"Bloody Bill" Anderson

It is not clear where William T. Anderson better know as "Bloody Bill" Anderson was born. What is clear is he was a child of William and Martha Anderson, and that they came to Randolph County sometime in 1840. As William T. was born that year it is possible he was born in or around Huntsville, Missouri, or he may have been born in Hopkins County, Kentucky; Jefferson County, Missouri; Palmyra, Missouri; or in transit. He spent his entire childhood in and around Huntsville, not leaving the area until he was around 17 when the family moved to Kansas. He had two brothers, Ellis and James both who were younger as well as younger sisters Mary C. Josephine, and Martha. The Anderson family lived in various places in and around Huntsville during the almost twenty years they were here. The first place they lived was known as the old Hunt farm, adjoining the old Joseph M. Hammett farm a mile or two north of Huntsville off of what is now Route C. They then lived in Huntsville around the area of what is now the junction of West Depot and Nance Street. They last lived in the county south of town in the area of the old Hagar School. Anderson attended school there and a school in Huntsville which was near the corner of Oak and Mulberry Streets. William T.'s father was a hatter by profession, and went to seek gold in 1850 in California, but returned empty handed as so many of the men from Randolph County who went as a group did. William T. was described as a quiet boy who liked to hunt and play with bows and arrows. He seemed to have been of no problem to anyone in the town of Huntsville. In essence his childhood was unremarkable and uneventful, most often described as well behaved, not unlike many other children of the time period. The family was well respected in Huntsville, the father being a member of the I.O.O.F. Lodge. In 1857 the Andersons moved to the area of Agnes City, Kansas.

The family was well respected in Agnes City (near Council Grove) and by 1860 William T. co-owned a 320 acre farm. Once settled there the Andersons became friends with Judge Arthur Ingham Baker another Southerner. On June 28, 1860, William T.'s mother Martha was killed after being struck by lighting. Sometime around this time things began to unravel for the Andersons. Ellis shot and killed a Native American and had to flee to Iowa. William T. is said to have killed a member of the Kaw tribe in self defense because the Native American tried to rob him. Never the less William T. joined a freight hauling business with his father, and started dealing in horses. At some point Anderson either began dealing in stolen horses or stealing horses himself and selling them along the Santa Fe Trail. The demand for horses had become rather high with the outbreak of the Civil War, and they were a valuable commodity. In late 1861, William T. and Judge A.I. Baker attempted to join the Confederate Army, but were attacked by the 6th Kansas Cavalry. Anderson escaped, but Baker was captured and spent several months in prison. Either before or after Baker's time in prison he had began courting Mary Ellen Anderson, but broke it off to marry Annis Segur. It was not long after this that William T.'s father was killed. Accounts vary as to how it happened. Some accounts have it that his father and uncle were hung by Jayhawkers on March 11, 1862 while William T. and his brother Jim were out delivering cattle to Fort Leavenworth. The brothers returned to find their father and uncle hanging, the house burned, and their possessions gone. Another account has that A.I. Baker shot and killed the elder Anderson. This account goes that after Baker had been captured by the 6th Kansas Cavalry he became a Union man. In May of 1862 he issued an arrest warrant for someone named Lee Griffin. William C., William T.'s father went to Agnes City to confront Judge Baker over the warrant as well as Baker's having wronged Mary Ellen Anderson and in the confrontation was shot by Baker. William T. was arrested for hiding Griffin and horse thieving, but was then released, and given a lawyer. Anderson left for home and remained there until he learned Judge Baker would not be charged for killing his father. He, his brother Jim, and Lee Griffin then went to Agnes City on July 21, 1862 and burned Baker and Baker's brother in law George Segur alive in a store they had fled into to hide after a brief gun battle. They then burned Baker's home, stole two horses, and headed for Missouri.

