New documents illuminate the Civil War legacy of A.T. Still, MD, DO

Recently uncovered documents have revealed new details about A.T. Still’s, MD, DO military service during the Civil War. These documents, found at the Kansas State Historical Society in Topeka, shed light on the founder of osteopathic medicine’s role in the Battle of Westport, one of the epic battles of the Civil War, as well as the complexities of his claim for a Civil War pension.

Joining the ranks

Dr. Still enlisted in the Civil War on the Union side in 1861. He served as a hospital steward in the 9th Kansas Cavalry, a captain in the 18th Kansas Militia and a major in the 21st Kansas Militia.

Dr. Still (or, as his soldiers knew him then, Major Still) and his older brother James M. Still, MD, went into battle together under the command of Col. Sandy Lowe, forming a lifelong bond. The 21st Kansas Militia protected the flank in the Battle of the Big Blue River, during which Major Still rode his mule into the fight, leading over 600 men. In military tactics, a flanking maneuver is executed in an attempt to surround the opposing force, and, in this case, the Kansas Militia was at a disadvantage, due to how undersized these troops were compared to the offensive Confederate cavalry.

Miraculously, he was neither wounded nor killed. Bullets were whizzing by, and even went through his jacket in two separate places without hitting him. Unfortunately, his mule went down after being grazed, and Major Still was trapped under the animal, which was lying on the lower half of his body while the battle continued to rage around him. He later recalled having severe pain in his lower abdomen, what he thought was likely a hernia.

Nevertheless, Major Still soon resumed leading his men after successfully getting out from under the mule. While this sounds much like a direct cause of injury, Major Still later learned it did not count as such after he applied for his Civil War pension and was denied. However, in 1890, he was awarded a pension for enlisted service as a hospital steward from 1861 to 1862.

Decisive battles

After the Battle of the Big Blue River, the 21st Kansas Militia repositioned to the Kansas River fords, again in a position to protect the flank for the main efforts that were proceeding to Westport in Kansas City. The Union Army, supported extensively by the militia, was about to turn this conflict into an all-out rout in the Battle of Westport.

On Oct. 23, 1864, Major Still and the 21st Kansas Militia were set up for battle. The soldiers had camped near the Kansas-Missouri border in present-day Shawnee Mission of Johnson County, Kansas, as a reserve force awaiting orders.

On that fateful day in October, the Battle of Westport began, and all mustered troops were called into action as Confederate Major Gen. Sterling Price’s raid through Missouri now pointed toward Kansas. The Battle of Westport was so important to the coming end of the Civil War that it eventually became known as the “Gettysburg of the West.” Newspaper accounts from that date describe Major Still as gallant, eccentric and fearless; he is credited with being an inspiration to his men.

After the Battles of the Big Blue River and Westport, the 21st Militia was ordered to disband on Oct. 28, 1864. These men had been rapidly pressed into a fighting unit, where they charged into mortal danger and protected the flank of the Union Army. Their efforts undoubtedly contributed to a victory over the Confederacy on the western front of the Civil War.

A shortage of documentation

Unfortunately, there is very little in the way of documentation of the 21st Kansas Militia. Recent research has uncovered that the reasons for this can be found in the Adjutant General’s Annual Reports and, more specifically, the Biennial Report of 1907-08, some 40 years after the Civil War concluded. The men of this militia were hastily assembled (and, later, disassembled). In fact, being on the frontier of the country, the military eventually ran out of paper to record the 15,000 men who were mustered for the war efforts.

Additionally, there were several intervening audits of the Price Raid (the Confederate effort to recapture Missouri in 1864, of which the Battles of Westport and the Big Blue River are a part) conducted by the legislature of the State of Kansas, including the most extensive by the Hardy Commission.

The 686 men of the 21st Kansas Militia are accounted for, but these reports were not published for many decades. Among those men are, of course, the Still brothers. The Report of the Price Raid Commission and Adjutant General’s Report were not widely read.

Correspondence about the fateful passage of time and attempts to reorganize the unit shed further light on the hasty nature in which the unit was mustered by the then-Governor of Kansas and disbanded in less than 30 days. Their roster of unit members was lost; many men were never accounted for, and many years were spent trying to find family members to collect their pay.

The headquarters of the Kansas National Guard, formerly the Kansas State Militia, recreated the payrolls of the Civil War units so that the State of Kansas could make claims for payment to the United States government. The final chapter of these claims was included in the Adjutant General’s Report in 1907, which included a carefully typed manuscript of the 21st Kansas Militia. This document reflects the unit as it was during the Battle of the Big Blue River in October 1864. Most shockingly, the document revealed that the men of this regiment were not paid until January 1870, nearly six years after the Battle of the Big Blue River.

Earning their dues

Major Still was paid $74.40 for 24 days of service and his brother James Still was paid $67.20 for 14 days of service. The only member of the field and staff to sign for his pay is the regiment’s commander, Col. Lowe.

In the decade following the Civil War, Dr. Still had many well-documented struggles. When Missouri began registering physicians by county, he was registered as a physician in 1874. In 1876, he contracted typhoid fever, leading to a long recovery period with many months of inability to practice medicine or provide for his family.

Dr. Still decided to file a claim for his Civil War pension on Nov. 20, 1877, but was forced to wait until 1890 (as previously mentioned) for the claim to be resolved, and it was ultimately denied. Dr. Still’s pension claim was denied on the grounds that it had been more than 10 years since the end of the war and the valid time period for submitting a claim had elapsed.

The delay in the publication of the unit’s payroll document also contributed to the postponement of Dr. Still’s pension. As Civil War-related claims are handled by the Department of the Interior rather than the War Department, revisions of law were required in order for veterans to submit pension claims. However, Dr. Still was later granted a Civil War pension for other service he provided during the war.

The newly uncovered documents regarding Dr. Still’s military service offer a compelling insight into the life of the founder of osteopathic medicine. We are able to witness firsthand his journey from hospital steward to captain to major, and his displays of bravery and leadership. For more information on Dr. Still’s awe-inspiring military service, please visit my website, atstilldo.com, or my YouTube channel.

Related reading:

Pioneers and progress: Celebrating 150 years of osteopathic medicine

Two historical artifacts reveal details about the start of osteopathic medicine