General Ben McCulloch

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Soldier, Indian Fighter, Texas Ranger

Benjamin McCulloch was born in Rutherford County, Tennessee in 1811, the fourth son of Major Alexander McCulloch. His formal education was slight but extensive reading and study at home under his father and the tutelage of Choctaw Indians out-of-doors gave him a rough and ready schooling. Leaving home at the age of 14, he came a boatman on the Mississippi and a professional hunter. In 1835, when departing with a party of mountain men bound for the Rocky Mountains, he heard of the expedition his friend Davy Crockett and other friends were making to assist the beleaguered Texan revolutionaries fighting Santa Anna's armies. He rushed to met up with them at Nacodoches, but missed them by several days. Carrying on alone to the Brazes River he came down with fever from an arm wound sustained in a recent duel. He did not recover until after the Alamo, but pressed on as soon as he was well and joined up with Sam Houston's army. He fought at the battle of San Jacinto, serving one of the two field guns General Houston nicknamed the "Twin Sisters".

After the Texan army's victory over the Mexicans, Ben McCulloch decided to settle in Texas at Gonzales where he engaged in surveying lands on the frontier. He was elected to the Congress of Texas in 1839 and was active in leading expeditions to counter Indian raids by the Comanche, fighting at Plum Creek and other notable engagements.

When Texas was admitted to the Union in 1845, Ben McCulloch was elected to the first state legislature and was appointed Major General of the State Militia, comprising the entire region west of the Colorado River.

At the beginning of the Mexican War, McCulloch raised a handpicked company of Texas Rangers who provided their own horses and firearms. His services as a scouting force were highly prized by General Zachary Taylor and at Monterey his company went forward to feel out the strength and locations of the enemy forces. McCulloch⺳ value as an organizer as well as a natural leader of men caused him to be promoted to major and he was made quartermaster for the army in 1846. He was still permitted however to conduct reconnaissance missions and he led his Texas Rangers with great bravery at the battle of Buena Vista. He was afterwards attached to the army of General Winfield Scott but resigned his staff position in favour of staying with his men. They did daring spy and reconnaissance work in and around Mexico City which led to its eventual capture.

At the end of the war, Ben McCulloch went to California during the Gold Rush like so many others and settled at Sacremento where he was made Sheriff of the county. He returned to Texas in 1852 and in the following year was appointed by President Pierce to be a US Marshal, a post in which he was subsequently confirmed by President Buchanan. McCulloch spent much time in Washington, DC where he busied himself in studying various improvements in ordnance and small arms.

In 1857, he was appointed along with L.U. Powell, to be a commissioner to adjust toubles with the Mormons in Utah, and, after the despatch of US troops to that territory, to report on conditions in Arizona. In 1861 he had concluded his reports and hastened back to Texas where he was appointed by his adopted state to raise a temporary military force to take possession of the US Arsenal at San Antonio and to arrange the surrender of all US troops wishing to remain loyal to the Union. He was an ardent secessionist and held the rank of colonel. He declined a regimental command however and was commissioned a Brigadier General in the Confederate Army 14 May 1861.

McCulloch was ordered immediately to take command of the Indian Territory and arrived at Fort Smith, Arkansas about the end of May. He organised a motley band of Texans, Louisianians, Arkansans and Missourians, then marched to the assistance of Governor Claiborne Jackson of Missouri, a state the new Confederacy wished to have in its own camp. Forming a juncture with General Sterling Price's Missouri State Guards, McCulloch, "a startling figure in snowy five gallon hat, boots and gray velvet coat with yellow cuffs and lapels" marched his 11,000 man force to met Union forces under General Nathan Lyon's smaller force at Wilson Creek.

The Union general marched by night from Springfield, Missouri and launched a surprise attack on the Rebels on 10 August 1861. As one writer termed it: "Johnny Reb and Billy Yank met at dawn in fearful embrace at Wilson's Creek, 10 miles south of Springfield. Five hours of slaughter ensued, and the two sides suffered a combined loss of more than 2,500 casualties, among them General Lyon wounded twice and then shot dead. The Federals retreated." A Confederate eye-witness recounted:

I was sitting in the shade of a big old oak tree reading old newspapers from Little Rock when General McCulloch received his orders to attack the Federals. Soon as he finished reading the orders, he turned to his aides, smiled, and said "Well boys! It's up to us to drive the Yankees out of Springfield." To which an aide responded, "That won't be a very big job!" Then General McCulloch said, "You must remember, Colonel, we will be fighting Americans when we attack the Federals."

On August 9th just as twilight settled about us, orders were given by General McCulloch that by nine o'clock we were to march in four columns for Springfield to attack General Lyons and his forces. But just as darkness routed twilight, and it was dark as all Egypt, rain began falling backed by an immediate approaching storm, so General McCulloch revoked our marching orders and we all began hunting sheltered places to sleep. But sleep was out of the question for I do believe every mosquito along Wilson's creek was on the warpath, as well as ourselves.

Our battle lasted less than six hours, yet among 10000 Confederates and 5000 federals engaged, about 16% were killed, wounded or missing. The casualty list of the Union Army was 1300 and of the South 1200.

After the defeat of the Union troops, McCulloch handed over command to General Price and returned with his soldiers to Arkansas, low on supplies and without any further orders to occupy Missouri. Price's Missouri men occupied Springfield.

McCulloch's next military operation was as a divisional commander under General Earl Van Dorn and took part in that Confederate general's ineffectual attempt to surround General Siegel's force at Bentonville, Arkansas. When General Price and his Missourians were finally chased out of their state into Arkansas, Van Dorn with McCulloch, McIntosh and Pike moved from western Arkansas to assist him. The two opposing sides met near Pea Ridge on 7 March 1862, a spur of the Ozark Mountains. During the battle, McCulloch commanded a Corps of Arkansas, Texas and Louisiana troops on the left wing under the overall command of Van Dorn. While riding forward to scout the enemy's exact location, McCulloch was struck in the chest by a sharpshooter's bullet before the battle commenced in all its ferocity. The sharpshooter, some claim, was none other than "Wild Bill" Hickock, a Union sniper who lay behind a log that day and killed a number of Confederate officers. General James McIntosh, his second in command, fell almost simultaneously and the Confederates without any leadership, soon fell back in disorder.

General McCulloch's death was mourned throughout Texas and McCulloch County in Texas was named in honour for him. For other detailed accounts and photographs of Ben McCulloch, go here, and here,(and here

General Ben McCulloch [25K JPEG; Click to View]

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