William Sheppard to Richard Yates

  To His Excellency Richard Yates

Governor of the State of Illinois _.

  The undersigned citizens of Jerseyville County beg leave to represent to your Excellency that our County has for some time past been infested by a gang of plunderers and horse theives, most of them refugees from Missouri.  Together with prisoners escaped from the Alton Prison, and from disclosures made by accomplices, their place of rendezvous was ascertained, & a number arrested and committed to our County Jail for horse stealing.  It was also revealed to us that they still remain in our borders, a large number of renegade bushwhackers, and that a guerrilla raid upon our county was contemplated about the 20th of this month.  In consequence of this fact, and the insecurity of our Jail on account of the large number of prisoners confined there,  our citizens have Kept up for a week past a heavy night guard, and feeling that it would be a great tax upon our citizens, to continue

the same until the sitting our Circuit Court, we applied to Col Weer Commandant of the Post at Alton, for permission to remove them to the Alton Prison for safe Keeping. He has consented to receive them and Keep them, at the expense of our County, provided he obtains from you as Governor of the State, authority or permission to do so _ We therefore on behalf of the citizens of Jersey County, without distinction of party, respectfully request your Excellency, to issue such an order or authority to Col Weer, as shall be deemed by you consistent with your Executive functions, that may justify him in holding the accused as prisoners, without rendering him (obnoxious?) to censure by the General Government.

 The following are the names of Those committed for horse stealing, after an Examination before two Justices _

M. B. Scott, Mac Lafount, Edmund C. Moore. Mahlon Bright, Lewis Churchill, and William Munson _

Jerseyville Ill. March 12, 1864.

Wm Shephard

Geo. E. Warren

J.M. Hurd

D.G. Wyckoff

Hugh A. Cross

G. S. McGill

S. M. Titus

Levi D. Cory

Committee on behalf of the citizens of Jersey County.

PS. Please advise me which action is taken (illegible) previously

                                    Wm Shephard

     Jerseyville Jersy Co Illinois

Sheppard. William and others __

Jerseyville. Jersey Co 1864

   The County has been for a long time infested by gangs of Horse thieves, Guerilla Bands  etc and a number placed in Jail, but doubting their ability to hold them Prisoners to the term, ask permission to have them transf'd to the Care of the Military Authorities ot Alton ________

Col H_

     Prepare carefully an order & send to Col W -  Also write Hon Wm Shepherd that I did not get his letter till to day -- it being mislaid in my absence

Ans'd & sent order Etc to Col. Weer. Apr 13/64