Civil War Era New Madrid, Missouri

In 1862, New Madrid, Missouri, had 85
businesses and two hospitals.

When 1st Lt. Louis Boedicker, 2nd MO. Art., Army Engineer, drew this map in March 1862. The Confederates still controlled New Madrid and Island Number Ten. The town was the county seat of government, it had 85 active businesses, two hospitals, and a thriving Port of New Madrid, and its citizens enjoyed freedom from the Union troops. Few people understand that Missouri saw more than 1,200 engagements within its boundaries when you count minor actions and skirmishes. Only Virginia and Tennessee exceeded this total. The movie "Gone With the Wind" implies that the Civil War was only fought in the Deep South. Missouri, Kentucky, and Tennessee citizens suffered much throughout the war. In my opinion, the high action in these three states was primarily because of the intense loyalty of its people to both sides. Even those citizens who supported remaining in the Union resented the invasion of Union Troops into Missouri and other border states.

Missouri was essential to the Union and Confederacy because of its strategic location on the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers, natural resources, and manpower.

Missouri experienced some of the most violent conflicts of the Civil War, and its people came to symbolize the tragedy of the nation's divisive struggle. The fighting in Missouri was unique in the American Civil War. They experienced arson, murder, robbery, torture, and more from Bloomfield to Commerce, Cape Girardeau, and Jackson to Fredericktown, Benton, Bertrand, New Hamburg, and Sikeston. Citizens in Southern Missouri received more violence than other sections of the state, but the Kansas City area also suffered heavily. Often, local deaths were not among the numbers tallied as war deaths. All Missouri citizens experienced events from destructive guerrilla fighting, murders of neighbors, raids, and the pursuit of outlaws through their property, to the hunting down of Southern sympathizers. This was topped by citizens fearing Federal scouting parties across the state. Growing up in Southeast Missouri, I felt the recurring hatred of one generation to the next but failed to understand what I witnessed. Anger was prevalent toward the Germans in northern Scott County, above Benton Hill, who turned in Southern sympathizers, and Blacks just because of the color of their skin. Rebuilding and recovery were slow following the Civil War. After one hundred years, flames of passion still flared up from time to time. The divisiveness appears to be softening, but much healing is still needed.

This map shows a few of the battles
 fought around New Madrid, MO.

One minor battle in Southeast Missouri was near Belmont, across the Mississippi River from a Confederate stronghold at Columbus, Kentucky. November 6, 1961, Gen. Grant moved by riverboat from his base in Cairo, Illinois, to attack the small outpost near Belmont in Mississippi County, Missouri. (As information, Belmont is only 37 miles from Sikeston and 36 miles from New Madrid.)  Grant landed his men north of the camp and marched to Belmont. Grant's troops overran the surprised Confederate camp and destroyed it. However, the scattered Confederate forces quickly reorganized and were reinforced from Columbus, Kentucky. They were counterattacked, supported by heavy artillery fire from across the river. Grant retreated to his riverboats and took his men back to Paducah, Kentucky. Both sides declared victory. The battle was relatively unimportant, but with little happening elsewhere at the time, it received considerable attention in the press, and a Union General engaged the Confederates was well received in the North.

In mid-February 1862, some seventy miles south of Cario, Gen. Grant's Union troops captured Fort Henry on the Tennessee River. A week after winning Fort Henry, Grant marched his troupes twelve miles cross-country to Fort Donelson on the Cumberland River. After five days of fighting, the Confederates asked for terms of surrender. Grant demanded "Unconditional Surrender" from the commanding officer, and he got it. Both these forts were near the Kentucky-Tennessee border, only 135 miles overland to New Madrid, and about 45 miles less using a ferry to cross the Mississippi  River. The solid wins for Union forces led to the promotion of Big. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant went from an obscure officer to the rank of Major General.

Once these forts fell to the Union, the town of New Madrid and Island Number Ten, which stood about ten feet above the Mississippi River water line and just north of New Madrid, became the confederate solid point for defending the Mississippi River. It was a long battle turned siege, lasting from February 28 to April 8, 1862. Unfortunately, there is not enough space on this Blog to address the critical role Island Number Ten and New Madrid played in the war. However, many books are available on Island Number Ten and New Madrid during the Civil War. I encourage you to read one or two to better understand their pivotal role in the American Civil War.  

After the Confederates surrendered New Madrid, its citizens left the town for anywhere they could find a family to house them or work to support their families. Businesses were forced to close their doors until the war was over. I read in a statement from the General who took New Madrid that the only people found in the town were old men, women, and a few public officials running the County Courthouse.

