The Death of Bill Anderson

Patrick H

Lt. Colonel
Joined
Mar 7, 2014
anderson-71.jpg
October 26th marks the 152nd anniversary of the death of William T. Anderson. His name is almost as famous as that of William Clarke Quantill, under whom he served until the spring of 1864. It might surprise many of you to learn that Anderson--not Quantrill--was the most hated guerrilla leader in Missouri during the recent unpleasantness. He died after having fallen for his own typical ruse: He got baited into an ambush very near present day Orrick, Missouri. Anderson charged the line (some say with reins in his teeth and a revolver in each hand). He was shot out of the saddle, taken to nearby Richmond, Missouri in Ray county, his corpse then dragged around the courthouse square, then dragged into a local photo studio for post-mortem portraits. Following that, his corpse might have been beheaded. I can't confirm that, but I have read allegations to that effect. He was finally buried in an unmarked grave in the local Mormon cemetery. It is said that, many years later, Cole Younger paid for a stone to mark Bill's grave. There is now an official Confederate military stone on his grave. Souvenir hunters have already been at work, chipping fragments off the stone.

Lots of opinions vary about Anderson. Quite a few still hold out for a hero status for him. I actually know a lady who refers to him as "Captain Anderson". Many more think he went crazy after his little sister died in the collapse of an improvised jail in Kansas City.

I personally believe it was Anderson and his company, rather than Quantrill, who had most of the blood on their hands for the Lawrence, Kansas raid and massacre. (But Quantrill was the raid leader, so he gets to shoulder the blame. I understand that part of it.)

Anderson went on to commit atrocities in Centralia, Missouri and in Rawlings Lane, Howard County, Missouri, and in other locales. He and his band INFAMOUSLY rode into my home town of Boonville, Missouri to meet Gen. Price during Price's invasion of October, 1864, and they had human scalps from the Centralia Massacre tied to their belts and their bridle reins. How cold-blooded is that? Anderson presented price with a boxed set of magnificent pistols (undoubtedly stolen) which temporarily dazzled Price. Then Price ordered him to attack the N. Missouri Railroad "as far East as practicable". I think Price just wanted to get Anderson out of his field of view. Price knew he was dealing with a whacko.

You have all heard of a few people who road with Anderson at one time or another: Frank James, Jesse James, Little Archie Clements, and many others whose names you could easily find with a google search.

A few years ago, I went hunting Captain Anderson's grave--not so much to honor him, but to view his grave as a curiosity and be sure that he was STILL dead.
 
Robert E Lee probably would have hung him.
Possibly true. Quite possibly. You have seen Leftyhunter's opinion. All I can tell you is that LOTS of people would have hung him if they could have actually arrested him and brought him to the gallows. That was not to be. He was killed in the same kind of ambush he used so successfully against small companies of militias and union soldiers.
 
city hotel.jpg
When Anderson met with Price, it was most likely in front of this building--The City Hotel. The building was later altered to become a single family residence, but it still stands just a half block off of Main Street in Boonville. It is strange to imagine the sights and sounds of hundreds or thousands of Price's soldiers milling about on the sidewalks and then to picture Anderson and his men ride in wearing guerrilla shirts. I imagine they were a real curiosity to the road-weary foot soldiers, as they would have been to us today.
 
A few years ago, I went hunting Captain Anderson's grave--not so much to honor him, but to view his grave as a curiosity and be sure that he was STILL dead.

Priceless. I know that some has been said about folks like me who stick close to "home" <Gettysburg> but whilst I may not comment much on these thread about Bloody Bill, Quantrill, Jayhawkers, and such, I DO read them and find them endlessly interesting. The most surprising bit of info -- besides reading about the scalps -- is finding out that the James & Younger clans were involved. Keep it coming. BTW, without violating "modern politics", it was said to me that in another war that took place in a jungle environment, some folks went around the bend and took to collecting "trophies", also.
 
Mark Twain wrote a wonderful and horrifying account of his two week experience as a Confederate 'irregular" in Missouri. He was so traumatized that he went out to Nevada and turned his back on the Civil War altogether. It's unbelievable that anyone could romanticize these monsters, Union or Confederate. Human scalps on their belts?
Well, college kids wear Che Guevara t-shirts.
 
I was looking at this web page that said mark twain was a cia operative who needed to write at a certain time in a certain time? and the bit Iif the the cw he saw just added to a needed persona. one of many destined to achieve a goal like admiral byrd's aunt said when he was eight that he would go to the south pole.
 
