In November 1861, a group of dissidents/Unionists burned
several bridges in East Tennessee. They had been told that Federal soldiers
were on their way, and by destroying these bridges, the Federal soldiers could
quickly capture key points. Unionists in East Tennessee then could mobilize and
help hold the area, creating a stumbling block for the new Confederate nation.
Of course, we know that it did not work out this way. The bridges were burnt,
but regular Federal army forces never materialized (for a variety of reasons).
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| Reconstructed bridge, Strawberry Plains |
While looking for something else (how often does that happen?),
I came across a list entitled "List of Political prisoners made in obedience
to call of the Confederate Congress" (Found in Louis Brown's book on
Salisbury Prison). The list is dated February 17, 1863, and there are 131 names
on this list. Among those 131 names are thirteen who are listed as "One of
Fry's bridge burners in E. TN." They all have a date of March 22, 1862,
which I assume is an incarceration date.
The majority of the bridge burners that they caught were
sent to Greeneville and then on to Alabama. A few were hanged. What are the
stories behind these thirteen? Why were they taken to Salisbury? Were they
captured in North Carolina? Questions like these just serve to remind me how
little we know about some of the aspects of the time period.
Those below are listed as being incarcerated at Salisbury
Prison in February 1863, and listed as bridge burners. I assume the county
behind the names is the county where they were from. I could list a bevy of
questions: who were these men? Where were they captured? Were they tried in a
civilian court someplace? What happened to them - did they survive the war?
Beals, J. H. --Greene County
Cogburn, N. J.---Greene County
Collins, Charles--Virginia
Cox, David ---Greene County
Elder, W. R. ---Greene County
Gahayan, ----- Madison County, TN (North Carolina?)
Jones, J. --Hancock Co.
Keller, Wm --Greene County
Kelly, A. ---
Kelly, D. H.--- Greene County
McGee, Lemuel---Greene County
Triplett, William---Greene County
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