Confederate General John W. Frazer and the capture of Cumberland Gap

   Brig. Gen. John W. Frazer was in an awkward position. As Braxton Bragg stripped Confederate forces from east Tennessee to strengthen the Army of Tennessee prior to attacking the Federals around Chattanooga, Frazer’s brigade, posted at Cumberland Gap, was left behind. Frazer was a native of Hardin County, Tennessee, and received an appointment from Mississippi to the United States Military Academy, graduating in 1849. He performed garrison duty in New York, California, Virginia, and Washington State before resigning and joining the Confederate States army. He was commissioned lieutenant colonel of the 8^th Alabama Infantry, and then colonel of the 28^th Alabama Infantry. On May 19, 1863, he was appointed brigadier general and assigned to command the 5^th brigade, Army of East Tennessee. His command, composed of the 55^th Georgia Infantry, the 62^nd and 64^th North Carolina Troops, the 64^th Virginia Infantry, and the 1^st Tennessee Cavalry regiment, was assigned to guard various gaps in and around Cumberland Gap.[1] 

Brig. Gen. John W. Frazer 

   Simon Buckner, Frazer’s immediate commander, wrote on August 21, asking Frazer if he needed ammunition or other supplies. “Matters do not look gloomy,” the letter stated. Toward the end of August, it appears that Frazer was getting ready to evacuate Cumberland Gap.  But that same day, August 30, Buckner ordered Frazer to “hold the gap…” and if he evacuated Cumberland Gap, to fall back to Abington. With Buckner gone, Major General Samuel Jones assumed commander of the department. From surviving correspondence, it appears that Frazer had not taken any action on the matter, for on September 7, Jones asked the War Department “Shall I order the evacuation of Cumberland Gap?” James Seddon proposed to Jefferson Davis that same question the next day: “Shall I authorize the gap to be held?” Davis, wanting to “save the railroad and the valuable position at Cumberland Gap,” allowed Jones to make that decision. Davis did not believe that the Federals in east Tennessee, filling the void left by the redeployed Confederates, were a serious threat.[2]

   But they were. Bypassing the Confederate stronghold at Cumberland Gap, Federal forces used a gap fifty miles southwest of the area. The attacking Federal force in East Tennessee was under the command of Major General Ambrose Burnside. He sent one brigade to approach Cumberland Gap from the south, while another Federal brigade was slated to move south from Crab Orchard along the old Wilderness Road toward Cumberland Gap. The two Federal forces appeared about the same time on opposite sides of Cumberland Gap. On September 7 came the first demand to surrender, a demand that Frazer rejected. Under the cover of darkness the Federals burned the mill Frazer was using to grind corn for his command, along with some of the meal. The next morning came another demand for surrender. While Frazer weighed his options, another demand of surrender was received, this one from Burnside, who had just taken Knoxville. At 3 o’clock on September 9, Frazer surrendered his entire force, except about four hundred men who had slipped off into the woods.[3]

   Frazer’s surrender to a smaller force was not without controversy. He was rumored to be drunk. “Two thousand men and guns & ammunition have also been given away at Cumberland Gap, where a drunken Brigadier named Frazer commanded,” Josiah Gorgas wrote in his diary on September 17, 1863.[4] War Department Clerk J. B. Jones wrote that the “country is indignant at the surrender of Cumberland Gap by Brig.-Gen. Frazier, without firing a gun, when his force was nearly as strong as Burnside’s. . . The country did not know there was such a general until his name became famous by this ignominious surrender. Where did Gen. Cooper find him?”[5] Frazer apparently did not consult the officers of the regiments in his command on September 9. He surrendered between 1,700 and 2,300 men, and most of those men were sent to Camp Douglas in Chicago, Illinois. Many of these men died of illness. Frazer was criticized by Jefferson Davis, and in February 1864, the Confederate senate voted unanimously against confirming his nomination as a brigadier. From Fort Warren in Boston Harbor, Frazer wrote an official report on November 27, 1864. Frazer criticized the troops under his command. They were “in a deplorable condition.” One of his regiments, the 62^nd North Carolina Troops, the current brigade commander had been “for some time. . . trying to get rid of it.” Frazer considered this regiment “badly disciplined and badly drilled” One captain was under arrest for “disseminating papers hostile to the Confederacy among the command.” The 64^th North Carolina Troops was small, “having been reduced by desertions. . . the colonel and lieutenant colonel had left in disgrace for dishonorable conduct.” The 55^th Georgia Infantry, Frazer thought, was the best regiment he had, although the soldiers had recently ridden their colonel on a rail. His two artillery batteries had no experience. The “character, confidence, and condition of the troops hastily collected to defend the gap were such as to justify no hope of a successful defense against an equal number of the enemy. . . It is proper to state that the want of confidence in the troops was of gradual conviction in my mind. . .”[6] 

