The Battle of Morristown, 1864

(Union Artillery readies for action at Morristown.)

It was on the morning of 28 October 1864 that Morristown, Tennessee was the site of a battle between Union and Confederate forces during the War Between The States. Except for a Georgia battalion and a Carolina mountain howitzer and crew on the Confederate side, both sides were made up of Tennesseans.

Union General Alvan Gillem, commanding three Tennessee cavalry regiments and an artillery battery, moved up from New Market, Tennessee, and headed for Morristown, where Confederates there were under the command of General John Vaughn. Gillem's men, perhaps 3,000 strong were well equipped, and had repeating rifles. Vaughn's forces, perhaps 2,000 in number were generally poorly equipped and had single shot muskets.

Vaughn knew he was up against a numerically superior force, believing the Federals to number around 3,500 men. He knew also his best defendable position lay to his rear, at Bull's Gap, where he also had forces stationed. His stated plan was to fall back towards Bull's Gap if pressed by the Federals. At the same time it seems he intended to first make a stand at Morristown to see if he could stop the Federals there.

Vaughn deployed his men in two long lines. One line was in the town and was flanked on either side by an artillery battery. One battery was on the hill where Morristown College used to be, and a line of men extended from there towards the Radio Center area, where another artillery battery anchored his left flank. In front of this line, some distance to the west was Vaughn's first line, mostly of mounted infantry, dismounted and in line. Col. James Rose, along with his mounted regiment, had maintained contact with the Union troops as they advanced towards town. Under Vaughn's orders to determine the enemy's strength, Rose's regiment, the 61st, numbering under a 100 men, faced off against the Union brigade, forcing it to begin deploying from the road into the adjacent fields. As company after company of Union cavalry deployed, Rose could clearly see he was up against a very large Union force, which fact he duly reported to Vaughn. (All this happened on the west end, near where Home Depot is today, or perhaps a little further to the west, between K Mart and Home Depot.) Rose's regiment then fell back into the center of the main Confederate position at Morristown. . The Confederates now awaited the inevitable Union attack. One Union veteran later recalled approaching Morristown on that fateful day and seeing the entire valley full of Confederates.

Morristown at that time was a small collection of buildings, mostly along Main Street, between Jackson and Cumberland Streets. Surrounding it was open farm land. I think its probable that there are more trees today in Morristown than in 1864. Both sides could see each other much better then than would be possible today.

Gillem's Union brigade arrived on the battlefield around 9 o'clock in the morning. His artillery battery deployed itself on a hill on Gillem's right flank, and began firing on the Confederates, whose own artillery returned fire. Town residents, mostly women, children and old men, huddled together in their's or their neighbor's cellars, as the terrific concussions of cannon fire rattled their homes. One of Gillem's cavalry regiments quickly formed up and charged towards the first Confederate line, concentrating on the center and right of the Confederate position. This movement was seen by the Confederates. Confederate artillery opened fire on the advancing Federals at long range, and to little effect. At 400 yards the advancing Union cavalry picked up speed to a trot. Shortly thereafter the entire Confederate front line opened fire on the horsemen, but again to little noticeable effect. As the cavalry, now at full speed and with sabres drawn, closed on the Confederate position, the Confederate line was pushed back and then collapsed. Fleeing Confederates rode through and disordered the second Confederate line and urged them to run as well. The Confederate first line was gone and its second line on its right and center was in disorder.

The Confederates on the left, to the south of town, were still fighting and began to manouver to attack the charging Union regiment on its now exposed flank. However the Union troops blocked this attempt by moving a fresh regiment towards the Confederates' own exposed flank. The Confederates weren't done yet, and were perceived by the Federals to be moving towards the Union artillery battery. But now the full weight of the Union brigade fell on the embattled Confederates, as a massive cavalry charge was launched all along the Confederate line. By this point General Vaughn was already in the process of attempting to withdraw his men from the battle. The Union charge couldn't have come at a worse moment for Vaughn's men. Colonel Rose later wrote the Confederate line first broke on the far left, (out towards Radio Center today) with a Union column penetrating well behind the line at that point. The remainder of the line then broke in turn from left to right.

Disaster for the Confederates! Artillerymen struggled to save their guns. The artillery battery on the Confederate left was captured when some of the horses pulling the guns were shot down. Individuals became separated from their fleeing units and hid in panic in buildings throughout the town. One old man and woman watched as a young Confederate burst into their home and hid under their bed. "Don't stay there!" said the old man. "That is the first place they will look." The boy crawled from under the bed. "You are right." he said, and then he ran out their back door, and disappeared into the melee and confusion outside, never to be seen by the old couple again.

Col. Rose's horse was shot down, and Rose was then captured. General Vaughn himself narrowly escaped, and was said to have killed a young Union horsemen who attempted to capture him. Union cavalrymen, repeating rifles blazing away, raced into Morristown, and proceeded to chase Vaughn's men in a dogged pursuit towards Russellville. Near Russellville Confederate reinforcements made a stand and stopped Gillem's pursuit of Vaughn's men.

The Confederates lost 85 killed with 225 wounded and captured. Union losses were 8 killed and 18 wounded. The Confederates also lost 5 artillery pieces and limbers, and 6 wagons captured.

