Information on our schedule and to keep up with the latest history news. This is American History tv on cspan3. We are live from gettysburg, pennsylvania today for the annual Civil War Institute conference posted by denver college. We continue now with our live coverage. Im a member of the History Department here at the college. Im also the director of it cwi. Pleasure back to to on George Armstrong book heed upon a is 00 know the winner to put surprises. He will speak on another mistake the study of him by tj stiles. Its really at the point of a new wave of civil war scholarship focusing on guerrilla warfare. Will ft. Myers yesterday theyve all been doing work on what many have considered to be the periphery of the civil war. Wenks to these scholars now have a more expansive view of civil war military history. Isse james unfortunately sometimes perceived as a robin hood figure of the old west. We often see jesse james is the apolitical. To just also taken a span and enable us to see a man who we should know is that who was during the civil war, deeply political. I is my pleasure to bring back to the stage tj stiles. [applause] question two very much. My grandfather to public speaking onetime summoned him up to him and said he wanted to go to the ballgame. A few times i find rather disappointing. I hope i dont jesse james is my first subject. I wrote about him to him because i want to write about the civil war and reconstruction is one story. I didnt want to write a boring story. s personal best through Popular Culture had a significant role in American History. Him thehan debunking way that scholars often do with popular figures, i found that he probably played a much more Important Role in recruiting people have previously realized. Very closely tied to the civil war. The reason why we know his name is because of the civil war. Im going to be talking book civil war a little bit before getting even into jesse james. The reason, during much of this history, he was quite young. The guerrilla warfare civil war heres a couple effects i have upon screen, telling you why this was such a dramatic event. , and 1864, the state conducted a census and found that it was missing one third of the 1860 population. A lot of them had fled or had been driven out or just simply unavailable. 42 were in the state of missouri. Thats more soldiers than an occupied areas of all 11 confederate combined. That gives you an idea of how savage this war was. Missouri was the northwest frontier of slavery. Union course it came to a is part of the missouri compromise in 1820. If you look at this map, missouris syria is this area you notice the Missouri River, flows west. Population density slavery follows the rivers. These counties were not only where the white people or dentist but also enslaved africanamericans. So those counties, even the missouri itself was not one of was mosts slavery pronounced. It was 12 of the population enslaved. Thats in 1850. Less than 10 in 1860. The population was concentrated in slaveholding counties. Many leaders were slaveholders especially from the Missouri River county. We have to the fact that slaves were the secondmost valuable form of property, human beings held in bondage. It was central to the state economy. In 1864, his doubleclick. To the kansasarrest act. Remember, at this point by 1850, missouri is not frontier state. Its on the frontier settlement, but its especially in the missouri where territories, it is very much a settled establish an area with commercial agriculture connected to national markets. Jesse james is on fire, a baptist preacher didnt pay baptists didnt pay their printers back then he was a slave owner and also a commercial farmer. This is not some selfsustaining frontier person. This is a person in the commercial agricultural economy. In 1964, the state is in , by opening up kansas to the idea of sovereignty, that the settlers of kansas will vote on whether there will be slavery there. And the very strongly proslavery we, in 1854 meaning the slope proslavery forces if we win we carry slavery to the pacific ocean. The slaveryizing portions based in new england, their organization we will be compelled to shoot, burn, and this is the risk to settle kansas, between free of spoilers from the northeast and missourians theres already a willingness to use force. There are many reasons we could spend all day talking about it. Basically theres a real sense of threat these people establish conclusively every state missouri will have free territory and three stocks. They are worried but abolitionist that they will be actively stealing slaves that they were called offering slaves. Also there was a great struggle to export their labor system, slavery and to the west, or whether it could be closed off to slavery. Even people who were anti who did not want to deliver an africanamerican stash were fighting for defending slavery, even people who were not slave owners themselves 1 wanted to spread slavery. Was wrapped up in several different political issues in cultural issues. What happens is, in the state of missouri, the state mobilized and spread of slavery into kansas. Can 54 in june mass readings across the western part of the state the james family, his father died gold this was in clay county muche Missouri River a denser slaveowning part of the state, very close to the western frontier. So this is happening in their territory, their home county. There were men who joined 1000 joined this Association Later game private militia organizations to going to kansas. By november 55 fighting broke out in kansas. The border inside missouri breaking money, organizing we have in clay county proslavery aid association. December 5 1865, a group of people captured the federal arsenal in liberty, the county seat of clay county. Thank you an idea for the fighting in kansas known as bleeding kansas, and is making people noticed they are seizing a federal arsenal in missouri. Now happens, this mobilization divides people within missouri. So this is an under reported, under discussed aspect of the bleeding kansas fight, were 200 