USA > Georgia > Floyd County > Rome > A history of Rome and Floyd County, State of Georgia, United States of America; including numerous incidents of more than local interest, 1540-1922, Volume I > Part 22
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"On arriving in the city I galloped to the leading hotel, the Etowah House, then kept by Mr. G. S. Black, and told him the Yankees were com- ing. At his request, I rode through the streets, sounding the alarm and waking the people. Everybody jump- ed out of bed, and the excitement was great. The people ran in all direc- tions, but under the command of their leader got down to the business of pil- ing cotton bales in breastwork style on the Rome ends of the bridges.
"There were few men in Rome at the time, most of them having gone away to war, but those who were left soon hauled out all the old squirrel rifles, shot guns and muzzle-loading muskets that could be found, and di- vided them among those able to bear arms.
"The little railroad from Rome to Kingston fired up the engines and ran them every 30 minutes in and out of the city, carrying the news into the country districts and bringing to town the farmers with their old battle pieces.
"The handful of convalescent Con- federate soldiers in Rome took charge of the home guard and lined them up behind the breastworks of cotton. The Bridge Street (Fifth Avenue) bridge across the Oostanaula River, a wooden structure, was filled with hay which was saturated with turpentine so it could be fired in case of defeat and a retreat.
"About sunrise next morning, May 3, (Sunday) six hours after my ar- rival, Streight's advance guard ap- peared on Shorter's Hill, one mile west of Rome. Through their field glasses they saw the 'fortifications' and the bustling activity in the town. An old negro woman, asked if there were any Confederates around, replied, 'Yassir, boss, de town am full of sojers!'
"So impressive was the scene that the advance guard retreated without any attempt to take the bridge. A few shots were fired between the sharp- shooters.
"About 3 or 4 o'clock that after- noon Forrest marched into Rome with Streight's command as prisoners. When the Yankees found out there had been no real soldiers in Rome, and that they had been captured by For- rest's inferior force, they became very angry, and it was feared that they would revolt, but Gen. Forrest's fore- sight in separating officers and men, imprisoning the officers in the court house and putting the privates under guard at the forks of the rivers, averted trouble.
"It has been erroneously stated that I was sent to Rome by Gen. Forrest. I knew nothing of Gen. Forrest's pur- suit of the raiders until he marched into Rome with them.
"The people of Rome made me a present of a silver service valued at $400, which I now have and prize very highly. They also gave me $400 in money and sent the Widow Hanks $400 for giving me the use of her lame pony."
According to the official reports of Col. Abel D. Streight, made after his escape from Libby prison to Union headquarters, Aug. 22, 1864, John H. Wisdom was directly responsible for his surrender to Gen. Forrest. The following from Col. Streight's report is significant:
"After some maneuvering, Forrest sent in a flag of truce, demanding sur- render, so I called a council of war. I had previously learned in the mean- time, however, that Capt. Milton Rus- sell had been unable to take the bridge at Rome. Our condition was can- vassed, and although personally op- posed to surrender, and so expressing myself at the time, yet I yielded to the unanimous voice of my regimental commanders, and at about noon of May 3 we surrendered as prisoners of war."
Col. Streight continued with the statement that he had dispatched Capt. Russell with 200 picked men to take the Rome bridge, and this officer had reported that it was held by a formi- dable force of Confederates, and in his opinion could not be captured by the forces available.
In one part of an original ac- count in his own hand-writing, Col. Wisdom stated that in addition to five horses, he used one mule. He recited that Miss Emma Sanson, daughter of the Widow Sanson, who lived near Black Warrior
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Creek bridge, two miles west of Gadsden, got up behind Gen. For- rest on his horse and directed him to ford the creek after Streight had burned the bridge. Streight's rear guard sent a fusillade of bul- lets toward the double-mounted horse, and Forrest and Miss San- son were forced to dismount and hide behind a bank. The general finally rode back to the farm house with the brave girl, then crossed the ford with his men.