   Frazer spent the rest of the war as a prisoner. After his release in April 1865, he moved to Arkansas, and then to New York City where he died in 1906. James D. Porter, writing in 1899, believed that “when all the facts were made known,” Frazer was exonerated.[7] John W. Frazer remains one of those little-discussed Confederate generals and probably deserves more of our attention. Was he drunk while Cumberland Gap was surrounded? Maybe. The Federal colonel commanding the brigade moving from Crab Orchard thought so. Were the troops he had to work with subpar? When it comes to the 62^nd  and 64^th North Carolina Troops, well, they were not the best the Confederacy had to offer.  

---

[1] Davis, The Confederate Generals, 2:146-47.

[2] Official Records, vol. 30, pt. 4, 528, 568, 571, 572, 616.

[3] Kincaid, The Wilderness Road, 262-73.

[4] Wiggins, The Journals of Josiah Gorgas,­ 81.

[5] Robertson, A Rebel War Clerk’s Diary, 2:43.

[6] Official Records, vol. 30, pt.2 610-612.

[7] Evans, Confederate Military History, 8:309.

Site Visit Saturday: Cumberland Gap

 

Lay down boys, take a little nap

Lay down boys, take a little nap

Lay down boys, take a little nap

14 miles to the Cumberland Gap!

   For those of us living in the east, Cumberland Gap has a special history. It is the site of an ancient road used by Natives to travel, at times trading with others, and at other times, making war. Daniel Boone passed through the Gap in 1775. He traversed the Gap several times on a route we now call the Wilderness Road, taking settlers into Kentucky.

   During the Civil War, both North and South viewed Cumberland Gap as a strategic stronghold. The gap sits on the juncture of the state lines of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Virginia. The Cumberland Mountains are a long mountain chain that runs along the Kentucky-Virginia border, and on into West Virginia. There are other gaps (like Pound Gap), but Cumberland is the most accessible.

Braxton Bragg and his rebel band

Braxton Bragg and his rebel band

Braxton Bragg and his rebel band

Run George Morgan in the Bluegrass land

   At the beginning of the war, many thought that the Cumberland Gap area would be the site of a major conflict. If Federal forces could seize the gap, then Federal soldiers could move into Unionist East Tennessee, seizing control of the railroad in the area. Southwest Virginia with its salt and lead mines could be easily taken; after that, western and central North Carolina, then back into middle Tennessee could all be vulnerable. And there was a plan kind of like this in November 1861. East Tennessee Unionists planned to destroy several of the railroad bridges in East Tennessee, while Federal soldiers passed through the Gap and seized control before Confederate sources could react. Several of the bridges were burnt on the night of November 8, but the Federal soldiers never came.

   Cumberland Gap changed hands several times during the war. Confederate forces held the Gap from the start of the war until June 1862. Then in September 1862, it was abandoned by the Federals, and the Confederates again assumed control September 1863. The defenses at Cumberland Gap were seen as impregnable. While the Gap never fell in a battle, it was all to easy to cut off lines of supply and starve out the defenders. Confederate forces that defended the Cumberland Gap at various times included the  29^th North Carolina Troops, 58^th North Carolina Troops, 55^th Georgia Infantry, 62^nd North Carolina Troops, 64^th North Carolina Troops, 64^th Virginia Infantry, 1^st Tennessee Calvary, and others.

