Guerillas and Foragers

Guerillas and Foragers. War in Oliver Springs. Although the residents of Oliver Springs did not suffer from the effects of combat during the war, other factors soon took a toll. Like much of East Tennessee, Anderson, Morgan, and Roane Counties voted against secession. The conflicts between Union and Confederate sympathizers, however, soon resulted in extensive violence and distrust. Looting and foraging were common occurrences, and isolated farm families bore the painful brunt of guerilla warfare. As the war progressed, foraging soldiers from both sides moved through the area and stripped farms of livestock, food, and other provisions., At different times during the war, Union and Confederate authorities used the Oliver Inn, which was located a mile and a half south of here, as a hospital. Fortunately for the town's postwar resurgence, the springs continued to attract visitors. The inn was sold to a succession of owners before burning down in 1892. Investors built a grand hotel in 1895 at the springs a mile away to provide high quality accommodations to guests from far and wide. Accessible by rail since the 1880s, Oliver Springs became a nationally popular attraction for visitors drawn to the healing springs, until the elegant hotel burned in 1905., (sidebar) , Drawn to the nearby mineral springs, settlers established the town of Oliver Springs, named for landowner and postmaster Richard Oliver (1800-1861). Oliver bought hundreds of acres in this area to capitalize on the appeal of the springs' medicinal qualities. About 1830 he built a 35-room brick inn near the present-day Norwood Middle School. By 1860, his personal estate was valued at a vast $17,450. He died on May 31, 1861, as the war begun., (captions) , Foraging for hay - Courtesy Library of Congress , Confederate raiders, Century Magazine (ca. 1880) , "Mountain Region of North Carolina and Tennessee", 1864 - Courtesy Library of Congress , Guerillas meeting with scouts Courtesy Tennessee State Library and Archives , Oliver Springs - Oliver Springs Historical Society