Brigadier-General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

Mosby Monroe Parsons (May 21, 1822 – August 15, 1865) was a senior

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

of the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

who commanded

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...

in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. Parsons was murdered by Captain Dario Garza, at the head of a body of Mexican soldiers, on or about August 15, 1865, near

China, Nuevo León China is a municipality in the Mexican state of Nuevo León. China is approximately 60 miles northeast of Monterrey Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city ...

, Mexico.

Early life and career

The eldest child of Gustavus Adolphus Parsons and his wife Patience Monroe Bishop, Mosby Monroe Parsons was born in

Charlottesville, Virginia Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Ch ...

. When he was 13, his parents moved to

Cole County, Missouri Cole County is located in the central part of the U.S. state of Missouri. As of the 2020 census, its population was 77,279. Its county seat and largest city is Jefferson City, the state capital. The county was organized November 16, 1820 and n ...

. Two years later, they moved again to

Jefferson City Jefferson City, informally Jeff City, is the capital of Missouri, United States. It had a population of 43,228 at the 2020 census, ranking as the 15th most populous city in the state. It is also the county seat of Cole County and the principa ...

, which Parsons would thereafter make his home. As a young man, Mosby

read law Reading law was the method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship under the ...

and was admitted to the bar in 1846. He served as a volunteer in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

with the rank of captain in Colonel

Alexander W. Doniphan Alexander William Doniphan (July 9, 1808 – August 8, 1887) was a 19th-century American attorney, soldier and politician from Missouri who is best known today as the man who prevented the summary execution of Joseph Smith, founder of the Church ...

's regiment and was cited for gallantry at the

Battle of Sacramento The Battle of the Sacramento River was a battle that took place on February 28, 1847 during the Mexican–American War. About fifteen miles north of Chihuahua, Mexico at the crossing of the river Sacramento, American forces numbering less th ...

on February 28, 1847. Returning to Missouri after the war, Parsons married Mary Wells on September 18, 1850. However, his wife died just three years later, leaving him with an infant son, Stephen Kearney Parsons. Parsons served as the United States

District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a l ...

for western Missouri. In 1856, he was elected to the state legislature. He became a

Missouri state senator The Missouri Senate is the upper chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 34 members, representing districts with an average population of 174,000. Its members serve four-year terms, with half the seats being up for election every two yea ...

in 1858, serving until the American Civil War.

American Civil War

Parsons was appointed

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

in command of the Sixth Division of the

Missouri State Guard The Missouri State Guard (MSG) was a military force established by the Missouri General Assembly on May 11, 1861. While not a formation of the Confederate States Army, the Missouri State Guard fought alongside Confederate troops and, at various ...

. He arrived too late to participate in the skirmish at Boonville, but he went on to lead his division at

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classi ...

and the

Battle of Wilson's Creek The Battle of Wilson's Creek, also known as the Battle of Oak Hills, was the first major battle of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War. It was fought on August 10, 1861, near Springfield, Missouri, Springfield, Missou ...

in Missouri. Although his Missouri State Guardsmen participated in the

Battle of Pea Ridge The Battle of Pea Ridge (March 7–8, 1862), also known as the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern, took place in the American Civil War near Leetown, northeast of Fayetteville, Arkansas. Federal forces, led by Brig. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis, moved south ...

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

, Parsons was absent from this action seeking an appointment in the Confederate States Army in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

. Parsons was commissioned a brigadier general of the Confederacy on November 5, 1862, and led his infantry brigade in the

Battle of Prairie Grove The Battle of Prairie Grove was a battle of the American Civil War fought on December 7, 1862. While tactically indecisive, the battle secured the Union control of northwestern Arkansas. A division of Union troops in the Army of the Front ...

, Arkansas, one month later. His force would participate in the attack at Helena, Arkansas on July 4, 1863, and assisted Richard Taylor in thwarting

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Nathaniel Banks Nathaniel Prentice (or Prentiss) Banks (January 30, 1816 – September 1, 1894) was an American politician from Massachusetts and a Union general during the Civil War. A millworker by background, Banks was prominent in local debating societies, ...

' Red River Campaign of 1864 in

Louisiana Louisiana , group=pronunciation (French: ''La Louisiane'') is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It is the 20th-smallest by area and the 25th most populous of the 50 U.S. states. Louisiana is borde ...

