A Renegade Kansas Unit
in Johnson Co., Missouri
.
HEADQUARTERS
DISTRICT OF CENTRAL MISSOURI,
Jefferson, January 22, 1864.
Maj. O.
D. GREENE,
Asst. Adjt. Gen., Department of the Missouri:
MAJOR : I
have the honor to report that on the l5th instant I received the following
dispatch from Lexington :
Kansas troops are in
the country robbing the citizens of their property of every description.
This company is under the command of Lieutenant Ridgway and has been
stationed at Sibley.
R. C.
VAUGHAN,
Brigadier-General, Enrolled Missouri Militia.
.
I
immediately telegraphed Colonel McFerran at Warrensburg and Captain
Meredith at Lexington to send a military force sufficient to
arrest the parties, if possible, and send them to these headquarters.
Colonel McFerran telegraphs me that Ridgway was in
Greenton Valley yesterday carrying on his
depredations. If my troops fail in arresting him, I respectfully ask that he be
ordered under arrest and sent to these headquarters.
If a
collision is brought on between the Kansas and Missouri troops it will not
be my fault, but it is time that an end was put to their
robberies under the cloak of freeing negroes. If Kansas wants negroes I
will send 500 women and children to that State in
two
days, as they are a great annoyance to me, and everybody wants them
removed. But they do not want them; they want the property the
negroes carry off and the opportunity of taking it by coming into the
State.
I am, very truly, your obedient servant,
E. B,
BROWN,
Brigadier-General of Volunteers, Commanding.
HEADQUARTERS
DISTRICT OF CENTRAL MISSOURI,
Jefferson City, January 22,
1864.
.
Maj. O. D. GREENE,
Assistant Adjutant- General, Saint
Louis :
MAJOR : I have the honor to report that a body of about 50 men
have made their appearance on the line of Jackson County, about 7
miles northwest of Chapel Hill, who are reported to belong to Blunt's
and Todd's guerrilla bands. On the 16th they were
pursued by a company of First Missouri State Militia
and dispersed. Search was made for them on the 17th and 18th. but no
trace could be found. I have reason to believe that
these
parties are from the Kansas border, and have impersonated Blunt's and
Todd's bands.
I am, truly, your obedient servant,
E.
B. BROWN,
Brigadier-General of Volunteers,
Commanding.
.
HEADQUARTERS DISTRICT OF CENTRAL
MISSOURI,
Jefferson City, January 22, 18G4.
Col. JAMES
MCFERRAN,
Commanding Third Sub-District, Warrensburg :
COLONEL :
Please make a rigid inquiry as to the authority for be lieving that the
camp and force reported as being north of Chapel Hill by
Lieutenant Couch is Blunt's or Todd's guerrillas. I should not be
surprised if you learned that it was Union thieves
and
not rebels. You will probably find it necessary to keep your command in
the field, and the district of country on the west side of La
Fayette thoroughly and constantly scouted.
I am, truly,
yours,
E. B. BROWN,
Brigadier- General of Volunteers,
Commanding.
.
HDQRS. FIRST CAVALRY, MISSOURI STATE
MILITIA,
Warrensburg, Mo., January 25, 1864.
[General E. B. BROWN
:]
GENERAL : I have the honor to inclose herewith a copy of Captain
Meredith's report of the Ridgway raid, also copies of Orders, Nos. 2, 5,
and 18, issued at these headquarters. I have directed Company I to take
station between Chapel Hill and Wellington, and, in connection with
Companies C at Chapel Hill, and at Wellington, thoroughly patrol and scout
the western boundary of La Fayette. I have stationed Company I at
Kingsville, on the western boundary of this county, with
instructions to thoroughly scout the western
boundary of this county. I have hopes that these arrangements mav serve to
protect the people of this sub-district from incursions of Kansas troops
and Red Legs. No other news of interest.
Very respectfully, your
obedient servant,
JAMES McFERRAN,
First Cav., Comdg. Sub-Dist. of
Central Dist. of Mo.
.
[Inclosure No. 1.]
HEADQUARTERS
POST,
Lexington, Mo., January 22, 1864.
Col. JAMES
MCFERRAN,
Comdg. Third Sub-District, Central District of Missouri
:
COLONEL : I have the honor to report to you that I left this post on
the night of the 20th. in command of part of Companies G and H, First
Cavalry, Missouri State Militia, and proceeded by way of Wellington
up as far as the Jackson County line. I found the
citizens greatly alarmed. Some had left their homes
for fear of being killed. From what I learned it appears that
Lieutenant Ridgway, with from 40 to 60 men, made a raid
through this county for no other purpose than to rob
and plunder. They commenced their hellish work in the vicinity of
Greenton; robbed quite a number of men of money,
clothing, watches. They then proceeded to the
neighbor hood of Renick's, near the Jackson County line. They took from
Renick s three yoke of cattle, a valuable gold watch, some $40 in money,
and quite a number of negroes. They tied one Mr. Musselman's
hands
behind him and took from him $299, and divided the money in his presence.
