The Civil War- 150 Years Later- The St. Louis "Massacre"

In this and subsequent special editions of Hooves, Heels and Wheels, the blog will take a look at the 150th anniversary of the events of the Civil War, and reflect on how they came about, and what implications they have for today ...

The Civil War

150 years ago This Month - The St. Louis "Massacre"

May 10, 1861

“Your requisition is illegal, unconstitutional, revolutionary, inhuman, diabolical and cannot be complied with.” Confederate Missouri Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson to Abraham Lincoln’s call for troops at the beginning of the War

“Rather then concede to the state of Missouri for one single instant the right to dictate to my government in any matter however unimportant, I would see you, and you, and you and you and every man, woman, and child in the state dead and buried.” General Nathaniel Lyon to Governor Jackson, and General Sterling Price, shortly after the St. Louis “Massacre”.

As North and South marched off to war, most of the country’s attention was focused on the East, the states of Virginia and Maryland, and of course the US capital of Washington DC. It was from the capitals that the two presidents consulted with their generals, and to there the newspapermen flocked to get stories from the VIPs.

The War was also taking shape out in the West. 150 years ago, the concept of “The West” or “Out West” was anything beyond the Appalachian Mountains. Tennessee, Mississippi, and Missouri would be the Western Theaters of the Civil War.

Missouri would give both sides even more trouble then Maryland would. The Show Me State was a border state that had become accustomed to violence over slavery for years. Free Illinois, Iowa and Kansas joined hemmed in the slave state on three sides. It was a relatively new state – only 40 years old, and was divided in its loyalties. Most of the population had Southern sentiments, working the land with slave run plantations.


The politicians of Missouri were also pro-Confederate, including Governor Jackson, and almost the entire state legislature. Jackson angrily refused to supply solders for Abraham Lincoln’s call to arms, and tried to move his state politically towards the South.

At the same time however, the cities of St. Louis, and Jefferson City had grown fast, and were getting larger by the year, receiving a flood of immigrant talent from overseas. Most of these new Americans loathed slavery, and as they came to St. Louis, the demographics of the state started to shift. Missouri might be overwhelmingly Southern, but not in St. Louis.

Like South Carolina, Missouri had Federal troops stationed in its borders when the Civil War broke out. Like South Carolina, there was also a huge federal armory in the state. The St. Louis Arsenal held 34,000 rifles, a million and a half cartridges, artillery, and about 45 tons of gunpowder – a handsome prize for whoever could seize it first. Unlike South Carolina, the weapons cache would stay in Federal hands.

Enter US Army Captain Nathaniel Lyon, a fanatical Unionist and abolitionist. Lyon was the right man for taking decisive action now and worrying about permission and forgiveness later. With his intolerance and lack of respect for slave owners however, he was the wrong man for winning hearts and minds.



Like a Western sheriff forming up a posse, Lyon, with the permission of the War Department, enlisted thousands of St. Louis citizens into a Federal Militia. Indeed, to counter the secessionist sentiment, a pro Union Home Guard, 7000 strong, had already been created. Opposing them on a hill outside St. Louis, were 700 men of the pro-Confederate militia

150 years ago this month on May 10th 1861, Lyon attacked with 3000 men. The Confederates were immediately surrounded and they gave up peacefully.

This impressive and bloodless victory was not enough for Lyon. He demanded that his prisoners sign an oath of loyalty to the United States. The prisoners refused. Infuriated, Lyon ordered a ritual and public humiliation – he paraded his prisoners through the streets of St. Louis.

This decision led to horror. The German-immigrants who mostly made up Lyon’s force had always had always faced resentment and discrimination, and when the pro-Confederate population of St. Louis arrived and saw their secessionist friends and neighbors paraded at the hands of the Germans in blue, it was too much for them. They stormed to the streets to protest the treatment of the prisoners, and roared their outrage at the Union soldiers. Secessionists howled and spat at the Guardsmen. People then began to throw stones and bottles at the blue-clad men. The violence then escalated as one of the angry mob fired a revolver into the Federal ranks. Yankees crumpled to the ground, one of them fatally wounded.



The furious Federals whirled around – and at their colonel’s command fired at point-blank range into the crowd – causing immediate and heavy casualties on the mob. Women and children were among those cut down in the fusillade.




The survivors, rather then dispersing counterattacked with paving stones and more gunfire. The entire City of St. Louis went into a state of chaos for nearly two days, as Unionists, slowly and bloodily gained the upper hand. The body count shocked the nation – 28 people had been killed in the massacre, including two women, and even a baby in its mother’s arms. 62 more had been shot.


St. Louis, like Baltimore, went on lockdown. As Unionists clamped down on pro-secessionists, St. Louis became unsafe for anyone pro-South. The city emptied of pro-Confederates in a matter of days. They fled to the West, there to establish their own Confederate army to continue the struggle for Missouri.

The Civil War had barely begun, but the fight for St. Louis – much like the fight for Baltimore - was over. The violence and bloodshed was shocking at the times they happened, but would soon be overshadowed by the massive movements of armies over maps, and the staggering death tolls that would occur when true armies met.

150 years ago this month, Northerners had their Western base in St. Louis, Western Confederates pondered their uncertain – but certainly violent – future; and Americans, East, West, North and South pondered upon this War that had yet to see a major battle, but was already devouring lives.