TE="Bee, post: 1413931, member: 16593"]Priceless. I know that some has been said about folks like me who stick close to "home" <Gettysburg> but whilst I may not comment much on these thread about Bloody Bill, Quantrill, Jayhawkers, and such, I DO read them and find them endlessly interesting. The most surprising bit of info -- besides reading about the scalps -- is finding out that the James & Younger clans were involved. Keep it coming. BTW, without violating "modern politics", it was said to me that in another war that took place in a jungle environment, some folks went around the bend and took to collecting "trophies", also.
Vietnam, some took ears[/QUOTE]
whitch part of that is the reply. i hear the new spellcheck garbles the message.
 
Yeah the quote got all screwed up. At the Citadel 88-92, we had an instructor that proudly displayed a portrait of himself from Vietnam wearing a "necklace" full of VC right ears. Member of units such as LRRPs and "Hunter Killer" teams that worked behind enemy lines. He said that was how they proved "Kill Count" He was a strange one that we did not mess with.
 
View attachment 113573 October 26th marks the 152nd anniversary of the death of William T. Anderson. His name is almost as famous as that of William Clarke Quantill, under whom he served until the spring of 1864. It might surprise many of you to learn that Anderson--not Quantrill--was the most hated guerrilla leader in Missouri during the recent unpleasantness. He died after having fallen for his own typical ruse: He got baited into an ambush very near present day Orrick, Missouri. Anderson charged the line (some say with reins in his teeth and a revolver in each hand). He was shot out of the saddle, taken to nearby Richmond, Missouri in Ray county, his corpse then dragged around the courthouse square, then dragged into a local photo studio for post-mortem portraits. Following that, his corpse might have been beheaded. I can't confirm that, but I have read allegations to that effect. He was finally buried in an unmarked grave in the local Mormon cemetery. It is said that, many years later, Cole Younger paid for a stone to mark Bill's grave. There is now an official Confederate military stone on his grave. Souvenir hunters have already been at work, chipping fragments off the stone.

Lots of opinions vary about Anderson. Quite a few still hold out for a hero status for him. I actually know a lady who refers to him as "Captain Anderson". Many more think he went crazy after his little sister died in the collapse of an improvised jail in Kansas City.

I personally believe it was Anderson and his company, rather than Quantrill, who had most of the blood on their hands for the Lawrence, Kansas raid and massacre. (But Quantrill was the raid leader, so he gets to shoulder the blame. I understand that part of it.)

Anderson went on to commit atrocities in Centralia, Missouri and in Rawlings Lane, Howard County, Missouri, and in other locales. He and his band INFAMOUSLY rode into my home town of Boonville, Missouri to meet Gen. Price during Price's invasion of October, 1864, and they had human scalps from the Centralia Massacre tied to their belts and their bridle reins. How cold-blooded is that? Anderson presented price with a boxed set of magnificent pistols (undoubtedly stolen) which temporarily dazzled Price. Then Price ordered him to attack the N. Missouri Railroad "as far East as practicable". I think Price just wanted to get Anderson out of his field of view. Price knew he was dealing with a whacko.

You have all heard of a few people who road with Anderson at one time or another: Frank James, Jesse James, Little Archie Clements, and many others whose names you could easily find with a google search.

A few years ago, I went hunting Captain Anderson's grave--not so much to honor him, but to view his grave as a curiosity and be sure that he was STILL dead.

He's one of the chillier figures of the war, that's for sure! I think circumstances in Missouri in particular did seem to trigger things inside some heads that would not have been triggered otherwise. Anderson might have gone on his way being a farmer, nobody the wiser about any loose screws he might have had.
 
I can't believe that he has cult following.
I agree it's hard to believe...or rather, it's hard to UNDERSTAND. But, to some people in Missouri, these guys were considered great heros--when they were alive and also in death. I tend to assess them individually--with disdain for some and fascination for others.

A very interesting and likable guerrilla was William Gregg. He left Quantrill (I believe in disgust) after Lawrence and went into regular Confederate service. He survived the war and became a sheriff in western Missouri. He wrote a fascinating memoir which resides in the manuscript collection of the Missouri State Historical Society. You can read it online for free by searching "The Gregg Manuscript".

A guerrilla I utterly despise is Little Archie Clement. He was Anderson's vicious little toady and he was one who seemed to take sick pride in dismembering and scalping corpses--leaving notes pinned to them and so on. He took over command of Anderson's band and had great influence over teenaged Jesse James. Others, like Frank James, left that band and joined other outfits.
 
Every violent aggressor has a grievance. Back at Woodlawn Junior High School in 1967, the bullies used to say " You lookin at me?" before they punched the smaller kids.
Criminal gangs from the Plug Uglies to the Black Panthers align themselves with a political cause for cover and then the true believers excuse, explain, defend, glorify, and finally mythologize their vicious exploits.
Wars present a great opportunity for bloodthirsty psychopaths. A chip off his tombstone indeed.
 
Back
Top