Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II, Part 56

Author: Knight, Lucian Lamar, 1868-1933
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Byrd Printing Co.
Number of Pages: 1274

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*Gilmer's "Georgians."

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into the water. I had noticed this fellow the day before gliding stealthily along near the bank of the river, in a small canoe, where the lines with baited hooks were hung. I intimated to him that the fish he was offering to sell were taken from my hooks. With demoniac looks of hatred and revenge, he drew his knife from his belt, and holding it for a moment in the position for striking, turned the edge to his own throat, and drew it across ; expressing thus more forcibly than he could have done by words his desire to cut my throat. I never saw him afterwards. ''1

The Atlanta When Grant was made commander-in-chief of the armies Campaign. of the United States, Sherman succeeded him in the chief command at the West,and, under Sherman, were three armies with three superb commanders: the Army of Tennessee, under McPherson; the Army of the Cumberland, under Thomas, and the Army of the Ohio, formerly under Burnside, but now commanded by Schofield. At the beginning of May, 1864, this triple army covered a line about twenty miles in length, a little south of Chattanooga: McPherson on the right, with 25,000 men; Thomas in the center, with 60,000, and Schofield on the left, with 15,000; in all, 100,000 men, with 260 guns. Opposed to this force was a Confederate army, under command of Joseph E. Johnston, who, among the Southern generals, ranked next in ability to Lee. It was gen- erally understood by the public that Sherman's grand object in this cam- paign was the capture of Atlanta, the principal city of Georgia between the mountains and the sea-coast. But Grant and Sherman well knew that an even more important object was the destruction or capture of Johnston 's army, and this was likely to be no light task. Johnston was a master of Fabian strategy, whom it was next to impossible to bring to battle unless he saw a good chance of winnuing. ''2

Hood Supersedes Despite the masterful tactics of Johns- Johnston. ton, in opposing the march of Sherman from Dalton to Atlanta, there was great dissatisfaction over what seemed to be the failure of the former to accomplish definite results, notwith- standing the heavy odds which confronted him. With President Davis he had never been a favorite; and, on July 17, 1864, when the two hostile armies stood before

1 On page 257, the same authority' speaks of a meeting of the chiefs of the Standing Peachtree with two or three chiefs of the neighboring villages. 2 The Mississippi Valley in the Civil War, by John Fiske, pp. 324-325.

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Atlanta, the President felt constrained to relieve him of the command, appointing in his stead an intrepid soldier : John B. Hood, who was expected to conduct an aggres- sive campaign. His reputation as a fighter was well es- tablished and his appointment carried with it the under- standing that defensive tactics were to be abandoned. It is said that Sherman, on hearing of the change, made this remark: "Heretofore, the fighting has been as Johnston pleased, but hereafter it shall be as I please." When the news reached the Union army, it undoubtedly formed the subject of some conversation between Sher- man and McPherson, as they sat on the steps of the porch of a country house. In allusion to the incident, Sherman himself says in his "Memoirs": We agreed that we ought to be unusually cautious and prepared for hard fighting, because Hood, though not deemed much of a scholar, or of great mental capacity, was undoubtedly a brave, determined, and rash man." General O. O. How- ard in "Battles and Leaders of the Civil War," com- ments thus: "Just at this time, much to our comfort and to his surprise, Johnston was removed and Hood put in command of the Confederate army." In the light of subsequent events, the judgment of Mr. Davis in making the change, is at least open to criticism; and, to quote the language of Henry R. Goetchius, a distinguished stu- dent of the campaign : "Who knows but what the history of the Confederate States of America might have been written differently had not the criticism of the rash, the thoughtless and the ignorant been allowed to lead to a substitution of the Confederate Fabius with a brave, but impetuous Varro. "*

The Battles On July 20, 1864, Hood attacked the

Around. Atlanta. Federal army at Peachtree Creek, near Atlanta, and then began the struggle for the prize of war. There followed a week of desul-

*Sherman's Memoirs, Vol. II, p. 75; Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, Vol. IV, p. 313; Johnston's Narrative, etc.

