{⋆★⋆} BG Thompson, M. Jeff

Meriwether Jefferson “Swamp Fox” Thompson

Born: January 22, 1826
Thompson.jpg


Birthplace: Harpers Ferry, Jefferson County, Virginia (West Virginia)

Father: Captain Meriwether Thompson 1790 – 1859

Mother: Martha “Patsy” Slaughter Broadus 1796 – 1880

Wife: Emma Catherine Hays 1825 – 1886
(Buried: East Louisiana State Hospital Cemetery, Jackson, Louisiana)​

Children:

Henry Bolivar Thompson 1852 – 1901​
(Buried: Metairie Cemetery, New Orleans, Louisiana)​
Marcie Abel Thompson Bailey 1860 – 1937​
(Buried: Mount Mora Cemetery, Saint Joseph, Missouri)​

Education:

Receive basic Training in Military Tactics in Charleston, South Carolina​

Occupation before War:

Store Clerk Employee in Virginia and Pennsylvania​
Store Clerk Employee in St. Joseph, Missouri​
Surveyor and City Engineer for the City of St. Joseph, Missouri​
Supervisor of Construction of Hannibal and St. Joseph Railroad​
1857 – 1860: Mayor of St. Joseph, Missouri​
1860: Presided of inaugural the first ride of the Pony Express​

Civil War Career:

1861: Cut down United States Flag from St. Joseph Post Office​
1861: Lt. Colonel of Missouri State National Guard​
1861 – 1865: Brigadier General of Missouri State National Guard​
Thompson 1.jpg
Commander of First Military District in the State of Missouri​
Declared a counter proclamation to Fremont’s Emancipation​
1861: Led a cavalry attack on Iron Mountain Railroad bridge​
1861: Defeated at the Battle of Fredericktown, Missouri​
1862: Commander of rams in the Confederate riverine fleet​
1863: Accompanied General Marmaduke on his raid into Missouri​
1863: Captured in Arkansas, Prisoner of War at Gratiot Prison​
1864: Exchanged for a Union General​
1864: Served in Major General Price’s Missouri Expedition​
1865: Appointed Commander of Northern Sub District of Arkansas​
1865: Agreed to surrender his command at Chalk Bluff on May 11th

Occupation after War:

Civil Engineer in the town of New Orleans, Louisiana​
Designer of a program to improve Louisiana Swamps​

Died: September 5, 1876

Place of Death: St. Joseph, Missouri

Cause of Death: Tuberculosis

Age at time of Death:
50 years old

Burial Place: Mount Mora Cemetery, St. Joseph, Missouri
 
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Even though not a Confederate general he commanded Jo Shelby's Iron Brigade during Sterling Price's Missouri raid.He supposedly petitioned frequently for Confederate rank but was never granted a commission as a Confederate general.
His general's commission was never from the Confederacy, but from the State of Missouri. He also commanded Joseph Shelby's Iron Brigade during Price's Missouri Expedition in 1864. Shelby had become a Division Commander at this time.
 
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"The New Red, White and Blue," words by Gen. M. Jeff Thompson, music by T. von la Hache, published New Orleans, 1862.

Missouri, pride of the nation,
Hope of the brave and the true,
The Confederacy will furnish the rations,
But the fighting is trusted to thee.

etc. Attached below. [hope the music's better than the lyrics! Actually, I think there's a misprint in the last word of either the 2nd or 4th line.]
 

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Even though not a Confederate general he commanded Jo Shelby's Iron Brigade during Sterling Price's Missouri raid.He supposedly petitioned frequently for Confederate rank but was never granted a commission as a Confederate general.
Surely the War Department in Richmond knew about Thompson's rank or status.How or why did the Confederacy allow C.S.troops to be commanded by a non-Confederate general?
 
Surely the War Department in Richmond knew about Thompson's rank or status.How or why did the Confederacy allow C.S.troops to be commanded by a non-Confederate general?
Things were different in the Trans-Mississippi. In doing research on TMD Confederate units I've found numerous officers were never recognized by Richmond. Jeff seems to be one of the highest ranking of those.
 
There were about 9 "Kirby Smith Generals", I think. But Thompson never was a Kirby Smith appointee was he?
No, he was recognized more by Marmaduke and Shelby. early in 1862 Jeff went to Richmond to try to obtain a Brigadier General rank but never came away with one. It's still unclear as to why he did not.
 
No, he was recognized more by Marmaduke and Shelby. early in 1862 Jeff went to Richmond to try to obtain a Brigadier General rank but never came away with one. It's still unclear as to why he did not.
I can't find any reason(s)either. One bio states he tried several times to "obtain rank"from Richmond. I wouldn't think either Marmaduke or Shelby had that kind of authority. Kirby Smith had far more rank than they did.
 
Did his wife,Emma, spend anytime in an asylum? A major Fontaine wrote of her situation while Thompson was imprisoned.
There is a 4 page letter in Thompson's service record dated 20 August 1864, where she writes that she is not insane but had a "congestive spell that went to my brain a little." She states "they never sent for a doctor but took me to that asylum where I came near dying from fright and unkindness." I'm assuming she was sent to the St. Ann's Roman Catholic Asylum located on O'Fallon Street, SE corner of of 10th Street in St. Louis. This was run by the Sisters of Charity. A newspaper note of 16 September 1864 states that she was now a confirmed lunatic and was being sent to the State Asylum at Fulton, Missouri.
 
