Son of Margaret McCune & Thomas Cleaver, husband of 1) Sarah Kate Richards and 2) Roberta Dickey Clapper

Acknowledgement to the Ralls County Historical Society for the following:

JOHN STEPHEN CLEAVER; NO. 44 PERRY MO. "ENTERPRISE" AUGUST 10, 1916

Judge John S. Cleaver, the subject of this sketch, is one of our oldest County born citizens. On the 1st day of December in 1836 in Spencer Township, Ralls County, Missouri, he was born and has lived in the County all his life.
His father came from Kentucky to this state when a boy of 12 years and was the son of General Stephen Cleaver, who saw Military service in the War of 1812, under General Andrew Jackson. His mother was also from Kentucky and belonged to the well known McCune family of that State. The grandfather of Judge Cleaver, General Stephen Cleaver, came to Missouri in about 1816 and hence was among the heroic band of pioneers who paved the way for the splendid civilization we now enjoy. How much of privation and struggle those early days in the State demanded, we of today may never know. Sufficient is it, however that we are the fortunate inheritors of countless blessings from the pioneer fathers of this country.
Judge Cleaver received his education from the old time neighborhood schoolteacher and recalls James Gallagher as one of his teachers who taught in New London when he was a boy. But the most of the education which the boy Cleaver received and all others in his day, was that of the "University of Hard Knocks."
The old time school teacher was a hero in the civil life and to him more than to any other person, in our early social life, are we indebted beyond price, for the scholarship and wisdom which shaped and directed the course of events which molded this country into a great and mighty Nation. His task was a hard one, environed by innumerable difficulties, but how well he served his day and generation, is told in the story of the Republic's wonderful progress.
I count it one of the greatest of virtues to teach well and faithfully the youth of the land and this the pioneer teacher did, even better than he knew.
In the home of General Cleaver was held the first election in Pike County which then included the territory afterwards made into Ralls County. At this election, in 1820, Daniel Ralls, Enoch G. Matson and Dabney Jones were the judges. A public road, then called the "Three Notch Road," leading from St. Louis to Palmyra by way of Troy, Bowling Green and New London, was surveyed by the elder Mr. Cleaver and along this way the sturdy families from Kentucky, Tennessee and Virginia came to this part of the State. In 1849 the father of Judge Cleaver made an overland trip to California. The discovery of gold there about that time drew a great many Westward, undertaking great hardships and danger, to gather the glittering gold.
On his return from the West by way of New Orleans, he was induced to exchange his gold dust for paper money, as a matter of convenience and making his load lighter. Later he found that $1850 of the paper "money" was bad. The issue of paper "money" had become common and with little or no financial responsibility behind it. Publications called "Detectives" were circulated among the people for the purpose of keeping them posted as to the standing of the "Banks of Issue" but it frequently happened that between the printing of the "Detective" and the drying of the ink in printing that a "Bank was at the wall."
These "Wild Cat Banks" soon went the way of the worthless, but not without taking much of the peoples money with them.
In 1860 Mr. Cleaver gave his first vote for President to Stephen Arnold Douglas, the "Little Giant of the Prairie State." The States right theory advocated by Mr. Douglas appealed to the young man Cleaver, as they likewise did to many others in Missouri, which State gave its electoral vote to Douglas that year. On the coming of the Civil War, Mr. Cleaver joined the "Home Guards," called out by Governor Claiborn F. Jackson, and later joined the regular Confederate Army, under General Sterling Price and became part of the 1st Missouri Brigade, commanded by General Francis M. Cockrell. Mr. Cleaver was then a young man, in his twenty-fifth year, offering his life upon the Altar of his country; willing to do, to dare and to die, if needs be, for that which he believed to be right. It was a task for this young man as it was a task for thousands of others in the State, to leave the old flag and fight under a new one, but they did and under the most solemn conviction that liberty and self-government demanded the service. It is hard for us of today to fully realize the situation that confronted the people of Missouri in the early days of the Civil War. Public sentiment was very near equally divided in the State. The vote for Douglas was 58,801, for Bell and Everett, 58,372, for John Breckenridge 31,317, for Mr. Lincoln, 17,028.
