Kentucky in the Civil War, Introduction
This series of will be told from the point of view of my different ancestors, as they told their children and grandchildren, who told me. Ive gone back, all these years, and looked up the history associated with those events, and tried to fit it all into the timelines of their lives. The words are not going to be exact, except where quoted from a letter, (copies of which are in my possession), but the stories are a part of family legend.
The selection of stories, as pertaining to the Civil War, are located geographically through the state of Kentucky, from west to east, as the war gradually overtook my family on a west to east basis. I will begin with a family legend from my husbands family, who lived in the far western portion of the state, near Mayfield, Kentucky. My family, and my husbands family, have lived in Kentucky for generationsseven generations on my side, and very likely about the same amount on my husbands side. We still live here because it's home, it 'greens up' well, and the people are fairly congenial.
The discussion below is a summation of several articles researched on Wikipedia and other references. I wish I could remove the links, but can't.
Kentucky was a border state of key importance in the American Civil War . President Abraham Lincoln recognized the importance of the Commonwealth when he declared " I hope to have God on my side, but I must have Kentucky ."
Kentucky was the birthplace of Abraham Lincoln, his wife Mary Todd , and his southern counterpart, Confederate President Jefferson Davis .
Kentucky, being a border state, was among the chief places where the " brother against brother " scenario was prevalent. Kentucky was officially neutral at the beginning of the war, but after the defeat of the Confederates at Ft.Donelson and Ft. Henry, the legislature petitioned the Union for assistance, and thereafter became solidly under Union control. (Note: Louisville was solidly under Union control from the beginning. Some counties petitioned for secession from Kentucky when the state requested assistance from the Union troops.) Despite our loyalty to the Union, we, too, were reconstructed, leaving much bitterness in the state, as well as long-lasting economic difficulties.
Kentucky was the site of fierce battles, such as Mill Springs (eastern KY), and Perryville , (central KY near Lexington). It was host to such military leaders as Ulysses S. Grant on the Union side, who first encountered serious Confederate gunfire coming from Columbus, KY, which had been invaded by the Confederates. General Nathan Forrest proved to be a scourge to the Union Army in such places as the towns of Sacramento and Paducah , where he conducted guerrilla warfare against Union forces. (The historical marker at Sacramento reads Surprise Attack. Personally, I doubt the townsfolk have ever recovered)
Kentucky's citizens were split regarding the issues central to the Civil War. In 1860, slaves composed 19.5% of the Commonwealth's population, and many Unionist Kentuckians saw nothing wrong with the " peculiar institution ". Most Kentuckians favored John J. Crittenden's position that the Commonwealth should act as a mediator between the two sides. Both sides respected the Commonwealth's neutrality, until the Confederates invaded and held Columbus, KY, on the Mississippi River. Volunteers from the Commonwealth left the state to join up with whichever side they favored. Some covert recruiting also took place. Nearly sixty infantry regiments served in the Union armies versus just nine in the Confederate.
In response to the Confederate invasion, Union Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant entered Paducah, Kentucky on September 6, 1861 which gave the Union control of the northern end of the New Orleans and Ohio Railroad and the mouth of the Tennessee River . Our story begins with Grants march from Paducah on the Ohio River, southward toward Ft. Donelson and Ft. Henry on the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers.
General Order No. 11 is the title of a Union Army directive issued during the American Civil War . The order affected all rural residents regardless of their allegiance. Those who could prove their loyalty to the Union were permitted to stay in the affected area, but had to leave their farms and move to communities near military outposts. Those who could not do so, had to vacate the area altogether. Many families had their property burned, their lives destroyed.
While this order was issued to pertain to four western counties of Missouri, in practice, it affected families in Kentucky, just across the border from Missouri, as well, as it was enforced in Kentucky, prior to the official order. In fact, it seems that General Order No. 11 was an order that made the persecution of families in the area legal in military and civilian eyes.
We will begin our stories with a family legend on my husbands side of the family, whose lives were changed forever by the practice of General Order No. 11. General Order No. 11 occurred in July of 1862, issued by one of Grants generals, pertained to four specific counties in Missouri. However, as explained above, and as I understand it, General Order No. 11 was issued to allow the military to legalize the actions by the union army toward the civilians in the area, which was already occurring .
Please note: Although a student of history, I am not a historian. The stories within these pages are fictional, based upon family legends, and the historical events that I have been able to research.
Thanks so much for coming by!
The first one is up!