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tory fighting, in which he lost perhaps 8,000 men and ac- complished nothing. Says Professor Derry: "Through bad management the attack was not made as promptly as Hood desired, nor with as good results; for the Con- federates were repulsed with heavy loss." For the de- fence of the city over 10,000 State troops had been placed in the trenches, cannon had been obtained, and supplies made ready for the anticipated assault. Major-General Gustavus J. Smith commanded the State militia and General Toombs, at this time, was on his staff. The four brigades of State troops were commanded by the follow- ing officers : R. W. Carswell, P. J. Phillips, C. D. Ander- son, and H. K. McCay. Besides these, there were several Georgia regiments in the Confederate army under Gen- eral Hood, and they served throughout the campaign. Quite a number of Georgians, with the rank of Briga- dier-General, participated in the battles around Atlanta, among them, Alfred Iverson, Jr., Hugh W. Mercer, M. A. Stovall, John K. Jackson, Alfred Cumming, Claudius C. Wilson, Robert H. Anderson, Henry R. Jackson, and B. M. Thomas. Lieutenant-Generals Joseph Wheeler and William J. Hardee were both in these engagements; and Major-General W. H. T. Walker. On July 22, oc- curred one of the most terrific engagements of the entire war. Both sides fought with grim determination. It was Hood's plan to drive Sherman back toward the Ten- nessee line, but at the close of the day he was still where the morning found him.

Walker and McPher- Two of the ablest commanding offi- son Killed: Battle- cers of the Civil War fell, on July Field Memorials. 22, in the heat of this renowned engagement. Major-General James B. McPherson was killed while making a reconnoisance near the skirmish line of the Confederates. He was or- dered to surrender; but, raising his hand as if to salute, he wheeled about and galloped off. Instantly a volley of

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muskets was discharged, and the brave officer fell from liis horse to the ground, bleeding from several wounds. Both Sherman and Grant placed the highest estimate up- on his abilities.

The other distinguished soldier who was numbered among the slain was Major-General Wm. H. T. Walker, a Georgian. He was gallantly leading an attack upon the Federals, who occupied the crest of a hill, when he was shot in the thigh. As he fell to the ground, he was caught by an officer, who, in the act of leaning toward him, was shot in the head. The body of General Walker was sent to Augusta, for burial; but the spot on which he fell, about two miles east of Atlanta, has been appropriately marked. The memorial consists of a cannon mounted upon a pedestal of granite and surrounded by an iron railing. At each corner of the base is a pyramid of can- non-balls. On the south side is this inscription :

In Memory of MAJOR-GENERAL WM. H. T. WALKER, C. S. A.

On the north side is inscribed the following:

Born, November 26, 1816 Killed on this spot July 22, 1864.

The monument was erected some few years ago, by the veterans of Camp Walker. In like manner, the place where General McPherson fell has been marked. It is half a mile distant on the same tragic field. This monu- ment was erected by the United States Government. In honor of the same gallant officer, the local military post bears the name of Fort McPherson. Lieutenant-Colonel John M. Brown, a brother of Georgia's war Governor, was also among the victims, while Brigadier-General Hugh W. Mercer was severely wounded.

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Applying the Torch When Hood left the fated city, on the to Atlanta: A Me- night of September 1, 1864, he started

tropolis in Flames. toward the Tennessee line, his object being to force Sherman to quit Geor- gia, in order to protect his base of supplies. It was an unexpected development. The wily commander was some- what perplexed; but instead of starting in pursuit, he ordered Thomas to follow Hood, while he kept his clutch upon Atlanta. Then it was that the idea of continuing his triumphant march to the ocean front fired his brain ; and, after receiving Grant's permission to undertake the movement, provided Thomas was left sufficiently strong to cope with Hood in Tennessee, he began to make preparations. The city's destruction was resolved upon ; and, on September 4, an order was issued requiring the departure of all citizens, save such as were in the employ of the Federal government. Those who did not choose to go South, were sent North. Only the smallest amount of personal property could be taken away. This ruthless expulsion of over twelve thousand people, some of whom were entirely without means, worked the most grievous hardships; and, though Mayor Calhoun urged a revoca- tion of the order, his appeal was fruitless.

