri River.

88. Lexington, Lafayette Co., Missouri . The Battle of Lexington was fought on September 13-20, 1861 (http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/abpp/battles/mo004.htm)

89. Callaway Co., Missouri

90. Capt. Robert Mitchell Berry

91. Caleb Ewing Berry.  His sons who fought for the South were Richard Berry, (1835-?), Isaac T. Berry (1832-1928) and James Berry (1838-1877) who became an outlaw and bank robber after the War.

92. Edward Gaither Berry

93. John Berry. Four of his sons served on the Union side.  They lived in Osage Co., Missouri.

94. “black as old  Lincon” refers to President Abraham Lincoln who was  a second cousin of Margaret’s mother, Elizabeth Ewing Berry Yocum Watts and her brothers, Uncle Bob (Robert Mitchell Berry), Uncle John (John Berry), Uncle Calup (Caleb Ewing Berry), Uncle Dick (Richard C. Berry) and Uncle Ed (Edward Gaither Berry) and sisters Mary J. Berry Yager, Nancy Berry Johnson, Margaret (Peggy) Mitchell Berry Dunham.  Nancy Hanks, Lincoln’s mother, lived with the Berry family during her childhood and married Thomas Lincoln at the family home in Kentucky.

95. Thomas A. Yocum

96. George Washington Rowland, the husband of Margaret’s sister Letty.

97. Quill (Aquilla J) Davis (1816-1896)

98. Burneys

99. Cass County Home Guards (Union)

100. James B. Yager

101. The preachers were probably Reverend Abner Holton Deane of Missouri (the cite below however says he was a Major and not a company commander) and perhaps Charles Lovejoy who was a Kansan. You can find some information on individuals of the Cass County Home Guards at: http://www.sos.mo.gov/archives/soldiers/  (Thanks to Bryce Benedict for this information). Another Preacher was Andrew Gray Nugent (Newgent, Nugeon) mentioned in Letter 30. All served as officers in the Cass County Home Guards.

102. Col. Upton Hays

103. Reason was a slave who had been left in Missouri by Elizabeth Watts when she migrated to California in 1852.  He lived with Margaret and Upton until he was bought by James B. Yager.

104. John, a slave.

105. Rease, a slave

106. Present day Colorado or Nebraska

107. The Fugitive Slave Laws were still in force and it was very dangerous for African-American people who left their masters. 

108. Mrs. Mary Cunningham

109. Mary Elizabeth Hays

110. Margaret Jane Watts Hays

Letter 34

110a. An abbreviated and annotated transcription of this letter was published in the The Westport Historical Quarterly, Vol. IV, NO. 1, June 1968, pages 7-11 in "The Upton Hays Brigade", by Albert N. Doerschuk, the son-in-law of Virginia Hays Asbury. She was a daughter of Samuel Hays, Upton Hays' brother. Born in 1851, Virginia lived on the farm next to the Upton Hays farm and Doerschuk added her knowledge of the events to the letters published in this article.

111. Elizabeth Watts
112. Confederate General Sterling Price (1809-1867)
113. Confederate General Ben McCullough (1811-1862)
114. Union General John C. Fremont (1813-1890) Margaret’s father, John S. Watts, had obtained a branding iron from Fremont in Mariposa, California in the 1850’s.
115. Battle of Carthage, Jasper County, in southwest Missouri, July 5, 1861
116. Battle of Springfield, Greene County in southwest Missouri, October 25, 1861

116a. See footnote 110a. The property may have belonged to James B. Yager.
117. James B. Yager
118. Upton Hays was Captain in the Missouri State Guards. The company formed by the men of the neighborhood were probaby Missouri Partisan Rangers under the command of Colonel Holloway in Kansas City. They were responsible for protecting the citizens of the area between Westport and Independence from Kansas Jayhawker raids.
119. Andy (1842-?), a slave.
120. Reason (1846-?), a slave
121. Col. Upton Hays
122. Amazon Hays, her brother-in-law. He was married to Margaret's cousin Mary B. Berry.
123. Margaret Mitchell Berry Dunham
124. Robert Dunham
125. Leavenworth, Kansas
126. Capt. James G. Johnson (Johnston) (1824-1896), 4th Regiment, Cavalry, Missouri State Guards.

127. George Washington Johnson
128. Richard C. Berry and sons John Edward and James Samuel Berry.
129. Thomas A. Yocum
130. Caleb Ewing Berry
131. Robert Mitchell Berry
132. Edward Gaither Berry
133. Mrs. Mary Cunningham
134. Peter Lewis Utz
135. Elfleda Hays
136. Linville’s daughter , Eliza Ann Hays (b. abt. 1844) married Henry Clay Rout and their son was Jas. H. Rout.
137. Clay Co., Missouri is across the Missouri River to the north of Jackson County.
138. Westport, Jackson Co., Missouri
139. Alexander Jackson Majors

Letter 35

140. Elizabeth Watts

141. Upton Hays. The following in a footnote in “Behind Enemy Lines, The Memoirs and writings of Brigadier General Sidney Drake Jackman” : Upton Hays … was well known in the overland shipping business on the Santa Fe and California Trails.  He initially served as Captain, Company E., 1st Missouri Cavalry Regiment of the Eighth Division.  He rose to Lieutenant-Colonel of that unit, then commenced raising the “Jackson County Cavalry Regiment” which was ultimately designated as the 12th Missouri Cavalry. (www.luftex.com/onejack)142Battle of White Oak Creek (Little Blue River), Nov. 7, 1861.

143. Mrs. Mary Cunningham

144. cellar

145. Samuel Hays, Upton’s brother

146. Linville Hays, Upton’s Brother

147. Samuel Hays, Upton’s brother

148. General Price’s army of Missouri State Guards.

149. Generson -  Union Colonel Charles R. Jennison (1832-1884) who led the 7th Kansas Cavalry.  It was formed in October 1861 in Leavenworth, Kansas and fought it’s first engagement November 11, 1861 along the Blue River in Jackson County, Missouri, against men led by Upton Hays.  Because of the 7th’s depredations against both Confederate and Union supporters the unit was sent to Mississippi in 1862 where it spent most of the Civil War. 

150. bed

151. sauerkraut

152. Linville Hays

153. Amazon Hays

154. Andy, a slave.

155. Leavenworth, Kansas

156. Andy, slave, (1842-?)

157. Probably Jordan Lowe (1810-after 1880) His wife was Phillippi Henshaw and they  lived near Independence, Missouri.

158. Robert Mitchell Berry

159. Callaway Co., Missouri

160. Richard Hays, a cousin of Upton’s.  One child was Ella Hays

161. Wade Hays

162. Preston Hays

163. Thomas A. Yocum

164. Richard C. Berry and sons John Edward and James Samuel Berry.

165. Uncle Willy Bryant was probably William Bryant of Washington Township, Jackson County and an uncle by marriage.

166. Widow Graham

167. Missouri

168. James B. Yager

169. Mariam Hays McMurtry

170. Margaret was about to have a child.

171. William T.  Burton (1823-1904)  Cousin Will served in the Mexican War in the same company as Margaret’s brother John S. Watts, Jr.  He had lived with the Watts family as a child in Washington Co., Kentucky.

 

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