Series Review: Hell on Wheels

 

Hell on Wheels is a highly fictionalized version of the building of the Transcontinental Railroad that ran on AMC from 2011 to 2016. Americans had long envisioned a railroad line from the Atlantic to the Pacific. This would go a long way in connecting the East and West coasts and speed up settlement out west. For years the construction of such a railroad was held up by sectional disputes. Predictably Southerners wanted to go south and Northerners vice versa. When the Civil War broke out the absence of Southern clout in Congress removed any obstacles to beginning the railroad. The undertaking was so daunting that the government felt it had to support the Union Pacific, going west from Omaha, and the Central Pacific, going east from San Francisco. The two railroad companies also took much longer than planned to start as they sought further financial backing. Construction was rough, with obstacles ranging from high mountains to deserts to hostile American Indians. The railroad was completed, but both companies soon went bankrupt for their troubles, and practiced unethical shortcuts as they raced each other. The title of the show comes from the name for the Union Pacific’s traveling town, Hell on Wheels.

History is dramatic enough, but the show understandably takes it to another level. Foremost there are a lot more shootouts and murders (the latter was not unheard of). Let’s just say that certain happenings in the show would have been legendary fixtures of American memory if they really happened. The cast of characters is also quite colorful. Most are fictional and they explore all the different perspectives of western life. There are Irish immigrants, pimps, hookers, Mormon settlers, preachers, scheming businessmen and politicians, black laborers, American Indians, Chinese immigrants, etc.

Stand Watie's Raid and the Second Battle of Cabin Creek

 

This is the last of a series looking at the battles that involved the 1^st Kansas Colored Regiment. After their participation in the Camden Expedition (read here), they returned to garrison and fatigue duties. With a year still left in the war and their placement in war-torn Indian Territory, it was inevitable that they would experience more violence in some form. This occurred during a major raid of northern Indian Territory, conducted by Cherokee Colonel Stand Watie and the Texan General Richard Gano. This raid climaxed with an assault on a wagon train at Cabin Creek, the sight of a 1^st Kansas victory. Though this blog post is centered around the Second Battle of Cabin Creek, the 1^st Kansas was only present in two smaller, related incidents. The first was a fight and massacre at Flat Rock Creek and the second a brief encounter after the raid in which the infantry did not engage. For the historical background of Cabin Creek, I refer you to my post on the July battle there.

Back in Indian Territory, the men in the 1^st Kansas Colored found themselves working in hay collecting detachments. This hay fed the horses, mules, cows, and other animal essential for transporting supplies or providing food and milk. These detachments were constant targets of raids and many small fights ensued. In these casualty-light skirmishes, either the Federals drove off the mounted raiders with a few volleys or the Confederates got to the hay and set it on fire. Since the assailants came in small bands, the Federals were not prepared for any sizeable raiding force. This is one factor that would lead to disaster in September of 1864.[1]

 

Wagons for Indian Territory

Stand Watie

In three years of war, Indian Territory was in a bad place. Battles, raids, internecine violence, and theft had absolutely devastated the countryside. Most of the Indians still living in the warzone were soldiers themselves. The families of pro-Union soldiers sought refuge in Kansas and those on the other side went to Texas. Neutral Indians either tried to lay low or took refuge with the others. Thousands of pro-Union refugees remained in Indian Territory and clustered around Fort Gibson. This boosted the logistical drain on the Union’s Trans-Mississippi forces and necessitated continual supply runs. In the summer of 1864 the Arkansas River flooded, enabling steamboats to travel in. This was a swifter alternative to long, dragging wagon trains.[2]

Both sides found themselves in straitened circumstances, but the Confederates had the worst of it. Their morale throughout Indian Territory was at an all-time low. Desertions occurred at an alarming rate, and so many of the quitters were going over to join the Union side that one general groused it would be better to simply hunt them down and kill them as soon as they ran off. [3] Desperate to turn things around, Colonel Stand Watie, the head of the pro-Confederate Cherokees, had been pushing for a major raid since the start of the 1864. One officer, reporting the Indian’s request “to create a diversion with the enemy” between Forts Smith and Gibson, commented, “This has been a favorite expedition with Colonel Watie for some time.”[4]

Ten American Civil War Era Films to Watch

In contrast to some more recent wars, the American Civil War, despite its prominence in historical literature and television documentaries, has not prompted a slew of high profile films. The war was a popular film subject in the silent era, understandable since it was in literal living memory at the dawn of the 20^th Century. Afterwards, however, full-fledged Civil War films grew quite rare. The reason is that an accurate portrayal of events like the Battle of Antietam would require a lot of money and effort put into costuming, battle scenes, etc. This would not be an issue if there was a guaranteed audience. Many moviegoers have strong views on the war or little interest in historical dramas to start with, so spending tens of millions of dollars on a battle epic is a risky venture.

I make this a list of Civil War “Era” rather than Civil War films as my pool of selections is somewhat shallow. Numerous films tie into the war. Many, however, are home front dramas (adaptations of Little Women provide many examples). Still more are westerns, and these are either based on or inspired by Quantrill’s Raiders or use the war as a background for more typical genre staples like fighting Apaches or tales of personal vengeance. As with my list of ten World War II films to watch, I made my selections to cover various aspects of the Civil War Era rather than the actual top ten best movies. I will not include the two mini-series The Blue and the Gray and North and South. My super-quick summary is that the former has some cheesy production values but more relatable characters while the latter has much higher quality in costumes and battle scenes but much more over-the-top drama. I also will not list “relevant recommendations” but instead have a brief list of other films to check out with a quick summary/opinion.