These letters were written by Meriwether “Jeff” Thompson (1826–1876), one of the more colorful Confederate commanders in the Trans-Mississippi theater. A native of Virginia who settled in St. Joseph, Missouri, Thompson worked as a surveyor, engineer, businessman, and served as mayor of St. Joseph before the war. He was married in 1848 to Emma Hayes, the daughter of a Baltimore artist. An ardent secessionist, he was elected brigadier general of the Missouri State Guard in 1861 and became famous for his operations in the swamps and river country of southeastern Missouri, earning the nickname “Swamp Fox of the Confederacy.” Although commonly styled a Confederate general, Thompson’s brigadier-general rank was actually in the Missouri State Guard; he never received that rank in the regular Confederate Army. His wartime service carried him through Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Louisiana, including a brief stint commanding Confederate river vessels.
Thompson was captured at Pocahontas, Arkansas, in August 1863 while attempting to raise a new command. After confinement in St. Louis and at Johnson’s Island, Ohio, he was transferred to Fort Delaware, the formidable Union prison on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River. Thus, when he wrote this letter in March 1864, the once highly mobile “Swamp Fox” had been a prisoner for more than six months. At Fort Delaware he became a prominent figure among the Confederate officers, writing poetry and helping organize entertainments to relieve the monotony of captivity. He remained there until his exchange in August 1864, after which he returned to the field, commanded troops during Sterling Price’s Missouri campaign, and ultimately surrendered his command in Arkansas in May 1865. He died of tuberculosis in 1876—a disease he probably contracted while in prison. [Sources: Encyclopedia of Arkansas, Civil War on the western Border (KC Public Library)]
Thompson wrote the letter to his Baltimore relative, Jane Eliza (Brown) Bestor (1820-1885), the wife of John Rollin Bestor, Sr. (1813-1867). This Baltimore couple had twin sons who served in the Maryland Guard that became Co. B, 21st Virginia Infantry. Their letters have been transcribed and may be found at 1861-65: The Bestor Brothers of Baltimore.
An interesting aspect of this particular letter is that it was three pages in length. Most prisoners were limited in their correspondence to one page—for both outgoing and incoming letters. “Supposedly, all letters were examined by censors and any letter over one page was considered to be contraband and therefore not delivered to the prisoner. This rule led to prisoners using every square inch of the page to write their messages. At times the letters greater than one page were removed from the cover, and the empty cover was sent to the prisoner. When General M. Jeff Thompson was imprisoned on Johnson’s Island in September of 1863, he took steps to eliminate the one page rule. He struck a deal with those censoring the letters. Long letters were to be read by the censors in the evening rather than during the day. Thompson would see that they received two and one-half cents per page for each page read. The censors agreed, but the matter had to be kept secret. This worked well as the censors were able to make several dollars more per day than their pay. However, the scheme fell apart when a prisoner complained to the prison commandant that he had to pay a dime tax to receive a four page letter. After the matter was investigated, the long letter mail was stopped.” Perhaps Thompson struck such a deal at Fort Delaware as well for his are the only letters I’ve seen that exceeded one page. [Source: Letters to and from Confederate Prisoners]
Most of Thompson’s Papers have been deposited in the State Historical Society of Missouri. See Meriwether Jeff Thompson Papers.
[Editor’s Note: I’m told there are more of Thompson’s letters in the Bestor collection that I will add here when I get them transcribed. The image of Thompson in the header is from the Library of Congress.]
“The company did me the honor to give me the central position with General [Robert] Vance on the right, and Gen. [Jeff] Thompson on the left—the others seated on either side, or standing in the rear, with Bailey [Peyton] Key, the orderly, on a blanket in front.
“Something was said about bringing a couple of Rebel ladies into the picture. Gen. Jeff [Thompson] good humoredly suggested, that it was ‘bad enough to introduce a preacher into such company;’ and so the ladies, beautiful, and thoroughly ‘secesh,’ will be more appropriately daguerreotyped upon the hearts of certain distinguished heroes, for whom their visit was more especially intended.”
Letter 1
Fort Delaware, Delaware
March 4th 1864
My dear Madam,
Your kind note of the 2nd inst. reached me this day and I hasten to thank you for your interest in my comfort and welfare. I am very pleasantly situated here, having many more privileges than are generally granted to Prisoners of War. But still any or all of the little matters that go to fill up a good housekeeper’s pantry are most acceptable as Uncle Sam only furnishes us with a soldier’s rations, and without the exercise, that gives the appetite to enjoy such food, it is not very tempting. There are a few other things that I need but I can purchase most of them from the sutler.
I wrote to Mr. George R. Frick to ask some lady friend to send me a pillow. I have not received it yet and if he has not sent it, I would be onliged to you for one. Mr. Pat Reilly of the Elden Hall on Lafayette Street has occasionally send me a box of eatables when I was at Johnson’s Island, but I have received nothing since I have been here. 1 I will try that my friends in Baltimore shall know each other or I may “feasts and famines” too often.
Do you know Mrs. Thompson’s step mother? I remember your cousins as well as if I saw them only yesterday, though many years have passed since we met. If I remember tightly, Charley studies Dentistry under Dr. Camp, his brother-in-law, after they left Harpers Ferry. I would be much pleased to hear from all of them.
Mrs. Thompson is now living in St. Louis and if you would write to her, she would be pleased to hear from you as she has no correspondent in Baltimore and I know she would like to hear from her relatives. Address her Mrs. Emma C. Thompson and she will get the letter as I write to her nearly every day and she send to the post office daily. She has our only living son with her but the two oldest girls are in the Convent of the Sacred Heart near New Orleans and our baby is at St. Joseph with my sister.
Shortly after I was captured, an article was published about me in which I was represented as having spoken very disrespectfully of my wife. I have heard that the Baltimore papers published it but never published my answer to it. You may have seen the article I allude to and I therefore send you the answer that you may know the truth. You can show it to Emma’s other relatives and friends who may have seen the first article.
I hope to hear from you often as I am here alone and have plenty of time to read and write letters. Should some little articles that I have written for not be sent me, I will let you know what they are.
Very respectfully, your cousin, — M. Jeff Thompson, Brig. Gen. M. S. G. [Missouri State Guard], Prisoner of War
To Mrs. J. Eliza Bestor, Baltimore, Md., No. 166 North Hight Street.
We have been married 16 years this very day—4th March.
1 Patrick Reilly was the proprietor of Eldon Hall, a well-known restaurant and dining saloon in Baltimore. It was located at 75-78 West Fayette Street. Reilly sold it in 1888.
