Lexington Rifles

"Our Laws, The Commands of Our Captain"

1857 - 1861

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lexington rifles

Fayette County Volunteer Militia
1857 - 1861

Four years before war came to America, a 32-year old textile manufacturer founded a militia company of  infantry in his hometown of Lexington, Kentucky.  His name was John Hunt Morgan, a former Lieutenant with the 1st Kentucky Cavalry during America's war with Mexico.  The militia company, of which he became Captain, was comprised of about 50 young men whose ranks were filled with prominent citizens and businessmen.  They wore green uniforms replete with tailcoats, braided trousers, white cross-belts, and fancy headgear called shakos.  Drilling twice weekly at their armory, which was located at the corner of Main and Upper Streets, they called themselves the "Lexington Rifles".  At the entrance to the armory was a framed sign with large lettering that proclaimed their motto to all who entered: 

“Our Laws, the Commands of Our Captain”

Captain Morgan, who had a reputation as a disciplinarian, would freely assess fines for violations of regulations, including once fining himself 25 cents for tardiness.  This discipline proved itself in the Company's  magnificent display of drill order, which endeared them to spectators and helped make them the darlings of Lexington society.  Of this militia company, "The Lexington Observer & Reporter" wrote:  

"We are certain that a finer body of men never shouldered a musket — a beautiful uniform, well drilled, and being composed of young and handsome gentlemen." 

On August 30, 1859, six weeks before John Brown attacked the Federal Arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, Beriah Magoffin was inaugurated as the Governor of Kentucky with attendant martial spectacle.   Drawn in an open carriage by four white horses, Governor Magoffin was escorted into the city of Frankfort by several militia companies of cavalry; an artillery unit drawing four brass cannons; and the Lexington Rifles, led by Captain John Hunt Morgan and Lt. Thomas B. Monroe.

 John Hunt Morgan                                                       Thomas B. Monroe Captain                                                                                            Lieutenant

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Lexington Rifles
circa 1860

(Note "Lex. Rifles" on the crate in the lower right of the photo.)

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kentucky state guard

March 1860 - September 1861

Following John Brown’s raid on the Federal Arsenal at Harper’s Ferry, Virginia, Americans across the South began to address the dangers to society that were presented by the threat of attack.  In order to defend against similar incursions by rebellious groups such as Brown’s, the Commonwealth of Kentucky organized a State Guard on March 5, 1860 that was to be comprised of local militia units.  To head the new Kentucky State Guard, Governor Beriah Magoffin appointed Simon Bolivar Buckner as Inspector General, with the rank of Major General.  Gen. Buckner held this position from May 5, 1860 until July 23, 1861, when he resigned his commission to join the Confederate Army.  

General Simon B. Buckner          Colonel Roger W. Hanson

In counties across the Commonwealth, the State Guard grew to 132 separate militia companies, including six from Fayette County.  With 60 men ready for duty, the Lexington Rifles were commissioned by Governor Magoffin into the Kentucky State Guard on May 9, 1860.   On June 15, the Lexington Rifles were organized with other State Guard companies to form the Lexington Battalion.

On November 6, the Lexington Battalion was combined with the Kentucky River Battalion to create the First Infantry Regiment, commanded by Colonel Roger W. Hanson.  Thomas B. Monroe of the Lexington Rifles was chosen to serve as Lieutenant Colonel.  (Both men would later rise within the ranks of the Confederate Army of Tennessee.  Roger Hanson became Brigadier General of the 4th Brigade in Breckinridge's Division of Hardee's Corps, and was mortally wounded at the Battle of Murfreesboro in 1863.  Thomas B. Monroe, who became Major of the 4th Kentucky Infantry, was killed at the Battle of Shiloh in 1862.)  In this regiment, the Lexington Rifles were granted the honor of becoming Company A, an honored designation which they would repeatedly claim throughout the years of war-time organization to come.  

secession crisis

April - September 1861

"...That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, -- That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness."

