kentucky`s rebel press: the jackson purchase newspapers in 1861

KENTUCKY'S REBEL PRESS:
THE JACKSON PURCHASE NEWSPAPERS IN 1861
20
by Berry F. Craig*
During the early days of the Civil War, the intense Southern
sentiment of the Jackson Purchase' was evident in its newspapers.
Throughout 1861, almost every issue of the Columbus Crescent,
Hickman Courier, and Paducah Herald was filled with glowing praise
for the Confederacy and bitter curses for the Union.2
•
Soon after Abraham Lincoln's election as the sixteenth president, twenty-one year old editor George Warren3 began calling
for secession in his Courier. In early January 1861, Warren explained
that "the South, therefore, who has considered herself aggrieved,
who has been denied her rights in the Union, is bound, in order
to have her rights, in order to maintain her honor, and the honor
of her citizens, to secede." And as a final touch he added: "all
honor to the Southern Confederacy. "4
Although by the end of February seven Southern states had
seceded, ~entucky had ?ot. Kentuckians seemed determined to stay
loyal. Umon mass meetings, usually without party distinction, were
*Reix>rter, Sun-Democrat, Paducah, Kentucky.
1
• The Jackson Purchase region, which in 1861 included Ballard, Calloway, Fulton, Graves,
Hickman, Marshall, and McCracken counties, was the most pro-Southern part of
Ke~tucky. See Berry,;. Craig, "The Jackson Purchase Region of Kentucky in the Secession
Cns1s of 1860-1861, (M.A. thesis, Murray State University, Murray, Kentucky.)
2
1n the presidential election of 1860, the Crescent and Herald supported Southern
Democrat John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky while the Courier endorsed Northern Democrat
Stephen A. Douglas oflllinois. lnterestingly, some other Southern newspapers most notably
the Memphis Daily Appeal, championed Douglas. But as the secession movem:nt progressed,
most of them came to support the Confederacy.
3J. H. Battle, G. C Kniffen, and W. H. Perrin, Kentucky: A History of the State Qackso n
Purchase edinon; Lou1sv1lle: F. A . Battey and Co., 1885), p. 217. Warren's father helped
start the Nashville American.
"Excerpt from the Hickman Courier in the Louisville Daily Courier, January 11 , 1861 ,
hereafter cited as Louisville Courier. Regrettably, no 1861 issues of the Courier Crescent
and Herald exist. Therefore, in this work, excerpts from them appearing in other n~wspaper~
were used.
KENTUCKY'S REBEL PRESS
21
held in many parts of the state. 5 In Louisville, several imix>rtant
supporters of Constitutional Unionist presidential candidate John
Bell of T ennessee 6 and N orthem Democratic candidate Stephen
A. Douglas of Illinois assembled in conventions and passed joint
resolutions in favor of the Union.7.
While these conventions undoubtedly reflected the sentiment
of most Kentuckians, 8 editor Warren dismissed them as "fustian,
bombast and nonsense." Further, he asked: "Why, in the first place,
did they not look the issue in the face, whether Kentucky would
remain as the tail of a Northern Black Republican Union, or would
join in a Confederacy of her Southern sisters uix>n the principles
of State equality." "This," Warren ix>inted out, "is the living, vital
issue." And he warned that "all who attempt to impede or retard
the triumphant march of the people-determined to assert and
maintain their own honor will be crushed and trampled to death
·
beneath their feet." 9
At Columbus, the Crescent, edited by Len G. Faxon, a veteran
Democratic politician, also called for disunion. Once the always
colorful Faxon, in assessing the secession movement, borrowed one
of Julius Caesar's most famous quotes. "The Rubicon is crossed,"
he wrote in the Crescent just as the state legislature convened to
consider the national crisis, "and Kentucky may as well prepare
immediately to go with the Southern States into a separate Confederacy-the sooner she does so the better it will be for her." 10
On January 17, 1861, the legislature met and, dominated by
Unionists, rejected secession. Then, in a spirit of mediation, it voted
5Lewis and Richard H. Collins, History of Kentucky (Covington: Collins and Co., 1874),
Vol. I, p. 84.
6Bell carried Kentucky with 66,051 votes to 53,143 for Breckinridge, 25,638 for Douglas
and 1,364 for Lincoln. But Breckinridge won in the Jackson Purchase; there, he polled
4,547 votes to 2,885 for Bell, 1,089 fo r Douglas, and IO fo r Lincoln. Original returns
in the Archives of the Kentucky Historical Society, Frankfort, Kentucky.
7Louisville Daily Journal, January 9-10, 1861, hereafter cited as the Journal; Collins,
Kentucky, Vol. I, p. 84; E. Merton Coulter, The Ci11il War and Readjustment in Kentucky
(Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1926), pp. 27-28.
