Missouri Constitutional Convention of 1861–1863 facts for kids

The Missouri Constitutional Convention of 1861–1863 was an important meeting held in Missouri during the American Civil War. This convention was chosen in early 1861. Its first big decision was to vote against Missouri leaving the United States.

When fighting began between the pro-Confederate governor, Claiborne Fox Jackson, and Union forces, the convention stepped in. Union soldiers took over the state capital. The convention then created a temporary state government. For several years, it acted like the state's law-making body. This convention never wrote a new constitution. That job was given to a new convention, which was elected in 1864.

Missouri's Constitutions: A Quick Look

Missouri has had four main constitutions, which are like rulebooks for the state:

• 1820: When Missouri first became a state.
• 1865: After the Civil War ended.
• 1875: At the end of the Reconstruction period.
• 1945: After some big political changes in the state.

The 1820 constitution said that major changes needed a special meeting called a convention. When people started talking about Missouri leaving the Union, the state's legislature, the Missouri General Assembly, decided this was a huge change. They felt they couldn't decide it alone. So, they called for a special convention.

The bill to call the convention passed on January 17. The election for delegates was set for February 18. Three delegates were chosen from each state senate district, making 99 in total. An important rule was added: if the convention decided to leave the Union, the people of Missouri would have to vote on it. This rule passed by only two votes.

Who Wanted to Join the Convention?

Three main groups wanted to send their people to the convention:

• Secessionists: This group wanted Missouri to leave the Union right away. They wanted to join the Southern states, like South Carolina.
• Unconditional Unionists: These people were against leaving the Union at any time. They wanted Missouri to stay with the United States no matter what.
• Conditional Unionists: This group didn't want to leave the Union right away. But, they were willing to consider it if problems about slavery weren't solved in a way that helped the slave states.

The two groups who wanted to stay in the Union (Unconditional and Conditional Unionists) won almost all the seats.

At this time, both the outgoing governor, Robert Marcellus Stewart, and the new governor, Jackson, said Missouri should stay neutral. This meant they didn't want to pick a side between the Union and the Confederacy.

First Meeting of the Convention

The convention first met on February 28, 1861, in Jefferson City, the state capital. Most of the 99 delegates, 82 of them, were born in states where slavery was allowed, like Virginia and Kentucky.

On March 1, the delegates chose former governor Sterling Price as their leader. He was a conditional Unionist.

The convention then moved and met again on March 4 in the St. Louis Mercantile Library in St. Louis.

On March 19, the convention voted 98 to 1 against leaving the Union. They decided that Missouri had no good reason to break away. Instead, they wanted to work for peace and protect the rights of all states.

The convention also set up a committee to deal with relations with the federal government. Hamilton Rowan Gamble, an Unconditional Unionist, led this committee. The committee said that even though many Missourians felt close to the South, leaving the Union would be too dangerous.

They explained that if Missouri joined a new Southern group, it would be surrounded by Union states. This would put Missouri in great danger if any fighting happened. From a military point of view, leaving the Union would mean "utter destruction" for Missouri. They believed Missouri should stay in the Union. They also said Missouri should keep its friendly feelings for the Southern people, who were connected by family and friendship.

After this, the convention took a break.

Second Meeting: War Breaks Out

Missouri could only stay neutral if there was no fighting. But on April 13–14, Confederate forces attacked and captured Fort Sumter in South Carolina. The next day, President Abraham Lincoln said there was a rebellion. He asked states to send troops to stop it, including Missouri.

Governor Jackson said no to Lincoln's request. He argued that the U.S. Constitution didn't give the federal government the power to make war on states. On April 20, groups who wanted to leave the Union took over the U.S. Arsenal in Liberty, Missouri. Governor Jackson also planned to take over the St. Louis Arsenal. He called out the state militia and put officers who supported leaving the Union in charge. He even got cannons from the Confederacy.

