USA > Kentucky > Trigg County > Counties of Christian and Trigg, Kentucky : historical and biographical > Part 41
USA > Kentucky > Christian County > Counties of Christian and Trigg, Kentucky : historical and biographical > Part 41
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
A. R. Shacklett, Lieutenant-Colonel ; Jabez Bingham, Major ; and John Couch, Adjutant. The companies were re organized as follows: Com- pany D, F. G. Terry, Captain; George Wilford, First Lieutenant; Lee Turner, Second Lieutenant ; W. D. Smith, Brevet Lieutenant ; and Joseph H. Mitchell, Orderly Sergeant; Company B, J. W. Brown, Cap- tain; W. L. Dunning, First Lieutenant ; J. E. Kelly, Second Lieuten- ant; and J. R. Gilfoy, Brevet Second Lieutenant. From Jackson the regiment was ordered to Holly Springs under Gen. Baldwin, Tilghman's Division, to intercept Grant. Grant coming up, Tilghman retreated to Coffeeville, Miss., where he encountered and repulsed the enemy under Gen. Lee. After this the command went into winter quarters at Grenada. In the spring of 1863 they were sent to re-inforce the garrison at Fort Pemberton, at the head of the Yazoo River, where, in about a month, the enemy withdrawing, were sent to the assistance of Gen. Bowen at Grand Gulf. On the march to Grand Gulf the Eighth was assigned to Buford's Brigade of Loring's Division, and on reaching Big Black River found Gen. Bowen, who had been compelled to retreat.
Captain Terry's company were mounted at Big Black Bridge, where they had been sent to intercept the enemy's cavalry, and here, until Pemberton had gathered his forces in hand, defended this important crossing.
In the general battle which ensued at Champion Hill, the Eighth took an active part, and here Lieut. Kelly of Company B was severely wounded. Pemberton was defeated and fell back on the Big Black. The enemy pursued with vigor, and Pemberton continued his retreat to Vicks- burg. At the "bridge" Col. Lyon got possession of a battery, and being an experienced artillerist succeeded in holding the Federals in check till the rest of the army were safely drawn off. This accomplished, he turned and contested the balance of the way to the works at Vicks- burg. The Eighth remained in Vicksburg only about a week, when being mounted Col. Lyon was ordered to make his way through to Grant's rear. This perilous mission was successfully accomplished in the night, and an immediate dash made on Raymond, where a lot of disabled Fed- erals were captured who had been wounded in a recent fight betwen Gens. Lew Wallace and Gregg. Lyon operated on the enemy's rear with much success till Gen. Johnston came up with his forces to relieve the siege of Vicksburg, when he reported to that officer. On the latter's advance from Jackson, the Eighth was again dismounted and assigned to Buford's Brigade. At the Big Black, news of the surrender being received, the Confederates fell back on Jackson and awaited the coming of Sherman. Here the command participated in all the engagements pending the in. vestment of the place, and after, near the "Fair Grounds," with two
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
other regiments of the brigade, made a stand against a much larger force, that elicited the praise of the Commanding General. General Johnston, who witnessed the fight, is said to have pronounced it the most gallant and stubborn resistance he had witnessed during the war. Many of the enemy fell within ten or twenty feet of the Confederate lines. After the evacuation of Jackson, the brigade fell back with the army to Forrest's Station, where they remained inactive till September, when with Gen. Loring they moved to Canton, and afterward, in February, to Demopolis, Ala., to intercept Sherman, who was moving on Meridian. Here the three Kentucky regiments of Buford's Brigade were mounted and sent to Forrest at Gainesville, and Buford being promoted to the Second Divis- ion, Col. A. P. Thompson took command; and here, also, companies D, C, and F, were consolidated, with the following officers : J. W. Brown, Captain ; Logan Field, First Lieutenant ; W. L. Dunning, Second Lieu- tenant ; - Rowland, Third