Jake's capture by the rebels

James J. Goodrich, William F. Creitz, & Jacob D. Orcutt
Company A, 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry
Kansas State Historical Society

Only two letters from Private James Goodrich to his sister Augusta survive from the three years he served with Company A of the 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry. This unit was mustered into federal service in mid-July 1861 and was actively engaged in the western theatre of the war, principally in southeast Kansas, southern Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi. The 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry was initially commanded by Col. H. P. Johnson until he was killed in an ill-considered attack on the village of Morristown, Missouri in September 1861. The command then passed to Col. John Ritchey who was considered by his men to be absolutely unfit to lead them. For the next several months, with “criminal audacity” according to William F. Creitz, John Ritchey shamelessly used the men to carry out ‘the bidding of his master, [James] Lane' while “Jayhawking” in the southwestern border counties of Missouri. Eventually Col. Richey was turned out by his men and Col. Clayton was elected to take command, with the backing of Governor Robinson.

By 1862, the war on the western border had gravitated from Missouri to northern Arkansas and the 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry was sent to Helena, Arkansas, a river port on the Mississippi River half way between Memphis and Vicksburg. Here the unit was engaged in various cavalry patrols and skirmishes with bushwhackers as they ventured inland from their base on the river. The letter that follows was written just three months before one of their regiment’s more significant engagements – the Battle of Helena – in which they fearlessly defended the right flank of the union line against attack by a very large confederate cavalry division led by General John S. Marmaduke.

I have just received your letter & thought I would set down & write to you & let you know how I am at present enjoying good health. I wrote you a letter the 17th of March enclosed 10 dollars to pay my taxes. But it seemed you did not get it so I will write once more to you. At the same time I wrote you, I wrote to ma (got no answer) & have answered it & just sent it off. Ma wrote that [my sister] Mary [Goodrich] was married to Gurd Horton.

There is not much knews here that would interest you. In my last letter I wrote to you, I gave all the particulars of Jake’s [1] capture by the rebels. They are in Little Rock now, I suppose. A disserter has just come in from there. Has seen them there. He has joined our company now. Said the talk was then that they were going to start for this place in a few days but they have not come. I hope Jake will see [our brother] Ralph if he is there [in Little Rock]. He can get away if he wants to I know.

I suppose there is a great change in & around Topeka since I left. It has been nearly two years since I was there. I hope that I can go there before my term of enlistment is up which is three years from the 16th of July 1861. It seems a long time. I hope you will get my last letter I wrote to you. Parsh James would see that my taxes are paid. It is the east half of the south east quarter of Section 16, Range 16, Township 12 – 80 acres. I wish James would pay the taxes & let me know how much it is & I will try to get the money to him soon.

How could you let money there now? We shall get our pay in a few days. Shall have three hundred dollars. Don’t think that I shall send any more in a letter. We spend a good deal of our money for provisions as our rations do not hold out & I have lost my horse this winter which has put me back one hundred dollars. We have to pay the highest price for every thing we get. I do not spend a cent foolishly. Try to save all I can. There are some that have not saved a cent yet. Lew Long [2] for instant & a good many others. There are some talk of our regiment going to Tennessee before long which I hope we will. I do not like Arkansas at all. It is to swampy for me here & the water is poor to. There will be a good many of us sick this summer if we stay here.

We have scouting to do now. We stay from 3 to 10 days to a time, then we have plenty to eat. I wish you could have some of the honey we got here & every thing in the eatible line that we confiscate for our own good & if our own officers say a word against it, all we have to do is to report them to the General at this post & he says he will rake there stripes off of them & so we get all the niggers we can to. They are rasing a regiment of them here now. Am still cook yet. Give my respects to all. Kiss the boys for me. Does Johnny remember me still? Write soon.

The second letter was written just four days before the clash between Gen. Davidson's Federal cavalry and Gen. Marmaduke's Rebel horsemen at Brownsville (near present-day Lonoke), Arkansas. This was the first of several of small battles that eventually led to the surrender of Little Rock in early September 1863. James Goodrich was among the rear-guard of the army, encamped at Clarendon, Arkansas, at the time this letter was penned to his sister.

Your letter of August 9th I just received today from Helena and as I have a chance to send one I will improve the opertunity & try & write you a few lines. We have been here two days waiting to cross the river here. We are in the rear of nearly all the army going to Little Rock & will have to wait a day or two longer before we can cross. It is reported here that they are forty firing at Brownsville 30 miles from here & intend to give us battle. If so, I hope that we can whip them. Our advance is some fifteen miles from here & have some little fighting to do. We are having some very hot & dry dusty country to travel over now & it comes very hard on us. We left Helena with only 200 men & nearly half of them are sick now. We lost one man in our company since we have been here. His name was Joseph Jingles from Doniphan, Kansas. He was not well when we left Helena but would go with us.

I have received a letter from Ma stating the particulars of Pa’s death [on July 3, 1863]. I can hardly believe it but it is too true. I am expecting a letter from ma. Hope I shall get one before long. I do not feel very well today nor have I since I left Helena. I should write to ma but I do not feel well enough to. I have wrote to you that Jacob [Orcutt] payed me the 10 dollars. If Judge Winans has not let out the money when you get this I wish you would tell him to keep it for me. I want the money when I get out of the service to use. Our regiment will be mustered out of the service by the first of June next as that is the order from the war department. I received the postage stamps. I must close this as they are waiting for it. Direct as usual to Helena & they will be sent on to us. Love to all.

(left to right) J. H. McNown, John Armstrong, Samuel J. Reader, Henry K. Winans, and Jacob D. Orcutt
Early Pioneers of Shawnee County, Kansas
Photo taken September 25, 1904
Kansas State Historical Society

[1] “Jake” is Jacob Orcutt who's sister Nancy was married to Henry Griffing -- the older brother of James Griffing. Nancy and Henry Griffing came to Kansas Territory from Tioga County, New York in the Spring of 1855. They took a claim on Deer Creek, just east of Topeka. Though Jake and his brother Thomas considered coming to Kansas Territory with his sister in the Spring of 1855, there is no indication that he came until 1856. [See January 13, 1855 letter written by Henry Griffing.]

Both Jacob Orcutt and James Goodrich joined Company A, 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry on July 16th 1861. At the time of his capture, Sergeant Jacob Orcutt and his men in Company A had just returned from a mid-February excursion to the Yazoo Pass in Mississippi. Here they provided sharpshooter protection against bushwhackers while General Grant had the pass cleared of fallen trees for passage of the federal fleet enroute to Vicksburg. When Company A returned to Helena, Arkansas in March, they resumed forays into the country west of the city. According to First Lieutenant William Creitz, “On the 6th of March, the 5th Kansas with detachment of other regiments left camp on a reconnaissance towards ‘Cotton-plant.’ On the morning of the 8th, when near ‘Sick Creek’, Lt. McCarty and Sergeant Orcutt were taken prisoners by a party of twenty rebels. Company A acted as the rear guard, and Lt. McCarty espying a few rebels skulking around the rear, fell back with Sergeant Orcutt to watch their movements and if possible take them in. When suddenly they found themselves surrounded on all sides and were forced to surrender.” Source: History of Company A, Fifth Kansas Cavalry Volunteers, by William Creitz. Kansas State Historical Society Manuscripts Department. For a regimental history, see The 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry.

[2] Lewis Long joined Company A, 5th Kansas Volunteer Cavalry on January 4, 1862.

The Union commander defending the federal works at the Battle of Helena was Major Gen. Benjamin M. Prentiss. A copy of his battle report may be seen by clicking on his picture below.