Photo Tour of Battle of Baxter Springs, Kansas (Fort Blair)

Buckeye Bill

Captain
Forum Host
Annual Winner
Joined
Jul 29, 2013
On October 6th, 1863, Captain William C. Quantrill and his force of roughly 400 Confederate soldiers were headed to Texas to spend the winter when his scouts reported a wagon train ahead. Quantrill sent the scouts back for more information when they discovered the Federal encampment at Baxter Springs. Quantrill split his force into two parts. One half was to attack the camp while Quantrill himself would lead the rest around to the north side of the Federal position. At noon, U.S. Army First Lt. James B. Pond’s command was preparing to eat lunch when they were surprised by an attack from three sides by Quantrill’s men. Pond had sent about 60 cavalrymen out on a foraging expedition earlier in the day, leaving the post with less than 100 soldiers. Most of the soldiers were outside the fort and quickly ran back to it closely pursued by the Confederates. Pond rallied his men, who returned fire and drove the attackers out of the fortifications. Pond became a one man artillery crew, loading and firing the mountain howitzer by himself. Quantrill’s men took up positions in the woods outside the fort, and the two sides exchanged fire.

Meanwhile, U.S. Army Major General James G. Blunt’s wagon train halted about 400 yards from the site of Fort Blair. The fort was behind a ridge and not visible. As Blunt waited for the wagons to close up, he noticed a line of about 100 cavalrymen a few hundred yards to his left. They were dressed in U.S. Army uniforms, and Blunt assumed they were part of Pond’s command. But Blunt became suspicious and ordered his cavalry escort into line and slowly advanced. The line of blue clad cavalrymen were the other half of Quantrill’s men, and they opened fire on Blunt’s escort. Taken by surprise, Blunt’s men managed to fire some shots as the Confederates closed in, but then took off in a panicked attempt to escape. Quantrill’s men, reinforced by a second line of horsemen, immediately gave chase and overtook the U.S. soldiers. Many were ordered to surrender, only to be shot when they did so, according to some wounded survivors. In all, 23 members of the 3rd Wisconsin cavalry and 18 of the 14th Kansas Cavalry were killed. Quantrill’s men then went after the wagons. The wagon containing the brigade band tried to get away, and when bushwhacker William Bledsoe rode up and demanded its surrender, he was shot and killed. Bledsoe was a popular member of Quantrill’s band, and his enraged friends chased after the band wagon. After only 50 yards or so the wagon lost a wheel. The wagon contained 14 musicians and the bandleader, one war correspondent, the wagon driver, and a 12 year old drummer boy. They attempted to surrender by waving white handkerchiefs, but all were shot and killed except the drummer boy who was shot and passed out, though still alive. The bodies were robbed of belongings and some were mutilated and stripped of clothing before being thrown under or into the wagon. The wagon and bodies were then set on fire. The drummer boy regained consciousness and with his clothes on fire, managed to crawl about 30 yards before dying.

Major General Blunt was able to escape, and he and the survivors of his group managed to make their way to Fort Blair. Pond had successfully defended his position, and Quantrill elected not to renew the attack. Federal casualties were listed as 80 killed, including six in the attack on the fort, and 18 wounded. Quantrill listed his losses as three killed and three wounded. First Lieutenant James Pond was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for his actions at Baxter Springs.

* Kansas State Marker just south of Baxter Springs, Kansas.

DSC_0234 (3).JPG


* Kansas State Historical Marker just north of Baxter Springs off US 69.

DSC_0302 (3).JPG


* The Battle of Baxter Springs Tour Stop 1.

DSC_0247 (4).JPG


* The Spring River (Quantrill and Troopers Crossing)

DSC_0246 (4).JPG


* Tour Stop 2 (Quantrill Splits Troopers).

DSC_0249 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 3 (The Death of John Fry).

DSC_0251 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 4 (Fort Blair).

DSC_0266 (2).JPG


* Fort Blair Complex with a Monument and Markers.

