ROBERT WHITE/ Bridget Allgar

1. John White - was born about 1350 in Yatley, England.

Children: (Quick Family Chart)
i. Robert White was born in 1371 in Yatley, Hampshire, England. See #2. below.

2. Robert White - was born in 1371 in Yatley, Hampshire, England. He is the son of John White.
Robert married Alice Lynhorne in 1421. Alice was born about 1370.


It was researched and found found a Hearald’s Report noting that said John’s father, Robert White (b. Yateley, Hampshire, England in 1371) was married to Alice Lynhorne—note her surname, previously unknown!
Children:
i. John White was born about 1422 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. See #3. below.

3. John White - was born about 1422 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. He is the son of Robert White and Alice Lynhorne.
John married Eleanor Hungerford. Eleanor was born about 1426 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. She is the daughter of Lord Robert Hungerford and Eleanor de Moleyns.

Eleanor - After the death of John White, she remarried at least twice: about 1470, to Sir William Tyrrell, Knt., the younger, of Heron in East Thorndon, Essex; and - newly discovered - before 1475, to Sir Henry Fitz Lewis, Knt., of Bromfords in Newendon, Essex and London.
Children: (Quick Family Chart)
i. Robert White was born about 1446 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. See #4. below.

4. Robert White - was born about 1446 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. He is the son of John White and Eleanor Hungerford.
Robert married Margaret Gaynsford in 1467. Margaret was born about 1445. She is the daughter of Nicholas Gaynsford and Margaret Sidney.

Robert - "He was age 14 at the time of his father's death. His wardship was granted in 1469 to Thomas St. Leger, esquie of the body, and Nicholas Gainsford, Esq. He was granted license to enter his father's lands 24 Feb. 1481. In 1483 King Edward V charged him to "prepare & furnishe" himself to receive knighthood at the King's coronation, an event that never took place. Gainsford, daughter of his guardian, Nicholas Gainsford, Esquire (d. 1498) of Carshalton, Surrey, admitted Lincoln's Inn, 1452/3 King's servitor and Usher of the Chamber, 1461-1476, usher to Elizabeth Wydeville, queen consort for King Edward IV, 1476-1498, sheriff of Surrey and Sussex, Knight of the Shire (M.P.) for Odiham Castle, 1461-1486 and his wife, Margaret Sydney of Surrey." (Source: New England Historical and Genealogical Register Vol. 154)
Children: (Quick Family Chart)
i. Robert White was born about 1475 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. See #5. below.

5. Robert White - was born about 1475 in Swanborne, Hampshire, England. He is the son of Robert White and Margaret Gaynsford.
Robert married Elizabeth Inglefield.
Children: (Quick Family Chart)
i. Thomas White was born about 1495 in Marriot, Somerset, England and died before 1549 in Somerset, England . See #6. below.

6. Thomas White - was born about 1495 in Marriot, Somerset, England and died before 1549 in Somerset, England . He was the son of Robert White and Elizabeth Inglefield.
Thomas married Agnes about 1514. Agnes was born about 1495.
Children: (Quick Family Chart)
i. Richard White was born about 1519 in Minot, Somerset, England and died May 1578 in Hill Farence, Somerset, England.

7. Richard White - was born about 1519 in Minot, Somerset, England and died May 1578 in Hill Farence, Somerset, England . He was the son of Thomas White.
Richard married Helen Kirton before 1542. Helen was born about 1520. She is the daughter of Stephen Kirton and Margaret Offley.
Children:
i. Robert White was born about 1542 in South Petherton, Somerset, England and died on 7 Sep 1600 in Messing, Essex, England.

8. Robert White - was born about 1542 in South Petherton, Somerset, England and died on 7 Sep 1600 in Messing, Essex, England . He was the son of Richard White and Helen Kirton.
Robert married Alice Wright. Alice was born about 1535 in South Petherton, Somerset, England. She died on 22 Aug 1596 in South Petherton, Somerset, England . (Sources: - 2)
Children:
Robert White was born about 1558 in Shalford, Essex, England and died 1617 in Messing, England.

WILL of Robert White

Robert White's will was dated 27 May 1617, and indicates he lived for considerable time in the parish and was quite wealthy. He gave to support the poor of Messing, and to Rev. Richard Rogers, a non-conformist, and Rev. Bartholomew Scrivener, an established church minister. Robert's will names his wife and all his children. Son Daniel and wife Bridget were named executors, and John Christmas SR. and Ralph Bett (my kinsman and servant), and Joseph Digbie (my servant). The three unmarried children, Bridget, Anna, and John, were bequeathed money on the condition that they obtain the consent of their mother, and of Joseph Loomis and William Goodwin, before marriage (100marks to each daughter, and 200 marks to John. It is possible that Daniel was the son of a first wife, prior to Robert's marriage to Bridget on 24 June 1585 at Shalford, Essex.

May 27, 1617

In the name of God amen. May the seaven and twentyeth in the fifteenth yeare of the raigne of our Soveraigne Lord James by the grace of god Kinge of England, France, and Ireland defender of the faith etc and of Scotland the fifyeth. In the yeare of our Lord god 1617 I Robert White of Messinge in the countye of Essex yeoman, beinge of good and pfect remembrance, doe make this my last will and testament, in manner and forme followinge.

Imprimis. I comend my soule unto the hands of god almightey my most faythfull creator redemer and sanctifier and my bodie to be buryed in the parish church or church yeard of Messinge, at the discretion of mine executors.

Item I give and bequeath unto the poore people of Messinge fortye shillings of lawful mony of England, to be distributed amongst them, at ye discretion of mine executors and the minister of Messinge, within one month next after my depture from this naturall life.

Item I give and bequeath unto Mr. Richard Rogers preacher of gods word at Withersfield in Essex aforesaid; and to Bartholomew Scrivener Minister of the church of god in Messinge aforenamed to each of them the several summe of fortey shillings of like lawfull monie, to be payd unto them within two monthes next after my departure.

Item I give and bequeath unto mine eldest daughter Sarah, the wife of James Bowtell of little Sallinge, the summe of fifteene punds of lawfull mony of England, to be paid within fower years next after my depture.

Item I give and bequeath unto Jeames Bowtell the younger, son of my said daughter Sarah Bowtell, the summe of five pounds of good and lawfull mony of England, to be paid unto him when he shall come to ye sixteenth yeare of his age.

Item I give and bequeath unto my daughter Marie the wife of Joseph Lummis of Branetree, one pewter platter.

Item I give and bequeath unto my daughter Elizabeth the wife of William Gooddinge of Bockinge the summe of fortye markes of like lawfull monye within one yeare next after my depture, to be paid unto hir.

Item I five and beueath unto my daughter Bridgett White the sum of one hundred marks of like lawfull monye, to be paid unto hir upon the day of hir marriage, provided that she my said daughter Bridgett shall not bewtow hir selfe in marryage without the approbation and consent of my two sonnes in law Joseph Lummys and William Goodinge formrly mentioned, and of my wife Bridgett White or the consent of two of them whereof my wife to be one of the twaine. But yf it happen that shee marrye without the consent aforesaid then I give hir only the summe of thirtye pounds of like lawful monie.

Item I give and bequeath unto my daughter Anna White the summe of onehundredth markes of like lawfull mony: to be paid unto hir upon ye day of hir marriage, yf soe be she shall bestow hir selfe in marriage, accordinge to the likinge and consent of my two fornamed sonnes in law, and my wife, as is aforesaid. But yf it soe fall out, as that she my said daughter Anna shall marrye without the consent and approbation formerly mentioned, then I give and bequeath hir only the summe of thirtey pounds of like and lawfull monie.

Item I give and bequeath unto my sonne Nathaniell White the sume of fortie pounds of like lawfull monye, wherof my will is that twenty pounds shalbe paid within one yeare next after my depture, and the other twentye pounds to be paid unto him within two years next after my said depture oute of this naturall life.

Item I give and bequeath unto my sonne John White the summe of two hundredth pounds of like lawfull lmonie to be paid him when he shall come to ye years of one and twentye of his age; yett provided that my said sonne John shall not bestow himselfe in marriage without the approbation and consent of my aforesaid two sonnes in law Joseph Lummys and William Goodinge, and my wife his mother. And yf it soe fall oute that this my son John shall match him selfe contrarye to the good likinge and consent aforesaid, then I give and bequeath unto him onlye as his full portion the summe of one hundred pounds of like lawfull monye.

Item my mind and will is, that yf any of my foresaid children that are unmarried shall depte this naturall life before the tymes appointed for the payment of their portions; or yf any of them shall marrye contrarye to the consent and approbation mentioned, then such summe or summes of monie (as shall remaine and accrew, eyther by their death or disobeydience) shall be equally devided amongste the rest of my children whither marryed or unmarried, pte and parte like.

Item I give and bequeath unto my said son John White the loyned standinge bedstead wch is in the parlour, wth the featherbed, flockbed, bolster coueringe wth other furneyture thereunto belonginge; alsoe the presse cupbourd the cupbourd table and newest chest. all wch are in the said ploure to be delivered him after the death of my said wife Bridgett White, or instead thereof the summe of twenty marks of like lawfull monye.

Item I constitute and ordaine my aforesaid sonnes in law Joseph Lumys and William Goodinge supuisors of this my last will and testament and doe give unto each of them the severall summes of fortey shillings of like lawfull mony: towards their charge and paines in seinge this my will executed according to my minde.

Item I five and bequeath unto Ralph Bett the younger my kinsman and servant the summe of five pounds of like lawfull monye, to be paid unto him within one yeare next after my depture.

