Major Thomas R. Livingston was a prominent figure whose life intertwined with some of the most turbulent periods in American history: the “Bleeding Kansas” era and the American Civil War. Serving as a Confederate soldier, Livingston left an indelible mark on Missouri and the surrounding territories, known for both his business acumen and his controversial military tactics.
From Humble Beginnings to Mining Magnate
Born on December 6, 1820, in Montgomery County, Missouri, to Thomas and Sarah Kennedy Livingston, Thomas R. Livingston started his life far from the battlefields. He married Nancy King Gibson, and together they raised three children.
A pivotal moment in Livingston’s life occurred in 1851 when he moved his family to a site just west of Carthage, Missouri. While digging a cellar, he made an extraordinary discovery: lead ore. Seizing the opportunity, Livingston, along with his half-brother William Parkinson, quickly erected a smelter, thus entering the burgeoning lead mining industry in southwest Missouri.
His mining operation proved exceptionally successful, becoming the wealthiest lead strike ever recorded in southwest Missouri. Over time, an astounding thirty million dollars worth of lead and zinc were extracted from his mines, including the largest chunk of pure lead found in the district. Livingston’s entrepreneurial spirit didn’t stop there; he also owned a general store, a hotel, a saloon, extensive real estate across three counties, and actively traded livestock, solidifying his status as a prominent and wealthy businessman.
The Turbulent “Bleeding Kansas” Era
Defending Missouri’s Border
The 1850s brought the intense political and violent conflicts known as “Bleeding Kansas.” This period was characterized by fierce skirmishes between pro-slavery advocates from Missouri and Free-State Kansans, battling for control over whether Kansas Territory would enter the Union as a slave or free state. This localized struggle was a precursor to the larger national Civil War, highlighting the deep divisions across the country.
During this volatile time, Livingston took on a military role, becoming a captain of a Border Guard unit. His primary responsibility was to defend western Missouri against the aggressive incursions of Kansas “Jayhawkers,” abolitionist paramilitary groups known for their raids. Kansas ultimately joined the Union as a free state, just months before the Civil War officially began.
Civil War and the Confederacy’s Lead Supply
A Wealthy Supporter of Southern Rights
By the onset of the Civil War, Livingston was not only a wealthy businessman but also an influential community leader. Despite owning only one enslaved person, he strongly advocated for the rights of the Southern states. His substantial wealth continued to grow during the war, as the lead from Missouri’s rich mines became a critical resource for the Confederacy’s armaments, with thousands of pounds shipped east.
Military Engagements and Guerrilla Warfare
Livingston’s Early Campaigns and the Humboldt Raid
In the summer of 1861, Livingston was elected captain in the 11th Cavalry Regiment of the Missouri State Guard. Under Colonel Sanford Tablott, he participated in a series of raids across the Kansas border, targeting several towns. His command effectively controlled much of Jasper County, Missouri, and his patrolling activities frequently extended into Vernon County, near Fort Scott, Kansas, as well as into Arkansas and Indian Territory (modern-day Oklahoma).
A notable event occurred on September 8, 1861, when Livingston joined John Mathews in a 150-man cavalry raid into Kansas. This force sacked and burned the small town of Humboldt, an act of retaliation for the burning of Missouri towns. Humboldt was specifically targeted because it had become a refuge for abolitionists who had attempted to settle illegally on Indian lands, further fueling the border conflicts.
Livingston’s Elusive Hideout
As early as spring 1862, Livingston established a clandestine hideout for himself and his men in Kansas. Known as Livingston’s Hideout, it was likely the only permanent Confederate military camp within Kansas during the Civil War. Located in a heavily wooded area in Cherokee County, just north of the Indian Territory border and west of the Missouri border, its existence remained a secret to Union troops.
The strategic location, hidden from a nearby road and situated above a creek, allowed Livingston’s men to scatter and seemingly vanish when pursued, causing immense frustration for Union forces in the area. This hideout served as a crucial base for his guerrilla operations.
The Rise of Livingston’s Rangers
Following the Confederate defeat at Pea Ridge, Arkansas, in March 1862, the Missouri State Guard was disbanded, and many soldiers were transferred east. Upon returning to Jasper County, Livingston and his men found Union militia occupying southwest Missouri, with a garrison established in Carthage. Under martial law, federal troops exercised their right to seize supplies from local citizens, including crops and flour.
Believing these actions violated civil and constitutional rights, Livingston rallied the remaining members of the 11th Cavalry Regiment and recruited more men. This newly organized cavalry force became known as “Livingston’s Rangers,” authorized under the Confederate Congress’s Partisan Ranger Act. This act, while intended to legalize guerrilla warfare, often led to brutal and irregular engagements.
Ruthless Tactics and Reputation
Livingston’s Rangers quickly gained a reputation as a formidable and brutal force in the Ozarks. Their activities included widespread arson, murder, and robbery, specifically targeting residents, refugees, and Union troops. They were notorious for disrupting Union supply lines and frequently engaged Union patrols, inflicting heavy casualties.
Union forces were particularly incensed by Livingston’s ruthless tactics, as he often refused to take or release prisoners. He was known to shoot unarmed or wounded soldiers at point-blank range, a practice that solidified his image as a merciless leader. Consequently, Livingston became a high-priority target for Union forces seeking to quell the guerrilla insurgency.