Then began the fiendish work of incendiarism. The torch was remorselessly applied. To quote Colonel Clarke: "What could not be consumed by fire was blown up, torn down, or otherwise destroyed. No city during the war was so nearly annihilated. The central part of business locality was an entire mass of ruins, there being only a solitary structure standing on our main street, Whitehall, between its extreme commercial limits. At least three-fourths of the buildings in the city were de- stroyed, the remainder consisting chiefly of dwelling houses. Father O'Reilly was instrumental in saving the Catholic and several Protestant churches, and also the City Hall. The Medical College was saved through the efforts of Dr. N. D'Alvigny. Atlanta was left a scene of charred and desolate ruins, the home of half-starved

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and half-wild dogs, who, with the carrion crows, feasted upon the refuse, together with the decaying carcasses of animals."1

Sherman's March to the Sea Begins. On November 15, 1864, with sixty thousand men, Sherman left the smouldering ruins of Atlanta behind and started upon his devastating march to the sea. The port of Savannah became his objective point. Cutting a swath forty miles wide, his army marched like a pestilence through Georgia, destroying what could not be utilized for food. Crops were laid waste, farm- houses burned, and whole villages wrecked. Horses were seized; and cows and hogs were either used for food or left dead in the field. Thieves who followed the army, or belonged to its lowest elements, reveled in the plunder of silver chests or other receptacles in which valuables were stored. The track of desolation was three hundred miles in length; and Sherman, in his report, said: "I estimate the damage done to the State of Georgia at one hundred million dollars. ''2

Atlanta Becomes During the war period, Atlanta was an the State Capital. important depot of supplies. Its de- struction by General Sherman empha- sized its value not only from the strategic but equally from the commercial point of view; and, furthermore, under the regime of reconstruction, it was the chief abode of the military power. Between the two oceans there was scarcely a point on the map which was better known in newspaper circles.

Consequently, when the Constitutional Convention of 1868 assembled in Atlanta, the city again sued for the coveted boon. The council agreed to furnish the neces- sary buildings, well equipped for the purpose, and with- out cost to the State for ten years; these to include a residence for the Governor, a receptacle for the State Library, and convenient quarters for the executive, leg-

1 E. Y. Clarke, in Illustrated History of Atlanta; Wallace P. Reed, T. H. Martin, etc .; also John Fiske in the The Mississippi Valley in the Civil War. 2 Lawton B. Evans, in History of Georgia for Schools: Isaac W. Avery, in History of Georgia, 1850-1881.

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islative, and judicial departments. The fullest protec- tion was also guaranteed for the safety of important State documents and papers. The council agreed further to donate the old fair grounds, containing twenty-five acres, on which to erect the new capitol building, or in lieu thereof, any unoccupied ten acres within the city limits which the General Assembly might prefer. By resolution adopted on February 27, 1868, the conven- tion accepted the city's offer; and, in the Constitution, which was subsequently ratified at the polls, an article was inserted making Atlanta the seat of government. Thus the battle was won.

In 1889, the new capitol building, a structure of mag- nificent proportions in every respect, worthy of the great commonwealth, was completed on the south side of the town and on the site of the old City Hall Park, for years the seat of legislation in local affairs. The ground is somewhat elevated at this point, giving to the lordly dome, which crowns the massive pile, an appropriate setting. It is to be regretted that the building is not constructed entirely of Georgia stone, the quarries of this State having become so famous that many public build- ing throughout the Union have made use of our home products. But the vast marble and granite resources of Georgia were not sufficiently developed at this time to meet competition. Hence oolitic limestone was substi- tuted; an excellent material of great durability and strength, obtained from Indiana. However, the interior finish of the building shows the ex- Unbesmirched by Graft : Georgia's Capitol a Monument to Official Integrity. quisite beauty of ornamentation which belongs to Georgia marble. The magnitude of the building is such that the demands for space can be met for years to come, however great the increase in the volume of official business. The labor of construction occupied five years. But so care-

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fully was the work supervised by the men to whom this important responsibility was entrusted, that the struc- ture was not only built within the figures of the original appropriation, but an unexpended residue of several thousand dollars was left in the treasury, to challenge the admiration of an age of graft. Thus an object-lesson is presented to New York, to Pennsylvania, and to other States, in which similar enterprises have furnished the opportunity for unlimited corruption. The following dis- tinguished Georgians constituted the commission: Gov- ernor Henry D. McDaniel, General Philip Cook, General E. P. Alexander, Captain Evan P. Howell, Hon. W. W. Thomas, and Judge A. L. Miller. The cornerstone of the building was laid with masonic ceremonies in 1884, and the oration was delivered by the polished and elo- quent General Alexander R. Lawton, of Savannah. Car- peted with grass and ornamented with shrubs and plants the area surrounding the capitol building has been made very attractive, at small expense, by the exercise of good taste and judgment, together with watchful attention.