The State gave to the Union Army 109,000 men and about the same number to the Confederate Army.
In many respects the Presidential election of 1860 was the most remarkable in the history of the Republic; remarkable for the events which preceded and attended, as well as those that followed it. It is destined, therefore, long to live in our public annals, with the freshness and vigor of a new event. Into this political event, with the slavery controversy, the passage of the Personal liberty bills in Congress, the Kansas and Nebraska trouble, and the John Brown raid on Harper's Ferry, the young man Cleaver cast his maiden vote.
The very atmosphere about him was scorching hot with passion and impending conflict was rapidly coming on. The dark and ominous clouds of war were obscuring the sunshine of the Christian religion and the snarling dogs of strife were tugging at their chains of restraint destined soon to be loosed and turned as ferocious monsters of destruction among the people. Families divided and kindred threw themselves in deadly conflict against one another. The like of which our Country has never seen before, and it is to be fervently hoped, will never be the case again.
On the 10th of August 1861, occurred the battle of Wilson's Creek, ten miles Southwest of Springfield, in Green County, Missouri.
The engagement at that place came about at the urgent request of General Price. Price and his men were eager to meet General Nathaniel Lyon, who was in that part of the State with a detachment of Federal troops. He had a short while before captured Camp Jackson, near St. Louis, and drove the Governor and all his followers out of Jefferson City, had pushed Price at Cow Skin Prairie, Boonville and Dug Springs, and was still after Price. General Benjamin McCulloch, had come in from Arkansas and was with Price and advised that the Confederate forces get out of the State and out of Lyon's way. Price was a Major General and McCulloch only a Brigadier. McCulloch thought he out ranked Price because of better recognition by the authorities at Richmond, Virginia, and that his advice should be followed. One day Price rode up to the tent of McCulloch, and said to the latter, "Do you mean to attack Lyon?" McCulloch answered by saying "that he had not received permission to do so from President Davis. My instructions leave me in doubt as to whether I will be justified in doing so." "Now Sir," said Price in a loud and urgent tone of voice, "I have commanded in more battles than you ever saw, General McCulloch, I have three times as many troops as you have, I am your senior and am higher in rank than you are, but I will waive all these rights and will march with you and obey all your orders and give you the whole command and all the glory to be won if you will attack Lyon." A little word was received from Richmond, ordering McCulloch to march to the attack of Lyon, but he was still dilatory and all the while of this parley between Price and McCulloch, as to what should be done, on the early dawn of the morning of August 10th, and while the rebels were eating breakfast, Lyon, who was thought to be miles away, was right upon them. Mr. Cleaver says that he was eating his breakfast, with his comrades, one of whom was J.P. (Deek) Watson, of New London, when the order rang out "to get in line," which was done in a hurry and the battle was on. In this engagement, the most sanguinary in Missouri, General Lyon was killed. "He had gotten", says Mr. Cleaver, "between the lines and at one time a Confederate was about to shoot Lyon when a comrade jerked the gun down, saying that ‘he was one of our officers' but a little while after this the true nature of General Lyon was discovered and he was shot. But not until after the battle was it known for sure that Lyon was killed. Then in gathering the dead for burial we found papers in his pocket which told the story that he was General Lyon. The word went round and Mrs. John S. Phelps, near whose home the battle was fought, learned of the death of Gen. Lyon and had the body buried on her premises. I helped to bury Gen. Lyon. A little later an undertaker from St. Louis by the name of Lynch came at the instance of friends of the dead General, and had the body taken up and placed in a casket for shipment to St. Louis. The undertaker let the men fill the casket with letters to home folk which he promised to mail from St. Louis. This was the method taken to get letters through the lines to folk at home." More than 12,000 on each side killed and wounded was the awful toll of this battle of the Ozarks.
