On August 6, 1862, Joseph C. Porter, a colonel in the Missouri State Guard, assembled his newly recruited collection of “between 1,500 and 2,500 ill-trained and poorly equipped troops” in Kirksville, Missouri. Situated on a prairie ridge, Kirksville was a railroad town “surrounded completely by timber and cornfields.” Porter had been recruiting in the Macon area, forty miles south, when he heard a rumor here were “500 fresh recruits” in Kirksville. For the past several months he had been utilizing successful hit and run tactics to fend off Federal patrols, while living off the land and gathering recruits for the Confederate Army. When he learned that Union forces were following from the northeast, Porter decided to make a stand.
From the Report of Col. John McNeil, Second Missouri Cavalry (Militia):
The pursuit which had preceded and led to this action had been long and arduous, and most of the troops engaged had been constantly on the march since the middle of July. I had hung on the trail of the enemy from the time I struck it [and] continued pursuit of the enemy over a most difficult country, following his devious and eccentric windings through brake and bottom and across fields, often where no wheel had ever turned before. He had destroyed bridges and obstructed the fords by felling trees. Notwithstanding this we kept well up with him, driving in his pickets, beating up his camps, and left many of his men prone upon the track. We came up with him at Kirksville about 10 o'clock…and learning that he had expelled the people from the town, concluded that he would occupy the houses and defend the place.”
Unable to determine their exact location, McNeil ordered several volunteers to make a “speedy dash” around the town square. When gunfire erupted from the stores and houses near the Adair County Courthouse, McNeil ordered his artillery to begin firing. “The rebels, who had no large artillery, were quickly demoralized by the cannon fire, and some retreated behind the rail fence west of the square which offered precious little protection.” Although the Confederates poured heavy fire into McNeil’s men, they had no defense against the Union artillery fire, and retreated into the nearby cornfields and the forest beyond. The battle lasted almost three hours before McNeil’s forces secured the town, “capturing numerous prisoners, and driving away the remaining Confederates.”
From the Report of Col. John McNeil, Second Missouri Cavalry (Militia):
The artillery opened, throwing shot and shell into the cornfields, gardens, and houses where the enemy were ensconced. The dismounted men were thrown forward to seize the outer line of sheds and houses on the northern and eastern sides of the town…. The advance was steadily made, house after house being taken, the occupants killed or surrendering. In this work we lost the most of our men that were killed or wounded…. A simultaneous charge of both wings now carried the town and court-house; but still the western line of houses and corn fields were defended with energy, our lines receiving a galling fire; but the right wing, gallantly led by Lieutenant-Colonel Shaffer and Major Benjamin, made short work of this part of the field, while the left wing took full possession of the southern line of the town.
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to This Week in the Civil War to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.