During the delay, Streight's men had entered Gadsden and be- gun burning and plundering. They discovered Col. Wisdom's smoke house, in which had been stored a quantity of bacon by a crowd of refugees from Tennessee. While Streight's men tried to find the key to the smoke house and made preparations to batter down the door, Forrest's men arrived, chased them and devoured the ba- con.
According to Col. Wisdom, Streight surrendered at Law- rence's Spring, four miles east of Cedar Bluff, Cherokee County, Ala., and 24 miles west of Rome. He confirms the statement that spirituous liquor flowed pretty freely in Rome that Sunday: "I thought a lieutenant would ride his black mare to death. He kept riding up and down the Oosta- naula from Battey's Shoals to town and back, to keep the Yankees from crossing. They said he was 'tight.'"
Gen. Forrest hurried down into Alabama to engage in a new chase, without waiting to attend the pic- nic Romans had planned for him. While awaiting orders in Rome for about four days, Forrest maintain- ed headquarters at the Choice House, where the Hotel Forrest now stands, and the hospitality of the Temple of Justice a block to the east was enjoyed by the of- ficers he had corralled.
TWO FAMOUS RIDES COMPARED.
John H. Wisdom's famous ride, mentioned in the foregoing, is here compared with Paul Revere's :
PAUL REVERE'S RIDE.
Date-Apr. 19, 1775.
War-Revolutionary.
Starting Point-Charlestown, Mass.
Destination-Concord, Mass.
Place Reached-Lexington, Mass.
Distance-Nine miles. Time-Two hours, 15 minutes. Miles per Hour-Four.
How Traveled-Horseback. Object to Save-Lex. and Concord.
Start of Ride-About 11:45 p. m.
End of Ride-Two a. m.
Horses Used-One. Road Condition-Fair.
Riding by Dark-Two hours, 15 min. Riding by Light-None. Country-Undulating.
JNO. H. WISDOM'S RIDE.
Date-May 2, 1863. War-Civil.
Starting Point-Gadsden, Ala.
Destination-Rome, Ga.
Place Reached-Rome, Ga.
Distance-Sixty-seven miles.
Time-Eleven hours (81% riding) .
Miles per Hour-Eight. How Traveled-Buggy, horseback.
Object to Save-Rome, Ga.
Start of Ride-About 3:30 p. m. End of Ride-Two-thirty a. m.
Horses Used-Five (one mule) . Road Condition-Rough.
Riding by Dark-Seven hours.
Riding by Light-Four hours. Country-Hilly.
CHAPTER V. Sherman's Army Captures Rome
T HE climax to Rome's mili- tary successes and failures was Gen. Wm. Tecumseh Sherman, United States ar- my, of Ohio. In a chase after Gen. Jos. E. Johnston from Dalton and Resaca, the right wing of his ar- my (14th and 16th corps), under command of Gen. Jas. Birdseye McPherson,* also of Ohio, sent its scouts into Rome May 17, 1864, after an artillery duel for a day with Gen. Stuart's defenders .**
Virgil A. Stewart, a sharpshoot- er who helped defend Rome, states that a spirited resistance was maintained for a day through the artillery, but the superiority of the Federal force was so great that the Confederates were forced to retire, burning the Fifth Ave- nue and Broad Street bridges as they went. From him, Horry Wimpee, Wm. M. Hardin and others we get the following gen- eral description of activities :
Gen. Sherman had sent Garrard's Cavalry *** dorvn the Oostanaula River from Resaca, and Gen. Jefferson C. Davis' division of McPherson's Ar- my of the Tennessee in support of it. The Federals were advised that only a small garrison defended Rome, so they chose to go against the point of greatest resistance rather than lose the time involved in circumvention. They proceeded down the right or north bank of the river to Armuchee creek, where they found the Confed- erate skirmishers. Shots were ex- changed and one man was killed, prob- ably a Confederate.