The death of General Lyon was a heavy blow to the cause of the Union. He was a most remarkable man. To him is the credit for the failure of the State to secede. His prompt action and wise movements frustrated the effort of secession on the part of the Jackson administration.
Early on the morning of September the 12th, 1861, Lexington in Missouri was attacked by the Confederates under General Price. The town was under the command of Colonel James A. Mulligan, who had a force of about 2,000 men. In anticipation of the attack Mulligan fortified on Masonic College Hill, Northwest of the city. On this hill was a large brick building built by the Masons for a college, this Mulligan occupied.
His men had dug great ditches outside the building and otherwise endeavored to make their stand secure. They soon grew short of ammunition and Price having cut off their water supply, the garrison soon became hard pressed. General Price knew their condition and for humanities sake sent a summons for surrender to Col. Mulligan, but the intrepid Irish Colonel answered, "If you want us, come and take us," and they did. "At this battle," says Mr. Cleaver, "we rolled up wet bales of hemp and fired from behind them, doing much damage." The fall of Lexington coming so soon after the battle of Wilson's Creek, was a most hopeful event for the cause of the South and troubled the authorities at Washington, for fears were entertained that General Price would march to Jefferson City and take the State Capital. But on the last day of September 1861, Generals McCulloch and Price went South into Arkansas, where the battle of Pea Ridge was fought in March 1862 and General McCulloch killed. Price was wounded there.
These three generals had been comrades in the Mexican War each had rendered distinguished service. General Price was the oldest of the three, 52 years at this time, McCulloch 50 years and Lyon 42. Gen. Price had been Speaker of the Lower House of the Missouri Legislature, Governor of the State and had represented his district in Congress and was known by his men as "Pa Price" all of whom loved him as a brother.
"Soon after the battle of Lexington," says Mr. Cleaver, "I got a furlough and managed to make a visit home and back again to my command. From Missouri we went South and I was with Price at the battle of Iuka, Miss., in the latter part of September 1862 where both sides lost heavily. In this battle Captain Thompson Alford, now of Vandalia, was severely wounded and suffers from that wound yet. We lost General Little there At (sic) Iuka Gen. Grant sent Gen. Rosecrans with about 20,000 men and orders to destroy Price's army. In this he failed as did all others who tried that job. In the latter part of 1862," continued Mr. Cleaver, "we were at Vicksburg, Miss., under the command of General Pemberton, also a Mexico War veteran, where General Grant began his siege of the place along in May of 1863.
"We had about 18,000 men all told, while Grant had at least 70,000. Early in the siege General Johnston had sent word to Pemberton to leave the place, if he could, and escape with his men but this Pemberton could not do, even if he wished to do so so tightly was he hemmed in by the forces under Grant and Sherman. Well, we fought them until our supplies gave out and the last mule was eaten, then on the 4th of July 1863 we surrendered to Grant. For 47 days we held out contending all the time. So close some of the time that when the feds threw over the works, hand bombs at us, some of our men would run and pick them up before they exploded and hurl them back where they would go off among the feds. The garrison was paroled and allowed to go free. I saw General Grant at the time of the surrender and was very favorably impressed with him. His terms of surrender were indeed liberal." At the close of the War, Judge Cleaver returned home. He had given four years of his life to the cause of the South, and like thousands of others, only ceased to fight when they were utterly starved out and all tattered and torn beyond longer endurance. Every time a man was lost to the Northern Army, a half dozen or more were ready to take his place, but not so with the South. Every time a man fell there was just one man less and there was none to take his place. On coming home Mr. Cleaver settled on a farm South of Perry and began farm life anew. We of today do not realize the frame of mind of the returned rebel soldier, after the war when all the world seemed but one huge funeral pall. They had fought like Spartan heroes the whole four years through and had the utmost confidence in the justness of their cause. All that human prowess could do they did, but the fates were against them. Mr. Cleaver says now that time has proven the settlement to have been right; that dismemberment of the Union would have doomed the Republic and that the doctrine of secession was undoubtedly wrong.
