2nd Missouri Volunteer Infantry (3 months, 1861)
| 2nd Missouri Volunteer Infantry (3 Months) | |
|---|---|
| Active | April 22, 1861, to August 31, 1861 |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | Union |
| Branch | Infantry |
| Engagements |
Camp Jackson Affair Battle of Boonville Expedition to Mexico, Missouri Battle of Wilson's Creek |
The 2nd Missouri Volunteers evolved from one of several unofficial pro-Unionist militia units formed semi-secretly in St. Louis in the early months of 1861 by Congressman Francis Preston Blair, Jr. and other Unionist activists. The organization that would become the Second Missouri was largely composed of ethnic Germans, who were generally opposed to slavery and strongly supportive of the Unionist cause. Although initially without any official standing, beginning on April 22, 1861, four militia regiments Blair helped organize were sworn into Federal service at the St. Louis Arsenal by Captain John Schofield acting on the authority of President Lincoln.
The Second Missouri Volunteer Infantry included a significant number of members with military experience from service in Europe. Many had also participated in drill and marksmanship competitions in St. Louis's many Turnverein societies. The Second Missouri was an unusually large regiment, having two dedicated "Rifle Companies" in addition to its ten companies of infantry. Upon entry into Federal service the members of the new Second Missouri elected Henry Boernstein colonel of the regiment. The new Missouri Volunteer regiments, subsequently elected (then) Captain Nathaniel Lyon as the brigadier general of the new brigade of Missouri volunteers. President Lincoln would later confirm Lyon's promotion from Captain to Brigadier general.
On May 10, 1861, the 2nd Missouri participated in the arrest of the Missouri Volunteer Militia drilling at Camp Jackson at Lindell Grove on the western border of St. Louis City. As the Missouri militiamen were being march under guard back to the Arsenal near the riverfront, angry crowds confronted the Federal forces and the confused situation soon devolved into rioting and gunfire. Over 27 people were killed and the Camp Jackson Affair helped to polarize the state and send Missouri down the road to its own internal civil war.
On June 15, 1861, the Second Missouri participated in the unopposed occupation of the Missouri state capitol at Jefferson City, Missouri, by Federal troops. Nine companies of the Second Missouri remained as the garrison at Jefferson City, under Colonel Boerstein who acted as interim military commandant of the city.
Company "B" and Rifle Companies "A" and "B" continued up river in pursuit of fugitive Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson and the Missouri State Guard. At Boonville the three company battalion of the Second Missouri, fighting under the command of Captain Peter J. Osterhaus helped defeat the newly organized Missouri State Guard on June 17 in the short, one-sided Battle of Boonville. While the Battle of Boonville was small by later war standards, it had major strategic consequences, driving the pro-secessionist forces into the southern part of the state and securing the Missouri River valley and communications across the state for the Federal government.
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