Item I give and bequeath unto Joseph Digbie my servant, twentye shillings of like lawfull monye, to be paidwithin one yeare next after my depture.

Item all the rest of my goods unbequeathed I give and bequeath unto my wifeBridgett White, and to my sonne Daniell White whome I constitute and ordaynethe ioynte executors of this my last will and testament, hopinge they willfaithfullye execute this my will accordinge to the trust reposed in them.

In witness whereof I have hereunto sett myne hand and seale the daye and yeare first mentioned.
In presence of us:
John Christmas ye elders (+) marke
William Levett.

Probatu fuit Testamentu apud Kelvedon vicesimo Die mensis Junii 1617.

[Transcribed from The Goodwins of Hartford, by James J. Goodwin and
Frank F. Starr (1891) as published in the NEHGR Vol. 55 (1901), pp. 29-31]

Robert White & Bridget Allgar

Robert WHITE

Bur. Jun. 17, 1617, Messing, Essex, England. Said to be the son of Robert WHITE (b. South Pemerton; d. 1600) and Alice, grandson of Richard WHITE (b. Hillariance; d. May 6, 1578) married Helen (1523-1580), and great-grandson of Thomas WHITE (b. Meriot) married Agnes RICHARDS.

His will was dated May 27, 1617, and indicates he lived for considerable time in the parish and was quite wealthy. He gave to support the poor of Messing, and to Rev. Richard ROGERS, a non-conformist, and Rev. Bartholomew SCRIVENER, an established church minister. Robert's will names his wife and all his children. Son Daniel and wife Bridget were named executors, and John CHRISTMAS (Sr.) and William LEVETT were witnesses. Also named are three sons in law (James BOWTELL, Joseph LOOMIS, and William GOODWIN), Ralph BETT ("my kinsman and servant"), and Joseph DIGBIE ("my servant"). The three unmarried children, Bridget, Anna, and John, were bequeathed money on the condition that they obtain the consent of their mother, and of Joseph LOOMIS and William GOODWIN, before marriage (100 marks to each daughter, and 200 marks to John). It is possible that Daniel was the son of a first wife, prior to Robert's marriage to Bridget on Jun. 24, 1585 at Shalford, Essex.

Bridget ALLGAR (or ALGER) - bap. Mar. 11, 1562, Shalford, Essex, England. Daughter of William ALLGAR (bur. Aug. 2, 1575, Shalford, Essex), and sister of: Mary, who married "Ralfe BETTE"; John, who died in infancy; John; and Elizabeth.

Children of Robert and Bridget White

See Notable Cousins for line to: Lucille BALL, Stephen Grover CLEVELAND, Sarah (WATSON) DANA, Lee DeFOREST, Emily Elizabeth DICKINSON, Millard FILLMORE, Gerald Rudolph FORD, Ulysses Simpson GRANT, Frederick Law OLMSTED, William Sydney 'O. Henry' PORTER, Vincent Leonard PRICE, Sophia SMITH, Raquel WELCH, William WILLIAMS, Wilbur WRIGHT and Orville WRIGHT, and Jane WYMAN

1. Daniel - Co-executor of father's will with his father's widow. Daniel's baptism is not recorded at Shalford, and he is not granted a bequest in his father's will, though he is called "my sonne." It is poosible that he was the son of a first wife of Robert WHITE.
2. Sarah - bap. Mar. 8, 1585/6, Shalford, Essex. Married James BOWTELL of Little Sailinge, Essex. Children of Sarah and James BOWTELL: Matthew died in infancy; James died in infancy; John died in infancy; Nathaniel; Stephen; and Sarah died in infancy.
3. Nathaniel - bap. Apr. 30, 1587, Shalford, Essex. He was apparently unmarried in 1617, since there is no mention of his wife or children (actual or potential) in his father's will.
4. Mary - bap. Aug. 24, 1590, Shalford, Essex, England; d. Aug. 23, 1652, CT. Married Joseph LOOMIS.
5. Elizabeth - bap. Mar. 5, 1591/2, Shalford, Essex; d. May 17, 1667, Farmington, CT. Married William GOODWIN.
6. Bridget - bap. Aug. 18, 1594, Shalford, Essex. Unmarried in 1617. Bridget was married on Sep. 28, 1618 at Messing, Essex to John CHRISTMAS, Jr., and they had two sons: Richard and John.
7. Anna - bap. Jul. 13, 1600, Shalford, Essex. (Also known as either Ann or Anne.) Married Oct. 18, 1620, Messing, Essex, John PORTER (d. Apr. 22, 1648, Windsor, CT). The baptisms of the first eight of their children, ending with Mary (bap. Oct. 1, 1637) are recorded at Felsted, Essex. The baptism of Anna (bap. Nov. 4, 1638) is recorded at Messing, Essex. Son Nathaniel and daughter Hannah were born at Windsor, CT. Children of Anna and John PORTER: John married Mary STANLEY; Sarah married Joseph JUDSON; James lived in London, England; Rebecca; Samuel died in infancy; Rose; Samuel married Hannah STANLEY, daughter of Thomas; Mary married Samuel GRANT; Anna died in infancy; Nathaniel; and Hannah (or Anna) married William GAYLORD (William married second Elizabeth DRAKE, daughter of John of Windsor, CT).
8. John - d. Dec. 17, 1683 - Jan. 23, 1684, Hartford, CT. To America in 1632 aboard the 'Lyon', setting first at Cambridge, MA, where he was freeman Mar. 4, 1633. Removed to Hartford, CT about 1636, and then to Hadley by 1664, where he was Representative in 1664 and 1669. Returned to Hartford about 1670, and was Elder in the South Church. Unmarried in 1617, he married before leaving England, Mary LEVETT, probably the daughter of William (will dated Oct. 9, 1626; proved Dec. 15, 1626, Fering, Essex) and Margaret, and sister of Isaac, Richard and John LEVETT. John and Mary resided at Hadley, MA. Children of John and mary WHITE: Mary married Jonathan GILBERT; Nathaniel married first Elizabeth, and second Martha COIT, daughter of John and widow of Hugh MOULD; John married Sarah BUNCE, who married second Nicholas WORTHINGTON; Daniel married Sarah CROW, daughter of John and Elizabeth; Sarah married first Stephen TAYLOR, second Barnabas HINSDALE, and third Walter HICKSON; and Jacob married Elizabeth BUNCE.

TAYLOR- "MEMORIES OF LIFE WITH DADDY TAYLOR" By Daughters Ossie, Levetra, and Emma

Daddy Taylor was born in Ashley County, Arkansas on October 13, 1871.

Daddy was seventeen months old when his father married Sarah Elizabeth Jarrell in 1873. He recalled life at home as being very hard.

When he was fourteen years old, the family moved fifty miles away (from Ashley County to Drew County). He and his half brother Leonard were responsible for one of the wagons. The family settled in the area that is now known as Cominto. Their home was located two miles off the highway 35 on 80 acres between Monticello and Dermott, Arkansas.

As a young man Daddy Taylor worked for a man who owned a sawmill near Boydell. He floated logs down the Bayou to the mill. He was also a Scaler (a person who measures the length of a log in “feet”).

When Daddy Taylor was twenty, his father’s wife died. His father passed away 5 years later. He then bought the “Homeplace”. Four years later he married Maggie Viola Watson, known to all as “Mammy Taylor”.

Seven children were born to the couple, a son and six daughters. Their son Alva died of Bone disease at age 10. Alma only lived for six months. Following these two children, the couple was blessed with five healthy daughters:
Emma “Sister”, Mabel “Cotton”, Beulah “Doots”, Ossie “Ola Bug”, and Levetra “Mutt”.

He continued farming the homeplace. When the crops were “laid by” for the summer, he would make crossties for the railroad and sell them to Mr. Porter in Monticello. In winter, he caught skunks, possums, coon and mink. Once he caught an otter, but didn’t know what it was. A good Mink hide was worth about $12.00, Coon about $3.50, Possums about $2.00 and skunks $1.50.

The Original house had a dogtrot (a runway between kitchen and the living quarters). He Tore the old house down and built the one that “we” lived in until the 1930’s. It had a brick walk from the house to the front gate.

Daddy Taylor raised Cows and hogs. They ran wild in the Seven Devils Bottom. He had dogs to round them up so he could feed them. They were Catahoula hound dogs. He had a red long eared mule named “Kit” and a Mare named “Dolly” and a horse named “Prince”. Daddy Taylor was known for being an animal lover.

In autumn, it was “hog killin’ time” He would go into the woods and kill maybe four or five hogs for our winter meat. Water was heated to a boiling in the wash pot and put in a big barrel. The hogs were dipped in the barrel head first, then the rear was dipped, sloshed up and down, taken out and the hair was scraped off with a sharp knife. Then the hogs were hung between two poles and cut open and the insides removed. There was “liver for supper, brains and eggs for breakfast and spare ribs for dinner”!

Daddy Taylor also loved to fish and hunt. During duck season in the fall, there were so many ducks that the “sky would turn dark”. Mammy Taylor would pick their feathers and make pillows and feather beds. She boiled, baked and fried duck and made cornbread dressing.

In the Spring, when the Seven Devils Swamp was flooded, Daddy would go down and hunt for Buffalo Fish. He had a small hand made boat about 12 feet long. He made a harpoon from a steel arrow attached to a long stick and a long rope was attached to the stick. The stick was then placed in his gun barrel. He would find the fish by the noise that it made. Then he would “raise up and fire down”. Emma remembers she and Mabel going fishing with him. She often wondered why Mammy Let them go!

