William T. Anderson
Encyclopedia
William T. "Bloody Bill" Anderson (c. 1838 – October 26, 1864) was a pro-Confederate
guerrilla
leader in the American Civil War
.
Anderson was known for his brutality towards Union
soldiers, and pro Union partisans, who were called Jayhawker
s. Anderson participated in Quantrill's raid on Lawrence, Kansas on August 21, 1863. An estimated 200 civilian men and boys were reported to have been killed and many homes and buildings in Lawrence were burned to the ground.
On October 26, 1864 Anderson was killed after he and his men were lured into an ambush near the hamlet of Albany, which is now part of Orrick
, in Ray County, Missouri. The ambush was carried out by a group of militiamen led by Colonel Samuel P. Cox.
and grew up near Huntsville in Randolph County, Missouri. His parents were William C. Anderson, a hat maker, and Martha (née Thomason) Anderson. In 1850 his father traveled to California
leaving Anderson and his two brothers, Ellis and James, to provide for the family in his absence. In 1857, after William Anderson Sr. returned from California, the Anderson family moved to Agnes City Township, Kansas
.
Prior to the Civil War Anderson worked for a time escorting wagon train
s along the Santa Fe Trail
and was suspected of being a horse thief. During this time he had supposedly conducted several forays into Missouri with the primary purpose of stealing horses. It was during this time period, from roughly 1854 through 1858, that a bloody border war called Bleeding Kansas
was raging between residents of Missouri and Kansas. Guerrilla forces from Kansas, called "Jayhawkers", and Missouri, called "Bushwackers", engaged in attacks against each other as well as civilians.
Anderson's father was shot dead in March 1862 by a local judge over a stolen horse. Anderson and his brother Jim later confronted the judge, killing him along with his brother-in-law. Now in trouble with the law, Anderson and his family left Kansas and moved to western Missouri.
. Anderson later became one of Quantrill's lieutenants.
Anderson participated in Quantrill's raid on Lawrence, Kansas on August 21, 1863. About 200 civilian men and boys were reported to have been killed, and many homes and buildings in Lawrence were burned to the ground.
General Thomas Ewing, Jr.
, the local Union commander, ordered the arrest of the relatives of the leading members of Quantrill's guerrilla company. Anderson's sisters Mary, Josephine, and Martha were imprisoned with nine other women who were accused of spying and assisting the Confederate partisans. The group of women were housed in a three story building at Kansas City, Missouri
.
On August 14, 1863 the building collapsed, killing four of the women. Anderson's sister Josephine was among the dead while his sister Mary survived but was permanently crippled. Both sides claimed different reasons for the building collapse. Some claimed that Union soldiers made the structure unsound by removing partitions and posts in an effort to make more space for prisoners. General Ewing countered that the prisoners had caused the collapse themselves by digging an escape tunnel. This incident has been suggested as the spark for the brutality that Anderson henceforth displayed against Union soldiers and civilians.
Quantrill led his men on a winter retreat to Texas where Bill Anderson married Bush Smith of Sherman, Texas
. Quantrill and Anderson quarreled during this time and Anderson returned to Missouri in March 1864. Anderson now headed his own cavalry company.
, promising further violence against pro-Union civilians and threatening to take women of Union families as hostages. That year he was joined by a group of recruits who had served briefly with Archie Clement
, his own lieutenant; these recruits included Frank James
, who had been one of Quantrill's Raiders, and the sixteen-year-old Jesse James
. During this time, Anderson's men adopted the practice of dangling the bloody scalps of their victims from their horse bridles.
Anderson reportedly wrote to a newspaper in Lexington, Missouri
on July 7, 1864 stating:
On September 27, 1864, Anderson led fellow bushwhacker
s in the Centralia Massacre
looting and terrifying the local populace. During the attack they barricaded the tracks of the Northern Missouri Railroad and forced a train to stop. The group robbed the civilian passengers and killed 22 Union soldiers who were returning home on furlough. Anderson left one Union sergeant alive for a possible prisoner exchange the rest he had stripped, shot, scalped or otherwise mutilated.
The same day, Union Major A.V.E. Johnston of the newly raised 39th Missouri Infantry Regiment (Mounted) set off with his men to pursue Anderson's band. Anderson, in conjunction with other guerrilla leaders such as George M. Todd
, sent out a detachment that lured Johnston into a trap. After discharging their single-shot rifles and causing light guerrilla casualties, the Union soldiers were overrun by the pistol-wielding bushwhackers. Many fled in a panic as the guerrillas cut them down. Those who tried to surrender were slaughtered. Around 120 mounted infantrymen were killed in the ambush and pursuit. Bodies of the soldiers were decapitated and mutilated by some of the guerrillas.