Accounts of William T. Anderson aka "Bloody Bill" during the Civil War vary depending on the writer. Some portray him as a cutthroat and murderer that raped young black women, took scalps, and killed people just to see them die. Other accounts simply portray him as a man bent on revenge for the death of his father and the death of his sister Josephine and driven by disgust at the atrocities committed on Missouri Southerners. One must keep in mind that there were many atrocities committed by both sides during the Civil War. There were Union forces that committed almost as serious a crimes as "Bloody Bill" that are no longer written about. The Sacking of Osceola is one such case. On September 23, 1861 the town of Osceola, Missouri was plundered and burned to the ground by James H. Lane and his band of Jayhawkers. At least nine civilians were killed. It is said this raid was what lead to the Lawrence, Kansas Massacre being done in retaliation. Yet, you almost never hear tales of this raid.The town of Pleasant Hill. Missouri was burned by Charles Jennison and his band of Jayhawkers on November 17, 1861. Jayhawkers also burned the towns of Dayton, and Nevada, Missouri. At Kingsville, Missouri the town was burned and nine men killed. In September of 1864 Martin Rice, his son, along with six neighbors were captured by the 9th Kansas Cavalry. The six neighbors, all civilians were murdered, but Rice and his son were spared. In light of this, "Bloody Bill" Anderson was no different than many other men of the period, though he admittedly was perhaps more blood thirsty. No doubt though both Jayhawker and Bushwhacker justified what they were doing as retaliation for the last "Lawrence" or the last "Osceola." I therefore do not agree with romanticizing "Bloody Bill" Anderson or with overly demonizing him either. He was a man in a war where atrocities were being committed on both sides. He saw death all around him, and he was one among many that were dealing out death. That being said, William T. Anderson was no hero. He executed an entire company of men who were unarmed. He kept scalps of men he killed tied to his saddle. It is said he allowed his men to rape female slaves. And even Southern slave holders were not spared being beaten and having their horses taken. But Unionists raiders like James H. Lane were no better.

After killing Baker, William T. and his brother Jim joined with a man named Bill Reed and began raiding. At this point it is not clear whether they preyed on just Unionists or Confederate sympathizers as well. Later accounts have William Quantrill rebuking them for stealing from Confederate sympathizers. The story goes that Quantrill sent out a detachment that captured Bill and Jim, took their horses, and told them not to prey on Southerners. The Andersons and Reed then began operating between Lexington and Warrensburg, Missouri. In May, 1863 Anderson joined Quantrill's Raiders near Council Grove, Kansas. In the summer he was promoted to a lieutenant in Quantrill's band. He took part in raids on Westport and Kansas City, Missouri. By late July Anderson was a captain leading his own men, although still under Quantrill's command. His second in command was Archie Clement a man known to enjoy torture and mutilation. In August of 1863 General Thomas Ewing Jr. had the female relatives of bushwackers arrested. On August 13, 1863 the building they were being kept in collapsed killing Anderson's sister Joshephine who was only 14. Also seriously injuried were his sisters Mary Ellen who was 16 and Janie who was only 10. Anderson it was said was convinced it was no accident.

It was not long after on August 21, 1863 that Quantrill attacked Lawerence, Kansas. The objective was to capture or kill Jayhawker leader James H. Lane. Lane it is said hid in a cornfield in his nightshirt. Anderson supposedly said, "I am here fore revenge." Regardless, it was the largest number of Bushwhackers assembled during the war. Between 185 and 200 men and boys were killed among them 18 unmustered Union army recruits. Some authors maintain Anderson's unit was responsible for most of the carnage. It could be that Quantrill had planned a less bloody thirsty raid. Some accounts state Anderson gave the order to kill every man and boy big enough to carry a gun. This can perhaps be marked as the first clear sign of Anderson's desire to kill. It was shortly after his sister Josephine was killed, and there had been no killing on this scale prior.

Following the raid, Quantrill and his men Anderson among them went to the area of Mineral Springs, Texas to stay for the winter. While in Texas Anderson married a woman named Bush Smith of Sherman, Texas. Anderson stayed in Sherman in a house there, and had one child who died as an infant. Tensions between Anderson and Quantrill began to develop with Anderson eventually having Quantrill arrested for the murder of a Confederate officer. Quantrill escaped and Anderson was ordered to capture him, but gave up pursuit. He returned to the camp of the Confederate regulars and received a commission of captain from General Sterling Price. Anderson broke with Quantrill at this point and began to operate on his own command. After several months in Texas Anderson and his men returned to Missouri and began raiding Cooper and Johnson Counties primarily robbing local residents. In July of 1864 Anderson moved his operations to Carroll and Randolph Counties.

