Information Sheet
R Prather, Alonzo S., 1840-1910.
597 Civil War memoir, n.d.
One folder.
This is a brief
account by Alonzo Prather regarding his enlistment in the 6th Indiana Infantry at the beginning of the
Civil War. Accompanying the memoir is a
photograph of Prather as a lieutenant.
Alonzo S.
Prather was a native of Jennings
County, Indiana. He was a student at Asbury
College in Greencastle, Indiana,
when the Civil War began. Along with his
father and four brothers, he enlisted in the 6th Indiana Infantry. He first saw action in George McClellan’s
West Virginia campaign, and later served in the battles of Shiloh, Stone’s
River, Chickamauga, and Chattanooga,
and participated in Sherman’s
March to the Sea. Prather had been
wounded twice and received a commission as lieutenant by war’s end.
Prather returned
to Indiana
and became active in Republican Party circles.
In 1869, he obtained an appointment as prosecuting attorney in Madison
County, Arkansas. While in Arkansas, Prather promoted public education, helped
found the University
of Arkansas, and operated
a real estate business. Prather was
appointed Receiver of the General Land Office in Harrison
in 1875. About 1879 he moved to Springfield, Missouri,
where he founded the Springfield Daily
Republican. He moved to Taney County, Missouri,
by about 1881. Prather carried on a
vigorous career as a politician, lawyer, land speculator, stockman, and
promoter of Taney
County. A significant force in local politics, he was
elected state representative five times between 1888 and his death at Branson, Missouri,
in 1910.
Prather’s
account of his enlistment in the Union army was donated by his grandson, Doug
Mahnkey of Taney County.
It is an undated account bearing the heading “The West Va Company
1861,” which is apparently a reference to the 6th Indiana Infantry’s service under General
McClellan. However, rather than the West Virginia campaign, the narrative describes learning
by telegraph of the firing upon Fort
Sumter. Prather, his father, and four brothers
immediately enlisted, helping to form what he believed may have been the first
company accepted for service in Indiana. The account ends with the scene as the
company left for Camp Morton near Indianapolis.
The six-page manuscript
has been deacidified and encapsulated by Claudia Powell at WHMC-Columbia. A typescript accompanies the original. Included with the memoir is a copy of a photograph
showing Prather as a lieutenant during the Civil War. Additional biographical information on
Alonzo S. Prather may be found in the Information Folder.
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