To conclude this segment, we look at what happened to William Cline's children, starting with the marriage of Elizabeth to Theopholis Verlaque in 1856.  

1811-1812 New Madrid Earthquake Formed Reelfoot Lake

According to the United States Geological Survey, Reelfoot Lake was formed when the region subsided during the 1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes.[1] The earthquakes resulted in several significant changes in the landforms over a widespread area, with shocks being felt as far away as Quebec, Canada.  When I read this on the USGS website, I thought about how much damage such a quake would do today, and how many people it would kill.  Reelfoot Lake is a shallow natural lake located in the Northwest portion of the state of Tennessee, in Lake and Obion counties. Much of it is really more of a swamp, with bayou-like ditches (some natural, some man-made). The bayous connect to more open bodies of water called basins, the largest of which is called Blue Basin. Reelfoot Lake is noted for its bald cypress trees and its nesting pairs of bald eagles.  Few people today know how Reelfoot Lake came to be. Thus, I am writing about it to educate readers on the New Madrid region.  It is essential to understand our history, which is usually interesting, and at times, it is awe-inspiring.

Reelfoot Lake is said to be named after an Indian chief who had a deformed foot and was nicknamed "Reelfoot" by settlers in the early 19th Century. A Chickasaw legend states that the name originated from a prince of a Chickasaw tribe inhabiting West Tennessee, who was born with a deformed foot and walked with a rolling motion. So, he was nicknamed Kolpin, meaning Reelfoot. When he became chief, Reelfoot determined to marry a Choctaw princess, but her father would not permit it. The Great Spirit warned Reelfoot that if he attempted to kidnap the maiden, his village and his people would be destroyed. Reelfoot disobeyed the Spirit, and seized the princess by force and carried her to Chickasaw territory, where he arranged a marriage ceremony.

In the middle of the ceremony, the Great Spirit stamped his foot in anger, causing the earth to quake, and the Father of the Waters raised the Mississippi River over its banks, inundating Reelfoot's homeland. The water flowed into the imprint left by the Spirit's foot, forming a beautiful lake beneath which Reelfoot, his bride, and his people lie buried.[2]   This is just Folk-Lore, but it is a quaint way of explaining something supernatural that we are unable to explain otherwise.

Last week, I included a short excerpt from the journal of Mr. Godfrey Lesieur, an eye-witness to the devastation from the earthquake.  This Blog gives another eye-witness account of the earthquake.   Eliza Bryan wrote to Rev. Lorenzo Dow, on March 16, 1816, the following:[3]

“Dear Sir, On the 16^th of December 1811, at about 2 o’clock A.M., we were visited by a violent shock of an earthquake, accompanied by a very awful noise, resembling loud but distant thunder, but more hoarse, and vibrating, which was followed by a few minutes by the complete saturation of the atmosphere with sulfurous vapor, causing total darkness.  The screams of the affrighted inhabitants running to and fro, not knowing where to go or what to do, the cries of the fowls and the beasts of every species, the cracking of trees falling, and the roaring of the Mississippi, the current of which was retrograde for a few minutes, owing, as is supposed, to an eruption in its bed, formed a scene truly terrible.  From that time until about sunrise, a number of lighter shocks occurred, at which time one more violent than the first took place, with the same accompaniments, and the terror which had been excited in everyone, and indeed in all animal nature, was now, if possible, doubted.  The inhabitants fled in every direction to the country, supposing (if it can be admitted that their minds were exercised at all) that there was less danger from a distance than near the river.  In one person, a female [Mrs. Lafont], the alarm was so great that she fainted, and could not be revived."

Eliza Bryan wrote much more on the earthquake, but it will have to be presented in segments over several weeks.  You learned today that the Reelfoot Lake was formed directly from the result of the Great New Madrid Earthquake.   Next week we will transition from the swamps to Crowley's Ridge.   This Ridge extends from Cape Girardeau, Missouri, in a wide arc of over 150 miles down to Helena, Arkansas. The sloping 200 to 500-foot elevation contrasts sharply with the surrounding delta bottomland.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

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[1] Historic Earthquakes: New Madrid Earthquakes 1811–1812: Earthquake Summary. USGS

[2]  Wilbur A. Nelson: "Reelfoot — an Earthquake Lake" In National Geographic Magazine, Vol. XLV, January 1962, p. 103.

[3] Goodspeed's History of Southeast Missouri, 1888, page 304.