Rebels now give a little yell

All you rebels give a little yell

All you rebels give a little yell

Scare the Yankees all to Hell

   Cumberland Gap has been a national park since 1940. The park today covers 24,000 acres and is one of the largest parks in the eastern United States. There is a great visitor center, campground, and numerous trails, some of which explore some of the defensive works constructed by Confederate and Federal forces during the war.

   I have explored this park numerous times over the years. My last visit was in December 2020.

Why didn't they stay?

   On September 1, 1863, Joseph Grubb, a private in the 4th Tennessee Infantry (US), made a recruiting sweep through the Laurel community of Madison County. He was looking for men for a new company in the 8th Tennessee Cavalry (US). Grubb enrolled some 74 men for this new company. Maybe half were actually from Madison County. The others appear to have been hiding out.

   While there are undoubtedly more, I was able to identify seven of the 74 who were Confederate deserters: George Franklin, William Gentry, Tilmon Landers, Peter McCoy, Hackley Norton, Martin Norton, and Roderick Norton. All seven enlisted in Company G, 64th North Carolina Troops in July 1862. Records are not clear if they volunteered, or if they were literally forced in (the grace period ran out in August for voluntarily enlistment). All seven would desert the Confederate army. George Franklin and William Gentry were gone prior to November 25, 1862; Tilmon Landers and Peter McCoy were gone on November 3, 1862; Hackley Norton was declared a deserter in February 1863, but he likely never returned from a sick furlough; Martin and Roderick Norton were gone in August 1862. With the last two, it might be that they were enrolled, and then never joined their command when it moved to Knoxville.

   As Grubb came through the Laurel community, these seven former Confederate deserters joined the  Federal army. However, they apparently had as about as much use for the Federal army as they did the Confederate army. George Franklin was declared absent in June 1864. He apparently went home sick in November 1863. He did return to his regiment by early 1865.

   William Gentry also left out in November 1863. His family stated he was sick, but others, in his widow's pension claims, refuted this. When Federal soldiers were sent to round up deserters from the 2nd NCMI, Gentry said he would join them, but never did. He was found hiding in a cave (or thicket), and killed by some Confederate scouts.

   Tilman Landers deserted on November 3 (or maybe November 4). He never returned.

   Peter McCoy deserted on October 25, 1863. He returned in April 1865. McCoy had obviously heard of Lincoln's amnesty offer for Federal deserters.

   Hackery Norton was declared a deserter on January 2, 1864, or, the records state he was sent off on a "scout" about that same time. One other record found states that these scouts were to last about 30 days. When Norton did not return, he was declared a deserter. One further card in his file states that he was killed by the enemy at Camp Vance on June 28, 1864.

Roderick Norton is also reported as being absent on recruiting service, and then absent without leave on February 29, 1864, and finally as a deserter on June 1, 1864. A card in his folder states that he was "killed by the Rebels while on recruiting service Dec 15 1863."

   Of the 74 men who are enrolled in Laurel on September 1, 1863, 45 are later declared absent without leave or deserters. Of that number, only 18 return, the vast majority after Lincoln's proclamation to grant amnesty to those absent from their commands. So I propose the question: why didn't they stay in the Federal army? Was life better living in that cave or laurel thicket, constantly having to evaluate each sound coming through the woods?

Trying to find the Shelton Laurel Officers

For the past couple of weeks, I've been poring over the various accounts of the Shelton Laurel event in January 1863.

