BIRTH AND EARLY HOME
FROM this, the time of our greatest war, we must drop back approximately
half a century to the time of our second greatest war. It is noteworthy
that General Pershing, our leader in the war for the world's freedom,
was born in the early days in the war for the negroes' freedom.
The future general first saw the light September 13, 1860, in or near
the little village of Laclede, Missouri. The lad was "from Missouri" and
the current semi-slang expression has certainly been true in his case.
One had to "show him," for he made up his mind, mapped out his own plans
and conducted his own studies and investigations. This characteristic
has remained with him to this day. The accepted date of his birth and
the house in which he was born are still matters of mild dispute among
the good people of the little village of Laclede. A friend of his
boyhood days says, "He was born in a section house about 3,000 yards
from the site of the old depot. The foundation is still there." But the
people of Laclede and Meadville, a nearby hamlet, are not a unit in this
detail, though all are heartily agreed and proud in their recollection
of the lad who since has made the little hamlet famous.
"Grandma" Warren (Mrs. Louisa D.) through her daughter sends the
following contribution to this mooted question:
"My mother states that in the spring of 1859, the
General's father and mother, then recently
married, came to board with her father, Meredith
Brown, who resided about two and one-half miles
east of Meadville, Mo. My mother, then a widow,
was living at the home of her father and was
associated with the Pershings that summer.
"In the fall of the year the Pershings moved to a
house of their own about a half mile west of the
Brown home and this is the place where the General
was born. The tract of land on which the house
stood is now owned by John Templeman and is the
north 1/2 of Sec. 5, T'wp 57, range 21, Linn Co.,
Mo. The house in which the General was born was
destroyed by fire during the Civil War. Mother
was present at the General's birth and dressed him
in his first suit.
"From the house where the General was born they
moved to what was known as the 'Section House,'--a
house built for the section foreman of the
railroad. This house was located about two miles
west of Meadville on the Hannibal and St. Joseph
R. R., now the Burlington.
"During the time from 1859 and a few years later,
the senior Pershing was section foreman on this
road. At the last mentioned place of residence the
second child was born.
"After a few years' residence at the section
house, the family moved to Laclede, Mo., seven
miles east of Meadville. At this place the father
engaged in mercantile business, continuing in the
business for a number of years. My mother visited
at the Pershing home at this place frequently.
After leaving Laclede, mother lost communication
with them.
"The citizens of Meadville and vicinity have in
the course of construction at the present time a
large sign to be erected at the birthplace of the
General. My mother is now in her 85th year.
"The place of the General's birth is near a small
stream known as Hickory Branch and the community
along this stream is known as the Hickory Branch
Community. In closing, I wish to pay my respects
to the General: John J. Pershing, the baby,
belongs to Hickory Branch. John J. Pershing, the
man, belongs to the world.
"Yours truly,
"E. S. WARREN."
[Illustration: The Home of the Pershings, Laclede, Missouri.]
It is not strange if seven cities contended with one another for the
honor of being the birthplace of Homer that two small villages in
Missouri are divided in their claims for a similar honor in the case of
the present foremost American soldier. As to the merits of the contest
it is impossible to pronounce judgment at this time. The General himself
has only hearsay evidence of the exact locality of his birth, though
there is no question as to its having taken place in Linn County,
Missouri, and that his boyhood was passed in the village of Laclede.
The General's father, John P. Pershing, a short time before the birth of
his oldest child (the general), came from Westmoreland County,
Pennsylvania, and went to work as a section foreman on the Hannibal and
St. Joe Railroad. He was a forceful man, of energy and ambition, and it
was not long before he was running a general store and at the same
time was postmaster of the village. A man now living, who worked for the
General's father in both the general store and post office, has this
tribute to pay to his one time employer: "He was a very active business
man with wonderful energy, strictly honest, never stooped to a dishonest
trick; a pronounced man in the community; the leading business man. He
liked to make money. He lost two fortunes on the Board of Trade,
Chicago. He traveled several years out of St. Joseph, probably one of
the best paid men. He later left St. Joe for Chicago, where he was
traveling salesman for another firm. He made many business ventures--was
something of what to-day is called a promoter.