Cannon had been placed on Fort
*Killed while reconnoitering near Atlanta some three months later hy a Confederate sharpshooter named McPherson.
** Authority : Virgil A. Stewart. This Stuart was undoubtedly not Gen. J. E. B. Stuart. The Weekly Courier of Thursday, Aug. 31, 1865, says May 17 was the day of investment. The diary of Reuben S. Norton says May 18. It is likely that the main body of the troops entered on the latter date.
*** The famous Black Horse Troop.
**** A trench two or three feet deep can still be found on the southeastern slope of the water- works hill: picture of it is shown herein.
Jackson, the city pumping station site, on the top of a high hill in North Rome, then known as Fort Norton; on the ridge crossing the Summerville road one mile northwest of the court- house, at the rock quarry, then known as Fort Attaway, overlooking Little Dry creek; and on the crest of Myrtle Hill cemetery, then known as Fort Stovall. At the foot of Fort Norton a redoubt was built to impede the progress of the enemy in any attempt to scale the heights for a hand-to- hand encounter. In front of the pres- ent Second (or Fifth Avenue) Baptist church, on a slight ridge where John Ross used to live, was a trench to which the Confederate ยท infantrymen fell back after their outposts had been driven in and Ft. Attaway silenced .****
The second fort to withdraw its fire was Fort Norton, and its garrison unit withdrew to points in the city and as- sisted the remaining unit on Fort Sto- vall (cemetery hill) to hold out.
Gen. Davis had planted his artillery on the ridge above and southwest of Shorter's Spring, being the site of the new Shorter College, and particularly the location of the Selkirk home, now known as "Maplehurst," the residence of the president of the institution.
The cannonading had started about daybreak. A column of Confederate cavalry had skirmished with the Fed- erals around Little Dry creek, but these retired before the hosts of Gar- rard. All but 42 of the non-combatant population had taken bag and baggage and selves away from Rome. The others preferred to remain and em- brace whatever fate awaited them, for it might be worse farther down, and home was home. One of those who remained was as staunch and militant a "Rebel" as ever lived-Mrs. Lizzie Roach Hughes, dressmaker and mil- liner and resident of the Fourth Ward. "Miss Lizzie," as she was called all over Rome, used to do a lot of sewing for the soldiers, and the day was never too wet or cold or the night too dark for her to go foraging for "sumpin' t'eat." Her activities caused many a gray-jacketed heart to throb grate- fully. However, there were always people of low enough conscience and purpose to tell the invaders what Ro- mans were the most unflagging in support of the Southern cause, and
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those who were informed upon were forced to suffer. The Union troops cultivated "Miss Lizzie," and made life unbearable for her. Their first meeting came when the soldiers en- tered West Rome. Gen. Davis and several officers "requested" "Miss Liz- zie" to go with them to the top of the hill to see if any more Confederates were on cemetery hill. The Confed- erates recognized "Miss Lizzie" through their field glasses, and waved a flag at her.
"Thank you, 'Miss Lizzie,' " said Gen. Davis.
In a minute there came a cannon ball screeching overhead, too close for comfort. "Miss Lizzie," mad as a wet hen, shouted, "So THAT was why you invited me up here! Evidently, Gen. Davis, some of our men ARE left, and they have the nerve to express themselves !"
Grabbing up her skirts, "Miss Liz- zie" ran home, there to find that the invaders had ransacked everything had stolen her fowls and her eggs, and made her brother-in-law a pris- oner. The man was placed in the cus- tody of "Miss Lizzie" on her assurance that his wife was very ill, and on her promise to make him behave. After the occupation of Rome, "Miss Lizzie" got even with the "Yankees" by charging them top prices for fancy hats and flowers to send home to their wives. From an astute old wom- an of Rome "Miss Lizzie" had learned to make feathers into artificial flow- ers. Hidden out at Coosa were a few white ganders and at Floyd Springs some guineas and a peafowl or two, so "Miss Lizzie" went to these places after material. If she could get a horse, all right, and if not, she would walk, five miles, ten miles-it made no difference. Once she indignantly refused to let a Northern soldier help her mount a steed. This exhibition of lese majeste caused the soldier to call the corporal of the guard, who es- corted her with an armed squad to Gen. Davis' headquarters on Fourth Avenue. Some more of her privileges were taken away, including her lib- erty for a day, but this only served to make her increase the price of her wares.