, at the head of 12,000 Confederate cavalrymen. Price feinted towards St. Louis, made an attack on the federal garrison at Pilot Knob
, then turned west, drawing the Union forces south of the Missouri River. Anderson met briefly with Price, but chose to return to the north side of the river, where he faced only local militia.
Union headquarters assigned militia Colonel Samuel P. Cox the task of eliminating the guerrilla leader. On October 26, 1864, Cox managed to locate Anderson near the hamlet of Albany, which is now part of Orrick, in Ray County, Missouri. Ironically, he used one of Anderson's favorite tactics against him. Cox sent a mounted detachment to lure the guerrillas into an ambush.
Cox gave this account of the battle:
Anderson led his men in a charge straight into the waiting militiamen who opened fire upon them. "Bloody Bill" fell from his horse after being shot twice through the side of the head and his surviving men then retreated while being pursued. It has been alleged that a silken cord with fifty-three knots was found on Anderson to mark the number of men he had killed. Human scalps were also found attached to his horse's bridle
. In his pocket a photograph of Anderson and his wife was found as well as lock of hair from their infant child. Also found on Anderson's body were private papers and orders from General Sterling Price
. Combined, these items were used to confirm Anderson's identity.
Anderson's remains were taken to Richmond, Missouri
, put on public display, and photographed. He was then decapitated, his head stuck on a telegraph pole and his body dragged through the streets before being buried in an unmarked grave in Richmond's Pioneer Cemetery. In 1908 the ex-guerrilla and outlaw Frank James
arranged for a funeral service at Anderson's grave site. A veteran's tombstone was placed over his grave in 1967 and the birth year is there incorrectly stated as 1840.
on December 7, 1869, Jesse James shot the cashier, mistaking him for Samuel P. Cox, the man James said had killed Bloody Bill Anderson.
In 1924, a Brown County, Texas
settler named William Columbus Anderson was interviewed by Henry C. Fuller, a staff writer for the "Brownwood Banner-Bulletin". Anderson claimed that he was the real Bloody Bill Anderson, with the same name and middle initial as Anderson's father. He said that another guerrilla's body had been mistaken for his own. W. C. Anderson lived in a farmhouse at Salt Creek, near Brownwood, dying in 1927 at age eighty-seven. As with so many cases of purported survivors (including the many claimants to being Jesse James), independent scholars have given no credence to this or other claims.
the title character, played by Clint Eastwood
, is visited by a band loosely structured around Anderson's bushwhackers. Wales agrees to ride with the group to "set things right" by killing the Redleg
guerrilla (based on William Sloan Tough
, though named after William R. Terrill
) who killed his family. Anderson is played by John Russell
in the film. Although the movie is accurate about Anderson's killings, it is inaccurate in aspects such as his death and his sister, who, in the film, was said to have been hanged due to her relation with Anderson.
Anderson and Quantrill are both mentioned in the Coen brother's 2010 film "True Grit
". One of the film's main protagonists, Federal Marshall Rooster Cogburn, is accused of participating in Anderson's marauding by a Texas ranger. Cogburn appears proud of his service with Quantrill and Anderson, though the ranger claims that they murdered women and children.
Anderson is the central character in James Carlos Blake
's highly-praised work of historical fiction Wildwood Boys, published in 2000 and selected by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch as "one of the year's best books." The novel spans the entirety of Anderson's life and deals in detail with the machinations of the border wars.
Anderson is shown in episode 3 of the 6-part 2005 television series Into the West
conducting his infamous Quantrill's raid.
In the 1999 movie Ride with the Devil the character "Black John" Ambrose, played by James Caviezel
, is loosely based on Anderson.
Anderson is the main villain in the 2004 zombie movie Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill
where he makes a pact with Satan that turns him into an inhuman ruler of the dead.