"He was a man of commanding presence. He was a great family man, loved
his family devotedly. He was not lax and ruled his household well."
The older Pershing was insistent that his children should be able to
meet the difficulties in life that must be overcome before success can
be won. The value of regular habits of appreciation of the things worth
while, was his hobby and he taught by example as well as by precept.
Hard work was essential. Therefore hard work must be undertaken and
done, and he began early to train his three boys and three girls, who of
the nine that were born to him grew to maturity. His creed included the
precept that it is well to learn to bear the yoke in one's youth. Every
Sunday the Pershing family were seen on their way to the little
Methodist church of which the father and mother were members, Mr.
Pershing at one time being superintendent of the Sunday School. He is
reported also to have been a local preacher. He was one of the founders
of his church.
A neighbor writes, "When the Civil War broke out, the elder Pershing
left the railroad and became the regimental sutler of the old 18th Mo.
Reg. Infantry. Later he engaged in merchandising and farming with
success, but was caught in the panic of 1873. About 1876, he went to
work for I. Weil & Company of St. Joseph, Mo., as a traveling salesman,
selling clothing, and later for a big Chicago house. The family lived at
Laclede until about 1886, at which time they moved to Lincoln, Nebraska,
where two of the daughters now reside. General Pershing's father and
mother are both dead.
"The Pershing family were zealous church people. John F. Pershing was
the Sunday School superintendent of the Methodist Church all the years
he lived here, I think, or until he commenced to work for I. Weil & Co.
Every Sunday you could see him making his way to church with John (the
general) on one side and Jim on the other, Mrs. Pershing and the little
girls following along. The family was a serious loss to the Methodist
church when they moved away from here."
Throughout his life there was an air of seriousness under which the
future general was brought up. Doubtless from his earliest days the
impression that if he was to do anything worth while he must first be
something worth while, consciously or unconsciously influenced the life
of the son of the father, who was eager to have his children secure the
best education within their power to obtain and his ability to give. At
all events, the General's life-plan seems to have been to get ready,
whether or not the test comes. If it does come, one is prepared; if it
does not come one is prepared just the same. Here again it was the man
behind the general, shaped, guided, trained and inspired by the strong,
earnest personality of his father.
From a member of the Pershing family the following statement has been
received: "His (the general's) father was born near Pittsburgh, Pa., his
ancestors having come from Alsace-Lorraine. He was prominent in church
work and all philanthropic work. He established the Methodist Church at
Laclede, Mo., and after moving to Chicago was instrumental in forming
the Hyde Park Methodist Church. He was also active in the Y. M. C. A.,
Chicago, and organized the Hyde Park branch. He was in the Union Army
and was the first man to observe Memorial Day in Laclede, taking his own
children and the children of his neighborhood, with flowers from his
own garden, to decorate the graves of the soldiers. Mr. Pershing (John
Fletcher Pershing) was president of the school board at Laclede and it
was through his work that the graded schools were organized and new
buildings erected. He was also postmaster in Laclede."
Of his mother--the best report from Laclede is that she was a "splendid
home maker." Why is it that most great men have had great mothers?
Frequently we are disappointed in the sons of great men. Either the boys
do not measure up to their sires, or we are prone to expect too much of
them, or, as is quite likely, we contrast the young man at the beginning
of his career with the reputation of his father when it is at its
zenith.
But history is filled with examples of men who have attributed all they
have done or won to the inspiring love and devotion of the mothers that
bore them. And General Pershing is no exception to this rule. One time,
when, after years of absence he came back to Laclede as a brigadier
general in the army of the United States, he went to call upon Aunt
Susan Hewett, an aged widow and old resident of the town. In his
boyhood, Aunt Susan and her husband, "Captain" Hewett, had "run the
hotel." Aunt Susan in her prime was famous for her pies and her love of
boys, and Johnnie Pershing was a favorite. As a result of her affection
for the lad he was a frequent and successful sampler of her wares. The
picture of Aunt Susan and her pies and the sampling done by the future
general of the United States Army is one that is easily imagined and
strongly appeals to those who know the worth of well made pies,--for in
spite of local pride, good pies are not all limited to New England.
