Breaking news from 1859...
November
Henry David Thoreau delivers the lecture, "A Plea for Captain John Brown," in Concord, Massachusetts, winning over an unsympathetic crowd with this defense of a man popularly thought to be a criminal. This speech and two subsequent essays on John Brown reveal Thoreau’s growing acceptance of violent protest over civil disobedience.
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Reports from the field
Soldier and civilians report from the frontlines and the home place.
From Chattanooga:
"It is the grandest military movement of the war, this massing of
troops on the center--like movements on a chess-board--everything else has
become subordinate to this grand attack on the enemy's centre at
Chattanooga, which is in reality the Key to the whole position. When I say
whole position, I mean the whole line of our contending armies as they
stretch from the Potomac to Texas, and so considered, the present movement
for our armies toward the centre of such a line, is the grandest military
movement of any age. If we are in time, we shall be able to overwhelm the
rebel forces in our front and from Chattanooga, we are in position to knock
loudly at the back-doors of Charleston & Richmond. I feel the natural
ardor of a soldier & a patriot, in such a momentous undertaking and all
merely personal things are for the moment lost sight of."
- Colonel Edward J. Wood, 48th Indiana, to his wife, October 7, 1863, as he marched to join
the fight for the "Gateway to the Deep South," Chattanooga. A Fierce,
Wild Joy: The Civil War Letters of Colonel Edward J. Wood, 48th Indiana
Volunteer Infantry Regiment, edited by Stephen E. Towne.
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From Fort Donelson:
“Some with boyish voices were calling “Mother,” others shrieking as though
in great agony, many groaning and occasionally one was swearing like a
Spanish trooper. Presently along came three Confederate surgeons, who
commenced to examine the wounded, selecting those they thought would live.
These they turned over to the ambulance corps, to be take off as prisoners
of war. “
- Lt. James O. Churchill, 11th Illinois Infantry, US
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From Franklin:
“The men seemed to realize that our charge on the enemy’s works would be
attended with heavy slaughter, and several of them came to me bringing
watches, jewelry, letters, and photographs asking me to take charge of them
and send them to their families if they were killed. “
- James McNeilly, Chaplain, CSA
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From Knoxville:
"…before the smell of powder and smoke had passed away, I and a few others
passed out of the fort over the ditch on a plank and looked on that sad scene
of slaughter. Such a spectacle I never again want to witness. Men literally
torn to pieces lay all around, some in the last throes of death, others
groaning and their faces distorted under the extreme pain from their
severe wounds. Arms and limbs torn from their bodies lay scattered around,
while at every footstep we trod in pools of blood."
- B.F. Thompson, History of the 112th Regiment of Illinois Volunteer Infantry
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From Shiloh:
“The ground was strewn with the dead of the enemy and our own, mangled in
every conceivable way... A federal soldier was laying dead, and beside him
a beautiful dog who would suffer no one to approach his dead master. “
- Captain Latta, 13th Tennessee Infantry, CSA
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From Stones River:
"The cedars were very dense, making it difficult to keep an alignment while
going through to open ground on the opposite side. Those who got through
were met with such a volley of grape and canister from about forty cannons
that had been hurriedly placed there that they beat a retreat through the
dense cedars as best they could."
- P. R. Jones, 10th Texas, CSA
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From the Home Front:
"As soon as the firing ceased, which was about two o'clock in the
morning, ... my mother came home and at once took charge of the
situation. In a little while, all of the wounded soldiers were calling
her 'Little Mother.'"
- Hardin Figuers, 15, whose home on Main Street is several blocks west of
the Square
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From the USCT:
Have eyewitness accounts from the U.S. Colored Troops in Tennessee? Please share using the form below.
From the Blacks in the Southern Army:
Have eyewitness accounts from blacks who served with the Southern Army? Please share using the form below.
From the Slaves:
When Jesse road in to the city, he always brought some important news,
generally discussed in Richard’s cabin. Here the men would meet at night
and talk over the events and progress of the Lincoln Campaign. He stated
that it was the general opinion in Nashville that he would be elected.
It was thought, and generally believed, that if he stood by the principles
of the Republican party and its platform, namely: “Free people, Free souls,
and a Free press,” there would be a civil war. I daresay there was not a man
present who knew what all this meant – about principles and party platforms.
Since the news of the hanging of John Brown had reached the Clover Bottoms,
every man had hid his gun. The patrollers, however, continued their search for arms,
night and day. The comet that made its appearance in the southeast a few
weeks before, and the first I had ever seen, was now quite large, and had
an enormous tail. On a clear moonlight night the men were out looking at it,
and in their simple way, were discussing its meaning.
Abe was heard to remark: “That there was going to be a war.” I wondered then, and even now, where he got the idea that a comet was a sign of war. "
- From John McCline’s recollections of his life as a slave during the Civil War, Slavery in the Clover Bottoms, edited by Jan Furman, 1998.
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Be an “Eyewitness Reporter”
Do you have an ancestor who fought in Tennessee? – perhaps you have a letter or diary recounting some one’s experiences in battle, on the campaign, or on the home front. Would you consider sharing those special thoughts and reflections?
Sharing is easy….if you provide your ancestors name and his or her words, we’ll post them on this web site.
Just click here and fill in the form and submit. We’ll only use their name and text to ensure your privacy. Your ancestor’s reflections can help us understand and appreciate their experiences, their lives, and their sacrifice for our country.