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
guerrilla
Guerrilla warfare in the American Civil War
Guerrilla warfare in the American Civil War followed the same general patterns of irregular warfare conducted in 19th century Europe. Structurally, they can be divided into three different types of operations—the so-called 'People's War', 'partisan warfare', and 'raiding warfare'...
leader in the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Anderson was known for his brutality towards Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
soldiers, and pro Union partisans, who were called Jayhawker
Jayhawker
Jayhawkers is a term that came to prominence just before the American Civil War in Bleeding Kansas, where it was adopted by militant bands affiliated with the free-state cause. These bands, known as "Jayhawkers", were guerrilla fighters who often clashed with pro-slavery groups from Missouri known...
s. Anderson participated in Quantrill's raid on Lawrence, Kansas on August 21, 1863. An estimated 200 civilian men and boys were reported to have been killed and many homes and buildings in Lawrence were burned to the ground.
On October 26, 1864 Anderson was killed after he and his men were lured into an ambush near the hamlet of Albany, which is now part of Orrick
Orrick, Missouri
Orrick is a town in Ray County, Missouri, United States. The population was 799 at the 2010 census.Orrick now includes what was once the village of Albany Orrick is a town in Ray County, Missouri, United States. The population was 799 at the 2010 census.Orrick now includes what was once the village...
, in Ray County, Missouri. The ambush was carried out by a group of militiamen led by Colonel Samuel P. Cox.
Early life
Anderson was born either in 1838 or 1839 in either Jefferson County or Salt Springs Township, Randolph County in MissouriMissouri
Missouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
and grew up near Huntsville in Randolph County, Missouri. His parents were William C. Anderson, a hat maker, and Martha (née Thomason) Anderson. In 1850 his father traveled to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
leaving Anderson and his two brothers, Ellis and James, to provide for the family in his absence. In 1857, after William Anderson Sr. returned from California, the Anderson family moved to Agnes City Township, Kansas
Agnes City Township, Kansas
Agnes City Township is a township in Lyon County, Kansas, United States....
.
Prior to the Civil War Anderson worked for a time escorting wagon train
Wagon train
A wagon train is a group of wagons traveling together. In the American West, individuals traveling across the plains in covered wagons banded together for mutual assistance, as is reflected in numerous films and television programs about the region, such as Audie Murphy's Tumbleweed and Ward Bond...
s along the Santa Fe Trail
Santa Fe Trail
The Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1822 by William Becknell, it served as a vital commercial and military highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880...
and was suspected of being a horse thief. During this time he had supposedly conducted several forays into Missouri with the primary purpose of stealing horses. It was during this time period, from roughly 1854 through 1858, that a bloody border war called Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas
Bleeding Kansas, Bloody Kansas or the Border War, was a series of violent events, involving anti-slavery Free-Staters and pro-slavery "Border Ruffian" elements, that took place in the Kansas Territory and the western frontier towns of the U.S. state of Missouri roughly between 1854 and 1858...
was raging between residents of Missouri and Kansas. Guerrilla forces from Kansas, called "Jayhawkers", and Missouri, called "Bushwackers", engaged in attacks against each other as well as civilians.
Anderson's father was shot dead in March 1862 by a local judge over a stolen horse. Anderson and his brother Jim later confronted the judge, killing him along with his brother-in-law. Now in trouble with the law, Anderson and his family left Kansas and moved to western Missouri.
1863 and the raid on Lawrence, Kansas
By the spring of 1863 Anderson, along with his brother Jim, had become partisan rangers, joining Quantrill's Confederate guerrilla companyQuantrill's Raiders
Quantrill's Raiders were a loosely organized force of pro-Confederate Partisan rangers, "bushwhackers", who fought in the American Civil War under the leadership of William Clarke Quantrill...
. Anderson later became one of Quantrill's lieutenants.
General Thomas Ewing, Jr.
Thomas Ewing, Jr.
Thomas Ewing, Jr. was an attorney, the first chief justice of Kansas and leading free state advocate, Union Army general during the American Civil War, and two-term United States Congressman from Ohio, 1877-1881. He narrowly lost the 1880 campaign for Ohio Governor.-Early life and career:Ewing...
, the local Union commander, ordered the arrest of the relatives of the leading members of Quantrill's guerrilla company. Anderson's sisters Mary, Josephine, and Martha were imprisoned with nine other women who were accused of spying and assisting the Confederate partisans. The group of women were housed in a three story building at Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
.
On August 14, 1863 the building collapsed, killing four of the women. Anderson's sister Josephine was among the dead while his sister Mary survived but was permanently crippled. Both sides claimed different reasons for the building collapse. Some claimed that Union soldiers made the structure unsound by removing partitions and posts in an effort to make more space for prisoners. General Ewing countered that the prisoners had caused the collapse themselves by digging an escape tunnel. This incident has been suggested as the spark for the brutality that Anderson henceforth displayed against Union soldiers and civilians.
