Families Torn Apart: The Civil War in Southwest Missouri
Of those who suffered the most during the Civil War, the family is clearly at the top of the list. Not only were there sectional divides between North and South, but citizens of towns against each other, friendships lost over the divide, and families torn apart.
The Civil War has often been described as pitting brothers against brothers. In fact, at the Battle of Wilson's Creek on August 10, 1861, both Joseph Shelby, member of the Missouri State Guard, and his stepbrother Cary Gratz, soldier in the 1st Missouri Infantry, U.S., fought on Bloody Hill.
The war, however, was not limited to the battlefield, as political differences created painful divisions among family members.
The State Historical Society of Missouri Research Center–Rolla contains a valuable anthology entitled The Hunter-Hagler Collection, which reveals how women endured through the Civil War and the struggles one matriarch, Elizabeth Hunter, faced in trying to keep her family together through the perils of wartime.
The Hunter family lived in Jasper County, Missouri. The collection provides letters written by Elizabeth Hunter and her daughters, Priscilla A. Hunter and Charlotte Elizabeth (Hunter) Hagler. The correspondence was directed to Elizabeth's daughter Margaret Hunter-Newberry, who married and left the family farm.
These letters are candid and expose graphic details about daily life in southwest Missouri.
We hear of horse steeling every week or too Motly's horses was stoled a few nights ago all they had at home they went to the Sarcoxie mill last week and told the miller if the ground another grain he would kill him so the mill is standing the water is so low wee can hardly git grinding done atal we hear the drouth is awful in the north part of the state and the rebbels killing burning and destroying worse than they are here Jenison [Charles Jennison] is let loose among them I hope he will give them justice the rebels are under no law and the malitia is bound down not to pester anything that belongs to a sworn secish they can ride fine horses but if we go we have to walk we can't keep a horse here the union party is on the decline we cant keep nothing for the bushwhacks but the secish is let alone Mag I cant be a secesh there is no use trying I am furder from it all the time to see how they are killing our men distroying our cuntry who can claim themfor there party. They have killed Mr Clark Peter Baker Mr Seymore Brice Henry John Blake Pearson Lorence and Alfred Lawrence around here this summer.
— Elizabeth Hunter to Margaret ("Mag") Hunter Newberry, August 11, 1864
Guerrilla warfare spread throughout the Midwest like a brush fire, hitting especially hard in the southwest corner of Missouri along the Kansas border.
Marauding bands of men terrorized civilians, ransacking homes, pillaging goods, and burning whatever remained. Women and children were often the only witnesses to these atrocities.
With southwest Missouri largely devoid of men, women were called upon to maintain households, raise children, manage farms, and support the war effort however they could.
The Civil War offered women a rare opportunity to step into traditionally masculine roles without fear of ridicule or ostracism. Many adapted to responsibilities previously held by husbands, fathers, and brothers.
Women became heads of households, businesses, and farms. They faced violence, disease, deprivation, reduced labor, and isolation.
Hardship became everyday reality.
That reality proved too much for Elizabeth Hunter and her family, who relocated to Illinois in 1864 and remained there until the war ended.
They were just one of hundreds of families forced to abandon their homes.
Increasing guerrilla warfare along the Missouri–Kansas border prompted General Thomas Ewing to issue Order No. 11 on August 25, 1863, depopulating areas believed to support guerrillas.
The order required residents of:
- Bates County
- Cass County
- Jackson County
- Northern Vernon County
to evacuate immediately.
Elizabeth also struggled with an ongoing conflict with her daughter Margaret.
Margaret was allegedly a secessionist, and the letters suggest she felt alienated from her family because of their opposing political beliefs.
Elizabeth, however, repeatedly affirmed her love.
I am always glad to hear from you, dont let such thauts enter your mind that I ever get tired of yet I would like to be with you all the time. I love you with that love that none but a mother knows it distresses me to think that my child has any fears that I have forsaken [MS torn]ntend long as I have a heart to love any thing I will love my children and be there true friend as I have always been, dont think because we differ in opinion in war matters that I aint your friend I can tell you that I think the rebbels and copperheads are all wrong they will see it when I fear it will be too late.
— Elizabeth Hunter, January 10, 1865
Whether Elizabeth and Margaret ever reconciled is unknown.
Margaret’s preservation of the letters suggests there may have been some healing after the war.
The Hunter-Hagler letters remain a powerful testament to the hardship families endured in politically divided regions where neighbors—and even relatives—turned against one another.
The collection is housed at the State Historical Society of Missouri Research Center–Rolla and was digitized for the Community & Conflict Project, which explores the Civil War’s impact on the Ozarks.
Digital archive: http://www.ozarkscivilwar.org/archives/1044
Original article by Rachel Regan