A little background: in late 1862 and early 1863, there was a band of rogues based in the Laurel community of Madison County. They were rooming the countryside, robbing and shooting at will. On January 8, 1863, they attacked Marshall, then moved back to the Laurel community. Something had to be done. The militia from surrounding counties were mobilized and sent into the area. Then, Henry Heth, commanding the Confederate district East Tennessee, sent Brig. Gen. William Davis to the area with some troops to clean the tories out. Davis set up his headquarters at Warm Springs. With Davis came 200 members of the 64th North Carolina Troops (three companies), a company of cavalry under Capt. Thomas N. Nelson, and thirty Indians from Thomas's Legion mission. Later, William H. Thomas was dispatched to the area with an additional 200 Cherokee to work in Madison, Haywood, and Jackson counties. The three companies of the 64th North Carolina Troops were under the command of Maj. William N. Garrett. 

According to the Official Records, the three companies of the 64th North Carolina are not the ones that entered the Laurel community. It is the cavalry, and Nelson is credited with killing 12 tories on his sweep.

Do you know who is never mentioned in the official accounts? Col. Lawrence M. Allan and Lt. Col. James A. Keith. Allen's participation in the events is very suspect. He was undergoing a court-martial in Knoxville at the time. Keith, on the other hand, is largely blamed for the tragedy. THEORY ON MY PART: is it possible that Keith was acting beyond the limits of authority with a small band of picked men? Some of them might have been in the 64th NC; some of them might have been from other regiments. 

After the elements of the 64th NC returned to east Tennessee, several officers were called before a board for examining officers. Phillip Paludan, in Victims: A True Story of the Civil War, writes: "As the investigation began, it appeared that the officers of the Sixty-fourth were feeling justice hurrying near. Governor Vance had asked Seddon to begin the investigation in late February, and by the end of the month Captain Deaver of the Sixty-fourth had been relieved of command. By mid-April three more junior officers had appeared before investigatory boards. Two of them offered their resignations; the other was relieved of command. For a time, all four of these men remained in the army awaiting action by their superiors." (104)

Paludan, in a note, gives the names of those men as: A. M. Deaver, William Keith, Thomas Keith, and S. E. Erwin. 

So, let's take a look. First, Paludan writes: "For a time, all four of these men remained in the army awaiting action by their superiors." That is actually not unusual. When Lt. Reuben M. Deaver submitted his resignation, it had to go up, through the chain of command, all the way to the Secretary of War, before it was finally approved. I've actually written about this in the past, and you can check it out here. Deaver submitted his resignation on July 15, 1863, and it was accepted on August 6, 1863. I assume that Paludan's A. M. Deaver is Lt. Adolphus E. Deaver, who submitted his resignation also on July 15, 1863, and it was likewise accepted on August 6, 1863. Captain William Keith resigned on April 20, 1863, and it was accepted on May 2, 1863. Lt. Thomas Keith resigned on August 14, 1863, which was accepted on August 29, 1863. Captain Samuel Erwin resigned on July 15, 1863, which was accepted on August 4, 1863. We can infer that Paludan believed these four were involved in the incident on Laurel in some way.

 Let's look at Erwin first. He was actually from Washington County, Tennessee, and enlisted in September 1862. His company, Company K, was stationed at Jacksboro in Tennessee, and is not believed to have been involved in the Laurel incident. There is no muster roll record for January and February 1863, so it is not possible to say where he was. In his resignation, Erwin writes that when he appeared before the officer examination board in Knoxville in April 1863, he was "relieved from further attendance before the board and allowed to report to my com'd. for duty whare I have been ever since..." Erwin then adds on odd statement: He considered it "my duty and [in my] interest to have the service rid of all incompetent officers (according) to the [examining] board's opinion."

Company G was one of the three companies sent to Madison County. Two of those mentioned by Paludan, who supposedly lost their positions due to the Laurel incident, do not appear to have been with Company G at the time. Adolphus Deaver was originally a private in the 16th North Carolina Troops, but did desert in August 1862. He does not reappear until he is appointed a lieutenant in the 64th NC in March 1863. Deaver resigned July 15, 1863, which was accepted on August 6, 1863. He stated in his resignation letter: that like Erwin, he had to go before the examination board. While there, he was "relieved from further attendance before the Board and was allowed to report to my Co for duty where I have been ever since. On Yesterday, July 14th I received a copy of Special Order No 71, suspending me from command... feeling it my duty as a friend to the cause to vacate the position I hold (if not competent to discharge the duties of the Office) I .... most respectfully tender my resignation..." 