Quantrill led his men on a winter retreat to Texas where Bill Anderson married Bush Smith of Sherman, Texas
Sherman, Texas
Sherman is a city in and the county seat of Grayson County, Texas, United States. The city's estimated population as of 2009 was 38,407. It is also one of two principal cities in the Sherman-Denison Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
. Quantrill and Anderson quarreled during this time and Anderson returned to Missouri in March 1864. Anderson now headed his own cavalry company.
1864 and the raid on Centralia, Missouri
In 1864 Anderson gained notoriety for his particular savagery against Union soldiers and civilian sympathizers alike. He and his men usually shot their prisoners along with mutilating and scalping the dead. He sent letters to newspapers in Lexington, MissouriLexington, Missouri
Lexington is a city in Lafayette County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,453 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lafayette County. Located in western Missouri, Lexington lies about 40 miles east of Kansas City and is part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
, promising further violence against pro-Union civilians and threatening to take women of Union families as hostages. That year he was joined by a group of recruits who had served briefly with Archie Clement
Archie Clement
Archie Clement , a.k.a "Little Arch", was a pro-Confederate guerrilla leader in the American Civil War, known for his brutality towards Union soldiers and pro-Union civilians in Missouri.-Little Archie, the bushwhacker:...
, his own lieutenant; these recruits included Frank James
Frank James
Alexander Franklin "Frank" James was a famous American outlaw. He was the older brother of outlaw Jesse James.-Childhood:...
, who had been one of Quantrill's Raiders, and the sixteen-year-old Jesse James
Jesse James
Jesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...
. During this time, Anderson's men adopted the practice of dangling the bloody scalps of their victims from their horse bridles.
Anderson reportedly wrote to a newspaper in Lexington, Missouri
Lexington, Missouri
Lexington is a city in Lafayette County, Missouri, United States. The population was 4,453 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Lafayette County. Located in western Missouri, Lexington lies about 40 miles east of Kansas City and is part of the Greater Kansas City Metropolitan Area...
on July 7, 1864 stating:
On September 27, 1864, Anderson led fellow bushwhacker
Bushwhacker
Bushwhacking was a form of guerrilla warfare common during the American Revolutionary War, American Civil War and other conflicts in which there are large areas of contested land and few Governmental Resources to control these tracts...
s in the Centralia Massacre
Centralia Massacre (Missouri)
The Centralia Massacre was an incident during the American Civil War in which twenty-four unarmed Union soldiers were captured and executed at Centralia, Missouri on September 27, 1864 by the pro-Confederate guerrilla leader William T. Anderson...
looting and terrifying the local populace. During the attack they barricaded the tracks of the Northern Missouri Railroad and forced a train to stop. The group robbed the civilian passengers and killed 22 Union soldiers who were returning home on furlough. Anderson left one Union sergeant alive for a possible prisoner exchange the rest he had stripped, shot, scalped or otherwise mutilated.
The same day, Union Major A.V.E. Johnston of the newly raised 39th Missouri Infantry Regiment (Mounted) set off with his men to pursue Anderson's band. Anderson, in conjunction with other guerrilla leaders such as George M. Todd
George M. Todd
George M. Todd was a Confederate guerrilla leader during the American Civil War who served under the infamous William C. Quantrill...
, sent out a detachment that lured Johnston into a trap. After discharging their single-shot rifles and causing light guerrilla casualties, the Union soldiers were overrun by the pistol-wielding bushwhackers. Many fled in a panic as the guerrillas cut them down. Those who tried to surrender were slaughtered. Around 120 mounted infantrymen were killed in the ambush and pursuit. Bodies of the soldiers were decapitated and mutilated by some of the guerrillas.
Anderson's death
At the time of the Battle of Centralia, the Union command was busy opposing a raid by General Sterling PriceSterling Price
Sterling Price was a lawyer, planter, and politician from the U.S. state of Missouri, who served as the 11th Governor of the state from 1853 to 1857. He also served as a United States Army brigadier general during the Mexican-American War, and a Confederate Army major general in the American Civil...
, at the head of 12,000 Confederate cavalrymen. Price feinted towards St. Louis, made an attack on the federal garrison at Pilot Knob
Pilot Knob, Missouri
Pilot Knob is a city in Iron County, Missouri, United States. The population was 697 at the 2000 census. It lies eight miles south of Belgrade and thirteen miles east of Centerville.-History:...