Reenactment of the Battle of Perryville, the bloodiest conflict of the Civil War for the percentage of casualties per number of troops. If you ever want to have some fun, attend this reenactment! They make real "bur-goo" in pumpkins, buried in the fire, have the Sutter's camp, and it's an absolutely wonderful time. The men draw straws to see who will die that day, and there are some that play actual men on the battlefield-- they are assigned 'roles'. It is actually very upsetting to see them "die", and their wives scream their name and run onto the battlefield to hold them while they "die". Yeah, I know, but many wives traveled with their husbands, as long as they could...
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I truly hope that you enjoy these! I've added as many historical pictures of places, etc. as I could find that were good ones... Sorry about the quality of some of these-- they're the best I could find.
John Russel's article about how the south felt about the reason for the Civil War inspired me to dig these out, freshen them up, and post them... These stories have been incorporated into the general archives of oral history in a couple of places. Although not 'legal affidavits', (such as letters of the time), they have been included, along with thousands of stories and documents, about this time in our state's history. The term 'legal affidavits' become important in the last of the series.
Please note: The views that my ancestors hold are not mine-- but I had to "see" the war through their eyes. So, even if you don't like their politics, it does little good to argue with me.
They're my family, they left me many lovely "things", and I love them!
I'm looking forward to more of these.
Most of my reading has been about partisan warfare on the Confederate side of things but, for some inexplicable reason, haven't delved into Kentucky's part in The Late Misunderstanding.
Keep em coming. Your families stories are anticipated.
I really hope that you enjoy it-- the first one is up! Mary's Dinner!
She was something! And she lived in Mayfield, KY.
Dear Tex, thank you!
I've learned a LOT and visited many of these sites. Two summers ago, we went to the Columbus Belmont state park, where they stretched the chain across the Mississippi River to keep the north from invading the south. Then, we went to Ft. Donelson, where we viewed the result of the failure of that chain...
I've been to many places in the state with "Hysterical" Markers about the Civil War... However, the absolute funniest one has to be at Sacremento, KY, in Muhlenburg County.
Sacremento is a sleepy little town of not that many people. At the time, there were many elderly gentlemen who loved to sit on the courthouse steps and benches and play checkers. We happened to arrive at mid-day, and they were sleepy-- most of them were sitting there, their mouths open, staring into the distance. We got out of the car, which we had parked right under the Hysterical Marker. We read the Hysterical Marker, and then looked around. The marker read, in part:
SURPRISE ATTACK -- 1863
Morgan's Raiders, blah blah blah
All the men looked like they had certainly been surprised and were still in a state of shock! What a hoot! We had to run to the nearest 5 and Dime store to be able to laugh out loud!
I truly hope that you enjoy them!
The first one is up: Mary's Dinner
Dear flameaway-- I've worked hard on this series, and ran out of relatives I knew anything about! LOL! No one came from Eastern KY, although one ancestor fought in skirmishes and at the Battle of Middle Creek. I don't know too much about him-- but you'll find out about his wife, Nancy.
Thanks so much for coming to see these!
Dowser, do you ever get into NC? If you do and drive on over towards Goldsboro in Wayne County, give me a holler. I'd like to meet you face to face, maybe cook something good for you.
I adore NC, and haven't been there in a loooong time. If EVER I get the chance to get near you, we WILL meet and you don't have to cook! I just want to see you and give you a big hug!
I love you, dear friend!
Yes. I am guilty of Late Misunderstanding Road Trips myself. I've hiked many of the large battlefields and lurked the fields of many a smaller skirmish.
The New Market Battlefield in Virginia is a good one to visit. Nice little museum. I've read a few accounts of the battle. The Cadets force marching into the fray to lend support and such. I read of a kid who'd been hit by a mini ball in the heel of his brogan. Dang, if they didn't have the brogan in the museum complete with lead.
I know me some sleepy little towns now. When I was a child my home town hauled off and shut down from noon till about 2 or 3. Everyone just closed up, went home and put their feets up for awhile. Seems very civilized to me.
Seems the same way to me, too!
New Market, the cadets were under Stonewall's command? And a whole slew of them were killed... I may have the wrong battle, though...
Great introduction Dowser. Looking forward to reading them all.
Missouri and KY have many things in common about the Civil War. I live about 40 miles from the ''Battle of Wilsons Creek'' in Springfield MO.
Even I have heard of that one!
Just wait until you read Mary's Dinner-- the same thing happened to her as what happened to the folks in MO... Awful.
If memory serves ten were killed. 40 or 50 wounded. They were under Lt Col Scott Ship. I think the overall command was headed by John Breckinridge. The VMI Cadets were, basically, children.
Interesting fight that sent Sigel packing.
And I love you too. You get here, and you will meet our Nancy also, and you will have so many hugs you won't know what to do with all of them!
That would be so wonderful!
Bless their hearts... They were too young to be there. But, everyone fought, in that war.