The case is likewise with Thomas W. Keith, a 2nd lieutenant. He was also with the 16th NC, until he deserted in September 1862. He was appointed a lieutenant in the 64th in April 1864. And he also resigned on August 14, 1864, because he had failed the examination before the officer examination board and was "unprepared to take it a second time."

Lastly, Capt. William M. Keith. He resigned on April 24, 1863, stating he really did not feel confident in taking the test whom Paludan singled out, we can't actually place three of them in Madison County as a part of the Laurel incident. It is entirely possible that they truly were not qualified to be Confederate officers, hence their resignations. And William Keith refused to even stand for the examination. Or, maybe all four were on Laurel Creek in late January 1863, and were given the opportunity to resign, under the context of being incompetent. We'll probably never know. 

Another Tour

We had a chance this past Saturday to get out into the field once again. Our local SCV camp tries to take a field trip every year. This year, we visited a few of the sites in Knoxville, Tennessee. We started off our tour at the McClung Museum in Knoxville. The museum has a half-hour-long movie on the battle of Fort Sanders that was not half bad. The only thing I would complain about was that the movie said Burnside moved into east Tennessee and forced the Confederates out of the area. Actually, the Confederates in east Tennessee (save Frazier’s brigade at Cumberland Gap), were withdrawn to General Bragg in north Georgia, thus allowing Burnside to take east Tennessee. Much of the downstairs area is full of original artifacts pertaining to the war. I really enjoyed the original case of canister shot. There were also artifacts excavated from the construction site where a sorority house has now been built by UT. Next, we visited the Mabry-Hazen House, built in 1858 and full of original furnishings. Then we were off to Bethel Cemetery, a couple of blocks away. This cemetery contains the graves of 1,600 Confederate soldiers, including numerous Tar Heels from the 29th, 39th, 58th, 60th, and 64th NCT regiments. Finally, we headed over to the south side of town and visited the entrenchments at Fort Dickerson. As General Wheeler attacked from the south, Federal troops fell back into this earthen fort and stopped this portion of the Confederate advance. We tried to find neighboring Fort Stevens, but did not have much luck. We also drove over a portion of the Fort Sanders battlefield, and saw the two 15-inch Rodmans on the courthouse grounds. Overall, it was a great day, and I look forward to Camp 1946’s next outing.

Picture: three-inch rifle at Fort Dickerson.

"Bloody Madison" continued

I was in Madison County this past Saturday, and I took a few photos to help illustrate the Madison County pieces. I hope you enjoy.

North Carolina Civil War Trails Marker on the campus of Mars Hill College.

Site of the Shelton Laurel Massacre (almost seven miles from the marker).

Marker speaking of the Shelton Laurel Massacre.

Home of Col. Lawrence Allen (64th NCT) in Marshall.

Robert E. Lee Trail Marker in front of the courthouse in Marshall.

Bloody Madison

Madison County won a little poll that I put up a couple of weeks ago as the county that I would write about next in our survey of the Civil War and counties across the state. This is really only the tip of the proverbial iceberg when it comes to the war and Madison County. Maybe some of my readers will contribute more information.

Madison County was created in 1851 from portions of Yancey and Buncombe Counties, and was named for President James Madison. The county seat, incorporated in 1863, was originally called Lapland, but was renamed Marshall in honor of Chief Justice John Marshall.

In 1860, Madison County had a population of 5,908 people, including 213 slaves and 2 free persons of color. The returns from the 1860 presidential election were thrown out. In February 1861, 345 Madison County men voted in favor of calling a convention while 532 voted against the idea. In May 1861, when the convention was held, Madison County’s representative was Dr. Joseph A. McDowell. McDowell later served as colonel of the 60th North Carolina Troops, and also owned the Warm Springs Hotel.

