Bethel Heroes Chapter 636 United Daughters of the Confederacy met Sept. 5 at the Braswell Memorial Library with 14 members attending.

A program about Merither Jeff Thompson “Swamp Fox” of the Confederacy was presented by Frances Powell, UDC member.

Meriwether came from a background of military service. He was the grandson of two Revolutionary War soldiers.

He was born Jan. 22, 1826, in Harper’s Ferry, W.Va., but moved to Liberty Missouri in 1846.

He met and married Emma Hayes in 1848. They later moved to St. Joseph, Miss., where he became active in business and politics.

When the Civil War began, Missouri became a Union state.

Meriwether left for Virginia to serve the Confederacy, but later decided to stay in Missouri and raise volunteers for the Confederacy.

He was a Calvary Commander in Southeast Missouri and received the name “Missouri Swamp Fox” from his tactic of tricking Union steamboats into docking and then capturing the vessel with all Union soldiers on board.

His cavalry unit was given the nickname of Swamp Rats.

He was captured on Aug. 22, 1863, and was exchanged for a Union general on Aug. 3, 1864. He finally surrendered on May 11, 1862, in Jacksonport, Ark.

After the war, Thompson became one of the first Confederates to take an oath of allegiance to the Union.

He died Sept. 5, 1876, and is buried in St. Joseph, Miss.