He joined the church at an early age but didn’t attend regularly until later years. He often said that he and his horses were too tired to on Sunday.
He never smoked or drank.
He never owned a car.

He enjoyed southern food such as biscuits and gravy. He did not eat peas or tomatoes or pepper.

Before the mowing machines took over caring for Rash Cemetery, there was a “Working” in August. People from all over would come bringing hoes, rakes, and shovels. The grass and weeds were cut, raked and burned. There was a dinner on the grounds. The Oak tree were we sat is still there. Daddy Taylor always sat on the roots that had grown up from out of the ground.

Daddy Taylor was 96 years old and in excellent health, not wearing glasses, or hearing aids. He died when a car hit him when he was walking to the mailbox. They were expecting a letter from Levetra.

TAYLOR- CSA, Company G, 29th Arkansas Infantry,

37th Arkansas Infantry Regiment, also Known As: 29th Arkansas Infantry Regiment; 1st Trans-Mississippi Infantry Regiment
Organized in Pope County by individual companies throughout March through June of 1862 as the 1st Trans-Mississippi Infantry; and organized as the 29th Arkansas Infantry Regiment upon its acceptance into Confederate service on June 6, 1862 under the command of Colonel Joseph C. Pleasants. Field Officers were Lt. Col. Jeptha C. Johnson and Major John A. Geoghegan. Renamed as the 37th Arkansas Infantry regiment in the summer of 1862. Initially assigned (along with the 34th, 35th, and 39th Arkansas and Chew's Arkansas Sharpshooter Battalion) to form BG James F. Fagan's brigade in Shoup's Division in MG Thomas Hindman's 1st Corps of the Army of the Trans-Mississippi.. The brigade fought in the battle of Prairie Grove on December 7-8, 1862. After the retreat from Prairie Grove to Van Buren, On July 4, 1863, the brigade and the 37th Arkansas served in the attack on the federal post at Helena, Arkansas, and subsequently in the defense of Little Rock in September, 1863. The brigade, now under the command of BG A.T. Hawthorn, and composed of the 37th, 34th, and 35th Arkansas regiments, spent the winter of 1863 southwest of Little Rock, and then was sent south with General Churchill's Arkansas Infantry Division to Shreveport, Louisiana in the early spring of 1864 to assist General Kirby Smith's army in countering Union General Nathaniel Banks' advance along the Red River. After fighting in the battle of Pleasant Hill, Louisiana, Churchill's Division and Kirby Smith then marched back to Arkansas to assist General Price in dealing with the other half of the Red River campaign, Union Gen'l Frederick Steele's Camden Expedition moving southwest from Little Rock. The Division and Hawthorn's Brigade arrived in time to join the pursuit of Steele's army as it retreated from Camden, and join in the attack on Steele as he tried to cross the Saline River at Jenkins' Ferry on April 30, 1864. Gause's Brigade returned to the vicinity of Camden following Jenkins' Ferry, and saw no substantial combat for the remainder of the war. The regiment ultimately surrendered with Kirby Smith's army on May 26, 1865.

Company G - Jackson Guard
The 1st Arkansas Volunteer Infantry Regiment was organized in May 1861 at Little Rock, Arkansas. Company G mainly consisted of men from Jackson County, Northeast Arkansas hence the name ‘Jackson Guard'. The 1st Arkansas was one of three Arkansas Regiments that saw service with the Army of Northern Virginia, being mustered into Confederate service on May 27th 1861, at Lynchburg, Virginia. They were not actively engaged in the fighting at Manassas, although the brigade they were with did come under fire whilst shifting positions in the afternoon of the battle. On September 13th 1861, the 1st Arkansas was transferred to Colonel J G Walker's Brigade along with the 2nd Tennessee and the 12th North Carolina Regiments. Moving with it to Evansport, near Quantico, Virginia on the Potomac River during the Confederate withdrawal from Manassas. Whilst there, the men of the lst Arkansas made an abortive attempt to capture a Federal gunboat. In February the entire regiment re-enlisted for the duration of the war. As a result they were furloughed home and ordered to reform at Memphis, Tennessee on March 15th 1862.
After their arrival at Memphis, they were sent by rail to Corinth, Mississippi and absorbed into the Army of the Mississippi under General Albert Sidney Johnston. Their first major engagement being Shiloh, Tennessee. It was here at the Hornet’s Nest that the 1st Arkansas suffered appalling losses - 39 killed, 122 wounded, 8 missing and 5 captured. After the battle the Confederate forces withdrew to Corinth to lick their wounds. Union General Pope advanced on the town of Farmington, three miles east of Corinth and the 1st Arkansas were with the force that General Beauregard sent to confront Pope’s army. Although the Confederates gained the advantage over the Federals the end result of the operation was a failure because Confederate General Van Dorn’s forces had been late in arriving and so the Union forces escaped.
On the night of May 29th-30th, Corinth was evacuated, and the army retreated south to Tupelo, Mississippi. Following this withdrawal General Beauregard fell ill and was replaced by General Braxton Bragg as army commander. Bragg set about reorganizing and training the army and thus the Army of Tennessee was born.

The 1st Arkansas remained with the Army of Tennessee for the duration of the war and took part in all the major engagements that this ill-fated army was involved with. Just before the Battle of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, 30th December 1862, the 1st Arkansas were transferred to Major-General Patrick Cleburne’s Division (L. Polks Brigade), Hardee’s Corps.
During the Atlanta Campaign both the Union and Confederate Armies were continually engaged for three months. Skirmishing daily the 1st Arkansas suffered heavily, and as a result they were consolidated with the 15th Arkansas.Private William F Bevans, of Company G, 1st Arkansas wrote in his diary regards some of the vicious fighting around the fortifications of Atlanta - “On July 22nd, we marched 10 miles to the right of Atlanta. Hardee had attacked the enemy rear and there had been a terrible struggle, which lasted for hours.

Towards evening we heard the Yankee bands playing and the soldiers shooting and cheering and we knew they had won. While Johnston was in command he had preserved his army and inflicted upon the enemy a loss almost equal to our strength when we began the campaign. Our loss had been about 9,000, which had been filled by the return of the wounded and furloughed men. so that General Hood received an army fully as strong as it was at Dalton. We were as ready to fight as ever; although certainly disappointed at the loss of Johnston. We felt no other general could do what he had done. Yet this great military genius was thrown out on the eve of his final and greatest assault on Sherman, an assault which would have saved Atlanta to the Confederacy. Hoods and Davis’ tactics prevailed after that, and the splendid, unconquered army was swept off the earth into the grave. Hood questioned the morale of his army, but as for that our poor little Company G went into line at Atlanta under Hood as true as it ever had under Johnston. We fought for the cause, not the General. Jim Hensley, a hog who had been wounded severely at Ringgold, returned to the company on the day of the battle. His physician had not reported him fit for duty but had given him merely a pass to his command. Hensley came to me saying - “Here my old friend, is a silver watch I wish to give to you, for I shall be killed today I told him he had not been reported for duty; that he was still far from well and begged him not to go into battle, especially as he had a presentment that he should be killed.
He turned his soulful eyes upon me. “Well, do you think I am afraid because I know l am to be killed?” Putting his hand on his breast he continued, “I have no fear of death. I am a Christian and I know I shall he safe in heaven.” With tears we parted. He joined his brave comrades - Jim Murphy, John Baird and George Thomas - on the left of Company G after the line was in motion. They were moving against strong entrenchments heavily defended by abatis. These four boys saw they could crawl under the abatis without being seen and get close to the breastworks. After they started the command was given to oblique to the left, but in the roar of the musketry the boys failed to hear it and went on alone.
There were about a hundred Yankees on the breastworks watching our line, which was advancing upon their rear. The four boys crawled close in prepared and opened up. At the first fire down came four Yankees. They were taken by surprise, not knowing there were any men at their front. The boys kept at their game until the Yankees ran. Then they went forward to take possession of the works. There they found themselves a lone and 200 of the enemy entrenched behind a second line. It was death anyway, so they ran forward firing on the troops with terrible accuracy. One man had a head on Thomas when Murphy shot the fellow.
One lunged for Murphy when Thomas bayoneted him. So they had it - hand to hand. Poor Hensley was killed, Murphy terribly wounded. Baird wounded, but Thomas would not surrender. He bayoneted them until they took his gun. Then he kicked and bit until they finally killed him there. Four men had killed 25 Yankees, but only one of the four lived to tell the tale. To question the morale of such men is farcical.
The battle on our left raged all day and we were defeated. Our Colonel lost his foot. One third of our regiment was gone. Great numbers were killed and wounded, but the troops were as loyal and fought as bravely as any army on earth.
This was Hood’s Second defeat. In two battles he had lost 10,000 men, more than we had lost in the whole campaign, in 74 days ‘ battles and skirmishes. It would not take long with such tactics to wipe out the Rebel army.

In early 1865 in an attempt to slow Sherman’s march through the Carolinas. Units of the army were transferred eastwards to reform again under General Joseph Johnston. The lst/15th Arkansas was a part of the 1st Consolidated Arkansas Infantry Regiment, which consisted of the 1st/2nd/5th/6th/7th/8th/13th/15th/19th/24th and the 3rd Confederate Infantry Regiments. This unit took part in the actions at Averysborough. North Carolina on March 16th, and the Battle of Bentonville, North Carolina on March 19th-21st. Finally surrendering with the Army on April 26th, 1865 at Durhan Station. North Carolina.