Lieutenant. Capt. Terry was assigned to duty as Ordnance Officer of the brigade. Thus organized, the command moved to join the rest of Forrest's forces at Tupelo, Miss., preparatory to a raid into Kentucky and west Tennessee. On this raid, at Paducah, through some mistake Thompson made an unsupported attack upon the fort with his brigade alone. In the charge, Col. Thompson was killed by a shell, and some 100 were killed and wounded. The fatal shell also killed a horse ridden by Capt. Al. McGoodwin of the Third Kentucky, who was riding on one side of the Colonel, while the Colonel's flesh and blood were scattered over Capt. Terry, who rode on the other. The charge on the fort was repulsed, but Lieut. Logan Field, with a portion of his com- pany, charged and took the Marine Hospital on the right, from which they fired a plunging shot into the fort, till dislodged by the enemy's gun- boats. Night coming on, after supplying themselves plentifully with commissaries', quartermaster's and hospital stores, the brigade drew off with Forrest into western Kentucky. Here the Kentuckians were per- mitted to return to their homes to rest, recruit for a time, and afterward rendezvous at Trenton, Tenn. From this point, designing to attack Fort Pillow, Forrest, about the 10th or 12th of April, sent them to make a feint on Paducah. Arriving in front of the town, they made a dash in, capturing a few prisoners and about 100 head of horses and mules, and then rejoined Forrest at Jackson, Tenn. From here, after a short rest, Forrest moved to Tupelo, Miss., and was again about to return into Ten. nessee, when he learned of Sturgis' raid into that part of the State. Turning, he met him at Guntown or Bryce's Cross-Roads, and with his usual impetuosity charged at the head of his columns. Here Lyon, who had been on detached service and was promoted, returned in time to command the brigade in the fight. He was the first to strike the enemy's
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
advance, driving them back on the main body, and holding them for six or eight hours till the other commands came up. About 1 P. M. the fight became general and the enemy gave way. Brown's company of Trigg boys had the honor of capturing a piece of artillery in their first charge ; also two or three ordnance wagons, which supplied them with necessary ammunition. Capt. Terry, Acting Inspector-General on Buford's staff, and one other were the only staff officers on the field. Sturgis, driven at all points, was soon in complete rout, losing not less than 3,000 killed, wounded and captured, seventeen cannon and eighteen caissons, 450,000 rounds of cartridges, 350 wagons and ambulances, more than 1,000 horses and mules, six months' medical supplies, forty days' rations, and two wagon loads of "John Barleycorn." The latter it is supposed was carried along as a kind of " spiritual defense " against the more formidable enemy of that section-malaria.
The subsequent operations of the Eighth under Forrest in Mississippi were at Pontotoc, Old Harrisburg and Town Creek, in July. On the 4th October, 1864, they were detached and sent into west Tennessee to gather up the troops under Col. L. A. Sypert, who had been operating in Kentucky, and was then at Paris, Tenn. After this they reported to Forrest at Mt. Pleasant, Tenn., and were permitted by him to return with Col. Lyon into southwestern Kentucky, to rest and recruit. While on this visit, Lyon made an attack on the garrison at Hopkinsville, commanded by Col. Sam Johnson, and captured, with the loss of one man killed, thirty or forty prisoners, and seventy-five or eighty horses and mules. He next attacked and captured the garrison at Eddyville, and then without interruption crossed the Cumberland above Clarksville, and rejoined Forrest at Paris, Tenn. The next move was on Fort Heiman, where four steamboats, one gun and about two companies of furloughed men were captured. Next at Johnsonville, on the Tennessee River, where were captured and destroyed four gun-boats, fifteen steamboats, twenty-three barges, and two warehouses, supposed to contain over two and a half million dollars' worth of army supplies.