Madison County furnished men to the Confederate army that served in Company , 2nd North Carolina Battalion; Company B, 16th North Carolina Troops; Company D, 29th North Carolina Troops; Companies B and I, 60th North Carolina Troops; Companies A, B, D, F, G, I and L, 64th North Carolina Troops; Company I, 6th North Carolina Cavalry; and, Company D, 7th North Carolina Cavalry. Also, many Madison County men joined the 2nd and 3rd North Carolina Mounted Infantry (US). Terrell Garren, in his book Mountain Myth, believes that there were 1,969 Confederate soldiers from Madison County, and 135 Federal soldiers.

William Trotter described Madison County as the “most disputed and fought-over part of the mountains” during the war. So, we have much to talk about. A riot, followed by a shootout, broke out in May 1861 during the vote to electe McDowell to the secession convention. The sheriff, who was probably intoxicated, stood in the center of town shouting “Hurra[h] for Jeff Davis and the Southern Confederacy.” A Unionist in the crowd answered with a cheer for George Washington and the Union. The sheriff accused them of being “a set of Damd Black republicans and lincolnites,” drew his pistol, and fired into the crowd, wounding a young boy. The Sheriff was chased into a building, and was later shot and killed by the boy’s father. The father escaped and later joined a Kentucky regiment.

In January 1863, a band of Unionists and deserters raided Marshall, plundering houses and shooting local citizens. Also in January, there was a skirmish between militia and deserters in the Laurel Valley area. This led to the return of the 64th North Carolina, which were assailed from all sides as soon as they entered the county. A couple of skirmishes were fought in Shelton Laurel itself. When the Confederates could find no men in the area, they started interrogating and torturing the local women. Eventually, fifteen men, some old, others young, were captured. Two escaped before the column set out for Knoxville. Around January 13, the other 13 and the Confederates set out. At a pre-selected spot, the prisoners were halted, lined up, and executed. The commander of the 64th NCT, Col. James A. Keith, was arrested after the war, and spent two years in prison awaiting trial before escaping. This is known as the Shelton Laurel Massacre, and is the subject of a book by Phillip Paludan called Victims: A True Story of the Civil War.

Later that same month, Thomas’s Legion was in Madison County looking for deserters.

In mid 1863, Confederate forces commandeered portions of Mars Hill College and used it as a base and staging area for the rest of the war. Later in 1863, men from the 3rd North Carolina Mounted Infantry (US) attacked a meeting of the local Baptist Association not far from Mars Hill College, killing two men and wounding another.

There was a skirmish in October 1863 in Warm Springs (now Hot Springs). Federal forces captured the town and the resort. A few days later Maj. John W. Woodfin led his cavalry battalion into the area in an attempt to recapture it. He was shot from his horse. Brig. Gen. Robert B. Vance (the governor’s brother), then led several attacks to regain the area, and the Federals pulled out late in the month.

In April 1864, George Wiley Grooms and his brother Henry Grooms, along with Henry’s brother-in-law, Mitchell Caldwell, were captured while out working a field. They were marched across Mt. Sterling, on the Cataloochie side. As the family story goes, either Henry or George was forced to play the fiddle before being executed. George was a private in the 11th Tennessee Cavalry (US). All three are buried in a common grave in the Sutton Cemetery #1.

In March 1865, some men reportedly belonging to the 3rd North Carolina Mounted Infantry (US) burned the buildings at Mars Hill College.

On April 3, 1865, an expedition led by Col. Isaac M. Kirby of the 101st Ohio moved through Warm Springs (now Hot Springs) and Marshall, towards Asheville, with 1,100 men. This resulted in the battle of Asheville on April 6, and with the retreat of Kirby’s force back through Madison County.

There is going to be a program on Madison County and the regiments from the area at Mars Hill College on April 5. You can learn more here. If you would like more information on the events at Shelton Laurel, click here.