(

Battle of Pleasant Hill The Battle of Pleasant Hill occurred on April 9, 1864 and formed part of the Red River Campaign during the American Civil War when Union forces aimed to occupy the Louisiana state capital, Shreveport. The battle was essentially a continuation ...

), as well as opposing Union Major General

Frederick Steele Frederick Steele (January 14, 1819 – January 12, 1868) was a career military officer in the United States Army, serving as a major general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was most noted for retaking much of secessionist Arka ...

Camden Expedition The Camden Expedition (March 23 – May 3, 1864) was the final campaign conducted by the Union Army in Arkansas during the Civil War. The offensive was designed to cooperate with Major-General Nathaniel P. Banks' movement against Shreveport. ...

in Arkansas, including participation at the

Battle of Jenkins' Ferry The Battle of Jenkins' Ferry, also known as the Engagement at Jenkins' Ferry, was fought on April 30, 1864, at Jenkins' Ferry, southwest of Little Rock (present-day Grant County, Arkansas), during the American Civil War. Although the battle en ...

. Parsons was appointed a major general by Trans-Mississippi Departmental Commander

Kirby Smith General Edmund Kirby Smith (May 16, 1824March 28, 1893) was a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded the Trans-Mississippi Department (comprising Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, western Louisiana, Arizona Territory and the Indi ...

on April 30, 1864, although his promotion was never confirmed by

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as a ...

Murder in Mexico

After the war's end, Parsons, like many other Missouri Confederates, chose to go to Mexico rather than return to Missouri. Parsons and three companions, including his brother-in-law, Capt. Austin M. Standish, Standish's orderly William "Dutch Bill" Wenderling and former

Confederate Congress The Confederate States Congress was both the Provisional government, provisional and permanent Legislature, legislative assembly of the Confederate States of America that existed from 1861 to 1865. Its actions were for the most part concerned w ...

man

Aaron H. Conrow Aaron Hackett Conrow (June 19, 1824 – August 15, 1865) was a Congress of the Confederate States, Confederate Congressman and soldier during the American Civil War. He was murdered by bandits after moving to Mexico after the war's end. Early ...

were murdered by Captain Dario Garza, at the head of a body of Mexican soldiers, on or about August 15, 1865, near

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Nuevo León Nuevo León () is a state in the northeast region of Mexico. The state was named after the New Kingdom of León, an administrative territory from the Viceroyalty of New Spain, itself was named after the historic Spanish Kingdom of León. With a ...

, as they were headed for Camargo Municipality,

Tamaulipas Tamaulipas (), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Tamaulipas), is a state in the northeast region of Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 Federal Entiti ...

. The bodies of Parsons and his comrades were buried in unmarked graves where they were killed. In 1868, Parsons' son (Kearny Parsons) and sister (Mildred Standish), along with the family of Aaron Conrow, sued the Mexican government via the U.S. and Mexico Claims Commission Convention. In 1875, a judgment in the amount of almost

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

50,000.00 in gold was awarded to each of the plaintiffs.

Honors

Camp No. 718 of the

Sons of Confederate Veterans The Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) is an American neo-Confederate nonprofit organization of male descendants of Confederate soldiers The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the militar ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, is named after him.

References

External links

Official
Mosby Monroe Parsons Papers
at the

Missouri Historical Society The Missouri Historical Society was founded in St. Louis on August 11, 1866. Founding members created the historical society "for the purpose of saving from oblivion the early history of the city and state". Organization The Missouri Historica ...

Other
Brig. Gen. Mosby Monroe Parsons Camp No. 718
of the

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Parsons, M. M. 1822 births 1860s missing person cases 1865 deaths 19th-century American lawyers 19th-century American politicians American lawyers admitted to the practice of law by reading law American exiles American expatriates in Mexico American military personnel of the Mexican–American War American refugees Burials in Nuevo León Confederate expatriates Confederate States Army brigadier generals Deaths by firearm in Mexico Democratic Party members of the Missouri House of Representatives Missouri lawyers Missouri State Guard Democratic Party Missouri state senators People declared dead in absentia People from Charlottesville, Virginia People of Missouri in the American Civil War People murdered in Mexico Refugees in Mexico Stateless people United States Attorneys for the Western District of Missouri