Daniel Phillips Upham

Daniel Phillips Upham (more commonly known as D.P. Upham; December 30, 1832 – November 18, 1882) was an American politician, businessman, plantation owner, and Arkansas State Militia commander following the U.S. Civil War. He is best known for his effective and brutal acts as the leader of a successful militia campaign against the Ku Klux Klan.^[1] These acts began after the Klan attempted to assassinate him on October 2, 1868. Later that year, Upham was designated a brigadier general and commanded a force that eventually numbered over 1,000 men.^[2]

Early life

Upham was born on December 30, 1832 in Dudley, Massachusetts to Josiah and Clarrissa Upham. His mother died about a week after his birth. Josiah remarried in 1836, and the couple had four more sons. Upham received a public education in Dudley, and married a woman named Lizzie, whose last name is unknown. The couple would go on to adopt a daughter named Isabel.

Civil War

In 1863, Upham was either drafted or he enlisted in the Union Army, where he would attain the rank of sergeant. He left the army in 1865 at the end of the war and opened a building material business in New York City. However, this business quickly failed, leaving him in debt, and Upham was prompted to reach out to his former commanding officer and former business partner Brigadier General Alexander Shaler in July 1865. Shaler gave Upham the permits needed to pay off his debts. After finding profits in two saloons and two steamboats, Upham was able to pay off his debts by 1866.

Reconstruction

At the end of the Civil War, Upham traveled to Cotton Ridge, Arkansas to seek his fortune. After purchasing and opening a cotton plantation in Augusta, Upham sent for his wife and child while the plantation thrived. His success, however, fueled resentment held against him by the ex-Confederate populace, who considered him a carpetbagger thriving off the South's defeat and impoverishment. As Upham's wealth grew, he became a leading Radical Republican, and won a seat in the Arkansas House of Representatives 1867 based on the votes of freed men and white Unionists. He became one of Governor Powell Clayton's most powerful allies. Together, Upham and Clayton pushed to ratify the 14th Amendment during the 1868 elections. The Arkansas Ku Klux Klan, however, responded to these suggestions violently, killing 12 people in 3 months, including free blacks, Republicans, and a Freedmen's Bureau agent. The amendment passed, but Governor Clayton formed state and local militias to combat the insurgents.

Militia War

Governor Clayton named Upham as the commander of the local Woodruff County militia, which made him a marked man. On October 2, 1868, after threats and reported Klan surveillance of his home, Upham and Woodruff County registrar F.A. McLure were ambushed and injured by insurgents under the command of former Confederate Colonel A.C. Pickett.

In early November, Governor Clayton cancelled all elections and declared martial law, splitting the state into four military districts, putting Upham in charge of the Northeastern district, which had the most Klan activity. Upham gave his men a very free hand in subduing the Klan, using tactics that were bloody and brutal, leaving many Klansmen dead. Upham himself would usually join his men in fights, which set him apart from many military leaders at the time.

We will wail Hell out of the last one of them. Never allow one of them to return and live here. There is no other way. Nothing but good, healthy, square, honest killing would ever do them any good.

— D.P. Upham

Enraged, a force of about 30 Klansmen rode to Upham's hometown of Augusta and attempted to take over the town. On their way, they pillaged several plantations, including Upham's. They mercilessly beat the black farmhands, killing one of them. Upham and 100 militiamen arrived in time to prevent the Klan from taking the town. However, after learning that 300-400 Klan reinforcements were on their way, Upham tore through Augusta, beating and arresting suspected members. Four suspects, although reported to have been attempting to escape, were likely executed personally by Upham. In response, 500 Klansmen under Colonel Pickett rode to Upham's plantation, intending to burn it to the ground. Upham, however, was ready and waiting with hundreds of well trained, well equipped militiamen. A fierce battle erupted on Upham's property, and after Upham personally led a charge into the heart of the Klan ranks, the battle ended in a crushing and demoralizing defeat for the Klan. After several more skirmishes, Upham managed to rid the entire state of Arkansas of the Ku Klux Klan.

After Militia War

Upham and his family left Woodruff County and settled in Little Rock in 1869. He invested in real estate and continued to serve in the State Militia. In October 1870, he was appointed brigadier general in command of the Seventh District in central Arkansas. He also served in a series of battles against Klansmen in Pope County in 1872, deploying the same brutal tactics used in the Militia War. In May 1873, Republican governor Elisha Baxter dismissed him from the Arkansas State Militia along with other men with ties to Powell Clayton in an attempt to win over the ex-Confederates. After being voted out of office and of power, Upham was tried for the murder of the four suspected Klansmen during the Militia War in 1875. Upham was acquitted, but was treated harshly by the now unrestrained ex-Confederate populace.

In July 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed Upham U.S. marshal for the Western District Court in Fort Smith, and he served with honor and distinction, winning massive public support despite early opposition. Unfortunately, his Marshal career ended when a Republican senator plotted for him to be removed in 1880. Ironically, Upham's attempts to stay in office were thwarted by his former friend and ally, Powell Clayton.

Death

In November 1882, Upham visited family in Massachusetts. He died of tuberculosis at his father's house in Dudley, Massachusetts, on November 18, 1882, and was buried in Little Rock's Oakland Cemetery. His wife and daughter are interred next to him.

Legacy

In many parts of Arkansas and the South, Upham continues to be vilified for his involvement in Reconstruction and his brutal tactics against the Ku Klux Klan. However, most states today view him more favorably. Military historians reluctantly admire his tactics due to their effectiveness. In the History Channel TV documentary Aftershock: Beyond the Civil War, he is portrayed by Brian Danner.

References