Union forces, led by U.S. Army Captain Nathaniel Lyon, acted quickly. On May 10, they surrounded the militia and took them prisoner. This event is known as the Camp Jackson affair.

Because of this strong action, the General Assembly passed a military bill proposed by Governor Jackson. This bill reorganized the militia into the Missouri State Guard. Jackson made Sterling Price the commander of this Guard.

Price and General William S. Harney, the main Union commander in Missouri, agreed to a temporary peace called the Price–Harney Truce. This peace lasted until Lyon replaced Harney. Lyon then met with Governor Jackson and General Price. He told them they had one hour to leave the city. He said he planned to take control of the state from them.

Lyon then marched his soldiers to Jefferson City. They entered the state capital without a fight on June 15. The convention's leaders called a new meeting for July 22. Twenty of the original members were now with Jackson and Price, who was the first chairman. The pro-Union vice chairman, Robert Wilson, became the new chairman.

The remaining convention members declared that all of the state's elected offices were empty. They then appointed new pro-Union temporary officers. Some of these new officers were not even in the state at the time. These included:

• Governor: Hamilton Rowan Gamble
• Lieutenant Governor: Willard P. Hall
• Secretary of State: Mordecai Oliver
• Treasurer: George Caleb Bingham

The convention also said all offices in the Missouri General Assembly were empty. They ordered an election in November to fill these government and law-making positions.

The convention then ended its session on July 31.

Third Meeting: New Rules for the State

The constitutional convention met for the third time in St. Louis on October 10, 1861. During this meeting, they got rid of many state offices. They also cut the salaries of state workers by 20 percent. The planned state election was put off until August 1862. They also made plans for a new pro-Union state militia. Most importantly, they required all state officials to take a loyalty oath. This oath meant they had to promise to be loyal to the Union.

Fourth Meeting: Loyalty Oaths Expand

The convention held its fourth meeting in Jefferson City in June 1862. In this session, the convention made its loyalty oath apply to more people. Teachers, lawyers, bank officers, and preachers now had to take the oath. Voters also had to take it. This helped make sure that Union supporters would win future elections. For example, Lincoln got only 10.3% of the Missouri vote in the 1860 election. But he received 70% in the 1864 election.

In 1861, General John C. Frémont had issued an order to free slaves in Missouri. Lincoln canceled this order. He felt it was dangerous and would upset Union supporters in Missouri and Kentucky. In 1862, the convention tried to end slavery in Missouri, but they were not successful.

Fifth Meeting: Ending Slavery in Missouri

Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation declared that slaves in Confederate-held areas were free. But it did not free slaves in Union-held areas, like states that had not left the Union. The final meeting of the convention took place in June 1863. Its main goal was to end slavery in Missouri. A big problem was that the state's constitution said slave owners had to agree and be paid for their slaves. The state didn't have enough money to do this. So, the convention passed a plan for gradual emancipation with compensation. This meant slavery would end slowly, with owners getting paid. This process was planned to be finished by July 4, 1870.

The Constitutional Convention of 1865

This plan for gradual emancipation made the Radical Republicans very angry. They wanted slavery ended right away. They took their complaints to Lincoln, but he refused to pick a side. Provisional governor Gamble offered to resign, but the convention would not let him. He died in office on January 31, 1864.

Lincoln's lack of action bothered the Radicals. In the 1864 election, they nominated John C. Frémont for President, hoping to replace Lincoln. (Frémont later dropped out of the race).

The Radicals also arranged for elections for a new constitutional convention. In November 1864, the Radicals won two-thirds of the seats. This new convention elected Radical leader Thomas Clement Fletcher as governor of Missouri.

The 1865 convention met in the St. Louis Mercantile Library on January 6, 1865. On January 11, the convention voted 60 to 4 to end slavery in Missouri. Slave owners received no payment. A month later, the convention approved the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. This amendment would end slavery throughout the entire U.S. The convention also wrote a new constitution for Missouri. This constitution stayed in place until 1875.