WICHITA FALLS, TEXAS

According to tradition, the land where the city of Wichita Falls is presently located, in southeast Wichita County, was acquired in a poker game by John A. Scott of Mississippi in 1837. In fact, Scott acquired the tract by purchasing Texas land certificates, which he packed away and promptly forgot. Years later the certificates were rediscovered by Scott's heirs, who commissioned M. W. Seeley to map out a townsite on the tract on the Wichita River. As platted by Seeley in July 1876, the townsite included the location of a small waterfall on the Wichita River that was later washed away, several named streets, and a town square. In a fanciful drawing that accompanied the plat, Seeley also included an imaginary lake, a steamboat on the river, and warehouses laden with cotton and other goods. The town never became a steamboat shipping center, although railroads were very important to its later development. At the time of Seeley's plat there were already a few settlers living in the area. Tom Buntin and his family had been there since the 1860s, making their living hauling buffalo hides, and John Wheeler settled there in 1875, as did John Converse, who built the first store. Seeley himself built a small house at a site now at the corner of Sixth and Ohio streets, and Alexander Craig built a cabin nearby. All of these early settlers eventually moved on. The first permanent settlers were the Barwise family of Dallas. They first came to the townsite on an exploring trip in 1878 and returned to stay the following year. Barwise purchased the Craig cabin and two lots for $105.00. Schooling for the Barwise children was provided by M. W. Seeley's daughter, Hattie Seeley, in her home, where Alexander C. Garrett also conducted Episcopal Church services. A post office was established in 1879; Charles G. Converse was the first postmaster. The first public school opened in the fall of 1880 and the first church, First Methodist, was formally organized in 1881. By that time, according to various reports, there were between eight and thirteen families living at the townsite.

During 1881 and 1882 the residents of Wichita Falls induced the Fort Worth and Denver Railway Company, then building tracks west out of Fort Worth, to run the line through the town by offering substantial property concessions along the right-of-way. The arrival of the first train on September 27, 1882, triggered a boom in the sale of town lots. Also in 1882 the first manufacturing concern, a shingle and sorghum mill, was established along with the first lumberyard. Joseph Alexander Kemp, later to become one of the most prominent of the town's promoters, arrived in 1883 and soon established a general merchandise store. Wichita Falls became the county seat of Wichita County in November 1883. It was officially incorporated on July 29, 1889, and the first meeting of the town council occurred on August 21, with Mayor Otis T. Bacon presiding. Soon the economy was stimulated by the arrival of more railroads. At the turn of the century the Wichita Valley Railroad, the Wichita Falls Railway, the Wichita Falls and Southern Railway, the Wichita Falls and Oklahoma Railway, and the Wichita Falls and Northwestern made the town a transportation and supply center for Northwest Texas and southern Oklahoma. Frank Kell, Kemp's brother-in-law, arrived in 1896 after buying the Wichita Valley Mills Company. Kemp and Kell were to be the two leading promoters of the city for several decades.

By 1890 the population was 1,987, and as the town continued to grow, its leaders recognized the need for a reliable water supply. The Lake Wichita project was begun in 1900 and completed the following year. It was the primary source of water for drinking and irrigation, as well as a major recreation site until the 1920s. Lake Kemp and Lake Diversion were added during the 1920s, followed by Lake Kickapoo in 1947. Today the primary water supply comes from Lake Arrowhead, constructed in 1966. By 1907 the population of Wichita Falls was 5,055, and the economy was firmly based upon railroads. In addition to the population, the infrastructure was also growing. By 1909 Wichita Falls boasted thirty miles of sidewalk, five miles of sewers, and more than 100 businesses. A streetcar system also appeared; it featured an extension to Lake Wichita that made the lake a recreation center. Soon a hotel, a domed pavilion, a racetrack, a boardwalk, and vacation cottages sprang up. The lake remained the center of recreation activity for the city until well after World War I, even though the hotel was destroyed by fire in 1918. The abandoned pavilion burned in 1955.

The town's first newspaper was the Wichita Mirror, printed by Steve Reynolds in the early 1880s. Dr. H. A. Lewis managed the Wichita Herald, which was later owned by Frank T. Daugherty and Ed Howard. The Times, founded in 1887 by Sam Bell Thomas, was purchased by Howard in 1897. He and others organized the Times Publishing Company in 1907 and began printing the Wichita Daily Times and the Record News. The two papers continued to appear separately until 1987, when they were combined into one morning paper.

Oil was discovered just east of the city in Clay County around 1903, but it was the opening of the Electra field in 1911 that triggered a shift in the economic base (see WICHITA COUNTY REGULAR FIELD). By 1913 the North Texas fields were producing 46 percent of all the oil in Texas, and refineries began to appear in Wichita Falls in 1915. The discovery of the Burkburnett fields in 1918 triggered an actual boom. Bank deposits increased by 400 percent in 1919, and oil-related industries increased dramatically. By 1920 there were nine refineries and forty-seven factories within the city. The oil boom also produced a building boom. More than a dozen major building projects were inaugurated in the downtown area during the early 1920s. In addition, the city added a municipal auditorium in 1927 and an airline passenger service in 1928. That same year the city's first commercial broadcasting station, KGKO, was established. The city also adopted the city manager form of government.

The population of Wichita Falls in 1930, on the eve of the Great Depression, was 43,607. There were thirty-two parks, forty-seven churches, four railroads, twenty schools, and 118 industrial establishments. The depression slowed growth but did not stop it, due in part to a major oil discovery at nearby Kamay in 1938. In 1940 the population was 55,200. Bank deposits exceeded $36 million, and there were ninety-two miles of paved streets, seventy-seven manufacturing establishments, 127 wholesale outlets, and 741 retail stores. In 1941 the economy was further bolstered by the opening of Sheppard Field, an Army Air Corps training facility. By May 1945, when the base reached its peak strength, there were 46,000 army personnel stationed there. The base was deactivated on August 31, 1946, but reopened as Sheppard Air Force Base in August 1948. It continued to function as a major training center for air force technicians and a flight training center for NATO.

Wichita Falls had a population of 110,100 in 1955. By 1960 the population had dropped to 101,724, and while oil production in the area still ranked eighth in the state, it would soon be eclipsed by other areas. By 1962 refinery activity had practically ceased. Recognizing that change was coming, the city's leaders formed Industrial Development, Incorporated, which sought to diversify the economy by attracting other types of industries. Gates Rubber Company built a plant in 1964. Sprague Electric and Johnson and Johnson followed in 1966. Tex-Color Labs arrived in 1967, followed by Town and Country Mobile Homes and Dowell Division of Dow Chemical Company in 1968. In 1970 Industrial Development merged with the Chamber of Commerce to form the Board of Commerce and Industry. This organization was successful in attracting fifteen new industries during the 1970s, including Pittsburgh Plate Glass, Certain Teed, Washex, Howmet Turbine, AC Spark Plug, and Cieba Geigy. These successes produced great optimism that the new trend would continue, but it declined by the early 1980s. Moreover, several companies moved their facilities away. These included Johnson and Johnson and Sprague. Meanwhile, because of the construction of a large shopping mall in the southwestern part of the city, the downtown collapsed as a viable shopping area.

Wichita Falls was devastated on April 10, 1979, by one of the largest tornadoes ever recorded. Sweeping through the southern part of the city, the storm destroyed twenty percent of all the dwellings in town and damaged or destroyed numerous business establishments. Miraculously only forty-fi

BART BROCK CHRISTMAS (BBC), Self

BOBBY JON CHRISTMAS (BJC), Father/ "Dad"

NELDA FERN PEPPER CHRISTMAS (NFC) Mother/ "Mom" & "Mamacita"

Friberg School was created in 1895 to serve families in this area. By 1896 students attended classes in a granary owned by Will Friberg; the following year John Friberg donated land here and a 2-room schoolhouse was erected. The school also served as a community gathering place, and by 1922 increased enrollment led to the addition of a third room. Upper level students began attending Wichita Falls High School in 1931, and in 1956 Clay County's Thornberry School consolidated with Friberg. After a 1969 fire left only the cafeteria intact, Friberg School closed.

PEPPER- 34th Alabama Infantry

Letter from Thomas Warrick to his wife, Martha. The letter is written on Union stationery. Warrick was from Coosa County, Alabama. During the war, he served in the Coosa Home Guards, and he was a private in Company C of the 34th Alabama Infantry.
Date 1863 September 24

34th Alabama Infantry Regiment

This flag was probably issued to the regiment in the spring of 1864. It bears characteristics which are common to flags issued to artillery batteries in the Army of Tennessee under General Joseph E. Johnston. The flag of the 34th Alabama Infantry is the only known flag of this size to have been issued to an infantry regiment. After the war, the flag was preserved by Dr. John N. Slaughter of Coosa County who had served as a major in the regiment. It was donated to the Alabama Department of Archives and History by his son Dr. Jasper M. Slaughter on April 20, 1910.

