May 30, 2005

Thunder in the Ozarks... A Civil War Memory

Confederate Artiliery emplacements Pea Ridge National Military Park, Pea Ridge Arkansas photo courtesey of Bruce Schultz, civilwaralbum.com

I didnt realize that we live very close to this wonderfully preserved Civil War Battle field. I have not had the chance to view it, but I have, in honor of Decoration Day (Memorial Day today) done a bit of research on this pivital Civil War battle. The Union success here kept Missouri from succeding to the Confederacy, becomming a part of Arkansas. It also was a test of the largely immigrant regements in the region. (many people dont realize that a huge number of immigrants died for the preservation of the union primarily in regements in Ohio and the Missouri territories.) I present a few bits of the research that I found, including this folksong below.

The Battle of Pea Ridge (composer unknown)

It was on March the Seventh
In the year of Sixty-two
We had a sore engagement
With Abe Lincoln's crew
Van Dorn was our Commander
As you remember be
We lost the-thousand of our men
Near th Indian Territory

Cap Price came riding up th line
His horse was in a pace
An' as he gave th word retreat
Th tears rolled down his face
Ten-thousand deaths I'd drather die
As they should gain th field
From that he got a fatal shot
Which caused him to yield


At Springfield and Carthage
Many a hero fell
At Lexington and Drywood
As near th truth can tell
But such another cornage
As did I ever see
Happened at ole Pea Ridge
Near th Indian Territory


I know you brave Missouri boys
Were never yet afraid
Let's try an' form in order
Retreat th best we can
Th word retreat was passed around
It raised a heathen cry
Helter, skelter, thru th woods
Like lost sheep they did fly


Below is a description of the battle and its participants by a decendent of a soilder

The Battle Of Pea Ridge

written by Jerry Rogers, a decendent of a soilder that fought in this battle.

The battle at Pea Ridge was an interesting battle for lots of reasons. It was in many ways an extenuation of Wilson’s Creek that took place just outside of Springfield, Missouri.

There were many German immigrants who took part in both battles. These were not the Germans who came mostly from west of the Rhein River in the 1700 and settled in Pennsylvania, Maryland, and Virginia. These were men who had for the most part fled Baden, Hessen, and Bavaria because of the attempted revolution in what is now Germany in 1848/49. These men under Friedrich Hecker, Franz Sigel, and others had attempted to unite the German states under one country and promote freedom from the Kings, Princes, and Dukes that were subduing the population. They initially had success, but the Bavarian and Prussian Armies were too much for the rebels.

There were large numbers of Germans who fled to the US during the years just prior to our Civil War. Nearly all were in favor of a strong central government after their experiences in what is now Germany and therefore sided with the Union. Their prior military experience in Germany made them natural soldiers when the war broke out.

There are several books written on the fighting which took place in Southern Missouri and Northern Arkansas. Probably the best one is "Borderland Rebellion" by Elmo Ingenthron. It was published in 1980 by the Ozark Mountaineer. It is no doubt still available directly from the Ozark Mountaineer, Route 3, Branson, MO 65616.

There were several German-speaking commanders at both Wilson Creek and Pea Ridge: Franz Sigel discussed above was a regimental commander at Wilson Creek and a division commander at Pea Ridge. Peter Joseph Osterhaus commanded a regiment at Wilson Creek and a brigade at Pea Ridge. Others include Schafer and Schutzenbach who commanded artillery units.

Here is a short description of the battle at Pea Ridge:

On 7 and 8 March 1862, Union troops led by Springfieldian Colonel J. S. Phelps took part and helped win the battle of Pea Ridge Arkansas. Phelps' mother, Mary, cared for many of the 2,500 casualties.

Many of those taking part were the same troops who had faced each other just seven months before near Springfield. The Union called the earlier battle Wilson's Creek while the Southerners called its Bloody Hill. Again, each side had their own name for this battle...Pea Ridge by the North and Elkhorn Tavern by the South.

The Union troops were largely volunteers from SW Missouri and German immigrants from the St. Louis area and Illinois. There were also Union troops from Iowa and Ohio.

The Southern troops were a strange mixture of Missouri and Arkansas volunteers, Texas Rangers, Louisiana Pelican Guard, and more than 3,600 Indians. Some of the Southern troops were peace-loving neutralist from Northern Arkansas who were forced to serve. The Indians were a mixture of different tribes and were for the most part mounted on little ponies. The warriors' faces were embellished with war paint. Some carried rifles, but about half carried bows and arrows, tomahawks, and war clubs.

The Battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas saw nearly 25,000 men engage in desperate combat. The Northern forces under General Curtis numbered over 14,000 with about 50 pieces of artillery. The South fielded about 10,500 with 49 pieces of artillery. More than 30% of the Southern troops were Indians. The odds in this battle were in favor of the North unlike the Battle at Wilson's Creek a few months earlier.

The North won the battle, but both sides paid a heavy price. Reports vary as to the total number of men killed and wounded, but conservative estimates place the figure at more than 2,500 or 10% of the total force.

Colonel John Phelps of Springfield (he has a street, school, and park named after him in Springfield) commanded the Phelps Missouri Regiment composed mostly of men from SW Missouri. He had seven officers killed or wounded, 11 enlisted men killed, and 74 wounded, captured or missing. The Ninth Iowa suffered 218 casualties.

Many members the "German" regiments from St. Louis and Illinois suffered an especially horrible fate. The Confederate Indians were pitted against them and the dead and wounded Germans were subject to scalping and mutilation.

The commander of the Iowa troops was wounded and captured by the Rebels. In time, he recovered and was exchanged. He was later promoted to Brigadier General and awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his heroism at Pea Ridge.

P. J. Osterhaus and Franz Sigel were veterans of the unsuccessful 1848 democratic revolution in Germany and fled to the United States and became US citizens. They each commanded German regiments from St. Louis and parts of Illinois. Both were later promoted to Brigadier General and took part in many battles later in the war such as Gettysburg and Second Manassas.


War is hell, any time any place. But this war was the worst of the worst. Brother against brother, families torn apart, espcially in these border regions of Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee. A year later, at Gettysburg, more men (and one woman) more died in two and one half days than in all of the 20 years of the Vietnam War. Many regimental monuments on that field of blood have incriptions that read like this..." so and so regiment 258 volunteers, 252 fallen...Accross the five Aprils of 1860 to 1865,more Americans died than in all conflicts up to that point combined. Every little town and hamlet in the midwest has it memorial to its lost sons. The flower of a generation was wiped out in a very short period of time.

150 years later, the issues that were fought over are still being struggled with. The rights of the states to make laws by the will of the people, and to not have to endure the Federal government's interferance. Sorry, slavery wasnt the prime issue that caused the spilling of our brothers blood. Was Emancipation important, of course, it was vital and God made a way answering prayers and the liberation of those in bondage was declaired, we are still working towards the true liberation of all people.

No the "Great Unpleasentness" or "the war between the states" was the direct result of disconnect between the Federal Government and the States. We see such a disconnect today and I think the whole Red State/Blue State thing is a throwback to that time. Remember those of the "blue" bent that called for secession when President Bush was re-elected...how quickly they forget.

Let us not forget. Let us go to the cemetaries as our ancestories did and "decorate" the graves of our fallen heros. Let us remember the price that they paid to preserve our way of life. Let us take nothing for granted and be forever grateful for the sacrifice, that preserves the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Here are other links that have great info and pics

Pea Ridge National Military Park

Battle of Pea Ridge by Dr.Albert Castel

Civil War Album. Com

The Civil War in Arkansas