Atlanta's Great There will be no one to question the statement that Newspapers. much of Atlanta's phenomenal growth since the Civil War has been due to her great newspapers. These have proven an effective supplement to her railroads; for they have not only been king-makers in the world of politics, but powerful factors in the sphere of industrial economics. They have fostered great civic move- ments; they have embodied progressive ideals; they have set the pace for newspapers in other parts of the South, and while seeking primarily to build up Atlanta, they have stimulated the forces of development through- out the entire Piedmont region.

But the Gate City of the South was long a death-trap for journalistic experiments.

It is needless to go behind the Civil War period in search of testimony to support this statement. However, there are not a few items of interest to be found in the ante-bellum regime of newspaperdom. Atlanta's earliest

Isaac W. Avery, in History of Georgia, 1850-1861; Lawton B. Evans, in History of Georgia for Schools; E. Y. Clarke, in Illustrated Atlanta; Wallace P. Reed, Thos. H. Martin, newspaper files, etc.

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sheet-published in 1845-was the Luminary, a somewhat crude affair, of which the Reverend Joseph Baker was the editor, and he used in printing it a small hand press. But the beams of this pioneer beacon were soon extinguished. Its successors were legion, but they were uniformly short- lived. Atlanta for years became a sort of infirmary for sick newspapers and a grave-yard for dead ones. Even the Southern Miscellany, brought to Atlanta from Madison and edited by the afterwards famous William T. Thompson, proceeded almost instanter to give up the ghost-though an artistic success. The Intelligencer, a newspaper founded in the early fifties and edited for quite awhile by J. I. Whitaker, managed to weather suc- cessfully the storm of Civil War, but went down under the incubus of Reconstruction. It was on this paper that Colonel John H. Seals-who afterwards edited The Sunny South-earned his journalistic spurs. The Southern Confederacy, another war-time sheet, acquired wide note. It was often printed on brown paper, but was read throughout the Confederate lines. Colonel George W. Adair and Mr. J. Henly Smith were the owners, On its editorial staff was the present world-renowned dean of American newspaperdom, Henry Watterson-then a youthful novitiate, serving his apprenticeship to the pen. Two of Atlanta 's most prominent business men -Jolın H. James and B. B. Crew-first began to show the metal which was in them on this famous paper. It also possessed a poet of no meau gifts in the well-known A. R. Watson,

But it died.

History repeated itself after the war. There was no decline for years in the number of newspaper obsequies and interments. Even the first journalistic effort of the brilliant Grady-who undertook to launch the Herald-proved to be a tragic disaster. His associate, Robert A. Alston, a man of gifts, who scathingly denounced the convict-lease system, was afterwards killed in the State Capitol by Captain Ed. Cox. It was when the Herald's last issue appeared that Mr. Grady penned his famous epi- gram : "General Toombs loaned like a Prince and collected like a shylark." In 1872 Alexander H. Stephens entered the local arena. He acquired from Judge Cincinnatus Peeples the famous Atlanta Sun, in order to fight the election of Horace Greeley; but straightway the orb began to set. It is no exaggeration to say that at least a score of newspapers have been decently buried in Atlanta since Sherman's visit. The first daily publication to take vigorous root and to acquire permanent lodgings above ground was the Constitution.

This famous old daily was founded in the summer of 1868. Its first editor was Carey W. Styles, while W. A. Hemphill and J. H. Anderson man- aged the business interests. Colonel Hemphill retained his connection with the paper for more than three decades. J. R. Barrick, I. W. Avery, and E. Y. Clarke, each in succession, directed the editorial policy of the paper for the first eight years. Major Barrick was a Kentuckian by birth and

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a poet by grace. In 1876 Captain Evan P. Howell acquired Colonel Clarke's interest and became editor-in-chief. With his wonderful insight into men, Captain Howell soon gathered about him a galaxy of gifted writers. It was at this time that Joel Chandler Harris, refugeeing from Savannah to escape the ravages of yellow fever, came to Atlanta, where lie was soon annexed to the staff and began to write the name of Uncle Remus the famous dialect stories which were destined to carry his name around the globe. Henry W. Grady and Samuel W. Small were also dis- covered by this keen-eyed man of affairs; and it was not long before P. J. Moran was added to the group. In 1889 came one with a song, in the person of the gifted Frank L. Stanton, who still edits his famous column- "Just from Georgia."

