Confederate Military Figure. He gained recognition as an officer in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. Educated as a lawyer, he was practicing in St. Louis at the beginning of the war and supporting pro-secessionist groups. On May 10, 1861, days after the war started, he was involved with the Camp Jackson Massacre, where 28 civilians were killed by the Union Army under the command of Brigadier General Nathaniel Lyon. When he was captured, he refused later to be paroled. He joined pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard and was promoted to colonel before fighting against General Lyon's Union forces at Wilson's Creek, where Lyon was killed in action. After the August 10, 1861 battle, he defended Lyon's remains from Confederate soldiers, who planned to mutilate the body. In respect, he safely delivered the body with a military escort to Federal authorities. MacDonald's Missouri State Guard battery was transferred to the Confederate Army in January of 1862, and the unit saw action in the Battle of Pea Ridge and the Siege of Corinth. He continued to fight bravely in several other battles: The Battle of Cane Hill in November of 1862, the Battle of Prairie Grove in December of 1862, and other minor raids. At the Battle of Hartville, which was fought January 9–11, 1863, he received a gunshot wound to his thigh while attempting to retrieve a cannon and died from the wound. In respect, Union Forces allowed his body to be returned to his family but, without any heroic funeral, was buried in a Potter's Field grave. Later, his body was reinterred in Bellefontaine Cemetery.
Confederate Military Figure. He gained recognition as an officer in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. Educated as a lawyer, he was practicing in St. Louis at the beginning of the war and supporting pro-secessionist groups. On May 10, 1861, days after the war started, he was involved with the Camp Jackson Massacre, where 28 civilians were killed by the Union Army under the command of Brigadier General Nathaniel Lyon. When he was captured, he refused later to be paroled. He joined pro-Confederate Missouri State Guard and was promoted to colonel before fighting against General Lyon's Union forces at Wilson's Creek, where Lyon was killed in action. After the August 10, 1861 battle, he defended Lyon's remains from Confederate soldiers, who planned to mutilate the body. In respect, he safely delivered the body with a military escort to Federal authorities. MacDonald's Missouri State Guard battery was transferred to the Confederate Army in January of 1862, and the unit saw action in the Battle of Pea Ridge and the Siege of Corinth. He continued to fight bravely in several other battles: The Battle of Cane Hill in November of 1862, the Battle of Prairie Grove in December of 1862, and other minor raids. At the Battle of Hartville, which was fought January 9–11, 1863, he received a gunshot wound to his thigh while attempting to retrieve a cannon and died from the wound. In respect, Union Forces allowed his body to be returned to his family but, without any heroic funeral, was buried in a Potter's Field grave. Later, his body was reinterred in Bellefontaine Cemetery.
Bio by: Linda Davis
Inscription
Military Marker
Col Mo Cavalry
Confederate States Army
Gravesite Details
Besides his flat military marker, there is a huge upright granite marker with "MacDonald", marking the family's plot.
Family Members
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