Battle of Lone Jack

The Battle of Lone Jack (August 15–16, 1862) was a Civil War engagement in Lone Jack, Jackson County, Missouri, during the 1862 Confederate guerrilla and recruiting campaign in the state.¹ After a night attack on a Confederate camp, Union Major Emory S. Foster’s roughly 740-man force was overwhelmed the next morning by Confederate commands under Colonel Vard Cockrell and others; Federals withdrew after about five hours of street fighting, but Confederates abandoned the town on August 17 as larger Union columns closed in.¹

Summary

Dates	August 15–16, 1862 (main battle Aug 16; night skirmish Aug 15)1
Location	Lone Jack, Jackson County, Missouri
Union commander	Major Emory S. Foster (wounded; succession to Capt. Milton H. Brawner)1
Confederate leaders (among)	Col. Vard Cockrell, Upton Hays, Sidney D. Jackman, DeWitt C. Hunter, John Charles Tracy; Col. John T. Coffee reappeared late1
Union force (approx.)	~740 (Missouri cavalry + Indiana artillery section)1
Result	Tactical Confederate victory; strategic withdrawal Aug 17 under Federal pressure1

Background

In summer 1862, Confederate and Missouri State Guard recruiters moved north from Arkansas into Missouri. Western Missouri commands included Jo Shelby, Vard Cockrell, John T. Coffee, Upton Hays, John T. Hughes, and others, often without clear seniority.¹ On August 11, Federals lost Independence to a combined force including Hughes, William Quantrill, Gideon Thompson, and Hays; General John Schofield ordered concentration against the threat.¹

Night of August 15

Major Emory S. Foster, ordered from Lexington, reached Lone Jack with about 740 men. Reinforcements under James G. Blunt and Fitz Henry Warren would not arrive in time.¹ About 11:00 p.m. on August 15, Foster attacked a Confederate camp believed under Coffee and Tracy and dispersed it; cannon fire alerted other Confederate commands, including Cockrell.¹ Foster’s men then rested along the main street.¹

Battle of August 16

Cockrell planned a pre-dawn deployment west of town with a mounted attack from the north by Hays. Hays’s late start and early discovery by Union pickets spoiled full surprise.¹ Fighting swung along the street and around two Union guns (Indiana artillery); hedges of Osage orange figured in several stand-and-fire moments.¹ Foster was severely wounded recapturing the artillery; Capt. Milton H. Brawner ordered retreat when Coffee’s force reappeared north of town after roughly five hours.¹ Federals spiked or disabled and hid the guns and withdrew in order toward Lexington.¹

Confederates held the field but withdrew August 17 as Blunt and Warren approached; Warren occupied the town that day.¹

Casualties and aftermath

Reported losses vary. Union Capt. Brawner listed 43 killed, 154 wounded, 75 missing/captured (about 34% casualties — likely low). Confederate Col. Hunter reported burying 119 Federals and 47 Rebels; modern rolls list higher confirmed Union dead (e.g. 65 killed plus later deaths from wounds in one compilation).¹ Cockrell recovered the two cannon; one was later credited with disabling the Queen City on the White River.¹

Cole Younger (then 18, with Quantrill’s orbit) is remembered for protecting the wounded Foster from execution by a Confederate officer who was Foster’s prewar enemy; years later Foster argued for clemency when Younger was captured after Northfield.¹ Future Secretary of War Stephen B. Elkins fought only this battle and later described its carnage with lasting disgust.¹

In the 1969 film True Grit, Rooster Cogburn claims he lost an eye at Lone Jack — “a scrap outside of Kansas City.”¹

Sources

See also

• lone-jack-mo
• independence-mo
• order-no-11
• battle-of-westport
• quantrills-raid-on-lawrence
• Wiki

Footnotes

1. Wikipedia — “Battle of Lone Jack.” — asserts: Aug 15–16 1862 Jackson County; recruiting campaign context; Independence fall Aug 11; Foster ~740 from Lexington; night attack ~11 p.m. Aug 15; Cockrell plan / Hays delay; five-hour street fight; Foster wounded; Brawner retreat; Coffee reappearance; Confederate withdrawal Aug 17; Warren occupation; casualty figures and modern roll notes; cannon recovery; Cole Younger / Foster story; Elkins quote; True Grit reference; order-of-battle units named on page. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵ ↩¹⁶ ↩¹⁷ ↩¹⁸ ↩¹⁹ ↩²⁰ ↩²¹ ↩²²