people are killed in the civil war in kansas 1950. But within missouri, there is a real polarization that is created. For example, i mentioned on the screen, july 29, 1854 a creature who is antislavery put on trial in his own church. The man who organized this is a ideologue proslavery who argues that slavery is sorry for white people to be free. He says everyman who works for a living is a slave in the rp white working woman is a whore. He says we have to have slavery so we can be free and not engage in menial work. As of all caps called dutch those who are opposed not opposed to slavery, but those who simply dont think there should be warfare in kansas. That was drawn out of the county in 1855. Destroyed a55 newspaper critical of the warfare going on in kansas or globalization for. Communityy denounced traders and july 12 a proslavery convention in lexington, Missouri Town tongue close to western border, actually endorses secession six years before the outbreak of the civil war. No course, the war arrived in may 2 one, but by that time, missouri is notified and firmly into camps, prounion and prosecession. Thats not it to being proand antislavery, the sure if you abolitionist in missouri, but most are found in the german population very strong especially great lakes. Are many people who are moderately proslavery dont need in this union was, the border states very strong in missouri. Theres also slaveowners you say if society, they are going to fugitive slave act. We will have an International Boundary of these sides, then it really was our slaves. Its not a simple proantislavery for say again, its polarizing because of the intolerance of four to 7 and what becomes the secessionist movement. Is a strong this goes against secession very strongly. The government very much in favor of secession organizes estate car. Theres a class with general nathaniel the sticker treats to the southwest, line tax and local greek dishes the second i think he is killed. Price leaks take lexington. And then finally, general fremont believes in new force which forces the price of a state carry by the end of 1861, you have for the next three years, basically an end to conventional warfare missouri. Instead, a massive Guerrilla Campaign breaks out. We have to ask the question of why. Since he is from western missouri but is that the antislavery j hawking fighting alongside john brown, in kansas, because the proslavery border into that they want revenge now. In march and, they terrorize her intimate and pillage western missouri. Those missourians rise up to defend us. There is an element of truth to this street there in fact were raids by troops from kansas to western missouri. That absolutely good to you. However, the problem is, notice i illustrated when raids took place. Fighting breaks out across the state, especially along missouri and Mississippi River valleys. I will add is im focusing on jesse james unfortunately, i will add this mixed impression that this is a border war. Jesse can design western order. The guerrilla warfare takes seek across in fact, we the initial frustrations there and therefore union of refugees being driven into major towns by conventional union forces. Thats in it and 61. 1861. The secessionists did not need the impotence of his union forces marching and terrorizing them. A study published after my book came out shows that the prosecessionist missourians in the Missouri River valley, who were again, the leading figures in the debates, they carried out a check story from the mobilization of secessionist states guard regiment. So the Secession Movement failed, they get reimbursed by the confederate government. Unionists took over. Come back later on. So what happens in this emerging guerrilla warfare . I will get to jesse james in a minute its important to think about, what exactly we are talking about. First, as i mentioned, its concentrated in the slaveowning areas leaders of these groups tend to be from the wealthier more established families. Not only, but especially from slaveholding families. Again, they have been leaders in their counties initially. It is of the people who read the organization of the secessionist groups. Withoutre small groups central direction. Now talking about who has a direct time to the confederate chain of command. These groups strongly associate if the confederacy coming up they are not responding to orders or decentralized strategy. That means two things. One arrow most impossible to crush out. Coachella onslaught, theres another one modified and they will keep operating. The killed on the guerrilla leader, malone will show a three there is no sense in which you can simply crush it out. Never and thing, it real threat on its own and control geographically of missouri. So its a constant running source of communion and then that they are never in danger of losing anything. That has important facts. For another thing about this warfare, the tactics used. These are very close range questions. As a lot of emotions, heroin abuse of close range weapons. Caliber is cap and ball. The confederates were known to carry all as many as half of the homers. Drop a very there was very intense close rate fighting the more you begin to use decoy ambushes or they would send up somebody to lower union forces into a lure her union forces into a trap. Increasingly as the war went on youre not going to seize formal control of missouri, but they are trying to. As so oftenical the case in guerrilla warfare, the target becomes civilians. In the face of the confederate rose, they are beginning to attack. The burning of unity. There terrorizing people were but they would trick people into releasing there are union allegiance. Google formats and ask for food, they would give them food, drink they brought the house and off until the men on the doorstep. I 19631864, you are seeing summary executions, using the killing of prisoners after a clash, you are beginning to see in 1864, mutilation, scouting, severed heads, other parts of the human body, which we will discuss today. Real war that becomes increasingly about terror