The 34th Alabama Infantry was organized at Loachapoka on 15 April 1862, with companies recruited from Montgomery and the counties of Coosa, Russell, and Tallapoosa. It was sent to Tupelo, MS, and was placed with the 24th and 28th Alabama regiments, and two South Carolina regiments, in Gen'l Arthur M. Manigault's Brigade, Gen'l Jones M. Wither's Division. The regiment moved into Kentucky but was not in action during the campaign. It was with the main Army of Tennessee when it fought at Murfreesboro, and it sustained heavy casualties (11 k, 77 w). The remainder of the winter was spent near Tullahoma, and the regiment then withdrew with the army to the Chattanooga area. At Chickamauga, the 34th again lost heavily, and at Missionary Ridge, a large number were captured. The regiment, numbering 388 men and 281 arms, wintered and recruited for the campaigning of 1864 at Dalton and began the "Hundred Days' Battle" in the spring. From Dalton to Atlanta, the 34th shared fully in the operations of the Army of Tennessee. It lost heavily in the battles of 22 and 28 July, at Atlanta. At Jonesboro, casualties were light. At the Battle of Franklin, (see post PEPPER- Battle of Franklin), the 34th escaped the severest part of the fighting, but at Nashville, the remainder of the unit was nearly decimated. With the wreck of the Army, the regiment passed into the Carolinas where it skirmished at Kinston and again at Bentonville. Ultimately consolidated with the 24th and 28th regiments, about 100 of the original 1,000 members of the regiment were surrendered at High Point, North Carolina, 26 April 1865.

Field officers: Col. Julius C. B. Mitchell (Montgomery, detached). Lt. Cols. James W. Echols (Macon, resigned); John C. Carter (Montgomery, wounded at Murfreesboro). Majors Henry R. McCoy (Tallapoosa, resigned); John N. Slaughter (Coosa, wounded at Atlanta).


Colonel Julius Caesar Boneparte Mitchell, 34th Alabama Infantry, C.S.A.
Mitchell, Julius C. B., 1819-1869
Soldier--Confederate States of America--Alabama
United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865


Captain John Nicholson Slaughter, Company B, 34th Alabama Infantry, C.S.A.
Slaughter, John Nicholson, 1832-1909

Additional Information
Location: Rutherford County
Campaign: Franklin-Nashville Campaign (1864)
Date(s): December 5-7, 1864
Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. Lovell H. Rousseau and Brig. Gen. Robert Milroy [US]; Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest [CS]
Forces Engaged: District of Tennessee (forces in Murfreesboro area; approx. 8,000) [US]; Forrest’s Cavalry, Bate's Infantry Division, and Brig. Gen. Claudius Sears’s and Brig. Gen. Joseph B. Palmer’s Infantry Brigades (6,500-7,000) [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 422 total (US 225; CS 197)
Description: In a last, desperate attempt to force Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman’s army out of Georgia, Gen. John Bell Hood led the Army of Tennessee north toward Nashville in November 1864. Although he suffered a terrible loss at Franklin, he continued toward Nashville. In operating against Nashville, he decided that destruction of the Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad and disruption of the Union army supply depot at Murfreesboro would help his cause. He sent Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, on December 4, with an expedition, composed of two cavalry divisions and Maj. Gen. William B. Bate’s infantry division, to Murfreesboro. On December 2, Hood had ordered Bate to destroy the railroad and blockhouses between Murfreesboro and Nashville and join Forrest for further operations; on December 4, Bate’s division attacked Blockhouse No. 7 protecting the railroad crossing at Overall Creek, but Union forces fought it off. On the morning of the 5th, Forrest headed out toward Murfreesboro, splitting his force, one column to attack the fort on the hill and the other to take Blockhouse No. 4, both at La Vergne. Upon his demand for surrender at both locations, the Union garrisons did so. Outside La Vergne, Forrest hooked up with Bate’s division and the command advanced on to Murfreesboro along two roads, driving the Yankees into their Fortress Rosencrans fortifications, and encamped in the city outskirts for the night. The next morning, on the 6th, Forrest ordered Bate’s division to “move upon the enemy’s works.” Fighting flared for a couple of hours, but the Yankees ceased firing and both sides glared at each other for the rest of the day. Brig. Gen. Claudius Sears’s and Brig. Gen. Joseph B. Palmer’s infantry brigades joined Forrest’s command in the evening, further swelling his numbers. On the morning of the 7th, Maj. Gen. Lovell Rousseau, commanding all of the forces at Murfreesboro, sent two brigades out under Brig. Gen. Robert Milroy on the Salem Pike to feel out the enemy. These troops engaged the Confederates and fighting continued. At one point some of Forrest’s troops broke and ran causing disorder in the Rebel ranks; even entreaties from Forrest and Bate did not stem the rout of these units. The rest of Forrest’s command conducted an orderly retreat from the field and encamped for the night outside Murfreesboro. Forrest had destroyed railroad track, blockhouses, and some homes and generally disrupted Union operations in the area, but he did not accomplish much else. The raid on Murfreesboro was a minor irritation.
Result(s): Union victory

Atlanta
Other Names: None
Location: Fulton County
Campaign: Atlanta Campaign (1864)
Date(s): July 22, 1864
Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman [US]; Gen. John Bell Hood [CS]
Forces Engaged: Military Division of the Mississippi [US]; Army of Tennessee [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 12,140 total (US 3,641; CS 8,499)
Description: Following the Battle of Peachtree Creek, Hood determined to attack Maj. Gen. James B. McPherson’s Army of the Tennessee. He withdrew his main army at night from Atlanta’ s outer line to the inner line, enticing Sherman to follow. In the meantime, he sent William J. Hardee with his corps on a fifteen- mile march to hit the unprotected Union left and rear, east of the city. Wheeler’s cavalry was to operate farther out on Sherman’s supply line, and Gen. Frank Cheatham’s corps were to attack the Union front. Hood, however, miscalculated the time necessary to make the march, and Hardee was unable to attack until afternoon. Although Hood had outmaneuvered Sherman for the time being, McPherson was concerned about his left flank and sent his reserves—Grenville Dodge’s XVI Army Corps—to that location. Two of Hood’s divisions ran into this reserve force and were repulsed. The Rebel attack stalled on the Union rear but began to roll up the left flank. Around the same time, a Confederate soldier shot and killed McPherson when he rode out to observe the fighting. Determined attacks continued, but the Union forces held. About 4:00 pm, Cheatham’s corps broke through the Union front at the Hurt House, but Sherman massed twenty artillery pieces on a knoll near his headquarters to shell these Confederates and halt their drive. Maj. Gen. John A. Logan’ s XV Army Corps then led a counterattack that restored the Union line. The Union troops held, and Hood suffered high casualties.
Result(s): Union victory

Bentonville
Other Names: Bentonsville
Location: Johnston County
Campaign: Campaign of the Carolinas (February-April 1865)
Date(s): March 19-21, 1865
Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman and Maj. Gen. Henry Slocum [US]; Gen. Joseph E. Johnston [CS]
Forces Engaged: Sherman’s Right Wing (XX and XIV Corps) [US]; Johnston's Army [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 4,738 total (US 1,646; CS 3,092)
Description: While Slocum’s advance was stalled at Averasborough by Hardee’s troops, the right wing of Sherman’s army under command of Maj. Gen. O.O. Howard marched toward Goldsborough. On March 19, Slocum encountered the entrenched Confederates of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston who had concentrated to meet his advance at Bentonville. Late afternoon, Johnston attacked, crushing the line of the XIV Corps. Only strong counterattacks and desperate fighting south of the Goldsborough Road blunted the Confederate offensive. Elements of the XX Corps were thrown into the action as they arrived on the field. Five Confederate attacks failed to dislodge the Federal defenders and darkness ended the first day’s fighting. During the night, Johnston contracted his line into a “V” to protect his flanks with Mill Creek to his rear. On March 20, Slocum was heavily reinforced, but fighting was sporadic. Sherman was inclined to let Johnston retreat. On the 21st, however, Johnston remained in position while he removed his wounded. Skirmishing heated up along the entire front. In the afternoon, Maj. Gen. Joseph Mower led his Union division along a narrow trace that carried it across Mill Creek into Johnston’s rear. Confederate counterattacks stopped Mower’s advance, saving the army’s only line of communication and retreat. Mower withdrew, ending fighting for the day. During the night, Johnston retreated across the bridge at Bentonville. Union forces pursued at first light, driving back Wheeler’s rearguard and saving the bridge. Federal pursuit was halted at Hannah’s Creek after a severe skirmish. Sherman, after regrouping at Goldsborough, pursued Johnston toward Raleigh. On April 18, Johnston signed an armistice with Sherman at the Bennett House, and on April 26, formally surrendered his army.
Result(s): Union victory

Nashville
Location: Davidson County
Campaign: Franklin-Nashville Campaign (1864)
Date(s): December 15-16, 1864
Principal Commanders: Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas [US]; Gen. John Bell Hood [CS]
Forces Engaged: IV Army Corps, XXIII Army Corps, Detachment of Army of the Tennessee, provisional detachment, and cavalry corps [US]; Army of Tennessee [CS]
Estimated Casualties: 88 total (US 23; CS 65)
Description: In a last desperate attempt to force Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman’s army out of Georgia, Gen. John Bell Hood led the Army of Tennessee north toward Nashville in November 1864. Although he suffered terrible losses at Franklin on November 30, he continued toward Nashville. By the next day, the various elements of Maj. Gen. George H. Thomas’s army had reached Nashville. Hood reached the outskirts of Nashville on December 2, occupied positions on a line of hills parallel to those of the Union and began erecting fieldworks. Union Army Engineer, Brig. Gen. James St. Clair Morton, had overseen the construction of sophisticated fortifications at Nashville in 1862-63, strengthened by others, which would soon see use. From the 1st through the 14th, Thomas made preparations for the Battle of Nashville in which he intended to destroy Hood’s army. On the night of December 14, Thomas informed Maj. Gen. Henry W. Halleck, acting as Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s chief of staff, that he would attack the next day. Thomas planned to strike both of Hood’s flanks. Before daylight on the 15th, the first of the Union troops, led by Maj. Gen. James Steedman, set out to hit the Confederate right. The attack was made and the Union forces held down one Rebel corps there for the rest of the day. Attack on the Confederate left did not begin until after noon when a charge commenced on Montgomery Hill. With this classic charge’s success, attacks on other parts of the Confederate left commenced, all eventually successful. By this time it was dark and fighting stopped for the day. Although battered and with a much smaller battle line, Gen. Hood was still confident. He established a main line of resistance along the base of a ridge about two miles south of the former location, throwing up new works and fortifying Shy’s and Overton’s hills on their flanks. The IV Army Corps marched out to within 250 yards, in some places, of the Confederate’s new line and began constructing fieldworks. During the rest of the morning, other Union troops moved out toward the new Confederate line and took up positions opposite it. The Union attack began against Hood’s strong right flank on Overton’s Hill. The same brigade that had taken Montgomery Hill the day before received the nod for the charge up Overton’s Hill. This charge, although gallantly conducted, failed, but other troops (Maj. Gen. A.J. Smith’s “Israelites” ) successfully assaulted Shy’s Hill in their fronts. Seeing the success along the line, other Union troops charged up Overton’s Hill and took it. Hood’s army fled. Thomas had left one escape route open but the Union army set off in pursuit. For ten days, the pursuit continued until the beaten and battered Army of Tennessee recrossed the Tennessee River. Hood’s army was stalled at Columbia, beaten at Franklin, and routed at Nashville. Hood retreated to Tupelo and resigned his command.
Result(s): Union victory