, then turned west, drawing the Union forces south of the Missouri River. Anderson met briefly with Price, but chose to return to the north side of the river, where he faced only local militia.
Union headquarters assigned militia Colonel Samuel P. Cox the task of eliminating the guerrilla leader. On October 26, 1864, Cox managed to locate Anderson near the hamlet of Albany, which is now part of Orrick, in Ray County, Missouri. Ironically, he used one of Anderson's favorite tactics against him. Cox sent a mounted detachment to lure the guerrillas into an ambush.
Cox gave this account of the battle:
Anderson led his men in a charge straight into the waiting militiamen who opened fire upon them. "Bloody Bill" fell from his horse after being shot twice through the side of the head and his surviving men then retreated while being pursued. It has been alleged that a silken cord with fifty-three knots was found on Anderson to mark the number of men he had killed. Human scalps were also found attached to his horse's bridle
Bridle
A bridle is a piece of equipment used to direct a horse. As defined in the Oxford English Dictionary, the "bridle" includes both the headstall that holds a bit that goes in the mouth of a horse, and the reins that are attached to the bit....
. In his pocket a photograph of Anderson and his wife was found as well as lock of hair from their infant child. Also found on Anderson's body were private papers and orders from General Sterling Price
Sterling Price
Sterling Price was a lawyer, planter, and politician from the U.S. state of Missouri, who served as the 11th Governor of the state from 1853 to 1857. He also served as a United States Army brigadier general during the Mexican-American War, and a Confederate Army major general in the American Civil...
. Combined, these items were used to confirm Anderson's identity.
Anderson's remains were taken to Richmond, Missouri
Richmond, Missouri
Richmond is a city in Ray County, Missouri, United States. The population was 5,797 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Ray County.-Geography:Richmond is located at...
, put on public display, and photographed. He was then decapitated, his head stuck on a telegraph pole and his body dragged through the streets before being buried in an unmarked grave in Richmond's Pioneer Cemetery. In 1908 the ex-guerrilla and outlaw Frank James
Frank James
Alexander Franklin "Frank" James was a famous American outlaw. He was the older brother of outlaw Jesse James.-Childhood:...
arranged for a funeral service at Anderson's grave site. A veteran's tombstone was placed over his grave in 1967 and the birth year is there incorrectly stated as 1840.
Death controversy
As with many notorious characters in American history, various people appeared after his death, claiming to be Bloody Bill Anderson. During a bank robbery in Gallatin, MissouriGallatin, Missouri
Gallatin is a city in Daviess County, Missouri, United States. The population was 1,789 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Daviess County.-History:...
on December 7, 1869, Jesse James shot the cashier, mistaking him for Samuel P. Cox, the man James said had killed Bloody Bill Anderson.
In 1924, a Brown County, Texas
Brown County, Texas
Brown County is a county in West Central Texas. As of 2000, the population was 37,674. Its county seat is Brownwood. Brown is named for Henry Stevenson Brown, a commander at the Battle of Velasco...
settler named William Columbus Anderson was interviewed by Henry C. Fuller, a staff writer for the "Brownwood Banner-Bulletin". Anderson claimed that he was the real Bloody Bill Anderson, with the same name and middle initial as Anderson's father. He said that another guerrilla's body had been mistaken for his own. W. C. Anderson lived in a farmhouse at Salt Creek, near Brownwood, dying in 1927 at age eighty-seven. As with so many cases of purported survivors (including the many claimants to being Jesse James), independent scholars have given no credence to this or other claims.
In popular media
In the movie The Outlaw Josey WalesThe Outlaw Josey Wales
The Outlaw Josey Wales is a 1976 American revisionist Western film set during and after the end of the American Civil War. It was directed by and starred Clint Eastwood , with Chief Dan George, Sondra Locke, Sam Bottoms, and Geraldine Keams.The film was adapted by Sonia Chernus and Philip Kaufman...
the title character, played by Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood
Clinton "Clint" Eastwood, Jr. is an American film actor, director, producer, composer and politician. Eastwood first came to prominence as a supporting cast member in the TV series Rawhide...
, is visited by a band loosely structured around Anderson's bushwhackers. Wales agrees to ride with the group to "set things right" by killing the Redleg
Jayhawker
Jayhawkers is a term that came to prominence just before the American Civil War in Bleeding Kansas, where it was adopted by militant bands affiliated with the free-state cause. These bands, known as "Jayhawkers", were guerrilla fighters who often clashed with pro-slavery groups from Missouri known...
guerrilla (based on William Sloan Tough
William Sloan Tough
William Sloan Tough was a member of the irregular or guerrilla forces called the Kansas Red Legs. The Kansas Red Legs fought on the Kansas-Missouri Border during the American Civil War in support of the Union....
