Joseph Chrisman Porter was a Confederate officer in the American Civil War, a key leader in the guerrilla campaigns in northern Missouri, and a figure of controversy. The main source for his history, Joseph A. Mudd (see below) is clearly an apologist; his opponents take a less charitable view of him, and his chief adversary, Union Colonel John McNeil, regarded him simply as a bushwacker and traitor, though his service under General John S. Marmaduke in the Springfield campaign ("Marmaduke's First Raid") and following clearly shows he was regarded as a regular officer by the Confederacy.