I can't find any reason(s)either. One bio states he tried several times to "obtain rank"from Richmond. I wouldn't think either Marmaduke or Shelby had that kind of authority. Kirby Smith had far more rank than they did.
See the article "Jeff Thompson's Unsuccessful Quest for a Confederate Generalship," by Stephen Davis, the book review editor of Blue & Gray magazine. It's in the Missouri Historical Review October 1990 issue, pages 53-65.
 
Thompson himself denied it but it was reported that Thompson was sent to Charleston Harbor and placed under Confederate fire.
Previously I said I didn't know if he was in Charleston, SC.. Well, that was a mistake, my memory just failing me. After looking at my Thompson file, here's what I found:
22 August 1863 - captured at Pocahontas, AR
August 1863 - sent to Ironton, MO
16 August 1863 - sent to Gratiot Military Prison in St. Louis
September 1863 - transferred to the Alton, IL Military Prison
11 September 1863 - sent to Johnson's Island, Sandusky, OH Military Prison
mid February 1864 - transferred to Pt Lookout, MD
26 June 1864 - sent on steamer to Charleston, SC
3 August 1864 - Exchanged at Charleston, SC
9 August 1864 - ordered to report to Kirby Smith commander of the TMD
I forgot I had an article that described his experiences at Charleston. It is "I am a Rip-Squealer and my Name is Fight, " also by Steve Davis in the Blue & Gray Magazine, April-May 1987 issue, pages 28-39.
 
Did his wife,Emma, spend anytime in an asylum? A major Fontaine wrote of her situation while Thompson was imprisoned.
I found another article I had, from the Chicago Tribune supposed from Jeff to his sister while he was a prisoner at Johnson's Island in October 1863. I quote: "All know that at the beginning of the war Emma was at the Asylum (don't know which one), and as soon as I heard that she was well, I sent Colonel [William C] Chappell to Cairo, to endeavor to get her sent down to me, and that as soon as permits were granted to anyone, that she came down to me." I forgot I had this article and will have to dig deeper into this. Chappell was one of Jeff's Aide-de-Camps. I have not found the original letter but it may be in one of the folders from his scrapbook. I have a copy from Tulane.
 
There were about 9 "Kirby Smith Generals", I think. But Thompson never was a Kirby Smith appointee was he?
Before Kirby Smith, a policy [of sorts] was being applied to MSG Generals allowing them to maintain their rank when converting to Confederate status.

8/14/62 Hindman to Gen Parsons, Richland-absence under orders has delayed action on your application. The policy I adopted as essential to success was that but one military organization should exist in the Dept. I proposed this to Gen Rains & Gen McBride with the condition that they should be recognized by me as CS Brig Gen'ls subject to approval by War Dept & that their men should transfer to the C.S.A. service for their unexpired terms. Both officers & their men accepted. If you consent, I will propose to Gen Holmes the same arrangement to you & your command & that you be ordered to Fort Smith immediately to command a Div to consist of your own & Gen Rains' Bgdes & thence into Mo as soon as organized. Let me hear from you immediately
Alexander Papers

10/3/62 Hindman to M M Parsons en route to Yellville- your letter of 31st​ referred to Gen Holmes who says the relative rank of officers in MSG now in C.S.A. will be the same
 
Thompson wrote a fascinating reminiscence of his war experiences, full of deprecating humor. Years ago I used the book from the MO State Library but I never owned a copy. I see that there are two copies of the Morningside reprint available through Amazon but they are out of my price range. A great source for Missouri and Arkansas.

Might this help, sir?

The Civil War experiences of General M. Jeff Thompson in 1861
Westover, John Glendower

Date 1941
Format Thesis

Abstract
"Only the first year of Jeff Thompson's account of his Civil War experiences is included in this study. His reminiscences, however, run from January 1, 1861, to June 6, 1865, covering his military career in considerable detail. The year 1861 was selected for detailed study because by checking the accuracy of one section against the official record, the validity of the whole document can likely be determined. Also by close study of a part, an estimate can be made of the value of the whole document as an instrument of historical research. While Thompson's reminiscences check very well with the official records, they still contribute material which cannot be located in the official records. The official records concentrate on operations, orders, and correspondence but usually omit organization, discipline of troops, elections of officers, and "off the record" material of various types. The entire manuscript is divided into five parts, each covering a single year of the war. 1861 is the one best suited for a detailed study because it is the most self-contained unit, includes more material on the organization and administration of irregular Confederate troops, and is the year when Thompson was most active from a military standpoint... "

Rights OpenAccess This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License. Copyright held by author.


Please see above link for full paper.

Cheers,
USS ALASKA
 
Might this help, sir?

The Civil War experiences of General M. Jeff Thompson in 1861
Westover, John Glendower

Date 1941
Format Thesis

Abstract
"Only the first year of Jeff Thompson's account of his Civil War experiences is included in this study. His reminiscences, however, run from January 1, 1861, to June 6, 1865, covering his military career in considerable detail. The year 1861 was selected for detailed study because by checking the accuracy of one section against the official record, the validity of the whole document can likely be determined. Also by close study of a part, an estimate can be made of the value of the whole document as an instrument of historical research. While Thompson's reminiscences check very well with the official records, they still contribute material which cannot be located in the official records. The official records concentrate on operations, orders, and correspondence but usually omit organization, discipline of troops, elections of officers, and "off the record" material of various types. The entire manuscript is divided into five parts, each covering a single year of the war. 1861 is the one best suited for a detailed study because it is the most self-contained unit, includes more material on the organization and administration of irregular Confederate troops, and is the year when Thompson was most active from a military standpoint... "

Rights OpenAccess This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 License. Copyright held by author.


Please see above link for full paper.

Cheers,
USS ALASKA
Careful. This MA Thesis contain numerous errors both in names and references. Just a word of caution.
 
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