The Battle of Wilson's Creek struck a chord so I did a looksee into my family history. Recently a distant cousin sent notes on a family history by a Luther Slavens. In 1861 Luther Jones SLAVENS was not quite 12. Many years later as a man in his seventies, Luther wrote up a family history dedicated to his father,Dr. James Hervey SLAVENS. After the Battle of Wilson Creek, Luther's Unionist family,headed by the 52 yr. old dad packed up and headed north by covered wagon first to Jefferson,MO then on to Illinois, finally ending up in Putnam County,Indiana. Dr. James had already been making trips to Springfield to check on what the Dallas Home Guard should do. This covered wagon party had several wives and childre,including a three month old baby. Most members of the family had been born and raised in Missouri,so they were heading for unknown territory. Dr. James was born in Kentucky but had lived in Missouri for 30 years. The older sons all were later involved in the armed struggle. " Soon after it became apparent that the dreaded war had become a reality, preparations were made by the loyal men of Buffalo and Dallas County for the defense of their homes and beloved country. In these preparations, my father and all of my brother took an active part. A regiment of home guards was organized and some of the officers of the reigment were William B. EDWARDS, Colonel; Milton BURCH, Major, and Zenas L. SLAVENS, adjutant. I do not positively remember who was Lieutenant Colonel but think it was MCVEY. Companies of this regiment had been enlisted in various parts of the county. Of the company enrolled at Buffalo, John R. KELSO was elected Captain and my brothers Bud and Tom were privates in this company. During the time the organization known as the Dallas County Homeguards was being effected, I think Father made several trips to Springfield to confer with the federal authorities at that place relative to the cooperation of the Home Guards with the regular United States forces then being mobilized there by General Nathaniel LYON. For several weerks after the regiment of Home Guards was organized they were trained daily in military tactics by Colonel EDWARDS, who, I think, had been an officer in the Federal Army during the Mexican War. The Home Guards had no uniforms, but were clothed in ordinary civilian garb and were armed with various kinds of fire arms such as muzzle loading reifles and shot guns and a few army muskets, relics probably of some former war. Many of them had powder horns and shot pouches in which to keep their supplies and molds to make bullets of bar lead. The early part of the summer of 1861 passed in Buffalo under a state of great excitement. The Unionists were arduously endeavoring to make such preparations as they could in order to be ready to do their duty to the government when the time for action should come and to engage effectively in the war. It was generally believed that an engagement between the Union and Confederate armies would occur soon, somewhere in Southwest Missouri......it was learned through Union scouts, that the confederate forces commanded by General Benjamin McCullough and General Marmaduke were concentrated in a large army in Northern Arkansas and were marching in the direction of Springfield..... On the 9th day of August 1861, the Dallas County Home Guards left Buffalo under orders to march without delay to Springfield. On the 10th day of August 1861, the Battle of Wilson Creek was fought about 10 or 12 miles southwest of Springfield. The Dallas Home Guards had reached Springfield some time the night before the battle, but as they were untrained, without uniforms, and poorly armed, it was thought best by authorities at Springfield that they were unfit for effective service .....they were held at Springfield to assist in the defense of the town.... All day on August 10th at Buffalo we could hear the distance booming of the cannon and we knew a battle was being fought, probably at or near Springfield.The Dallas County Home Guards were believed to be with the Union forces....there was great anxiety among those in Buffalo who had relatives gone...among whom were my brothers, Dolph, Bud and Tom....a sleepless night was spent by many mothers, wives, sisters and other relatives... It was generally believed that the confederate forces would overrun the whole country adjacent to Springfield and Union men would be killed or made prisoners and probably conscripted into the Confederate Army and their property destroyed or confiscated and hasty arrangements....were made to prepare ways of transportation and seek a safe refuge. Father had a good covered wagon and four horses, the extra horses at our Webster County farm, having been brought to Buffalo, and on the morning of August 12th some of our household goods were loaded into the wagon, two..horses were hitched.....and all of us except Bud and Tom, who rode the other horses, got into the wagon,sadly left our good home and started on our sorrowful journey and became refugees seeking safety in some northern state.... Our first days travel after leaving Buffalo was in a northeastern direction on the public road from Buffalo to Linn Creek...The first night on the road we stayed with a Mr. VINCENT and his family on Prairie Hollow, near where the town of Macks Creek later was founded....we passed a place called Moulder's Cave..Mr MOULDER who lived there had some fine watermelons...That evening we arrived at Linn Creek and camped for the night on a hill near the large store building of Joseph W. MCCLURG....The next morning we crossed the Osage River on a ferryboat accompanied by Uncle Lucius [ROUNDTREE] and other Union men..."