Arkansas Peace Society - James Claiborne McNair

 Arkansas Peace Society / Federal Raids on Burrowville Historical Marker

Now..what is interesting is that in Oct 2020, I learned of James Claiborne’s resistance to the civil war, which is mentioned in the last paragraph of the story.  The rest of the story is as follows:

SOURCE: From: Arkansas Historical Quarterly (Spring, 1958) page 83

Arkansas Peace Society

In the mountain counties of North Arkansas in the fall of 1861, secret organizations were formed for self-protection and apparently to resist Confederate authority. Total membership in the organizations was estimated at 1700 and was concentrated in Searcy, Marion, Carroll, Izard, Fulton, and Van Buren counties. In these counties and perhaps in several others, the local units of the Arkansas Peace Society were quickly suppressed by extra-legal citizens committees acting with the county militia units and with justice of the peace courts. Many of the arrested members were forced into Confederate service either by local citizens committees or by the state military board at Little Rock. Some were tried for treason in Confederate circuit and acquitted. Many of those forced into Confederate service deserted and joined the Federal army. Only a part of the records relating to the Peace Society survived, but they are sufficient to show the scope and nature of the organization. Surviving documents contain the names of 240 members and suspected members. Of these, 181 were located in the United States census manuscript schedules, 1860. An analysis of that record revealed that of the 181, 115 were born in Tennessee, 13 in North Carolina, and 11 in Arkansas. The leadership of the movement was also predominantly Southern-born. Six preachers among the leaders seem to have been especially influential. The brotherhood was indigenous, composed of mountaineers who had no intention of going to war on either side and who wanted to be left alone. There could of course be no neutrality, and the members were forced to take sides. (then there was a list of names)

MEMBERS OF THE PEACE SOCIETY 1861

There was a complete listing of names. Among them was the name James Claiborne McNair and Claiborne Manes.