PEPPER- Black Jack, Texas

BLACK JACK, TEXAS (Cherokee County). Black Jack, on Farm Road 2750 eighteen miles northeast of Rusk in northeastern Cherokee County, was first settled in the 1840s by Robert Graves Stadler, a native of South Carolina and veteran of the Texas Revolution. He was joined by a number of relatives, mostly nephews and nieces, who built a small settlement that they named after the numerous blackjack trees in the vicinity. A log schoolhouse was constructed around the time of the Civil War, and in 1875 the Blackjack Baptist Church was organized. However, the town did not grow until around 1916, when John W. Gray and Tom Upchurch opened a store. At its height just after World War I the small community had two stores, a cotton gin, a garage, a church, a school, and a population of 100. After World War II the school was consolidated with the Troup school. The last store closed in 1961, but as late as 1966 the reported population was still seventy-five. In 1990 Black Jack was a dispersed rural community with a church, a few scattered houses, and a population of forty-seven. The population remained the same in 2000.


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PEPPER- Fauquier Co. Petition 1774

"To the Worshipful Court of Fauquier County-
The Petition of us the Subscribers Sheweth, that we Being Desenters bearing the Denomination of Baptists &c. Desiring to Worship God According to the Best light that we have In Holy Scriptures, and the Dictates of our Own
Consciences, Humbly Prayeth that your Worships would be Pleased to grant us liberty To meet together for the worship of God in our way the Prosecution of what We believe to be Duty at the Meeting House Built for that Purpose on a Tenement of Land Occupied by Burr Harrison, and Also would beg leave further to Pray That the same might be Entred on record And a Certificate thereof might be granted to the Barer of these Presents and also that our
Brother John Monroe might be Permitted to Qualify according to Law for the Attending on us with the Preaching of the Gospels and the Administrations of the Ordinances. And your Petitioners as in our Duty will Pray for your Worship &c.

Burr Harrison
John Hitt
William Hollen
James Winn
Dawson Burgess
Wm Elliott
Geo. Bennett
Richd Oldham Jr.
Alea (possible Alex) Holton
Matthew Smith
James Winn
Samuel Pepper
John Elliott
Richard Oldham
Henry Snider
Thomas Elliott
William Lain
John Pepper
Jeffry Johnson
John Oldham
Joseph Neavel
James Neavel
Henry Asbury
Junr John Wright
William Hammon [and others]


NOTE: Several of these names (about ten of them) are in the same handwriting as the preamble, and the preamble is in the same handwriting as that of Burr Harrison; he therefore put down himself such of the names as are in his handwriting, doubtless at the request or knowledge of such persons. Among these named so written is that of "Junr John Wright." The prefix "Junr" seems to confirm that John Wright, junior, did not write his own name in this instance.'

This petition was acted upon in the following May, as per the entry on page 232 of the court minutes for the May term 1775, when Capt. John Wright, Jr., had gone South: "Leave is granted the Anabaptists in the lower part of this County to erect a meeting house on the Lands of John Kelly."

It is believed (but not satisfactorily proved) that Richard Oldham and Richard Oldham, Jr. migrated soon after this to Caswell Co., NC. One or both may have sojourned in Amelia Co., VA on their way to North Carolina. One of the Oldhams, possibly Richard Oldham, Jr. married an Anne Pepper



CROOKED RUN BAPTIST CHURCH

PEPPER- Anderson, SC

Anderson is a city in and the county seat of Anderson County, South Carolina, United States.

History
Anderson was named for a Revolutionary War hero, Robert Anderson. General Anderson and Andrew Pickens surveyed the land in the area. The Cherokees lived in the area until 1777. The land was then ceded to South Carolina by the Cherokee in a treaty negotiated by Pickens. This area was then called the Pendleton District for official purposes. In 1826, the Pendleton District was divided into two districts — Anderson and Pickens. Because the town of Pendleton was at the top of the county, too close to the Pickens border, a new courthouse was built at the center of the county. A small town, named Anderson Courthouse, built around the courthouse, and this community eventually became known as Anderson. The original courthouse was built of logs, but 10 years later, a courthouse made of bricks was erected to replace it. A still-standing Anderson County Courthouse, built in 1898, now faces the current courthouse and is built on the site of the original.

The settlers of this area were mostly Scots-Irish who came from Virginia and Pennsylvania to farm. Farmers grew corn and raised hogs. Much later, cotton became the cash crop of the area. By the late 1800s, the Anderson area was filled with numerous textile mills. Due to the innovation of Anderson engineer William Whitner, electricity could be conducted by wire to mills throughout the county. Anderson was the first city in the United States to have a continuous supply of electric power, which was supplied by a water mill located in the high shoals area of the Rocky River in Anderson County. The first cotton gin in the world to be operated by electricity was built in Anderson County in 1897. Several areas of Anderson are named in Whitner's honor, including a downtown street. Anderson became known as "The Electric City," a nickname that it still holds today.

GENERAL- Nurses of the Civil War

"You have given your boys to die for their country;
now you can give your girls to nurse them."
(Nurse Mary Stinebaugh to her father in 1863)

Nurse Kit during Civil War



A devoted nurse later praised her female colleagues: "Would that I could do more than thank the dear friends who made my life for four years so happy and contented; who never made me feel by word or act, that my self-imposed occupation was otherwise than one which would ennoble any woman. If ever any aid was given through my own exertions, or any labor rendered effective by me for the good of the South-if any sick soldier ever benefitted by my happy face or pleasant smiles at his bedside, or death was ever soothed by gentle words of hope and tender care, such results were only owing to the cheering encouragement I received from them. They were gentlewomen in every sense of the word, and though they might not have remembered that "noblesse oblige," they felt and acted up to the motto in every act of their lives. My only wish was to live and die among them, growing each day better from contact with their gentle, kindly sympathies and heroic hearts.

Some historians believe that somewhere between 3,000 and 8,000 women volunteered their services as nurses throughout the duration of the Civil War, the majority of them being from northern states. However, such an estimate is questionable due to the fact that several nurses, upon receiving appointments, refused to have their names recorded in the official books. Mrs. M. J. Boston once said to the surgeon she was working under, "I do not want any pay for my services. I only try to do all I can for the soldiers." Other women who made similar decisions found it even more difficult to collect pensions later in their lives. With the lack of documentation, it is nearly impossible to claim the exact number of women who performed duty as nurses. Yet, we do know that their work was greatly appreciated by the men they cared for. John G. B. Adams, once the National Commander of the G.A.R., expressed that the memory of these nurses "will ever live in the hearts of the veterans they nursed with such tender care."

GENERAL- Hospitals in the Civil War

To care for both the sick and the wounded, regiments established hospitals (or combined with other regiments to form brigade or division hospitals). These hospitals were usually run by the regimental surgeon and his assistants. While campaigning, these hospitals were usually set up in any building available near the battlefields, usually farm houses or barns. If no buildings were available, open air tents would be used. While the surgeons and assistant surgeons were medical doctors, other hospital staff did not have any medical training. Nursing was in its infancy, relying on male nurses who had no medical experience.Other hospital staff such as ambulance drivers and cooks were regular soldiers assigned to hospital duty.

In the Civil War, two soldiers died of disease for every one killed in battle. Scurvy, dysentery, typhoid, diphtheria, and pneumonia were common. Farm boys, crowded together in camps with other men for the first time in their lives, were especially susceptible to every sort of ailment. There were epidemics of measles, mumps, and other childhood diseases. Hospitals were a dangerous place due to these diseases even for healthy men working there. A Union soldier said "If a fellow has to go to the hospital, you might as well say good-bye to him."

Amputation was the primary surgical method of the time. Eight out of ten amputees did not survive their operations. They usually died of shock or of infection. Chloroform or ether were used as anesthetics but there was no attempt at maintaining sterile conditions. Wounds routinely became infected. Surgeons would wipe their scalpels and saws off on their aprons between surgeries. Wiping down operating tables or using saw dust on the floors was an attempt to absorb blood to keep things from being slippery rather than an attempt at cleanliness. The idea of germs spreading in an un-sterile environment was unknown. Antibiotics to fight infection did not exist.