8Bell and Douglas received nearly 63% of the presidential vote in Kentucky.
9Excerpt from the Hickman Courier in the Louisville Courier, January 24, 1861.
IOfbid., January 17, 1861.
22
REGISTER OF THE KENTUCKY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
KENTUCKY'S REBEL PRESS
to send delegates to a peace conference at Washington, D.C. ll While
the great majority of Kentuckians approved the legislature's Unionism, most Jackson Purchase citizens did not. Editor Warren declared
in the Courier: "we know not what are the feelings of the citizens
of the upper portion of Kentucky, but we can not believe their
representatives are reflecting their feelings in the present Legislature." Further, he warned "that Southern Kentucky feels humiliated
at the present proceedings, and if the State does not afford some ,
redress, and that too quickly, Southern Kentucky will per force
link her destiny with that of chivalrous Tennessee." Warren added
that "only a State pride separates us now" and asked: "when that
is wantonly abused by those who should adorn it, where is the
link that binds us?"l2
Later, editor Warren confidently predicted that "the people
of Kentucky will not be cheated or duped any longer. They have
exhausted the argument and will assert their honor and indepen·
dence regardless of consequences." 13
In the Crescent, Faxon assailed the legislature, challenging: "Are
the people of Kentucky to be bullied by a few men who represent
them in our legislative halls-men who were elected before there
was a thought that the present state of affairs would exist?" He
also taunted the Unionists by asking: "Will you still shriek 'Union!'
when Abolitionists and traitors are stalking abroad in your land
in open daylight? Will you not, can you not, see the dangerous
ground upon which you are standing?" 14
Meanwhile, in mid-February, Jefferson Davis of Mississippi was
inaugerated as president of the Confederacy and Alexander H.
Stephens of Georgia was inaugerated as vice-president. Quick to
praise the Southern leaders was John C. Noble of the Paducah
Herald. Editor Noble, whose paper was probably the most widely
read in western Kentucky, lauded Davis and Stephens as "two of
11Coulter, Civil War and Readjustment, pp. 30·34.
1
' Excerpt from the Hickman Courier in the Louisville Courier, February 6, 1861. In
early 1861, a movement aimed at separating from Kentucky and joining Tennessee began
in the secessionist Jackson Purchase. See Craig, "Secession Crisis," pp. 45-56.
131.ouisville Courier, March 7, 1861.
14
Excerpt from the Columbus Crescent in the Louisville Courier, March 14, 1861.
23
. est calmest firmest and bravest men in the South." And
IS
h
'
'
.
hrewrayed' that "God
continue
to be withthem, and to .
inspire
~ with. dlikeh wisdom
and the same moderation that has so far
t e
.
.
charactenze t eir action. "15
h
On April 12, 1861, the Confederates fired on Fort ?ui:n~er
and the Civil War began. Soon afterwards, Arkansas, Virg~ma,
North Carolina, and Tennessee seceded~ but Kentucky remained
in the Union. In the midst of popular excitem~nt over Fort ~u~ter,
Kentucky Unionists pleaded for calm. Two i~portan~ Umomsts,
ex-Governor Archibald Dixon and James Guthne, p~esident of ~e
Louisville and Nashville Railroad, delivered passionate Umon
speeches to large crowds in Louisville. 16
Although Dixon and Guthrie spoke earnestly in defense. of
the Union, editor Noble was predictab~y unimpres~~.d. Accord~ng
to the rebel journalist, all they really said was that it ~a.s foolish
to risk Dixon's one hundred and fifty negroes an~ Guth~e s houses
in Louisville for such things as the property, nghts, liberty, and
lives of the Southern people." And he further char~ed that .the
two Unionists "did not care whowent under, so that their dumplings
boiled peacefully in the pot." 17
In late April, after Federal troops occupied Cairo, Illinois at
the confluence of the Mississippi and Ohio Rivers, Noble trumpeted
for action. "To Arms! To Arms!!," he exclaimed in the Herald,
"in God's name let it be done. It is disgraceful to Kentucky and
to the South to suffer these vandals to quietly plunder our com·
merce.'; 18
In anticipation of an invasion from Cairo, some Jackson
Purchase citizens began preparing for defense. 19 Further, Tennessee
15fbid., February 22, 1861, excerpt from the Paducah Herald.
'6Collins, Kentucky, Vol. I, p. 88. Guthrie had been secretary of the treasury in President
Franklin Pierce's cabinet and was a contender for the Democratic presidential nomination
in 1860.
,.,Excerpt from the Paducah Herald in the Louisville Courier, April 29, 1861.
lBExcerpt from the Herald in the Cairo City Weekly Gazette, May 9, 1861.
