Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-08-14
SURVIVORS MEET.
Forty-flrst Anniversary Of Battle
Of Athens, Mo-, Held Wednesday.
PICNIC HELD ON BATTLE FIELD
Exercises in commemoraton of One
Of the First Victories of the Civil
War-W. B. Armstrong of This City
Lived In Athens at Time of Fight.

War-W. B. Armstrong of This City
Lived In Athens at Time of Fight.
At Athens, Mo-, Wednesday, with
approprlative exercises, the forty-first
anniversary of the battle fought on the
streets Of that town was celebrated.
w. B. Armstrong. the Burlington
freight agent in this city was a resi-
dent Of Athens at the time of the en-
gagement and speaks strongly of the
bravery and intrepidity displayed by
Gen. David Moore, who commanded the
Union force. and administered sound
beating to the larger force Of confed-
crates under the command of Gen.
Mart Green. Less than 200 men con-
stituted Gen. Moore's command when
the rebels made the attack, as the
regiment was but partly recruited.
During the engagement shot from
the rebel cannon went through the
kitchen of the residence of Arthur
Thome, Mr.. Armstrong; father-in-law
Other residences in the town were al
so struck as a demonstration of the
poor workmanship of the confederate
gunners. One man was killed and
several wounded on the Union side
during the engagement.
Picnic on Battlefield.
The celebration of Wednesday last
was held in Bedel's pasture, beauti-
full grove in the edge of town, and
across which Green's men charged on
the morning of the fight to meet with
a decided defeat
The event was a basket picnic of
old friends and neighbors, in whom
the rancor of the old war days has
been replaced by sentiments in har-
mony with the times. Historical adj
dresses We're delivered by the old resi-
dents of the county. A large number
of the survivors of the battle were in
| attendance.
An Early Victory.
The battle of Athens was one of the
first Union victories of the civil war,
and served greatly to strengthen I'm
ion sentiment in northeastern Mis-.
souri,. David Moore, who as boy had
gone to Mexico with the overland ar.
my in 1847, had been given a commits
sion by General John c. Fremont auth
orizing him to raise a regiment in
northeastern Missouri The recruiting
office was first located at Memphis, the
county seat of Scotland county, Mo.
Rumors of a raid on Keokuk, by Gen.
Mart. Green's regiment of guerillas, in
camp in Knox county Mo-, caused
Moore to move his partly recruited
regiment to Athens, where there was a
! ferry over the Des Moines, and where
4 the Des Moines Valley railroad passed
1 along the opposite shore.
Rebels Attack.
\ Here General Green's men made the
/ attack very early in the morning or
April 5, 1861, intending to surprise and
I capture Moore's camp, and then cross
the river and descend on and loot the
town Of Keokuk. The hamlet of Lur
! ay, sixteen miles south of Keokuk, was
4 in the line of Green's march, and here
! lived the family of Captain Sacket
j. who commanded company in Moore's
regiment. When Green's army begar
to pour through the streets of Luray
! on the afternoon of August 4, Captain
i Sackets little son, Samuel, who is now
citizen of Colorado Springs, Colo.
made wide detour and ran all the
way TO Athens, barefooted and alone
through the woods, taking all night fol
the journey and arriving an hour il
advance of the rebel forces. Every
body in Clark county knew there wa:
to be fight, and many families re
: NAMED UP all night awaiting to hea
the sounds of the engagement At fou
o'clock in the morning the first sounds
of cannon were heard, Green having
! hot 1x,irh ~, no Roh+ CT
!, ed about two hours, during which tim
Their were repeated charges and coun
ter charges General Moore was
born soldier and being ready for tn
battle soon had the enemy in retreat
capturing all of their horses and sad
dies and their entire camp equipag
that had been left in the timber nea
: by.
Strengthened Union Sentiment.
General Moore joined Grants arm.
short time after the Athens fight ant
: went south. He fought at Donnellsol
and Shiloh, leaving leg on the latte
field. His courage and intrepidity a
the Athens fight undoubtedly ha,
much to do with Strengthening Uniol
sentiment in Northeastern Missouri
and Southern Iowa. He died a fey
years ago at his home in Canton, Nc
There were a large number wounc
ed on each side at the battle of Athen
some of whom afterward died fror
these injuries. That many were nc
killed outright can be attributed to tn
primitive guns carrying bird shot. Blu
one man was shot dead on the fielt
This man was Rev. Harrison. tn
chaplain of Moore's army. Harriso
was patriot, and although MOI
combatant refused to go back of tn
fighting line. He was shot in the Gel
ter of the forehead early in the tigt
and died instantly.
0 THE APPLE CROP.
e is Unusually Large and of Exceller