Vital Information
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Full Name | Joseph Gibson Vaughan | Death certificate; Find a Grave |
| Alias | "Dan Vaughn" (guerrilla nickname) | Burch p. 261 |
| Born | 5 Aug 1839, Missouri | Death certificate |
| Died | 24 Apr 1918, Buckner, Jackson County, MO | Death certificate #12983 |
| Father | George Albert Vaughan (listed as "Albert Vaughan, Virginia" on death certificate) | Death certificate; Find a Grave |
| Mother | Minerva Gibson (listed as "Miss Gibson" on death certificate) | Death certificate; Find a Grave |
| Spouse | Sarah Bell Harris (m. December 1870) | 1881 county history (near-contemporary, published while Joseph was alive) |
| Birthplace detail | Sni-a-Bar Township, Jackson County, MO | 1881 county history |
| Property | 80 acres + 100 acres bottom land | 1881 county history |
| Children | Josephine Agnes (1871), Walter M (1874), Nannie Catherine "Katie" (1881), Stella Elizabeth "Lizzie" (1884), Samuel Gibson (1886), Elsie May (1889), Mollie Mabel (1892); 9 born per wife's obituary, 2 died young | Family Tree; wife's obituary |
| Sibling | Matilda Caroline Vaughan Colville (1836-1927) | Family Tree |
| Occupation | Retired farmer | Death certificate |
| Burial | Oak Grove Cemetery, Oak Grove, Jackson County, MO | Find a Grave #88078489 |
Biography
Joseph Gibson Vaughan was born August 5, 1839, in Sni-a-Bar Township, Jackson County, Missouri, the son of George Albert Vaughan and Minerva Gibson. Around age 6 (~1845) the family moved to Buchanan County, Missouri, and Joseph returned to Jackson County in 1855. He married Sarah Bell Harris in December 1870 (per the 1881 county history, a near-contemporary source published while Joseph was alive; this resolves the discrepancy between FaG's 1870 date and the 1915 newspaper obituary's 1872 date). By 1881 he owned 80 acres plus 100 acres of bottom land. He died April 24, 1918, in Buckner, Missouri, at age 78.
Civil War Service: Quantrill's Guerrillas
Joseph was one of the first eight men to join William Quantrill's guerrilla band in 1861, and according to Burch, one of the last eight to survive. He served under the alias "Dan Vaughn" and fought in at least 19 named engagements across 1861-1865, including the Fight at Independence (Feb 1862), Capture of Independence (Aug 1862), Battle of Lone Jack (Aug 1862), Lawrence Massacre (Aug 1863), Centralia Massacre (Sep 1864), Little Blue (1864), and the Battle of Wakefield Farm (Jun 1865), where Quantrill was mortally wounded. He is listed alongside Frank James, Cole Younger, and Bill Anderson in Burch's history.
The Vaughan Gun
A gun and scabbard taken from a Union soldier during the war was later identified as having originally belonged to his father, George Albert Vaughan. A sworn affidavit to this effect was made in 1965 by Joseph's son Samuel Gibson Vaughan.
Data Notes
The death certificate informant did not know the mother's birthplace; Find a Grave records it as Tennessee. The father is listed as "Albert Vaughan, Virginia" on the death certificate, which corresponds to George Albert Vaughan (b. 1812, Mecklenburg, VA) in collateral records.
Related Files
- Father: George_Albert_Vaughan
- Son: Walter_M_Vaughan
- Death Certificate: Joseph_Gibson_Vaughan_Death_Certificate_1918
- Gun Affidavit: Vaughan_Gun_Affidavit_1965