(ed.note: In the December Issue I confessed to having accidently "edited out" the byline to an excellent piece sent to me on the Civil War and Bates Co. MO. Thankfully, Mike Harvey was good enough to write and identify himself and his wonderful article. Annie)
Some 10,500 armed conflicts, ranging from major battles to minor skirmishes, occurred during the Civil War. The Civil War Sites Advisory Commission (CWSAC) identified 384 conflicts (3.7%) as the war's principal battles based on each conflict's historic significance. Many sites of these important battles (71 battlefields or 18.5%) are now destroyed or highly fragmented, a fate brought about by poor planning and unsympathetic development. The CWSAC's mission was to determine which of the 384 principal battlefields are currently and potentially endangered and to recommend solutions for preservation to the U. S. Congress. One of these principle battles, known as the Battle of Lone Jack, played a key role in life of the Harvey’s of Bates County, Missouri.
The Civil War was a time of division and tragedy for the pioneer families who led the westward migration in North America. Responding to President Lincoln’s call for establishment of a voluntary cavalry, 21 year-old Reuben Harvey (my great grandfather) enlisted as a Private at Bates Co. in Company L, 27th Missouri Infantry (Mounted) on 14 Jan 1862. Meanwhile, his older brother, Giles Walter Harvey, left his wife of less than one year and enrolled on 14 Feb 1862 at Georgetown, in Capt. Slocum's Co., Missouri State Militia (subsequently became Company H, 7th Regiment of Missouri Cavalry State Militia Volunteers), and mustered into service as a Corporal on 21 April 1862. Reuben, who dearly missed his wife of young son, longed to be with his brother and re-enlisted as a Private on 21 April 1862 in Company H, 7th Regiment, of Missouri State Militia Cavalry Volunteers, commanded by R. M. Box. This decision almost cost Reuben his life.
On 15 Aug 1862, Maj. Emory S. Foster led an 800-man combined force from Lexington to Lone Jack. Upon reaching the Lone Jack area, he discovered 1,600 Rebels under Col. J.T. Coffee and prepared to attack them. About 9:00 p.m. on the 15th, he and his men attacked the Confederate camp and dispersed the force. Early the next morning, Union pickets informed Foster that a 3,000-man Confederate force was advancing on him. Soon afterwards, this force attacked and a battle ensued that involved charges, retreats, and counterattacks. After five hours of fighting and the loss of Foster, Coffee and his 1,500 men reappeared, causing Foster's successor, Capt. M.H. Brawner to ordered a retreat. The men left the field in good order and returned to Lexington. This was a Confederate victory, but the Rebels had to evacuate the area soon afterward, when threatened by the approach of large Union forces. Except for a short period of time during Price's Raid, in 1864, the Confederacy lost its clout in Jackson County.
The causalities in this battle were staggering for the young Missourians. The Union forces suffered 53 killed and 167 wounded. Confederate causalities numbered over 110. The 7th MSM (Cav), supplying two of the fourteen Union companies in this battle, suffered 6 killed and 15 wounded. Giles Walter Harvey, killed on 16 Aug 1862, left behind him a young wife and new-born daughter. Reuben Harvey received a near-fatal wound from a musket ball fired by the Rebel forces. After many months in the hospital, Reuben returned to his company. His death, years later, was attributed to blood poisoning from the wound received during the war.