Home of the Brave

Written by Chris Livingston

Next year marks 150 years since the beginning of the Civil War, a confrontation that pitted brother against brother, tore families apart, and shook this nation to its very core. The New York newspaper Banner of Liberty prophesied as early as April 1861 that “the Tragedy is about to Begin!”

And while fathers, brothers, and husbands were eager to enlist, by war’s end they were ready for it to be over. As Franklin Warner, a private from Michigan observed in 1865, the year “has come and we do not know what this year will bring forth; oh may it bring the close of this war for I am getting tired of it—for I am tired of living such a life it is a dogs [sic] life to every soldier.” No place was immune to the effects of the war as it reached everywhere including California.

Soon after the war broke out, 17,000 Californians enlisted on the side of the Union. Most of those who enlisted were stationed in the west. California Volunteers occupied more territory in the west than the Union did in the east. They were stationed in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Kansas, Nevada, Utah, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming. Some, however, such as members of the California Cavalry, served with the Second Massachusetts Cavalry and fought in thirty-one battles, many of which were in the Shenandoah Valley.

One of the main functions of the California Volunteers was to protect gold shipments that were vital in keeping the Union Solvent. They were also tasked with protecting overland mail routes, putting down Indian uprisings, and keeping an eye on Southern Secessionists who were especially visible in the area. In order to carry out these missions, two camps were erected in the area to maintain order. The first, Camp Babbitt, was established June 24, 1862 about one mile from Visalia. Named after Colonel E.B. Babbitt, its primary mission was to keep an eye on Southern Sympathizers who permeated the area. Tulare County was almost entirely founded by Southerners, making the area a pro-Confederate hot bed. Also keep in mind that the area was below the 36-30 line established by the Missouri Compromise of 1820.

Camp Babbitt’s jurisdiction reached from Fort Tejon to Fresno County. On June 27, 1863, Lieutenant-Colonel William Jones, commander of the Second Cavalry of the California Volunteers, reported to Colonel R.C. Drum, the Assistant Adjutant General, Department of the Pacific that “unofficial information” came to his attention that there were “disloyal practices” going on in Millerton.

He suggests that Fort Miller be re-occupied with a company or detachment of cavalry. He believed that this presence would “have a moral influence upon their conduct toward the Government and its officers.” He also suggested that Fort Tejon be brought back to life and concluded his report by noting “the propriety of reoccupying Fort Tejon with a company of cavalry” because “it is also located in the midst of a disloyal people; also near hostile Indians, they having recently robbed and murdered several persons in Kelso Cañon and in Kern River Valley, which is within supporting distance of Fort Tejon.” Incidentally, Fort Tejon was abandoned at the onset of the war after its commander John W. Davidson left to fight in the east. Fort Tejon was reoccupied as advised in 1863 by California Volunteers.

Jones was referring to the “Indian problem” that came to a head in Kelso Canyon in April 1863. The “problem” erupted in late 1861 when Indians attacked some area ranchers and made off with some of their cattle. Colonel George Spafford Evans, who established Camp Babbitt and Camp Independence, was able to temporarily pacify the local Indians. Once the soldiers were out of sight, however, they went back on the warpath. Soon after, John Lee and Jose Grijalva had their freight wagon attacked leaving the two teamsters dead. This was the beginning of a series of Indian attacks in the Owens Valley.

In order to quell the violence, the army dispatched Captain Moses A. McLaughlin of the Second Cavalry California Volunteers to the area. He set out from Camp Babbitt on April 10, 1863 with forty-four men, four six-mule teams, and one twelve pound howitzer. The detachment traveled some 275 miles and arrived in the Owens Valley on April 24. He began his investigation with the residents of Keyesville. He was told by many that there were a “large body of Indians encamped upon the North Fork of the Kern River.” They indicated that many of them had been engaging in acts of violence all over the Kern River Valley including murder and cattle rustling. It was reported that “Roberts and Waldron had lost 150 head of stock.” Finally, the residents conveyed that they believed many of the Indians in question “were strangers in the valley” and were thought to be Tehachapi and Owens River Indians.

McLaughlin sought out Jose Chico, known to be an Owens River Indian Chief who was living on the Kern River as a farmer. After a lengthy interrogation, McLaughlin found that the “hostiles” were a renegade band of “Tehachapie” Indians, some of which were Owens River Indians, “who had endeavored to go to the war with them,” and that they were sleeping at the camp during the night and hiding out during the day.

McLaughlin advised Chico to remain with him for the evening and that they, along with some of the witnesses, would visit the camp in the early morning the next day. On April 19, 1863 at 2 a.m., McLaughlin and his detachment of soldiers, along with Jose Chico and the witnesses, headed for the Indian hideout which was ten miles from Keyesville. At dawn, the soldiers surrounded the camp. His feelings about this incident and his attitudes about Indians were indicative of the times. He notes “this extreme punishment, though I regret it, was necessary, and I feel certain that a few such examples will soon crush the Indians and finish the war in this and adjacent valleys.” He then goes on to challenge the trustworthiness of Indians and adds, “It is now a well-established fact that no treaty can be entered into with these Indians. They care nothing for pledge given, and have imagined that they could live better by war than peace.”

While McLaughlin and other California Volunteers were protecting the West, others, such as future Bakersfield residents Charles A. Gessie and Henry F. Condict were busy fighting “Johnny Reb” in the East. Gessie was the quintessential American Patriot. He enlisted as a seaman in the Union Navy and served on the U.S.S Clara Dolsen and the U.S.S. Cricket.

The battles on the rivers of America must have been exciting but perhaps not enough for Gessie. On October 7, 1864 at the age of twenty-eight, he enlisted as a private into Company I, 13th Regiment, of the Ohio Volunteer Cavalry. The very next day he was engaged in battle and would see nine more battles that culminated with the Battle of Appomattox Court House and General Lee’s surrender. Gessie died May 3, 1897 in Bakersfield and is buried at Union Cemetery.

Henry Ford Condict also was involved in the action. Born in New Jersey July 5, 1837, his family moved to the Illinois frontier when he was five years old. At the age of seventeen, he secured an appointment to the United States Naval Academy where he was the classmate of the famed Admiral Dewey. For medical reasons he was unable to complete his training forcing him to return to Illinois. In 1859, ventured to Northern California. With the start of the war, he returned to join the fight in the east.

Condict mustered into service on September 25, 1861, joining the First New Hampshire Battery and quickly saw action. He fought at the Second Battle of Bull Run, Antietam, Chancellorsville, and Fredericksburg. At Fredericksburg his unit was almost completely destroyed. This experience forced him to resign from the war. Not satisfied with his decision, he decided to re-join in the fight soon after he returned to Illinois. The men of Company H, Eighth Illinois Cavalry were eager to accept the new and experienced recruit and on June 3, 1863 Condict became one of the unit’s newest members. At the Battle of Gettysburg it was his regiment that fired the first shot. He ended his service to the Union on June 2, 1865 and returned to Illinois.

Condict decided to move back to California and by 1873 was in Bakersfield. He was quite the entrepreneur and served as the proprietor of the Stage Hotel and eventually established the C.O.D. Soda Works where he took up the business of quenching the thirst of area residents. He also dabbled in the oil industry and served as an agent for Standard Oil and had affiliations with the Paraffin Oil Company, Coalinga Peerless, and United States Oil Company.

They came from different backgrounds and fought on a variety of battlefields. Their common interest was the need to preserve the Union and perhaps their sense of adventure. Whatever the reason, after the interruption of war was over they returned to their lives and many of them migrated and settled in areas of opportunity such as Bakersfield.

Article appeared in our 27-4 Issue - October 2010