19Louisville Courier, April 29, May 6, 1861; Memphis Daily Appeal, Apnl 25-26, 1861,
hereafter cited as the Appeal; The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records
of the Union and Confederate Armies (Washington, D.C. : War Department, 1880-1901),
Series I, Volume 52, Pan 2, pp. 78, 81, 89-90, 94·96, 100·101, hereafter cited as O.R.
Special Col\ectiohll
MS U Library
24
REGISTER OF THE KENTUCKY HISTORIC AL SOCIETY
troops were rushed to Union City, just below the Kentucky state
line. 20 The military activity in the Jackson Purchase and western
Tennessee caused concern in the Unionist state legislature. In
mid-May, Senator James Simpson of Clark County introduced a
resolution calling on Kentucky Governor Beriah Magoffin to issue
a proclamation ordering the people of the Purchase and western
Tennessee not to attack Cairo. On hearing of Simpson's resolution,
Noble disgustedly observed that "this venerable old Tory never
thought of commanding Lincoln's soldiers at Cairo to stop robbing
boats in the waters of Kentucky." He also warned that "the people
down here would not regard such a proclamation more than they
would the idle wind. "21
But in late May, editor Noble, expecting "before a great while
the occupation of Paducah by Northern troops," closed down the
Herald. In the last issue he explained that "we could not publish
any other than a Southern paper, and such a paper would hardly
be tolerated by Lincoln's soldiers." 22 But John C. Noble was a bit
hasty in getting out of the newspaper business; Paducah was not
occupied by Federal troops until September.
In June, the Federal steamer City of Alton put in at Columbus
and its crew tore down a Confederate flag. 23 The townsfolk were
outraged and editor Faxon fired off a verbal barrage at the Union
marauders.
In the Crescent, he described the unwelcome visitors as a
"collection of bow-legged, wooden-shoed, sour craut stinking, Bologna sausage eating, hen roost robbing Dutch sons of --·." And
he charged that these same "cowardly pups," "thieving sheep dogs,"
and "sneaking skunks" were dared to tear down another flag farther
up in the town but they refused "because their twelve pieces of
artillery were not bearing on it." 24 Then, he turned to the Federal
commander, General Benjamin F. Prentiss.
ZOO. R. , Ser. I, Vol. 52, Pt. 2, p. 75.
21Excerpt from the Paducah Herald in the Appeal, May 23, 1861.
22Excerpt from the Herald in the Memphis Dail y Avalanche, May 24 , 1861.
2l'fhe Appeal, June 13, 1861; Journal, June 14, 1861 ; Louisville Courier, June 15, 1861.
24Excerpt from the Columbus Crescent in William Howard Russell, My Diary North
and South (Toronto: C. W . Rollo and Adam, 1863), p. 336.
KENTUCKY'S REBEL PRESS
25
Although Prentiss soon would prove to be a capable soldier, 25
Faxon characterized him as "a miserable hound, a dirty dog, a
sociable fellow, a treacherous villain, a notorious thief, a lying
blackguard, who has served his regular five years in the Penitentiary
and keeps his hide continually full of Cincinnati whiskey." "In
him," the voluble editor continued, "are embodied the leprous
rascalities of the world, and in this living score, the gallows is
cheated of its own." 26 Certainly no one could have accused Len
G. Faxon of mincing words when writing about Yankees.
Throughout 1861, most Kentuckians wanted desperately to
stay in the Union but out of the war . In respon~e ~o this feelin~,
the legislature in May passed resolutions estabhshmg the states
neutrality. But Kentucky neutrality ended in early September when
the Confederates occupied Hickman and Columbus and the Feder·
als seized Paducah. The Unionist state legislature charged only the
Confederates with violating neutrality and ordered them to with·
draw. But the Hickman Courier rushed to their defense.
Editor Warren explained that "while the Federalists have
invaded our soil in the county of Ballard twice, and arrested her
citizens without authority of law, and condemned them to punishment without trial; 27 and invaded Columbus, and tore down the
flag erected by her citizens as the symbol of their political
faith-planted batteries commanding the town, and threatening the
complete annihilation not only of Columbus, but of Hickman and
Paducah, the Southern authorities have persistently refused our
repeated petitions for protection, on account of the neutrality of our
State. The neutrality is broken now," he continued, "by the
ZS()n April 6, 1862, General Prentiss distinguished himself at the battle of Shiloh. His
fierce defense of the "Hornet's Nest" helped keep the Federal Army from be ing routed.
Z6Excerpt from the Crescent in Russell, My Diary, p. 336.
