Spies in the West

[dixie1861]

Does anyone have any info on spy rings in the Western theater? Or any famous ones in the Tennessee area?

Thanks y'all.

 

[Equestriangirl93]

Does anyone have any info on spy rings in the Western theater? Or any famous ones in the Tennessee area?

Thanks y'all.

@Belle Montgomery and I love females spies!!! Are you interested in female spies or spies of any gender? Have you read any books about spies during the Civil War? There are a lot of good ones written on this topic

 

[dixie1861]

@Belle Montgomery and I love females spies!!! Are you interested in female spies or spies of any gender? Have you read any books about spies during the Civil War? There are a lot of good ones written on this topic

Any, but women definitely also! I haven't read any books...I am just learning!

 

[Equestriangirl93]

Any, but women definitely also! I haven't read any books...I am just learning!

To answer your original question about spies in the Western Theater, Pauline Cushman was the "Spy of the Cumberland."

Rose O'Neal Greenhow (Confederate) and Elizabeth Van Lew (Union) probably had the largest spy rings, as both of these women were very well connected and used their social standings to further their spying activities. As you read more about spies, you'll also learn about Belle Boyd, Antonia Ford and Laura Ratcliffe (I posted threads about them in the Ladies Tea forum.) among others.

As for books, Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy and Stealing Secrets are good books. @Belle Montgomery and I read about and discuss spies a lot lol. She got me started on reading all these books Haha. You're more than welcome to pm and discuss too

 

[Sid J.]

Grants Secret Service by William Fies has a lot of information on the Unions spying operations, much of it the west.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0803220057/?tag=civilwartalkc-20.

 

[Patrick H]

The "bushwhacker belles" of Western Missouri are known to have done very effective spying, carrying messages, smuggling medicines, pistol caps and other necessities to their brothers, sons, husbands and sweethearts among the confederate guerrillas. They are probably not the sort of spy network you had in mind, but they are an interesting part of the conflict in the area. They were variously hunted, banished, imprisoned, robbed, burned out, and even killed, but were never completely stopped. By the summer of 1864, many of the bushwhackers and their female support system moved to central Missouri.

 

[JAGwinn]

Hello dixie1861,
Here are several books free to download in various formats including Kindle and EPub:

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=CIVIL+WAR+SPY

 

[Belle Montgomery]

Hello dixie1861,
Here are several books free to download in various formats including Kindle and EPub:

http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/search/?query=CIVIL+WAR+SPY

The "bushwhacker belles" of Western Missouri are known to have done very effective spying, carrying messages, smuggling medicines, pistol caps and other necessities to their brothers, sons, husbands and sweethearts among the confederate guerrillas. They are probably not the sort of spy network you had in mind, but they are an interesting part of the conflict in the area. They were variously hunted, banished, imprisoned, robbed, burned out, and even killed, but were never completely stopped. By the summer of 1864, many of the bushwhackers and their female support system moved to central Missouri.

Thanks! Just bought Bushwhacker Belles off of Amazon!

 

[dixie1861]

Thanks, y'all! I will look into those books.

 

[Patrick H]

Thanks! Just bought Bushwhacker Belles off of Amazon!

That book is pretty interesting. It profiles a relative few of the women, but they are a good representative sampling. I think you'll like it.

 

[GS]

Though not officially known as spies, I've wondered if the newspapermen, photographers and artists, who followed the troops, were often spies.

 

[dixie1861]

Has anyone ever heard of a person "enlisting" with the side they're fighting against and spying that way?

 

[Equestriangirl93]

Has anyone ever heard of a person "enlisting" with the side they're fighting against and spying that way?

Yes. There was a married couple (I can't think of their names right now) who enlisted in the Confederate Army and served for a short period of time (I believe they lived in North Carolina in a town were most of the population was pro-Confederate) then deserted to become Union guerrillas. I'll try to find the article I read about them.

 

[mofederal]

Pauline Cushman was active in Kentucky and Tennessee. She called herself a spy and scout. She was caught twice in 1864. Taken before Bragg the last time. She was tried by a military court and sentenced to hang. She was sick, and acted sicke, and they postponed her execution, she was freed finally by Union troops She was also wounded twice. She received two commendations from General James Garfield and President Lincoln, and was brevetted a major. Wild Bill Hickok called himself a scout and spy. He was active in the Trans Mississippi Theater.

 

[leftyhunter]

Yes. There was a married couple (I can't think of their names right now) who enlisted in the Confederate Army and served for a short period of time (I believe they lived in North Carolina in a town were most of the population was pro-Confederate) then deserted to become Union guerrillas. I'll try to find the article I read about them.

Keith Bialock sounds about right.
Leftyhunter

 

[NedBaldwin]

Does anyone have any info on spy rings in the Western theater? Or any famous ones in the Tennessee area?

Thanks y'all.

There was a spy/scout that used the code name Chickasaw and produced a memoir after the war. It was republished in 2005 as "Chickasaw, a Mississippi Scout for the Union"

There was another named Ruggles who published his memoir called "Perils of scout-life; or, Exploits and adventures of a government scout and spy in the great Rebellion" which you can find for free on google books

If you can get hold of "Fortune favors the brave the life and times of Horace Bell" he was also a fascinating character

 

[Equestriangirl93]

Keith Bialock sounds about right.
Leftyhunter

Yes, that's exactly who I was thinking of! Keith and his wife Malinda

 

[archieclement]

Does anyone have any info on spy rings in the Western theater? Or any famous ones in the Tennessee area?

Thanks y'all.

As far as spy ring one could speculate about Knights of the Golden Circle, though its remained somewhat shrouded in mystery

"Throughout the Civil War, one of the Knights of the Golden Circle's most important roles came in its infiltration of Union forces. Nowhere in the country was this influence more apparent than in the state of Missouri where K.G.C. members filled the ranks of the Enrolled Missouri Militia which was commonly known as the Paw Paw Militia. A newspaper article from the Daily Times of Leavenworth, Kansas, July 29, 1864, serves as a good example in their interview with a member of the Paw Paw named Andrew E. Smith. Smith said:

I am 22 years old and live in Platte county, about two miles west of Platte City I was a member of Captain Johnston's company of Pawpaw militia, under Major Clark, and served about six months.... I am a member of the Knights of the Golden Circle. I joined them at Platte City, and was sworn in by David Jenkins of that place. All of the Pawpaw militia, so far as I know, belong to them...."

Also both sides made use of slaves/freedman as spies