"Miss Lizzie" was also suspected of furnishing "underground telephone" information to the Confederates; she was undoubtedly guilty, as were most of the other women, and proud of it, but the "Yankees" couldn't get a thing on her, so she remained a privileged
character and added greatly to the drab camp life of the uninvited guests of Rome.
The cannon of the enemy were trained almost exclusively on the de- fending forts, and practically all the buildings and houses escaped destruc- tion at that time. No doubt many a shell could be found buried in the va- rious hills .* The figures as to losses are not available, but it is believed that the casualties were few. While the bombardment was at its height, B. G. Salvage, foreman of The Courier composing room, who had succeeded Capt. Dwinell as editor while the lat- ter laid aside editorial pellets for the real kind, was busy grinding out the last issue of the paper that Romans were to receive before Aug. 31, 1865. The makeshift editor pied his type and took to swamps and hills. The May 16, 1864, issue is not available, hence much that took place on that stirring occasion is forever lost.
However, we are told by the sur- vivors mentioned above that the Con- federates withdrew from the last fort (Stovall) under cover of the dark- ness of May 16, and took up sniping positions on Cantrell's Ridge, South Rome; on Tubbs' Mountain and other vantage points; also that the invading skirmishers cautiously entered on May 17 after having crossed the Oosta- naula at or near Battey's Shoals, and by noon had advanced their line to Maiden Lane (now Third Avenue). On the following day, May 18, after awaiting orders and packing up, Gen. Davis' hosts, said to have been parts of the 14th and 16th Army corps, numbering perhaps 30,000 men, cross- ed the Oostanaula at Printup's wharf, midway between the Second Avenue and Fifth Avenue bridges, six abreast and on pontoon bridges made partly of church pews. Their heavy wagons and artillery went over safely. Gen. Wm. Vandever tarried a short time, but soon pushed on to Kingston, and left Gen. John M. Corse in charge of the garrison of 1,054 men.
The most serious infantry and cav- alry engagement took place at Fort Attaway, lasting from 3 to 5 p. m. of May 16. As the Confederates with- drew, they took with them everything that could possibly be used, and de- stroyed all that might benefit the ene- my. A Texas regiment is said to have removed $150,000 in provisions and clothing from Broad Street stores.
*C. L. King, cemetery sexton, has several which were dug out of graves in Myrtle Hill.
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SHERMAN'S ARMY CAPTURES ROME
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A PAIR OF GENERALS WHO "DROPPED IN" ON ROME.
At the left is Gen. Jefferson C. Davis, commander of the Garrison, and at right is Gen. Wm. T. Sherman, who spent several days on Fourth Avenue.
The new "tenants" finished the job. The few pigs, chickens and cows that were left were eagerly seized and killed, and it was "every Roman for himself." Things of no military value were smashed or burned. "Bulls" got into the "china shop" of the Buena Vista Hotel and had a lively time.
Dr. J. M. Gregory had been mayor the year before. He had refugeed, but his good wife and her mother, Mrs. Hutchings, the kindly proprie- tress, wrung her hands vainly in pro- test.
Mrs. John Choice remained behind, cheering the retreating Confederates as they passed. For the offense of keeping two buckets of water sitting at the front of her place to slake the thirst of the boys in gray, Mrs. Greg- ory's home was set on fire. The flames spread over the lower floor, and her aged mother had to be carried down a ladder from the second story. The colored maid, later a resident of Chi- cago, followed her just as the fire was entering the room.