While officially enlisted in the Provisional Army of the Confederate States as the 1st Battalion Missouri Cavalry (also known as the 1st Indian Brigade or “Cherokee Spikes”), their operational style was more akin to an independent band of outlaws. Some Confederate officers openly disapproved of their illicit activities, with one famously remarking that some of Livingston’s men were “no better than thieves and robbers.”
The Sherwood Engagement and Prisoner Crisis
Confrontation at Sherwood
On May 18, 1863, Livingston’s scouts reported the presence of 60 soldiers from Colonel James Williams’ African American regiment foraging near Sherwood, Missouri. Livingston personally led 67 of his “best-mounted men” to engage these federal forces. Reports indicate that approximately 22 to 32 African American troops and 20 to 22 white artillerymen from the 2nd Kansas Battery were at the home of Mrs. Rader, whose husband was one of Livingston’s men, while foraging for supplies.
Livingston’s forces launched a surprise attack, resulting in significant casualties for the Union side. He reported enemy losses as “negroes, 23, and 7 white men,” and also captured three white soldiers and two African American soldiers.
Aftermath and Tragic Negotiations
In swift retaliation for the Sherwood engagement, Union troops from Fort Blair, Kansas, located in Baxter Springs, assaulted and burned the town of Sherwood and 11 surrounding farmhouses the very next day. Many of Livingston’s men resided in this area, and the widespread destruction forced citizens to flee to Texas, leading to Sherwood’s eventual abandonment and never being rebuilt.
On May 20, Colonel Williams and Livingston initiated negotiations for a prisoner exchange. Livingston proposed exchanging the three white soldiers for any Confederate men Williams might hold. However, he declared, “As for the Negros, I cannot recognize them as soldiers; in consequence, I will have to hold them as contrabands of war.” This stance highlighted the Confederacy’s refusal to acknowledge the military status of African American soldiers, often subjecting them to harsh treatment or re-enslavement.
Colonel Williams accepted the exchange for the white prisoners but issued a stern warning regarding the treatment of the African American men. In a powerful letter dated May 21, 1863, Williams stated:
- “In regard to the colored men, prisoners, belonging to my Regiment, I have this to say that it rests with you to treat them as prisoners of war or not, but be assured that I shall keep a like number of your men as prisoners until these colored men are accounted for.”
- “You can safely trust that I shall visit a retributive justice upon them for any injury done to them at the hands of the Confederate forces. If twenty days are allowed to pass without hearing of their exchange, I shall conclude that they have been murdered by your Soldiers or shared a worse fate by being sent in chains to the slave pens of the South, and they will be presumed to be dead.”
The white prisoners were exchanged on May 22, but tensions quickly escalated. An African American prisoner was tragically killed in Livingston’s camp. Williams demanded the murderer’s delivery, threatening to hang a Confederate prisoner if his demand wasn’t met. Livingston, however, disavowed responsibility, claiming an outsider committed the act, adding ominously, “I am not aware that you have any [men] belonging to my command; consequently, the innocent will have to suffer for the guilty.” These negotiations ultimately collapsed, leading to both parties reportedly killing prisoners in a grim exchange of retributive violence.
The Fall of Major Livingston
Death at Stockton
Major Livingston’s sphere of effective operation largely remained within his home territory. However, on July 11, 1863, he ventured northeast with his Rangers to Stockton, Missouri, intending to capture supplies from the small Union garrison stationed in the Cedar County courthouse. Accompanied by Captain William Henry Taylor of Vernon County, the 250 attackers managed to surprise a town preoccupied with political speeches.
As approximately 20 Union militiamen barricaded themselves inside the courthouse, Livingston, carbine in hand, bravely charged at the front of his men, urging them forward. Union soldiers, now aware of his identity, fired, striking Livingston and knocking him from his saddle. Three other Rangers, including Bud Elder, also fell nearby.
The remaining Rangers, shocked by the fall of their leader, began a confused retreat. As the militiamen cautiously emerged from the courthouse to approach the fallen, Livingston, incredibly, attempted to regain his feet, still clutching his carbine. It was then discovered he had been wearing a steel breastplate, which had saved him from the initial fatal shot. However, the Union soldiers fired six more shots, ensuring his demise.
A Forgotten Grave and Lasting Impact
Major Livingston and three other Rangers were buried in an unmarked mass grave in the southwest quadrant of the Stockton City Cemetery, alongside other Civil War casualties. Today, a marker in that area simply reads: “To mark the final resting place of those persons unknown,” a quiet testament to the anonymity of many Civil War dead.
A Union soldier’s remark encapsulated the significance of his death: “It was the hardest blow the guerrillas of that section have received during the war.” After Livingston’s death, his battalion fragmented. Three months later, in an act of retaliation, Confederate General Jo Shelby and his men burned the Cedar County courthouse, underscoring the deep-seated vengeance prevalent during the conflict.
In the years following the war, Livingston’s victims from Jasper County sought restitution, filing numerous claims against his estate. His once-extensive property was ultimately confiscated and dissipated to satisfy scores of lawsuits stemming from his wartime actions, a stark conclusion to his ruthless legacy.
Rediscovery of a Hidden Past
Livingston’s Hideout Revealed
More than a century after the Civil War concluded, Livingston’s elusive hideout was finally discovered in the 1980s. The Baxter Springs Historical Society located and explored the site during the construction of a new home, bringing to light a hidden piece of Civil War history.
