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Re: Archaeology and Order No. 11
In Response To: Archaeology and Order No. 11 ()

James,

Thanks for the heads-up about the MO CW-related article in the current issue of "Archaeology" magazine. I had not heard of that.

I wish to respectfully quibble with you as to the documented size of Quantrill's force in the Lawrence raid. Let me break it down for you in parts that make up the whole:

--Quantrill's own appointed adjutant, William Gregg, recorded that when Quantrill and the base of his force left the rendezvous at Pardee's farm in north-central Johnson County they numbered 293 riders. This number included the about 100 Saline County men who had joined Quantrill's band just days before in response to a recruiting team sent by the band there earlier.

--Gregg then recorded that when the Lawrence raid group rested 15 miles west of Pleasant Hill at Harrelson's farm near the Kansas border, Confederate Colonel John D. Holt's recruiting command of 104 from Ray and Clay Counties unexpectedly rode by and Holt asked and received permission from Quantrill to join his force with the raiders in order to "blood" the new recruits. Holt later regretted this decision, as many of his recruits were killed in the Union counter-operations later in August and in September in west-central Missouri.

--Gregg does not so state in his memoir, but apparently 40 or 50 additional guerrillas from south of Quantrill's normal operating area heard of the upcoming raid from a guerrilla courier sent around to bring in all available men. These 40 to 50 joined the Quantrill group also somewhere in transit in about this same area. I believe, but cannot prove that these riders from the south were led by Captain Bill Marchbanks of north Vernon County. Marchbanks and his band operated in Vernon and Bates Counties mostly, and had socialized with and engaged in a brief raid with Quantrill's men during the latter band's passage through their area earlier that spring.

That brings to total to about 440 to 450 total riders. That in itself was quite an accomplishment considering it was performed in an area patrolled and supposedly controlled by Federal cavalry.

This with documentation from page 214 of "Guerrilla Warfare in Civil War Missouri, vol II, 1863" published in 2007.

Bruce Nichols

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