Mrs. Samuel Stewart's home on Eighth Avenue could be seen from afar, and clothing hung up in a cer- tain way on the back porch gave sig- nals to the Confederates. Union sol- diers went to this home and carried away everything of value, and poured ink on Mrs. Stewart's wearing ap- parel.
A lot of munitions of war and a cannon or two were thrown into the Oostanaula above Fifth Avenue by the Federals, who had more than they could carry. A little gunpowder and a few shells found in the arsenal at Myrtle Hill were destroyed. Zach Mooney, who had been employed to help make cannon at the Noble Foun- dry, took two old pieces and did away with them; one went "kerchug!" into the Etowah nearby, and another splashed into an old well.
The Lumpkin-Holmes-Morris home on Eighth Avenue was used as a hos- pital for the wounded Union men. The Spullock home was made the head- quarters of Gen. Corse, and Gen. Van- dever occupied first the Hood-Cum- ming - Featherston - Rixie home on Broad, and then the Chas. H. Smith ("Bill Arp") home on Fourth Ave- nue, which was used successively by Gens. Jefferson C. Davis and Wm. T. Sherman. A Gen. Cox is also men- tioned as having had charge for a short time at Rome.
Horry Wimpee and many others unite in praising Gens. Vandever and Davis as kind - hearted gentlemen whose treatment of Romans was all that could have been expected. Gen. Sherman appears not to have engaged in any atrocities at Rome. As for Gen. Corse, he was not possessed of the amenities bestowed upon the oth- ers; early in his career at Rome he
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caused the handsome Hawkins home on the Lindale road to be burned be- cause a crowd of his foragers were ambushed at that spot. He was a stubborn fighter, however; when near- ly overwhelmed by Gen. S. G. French at Allatoona, he signalled Gen. Sher- man: "I am short a cheek bone and part of an ear, but am able to whip all hell yet!"
Gen. Sherman entered Rome from Kingston Oct. 12, 1864, on a chase after Gen. Hood, who, after the fall of Atlanta Sept. 2, rambled all over the old Cherokee nation in Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee, and proved as elusive as a Jack-o-Lantern. Hood had marched down the south bank of the Etowah, passing through or elose to Cave Spring, and crossing the Coosa at Veal's Ferry, near the vil- lage of Coosa. He flitted through Texas Valley on the northwestern side of Lavender Mountain, with the pur- pose of destroying the W. & A. railroad and cutting off Sherman's supplies from Chattanooga. Part of Hardee's corps went to Mt. Pleasant Methodist church (now Oreburg), turned to the left at Farmer's bridge, Armuchee Creek, and then went through Floyd Springs to Chattooga County, and hauled up near Dalton; Gen. Stuart's* corps penetrated Robinson's gap, Lav- ender Mountain, then went through Texas Valley and crossed Little Ar- muchee Creek at Echols' Mill. A junc- tion of some of the units was ef- fected near Resaca and Hood demand- ed the surrender of the garrison there, but was refused.
Hood had crossed the Coosa Oct. 10 and left a part of Harrison's Brigade (being the 8th and 11th Texas Regi- ments, the 3rd Arkansas and the 4th Tennessee) strung from Lavender Mt. to Veal's Ferry; also Stuart's corps of four regiments at Sardis church, Coosa. A feint on Rome Nov. 12 from 1,200 to 1,500 of these troops so alarm- ed Gen. Sherman that he wired At- lanta that Hood was turning back on the Hill City, and ordered 50,000 men from Atlanta rushed to his aid !** This order was countermanded later when Sherman learned that Hood's main force was bearing down on Resaca. Sherman went on to Resaca the night of Oct. 12 and left Corse in charge at Rome; and Corse scouted into the Coosa Valley and brought back some prisoners and guns.
