Battle of Lone Jack The Battle of Lone Jack was a battle of the American next morning with the intent of overwhelming the much Civil War, occurring on August 15–August 16, 1862 in smaller Union force.[1] Jackson County, Missouri. The battle was part of the Confederate guerrilla and recruiting campaign in Mis- souri in 1862. 3 Battle 1 Background Cockrell’s plan was to clandestinely deploy Hunter, Jack- man and Tracy’s forces in a field to the west of town well before sunrise on August 16 and await the opening of the During the summer of 1862 many Confederate and fight. Hays was to initiate the battle with a mounted attack Missouri State Guard recruiters were dispatched north from the north as daylight approached, whereupon the from Arkansas into Missouri to replenish the de- others would launch a surprise flank attack.[2] Hays did pleted ranks of the Trans-Mississippi Confederacy. In not attack as early as planned, instead reconnoitering the Western/West-Central Missouri these included then Cap- other commands before advancing. As daylight appeared tain Jo Shelby, Colonel Vard Cockrell, Colonel John Foster’s pickets became aware of Hays’ advance. This T. Coffee, Upton Hays, John Charles Tracy, John T. gave Foster’s men a brief opportunity to deploy, spoiling Hughes, and DeWitt C. Hunter. Most of these commands the element of surprise.[3] were working independently and there was no clear sense of seniority yet established. On August 11 the Federal With sunrise exposing them while awaiting Hays’ tardy commander General John Schofield was stunned to learn advance, Jackman, Hunter, and Tracy attacked but were that Independence, Missouri had fallen to a combined held in check. Hays then performed a dismounted attack force of Colonel John T. Hughes, William Quantrill, from the north. Together his force and Tracy’s crumpled Gideon W. Thompson and Upton Hays. Schofield or- the Union right flank, forcing the 7th Missouri Cavalry dered General James Totten to concentrate his forces to (commanded by Captain Milton H. Brawner) back onto deal with the threat.[1] the artillery. The cannoneers now began a desperate fight. Union Captain Long’s 2nd Battalion Missouri State Mili- tia Cavalry concealed behind a hedge row of Osage or- ange trees poured a crossfire on the Confederates, tem- 2 Skirmish porarily repulsing them.[4] On August 15, 1862 Union Major Emory S. Foster, under On the other side of the field Hunter’s force was stalled by orders from Totten, led a 740-man combined force from three companies of Captain Plumb’s 6th Missouri State Lexington to Lone Jack. Other forces were dispatched Militia Cavalry. A mounted force (possibly Coffee’s) from Kansas under General James G. Blunt (2,500 men) approached on Hunter’s flank and he mistook them for and Missouri under General Fitz Henry Warren (600 Federals. The mounted men attacked but were surprised men), but they would not arrive in time for the engage- and repulsed by fire from Capt. Slocum’s company of the ment. Upon reaching the Lone Jack area, Foster received 7th Missouri State Militia Cavalry behind another Osage intelligence that 1,600 rebels under Col. Coffee and Lt. orange hedge. Hunter, now short of ammunition, aban- Col. Tracy were camped near town and prepared to at- doned the field for the ammunition train, exposing Jack- man’s flank. Jackman was also short of ammunition and tack them. The estimate of the rebel command was re- [5] vised down to only 800 and at about 11:00 p.m., Fos- retired as well. ter and his men attacked the Confederate camp and dis- Tracy’s and Hays’ commands renewed their attack to the persed the enemy. The firing of his cannon during this north, eventually displacing the Indiana artillerists. With brief skirmish proved to be Foster’s undoing, for it alerted no remaining Confederate threat to the south, Captain Colonel Vard Cockrell and other rebel commands in the Plumb now counterattacked to the north, reclaiming the area of Foster’s position and intent to fight. Foster’s men artillery. Jackman and Hunter’s resupplied men then re- returned to town to rest along the main street, having turned to the field. Hays attempted to counterattack but a spent several days in the saddle. Colonel Cockrell con- counter-charge by Plumb forced him to retreat. Much of ferred with Upton Hays, Lt. Col. Sidney D. Jackman, the fighting then devolved into a war of attrition between and DeWitt C. Hunter and determined to give battle the Confederates on the western side of the street, Union men 1 2 7 ORDER OF BATTLE on the right with their artillery in the middle. The ar- were the guerrilla hands who raised the black tillerists were soon routed and the guns changed hands flag, and never gave any quarter. So he refused several times. Foster recaptured the guns a final time, to surrender, and every one of his officers was being severely wounded himself in the process.