Monthly Archives: June 2011

Blue-Gray Reunion 1890

Posted on June 29, 2011 by

The reunion tent (left) was erected at the edge of what little remained (to the right of the tent) of Fort Sanders. Photo via McClung Collection.

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Honors for Gen. Sanders

Posted on June 27, 2011 by

In addition to having the earthwork the Rebels dubbed Fort Loudon named for him, Union Gen. William P. Sanders has had other honors since—including a curious juxtaposition of his historical marker with his onetime burial place. “Knoxville’s Fort Sanders neighborhood … Continue reading →

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Second Michigan at Fort Sanders

Posted on June 25, 2011 by

“The hardships and privations of the siege were very great, the men suffering especially from want of sufficient food and clothing… “Four companies of the Second Michigan, A, H, G and F, in command of Captain Emil Moores, occupied a … Continue reading →

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Dr. William Watts Parker

Posted on June 23, 2011 by

Captain Dr. William Watts Parker, 1824-1899. The Richmond medical doctor who organized, recruited & commanded Parker’s “Boy Battery.” It supported from Cherokee Heights (as best it could with faulty Rebel ammunition) the Confederate assault on Fort Sanders.

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Reprise: The post-war Union view

Posted on June 21, 2011 by

The Nov. 28, 1863, Rebel attack on the Union pickets in front of Fort Sanders’ northwest bastion was as clear a tip off as anything could be that a larger ground attack was imminent, according to these recollections in the … Continue reading →

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Reprise: East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad

Posted on June 19, 2011 by

Its roadbed, somewhat elevated from the surrounding terrain, gave the novel’s Private Bird Clark and his fictional cousin, the historical Lt. Col. Alfred George Washington O’Brien, a convenient place from which to view Fort Sanders. Although, unfortunately, not enough of … Continue reading →

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Lieutenant Benjamin’s grave

Posted on June 17, 2011 by

His grave marker in Putnam County, New York. Or is it? There’s another one, here, and some confusion over the spelling of his middle name.

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Corporal Watkins at Fort Sanders

Posted on June 15, 2011 by

John Watkins, of the Nineteenth Ohio Battery, which was held in reserve during the fight, survived the war and attended a Knoxville reunion in 1895. He saw the beginning of the end of the red-clay fort and wrote home about … Continue reading →

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Reprise: Longstreet’s faulty recon

Posted on June 13, 2011 by

At least one reviewer of the novel has complained about Gen. Longstreet’s apparent mistake in insufficiently reconnoitering Fort Sanders before his Mississippians and Georgians attacked. Indeed, after the battle, Longstreet tried to pin the blame for the mistake on his … Continue reading →

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19th Ohio Battery

Posted on June 11, 2011 by

Battle flag of the 19th Ohio Battery, Capt. Joseph C. Shields, commanding. One of its sections was held in reserve for the battle.

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