On July 15, 1864 "Bloody Bill" Anderson returned home. After camping near New Hope Church in Fort Henry about five miles west of Huntsville, Missouri he entered the town. There he shot one man he suspected of being a U.S. Marshall or in the least a Union spy and his men robbed the depository of $40,000 though some of the money was returned. The man shot, a E.A. Damon of St. Louis was a travelling salesman that tried to run. Otherwise, the raid seemed uneventful. It is unclear whether this was the time that Anderson saved the life of an old schoolmate. A tale told by Margaret Block of the Huntsville Historical Society about her uncle Hayden Rutherford goes that Rutherford was about to be hung by some of Anderson's men for trying to retrieve a horse they had stolen. Anderson rode up and said, "Don't hang him boys. He always helped me with my schoolwork." Anderson then told Rutherford, "I'll see you get your horse back." A few months later Rutherford woke to find the horse in his yard. Upon leaving Huntsville, Anderson and his band traveled south to Smithland where they stole two horses from Joel Smith and pistol whipped him. The Ninth Cavalry Missouri State Militia under Clinton B. Fisk which was in pursuit overtook Anderson and his men, ten miles from Huntsville on the Fayette Road according to the official report. It is taken though that the the Old State Road that also lead to Fayette that was meant as it went through Smith's property while the Fayette Road was to the west. At that point a running fight of four miles took place ending when the band outdistanced the militia.

Eight days later Anderson and his men arrived at Renick, Missouri. With about 65 men he robbed stores, tore down telegraph lines, and burned the railroad depot. They then moved north to the next depot at Allen, Missouri (in what is now Moberly). There they engaged the 17th Illinois Cavalry who took shelter in a fort. All the bushwhackers were able to do was kill the Union force's horses before reinforcements arrived. After this Anderson's band of raids did small raids. In August 13, 1864 they engaged Union militia forcing them to flee in Ray County. On August 30th they were engaged with another Union militia and then pursued by the 4th Missouri Volunteer Cavalry. In September Anderson met up with Quantrill along with George Todd, another guerrilla leader. Anderson convinced them to attack the Union garrison stationed at Fayette, Missouri. On Sept. 24th, the raiders approached the town clad in Union uniforms. The members of the 9th Cavalry, Missouri State Milita that were there were mostly wounded and sick, and only 20 to 25 could fight. They barricaded themselves in barracks made of railroad ties and heavily fortified. Only 75 of the 250 raiders present took part in the attack and they made three charges on the barracks being repelled each time. They broke off the attack after losing five men and only killing two Union soldiers. Anderson and Todd headed north on the Glasgow Road (current Highway 5), while Quantrill went to a camp near Boonesboro in Howard County.

On September 26th Anderson and Todd and their men camped near Centralia, Missouri. On September 27th with 75 men Anderson went into Centralia. While there they looted the town. They found a large amount of whiskey and began drinking. They stopped a stagecoach and robbed its passengers among them being Congressmen James S. Rollins, but Rollins managed to conceal his identity. While they robbed the stage or shortly thereafter a train arrived and the raiders forced it to stop. On board were 23 Union soldiers. Anderson told his men to leave the women alone as they stole about $9,000 from the men on the train. They then forced the 23 Union soldiers to disrobe and took their uniforms. Anderson had the soldiers line up. Anderson selected a sergeant for a potential prisoner swap. When asked what to do with the remaining soldiers Anderson gave his men the order to "parole them." After shooting all the soldiers, Anderson told the civilians they could leave, but not to move the bodies. It is said Anderson said that the Centralia Massacre was in retaliation for Confederate regulars executed at Palmyra, Missouri. It is also said he had vowed to kill two Union soldiers for every Confederate soldier killed. They then derailed a work train and returned to camp. Upon returning to camp they learned of an approaching Union force coming from Paris, Missouri. The 39th Missouri Volunteer Infantry under the command of Major A.V.E. Johnston with 155 Union soldiers had arrived in Centralia, and Johnston enraged by the massacre went in pursuit of Anderson leaving 35 of his men in the town. Anderson set up an ambush for the Union forces by sending decoys to lure the 39th into a trap. Johnston pursued the decoys and when he saw about 80 men at the base of the hill. Johnston ordered his men to dismount and had every fifth man to hold the horses. Seeing the Union forces dismount the Bushwhackers attacked. Five raiders were killed in the initial charge. After the first attack Anderson had 100 men attack from the flanks. The battle was over rather quickly and almost none of Johnston's troops survived. Besides being dismounted, and out manned, the Union forces had only single shot Enfield muzzle loaders while Anderson's men were armed with revolvers. Following the battle Anderson and his men took scalps and mutilated the bodies. Between the Battle of Centralia and the Centralia Masscare the same day 120 to 140 Union soldiers died with only a handful of survivors.