.--  excerpt from "The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America"
Action of Second Continental Congress -- July 4, 1776

While the flames of secession grew around her in 1860 and 1861, Kentucky remained neutral with a desire to preserve the peace.  When Abraham Lincoln, the newly elected President of the United States, rejected a conciliation effort by the Confederate government in April 1861, the first shots for Southern Independence were fired.  The artillery duel that took place at Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina propelled events quickly on a national scale, with the likelihood of further hostilities growing daily.  Even so, Kentucky clung to her neutrality in the coming conflict between North and South.  

The illusion of neutrality belied the hundreds of young Kentuckians who were traveling across state borders to volunteer for Confederate service in Virginia and Tennessee.  To counter this, Federal authorities established recruiting centers within Kentucky’s borders, thereby violating the state’s neutrality.  The split of allegiances in the Commonwealth tore apart the ranks of the Kentucky State Guard, effectively causing the disintegration of the 1st Infantry Regiment.  Elements with Union sympathies reorganized from April through June 1861 and reformed primarily as the 1st and 2nd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry Regiments.  These regiments were mustered into Federal service on June 4 and 13, respectively, at Camp Clay, Ohio.  Elements with Confederate sympathies, minus the Lexington Rifles, reorganized in July as the 1st Kentucky Brigade (later to be known in post-war years as The Orphan Brigade), and mustered into Confederate service at Camp Boone, Tennessee.

Captain John Hunt Morgan    

By September, with the strategic Battles of Manassas, Virginia and Wilson’s Creek, Missouri having been fought, both Confederate and Federal forces moved into Kentucky to outmaneuver each other.  U.S. General Ulysses Grant occupied Paducah, while C. S. General Leonidas Polk countered this with a move from Tennessee to Columbus.  Meanwhile, General Buckner, the former commander of the Kentucky State Guard, marched a division of Kentuckians to Bowling Green on order of General Albert Sidney Johnston, the overall Confederate commander in the West.  With these actions, it was obvious that Kentucky had now become a potential battleground.

    General Albert S. Johnston              Gen. Leonidas "Bishop" Polk

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exodus to camp charity

Bloomfield, Kentucky
September 20, 1861

With tensions mounting within the state, Governor Magoffin issued orders to disarm those State Guard militia units that were sympathetic to the Confederacy.  The Lexington Rifles were among those units to receive orders from the pro-Union state government to return their rifles to the State Guard Armory in Frankfort.  However, in a clever act of deception, Captain Morgan sent the shipping crates to the state capitol weighted down with stones, instead.  With their rifles safely concealed, the Lexington Rifles then took an oath: 

"To Stand By Our Arms Till Death!"

When the crates were later opened in Frankfort and Morgan's ruse was discovered, Federal forces moved into Lexington with orders to arrest members of the Lexington Rifles.  Captain Morgan then informed the Company that the time had come for them to leave the city and join the Confederate Army.   Late on September 20, 1861, with their rifles hidden in hay wagons and with some members remaining behind to fool Federal sentries, the Lexington Rifles secreted themselves out of the city.  They were led by Captain Morgan on a 150-mile journey with the intention to link up with General Buckner’s 5000 Confederate soldiers at Bowling Green.  

Halfway into their westward journey, the Lexington Rifles arrived in the vicinity of Bardstown, where they  established a camp near Bloomfield.  They called it "Camp Charity", and it was so-named because of the friendly citizens who refused payment for the supplies which they brought in.  Here, each man readied himself for the task ahead, believing that he was a defender of his home who was charged with the sacred duty to oppose any foe.  

 . Roadside Historical Marker
  Camp Charity -- Bloomfield, Kentucky

By September 26, the Lexington Rifles were joined by other new recruits, bringing their numbers to about 200.  Together, they left "Camp Charity" and marched south toward the Confederate defensive line along the Green River.  With four years training experience at drill and tactics, their knowledge lent professionalism to their march.  It was during this march that the Lexington Rifles exchanged their first shots of the war with Unionist Home Guardsmen, who were easily scattered.

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induction into confederate service

Woodsonville, Kentucky
October 27, 1861

When Morgan and his men arrived at Munfordville on September 30, they were joined by Captain Morgan’s brother-in-law, Basil W. Duke.  There, the unit served as advance pickets for Colonel Roger Hanson’s infantry force along the Green River.  After a few days, they moved south of Green River to Woodsonville, where a training camp  had already been established.  During this period of training, and prior to their official induction into Confederate service, the Lexington Rifles became known to the other companies at the camp as "Morgan’s Company".  