, though named after William R. Terrill
William R. Terrill
William Rufus Terrill was a United States Army soldier and general who was killed in action at the Battle of Perryville during the American Civil War...
) who killed his family. Anderson is played by John Russell
John Russell (actor)
John Lawrence Russell was an American actor, and World War II veteran, most noted for playing Marshal Dan Troop in the successful ABC western television series Lawman from 1958 to 1962....
in the film. Although the movie is accurate about Anderson's killings, it is inaccurate in aspects such as his death and his sister, who, in the film, was said to have been hanged due to her relation with Anderson.
Anderson and Quantrill are both mentioned in the Coen brother's 2010 film "True Grit
True Grit
True Grit is a 1969 American Western film written by Marguerite Roberts and directed by Henry Hathaway. It is the first adaptation of Charles Portis' 1968 novel True Grit. John Wayne stars as U.S. Marshal Rooster Cogburn and won his only Academy Award for his performance in this film...
". One of the film's main protagonists, Federal Marshall Rooster Cogburn, is accused of participating in Anderson's marauding by a Texas ranger. Cogburn appears proud of his service with Quantrill and Anderson, though the ranger claims that they murdered women and children.
Anderson is the central character in James Carlos Blake
James Carlos Blake
James Carlos Blake is an American writer of novels, novellas, short stories, and essays. His work has received extensive critical favor and several notable awards...
's highly-praised work of historical fiction Wildwood Boys, published in 2000 and selected by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch as "one of the year's best books." The novel spans the entirety of Anderson's life and deals in detail with the machinations of the border wars.
Anderson is shown in episode 3 of the 6-part 2005 television series Into the West
Into the West
Into the West may refer to:* Into the West , a 1992 film* "Into the West" , a 2003 song from the film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King* Into the West , a 2005 mini-series on Turner Network Television...
conducting his infamous Quantrill's raid.
In the 1999 movie Ride with the Devil the character "Black John" Ambrose, played by James Caviezel
James Caviezel
James Patrick Caviezel, Jr. is an American film actor, usually credited as Jim Caviezel. He is known for the roles of Jesus Christ in the 2004 film The Passion of the Christ, Bobby Jones in Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius, Detective John Sullivan in Frequency, Edmond Dantès in The Count of Monte...
, is loosely based on Anderson.
Anderson is the main villain in the 2004 zombie movie Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill
Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill
Death Valley: The Revenge of Bloody Bill is a 2004 direct-to-DVD American horror film produced by The Asylum. The film takes inspiration from the life of William "Bloody Bill" Anderson, a Confederate soldier who committed brutal atrocities against his enemies.- Plot :The film follows a group of...
where he makes a pact with Satan that turns him into an inhuman ruler of the dead.
See also
- American Civil WarAmerican Civil WarThe American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
- Partisan Ranger ActPartisan Ranger ActOn April 21, 1862, the Confederate Congress passed the Partisan Ranger Act. The law was intended as a stimulus for recruitment of irregulars for service into the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The Act reads as follows:Section 1...
- Quantrill's RaidersQuantrill's RaidersQuantrill's Raiders were a loosely organized force of pro-Confederate Partisan rangers, "bushwhackers", who fought in the American Civil War under the leadership of William Clarke Quantrill...
- Jesse JamesJesse JamesJesse Woodson James was an American outlaw, gang leader, bank robber, train robber, and murderer from the state of Missouri and the most famous member of the James-Younger Gang. He also faked his own death and was known as J.M James. Already a celebrity when he was alive, he became a legendary...
- Frank JamesFrank JamesAlexander Franklin "Frank" James was a famous American outlaw. He was the older brother of outlaw Jesse James.-Childhood:...
External links
- Official website for the Family of Frank & Jesse James: Stray Leaves, A James Family in America Since 1650
- Biography of Bloody Bill Anderson
- Biography of Bloody Bill Anderson
- page about Bloody Bill
- Missouri Civil War Sesquicentennial|William T. "Bloody Bill" Anderson
- The State Historical Society of Missouri|Famous Missouri Folk Legends|William "Bloody Bill" Anderson (1838-1864)