First Battle of Lexington The First Battle of Lexington also known as the Battle of the Hemp Bales , was an engagement of the American Civil War , occurring from September 13 to September 20 , 1861 , between the Union Army and the pro - Confederate Missouri State Guard , in Lexington , the county seat of Lafayette County , Missouri . The State Guard ' s victory in this battle bolstered the already - considerable Southern sentiment in the area , and briefly consolidated Confederate control of the Missouri Valley . This engagement should not be confused with the Second Battle of Lexington , which was fought on October 19 , 1864 . That battle also resulted in a Southern victory . Prelude . Prior to the Civil War , Lexington was an agricultural town of over 4 , 000 residents and county seat of Lafayette County , occupying a position of considerable local importance on the Missouri River in west - central Missouri . Hemp ( used for rope production ) , tobacco , coal and cattle all contributed to the town ' s wealth , as did the river trade . Many residents were slaveowners , like those of adjacent counties ; slaves comprised 31 . 7 % of the Lafayette County population . Thus , most whites were openly pro - Confederate at the start of the conflict . John C . Fremont , commander of the Federal Department of the West , desired to control the river and retard Southern sympathizers in the area . To this end , he established a garrison in Lexington in July 1861 under Colonel Charles Stifel and his 5th Regiment of the United States Reserve Corps , composed of Germans from St . Louis . Stifel and his command were soon replaced by five companies of Lafayette County Home Guards under Captain ( or " Major " ) Frederick W . Becker . These were later supplemented by the 14th Home Guard Regiment under Lt . Col . Robert White , who assumed command . White was followed in turn by Colonel Thomas A . Marshall , who had arrived with the 1st Illinois Cavalry . Following their victory at Wilson ' s Creek on August 10 , the pro - Confederate Missouri State Guard , having consolidated its forces in the northern and central portions of the state , marched on Lexington under the command of Maj . Gen . Sterling Price . On September 10 , 1861 , Col . James A . Mulligan arrived to take command with his 23rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment . On September 11 , the 13th Missouri Infantry ( USA ) , Van Horn ' s Battalion of the United States Reserve Corps , and the 27th Missouri Mounted Infantry arrived , after having evacuated Warrensburg in the face of Price ' s relentless advance . Mulligan now commanded 3 , 500 men , and quickly proceeded to construct extensive fortifications around the town ' s Masonic College , cutting down trees to make lines of fire and erecting earthworks around the dormitory and classroom buildings . His superiors dispatched further reinforcements under Samuel D . Sturgis , with which Mulligan hoped to hold his enlarged position , but they were ambushed by pro - Confederate forces ( alerted by a secessionist telegraph tapper ) and compelled to retreat . Opening round . Price and his army arrived in Lexington on September 11 , 1861 . However , they failed to launch an assault until two days later , by which time the Federal works proved too formidable to be easily taken . On September 13 , six companies of the 13th Missouri Infantry ( USA ) , supported by two companies of the 1st Illinois Cavalry , battled Price ' s advance elements among the tombstones in Machpelah Cemetery south of town , hoping to buy time for the rest of Mulligan ' s men to complete their defensive preparations . Price had intended to overwhelm the Union garrison in one quick rush , but their stubborn defense of the cemetery caused his troops to exhaust much of their ammunition . This development combined with the redoubtable nature of the Union fortifications to render any further assault impractical . Price ' s artillery now commenced to shell the Federals . Having bottled the Union forces up in Lexington , Price decided to await his ammunition wagons , other supplies and reinforcements before assaulting his opponent . " It is unnecessary to kill off the boys here , " said he ; " patience will give us what we want . " Accordingly , he ordered his infantry to fall back to the county fairgrounds . By September 18 , Price had determined to order a new assault . The State Guard advanced under heavy Union artillery fire , pushing the enemy back into their inner works . Price ' s cannon responded to Mulligan ' s with nine hours of bombardment , utilizing heated shot in their endeavor to set fire to the Masonic College and other Federal positions . Mulligan stationed a youth in the attic of the college ' s main building , who was able to remove all incoming rounds before they could set the building ablaze . The Anderson house . Once described by a local newspaper as " . . . the largest and best arranged dwelling house west of St . Louis , " the Anderson House was a three - story , Greek - Revival style house constructed by Oliver Anderson , a prominent Lexington manufacturer . Sometime around July 1861 , the Anderson family was evicted from their home , which lay adjacent to Col . Mulligan ' s fortifications , and the Union garrison established a hospital there . At the start of the Battle of Lexington , over a hundred sick or wounded Union soldiers occupied the Anderson House hospital . Medical care was entrusted to a surgeon named Dr . Cooley , while Father Butler , Chaplain of the 23rd Illinois , provided for the spiritual needs of the soldiers . Because of its strategic significance , General Thomas Harris of Price ' s command ordered soldiers from his 2nd Division ( MSG ) to capture the house on September 18 . Shocked at what he