Gen. Sherman returned to Rome the night of Oct. 28 with his staff, and again perched himself on Fourth Ave- nue; and for four days and a half,
until the morning of Nov. 2, directed operations from that point. On this occasion he was returning after a chase with Hood which had taken him down the Chattooga Valley to Gayles- ville, Ala. The grizzled West Pointer exhibited considerable chagrin that he had been unable to corner the South- ern army and wipe it out with his superior force. On the retreat from Dalton, Gen. Johnston had scarcely lost a prisoner or a gun, nor had he left behind many loaves or fishes for the Federals to feed upon. As for Hood, his baggage was so light that he moved like the wind. Finally Sher- man gave up the chase, and set his course for the sea. The evacuation of Rome started Nov. 10, 1864, and was completed by 9 a. m. of Nov. 11. Act. ing on orders from Sherman, then at Kingston, Gen. Corse burned all the mills and factories and some other es- tablishments that might be of use to the Confederates.
The burning took place on the night of November 10. Never had a scene of such wantonness and misery been presented to Rome. Dry goods boxes and trash were piled high in stores and set off, and the crackling of the timbers furnished a melancholy echo to the wails of women and children. Soldiers ran from place to place with firebrands in their hands, setting the places designated here, and perfectly harmless places there. Necessarily the stores and shops next to the con- demned improvements went up in smoke. With hundreds of bayonets bristling, the 40 steadfast male Ro- mans could do nothing but watch and allow their souls to fill with regret.
Here are some of the Broad Street or central establishments which were destroyed; both depots, Cunning- ham's cotton warehouse, the bank, David J. Meyerhardt's store house, Daniel R. Mitchell's houses, the Eto- wah Hotel (then at Howard Street, or Second Avenue). Cohen's grist mill on Silver Creek, between East Rome and South Rome burnt mer- rily. The great brick smoke stacks of the Noble Foundry were blown up with powder blasts, and the build- ings then fired. Only isolated struc- tures escaped, until there was no place much to do business, and less business to do than places. A livery stable caught, and the odor of burning horseflesh could be detected for several blocks. The whinnies of the horses told of their awful plight.
*Not J. E. B. Stuart.
** Authority : Wm. M. Hardin.
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SHERMAN'S ARMY CAPTURES ROME
With this kind of a gesture, Gen. Corse bade farewell to Rome. Had he fiddled as well, the picture could have been little less complete. There was more work for him to do. As Sherman left Kingston, he said: "Corse, the torch." It was not always Corse who happened to be convenient. Gen. Davis was hard by when Gen. Sherman on Nov. 21 found himself on
*Gen. Sherman no doubt traversed after the war a considerable part of his course through Georgia, to verify data for his book. He was interested in the Tecumseh Iron Works at Te- cumseh, Cherokee Co., Ala., two miles north of Borden-Wheeler Springs, and the manager of that concern, Gen. Willard Warner, a member of Gen. Sherman's staff, used to buy large quan- tities of goods through the wholesile grocery house of Berrys & Co. (later Montgomery, Me- Laurin & Co.), of Rome. On one occasion, about 1880, Gen. Sherman came inannounced to Rome, and spent some little time waiting to change trains at the Rome Railroad depot, going to or coming from Tecumseh. Several Romans recognized him by his stubby chin dec- orations and shook hands with him. It was too soon after the war, however, and most of the little crowd contented themselves with a look and grunt from a distance, and votel him the ugliest mortal they had ever seen.
the Howell Cobb plantation in middle Georgia. Hardly a scrap of that place was spared, because Cobb had just left a cabinet position at Washington.
Although it is popularly accepted that Sherman's March to the Sea started at 7 a. m., Nov. 15, from At- lanta, the preliminaries were staged at Rome, Kingston, Cartersville and other points north of the capital.
The stern injunction, "Leave not a blade of grass that a grass- hopper could subsist upon !" was likewise applicable to the conduct of the army in the upper section of the state.
It was a devastating scourge, this march ; it left many a wrecked fortune, bleeding heart and broken spirit, but it was also the forerun- ner of a new era of development and progress for the entire South- land.
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