CW Sites in Western NC, part 3

Civil War sites in western North Carolina, part 3

Part 1 of this topic looked at sites along the Blue Ridge, part 2 along the I-26 corridor, and this final part will look at sites west of Asheville.

While there were a number of small actions in far-western North Carolina, there are not many sites. Anyone in this area should visit the Museum of Cherokee Indians in Cherokee, on the North Carolina side of the Great Smokey Mountain National Park. There is information here (an exhibit) on Thomas’s Legion, along with the Legion’s original battle flag. There is also a Confederate monument in Cherokee dedicated "in Honor of those brave Cherokee Indians Loyal to the Confederacy... Commanded by Wm. H. Thomas."

While on the subject of Thomas, his grave is in the Green Hill Cemetery in Waynesville. There are quite a few other Confederate graves in this cemetery. Waynesville is hailed as the site of the "last skirmish of the War Between States." There is a monument near old White Sulphur Springs that reads "Near this spot was fired the last shot of the War Between the States, under the command of Lt. Robert T. Conley, of the Confederate Army, May 6, 1865." The monument was erected by the UDC.

There are other sites in the area, like the Old Mother Cemetery in Robbinsville, where Brig. Gen. John W. McElroy is buried. There is also a Confederate monument in Franklin.

A piece of advice - call some of these place before you visit. Many museums here in western North Carolina close in the winter time, or operate on a limited schedule.