Saturday, June 23, 2007

bridge burning in E. Tenn. and the Mitchell Rangers

Ok - question of the day. Did the bridge burnings in east Tennessee have a direct influence on the formation of the Mitchell Rangers? The bridge burnings, one as close as Carter County, Tennessee, disrupted an important link between the deep South and Virginia. These burnings were led by local (east Tennessee) men in mid-November 1861. Six weeks later, the Mitchell Rangers were formed, with the mission of providing protection to the Toe River Valley area. The Mitchell Rangers would become Company A, 58th North Carolina Troops. The 58th NC, after its formation, was sent to east Tennessee (August 1862-September 1863) to help garrison the highly pro-Union area.

Maybe a little look into North Carolina’s reaction to the bridge burnings in east Tennessee is in order...

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