The Civil War Round Table of Kansas City
And

The Civil War Round Table of
Western Missouri

SEPT 1861 BATTLE OF LEXINGTON

A GUIDED BUS TOUR
Saturday, October 8, 2011

Bus departure time is 8:30am sharp, Truman Rd and Main, Independence and returns between 5:00 and 5:30pm.

Stops at:

  • 8:45 Liberty Arsenal (April 20, 1861)
  • 9:10 Little Blue Battle of Westport 1864
  • 10:00 Lexington Battle Museum and Anderson House tour (Sept 19,20,21 1861)
  • 12:00 Lunch Victorian Pelican
  • 1:00 A battlefield walking tour and driving tour
  • Tour of Old Town Lexington
  • 3:00/3:30 Lexington Museum
  • 4:00 Confederate Memorial Cemetery - Higginsville


--In addition we will see and/or discuss:

  • What impact did the Liberty Arsenal , April 1861 incident, have on Lexington?
  • After Carthage and Wilsons Creek, how did this campaign affect Missouri?
  • Where were the troops placed in the town of Lexington for the battle?
  • What is Old Town Lexington?


--Includes:

  • Campaign and battlefield Maps
  • Handout materials


Tour Guides:

  • Bus Guide for the rolling classroom will be Ross Marshall, Civil War Round Table of Kansas City.
  • For the Little Blue stop, tour guide will be resident expert Mike Calvert, President of the Civil War Round Table of Western Missouri.
  • Battle of Lexington resident tour guide will be Roger Slusher.
  • Confederate Cemetery resident tour guide will be Wade Ankesheiln.

 


Near Sprgfld, Mo
Aug 17, 1861

Dear Margaret,

All is well here. Morale is high among our troops and feel confident of future success for our cause. We whipped the Dutch at Carthage on July 5th and Lyon and his Federals at Wilson’s’ Creek just last week. We feel one or two more victories and we can secure the state for our cause and restore Gov Jackson to his position as lawful Gov. Rumor has it that “Old Pap Price” will move north in the very near future. Not sure where we would engage the enemy, possibly Lexington, Boonville, Jeff City, where ever the enemy will be found.

Hope all is well with you and the boys, give them my love and hopefully this war will be over soon and I can return home.

Your loving husband Alexander



The above letter is fictitious however it is what you would expect at this stage of 1861.  The characters are real. Alexander Griffith was a prosperous merchant from Dayton, Cass Co, Mo, his wife Margaret remained in Dayton when he went off to war.  When the war broke out he immediately cast his lot with Gl Rains, VIII Div, MSG, assigned to the Quartermaster Corp and would have been present at both the above battles.  He would serve throughout the war surrendering with his troops, the 10th Missouri Cav in Ark when the war concluded.  His family would suffer the horrors of war, the burnings, killings etc that accompanied this American tragedy.  Join us on Oct 8 for an educational history lesson and tour of the sesquicentennial battle of Lexington.

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Battle of Lexington Registration Form

Name(s)_________________________________________________________________
Address_________________________________________________________________
City, State, Zip ________________________________________Phone #_____________
Number to attend:__________________ @ $48.00 each, total $_____________________

Make check payable to: Civil War Round Table of Kansas City
and send to:

Attn: Paul Gault
7118 N Congress Ave
Kansas City, MO  64152

Contact Person: Lane Smith, President Civll War Round Table of Kansas City, (work) 913-649-1515