TAYLOR- Hospital #9, Richmond, VA

Wayside Hospital General Hospital
Also called: Banner Hospital, Grant Hospital, Wayside Hospital. Formerly tobacco factory of William H. Grant. Designed by Samuel Freeman and built in 1853. Opened 2 December 1861. Libby Prison Hospital attached to its operation. Designated as Wayside Hospital for men on furlough or honorable discharge on 6 August 1863. Used as barracks by Federal occupation forces. Capacity over 250. Location: northeast corner of 19th and Franklin Streets.

TAYLOR- Fort Delaware

NOTE: TAYLOR, WILLIAM HORNE Pvt
Enlisted at Hamburg AR on 10 May 1862. Fought at Prairie Grove where he was injured and spent 3 months in hospital at Cane Ridge. Was present for the Battle of Helena AR where he was captured and sailed on the steamer "Silver Moon" to Alton Illinois. He was transferred to Fort Delaware 4 April 1864 and released 10 March 1865 to a hospital at Richmond VA.




Fort Delaware is a harbor defense facility built in 1859 on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River. During the American Civil War, the Union used Fort Delaware as a prison for Confederate prisoners of war.

History
In 1794, the French military engineer Pierre Charles L’Enfant was surveying for defensive sites. He identified an island that he called Pip Ash "as an ideal site for the defense of the prize of American commerce and culture".

The island that L'Enfant called Pip Ash was locally known as Pea Patch island. This island was mostly unaffected by humanity with one exception. Dr. Henry Gale, a New Jersey resident, used Pea Patch as a private hunting ground. Gale was offered $30,000 for the island by the US military, but he refused. The military was determined to get the island, so they appealed to the Delaware state legislature, which seized the island from Dr. Gale on May 27, 1813.

Construction of the fort and the Civil War
Construction of a fort on Pea Patch island began sometime before Dec 8, 1817. Chief Engineer Joseph Gardner Swift mentions a fort on the "Pea Patch in Delaware river" among forts that are progressing nicely.[3] A fire destroyed much of the work February 8–9, 1831. Captain Richard Delafield asked for $10,000 to tear down the remaining structure the following year. The structure was torn down in 1833.

Captain Delafield desired to "erect a marvel of military architecture on Pea Patch." The present structure was erected between 1848 and 1859, becoming the largest fort in the United States at the time.

During the Civil War, beginning in 1862, the island became a prison for captured Confederates and local Southern sympathizers. They were housed not in the fort itself but in wooden barracks that soon covered much of the island. Most of the Confederates captured at Gettysburg were imprisoned there. By August 1863, there were 12,500 prisoners on the island; by war’s end, it had held some 40,000 men. The conditions were predictably notorious, and about 2,900 prisoners died at Fort Delaware.

The fort was also used to organize and muster troops from the first state. Ahl's Heavy Artillery Company was organized there for garrison duty and served there during its entire service.

TAYLOR (CSA)- Alton, IL

NOTE: TAYLOR, WILLIAM HORNE Pvt
Present for the Battle of Helena AR where he was captured and sailed on the steamer "Silver Moon" to Alton Illinois. He was transferred to Fort Delaware 4 April 1864 and released 10 March 1865 to a hospital at Richmond VA.

Introduction


Although Alton once was growing faster than its sister city of St. Louis, a coalition of St. Louis businessmen planned to build a town to stop its expansion and bring business to St. Louis. The result was Grafton, Illinois.
The first penitentiary in Illinois was built in Alton. While only a corner of it remains, it once extended nearly to "Church Hill". During the American Civil War, Union forces used it to hold prisoners of war, and some 12,000 Confederates were held there. During the smallpox epidemic of 1863-1864, thousands of men died. A Confederate mass grave on the north side of Alton holds many of the dead from the epidemic. A memorial marks the site.

The Alton Penitentiary
The Alton penitentiary was the first state prison built in Illinois in 1830-31. It was opened in 1833, a city on the Mississippi River. It was too near the river and in an undrained and ungraded area, and the prison aroused much criticism. There was an investigation, resulting in a decision to abandone the operation as soon as a new prison could be completed at Joliet. It was closed in 1860, when the last prisoners were moved to a new facility at Joliet. By late in 1861 an urgent need arose to relieve the overcrowding at the Union's Gratiot State Prison.

On December 31, 1861, Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck, Commander of the Department of the Missouri, ordered Lt-Col. James B. McPherson to Alton for an inspection of the closed penitentiary. Halleck asked Adjutant General Lorenzo Thomas for authority to take over the abandoned penitentiary at nearby Alton, Illinois, provided he could obtain the consent of the state governor, Richard Yates. Thomas gave permission and Yates gave consent.
McPherson reported that the prison could be made into a military prison and house up to 1,750 prisoners with improvements estimated to cost $2,415. With the Joliet facilities in use just before the Civil War, the abandoned Alton Prison was taken over by authorities early in 1862 for use as a 'military detention camp".

The first prisoners arrived at Alton Prison on February 9, 1862 and members of the 13 th U.S. Infantry were assigned as guards, with Lt. Col. Sidney Burbank commanding. By February 12, the prison was already overcrowded.

PRISON:
The prison had a main, 3-story penitentiary building containing 256 cells. Each cell measured about 4x7 feet. There were also 5 large rooms divided by partitions, this provided 2 enclosures each. Of the 2 enclosures, one measured 7x4 feet and the other one was 20x4 feet.There were several other buildings in the yard, enclosed by a large stone wall. One of the buildings was a 2-story wood-frame measuring 46x97 feet on the first floor and 46 sq. feet on the second floor. There was an old 2-story stable measuring 29x49 feet on each floor. Two other buildings were used for confining Union troops held under court-martial, 50x103 foot building, and some civilian prisoners, 50x36 foot building.
The maximum capacity was estimated at 800 prisoners. Throughout most of the war, it held between 1,000 and 1,500 prisoners. By 1865, it held nearly 1,900 prisoners.

During the next 3 years over 11,764 Confederate prisoners would pass through the gates of the prison. Of the 4 different classes of prisoners housed at Alton, Confederate soldiers made up most of the population. Citizens, including several women, were imprisoned here for treasonable actions, making anti-Union statements, aiding an escaped Confederate, etc. Others, classified as bushwhackers or guerillas, were imprisoned for acts against the government such as bridge burning and railroad vandalism.

The prison hospital began as a room in the main prison building. As illness among the prisoners increased, the hospital grew and included 2 converted workshops in the prison yard. The bodies of the dead prisoners were kept in the prison deadhouse until they could be buried.

LIFE & CONDITIONS:
Most of the prisoners remained in their cells and had limited access to the prison yard. Those confined in the buildings of the yard were allowed certain periods for outside recreation.

The prison did not have a regular water supply. A well was located on the prison grounds, but as soon as the first prisoners were transferred in, the well-water was discovered to be non-potable. A system was developed in which water from the Mississippi River would be hauled in casts back to the prison.
Heat was supplied wood-burning stoves set up in the hallways of the main buildings and gaslights were used for light. The buildings in the prison yard had stoves in the rooms for heat and coal-oil lamps used for light.

Conditions in the prison were harsh and the mortality rate was above average for a Union prison. Hot, humid summers and cold Midwestern winters took a heavy toll on prisoners already weakened by poor nourishment and inadequate clothing. The prison was overcrowded much of the time and and sanitary facilities were inadequate. Pneumonia and dysentery were common killers but contagious diseases such as smallpox and rubella were the most feared. The bad sanitation produced a small-pox epidemic that raged for weeks, When smallpox infection became alarmingly high in the winter of 1862 and spring of 1863, a quarantine hospital was located on an island across the Mississippi River from the prison. The smallpox caused 6-10 prisoners to die daily.

Fearing that the disease might spread to the town, Alton's citizens demanded that ill prisoners be removed from the city area, and many were taken to the north end of McPike's Island in the Misissippi River. McPike's Island was a small uninhabited isle in the Mississippi River directly across from the prison. There was a deserted summer cottage that been converted to a hospital pest house, a ward to quarintine those having highly contagious diseases. The ward soon became overcrowded.

There is not any records kept of deaths at the prison or on the island, known by locals as "smallpox island", but it was estimated that several thousand Confederates were buried on the island in 1863-1864, and many were buried in the Confederate Soldiers' Cemetery in North Alton. Up to 300 soldiers and prisoners that died there, and were buried on the island, which is now underwater. About 1,534 prisoners died there. An additional number of civilians and Union soldiers were victims of disease and illness.

There were constant escape attempts from the prison, some successful. On November 17, 1862, after a fire was set, a group of 4 prisoners got over the wall during the confusion. They used a braided bedclothes cord tied to a ladder against the outer prison wall.

On the night of July 25, 1862, Col. Ebeneezer Magoffin of Missouri and 35 other prisoners crawled into a tunnel they had cut through 8 feet of masonry and excavated for 50 feet, only 3 feet below the the ground surface; then they cut through the 3-ft. thick limestone foundation of the outer prison wall. They used a herd of cattle in the area to cover there escape. Only 8 were recaptured. Because of this, Burbank and the 13th Regiment were transferred to the front-lines and the 77th Ohio Volunteers replaced them as guards, with Col. Jesse Hildebrand commanding.

TAYLOR- Battle of Helena, AR

Monument commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Helena


The Confederate attack on the Mississippi River town of Helena (Phillips County) was, for the size of the forces engaged (nearly 12,000), as desperate a fight as any in the Civil War, with repeated assaults on heavily fortified positions similar to the fighting that was to be seen in 1864 in General Ulysses Grant’s overland campaign in Virginia and General William T. Sherman’s Atlanta, Georgia, campaign. It was the Confederates’ last major offensive in Arkansas (besides cavalry raids and the repulse of the Camden Expedition) and the last Confederate attempt to seize a potential choke point on the Mississippi. But the Battle of Helena has been little noted and not long remembered because it was fought the day the Confederate garrison at Vicksburg, Mississippi, surrendered to Grant and the day after the Battle of Gettysburg.

