Capt. William T. Anderson (Bloody Bill)
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1840-1864
When William Anderson led his company of guerrillas into the
Centralia rail station on 27 September 1864, he was already the most
feared Confederate guerrilla in Missouri. Before the day was ended,
he would be the most feared and hated in the country.
His tactics were often compared to the "uncivilized" warfare of the
Indians. Union commanders in the area had issued official orders
throughout the time of the war that denied quarter to guerrillas. Any
guerrilla soldier caught in a battle with Union troops was to be
executed on the spot. Anderson and other guerrilla leaders responded
in kind and also refused quarter to Union troops. After his death he
would gain the moniker, "Bloody Bill" Anderson. His philosophy of
warfare was that of his Scottish ancestors who's motto was, nemo me
impune lacessit (no one provokes me with impunity).
Anderson was born in Missouri but lived his teen years in Kansas
during the border war that exploded in Missouri and Kansas with the
Kansas and Nebraska act of 1854. The Kansas and Nebraska act became
the first test of the philosophy of a popular vote to determine if
Kansas would enter the state as a free or slave state. The question
of slavery in states had impact on the balance of power within the
federal government and many Missourians perceived that a free Kansas
would slant power to the northern states. Many people from the north
saw that Kansas entering, as a slave state would shift the balance of
power to the south.
In response to this perceived threat to the north, the New England
Emigrant Aid Company (NEAC) was formed. The goal of the NEAC was to
encourage abolition-minded people in immigrating to Kansas in order
to vote. Missourians reacted by crossing the border in order to vote
in Kansas' elections. Much has been made of the cross-border voting
but the fact is that it was not an unusual practice and the results
of such votes had been accepted in the past such as when Iowa voters
crossed to vote in Nebraska elections. People from border counties of
one state felt they had a vested interest in the affairs of the
bordering state and so the practice was not rare.
These two opposing philosophies led to violence in a very short time.
Kansans and Missourians began collecting arms and raiding across the
border to punish those on the other side who were seen as a threat.
Abolitionists tended to wink at lawbreakers like John Brown and
treated them as heroes instead of murdering thieves they were. By the
same token, many Missourians with southern sympathies saw the New
England immigrants as outsiders who challenged their assumed right to
settle Kansas. Many from both sides saw the unrest as a chance for
personal gain under the guise of defending high ideals. From the
Missouri side came a group that would earn the designation, "border
ruffian." The same ilk of people from Kansas were
designated, "jayhawker."
One prominent group of Jayhawkers came to be known as "Redlegs,"
named for the red leather leggings they wore around their legs. The
Jayhawker bands were based primarily in Lawrence, Kansas which was
named after a wealthy abolitionist in the east. Lawrence became the
focus of Jayhawker activity in the War Between the States.
When the War Between the States began in the east, the differences
between Missouri and Kansas only escalated. The majority of Kansans
by that time were strong unionists. The majority of Missourians at
that time wished to remain neutral in the war as conditional
unionists. Federal troops soon occupied Missouri and many Missourians
then felt compelled to choose sides. William T. Anderson, just 21
years old, chose for the south as a partisan ranger or guerrilla.
The federal occupation forces soon came to regard the guerrillas as
common criminals rather than soldiers and so, under the command of
General Halleck in March of 1862, they officially instituted a policy
of executing captured guerrillas. Further, federal forces began
rounding up and imprisoning family members of suspected guerrillas.
The guerrilla leaders accepted such terms and often killed the
soldiers they captured. "No Quarter" became the rallying cry of both
sides with Missouri and Kansas civilians caught in the middle. When
the no quarter policy seemed to only encourage guerrilla activity,
the federal commanders began harassing civilians who were suspected
of assisting the Confederate cause by aiding the guerrillas. Some
were even harassed for feeding a family member home on furlough from
the war. Men and even young boys were often murdered by federal
troops when they would not betray the hiding places of guerrilla
bands.
In August of 1863, several women from guerrilla families were being