DSC_0255 (3).JPG


* The Battle of Baxter Springs - Fort Blair Monument.

DSC_0258 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 6 (The Attack on Blunt's Wagon Train).

DSC_0297 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 7 (Scattering of Blunt's Troops)

DSC_0298 (3).JPG


* The Willow Creek (Site of Dead U.S. Soldiers Along the Ravine).

DSC_0300 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 8 (Site of Dead U.S. Soldier Band Members - 12 Year Old Drummer Boy).

DSC_0301 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 9 (Dead U.S. Soldier's Bodies are Buried).

DSC_0253 (3).JPG


* Tour Stop 11 (The Baxter Springs Cemetery : U.S. Soldiers Grave Site with Monument).

DSC_0280 (3).JPG


* Close-Up of The Battle of Baxter Springs Grave Monument.

DSC_0277 (3).JPG
 
Thanks for this, Bill. I believe I've read that Blunt was in a carriage when he realized what was going on, and literally jumped a small spring branch in the process of escaping. Further, the story said he did this without bouncing his female companion out of the wagon. I don't know if this is true or if it's anti-yankee hype, but it makes a good story. One thing is certain: If Blunt hadn't run for his life, he wouldn't have been around to participate in Mine Creek the next year.

There is a second story about Baxter Springs that I believe. I've read several versions of it.

Riley Crawford, who was the youngest of the guerrillas at this time, walked across the field looking at the dead bodies and scavenging yankee provisions. At one point he either kicked one of the bodies or slapped it with the flat of a saber blade (depending on the version you read.) He yelled: "Stand up, you da..ed yankee! And no one was more surprised than Riley when the man actually did stand up and surrender. He had been feigning death for an hour or so. Unfortunately for the yankee soldier, Riley shot him on the spot.
 
Johnny Fry (1840 -1863) was the first “official” westbound rider of the Pony Express. Fry was born in Bourbon County, Kentucky to John Fry and Mary Fry in 1840. As a young man, Fry became a skilled horseman. After winning a horse race near Rushville, Missouri in 1860, he was approached by Alexander Major. Major asked Fry if he would be interested in riding for his newly founded Pony Express service. Fry accepted the offer and was assigned to the first leg of the westbound route of the Pony Express. His first delivery route : St. Joseph, Missouri to Seneca, Kansas (80 miles). Fry quickly gained a reputation for never failing to deliver the mail, regardless of weather or danger, and was a fast rider, averaging a speed of 12.5 miles per hour, including all stops. Local lore says that the donut was invented as a cake for Fry to eat while speeding by young girls’ homes near Troy, Kansas. Fry worked for the Pony Express, not only as a rider but also as a dispatcher until the telegraph line construction was completed, ending the Pony Express service in October 1861. Afterward, he was recruited by U.S. Army Major General James G. Blunt to serve as a messenger rider and scout. On October 6, 1863, while on his way from Fort Gibson, Oklahoma to Fort Scott, Kansas, he was attacked by Confederate guerrillas under the leadership of the famed Captain William C. Quantrill. In a hand-to-hand fight with the Confederate soldiers, Fry killed five of his assailants before falling mortally wounded. Fry is buried in the Baxter Springs Cemetery.

20200906_151850.jpg


20200906_151955.jpg


20200906_151920.jpg


20200901_113655.jpg
 
Thanks for this, Bill. I believe I've read that Blunt was in a carriage when he realized what was going on, and literally jumped a small spring branch in the process of escaping. Further, the story said he did this without bouncing his female companion out of the wagon. I don't know if this is true or if it's anti-yankee hype, but it makes a good story. One thing is certain: If Blunt hadn't run for his life, he wouldn't have been around to participate in Mine Creek the next year.

There is a second story about Baxter Springs that I believe. I've read several versions of it.

