I am helping my adopted daughter research her birth family. I am hoping someone can assist with the Missouri Civil War part of her story. She has just recently made contact with her Campbell family and they have given her some information about her ggg grandfather Tom Campbell. The family story goes that Granpa Tom rode with Quantrill's Raiders and left Missouri one step ahead of the law and perhaps changed his name. Before he left Missouri, he married Adeline George in 1873 in Lafayette Co, MO. By the time of the 1880 census, Tom Campbell and family were in Humboldt Co, NV. The Silver State newspaper has an article in 1881 about a coffin being ordered for Mrs. Thomas Campbell and their "two mother-less boys, aged five and seven years, were sent east to their grandmother at Kansas City, Missouri." I think Grandpa Tom Campbell was the middle son of John Campbell and Melvina Granger of Lafayette Co, MO.

My daughter has wonderful photos of her family when they lived in Missouri. One of the photos is labeled Grandpa Tom and it shows him in a fancy uniform of light colored bloomer pants, blousey long sleeve white shirt, knee high boots, sash that is tied and hangs down to his boot tops, a hat with flowers around the band (I'm not kidding), holding a tall staff, taller than him and out of the picture at the top. The photo is partially hand colored and the sash is red and the flowers on the hat are alternating pink and white.

Experts that have looked at the photo say it is not a fraternal order costume but may be a Zouave Civil War soldier uniform. (I can't imagine anyone fighting in that getup.) I will be happy to send a copy of the photo to anyone interested. Thank you for any help you can give me. Also, there is a Thomas W. Campbell who was a private in Searcy's Battalion, Company B, Missouri Sharp Shooters. He was listed on a Roll of Prisoners of War in Alexandria, Louisiana. I don't know if this Thomas W. Campbell is our guy or not.

Betty (aka Kelly's Mom)