27Just before the City of Alton came to Columbus, a small party of Federal soldiers
crossed over from Cairo and dispersed a gro up of Ballard County secessionists near Elliott's
Mill. In late August, another group of Cairo soldiers went into the county and arrested
three men. But later the Kentucki ans were release d. See the Louisville Courier June 17,
186 1 and Collins, Histo ry, Vol. I, p. 93.
26
27
REGISTER OF THE KENTUCKY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
KENTUCKY'S REBEL PRESS
Federalists first, by Kentuckians, second; and by the Confederates,
lastly. " 28
is doomed. Nothing but curses and execrations will ever greet his
ear from his old friend and constituents." 32
With neutrality gone, editor Warren believed that Kentuckians
would rise up against the Federals. In October, he confidently
predicted in the Courier that thousands " ... are now ready with
their muskets to atone for, and redeem the State. The South has
50,000 majority in the State and when the question is fairly put ,
to the people, they will join their sisters of the South." 29 But he
misjudged Kentucky sentiment. While the Jackson Purchase was
solidly secessionist, the rest of the state, except for a few scattered
counties, was generally loyal.3°
In early 1862, all of the Jackson Purchase fell under Federal
occupation. In Paducah, the Herald was replaced by the Union
Picket Guard and later the Federal Union. Over at Columbus, the
Crescent turned Confederate News gave way to the Federal Union
and the Hickman Courier was forced to stop publishing. 33
When the Federals occupied Paducah, some of the Union
sympathizers in the Purchase fled there. Among them was Circuit
Judge Rufus King Williams of Mayfield. From Paducah, Williams
went up the Ohio River to Smithland and began recruiting men
for the Federal Army. This brought sharp comment from Edward
L Bullock, who had just taken over the Crescent and renamed
it the Confederate News. 31
But the Yankees never got their hands on the three rebel
editors. Noble and Warren joined the Confederate Army,34 while
Bullock headed South when Columbus was occupied and eventually
ended up in Richmond, Virginia, the Confederate capital. 35 After
the war, Warren reopened the Courier and it still exists today.
Also, Noble returned to Paducah in 1865 and started up the Herald.
It lasted until 1874. 36
Thus, in the secession crisis of 1861, the Columbus Crescent
(Confederate News), Hickman Courier, and Paducah Herald were
intensely Southern in sentiment. No doubt they helped the Jackson
Purchase earn the title of Kentucky's "South Carolina." 37
The pro-Confederate editor wrote that Williams "with a full
knowledge that nine-tenths of the people who elevated him to
office, are heart and soul with the Confederate States, holding
on to his office as Judge, he is endeavoring to prostitute that high
place, to aid in recruiting Lincoln forces." Bullock also predicted
that "whatever may be the issue of our unhappy difficulties, he
28
Excerpt from the Hickman Courier in the Louisville Courier, September 16, 1861.
29Excerpt from the Courier in the Appeal, October 24, 1861.
JOin the August 5, 1861 election for a new state legislature, Kentuckians repudiated
secession by electing seventy-five Unionists but only twenty-five secessionists to the house
of representatives and voting twenty-four Unionists and just three secessionists to the senate.
Statewide, Unionist candidates polled over two-thirds of the vote.
But in the Jackson Purchase, things were different. Ballard, Calloway, Fulton, Graves,
Hickman, and McCracken counties elected secessionists to the house without opposition.
In Marshall County, a secessionist _house candidate polled 698 votes to 110 votes for his
Unionist opponent. See the Courier, August 7-10, 13, 16-17, 20, 1861; Journal, August
9, 15, 1861 .
31
Faxon gave up the Crescent to raise a company of "Guerrilla Scouts" for the Confederate
army. See the Clarksville (Tenn.) Jeffersonian, November 8, 1861.
32Excerpt from the Columbus Confederate News in the Louisville Courier, October 29,
1861; see also October 23, 1861. In September 1861, Federal authorities ordered the Courier
to stop publishing. But editor Walter N. Haldeman took his equipment to Bowling Green,
Kentucky behind the Confederate lines and resumed publication. The Courier was published
there until the Confederates left in early 1862.
33Victor R. Portmann, "A History of Newspapers and Journalism in the Jackson
Purchase," Jackson Purchase Sesquicentennial Edition of the Mayfield Messenger, December
27, 1969.
34Batde, Perrin, and Kniffen, Kentucky , pp. 310-311; J. Tandy Ellis, Report of the Adjutant
General of the State of Kentucky, Confederate Volunteers, War, 1861-1865 (Frankfort: The
State Journal Co., 1915), I, pp. 368-369.
35Batde, Perrin, and Kniffen, Kentucky, pp. 249.
36
Ibid., pp. 43-44. 91, 217, 310-311.
37 lbid.' p. 7.