Riley Crawford, who was the youngest of the guerrillas at this time, walked across the field looking at the dead bodies and scavenging yankee provisions. At one point he either kicked one of the bodies or slapped it with the flat of a saber blade (depending on the version you read.) He yelled: "Stand up, you da..ed yankee! And no one was more surprised than Riley when the man actually did stand up and surrender. He had been feigning death for an hour or so. Unfortunately for the yankee soldier, Riley shot him on the spot.

Thanks for sharing, Missourian!

Bill
 
On this day in 1863, Confederate Captain William Clarke Quantrill and his guerilla troopers continued their bloody rampage through the state of Kansas when they attacked Fort Blair at Baxter Springs. Although Quantrill failed to capture this U.S. Army fortification, his troopers attacked a U.S. Army wagon train just north of the town. Some reports state Quantrill's troopers captured U.S. soldiers in this wagon train and massacred the prisioners. This is why some historians label this American Civil War battle as "The Baxter Springs Massacre."
 
Thanks for information on Fry. He was written up in older copy of magazine I get, "The Kentucky Explorer". Unfortunately the owner and editor of that magazine is quitting. His wife died this year and he is in 70s and says just time to quit. I have enjoyed this magazine so very much. Last issue is to be the Nov.-Dec issue.
 
The story goes Fry killed 5 of the guerillas in hand-to-hand combat, and Quantrill claimed a loss of 3 killed. I would be willing to believe Quantrill discounted a couple or more of his own by saying, 'they weren't nothing anyway'.
Lubliner.
 
Quantrill and his men were about as low life as a human can get. Executing surrendered men who had discarded their arms I'm sure reserved a special spot in Hell for themselves. Killing men in battle who are trying to kill you, one can understand.
Same could be said of Lane, Jenison, Moonlight, Weir or any other Jayhawker/ Redleg. No one had a corner on the " Virtue " market in that theater of war.
 
Quantrill and his men were about as low life as a human can get. Executing surrendered men who had discarded their arms I'm sure reserved a special spot in Hell for themselves. Killing men in battle who are trying to kill you, one can understand.
I'm not looking to start a fight, but I'd just like to point out that many of Quantrill's men came from very prominent Missouri families.
General Halleck's 1862 order regarding the killing on site of all guerrilla's or those suspected of being a guerrilla had something to do with neither side taking prisoners.
Unfortunately, the war in Missouri wasn't pretty with men dyeing valiantly in battle like the war in the East. Revenge and retribution played as a primary motivation for the type of fighting that took place here.

While I do believe everyone has a right to their opinion, I have to wonder what or how much knowledge of the issue their opinion is based upon.

For many years I had a very negative opinion of the Bushwhackers, based upon the history that has been passed down to us. After I moved back to Missouri, my focus of the Civil War narrowed down from the war as a whole, to what happened locally to the state, and my opinion changed. I began my study of the guerrilla's on an individual basis, why they became guerrillas, and overwhelmingly, it was due in response to something that the Union authorities had done to their family.

As an example of what caused my opinion to change, I'll give an example of one of Quantrill's guerrilla. Riley Crawford was 13 years old when Union authorities came to his father's farm and killed his father in front of his family, burned all the buildings, stole the livestock, and left Mrs. Crawford completely destitute in terms of taking care of her children. She learned that Quantrill was camped nearby and took her sons' to Quantrill's camp and handed them over to Quantrill, telling Quantrill to "make soldiers of them." What situation would make a mother hand her 13 year old son over to a group of guerrillas? The Crawford's where a known Southern-leaning family. Riley had two older sisters that were married to men serving in the Missouri State Guard, (and these two sisters were later killed in the Kansas City Jail collapse). She couldn't ask for help from her neighbors, because if the Federal authorities found out a neighbor was giving aid to the Crawford family, the neighbors could expect a similar Federal raid on their farm for giving aid and comfort to a supposed enemy.

