In 1863, my great-great-great grandfather John Randall and his brother Terrie were captured and killed by Bushwhackers. This happened in Blackwater Township in Pettis County, Missouri, and is mentioned in the book The History of Pettis County Missouri (Demuth, 1882), which reads, "In 1863 John and Terrie Randall and Reuben Hargrave were taken from their homes by a band of marauders and carried about twenty miles south of the township and all three murdered. They were all Republicans" (p. 812).

The event is also mentioned in my great-great grandfather John Castillo's biography in the book The History of Montgomery County, Kansas. John Randall's daughter Permelia was John Castillo's second wife, and the biography reads, "Mrs. Castillo is a native of Pulaski county, Kentucky, where she was born, 21st July, 1854. Her parents, later, moved to Pettes county, Mo., where they died; her father suffering death at the hands of the Bushwackers in 1864" (Duncan, p. 612). While these two sources differ in the date of this event, it does seem that it did happen in late 1863, as John's grave marker has that date.

I've been researching this event, as well as what happened to John Randall's family after the war. I'm curious if anyone knows more than these two published accounts, or if someone could direct me in my research. I'd really like to know exactly when the event happened, as well as who might have been involved. Does anyone have any information on which group of Bushwhackers might have been in Pettis county at this time? It must have been a fairly large group to capture three men.

Any help would be appreciated. I'm a writer and I'm working on a project that includes this family.