The Way West

As the year of 1860 drew to a close the division of the United States appeared to be a looming certainty.

The election of Abraham Lincoln drew a line in the sand over the continuation of slavery.

South Carolina had taken the initiative to secede from the Union in late December. Other states followed suit as Kansas was awarded statehood without slavery on Jan. 19, 1861. By Feb. 1, 1861, secession had reached seven states.

Virginians were hesitant to leave the Union and advanced the idea of a peace conference in hopes of preserving the nation through compromise.

Former United States President John Tyler was chosen to lead the Virginian delegation at the widely publicized peace conference in Washington D.C. The conference opened Feb. 4, 1861, the same day that secessionist states declared themselves as the separate nation of the Confederate State of America.

One hundred thirtyone delegates from 21 states negotiated over the next several weeks. The great divide that had infected the nation was undeniably present during negotiations, leaving little agreement as the days wore on. Lincoln remained silent until the count of electoral votes on Feb. 13, 1861, validated his election.

Early Saturday morning, Feb. 23, a message was delivered to the Virginia delegates that read, “Mr. Lincoln is in the hotel.”

Lincoln proceeded to assert his influence, seeing that he would take the oath of office in less than two weeks. In no uncertain terms he confirmed,“My course is as a turnpike road. It is marked by the Constitution ... Suppose now we all stop discussing and try the experiment of obedience to the Constitution and the laws. Don’t you think it will work?”

Lincoln insisted that any compromise that extended slavery would not stand.

“The voice of the civilized world is against it ... Those who fight the purposes of the Almighty will not succeed. They have always been, they always will be, beaten.”

Within days a weakened amendment to restore a form of the Missouri Compromise was sent to Congress. The Senate roundly defeated the measure. The peace conference that would have preserved slavery in the South had failed. Lincoln’s inauguration on March 4, 1861, was the final straw.

Rebel flags were hoisted everywhere along Missouri’s frontier. The U.S. flag was hung from a window of the Platte County courthouse on March 26 but was quickly torn down. April 12 brought the attack on Fort Sumter. Missouri Gov. C. F. Jackson refused to raise troops for the Union cause.

Two hundred successionists raided the federal arsenal at Liberty Landing north of Independence, Mo., on April 20, 1861. The powder, cannon, muskets, pistols, and swords were distributed to rebel bands across northwest Missouri. Sixteen hundred kegs of powder were seized from a powder magazine at St. Joseph.

Union men in Platte County alarmed for their safety enlisted in federal service as a whole company of Platte men joined the State Militia under Confederate Gen. Sterling Price.

J.M. Bassett wrote “The general tone of society at that time was disloyal ... Freedom of speech and freedom of the press quickly disappeared under rebel rule.”

For the time being, federal troops were not prepared to venture into such unfriendly environs.

Rebel bands, for they were not yet known as bushwhackers, turned their attention to the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railroad. Track was torn up and bridges burned, causing a disruption in traffic from St. Louis to the Kansas border.

Early in September rebels were camped near the railroad bridge over the Little Platte River about 10 miles east of St. Joseph. Damage to the track had kept the trains from running. For several days the rebels concentrated on saturating the timbers of the bridge with turpentine and burning just enough to weaken the structure.

At 11:15 p.m. Sept. 3, 1861, a train carrying more than 100 men, women, and children steamed over the bridge, which easily collapsed under the weight. The locomotive pulling a line of cars behind plunged into the river below. All but three individuals were injured in some way. Various reports gave the number killed at 17 to 20.“Nearly all the dead were too much mangled and disfigured to be identified.”

The leader of the rebels was believed to be the “independent scout” Silas “Cy” Gordon. Terrorism was his domain. Rumors persist even today that Gordon was responsible for executing several loyal Union men. Federal troops entered Platte County Sept. 16, 1861. Gordon is said to have confronted the troops outside of Platte City, firing a shot that struck their scout directly in the forehead. Cannons were brought forward to bombard the town that had already been evacuated. Troops entered the town unopposed and proceeded to loot the town. Some say the federals hoped to capture Gordon, but he was too wily to be taken that easily. There was a war to be fought. He was just beginning to make his mark on The Way West.

“The Cowboy,” Jim Gray is author of the book Desperate Seed: Ellsworth Kansas on the Violent Frontier, Ellsworth, KS Contact Kansas Cowboy, 220 21st Road, Geneseo, Kan. Phone: (785) 531-2058 or kansascowboy@kans.com.