Following the Battle of Centralia Anderson spent his time evading Union forces intent on capturing or killing him. He kept his troops to the brush often going through ravines, and other places Union forces would not pursue for fear of ambush. In retaliation for the Centralia Massacre Union forces burned the town of Rocheport long considered a safe haven for Bushwhackers. In October of 1864, Anderson and his men met with General Sterling Price at Boonville. Price ordered Anderson and his men to take the scalps and other war trophies off their horses and from their belts. While Anderson was there Price ordered Anderson to raid the North Missouri Railroad and destroy the North Missouri Railroad Bridge. The Bushhwackers then went to Glasgow, Missouri arriving there on October 21, 1864. On October 15th Confederate regulars had shelled the town forcing the Union garrison to surrender. The two Confederate brigades had then left to rejoin Price's army leaving Glasgow unprotected by either Union or Confederate regulars. Qauntrill and his raiders then came to town and stole a large amount of money. Then Anderson arrived and showed up at the mansion of Benjamin Lewis a wealthy Unionist along with his orderly Ike Berry. Anderson severely beat him demanding money and raped a young female slave before enough money was raised to buy Anderson off. Then in the morning Anderson and his men returned whereupon his men raped two more female slaves. Within a few weeks a reporter for the Missouri Democrat out of Saint Louis interviewed Mr. Lewis and his wife about the attack and the account was soon published in the New York Times. Anderson and his men then went northwest leaving Central Missouri behind.

After the Centralia Massacre the Union Army had assigned Lt. Colonel Samuel P. Cox and a group of experienced soldiers to eliminate Anderson and his men. Once Anderson left Glasgow Cox pursued him. On October 26th, Anderson and his men arrived near Richmond, Missouri. The next day they went to Albany, Missouri and pursued a Union force. They rode into a volley of rifle and pistol fire at which point they halted short except for Anderson and another. Anderson was shot down, but the other bushwhacker managed to flee on foot. The other raiders quickly retreated. Anderson and his men had been caught in the same sort of trap he would have arranged. Lt. Colonel Cox had sent the force Anderson was pursing out as a decoy in order to lure Anderson and his men into an ambush, The Union soldiers took the body to the courthouse where it was photographed, beheaded it, and displayed the head on a telegraph pole. They then buried Anderson near Richmond in a field. In 1908 Cole Younger reburied Anderson's body, and in 1967 a memorial stone was set up. Archie Clement took command of Anderson's unit but they soon disintegrated with some joining Quantrill. His brother Jim survived along with his remaining sisters. They moved to Texas where Jim married William T.'s widow.

The William T. Anderson Huntsville knew was quite different than the William T. Anderson Kansas seemed to know before the war. In Missouri he was a member of a well respected family. In Kansas he was accused of horse stealing and suspected of murder. Certainly after his father was killed, and certainly after his sister Josephine was killed he changed. But this does not explain why he was accused of dealing in stolen horses in Kansas prior to the war. Perhaps his mother's death changed him, or she was his moral compass. It is as if one were looking at two different people. The boy Huntsville knew was a well behaved young man with whom no one had problems and seemed well enough liked, and the man in Kansas that seemed troublesome with a bad name. It is difficult to reconcile the two. Almost as difficult as reconciling the William T. Anderson some authors portray as a hero, and the "Bloody Bill" Anderson others portray as a cruel blood thirsty killer. We will perhaps never know the truth. One thing is certain, he killed many during a time of chaos and atrocities. In that he may have been no better or worse than many others.

Citizens of Randolph County often wonder where Anderson lived in the county. In my research, I came upon several newspaper interviews in the late 19th and early 20th century in which old timers stated where Anderson lived. These locations are very approximate as they do not give exact addresses. Instead, they are stated in terms like, "near the rake factory" or "on the old Hunt farm north of town." Never the less by checking old land patents and the 1876 An illustrated historical atlas of Randolph County, Missouri I have been able to obtain general locations of where "Bloody Bill" Anderson grew up.