Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1902-04-03

heads up amongst the towns that had
some business The river was some
thing that attracted lots of trade to
the towns. and they promised fair to
become towns of enough size to sup
port several sewing societies and sew
eral lodges, and perhaps number of
churches.
Boats came up the river and went
far beyond these towns. The State
had put in several dams along the
river, and to this day each succeeding
Legislature puts in several more dams
about the dams but Of a different kind.
These dams held the water up so navi-
cation was possible and furnished vast
water power, which was utilized for
milling purposes and for wooden mills.
Both were represented in the two
towns. Remnants of the dams are
still visible, but the last one has been
taken out lately.
They were taken out for the stone,
and the towns are gradually going into
Il long and silent reverie. They are
practically a memory and nothing
more to the present day. They call
to mind nothing so much as Gold
smiths Deserted Village" They are
deserted, the Lord knows.
But as stated, in the beginning of
the war Athens was of enough import
ance to be recruiting station for the
Union army, and Col. David Moore
was the recruiting officer. He had
raised several companies, or rather he
was organizing them and getting
them ready for enlistment in the Union
service. The members of his compa-
MES We're largely the remnants of the
Northeast Missouri militia. They We're
in the State service. When Gov. Jack
hold St. Louis for the South it crystal
lied the fight, and the North and the
South clashed right at Athens Those
men who were not members of the
Missouri militia lived in Iowa-and
We're nearly to a man Union men.
Many Of the men in Moore's company
were IOWans, and that is why the bat
tie is credited to Iowa, although fought
mostly on Missouri soil. But it wasn't
al fought in Missouri
On Sunday, about August 10, 1861,
Col. Moore was Informed that they
were to be attacked the next day by
the Rebels. And the way be came by
this information has perhaps never
been told. He got the information
from a woman, the wife of a Rebel
officer. She was also a very good
friend of Col. Moore Her husband
had also been friend of Moore's till
the war broke out She sent word to
Moore to be on the lookout. and he
needed the warning, or the result
might have been altogether different.
l have reason to think this is accurate,
for l got it from William French,
who was afterwards Col. Moore's or
derby through the war and knew more
about him than any other living man.
Moore had his men in readiness on
the south side of the river That is.
he had them ready for orders on the
Missouri side. They We're attacked
early in the morning August 20, the
Rebels being, under Col. Green. Green
had 1900 men and Moore a few over
800. That is the story I got from
those who fought on the Union side
[ talked with men who fought on the
other side that day and they said the
armies were about equally matched,
which shows that human nature was
the same before the war that it has
been since. Each side claims that the
other had the advantage, so as an i'm
partial historian of an humble battle
it behOoveS me to relate that as near
as can be ascertained the Rebels had
more men, but not as many more as it
seemed to the Union army. It was
the first battle the men had ever been
in, and it is not to be wondered at
that the opposing army seemed incred-
IDLY large and numerous.
But if it was the first battle that
they We're il it was not the last one
by good deal. Many of the men en-
listed in one or the other army, and
many a one who smelled his first pow
der of battle that day bit the dust
before he was six months older.
Most OF the Union army was on the
south side Of the river, or to be abso-
l1.tely accurate, on the west side, for
the river runs nearly straight north
and south. But there were a great
many men who remained on the Iowa
side in the town of Croton Some be-
cause they did not belong to the army,
others because they preferred to shoot
at long range, and still others for an
altogether different reason They
seemed to like the scenery better on
the Iowa side. One man liked it SO
much better on the Iowa side that he
got down under the mill wheel in Or
der that he might see it all the better,
and he stayed there till the shooting
was over. And those soldiers We're
just reckless enough to shoot real pow
Ger and ball. Or if they did not have
hI7IIats thay 77sad shot and MANY 1x,arn