and controlling the civilian population. The last thing, the confederate confederate guerrillas and winter snowfall session leaves fall out of the trees, they are easier to track. They withdraw. Another thing that makes it very hard to stand up. In texas, are not happy about these people missouri. Of course, the union has to invent its important to note that the future of jesse jamess career, that this is a war which is mostly fought on the union side by missouri men. The provisional State Government which replaces johnson , it creates the Missouri State militia. Organs like the cavalry of the u. S. Falters they are supplemented by a range of local countybased militia organizations. Militia missouri and provisional enrolled missouri militia, turns out some of the enrolled missouri militia home derates at turned out to be quite disloyal. So they create a hardened core, which can answer session recycle of violence. Whohave now underarms, men are most strong of the union fighting against their neighbors. It makes that local neighbor against neighbor fighting even more intense. They to develop a range of tactics. They have towns of course, to carrier patrols. They are under confederate guerrilla raid, they pursue. They also target enemy camps, theyre trying to get intelligence, they try to attack them when theyre in camp and those are her bottoms, those heavy brush and timber. To carry outin more sophisticated tactics, like a decoy ambush. As early as 1863, i found evidence of a local union icer putting two Companies One on either side of the creek, to draw the confederates out of those to hide in again, with a lot of cultural industry products they would try to drive them towards the end zone waiting at the other end. In one case i will get to in a minute, the confederates the guerrillas actually lowered them into an ambush. Now again, this is increasingly directed against the civilian population of the union side as well. And one case this boat goes to both the rising level of atrocity on both sides the Missouri State militia commander went out and was searching for confederate rebels in august 1862. He finds the character of drills and attacks them, then wrote a report. Found three men at a nearby anye who denied having african arms men. After this was over, i sent to these men out and had them shot. So this shows you the level again of intensity. Alternative was not report what he thought they knew. He reports it in an official report. This is 1862, and its worth from there. Martial law was carried by a usually baseds in county seat. Often with local ties and they are gathering information. Remember, the countryside is and they are reporting on each other. Theres other members carried out. All men are required to enroll in the missouri militia. If they refused are known to be secession they were enrolled as disloyal. Theyre creating a list,or the suspects and the other side . \ they had to pay a fine. Like confederates are doing, they were taxing the other side. Again, this warfare is falling upon the salience. As the war goes on im talking about in a minute not only are they searching homes, not only are they interrogating and registering disloyal, but also they begin to carry out torture, and finally, mass depopulation. Is an aspect there was a border wall aspect of missouri. Cointreau, the most famous of the guerrilla leaders, was not himself from missouri, but the way is quite good at guerrilla warfare. In 1863 come carried out when of doesost infamous incident she let guerrillas and to of the the capital Abolitionist Movement in kansas and killed approximately 200 men and boys and burned down the town. Again, missouri has its own cycle of violence, yet they also are as confederates. , a low point for the confederacy. This is after vicksburg, gettysburg. It also found rococo locally romance escapes from slaves still being held in slavery and western missouri. On top of that there were a number of women who were taken prisoner who were sisters and female relatives of guerrillas. They were concentrated in a building in kansas city. There was a Building Collapse some of them were killed. A lot of the guerrillas wanted personal revenge. The National Landscape and local personal aspect are not mutually exclusive. They are both true. Jim langevin away way picture whoe, was a strong jhawker was u. S. Senator and j hawker raids into kansas. He was a target he happened to escape in his underwears a cornfield. Responded we have the brotherinlaw of William T Sherman here, this who was theying western missouri are google civilians not living with them one miles county since 3. 5 counties, to effectuate their farms. This created an area called union troops marched through after the lawrence massacre, burning down arms, led to a famous painting owned by the state historical Messiah Society missouri, order number 11. Again, this shows you a strong element of truth, theres also a kind of propaganda as well. It shows you again, all the fires. Crocs onrea which farms being burned, attempt to drain across civilians supporting guerrilla warfare. Now we come, finally come onto the james family. Kush to reversing of, the mother having remarried. S is a family that was they owned seven slaves in 1850, which means i have more black faces on that farm than white ones. Thats more than doubled the local slaveholding and clay county. Previously they were reason hemp, they switched to tobacco. This is not a story of deprivation or self sustaining farmers. They are sophisticated, well educated people. For percent of special edition outspoken conceptus confederate and secessionist refrain james , 18 whener than just a the war started, enlisted in the state guard. He fought at wilsons creek. He did not need to be pushed to the confederate side. An estate that was highly polarized when the war began, they were strongly secessionist, proconfederate. Again, the idea that they had no opinions until they were terrorized is not true. A number ofart in actions, including the disruption that i mentioned of a hammer and angle operations, in clay county. After they ha