Influence of the Battle of Wilson\'s Creek on the Civil War

Wilson's Creek

Control of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers was of particular importance for the Union and the Confederacy in the early stages of the Civil War. Because of its position in relation to both Rivers, the State of Missouri was of significant political importance. In this Stat in the very early days of the War a battle was fought which became to be known as the Battle of Wilson's Creek. The battle of Wilson's Creek was notorious for a number of reasons not the least of which was that it was witness to the first death of a Union general, Brigadier General Nathaniel Lyon. The battle was fought just twenty short days subsequent to the more historically famous battle known as Bull Run (Manassas) which took place in Virginia, Wilson's Creek was fought in Missouri and involved the largest Confederate army west of the Mississippi which was commanded by the flamboyant Brigadier General Ben McCulloch. The Battle at Wilson's Creek marked the second major victory for the Confederate forces in the still young Civil War and provided support for the Confederate's efforts to control the areas surrounding the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers (Piston, 2000).

The State of Missouri was important politically. Although Missouri had decided to remain neutral in the Civil War, its Governor, Claiborne Fox Jackson was sympathetic to the Southern cause. Jackson had become embroiled in a dispute with Union general Nathanial Lyon late in the Spring of 1861 over the occupation of a military arsenal in the City of St. Louis. The disputes resulted in Lyon's capturing the arsenal by force but in the ensuing attempts to clear the arsenal over 100 civilians were killed.

The dispute intensified as Lyon declared war against the Missouri legislature which had authorized the formation of a state militia in response to Lyon's having killed 100 civilians. This new militia was highly sympathetic to the Confederate cause and Lyon determined that he needed subdue the militia before it grew any stronger. Lyon marched on the Missouri state capital at Springfield in an effort to curtail the efforts to build the state militia. Lyon, however, was himself dependent on short-term recruits and was facing a man power shortage. He was ordered to retreat from Springfield. In the process of this retreat the Missouri state militia and the Confederate forces led by McCullouch met up with Lyon at Wilson's Creek and the result was one of the major early battles of the Civil War.

The forces commanded by McCullouch were a rag tag group of volunteers and state militia from Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Missouri. There were very few regular army types in the ranks. There dress was highly irregular and their weaponry primitive. Few of the men had any official training and even fewer had any battle experience.

Lyon's forces were similar in make-up but he did have the advantage of having far more regular troops. Although uniformity was not present for the most part among the troops commanded by Lyon in terms of their dress, at least most of Lyon's troops were distinguishable by some form of official military garb. Additionally, Lyon and his men were fully armed with the latest in military weaponry.

The Wilson Creek battle was unique in that there was no identifiable aggressor. By all accounts, both armies attacked simultaneously. The details of the battle which took place over two days are complicated and have been debated for many years but, on balance, the Confederate forces must be deemed to be the winners. Although fielding an inexperienced, poorly organized, and under-armed army, the Confederates suffered far fewer losses, only approximately 12% of their total army while the Union forces lost almost a quarter of their men and their commanding general.

The battle, however, allowed the Confederate army to establish a strong hold both the Missouri and Mississippi River valleys that allowed trade to take place along both rivers that provided the Confederacy with much needed food and supplies. The Union Navy at this point had successfully maintained a blockade along the Atlantic coast and the Gulf of Mexico and the loss of the Missouri and Mississippi River trade may have resulted in the Confederacy facing the likelihood of an early surrender (Monaghan, 1984). The victory at Wilson's Creek also provided the Confederacy with a good source of troop recruitment. On the strength of the Confederate's victory at Wilson's Creek, many Missourians who were sympathetic to the Southern cause decided to join either McCullouch's forces or those of the Missouri state militia which had thrown its support to the Confederacy. The victory at Wilson's Creek put into question the strength of the Union Army and caused many to start believing that the Confederacy had a chance to be successful.

Following Lyon's death, Union General John C. Fremont, recognizing the significance of the Missouri and Mississippi River to the Confederacy began a campaign to reclaim the area for the North. Although it took General Fremont and his successor, General Samuel R. Curtis nearly a year to do so, the Union forces eventually recaptured the area won by General McCulloch at Wilson's Creek for the Union forces. The decisive battle occurred at Pea Ridge, Arkansas in March of 1862. This battle cemented control of the upper Mississippi and all of the Missouri River for the Union but it came at a heavy price for the Union. The Battle at Pea Ridge would mark the deepest penetration by the Union into Confederate territory in the West hemisphere of the Civil War until General Grant's successful campaign at Vicksburg two years later.