  Lt. Basil W. Duke                                            

With 80 enlisted men and 4 officers reporting for duty, Morgan's Company was mustered  into the cavalry service of the Confederate States on October 27, 1861.  The induction took place on the steps of the Green River Baptist Church in Woodsonville, where the oath of enlistment was administered by Major William Preston Johnston.  (Major Johnston, who would later rise to the rank of Colonel and become a member of President Davis' staff, was the son of General Albert Sidney Johnston.)  Elections for officers of the Company were held soon thereafter, with John Morgan and Basil Duke leading its command.  The following year, the Green River Baptist Church was desecrated and burned by Federal forces. 

                                                                                                           Maj. Wm. Preston Johnston.

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  Roadside Historical Marker and the ruins of the Green River Baptist Church  
Induction Site  --  Woodsonville (Hart County), Kentucky

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morgan’s cavalry squadron

Bowling Green, Kentucky
November 1861

In the days that followed the induction of Morgan's Company into Confederate service, other under-strength companies that were present at Woodsonville also petitioned to join Morgan's command.  On November 4th, the entire force was ordered by General Simon B. Buckner to proceed to Bowling Green, where the Confederate Army of Kentucky was headquartered.  Upon their arrival, the force was consolidated into a Cavalry Squadron, with Morgan's Company (the former Lexington Rifles) being designated as Company A of the new Squadron.  The men of the other under-strength Companies were combined to become Companies B and C.

Company B was assigned to Captain Thomas Allen, of Shelbyville, who remained in command of the Company  until the following year.  (When Morgan's Squadron later became the nucleus for formation of the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry at Chattanooga in June 1862, Thomas Allen was appointed as Regimental Surgeon.  His brother, John Allen, replaced him at that time as Captain in command of Company B.)

Company C was assigned to Captain James Bowles, of Louisville, who had commanded the "Kentucky Rangers" militia unit in the pre-war State Guard.   (James Bowles later rose through the ranks to become Lt. Col. in command of the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry.  Upon the death of John Hunt Morgan in September 1864, he was promoted to full Colonel.)

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Bell's tavern

Glasgow Junction
November 1861

After formation of the Squadron at Bowling Green, Morgan was given orders to embark on patrols throughout the Green River area.  To accomplish this, Morgan proceeded to Glasgow Junction (present-day Park City) in Barren County, where he established his Squadron Headquarters at the unfinished construction site of a stagecoach stop known as Bell's Tavern.

(The original tavern building, which was at the fork of three roads -- the Glasgow Road, the Bardstown Road, and the Louisville & Nashville Pike -- had been destroyed by fire in 1858.  When a spur from the L&N RR was opened to Glasgow in 1859, the hamlet of Three Forks became known as Glasgow Junction.  The construction of a larger stone structure, that was meant to replace the original Bell's Tavern, was left unfinished due to the war.)

From this location, Morgan conducted mounted patrols, operating from Munfordville to Greensburg and conducting raids against the Louisville & Nashville Railroad.  

Bell's Tavern
Glasgow Junction  --  Park City, Kentucky

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"morgan's raiders"

Expedition to Bacon Creek Station
December 5, 1861

In early December, Federal forces began to move south along the Louisville and Nashville Railroad.  As the Federals consolidated their strength in the area, Morgan’s Squadron moved out from Bell's Tavern on December 4 with 105 men.  Their intent was to attack the enemy supply line the next day by destroying the railroad bridge at Bacon Creek Station (present-day Bonnieville), just north of Munfordville.  Although the destruction of the bridge on December 5 was a minor affair, news of the attack reached newspaper correspondents in the North.  This resulted in the first notoriety for the Squadron in the national press, which thereafter referred to them as "Morgan’s Raiders".

Roadside Historical Marker and the Bacon Creek Bridge of the L&N R.R.
Bacon Creek Station  --  Bonnieville, Kentucky

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