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Camp Jackson, Mo., May 10, 1861. Missouri Reserve Corps and 3rd
Missouri Volunteers. Camp Jackson was located in the western part of
the city of St. Louis, in what was known as Lindell's grove, between
Olive street and Laclede avenue. Here Brig.-Gen. Daniel M. Frost, of
the state militia, had assembled about 700 men, under pretense of
instructing them in accordance with the laws of the United States and
the State of Missouri, but was really preparing to seize the St. Louis
arsenal, which at the time contained about 60,000 stand of arms, a
number of cannon and a large supply of the munitions of war. At the
beginning of the year the arsenal was under the command of Maj. Bell,
a North Carolinian, and Frank P. Blair, who had busied himself in the
organization of the Missouri home guards, tried to have him removed
and some one appointed who would arm and equip his troops from the
supplies stored there. When President Buchanan declined to act in the
matter, Blair appealed to Gen. Scott, with the result that Bell was
relieved by Maj. Hagner, and at the same time a detachment of 40 men
was sent to guard the arsenal. But Hagner, like his predecessor,
refused to issue arms to the home guards. On the last day of January,
Capt. Nathanial Lyon, of the 2nd U.S. infantry, was sent with his
company to St. Louis, and soon after President Lincoln's inauguration
was appointed commandant at the arsenal. He soon learned that Frost
had made application to the Confederate government for cannon, etc.,
and on the last day of April accepted, mustered in and armed about
3,500 of the home guards as a "reserve corps." On the night of May 8th
the steamer J.C. Swan arrived at St. Louis, with a large supply of
military stores intended for Frost, most of which was conveyed to Camp
Jackson before daylight the following morning. This determined Lyon to
act, and accordingly on the afternoon of the 10th he marched with his
entire force to the camp and demanded its immediate surrender. This
Frost did under protest, claiming that his men were under oath to
support the constitutions of the United States and the State of
Missouri. The prisoners were marched to the arsenal, where they were
required to take the oath of allegiance to the United States, after
which they were released. Besides the usual camp equipage, tents,
blankets, etc., the camp contained 6 brass field pieces, 1,200
muskets, about 40 horses and a large quantity of ammunition, all of
which was taken possession of by the Union troops and transported to
the arsenal. As the prisoners were being taken to the arsenal the
troops were assaulted with stones, etc., by the citizens assembled
along the line of march, and some of the soldiers discharged their
guns into the mob, with the result that about 25 citizens were killed
or wounded. This was the only bloodshed.
Source: The Union Army, Volume 5, Cyclopedia of Battles,
1908 |