To a reporter two or three years ago Aunt Susan said,[A] "Law, yes, I
remember John when he wasn't more'n two or three years old. When John
was big enough to put on trousers he used to eat more pies in our
kitchen than any other boy in town.
"He was back here about ten years ago. It was on the 24th day of
October that Uncle Henry Lomax came to my house and said, 'Aunt Susan,
there's a gentleman outside that wants to see you.' When I stepped
outside and saw a tall young man, Uncle Henry asked me if I knew who it
was.
"'Yes,' I said, 'it's John Pershing. I can see his mother's features in
his face.' He came to me with his arms open and he embraced me and
kissed me and we both cried. 'Aunt Susan,' he says, and I'll never
forget his words as long as I live, 'it does my heart good to see my
mother's dear old friends. The place seems like home to me and it always
will. I've been away a long time and there have been many changes, but
this is home.' The chrysanthemums were in bloom and after we had talked
a while in the parlor I went out and picked a bouquet for him to take
away.
"'They are going to have some kind of a reception for me to-night and I
want you to come, Aunt Susan,' he says. I told him I'd try to be there
but that I was tired and worn out because I had been working hard in the
garden. 'You won't have to walk, Aunt Susan, because I'll come after
you myself.' About five in the afternoon he came in a buggy. We went to
his reception together and my! what a crowd. The whole house was packed
and people were standing in the yard. Johnny shook hands with everybody
and talked to them and he finally made a speech, which I didn't hear
because there were so many people around. John Pershing always did have
talent."
This incident of his later years is eloquent of the earlier years--and
of Pershing's mother. Behind the figure of the living is another who
being dead, yet speaketh. "A splendid home maker."
The relatives of General Pershing disclaim all knowledge of this
incident and are inclined to pronounce it "mostly fiction." The incident
is taken from the _Missouri Historical Review_. In other forms also the
story has become current. A former friend of the family, now a resident
of Laclede, also questions the reliability of the tale, basing his
conclusion upon the fact that the local village taverns were not places
which such a man as General Pershing's father would knowingly permit his
boys to frequent.
Nor is Aunt Susan's fact (or fiction) the only tribute. Before me is a
letter from a long time friend and neighbor of the family which states:
"Mrs. Pershing stood high among her neighbors. She was a woman of
unusual intelligence and much better educated than the average woman of
those days. She was an unusually cultivated woman. Mr. Pershing probably
had the best library in the town. His father and mother were both
religious and John went to Sunday School and church every Sunday." The
deep affection is apparent as one reads between the lines of many
letters received from those who years ago knew her both personally and
well. It is not difficult to trace the source of the inspiration of
Pershing's life.
An intimate friend of the General in response to a personal request has
courteously given the following modest statement: "General Pershing's
mother was Ann Elizabeth Thompson. She was born near Nashville, Tenn.
Although she came of a southern family she joined her husband in her
sympathy for the cause of the North, and made the first flag that was
raised in Linn County, thereby risking the lives of her family. One of
her brothers was in the Southern army, and one served on the Northern
side. When her brother, Colonel L. A. Thompson, was wounded, her husband
secured permission to cross the line and brought him home. Mrs. Pershing
was always an inspiration for her children and her ambition for them,
especially in an educational way, was without bounds."
And there came a time when General Pershing doubtless realized as never
before all that his mother had been to him. His troops were mounted and
he was about to give the command for the departure of his men on an
expedition against the Moros. At that moment an orderly advanced and
gave him a message which informed him of the death of his mother, in her
far away home. It was a blow as hard as it was sudden. The face of the
leader was almost ghastly in its whiteness. He swallowed hard two or
three times and then quietly gave the command for his troops to advance.
He was a soldier of his country and the message which had brought him
the deepest sorrow of his life up to that time must not be permitted to
allow his personal grief to interfere with his duty. The lesson his
mother had taught him was put to the test and was not forgotten.
FOOTNOTE:
[A] _Missouri Historical Review._