They committed a great many other outrages, too numerous
to mention. They came into Greenton on the same day, and after my
scout, under command of Lieutenant Groomer and Sergeant
Atterbury, had left the neighborhood. They had done
the devilment and left before I was apprised of their being in the
county. Renick and Musselman came into town, and, in place of reporting to
me, reported to General Brown by telegraph. When
I found the Kansas troops had all left the county, I
left a part of my command on the line of Jackson County as a patrol,
with orders to arrest any parties that might come
into
La Fayette County, and returned to this place by way of Greenton.
Very
respectfully, your obedient servant,
WILLIAM MEREDITH,
Captain.
Commanding Post.
.
[Inclosure No. 2.]
GENERAL ORDERS, / HDQRS.
FIRST CAV., Mo. STATE MIL.,
No. 2. Warrensburg, Mo., January 14,
1864.
II. The manifest disregard of private rights in some localities
and the total or partial suspension of the civil authorities in
others demands that the military authorities should extend
protection to the citizens to prevent waste, trespass, and
injury
to private property. It is therefore ordered that until the civil
authority resumes its wonted vigor, all persons be, and they
are hereby, prohibited from trespassing upon private property. Citizens
and soldiers are strictly prohibited from burning fence rails and destroying
fences and defacing houses and buildings, under
penalty, if a citizen, of being: arrested and held
for trial on the requisition of the civil authority, and, if a soldier,
of being arrested and punished for violation of
orders. All station and post commanders, officers,
and noncommissioned officers, are charged with the enforcement of
this order. All welldisposed persons, citizens and
soldiers, are enjoined promptly to report persons
violating this order.
By order of
James McFerran. colonel First Cavalry Missouri State
Militia,
commanding regiment and Third Sub-District :
THOS.
DOYLE,
Adjutant.
.
HDQRS. FIRST CAVALRY MISSOURI STATE
MILITIA,
Warrensbury, Mo., January 20, 1SG4.
General E. B.
BROWN,
Commanding Central District of Missouri:
GENERAL: I have the
honor to state that Captain Meredith reports that a detachment of
his
command have recaptured a part of the property taken by the Kansas men in
La Fayette, viz, 2 horses and a wagon, and have
returned the same to the owner, a widow lady by the name of Robinson.
(Gooley Robinson's widow? Jrbakerjr)
JAMES McFERRAN,
Colonel First
Cavalry, Missouri State Militia,
Comdg. Third Sub-Dist. of Central
Dist. of
Missouri.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Note:
The man listed above was probably John Ridgeway, 1st Lt., 11th KS Cavalry.
If it was, the problem was covered up and nothing was
done. He served with his unit throughout the War and was mustered
out in 1865 with the rest of the unit.
.
11th Regiment, Kansas
Cavalry
Organized at Kansas City April 1863, from 11th Kansas
Infrantry. Attached to District of the Border and District of
Kansas, Dept. of Missouri, till February, 1865. District
of
Upper Arkansas to March, 1865. 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, 7th Corps, Dept.
of Arkansas, to April, 1865. District of the Plains,
Dept. of Missouri, to September, 1865.
SERVICE.-Assigned to duty on eastern border of
Kansas till October, 1864. Expedition from Salem to Mulberry Creek,
Kansas, AUgust 8-11, 1863 (Detachment). Scout on
Republican River, Kansas, August 19-24, 1863
(Detachment). Operations against Quantrell on his raid into Kansas August
20-38. Independence, Mo., August 25. (Cos. "C" and "F"
duty
on Southern border of Kansas December, 1863, to August, 1864.) Company "L"
stationed at Fort Riley; Company "G" at Fort
Leavenworth as body guard to General Curtis. Action at Scott's Ford,
Mo., October 14, 1863. Deep Water Creek, Mo., October
15.
Expedition into Missouri June 16-20, 1864. Scout from Salem to Mulberry
Creek August 8-11 (Detachment.) Operations against Indians
in Nebraska August 11-November 28 (1 Co.). Operations against Price
in Missouri and Kansas. Lexington October 19. Little
Blue
October 21. Independence, Big Blue and State Line October 22. Westport
October 23. Cold Water Grove October 24. Mine Creek, Little
Osage River, October 25. Regiment ordered to Fort Riley December,
1864. Companies "C" and "E" to Fort Larned February,
1865.
Regiment moved to Fort Kearney, Neb., February 20-March 4, thence moved to
Fort Laramie March 6-April 9, and to Platte Bridge. Duty
guarding telegraph lines and operating against Indians till June. Sage Creek,
Dakota Ter., April 21. Deer Creek May 21. Platte Bridge, Dakota Ter.,
June 3. Companies "A," "B," "E," "F," "L" and "M" moved
to
Fort Halleck June 11-24. Protect stage route from Camp Collins, Colorado,
to Green River till August 13. White River, Dakota Ter., June
17. Rock Creek July 1. Fort Halleck July 4 and 26. Moved to Kansas and mustered
out September 26, 1865.
Regiment lost
during service 61 Enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 2 Officers
and
110 Enlisted men by disease. Total 173.