According to my research, the 8 Union soldiers killed that day were: 13th Cavalry: Quarter Master Sergeant William Greene, Cpl. Marion Garrison; 8th Cavalry: Cpl. James Lemarr, Cpl. William H. Boothe, Pvt. William Pressley, Pvt. William Bailey, Pvt. McDaniel Bussell, Pvt. Reese Cunningham. Garrison (probably Garretson) was from this area and was buried locally. I believe his grave is at Morelock Cemetery today in Hamblen County. The other seven men were originally buried in Morristown, but have since been removed to the Knoxville National Cemetery in Knoxville, Tennessee. The 85 Confederates have proven harder to find. Among the Confederate dead were: 1st TN Cavalry: Capt. Ed Gammon, John Geist; 16th TN Cavalry: A. L. Ferguson. 46 graves of unknown Confederates were removed from the old Bethel Burying grounds (not to be confused with modern day Bethel Cemetery) and reburied at Jarnigan Cemetery in Morristown. It would appear these men (or at least some of them) were among the killed in action at the Battle of Morristown.. I think its likely that the Union dead were originally buried there as well. Also, at least 22 Confederates are said to be buried at Morris Cemetery, 16 of them in a slit trench. Possibly they also represent casualties from the battle at Morristown. As the pursuit led to Russellville it is possible that some Confederates are buried along the route of that pursuit, in cemeteries between Morristown and Russellville. A monument to the 46 unknown Confederates marks their grave at Jarnigan Cemetery, for many of them their last minutes spent desperately trying to hold the line at Morristown.

After their defeat at Morristown, the resilient Confederates would be reinforced, and, under the leadership of no less than former American vice president, John C. Breckinridge, they were on the attack again two weeks later. Gillem's brigade proved unable to stop the Confederates this time, who routed his brigade back towards Knoxville in what became famously known as "Gillem's Stampede." At or just east of Morristown the Confederates found and captured the entire pack train of Gillem's brigade.

Morristown lay along the important East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad line during the war. (It was in the same place the railroad tracks go through town today.) This line connected Robert E. Lee's army in Virginia to Braxton Bragg's army in Tennessee, until Bragg lost Knoxville and then Chattanooga to Union forces in 1863.

After the battle of Perryville, Kentucky in 1862, Bragg's Confederate army retreated in part through Morristown by train.

Longstreet's Corps from Lee's army in Virginia was rushed to support Bragg in September 1863. Since Burnsides held Knoxville for the Union, Longstreet's shortest route (through Morristown) was blocked, forcing him on a long circuitous trek through the Carolinas to meet up with Bragg near Chattanooga. Bragg then administered a stunning and bloody defeat to Union forces at Chickamauga, but failed to advance quickly on Chattanooga which at that moment was his for the taking. He then split his army, sending Longstreet to take Knoxville. Bragg was defeated at Chattanooga, and Longstreet was unable to take Knoxville after an ineffective seige. Sherman's Union army marched from Chattanooga to relieve the seige at Knoxville. Longstreet's Corps was then forced to retreat up the railroad line, through Morristown. Longstreet had his headquarters for a time during the winter of 1863 at Russellville. Eventually Longstreet's Corps rejoined Lee's army in Virginia. This period of the war, with large numbers of troops fighting and foraging in the area, was especially harsh for the people of the region.

Morristown changed hands many times during the conflict. During one such occasion, when the Union held the town, a Confederate cavalry patrol encountered a few Union cavalry roughly where Main and Hill Streets intersect today. The Federals retreated through town, chased by the Confederates. West of town encamped Union infantry were rousted up and entered the fighting, forcing the Confederates to retreat. The only casualty that day was a Union horse. Also many residents found their windows had been shot out during the fighting.

Another engagement took place at Morristown on the evening of 10 December 1863. A Union cavalry brigade under Col. Garrard attacked a Confederate force of brigade strength under Gen. William E. Jones. Garrard led a reconnaisance in force which came from the direction of Bean's Station. He found the Confederates occupying fortifications previously built by the Union forces. The Union side won the fight, pushing the Confederates from the town. Union losses were listed as 6 wounded, while Confederate losses were estimated at 40-50 casualties, including both dead and wounded. By the 14th, the Confederates were back in control of the town.

On 2 August 1864 the 10th Michigan Cavalry was in action at Morristown. Lt. Col. Luther S. Trowbridge, at the head of 250 men and a howitzer encountered Maj. Arnold and 110 Confederates at Morristown. In the ensuing fight the Confederates retreated, having lost 6 men wounded, one an officer who later died.

Though the South was militarily losing the war by the fall of 1864, the North was paying a heavy price. As their own losses mounted, the war was becoming unpopular in the North. One of the reasons for Gillem's push into East Tennessee was to gather votes for Abraham Lincoln in the upcoming November 1864 election. Lincoln was running for reelection and was opposed by popular Union General George B. McClellan. It was believed the many Union supporters in East Tennessee would vote for Lincoln.

The King house, a brick house now torn down, sitting on 3rd South Street across from present day Dockery Funeral Home, was said to have been used as a hospital during the war. At the time it was owned by Connecticut miller Curtis Eames, who also owned the flour mill in town, from whence Mill Street got its name. The scene of suffering, death and amputations, the house was rumoured for years to be haunted. It was said an indistinct glowing figure could be seen at times on the second floor balcony.

A Union soldier of the 4th TN Infantry was captured at Morristown by Confederates as late as February 4, 1865.

I originally wrote this from memory based on my own research, some years ago of the battle, and, as such, it contains my own conclusions. After adding the photos of the miniature figures, I decided to reread an account of the battle which appeared in the Citizen Tribune several years ago and made some changes to the page where I thought it was appropriate. Since then I have read the history of the 13th Regiment, a book about the 13th TN US Cavalry which fought in the battle of Morristown, and I have made other changes as well.

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