In November Lyon with a portion of the Eighth was detached and sent into southwestern Kentucky to collect up stragglers and create a divertisement in favor of Hood, who was approaching to the attack of Nashville. During his absence Col. Ed Crossland took command of the balance of the brigade, with Capt. Terry Acting Assistant Adjutant-Gen- eral on his staff. Hood starting on the march to Nashville, Forrest moved to join him at Florence, Ala. On this campaign they took part in the fol- lowing engagements : Lawrenceburg, Butler's Creek, where Col. Cross- land was wounded and the command devolved on Col. W. W. Faulkner, of the Twelfth Kentucky, Campbellsville, Columbia, Maury's Mills,
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
Spring Hill, Franklin, Nashville, Smyrna, Murfreesboro and all the sub- sequent encounters on the retreat. At Corinth, Miss., Forrest halted to rest both men and horses, and the Kentucky Brigade went into camp near Okolona at the same time. Here they remained from January to March, 1865, when they rendezvoused at West Point, Miss., and thence moved to intercept the raid of Wilson on Selma and Demopolis, Ala. At Monte- vallo the enemy were encountered and a three-days' running fight en- sued, in which nearly one-half of the Eighth were either killed, wounded or captured. The balance escaping, returned to West Point, Miss., where news of the surrender of Lee and Johnston being received, Forrest sent the Eighth to Columbus to guard stores. And here, on the 15th of May, 1865, the Eighth, decimated by disease, capture and death to a mere skeleton, surrendered to the enemy and were paroled. Of the Trigg boys there remained F. G. Terry, Joseph H. Mitchell, Taylor Ethridge, A. B. Crawley, Joseph Dabney, Zenas Alexander, Reuben Stallions and Richard Lester. The rest were either killed, wounded, captured, or de- serted.
Company B, Second Regiment of Kentucky Cavalry .- The next company to organize in Trigg for the Confederate service was at Wallonia, August 1, 1862. This company was composed of about eighty-four men, rank and file, and was officered as follows: G. G. Goodwin, Captain ; James Mitchell, First Lieutenant ; Samuel Martin, Second Lieutenant, and Walter McChesney, Third Lieutenant. About ten days after being organized they joined the Second Regiment under Col. Thomas Wood- ward, at Clarksville, Tenn, and were with this gallant officer in his sub- sequent operations in southwestern Kentucky and middle Tennessee. Having enlisted for a term of one year, they were so tendered to the Confederate Government by Woodward in December, but being declined, disbanded, and either returned home or scattered out into other com- mands.
J. T. Greer of this company, after the disbandment, joined McDon- ald's Battalion of Tennessee Cavalry, which he subsequently commanded, and under Gen. Van Dorn operated in north Mississippi, west Tennessee and Alabama. Was in the battles of Holly Springs, Corinth and Iuka, and after the death of Van Dorn was assigned to Chalmers' Brigade of Forrest's Division. Under Forrest he took part in the battles of Gun- town, Okolona, Memphis, Fort Pillow, etc. He surrendered with his command at Jackson, Miss., June 5, 1865.
Company D, Second Regiment of Kentucky Cavalry .- This was the next company, largely composed of Trigg County boys, to organize for the Confederate service. It was composed of about eighty-seven men, rank and file, and rendezvoused on the Summer farm, on the road be-
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
tween Cadiz and Hopkinsville. The organization took place in Septem- ber, 1862, with the following officers : Captain, E. A. Slaughter ; First Lieutenant, Ben F. Bacon ; Second Lieutenant, William M. Camp- bell ; Third Lieutenant, - Wallis. A few days after they joined Woodward at Hopkinsville, and with him operated in southwestern Ken- tucky and middle Tennessee. In December, 1862, Capt. Slaughter and Lieut. Wallis resigned their positions, and Dr. John Cunningham was elected Captain, and R. W. Roach, Third Lieutenant. Shortly after the company was tendered the Confederacy for twelve months, but being de. clined, also disbanded. About thirteen men remained under Lieut. Camp- bell, and enlisted for a period of three years; the remainder scattered out into other commands or returned home. The little nucleus remain- ing with Campbell from time to time received accessions, till in the fol- lowing February, 1863, they had grown to a full company, and were or- ganized under the following officers : Given Campbell, Captain ; J. M. Jones, First Lieutenant; William Campbell, Second Lieutenant, and S. P. Martin, Third Lieutenant. Under Forrest the company took part in the campaign through western Tennessee, and were engaged at Lexing- ton, Jackson, Humboldt and Huntington, Miss. When the Murfreesboro campaign commenced in 1863, they were in front of Rosecrans' army from Nashville to Stone River, disputing every inch of the way, and when the battle came on were on the left of Bragg's army as " flankers." They were subsequently in the battles of Chickamauga, McMinnville, Farming- ton, Dug Gap, Snake Creek Gap, Resaca, Kenesaw and Peach-Tree Creek, and when Stoneman made his bold but unfortunate raid into Georgia went in pursuit, and had the honor of capturing the redoubtable leader himself, who surrendered to Capt. William M. Campbell in person. After this they were at Triune, T'enn., then at Saltville, W. Va., then back to Georgia again to confront Sherman on his march to the sea. On this memorable campaign through Georgia and South Carolina they were in daily conflict with both infantry and cavalry, performing, with the rest of Wheeler's command, perfect prodigies of endurance and valor.