In 1896 Mr. Cleaver was elected Judge of the County Court from the Western District and served on the County bench four years. This is a hard place to fill and but few men leave the position as popular as when they enter it, but it can be truthfully said that Judge Cleaver came off the County Bench more popular than when he went on. His uniformly kind and courteous conduct toward all who had business in the court endeared him to our people.
About the year 1886 he joined the Christian congregation at Lick Creek Church and all the years since has lived a practical Christian. Some thirty five years ago he joined Perry Lodge No. 302, A.F. and A.M. He has been Master Mason in this Lodge and has taken several degrees in Masonry. In his youth he heard that Master Pulpit Orator, Alexander Campbell preach and thinks that he was a great divine.
He also heard Elder Winthrop H. Hobson many times and liked him as a man and preacher very much. He also heard Thomas Hart Benton and says that Benton was the most sarcastic speaker he ever heard. Few men could excel Benton in debate on political matters.
He remembers James S. Green, the great Missouri Senator, whom had he not given way to drink would have been the peer to any man that ever sat in the Senate of the United States. He knew A.W. Lamb and William Newland, two leading Anti-Benton Democrats. Mr. Newland enjoys the distinction of being the first man to hold a seat in the Lower House of the State Legislature for three terms. Mr. James O. Allison, the second one and Drake Watson will be the third one in the history of the County.
In later days he heard John A. Brooks, the fearless temperance orator and mighty man in many respects. The Brooks family were all heroes and to one of the younger set, Crayton S. Brooks, belongs the honor of setting on foot the great tidal wave of reform which came over the State during the administration of Governor Joseph W. Folk, the like of which was never known here before and the fruit of which is still to be seen. Crayton S. Brooks started the crusade in Jefferson City against the Sunday saloons and gambling dens. His sermons got in the Legislature and moved the House to appoint a Committee to investigate the "preacher's charges." That investigation unearthed graft on the "Alum Bill" and turned the all seeing eye of Gov. Folk on the Missouri Senate and the Sunday saloons. These had to go throughout the State and a better day for Missouri was ushered in.
In 1869, he was married to Miss Katie Richards. To this union there were born three children, of whom only two are living, namely Benjamin and Harry, Maggie Lee died some years ago. Benjamin has made good as a preacher and Harry as an up to date farmer. Mrs. Cleaver, their mother died some twenty five years ago. Judge Cleaver was married again, this time to Mrs. Roberta Clapper, who died about ten years ago. To this last marriage four children were born, Katie, Bessie M., John and Ruth.
A few years ago Judge Cleaver attended the great gathering of the Christian Church at Los Angeles and also at the time visited San Francisco and Portland. He enjoyed the trip very much.
Personally I want to say in this article that Judge Cleaver is a good citizen. A man that through all the trials of a long life has carried his heart in his hand and has regarded honor above all else in the world. Such men help our faith in one another and in our God, more than the most eloquent sermon ever preached. It is an error to suppose that a man belongs to himself. No man does. Our social conditions are such that no man lives to himself. He belongs to his family primarily then to his relatives and to society in some form or another. He is answerable to all of these for his conduct, and should always recognize his private and public duties. Every man is valuable to himself and society when he responds to duty, as fully as he can, and lends every effort to better conditions about him. John G. Holland said, "that it is not a question of how much a man knows, but what use he makes of what he knows; not a question of what he has acquired or how he has trained, but of what he is and what he can do." The test of every religious, political or educational system, is the sort of men which these influences produce. Tried by all of these tests and rules or character Judge Cleaver measures up to the standard of a splendid man. Jails and penitentiaries and criminal Courts are not made for such as Judge Cleaver. The great burden of criminal costs constantly borne on the shoulders of Industry, is not on account of men such as Judge Cleaver. How much better would the world be if all men would live such lives.
I honor all such men and thank my God that I know many of them.
I gladly write this of Judge Cleaver and kindly speak while the heart can feel and the ear hear what is said.