Scouts, Rangers, and Secret Services in the American Civil War

 O'Donnell, Patrick K.  The Unvanquished: The Untold Story of Lincoln's Special Forces, the 

          Manhunt for Mosby's Rangers, and the Shadow War That Forged America's Special 

         Operations.  New York: Atlantic Monthly Press, 2024.  ISBN: 9780802162861

 

How up are you on American Civil War History?  If you have read any histories, you have likely encountered Mosby, the Gray Ghost of Northern Virginia.  But what do you know of the Jesse Scouts?  The Blazer Scouts?  The various plots ran by the Confederate Secret Service out of Canada to burn down New York City, raise up an insurrection in the Midwest, and blow up the White House?  You didn't know about these?  Well then pick up The Unvanquished and dive into the heart of these operations!

 

 Patrick O'Donnell opens The Unvanquished with a preface and prologue linking the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) and their activities to the "shadow war" conducted by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War.  He then divides the book into three broad sections - Part I: The Jesse Scouts, Part II: The Confederate Secret Service, and Part III: Sheridan's Scouts and "Come Retribution."  While the headings provide some structure, the book basically starts in what is now West Virginia when Union General John Frémont brought the Jesse Scouts (named after his wife) from Missouri  in 1862 and turned them loose to scout ahead of his forces, conduct raids behind enemy lines, and deal with local guerrillas.  Under various names the Jesse Scouts played a role until the end of the war.  In northern Virginia, John Singleton Mosby formed his Independent Ranger Company to operate behind Union lines, raid supply trains, and disrupt anything and everything that he could.  In response to the Kilpatrick-Dahlgren raid that aimed to kill President Jefferson Davis and burn Richmond, the Confederate Secret Service tried to burn New York, raid Northern banks from Canada, promote dissent and rebellion in the Midwest, and sow discord.  They also worked on several schemes to blow up the White House, kidnap President Lincoln and other officials, and finally to decapitate the Federal government.  

 

While Patrick O'Donnell does a wonderful job of detailing the exploits of the various Jesse Scouts, Mosby's Rangers, and various members of the Confederate Secret Service, he doe not provide any sources that show a link between the ACW "shadow warriors" and the OSS or current special Forces.  Despite that caveat, if you want juicy stories of daring Civil War exploits, The Unvanquished is the book for you!