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Sparta in White County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
 

The War Around Sparta

Divided Loyalties

 
 
The War Around Sparta Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2013
1. The War Around Sparta Marker
Inscription. “Brother against brother” sums up the divided loyalties families faced in White County during the Civil War. In 1862, Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg’s troops marched through the Sparta town square en route north to invade Kentucky. Later, an estimated 600 Confederate guerrillas operated in the area, and Sparta served periodically as a Federal base under Union Col. William B. Stokes, 5th Tennessee Cavalry. In February 1864, Stokes wrote that “It will take some time and continued scouting to break up these bands, but you may be assured no time will be lost and no effort spared to rid the country of them.”

The notorious Confederate guerrilla, Champ Ferguson, is buried north of Sparta in France Cemetery. On February 22, 1864, 60 partisans including Ferguson overwhelmed two of Stoke’s companies ten miles northeast of here in the “Battle of Dug Hill.” After the war, Federal officials arrested Ferguson, then tried and convicted him for war-time atrocities. He was hanged on October 20, 1865.

The Federals utilized a high point in Sparta, the historic City Cemetery, as a post for observing river, rail, and turnpike traffic. Confederate Gen. George Gibbs Dibrell (1822-1888) is buried there. Dibrell formed the 8th Tennessee Cavalry on September 4, 1862, with 921 men, mostly farmers, from White
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and adjoining counties. The White County Heritage Museum houses the Colt revolver that Dibrell’s “friends and citizens of Sparta” presented to him in 1862.

Tom Burgess operated a gristmill at present-day Burgess Falls State Park, located north of Sparta, during the war. The mill served the community there for more than a century.

“Little thought have I had that I should ever live to see civil war in this, our goodly land, but so it is! ... There will be many a divided family in this once happy Union. There will be father against son, and brother against brother.” — Amanda McDowell, Sparta, 1861

(captions)
Gen. George Gibbs Dibrell Courtesy Library of Congress
Gen. George G. Dibrell’s presentation pistol — Courtesy Sparta-White County Chamber of Commerce
Civil War veterans’ reunion, ca 1900 — Courtesy White County Heritage Museum
 
Erected by Tennessee Civil War Trails.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Tennessee Civil War Trails series list. A significant historical month for this entry is February 1864.
 
Location. 35° 55.517′ N, 85° 27.867′ W. Marker is in Sparta, Tennessee, in White County. Marker
Map in the lower right of the marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2013
2. Map in the lower right of the marker
Map in the lower right of the marker
is on West Maple Street near South Main Street, on the right when traveling west. The marker is on the grounds of the White County Courthouse. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sparta TN 38583, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. POW*MIA Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); Joseph Kerr Monument (within shouting distance of this marker); The Double Eagle Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); White County (within shouting distance of this marker); White County Veterans Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Rotary Club of Sparta Veterans Park (within shouting distance of this marker); a different marker also named Rotary Club of Sparta Veterans Park (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); a different marker also named Rotary Club of Sparta Veterans Park (about 300 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sparta.
 
The War Around Sparta Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Don Morfe, July 26, 2013
3. The War Around Sparta Marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 10, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. This page has been viewed 1,234 times since then and 48 times this year. Last updated on May 12, 2015, by J. Makali Bruton of Accra, Ghana. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on October 10, 2013, by Don Morfe of Baltimore, Maryland. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 29, 2024