Henry Clay Pate

Henry Clay Pate (21 April 1833[citation needed] – 11 May 1864) was an American writer, newspaper publisher and soldier.

He published the Westport Border Star, a pro-slavery newspaper, and became Justice of the Peace of Kaw Township, Jackson County, Missouri, in 1855.

[4] During the hunt for Brown, two of his sons (Jason and John Junior) were captured (either by Pate or another marshal), charged with murder, and thrown in irons.

In this battle he selected his ground so wisely, handled his men so skillfully, and attacked his enemies so vigorously, that they could neither run nor fight, and were therefore compelled to surrender to a force less than one-third their own.

[6] Governor Shannon sent a detachment of federal troops under the command of Col. Edwin Sumner to free Pate and his men.

Brown took Pate's Bowie knife as a trophy, using it as a prop in his speeches and later providing it as a model for the heads of the pikes that were to be distributed to freed slaves after the raid on Harpers Ferry.

John Avis and two others, about events at the Battle of Black Jack, somewhat defending Pate, whom Brown said "gave him the hardest fight he had in Kansas".

"[12] With the outbreak of the Civil War, Pate (then residing in Petersburg, Virginia) raised and equipped a mounted company.