Battle of Carthage

Friday, July 5, 1861

Battle of Carthage, originally published in Harper's Weekly. Courtesy of the Internet Archive.

Missouri secessionists achieve their first reversal of fortunes in the small Battle of Carthage on July 5. The Missouri State Guard under command of deposed Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson and former Governor Sterling Price holds its ground outside of Carthage, Missouri, against an attack by Union Colonel Franz Sigel. Despite the loss, Sigel is promoted to brigadier general a month later, and the Confederates' position in Missouri remains precarious.