Not long after the paper was launched N. P. T. Finch bought an in- terest and became associate editor; but eventually he left Atlanta for the West, selling his interest to Mr. S. M. Inman-ever a friend to Atlanta 's great undertakings. In 1880, Henry W. Grady, who had been a space- writer, acquired an interest and became managing editor, a position which he held until his death; and it was largely under the leadership of this journalistic Napoleon that the Constitution became a power in newspaper- dom. His feats of journalistic enterprise established new precedents, while his editorials-like blasts from a silvery bugle-thrilled and electrified the State. He was succeeded at the helm by Clarke Howell, the present su- perbly-equipped editor-in-chief. Captain E. P. Howell eventually retired, and Hugh T. Inman then acquired an interest, which, in turn, passed to the Bunnigan estate. In 1902 Colonel Hemphill's interest was purchased by Clark Howell, in association with Roby Robinson, the latter becoming business manager. Ten years later, Mr. Robinson relinquished this office, retaining, however, his interest; and Mr. James R. Holiday was duly in- stalled as his successor.

In 1883 rose the Atlanta Journal, founded as an afternoon paper by Colonel E. F. Hoge, a prominent member of the local bar. But Colonel Hoge's health failed. The ownership then passed to John Paul Jones, who two years later sold it to a syndicate, including Hoke Smith, H. H. Cabaniss, Charles A. Collier, Jacob Haas and others. Josiah Carter was made managing editor, and the brilliant F. H. Richardson also began at this time his long connection with the paper as its chief editorial writer. Mr. Smith became president of the corporation and Mr. Cabaniss the busi- ness manager. It is due to the powerful leverage which the Journal de- veloped in the Presidential campaign of 1892 that Mr. Smith-who directed the policy of the paper-was invited to enter the Cabinet of Mr. Cleveland as Secretary of the Interior. This was the beginning of his distinguished career in national politics. Twice after this he became Governor of Geor- gia, and on the first Monday in December, 1911, he took his seat in the Senate of the United States. In 1900 both Mr. Smith and Mr. Cabaniss

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retired. The paper was then sold to HI. M. Atkinson, Morris Brandon and James R. Gray, after which other changes followed; but Mr. Gray still remains at the helm as editor and president.

In 1906 the Georgian was founded as an afternoon paper by Mr. F. L. Seely, who associated with him Colonel John Temple Graves as editor. The latter-equally famed for his versatile pen and for his rare eloquence on the platform-was soon coveted by the metropolis of the nation, and in 1908 resigned his chair to become editor of the New York American, the greatest of the Hearst papers. Soon after the Georgian was founded, Mr. Seely acquired by purchase the Atlanta News, of which Colonel Graves had formerly been the editor; and the two papers were then combined. It must be said to the credit of this latest entry in the newspaper lists that in a number of battles for reform it led a victorious and splendid fight, including the crusade for the overthrow of the convict lease system'and the campaign for State-wide prohibition. In 1912, Mr. Scely sold the Georgian to William Randolph Hearst, of New York. It was on the Southern Temperance Crusader, a weekly journal founded in 1858, that gifted novelist and poet, Mrs. Mary E. Bryan, made her bow to the public. She afterwards became a contributor to the columns of the Sunny South, a weekly periodical founded by Colonel John H. Seals in 1875 and purchased by the Constitution some quarter of a century later. This paper was long a fireside companion throughout the South. During the late sixties, The Christian Index, Georgia 's pioneer religious journal, came from Penfield to Atlanta, where it is still edited; and in 1906 Joel Chandler Harris founded the Uncle Remus Magazine, for some time edited and pub- lished by his eldest son, Julian Harris, who inherits in no small degree the paternal genins.

Atlanta's First Atlanta's first Memorial Day was ob- Memorial Day. served on April 26, 1866, just one year after Gen. Johnston's surrender. The moving spirit in this pioneer celebration was Mrs. Jos- eph H. Morgan, a gentle lady whose whole life has been unselfishly devoted to good deeds. Mrs. Morgan has seen nearly fifty recurring aniversaries of Memorial Day, but her heart is still young in its beautiful enthusiasm for a Lost Cause, while her labor of love for the boys in gray has never known a moment's languor or weariness. As Miss Eugenia Goode, she was for three years secretary of the Atlanta Hospital. Association, a relief society of

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Georgia's landmarks, memorials and legends, Volume II, Part 56

Author: Knight, Lucian Lamar, 1868-1933 Publication date: 1913 Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Byrd Printing Co. Number of Pages: 1274

Author: Knight, Lucian Lamar, 1868-1933
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Atlanta, Ga. : Byrd Printing Co.
Number of Pages: 1274