[6] picked off. The guerrillas were victorious. I After five hours of fighting and the loss of Foster, rebel went over the battlefield afterward, the blood, Col. Coffee and his 800 men reappeared north of town the cries for water and death, the naked bod- causing Foster’s successor, Capt. Milton H. Brawner, ies stripped of their clothing, the dead horses to order a retreat. The men left the field in good or- which served for ramparts, gave me a disgust for war, which makes it seem strange that I am der and returned to Lexington. The cannon were hastily spiked or disabled and hidden before the Federals de- here at the head of the war department of this great government. parted. The Confederates secured a victory, but the ap- proach of Union forces including Blunt and Fitz Henry Warren forced the Rebels to withdraw on August 17. General Fitz Warren occupied the town that day.[7] 5 Cole Younger Foster was later criticized for attacking on the first day while being outnumbered and for not awaiting reinforce- Most of Quantrill’s Raiders were still in Independence, ment. However, Fitz Warren’s command did not arrive Missouri looting after victory in the First Battle of In- until two days later, and Blunt’s three days after Foster dependence, however 18-year-old Cole Younger was arrived. The Federals fought more vigorously because present at Lone Jack riding along the front lines to supply many believed Quantrill’s raiders were present and would the troops. be brutal to prisoners. The wounded Foster was briefly captured by the Confed- erates and placed in a cabin and was threatened with exe- cution. Younger physically pushed his would-be assailant 4 Casualties & aftermath out of the cabin.[12] Another act of Younger gallantry was an encounter Federal Capt. Brawner reported Union losses as 43 shortly after the battle was when he warned Union Ma- killed, 154 wounded, and 75 missing/captured, a casualty jor Warren C. Bronaugh against riding into Confederate rate of 34 percent and this was almost certainly too low. lines. Rebel Colonel Hunter reported burying 119 Federals and When Younger was captured in the James-Younger Gang 47 Rebels, but the true losses are unknown. Excluded robbery of the Northfield, Minnesota First National from Hunter’s total were an unknown number of dead Bank, Elkins, Bronaugh and Foster (who was then edi- Confederates claimed by their friends and families for tor of the St. Louis Evening Journal) were to argue for [7] burial elsewhere. A recent roll call list of Federals killed clemency for Younger.[12] at the action as compiled in service records by Wayne Schnetzer reveals 65 killed and at least 29 who later died from wounds received at Lone Jack.[8] The list of known Confederate participation and deaths is less complete, but 6 Popular culture at least 55 names are listed as killed, with at least 4 others later succumbing to their wounds.[9] In the 1969 movie True Grit, character Rooster Cogburn (played by John Wayne) tells Mattie Ross that he lost an Colonel Cockrell succeeded in locating the two cannon eye at the Battle of Lone Jack, calling it “a scrap outside and removed them from the field and back to Arkansas. of Kansas City.”[13] One was later credited with firing the shot that disabled the Queen City on the White River.[10] Because they were in possession of the field, the Confederate recruits gained a substantial quantity of needed firearms. As many as half 7 Order of battle of the recruits were initially unarmed. Union: Major Emory S. Foster This was the only Civil War battle fought by future Secretary of War and U.S. Senator Stephen B. Elkins. • Elkins was to say that he disgusted of war after what he 7th Missouri Cavalry (companies witnessed in the battle:[11] A,C,E,F,I) – Capt. Milton H. Brawner, 265 men. • I saw one battle while in the service, that of 6th Missouri State Militia Cavalry (Com- Lone Jack, and a most awful battle it was. panies A,B,E) – Capt. W. Plumb, 149 Col. Emory S. Foster had a Union regiment men. which was attacked by the brother of Senator • 8th Missouri State Militia Cavalry (Com- Cockrell, but Foster thought the Confederates panies F,H) – 140 men. 3 • 2nd Battalion Missouri State Cavalry [6] Matthews, Matt and Lindberg, Kip, “Shot All to Pieces, (Companies A,C,F) – Capt. J.H. Long, the Battle of Lone Jack, Missouri, August 16, 1862”, 81 men. North and South, Vol. 7, No.