Being made destitute by Federal authorities and unable to take care of her children, Mrs. Crawford gave Riley over to the only male relatives left in her family. Several of the men who rode with Quantrill were Riley's close relatives, as nearly 40% of the men who rode with Quantrill were related to each other in some manner. This just shows how desperate things were in Missouri, where a boy is made into a guerrilla because there is no where else for him to go; no other family members who can take care of him. As Patrick H pointed out in his above post, (No. 10), this is the same Riley Crawford who a few months after joining his male relative in Quantrill's band, took part in the Raid on Lawrence and jumped on the dead bodies of Federal Soldiers at Baxter Springs. Riley was killed the following year near where Patrick and I live here in Central Missouri, and his body was buried in an unmarked grave in the middle of the night because it was against the law to give a guerrilla a burial. They were to be left were they fell so the hogs could eat them.

The war fought in Missouri was brutal beyond imagination. It was a war within a larger war and shows just how ruthless and brutal we humans can be to one another. No side was innocent, and with a complete breakdown of law and order, our base human emotions ran rampant.

As I said earlier, everyone is entitled to their opinion. I wonder if your opinion would change, as mine did, if you knew a little bit about what motivated these men to join the guerrillas?

Again, I'm not criticizing your comments.
 
I also was not looking to rattle any sabers. My comment is based entirely on the Blunt Massacre. I realize your area as being a hot bed well before the War was declared. That in itself stirs the pot. Who first started throwing below the belt blows we may never know. We know Kansas-Missouri area were pleading for arms to protect themselves from unprovoked attacks such as Lawrence. Not saying Mrs. Crawford received just treatment, but sending her 13 year old to be raised by a band of basically outlaws surely did him no favors. Was that the only inhuman act that occurred? By no means, many from both sides. If this had been a band of uncontrolled Union soldiers who massacred unarmed surrendering others, then they also deserve that same special spot in hell. War always has been horrible and still is today.
 
I also was not looking to rattle any sabers. My comment is based entirely on the Blunt Massacre. I realize your area as being a hot bed well before the War was declared. That in itself stirs the pot. Who first started throwing below the belt blows we may never know. We know Kansas-Missouri area were pleading for arms to protect themselves from unprovoked attacks such as Lawrence. Not saying Mrs. Crawford received just treatment, but sending her 13 year old to be raised by a band of basically outlaws surely did him no favors. Was that the only inhuman act that occurred? By no means, many from both sides. If this had been a band of uncontrolled Union soldiers who massacred unarmed surrendering others, then they also deserve that same special spot in hell. War always has been horrible and still is today.
Begging for Arms, do you mean like Beechers Bibles that a great many of the Free Soil Emmigrants ( many sponsored by Beechers Emigrant Aid Society) brought with them to Kanas Territory? The same emigrants who conducted what they liked to call freedom raids into Missouri to free slaves? BTW John Brown had a hand in those ( as well as his infamous murder of non- slave holding Southern emigrants at Potawatomi) is that what your referring to?
Did Atchison lead bands of Border Ruffians into Kansas to stop the Territory from voting itself free Soil? Absolutely he did. Was there Border Ruffian raids into Kansas? Absolutely. Title for Tat in most cases but trying to paint Kansans as poor benighted holders of virtue and right Begging for weapons, well as Grandpa used say; " That dog just won't hunt ".
 
My initial opinion comment was based on the events of the Blunt Massacre or any other horrendous action that may have occurred. I have no dog in the fight. Not looking to get into any other individual area feuds that happened. I know no love was lost at the Kansas-Missouri border. Only mentioned Lawrence since that is a fairly well know incident of the border clashes that showed such inhumanity. I hold to my belief that anyone from either side that participated in such cruelty were low lives. Those actions can not be justified by another equally horrible incident. You may well know of other occurrences and have actual knowledge of what transpired and who deserved the credit for such actions So be it. Peace.
 
Driven through Baxter Springs many times, but was not aware of the Battle/Massacre and never visited the site. Growing up in the Kansas City, Kansas I was aware of Bleeding Kansas, Lawrence, Wilson Creek, Price's raid, and Westport. Do not know why but this event never came up.
 
Back
Top