On the Congaree, under Col. William C. P. Breckinridge, they made one of the last fights of the war, in which the gallant Captain of the com- pany, Campbell, was severely wounded.
At Charlotte, N. C., the command fell in with President Davis and his party, and had the honor of acting as his escort to the final capture.
These were the only regular commands supplied by Trigg County to the Confederate cause, but there were many who went out singly or in squads at various times during the progress of the war, of whom no ac- count has been taken. It is estimated that, first and last, between eight hundred and a thousand men took part in the struggle on the south- 86
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
ern side. Notably among those who joined other commands may be men- tioned Capt. Ben D. Terry of Company F, First Regiment of Kentucky Cavalry, afterward Morgan's command, Dr. Livingston Lindsay, Surgeon of the Forty-ninth Regiment Tennessee Infantry, and afterward of McDon- ald's Tennessee Battalion, P. C. Harrell, who went out with a squad of twenty-nine or thirty men in November, 1861, and joined the Fiftieth Tennessee, and afterward promoted to Second Lieutenant of Company F of that regiment, Wiley Futrell, of the same command, Wilson Jackson and Archy W. Clinard.
Federal Side .- Of the Federal side little remains to be said. Besides a portion of Company F, Forty-eighth Regiment of Kentucky Infantry, commanded by Capt. Charles E. Van Pelt, and a "Home Guard " com- pany of forty or fifty men under Capt. H. E. Luton, Trigg County had no regular organization in the Federal army.
Company F was composed of about 100 men, only a part of whom were from Trigg, and was additionally officered as follows : First Lieu- tenant, Bluford Rogers; Second Lieutenant, Charles Adams; Third Lieutenant, not known. The operations of the company were confined to southwestern Kentucky, doing guard and post duty, and, besides a lit- tle skirmish at Hopkinsville, were never in a fight.
Capt. Luton's company was raised principally from "between the rivers," and did little other duty than guard the line of telegraph between Fort Donelson and Princeton. They were never engaged in any action of importance.
Of course there were others from Trigg County on the Union side, but they were scattered out into other commands, and no record is to be found of them. It is possible as many as 200 in all represented Trigg on the Federal side.
Besides those mentioned the Adjutant-General's report gives the names of the following additional officers : Robert V. Grinter, Captain Eighth Regiment Kentucky Cavalry ; W. J. McKee, First Lieutenant Seven- teenth Regiment Kentucky Cavalry ; W. Randolph, Assistant Surgeon Eighth Regiment ; and William Randolph, Surgeon of the Forty-eighth Regiment Kentucky Infantry.
