Can you imagine an uncertain fate for the United States? What if local government was in tatters and criminal elements could appear at your door at any time and those charged with justice might or might not be inclined to help?
One hundred and fifty years ago, the Civil War was leaving deep scars in PlatteCounty. Bitter conflict that arose in the 1850s over slavery in nearby Kansas was now in the third year of a dreary and deadly war. No large armies marched across PlatteCounty. But small units of federal troops and bands of southern sympathizers clashed and pillaged. Even worse, outlaw gangs masquerading as soldiers left little or no quarter for whoever they encountered. All of western Missouri was the same.
It’s one thing today to watch the ongoing violence on the news regarding civil war in a country far away like Syria. But it’s harder to imagine blood flowing and meanness dominating on our own soil.
Yet, June began on the heels of a frightening May a century and a half ago. Historian W.M. Paxton in his “Annals of Platte County” quoted a report from the Conservator newspaper of May 16, 1863.
A way of life was passing, too. Paxton reported that when the Missouri River froze over in February, slaves fled the farms where they were held and joined the Union Army. Slaves likely overheard talk among the masters and they also whispered hopeful words among themselves about a strange battle. On Oct. 29, 1862, black troops led by black officers had fought Confederate guerillas at the Battle of Island Mound in BatesCounty. It was the first time African-American troops had fought in the regular Army for the United States against an enemy. They fought fiercely and well.