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E. L. MITCHELL
was John Mitchell, a roving, sea-faring sort who heard about the be-
ginning of the American Revolution while at Bermuda. Determining
that an enemy of England was a friend of his, he made his way to the
mainland, joined the American forces, fought, and was wounded at the
Battle of King's Mountain. He remained in the new nation following
the war Generations of John Mitchell's descendants migrated west-
ward during the decades between the end of the American Revolution
and the beginning of the Civil War 2
One of Lon's ancestors, his maternal grandfather Solomon J Harris,
was a pioneer settler in Kentucky and was remembered as a "practi-
cal man." In his later years he found religion and determined that he
should be baptized. The minister of his church was away from the com-
munity, however, and Harris wanted the ritual to be concluded before
the weather turned cold. Taking matters into his own hands, he waded
into a lake and "there in the presence of the only God Almighty" he pro-
claimed, "'Solomon J Harris, I baptize thee in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen' ",
Lon's father, George W Mitchell, described as a "powerfully built"
man with "snapping black eyes," had established a successful mercan-
tile business in Haynesville when the Civil War began in 1861. El-
ements of Mitchell's family were slaveholders and the sentiment in
northwest Missouri strongly favored the Confederate cause. Mitchell
abandoned his business to fight for the Confederate States of America
under the command of General Joseph O. "Jo" Shelby, famed cavalry
commander who led the renowned Iron Brigade, so called because of
their toughness. After the war ended, Shelby led six hundred of his
men south to Mexico rather than surrendering his command. Mitchell,
however, returned to his wife and family to start life anew 1
In 1876 George Mitchell became a minister in the Christ in Christian
Union denomination, a decision that would have a life-shaping impact
on his son Lon. This denomination, composed of Christians from a va-
riety of denominations, had its origins in Ohio in 1864. While their be-
liefs were fairly orthodox, there were some interesting characteristics.
Each local church governed its own affairs, partisan political sermons
were "discountenanced," and they sought union without controversy 5
Mitchell was a popular minister who brooked no improper behavior
during his services. In one instance a drunk wandered into the church
and caused a disturbance. Mitchell grabbed the man by his collar,
dragged him to the back of the church, deposited him outside the build-
ing, and returned to the pulpit to continue his sermon. In 1894 Mitch-
ell founded and was elected president of the Grand River Christian
Union University at Edinburgh, Missouri. Young Lon was raised in a
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