Federal forces under Major General Samuel Ryan Curtis occupied Helena in July 1862. Dubbed “hell in Arkansas” by a wag in the garrison, Helena became a major Union logistical base on the Mississippi River, strategically located not far above Vicksburg. Helena is on the high ground of Crowley’s Ridge, which creates an excellent defensive position, though it could be a death trap if the enemy took the high ground on the bluffs beyond the town. Helena’s strategic importance increased when Grant laid siege to Vicksburg. In mid-June 1863, Lieutenant General Theophilus Holmes, commander of the Confederate District of Arkansas, decided to attack Helena after prodding from Secretary of War James Seddon and Lieutenant General Kirby Smith. Holmes had been hesitant until Helena’s garrison was depleted for the siege of Vicksburg.

On June 18, Holmes met with Major General Sterling Price and Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke in Jacksonport (Jackson County) to plan the attack. Holmes issued an order: “The invaders have been driven from every point in Arkansas save one—Helena. We go to retake it.” Although tagged as vacillating and dilatory, once committed, Holmes swiftly set the campaign in motion and attacked Helena. Setting off from Jacksonport on June 22, Price’s infantry and Marmaduke’s cavalry made a ten-day march covering sixty-nine miles to Moro (Lee County) on rain-soaked roads. They crossed Grand Prairie, then improvised a ferry over Bayou De View after a bridge constructed by Price’s engineer, Lieutenant John Mhoon, was washed away. While Price and Marmaduke’s troops converged on Helena, a second column of infantry commanded by Brigadier General James Fagan advanced from Little Rock (Pulaski County). Fagan’s men had an easier march, being able to travel by rail and steamboat as far as Clarendon (Monroe County).

A Confederate council of war took place July 3 at the Allen Polk house five miles west of Helena. Helena’s fortifications were stronger than expected, but those present approved Holmes’s plan for a converging attack with his 7,646 troops effective to commence at daybreak the next day, with Fagan attacking from the southwest, Price from the west, and Marmaduke from the north. Holmes’s plan of attack was made without adequate reconnaissance and a lack of intelligence as to the strongly fortified Union defensive positions.

Union Major General Benjamin M. Prentiss had learned at Shiloh in Tennessee about the need for prepared positions. He established four fortified positions on the bluffs north and west of town, Batteries A and B to the north taking advantage of Rightor Hill, Battery C east of the city on Graveyard Hill, and Battery D near the home of General Thomas Hindman on Hindman Hill southwest of town commanding the Upper Little Rock Road. Also, a heavily fortified redoubt called Fort Curtis was built at the city’s western edge.

The attack was no surprise, because word of the Confederate advance had already reached Prentiss. The Union army, 4,129 strong, was under arms at 2:30 a.m. Prentiss had trees cut to block the approach roads, and, although Holmes’s infantry crawled through this obstacle, most Confederate artillery could not advance.

Firing broke out along the picket line at 3:00 a.m. Holmes’s order to attack at daybreak proved imprecise. Price apparently left the council of war thinking that “daybreak” meant “dawn,” while Fagan understood it as “first light.” Launching the attack on Hindman Hill (Battery D) at first light, a full hour before Price, Fagan’s men suffered heavily under enfilading fire from Graveyard Hill (Battery C) to Fagan’s left. Fagan’s men carried lines of rifle pits but could not reduce Battery D.

Price’s men wandered through broken country before attacking at dawn. Storming up Graveyard Hill, Price’s infantry took Battery C. The troops tried to turn the guns on the enemy but found them disabled. A charge on Fort Curtis resulted in heavy Confederate casualties and accomplished nothing. Attempts to help Fagan’s troops take Hindman Hill also failed.

To the north, Marmaduke’s cavalry failed to take Rightor Hill, stymied by troops under Colonel Powell Clayton in a flanking position on the Union right behind the levee. Colonel Joseph Shelby’s attack was repulsed. (Marmaduke’s anger about Brigadier General Marsh Walker’s failure to advance on the right resulted in a Little Rock duel on September 6, 1863, in which Marmaduke killed Walker.)

The defenders along the line were materially aided by supporting fire from the timber-clad USS Tyler. Acting Ensign George L. Smith reported firing 413 rounds, mostly eight-inch ten- and fifteen-second shells. At 10:30 a.m., Holmes ordered his army to withdraw. Large groups of Confederates trapped in ravines surrendered, including Colonel Samuel Bell, Lieutenant Colonel Jeptha C. Johnson, and more than 100 men of the Thirty-seventh Arkansas, after trying to take Hindman Hill from the south. The Confederates retreated unmolested by Prentiss, who feared a renewal of their attack.

The Second Arkansas Infantry (African Descent) held the extreme left of the Union line. Although these troops were not directly attacked and suffered only five wounded, the role they played in the battle received wide notice in the Northern abolitionist press.

From the Confederate point of view, the Battle of Helena was a tragic waste. The bloody attack turned out to be a cruel and pointless irony, coming as it did on the day Vicksburg fell. Holmes’s army clearly brought with it to Helena a fighting spirit, but morale suffered badly after such a repulse. The fierce riverside battle was the unsuccessful culmination of the last major Confederate offensive in Arkansas. Soon after, only cavalry raids and guerilla activity would trouble Union forces north of the Arkansas River, and the state capital, ten weeks later, slipped from Confederate control. For the Union, Helena represented the long-awaited crack in the Arkansas Confederates’ façade.

TAYLOR- Cane Hill History

Town History

*Family Importance. Location of Hospital where William Horne Taylor spent 3 months recuperating following the Battle of Prairie Grove (Arkansas).

Cane Hill, settled by Europeans in 1827, was the earliest settlement in Washington County. It was known as an educational center because the first college in Arkansas to admit women was in Cane Hill. In addition, it had the state’s first public school, library, and Sunday school. Several of the oldest houses in northwest Arkansas still stand in Cane Hill. It was also the site of an all-day skirmish in the days before the Battle of Prairie Grove (December 7, 1862).

Most of the early settlers came from the Crystal Hill–Little Rock area (Pulaski County), attracted by the rich soil, plentiful freshwater springs, and the canebrakes in the temperate mountain climate. In addition, many Cherokee had recently been removed from Arkansas to Indian Territory (modern-day Oklahoma) and points west, opening northwest Arkansas for white settlement.

Cane Hill (also known as Boonsboro after Daniel Boone) was the site of one of the county’s first institutions of higher learning. The Cane Hill School opened its doors for students in April 1835. In 1852, it became a college for men only, but women could attend the Female Seminary. The first site of the Cane Hill Female Seminary was in Clyde, one mile south of Cane Hill.

The school closed with the advent of the Civil War in 1861, and three of the four buildings were burned in 1864. The men’s dormitory that survived was used as a hospital for the wounded soldiers under the command of Union brigadier general James G. Blunt.

After the war ended, the college reopened, and women were admitted to the Female Seminary. In 1875, Cane Hill College became the first college in Arkansas to admit women for its degree program. Five women were granted baccalaureate degrees in 1877.

In 1891, Cane Hill College moved to Clarksville (Johnson County) and became the Arkansas Cumberland College; in 1920, it was renamed the College of the Ozarks, and in 1987, the college became the University of the Ozarks.

The area now known as Cane Hill was originally three rural communities. The northernmost section was the original site of the Cane Hill post office and was later known as White Church. The site of the current Canehill post office was also known at various times as Boonsboro, Boonsborough, and Steam Mill. The southernmost community, in present-day Clyde, was known as Russellville. None of these communities was ever incorporated.

A prominent landmark in the Cane Hill area is the water-powered mill known variously as the Pyeatte-Moore Mill and the Moore-Buchanan Mill. Built during the 1830s, the mill was used to grind wheat for flour and corn for corn meal, to saw logs, and even to card wool. It appears to have been moved to its present location on Jordan Creek in 1902 and was used until the 1930s. The remains of the thirty-six-foot diameter draw wheel can still be seen, and the mill is in the process of being restored.

Besides being one of the oldest settlements in northwest Arkansas, the Cane Hill area was the site of a skirmish nine days before the Battle of Prairie Grove. On November 28, 1862, 5,000 Union forces, led by Brigadier General James G. Blunt, surprised 2,000 Confederate cavalry, led by Brigadier General John S. Marmaduke, while they were gathering winter supplies. By the end of the day, Blunt’s Union forces chased the Confederate forces toward the south side of the Boston Mountains, capturing them with their much-needed winter food supplies intact. Blunt then set up his headquarters at Cane Hill, preparing for the Battle of Prairie Grove.
Cane Hill has several landmarks that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The six houses are the Blackburn House, the Anthony R. Carroll Building, the Earle House, the David Noah Edmiston House, the John Edmiston House, and the Zeb Edmiston House. The Pyeatte-Moore Mill, and the Bethlehem and Cane Hill cemeteries are also listed on the National Register.

Today, Cane Hill is simply rural farmland with one main street, but several annual events are held in town. On the third weekend in September, the Cane Hill Harvest Festival is held on the Cane Hill College grounds on State Highway 45. Since 2001, the Cane Hill Kite Festival has been held in March at the Springfield Ranch, across from the U.S. Post Office. The Cane Hill College houses the Cane Hill Museum.