Though there were a number of individual or personal encounters on Trigg soil there were no organized fights or important skirmishes, and the only occurrence worth recording was in connection with the burning of the court house at Cadiz. In the month of December, 1864, a small company of Confederates, some forty or fifty in number, under Capt. Cole of Lyon's Brigade, learning of the presence of a detachment of negro troops, who were barricaded in the court house at Cadiz, determined to attack and capture them. Under the escort of an intelligent citizen guide
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
they moved rapidly and quietly on the place from the direction of Canton, but on reaching the Dover road near the town learned that the enemy had already passed down that road. Wheeling down the road they followed in pursuit, and about nightfall came up with them near the J. S. Mc- Calister farm, about two and a half miles from Cadiz. The negroes, some 150 in number, scattered out in every direction, a number of them taking protection in a barn on the premises. A few shots were exchanged, but for some reason not known the Confederates drew off, and beyond a few negroes wounded and the capture of Lieut. Schuyler and twelve or fifteen of his men, there were no other results. Cole rode on into Cadiz, where he spent the night. Next morning, ostensibly to prevent the spread of small-pox, which had been introduced into the building by the negroes, and also prevent the enemy from again using it as a place of defense, he gave orders to his men to fire the court house. A number of negroes were gathered in from the town, and the roof and cupola torn away in or- der to prevent the flames from spreading. On going up into the second story a negro soldier with confluent small-pox, who had been deserted by his comrades and left to die, was found at the head of the stairway where he had dragged himself. Cole caused the invalid to be shot. The excuse given for the act is that the negro was already in a dying condition, and if left on the sidewalk would spread the loathsome disease among the people. The building was then set fire to, and after its destruction Cole and his men withdrew from the town.
It only remains to be said of the people of Trigg who remained at home, both Southern and Union, that they lived in comparative peace with each other. They strove rather to protect than to expose each other to military aggressions and persecutions from either side. The following incident is to the point, and illustrates the spirit of the times in Trigg : Mr. R. D. Baker, of Cadiz, an ardent Union man, was known to have & large sum of money in his possession, and one of his neighbors, Mr. M. A. Smith, an equally ardent Southern man, was approached by a guerilla and desperado, and solicited to assist in its forcible capture. Smith know- ing the desperate character of his tempter, and in order to deceive and throw him off his guard, acceded to the proposition. Seeking Baker at once, he notified him of the danger, and urged him to remove the money from the premises forthwith. This Baker did, and much to Smith's sur- prise and dismay, tendered to him the package with the sententious re- mark: "There, Smith, keep it for me till I call for it." It is needless to say the confidence so frankly reposed was never abused, and the money, every dollar of it, was promptly returned when all danger had passed. The package is said to have contained $10,000.
A well-known citizen of Cadiz relates that on one occasion he was
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
arrested by the Federal authorities, and carried to prison at Louisville on a false charge. Without solicitation, one of his Union neighbors, Squire T. H. Grinter, by a little diplomacy, secured the necessary papers for his release and at once followed to the city. Presenting his credentials to the General in command, and vouching for the character and innocence of his friend, he soon had him released from prison and safely on his way home. When afterward proffered the amount of his expenses to and from the city, he indignantly declined with the remark : " It's a poor friend who would not do as much for his neighbor." The same worthy citizen, with Mr. R. D. Baker, mentioned above, was, on more than one occasion instru- mental in securing the release of Southern sympathizers from Fort Donelson.
These friendly and neighborly acts were generously reciprocated by their Southern friends, whenever the Confederates were in possession, and but few instances of reprisal or retaliation against Union people took place during the war.
Both sides agreed to disagree in mere matters of opinion, and wisely left the fighting to the soldiers in the field. Had other portions of the State been guided by the same wise counsels, they would have been spared on many occasions the bitterness and humiliation of lex talionis that fell with a heavy hand upon both person and property. All honor to both Union and Southern men of Trigg, for their moderation and for- bearance. Not a dollar of indemnity or blackmail was ever collected from them by the satraps of either side .- J. M. Tydings.
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CADIZ PRECINCT.
CHAPTER VI.
