Rebel John

The following poem was written by Ohio soldier J. Byron Lewis shortly after John H. Morgan was captured on the Indiana-Ohio Raid. I will not venture to say that Lewis is as talented as Lord Byron, it is still an interesting piece in which Lewis hoped to make an income supplemental to his private's pay. I have added some amplification notes to flesh out Lewis' work.

REBEL JOHN.

An Original Comic Song, founded on John Morgan’s Rebel Raid through the States

of Indiana and Ohio

By. J. Byron Lewis, a HIGH PRIVATE of the 115th O. V. I.[1]

TUNE – “John Anderson my Jo John.”[2]

John Morgan, you’re a burning shame

To every rebel State;

And never, John, will you have your dues

Until you lose your pate.

You’ve run the gauntlet long, John,

Within the sunny South,

Fine horses stole and fille your purse

And filled your rebel mouth.

You’re nothing but a robber, John,

Of Deepest, darkest dye;

And, if you say you aint, John,

I really think you lie.

And, when you crossed the river, John,

Into the Hoosier State,

I think that wit run very low

Within your rebel pate.

Or did you really think, John,

The Butternuts down there[3]

All breathed, just like yourself, John,

The tainted rebel air.

If so, you acted foolish, John,

In tramping on their toes,

By stealing their best horses, John,

And all their finest clothes.[4]

For, when you played those pranks, John,

And hopped into your saddle,

You know how wrathy they become

And how you did “skedaddle.”

Each seized at once his fowling piece,

His tomahawk and rifles.

To him it was a big thing, John,

To you, perhaps, a trifle.

No doubt, you cracked the shell, John,

(I deem it no great sin)

Of many a hard, old Butternut,

And let the daylight in.

For this I give you credit, John,

(No matter how ‘twas meant)

But think your sins will damn you, John,

Unless you soon repent.

You’re cunning as a fox, John,

And run almighty fast;

But Union boys are cunning too,

And you’ll be caught at last.

By thousands they are on your track,

And, John, upon my soul,

They soon will have your rebel head

Or make you hunt your hole.

Don’t think, because you crossed the line

Of Indiana State,

And passed so near Ohio’s Queen,

A city large and great,[5]

That you can run at random, John,

As in the sunny South;

For Union boys are bound to stop

Your raids, both north and south.

Three lengthy weeks they chased you, John,

From pillar back to post;

And all the while you flitted round

Just like a veery ghost.

You tried, at Buffington, to cross

Back into old Kentuck;[6]

But there you found the Union boys

Were full of fight and pluck.

I just have the news, John,

From old Columbian,[7]

That you are caught at last, John,

With all your rebel clan.

You’ve run the gauntlet long, John,

And raised sufficient hell;

But now Union boys are bound

To cage you up a spell.

You’ve torn up many a rail, John,

And kindled many a fire,

And should be hung as Haman was,[8]

If not a little higher.

You’d better say your prayers, John,

I’ll tell you Johnny, why;

For surely you’re not fit to live,

And much less fit to die.[9]

[1] The 115th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was organized at Camp Massillon, Ohio on September 1, 1862. Made up of men from Columbiana, Portage, and Stark Counties, the regiment was organized for a three-year term. Half the regiment would see service as provost guards in Cincinnati, guarding prisoners and forwarding convalescent Union soldiers back to their units. This portion of the 115th was involved in pursuit of John Morgan’s command during the Indiana-Ohio Raid. The regiment would muster out of service on June 22, 1865.

Joseph Byron Lewis was thirty-three when he joined the 115th. Lewis had been born in New Jersey prior to moving to Ohio. His work most likely was published very soon after Morgan’s capture in northeastern Ohio as there is no mention of Morgan’s escape from the Ohio State Penitentiary in November 1863. While stationed in Covington, Kentucky, Lewis sold his work for five cents a copy, with “a liberal deduction made to news dealers.” Lewis would serve his full term with the 115th. By 1890 he was living in South Point in Lawrence, County, Ohio, where he suffered from chronic rheumatism as a result of his service during the Civil War. He died in 1896 and is buried in White Cottage Cemetery in South Point.

[2] The poem “John Anderson my Jo” was written by Eighteenth Century poet Robert Burns. It was set to music and many a terrible version can be found on YouTube.

[3] While we typically think of the term “butternut” being used to describe Confederate soldiers, it was commonly applied to those living in the North who espoused southern sympathies. Northerners thought that southern Indiana would be very supportive of Morgan’s raid due to the reports of a strong “butternut” presence in that part of the state.

[4] Confederate soldiers did not hold butternuts in high regard. Butternuts were typically vocal in their denouncement of the Lincoln administration and its policies, but rarely took actions that would overtly support the Confederacy. Therefore, Morgan’s men took from the butternuts with the same zeal as they did pro-Union citizens.

[5] Cincinnati was known as the “Queen City of the West” and today is known simply as the Queen City. For more information on Cincinnati’s importance during the Civil War, see David L. Mowery’s Cincinnati in the Civil War: The Union’s Queen City (History Press, 2021).

[6] Here Lewis is referencing the Battle of Buffington Island (more accurately Portland Bottoms as the battle did not take place on the island). Lewis is a bit off on his geography as the ford at Buffington Island crosses into the newly formed state of West Virginia.

[7] Morgan and the remnants of his command were captured on July 26, 1863, in Columbiana County, Ohio.

[8] Haman’s story is covered in the Book of Ester. He was hung after Ester had informed her husband, King Ahasuerus, that Haman had planned to kill all the Jews in Persia. Ester herself was Jewish. Haman was hung from a 50-cubit-high gallows, the same one he had built to hang Ester’s cousin Mordecai. Fifty cubits is seventy-five feet.

[9] There were many who viewed (and still view) Morgan as a horse thief, murderer, and robber. His command did steal horses, there were murders of unarmed civilians on the Indiana-Ohio Raid, and banks were robbed on Morgan’s Last Kentucky Raid. At the very least we can say Morgan was not inclined to instill discipline.