considered a violation of the Laws of War , Col . Mulligan ordered the structure to be retaken . Company B , 23rd Illinois , Company B , 13th Missouri , and volunteers from the 1st Illinois Cavalry charged from the Union lines and recaptured the house , suffering heavy casualties in the process . Harris ’ s troops recaptured the hospital later that day , and it remained in State Guard hands thereafter . The most controversial incident of the battle would occur during the Federal assault on the Anderson house , when Union troops summarily executed three State Guard soldiers at the base of the grand staircase in the main hall . The Southerners claimed the men had already surrendered , and should have been treated as prisoners of war . The Federal troops , who had sustained numerous casualties in retaking the residence , considered the prisoners to have been in violation of the Laws of War for having attacked a hospital in the first place . The Anderson home was heavily damaged by cannon and rifle projectiles , with many of the holes still visible both inside and outside the house ( which is now a museum ) today . Preparing for the final assault . On September 19 , the State Guard consolidated its positions , kept the Federals under heavy artillery fire , and prepared for their final attack . One problem faced by the defenders was a chronic lack of water ; wells within the Union lines had gone dry , and State Guard sharpshooters were able to cover a nearby spring , picking off any man who endeavored to approach it . Surmising that a woman might succeed where his men had failed , Mulligan sent a female to the spring . Price ' s troops held their fire , and even permitted her to take a few canteens of water back to the beleaguered Federals . This tiny gesture , however , could not solve the ever - increasing crisis of thirst among the Union garrison , which would contribute to their ultimate undoing . General Price had established his headquarters in Lexington in a bank building at 926 Main Street on September 18 , 1861 , located across the street from the Lafayette County Courthouse . During the Battle of Lexington , Price directed State Guard operations from a room on the second floor . On the following day a cannon ball , probably fired from Captain Hiram Bledsoe ’ s State Guard Battery , struck the courthouse only about one hundred yards from General Price ’ s headquarters . This projectile ( which has been replaced with a croquet ball ) remains lodged in the structure ' s far left column to this day , and has become a local tourist attraction . On the evening of September 19 , soldiers of Brig . Gen . Thomas A . Harris ' s 2nd Division ( State Guard ) began using hemp bales seized from nearby warehouses to construct a moveable breastwork facing the Union entrenchment . These bales were all soaked in river water overnight , to render them impervious to any heated rounds fired from the Federal guns . Harris ' s plan was for his troops to roll the bales up the hill the following day , using them for cover as they advanced close enough to the Union garrison for a final charge . The hemp bale line started in the vicinity of the Anderson house , extending north along the hillside for about 200 yards . In many places the hemp bales were stacked two high to provide additional protection . Deployment of the hemp bales . Early on the morning of September 20 , Harris ' s men advanced behind his mobile breastworks . As the fighting progressed , State Guardsmen from other divisions joined Harris ' s men behind the hemp bales , increasing the amount of fire directed toward the Union garrison . Although the Union defenders poured red - hot cannon shot into the advancing bales , their soaking in the Missouri River the previous night had given them the desired immunity to the Federal shells . By early afternoon , the rolling fortification had advanced close enough for the Southerners to take the Union works in a final rush . Mulligan requested surrender terms after noon , and by 2 : 00 p . m . his men had vacated their trenches and stacked their arms . Many years later , in his book " The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government " , Southern president Jefferson Davis opined that " The expedient of the bales of hemp was a brilliant conception , not unlike that which made Tarik , the Saracen warrior , immortal , and gave his name to the northern pillar of Hercules . " Casualties and aftermath . Casualties were relatively low because the battle was largely fought from protective positions . Price lost only 25 men killed and 72 wounded , while the Federals lost 39 killed and 120 wounded . The relatively light casualties may be attributed to Mulligan ' s excellent entrenchments and Harris ' s hemp - bale inspiration ; however , the entire Union garrison was taken prisoner . The surrendered Union soldiers were compelled to listen to a speech by deposed pro - Confederate Missouri governor Claiborne F . Jackson , who upbraided them for entering his state without invitation and waging war upon its citizens . The Federals were then paroled by General Price , with the notable exception of Colonel Mulligan , who refused parole . Price was reportedly so impressed by the Federal commander ' s demeanor and conduct during and after the battle that he offered Mulligan his own horse and buggy , and ordered him safely escorted to Union lines . Mulligan was later killed at the Second Battle of Kernstown near Winchester , Virginia on July 24 , 1864 . Among the casualties at the First Battle of Lexington was Lt . Col . Benjamin W . Grover , commanding the 27th Missouri Mounted Infantry , who was wounded by a musket ball in the thigh . He succumbed to his wound October 31 , 1861 . Contemporary sketches . From " Harpers Weekly " magazine :