CADIZ PRECINCT-DESCRIPTIVE AND TOPOGRAPHICAL-THE FIRST SET- TLERS-WADLINGTON AND THE INDIANS-ISAAC MCCULLOM-OTHER EARLY SETTLERS-AFAMILY DROWNED-MILLS-DISTILLERIES -- ORGAN- IZATION OF CHURCHES-" OLD WOLF PEN"-MOUNT PLEASANT CHURCH -BUILDING OF CHURCH EDIFICES-TOWN OF CADIZ-LAID OUT AS THE SEAT OF JUSTICE-REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS-SOME OF THE FIRST INHABITANTS AND BUSINESS MEN OF CADIZ-EARLY BOARDS OF TRUST- EES-PIONEER MERCHANTS-HOTELS-PROFESSIONAL MEN-TOBACCO INTEREST-BUSINESS HOUSES-RELIGIOUS HISTORY-METHODISTS, DIS- CIPLES, BAPTISTS, ETC .- COLORED CHURCHES-SCHOOLS-FREEMASONRY -K. OF H., CHOSEN FRIENDS, ETC., ETC.
C YADIZ PRECINCT is irregular in shape and occupies the central part of the county. It is drained by Little River and its tributaries, the most important of which are Muddy Fork and Bird's Creek. The banks of the river are composed of masses of limestone, which, in places, rise to great heights presenting many romantic and picturesque views. Caney Creek is a small stream fed by springs flowing into Little River near Cadiz. Springs of clear, cold water abound in many parts of the precinct, the most noted of which is the large one at Cadiz and Caney Spring. The country is broken, contains forests of very valuable timber and embraces a goodly area of fine farming lands. Agriculture and stock-raising are the chief occupations of the people, and within the precinct are some of the best improved plantations in the county.
"One of the oldest settlers of Trigg County, whose descendants still retain a residence here, was Thomas Wadlington, the grandfather of Ferdinand, Thomas and William Wadlington. He moved from North Carolina and settled on the east bank of Little River, at a place now known as Kent's Bridge as early as 1792. He had two sons when he set- tled here-Ferdinand and Thomas-the former sixteen and the latter twelve years of age. His nearest neighbors were a few families at Eddy Grove, near Princeton. Benjamin McCulloch who made a small settle- ment not far from the old Dry Fork meeting-house and the Goodwins who lived in the neighborhood of Cerulean Springs." Like the majority of Kentucky pioneers, Mr. Wadlington was skilled in the use of the rifle, and many stories are told of his adventures with wild animals and wild men during the first few years of his residence in the wilderness. We have
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HISTORY OF TRIGG COUNTY.
space for but one incident, which is told as follows : Happening in one of his hunting excursions to pass Caney Spring, near the site of Cadiz, he found sitting around it a number of Indians, who sprang suspiciously to their feet upon perceiving his approach and beckoned him to come near. They were armed only with tomahawks, and seeing that Wadlington car- ried a long heavy rifle they were desirous of securing it without exciting his suspicion, knowing full well that if they attacked him while he had the gun one of their number at least must die. Wadlington did not fear them, but walked into their midst, and with his finger on the trigger of his trusty weapon asked them what they wanted. One of the red skins stepped to a sapling near by, and blazing a white spot upon it with his tomahawk, replied that he would like to see " white man try skill and shoot at mark." Wadlington knew very well that this was only a ruse to get him to discharge his gun, but he was not to be deceived in any such manner. Stepping back a few paces and bringing his gun to bear he applied several epithets to them, and told them that unless they were gone in five minutes he would send every dirty devil of them to h-l where they belonged. This had the desired effect, and the savages left without further ceremony, leaving Wadlington in peaceable possession of the spring. Mr. Wadlington died on the farm he settled as early perhaps as the year 1803 or 1804. His son Ferdinand fell heir to the old place but did not retain it many years. He sold out in an early day and moved to Caldwell County. Thomas, the younger son, remained in the county all his life. He settled the place where his son William Wadlington now lives in Caledonia Precinct, and was one of the oldest men in the county at the time of his death.
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