Nathaniel Lyon

Who was Nathaniel Lyon?

Nathaniel Lyon was the first Union general to be killed in the American Civil War and is noted for his actions in the state of Missouri at the beginning of the conflict. Some credit his quick action and hard line Unionism for stopping the Missouri secession movement. Others question his influence peddling and his role in events such as the Camp Jackson Affair, which inflamed many Missourians on the secession issue

There is no question that he was the first Union general to take the offensive. He graduated from the Military Academy 11th out of a class of 52 in 1841. He fought the Seminole Indians in Florida, as well as in the Mexican-American War. During the war, he received several brevet promotions for gallantry under fire at the battles of Mexico City, Contreras, and Churubusco.

He was then sent to posts in California where he participated in several Native American massacres. He was then reassigned to Fort Riley in Kansas, where he began to develop strong support for the Union as a result of the political climate developing in the state, known as “Bleeding Kansas.”

In February of 1861, Lyon was made commander of the Union arsenal in St. Louis, Missouri, where tensions grew between the Union soldiers stationed there and the secessionist governor of the state, Claiborne Jackson. When the Civil War broke out, Jackson refused to send volunteers from the state to fight for Abraham Lincoln. Instead, Jackson had the militia muster outside the city to begin training in preparation to join Confederate forces. On May 10, 1861, Lyon and his troops surrounded the pro-Confederate Missouri militia under General D. M. Frost, and forced their surrender. While marching his captured prisoners through St. Louis, many citizens began to riot, and provoked the Camp Jackson Affair, during which Lyon ordered his troops to fire into the rioters. On May 17, 1861, Lyon was promoted to brigadier general and was given command of Union troops in Missouri.