Newtonia Taken
Newtonia
was a big battle in terms of the Trans-Mississippi and the victors were
enthused. A history of Shelby’s cavalry claimed that their victory “was
decisive.”[1]
This was hardly the case. While Salomon had been roundly beaten, his defeat did
nothing to halt Union operations. He had simply gotten far ahead of thousands
of other troops under his superior blunt and under Totten. The next day,
October 1, General Blunt arrived with reinforcements. Schofield also departed
Springfield and caught up with Totten’s division. Schofield took charge and
ordered Blunt and Totten’s divisions to converge on Newtonia with their 12,000
men. An attack was projected at dawn on October 4. Colonel Douglas Cooper, aware of the oncoming
Federals, called on General Rains for reinforcements. Rains said none could
arrive. On October 3 part of Shelby’s brigade rode out and captured a few pickets,
only to learn that Totten’s division was bearing down on them. On the same day
Rains ordered Cooper to withdraw from Newtonia.
Nearby at Granby, Major Buster, who had barely made it in time to participate in the battle of September 30, also encountered advance elements of the Union and put up a short fight before retreating to Newtonia. Buster could not find any superior officer and took command himself, ordering Howell to deploy. Shelby showed up and prepared a defense. The civilians who had found themselves in the center of the last fight heard what was coming and fled into the prairie with their valuables. As it turned out Shelby wisely decided to retreat and he and the others headed south. Thus the Confederates abandoned the town that they had fought so long and hard to keep just a few days earlier.[2] These events also undid the Confederate concentration in southwest Missouri. General Hindman now planned to collect his forces in Northern Arkansas and then return to its northern neighbor. In the meantime Blunt had his eyes on the Arkansas-Indian Territory border.
