Monday, 30th—We made all the citizens at this place take the oath; they have to take the oath not to aid or shelter those who are fighting against the Union. There are but few men left in this locality, they having enlisted, some of them in the Union army, but most of them with the South.
Diary of Alexander G. Downing; Company E, Eleventh Iowa Infantry
Sunday, 29th—I am staying at the tavern on account of having taken a severe cold. As we are here without the regimental surgeon, the captain marked me “not fit for duty.” The landlady is very kind to me and is helping break up my cold. The company had to clean up this morning for inspection.
Saturday, 28th—We had to send two patrols of five men each down the railroad track each way from the station. There is always some danger of the track’s being torn up by organized bands of the “secesh” in this locality.[1]
[1] William Dwiggans died of typhoid fever on this day, in the hospital at Jefferson City. His was the first death in Company E. He was a good boy and a dutiful soldier.—A. G. D.
Friday, 27th—We went into winter quarters here, and that with the intention of cleaning the “secesh” out of this part of the country. Our company is the only one here, and our captain is in command of the post. There are but few houses in this place, and we are quartered in a vacant storeroom, one-half the company upstairs, the other below. We who are below built our bunks on the counters, one on each side of the room. We keep two picket posts at night, ten men at each post, on the sides where the railroad enters. We also have a day patrol on the railroad.
Thursday, 26th—By orders Company E boarded the cars this morning for Lookout Station farther on, about twelve miles from California. I bade my bunk-mate, James Fossett, goodby at the hospital, where he is confined with inflammatory rheumatism. His suffering is something intense, and he is unable to turn himself in bed, but I left him in the hands of a good nurse.
Wednesday, 25th—This is a beautiful day, the snow having nearly all disappeared. The boys had a fine time today, this being our first Christmas experience in the army. There was no roast turkey with cranberry sauce and we all missed mother’s mince pies, cake and doughnuts. But we bought some pies and cakes of the citizens here, which with our regular army rations made a good dinner and something like a square meal. In the evening some of us boys went to the tavern to get our suppers, costing twenty-five cents apiece, and we had hot biscuit and honey in the bargain.
Tuesday, 24th—We raised a flag pole today and ran up the Stars and Stripes high in the air, amidst cheering and singing the old song, “Columbia.”
“Long may it wave,
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave !”
This afternoon we went over town and compelled all the secessionists to take the oath. Quite a number of the boys are sick with bad colds, the result of the hard exposure coming up on the stock cars the other night.
“…occupying vacant houses and storerooms and made all the ‘secesh’ skedaddle.”–Alexander G. Downing.
Monday, 23d—We arrived at California about sunup, almost frozen; it cleared off during the night and a cold northwest wind was blowing. Leaving the train we entered the several churches in town and built fires to warm by, Company E going into a Catholic church, where the sexton and his wife brought us some hot coffee. We then put into winter quarters, occupying vacant houses and storerooms and made all the “secesh” skedaddle. The companies in quarters here are B, E, G, K and H, under command of Lieut. Col. William Hall. We just learned why it was that we were rushed up here last night. It had been reported at Jefferson City that a train with “secesh” prisoners was to pass through this place today, bound for St. Louis, and that their sympathizers in this locality were planning a raid on the train to liberate the prisoners.
Sunday, 22d—It snowed all day, the snow falling in large flakes, and the weather is fast turning colder. I was detailed on camp guard and with my overcoat on walked my beat for two hours at a time. At about 4 o’clock in the afternoon five companies of our regiment received marching orders to go at once, and striking our tents we hastened down to the railroad station on the bank of the river, where we had to stack arms and wait four hours for the train. The weather by this time had turned intensely cold and we were compelled to build fires to keep warm, but no firewood was at hand. The boys spied a lot of canoes stored away for the winter under a warehouse; these we appropriated and had used up forty or fifty of them before our train finally came. When the train did come, we discovered to our dismay that it was made up of stock cars, bedded with straw. We boarded the cars at 8 p. m. and settling ourselves as comfortably as possible, with our rifles in hand started at midnight for California, Missouri.
Saturday, 21st—Nothing of importance today. I went on guard. There is some talk of making Jefferson City headquarters for the various detachments of the army within fifty miles of this place.
