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Hartsville in Trousdale County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
 

Battle of Hartsville

December 7, 1862

 
 
Battle of Hartsville Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, August 21, 2021
1. Battle of Hartsville Marker
Inscription.
Battle of Hartsville
December 7, 1862

The boldest and most successfully executed cavalry raid of the War Between the States

We salute the Confederate Veterans with affection, reverence, and undying devotion to the cause for which they stood.
Dedicated December 7, 1997

A Federal brigade of 2,400 men consisting of the 104th Illinois, 106th 108th Ohio infantries, 13th Indiana Artillery, the 2nd Indiana and a portion of the 11th Kentucky Cavalry were encamped about 1,000 yards to the southwest on the banks of the Cumberland River.

At dawn on December 7, 1862, CSA Colonel John Hunt Morgan and 1,300 men of the 2nd and 9th Kentucky Infantry, 7th, 8th, and 11th Kentucky Cavalry, Cobb's Kentucky Battery, and the 9th Tennessee Cavalry routed these Federals and won a complete victory. During the previous night, Morgan and his men had crossed the swollen Cumberland in zero degree weather and a blanket of four inches of snow. During the battle, Hartsvillian James Dearing Bennett and his 9th Tennessee Cavalry were sent into town to cut off all possible escape routes. While there, Bennett's men captured 450 prisoners. Gathering all the Federal supplies, Morgan's men again faced the chilling icy waters of the Cumberland as he began his return to Southern lines, taking the Federal prisoners
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with him. As the last of the captured wagons were being transported across the river, 4,000 Federal troops arrived from Castalian Springs to try and rescue their comrades. They too were unsuccessful. News spread all over the North and South that Morgan had captured an entire brigade with very little loss. Jubilation rang throughout the South. Later in the week, in Murfreesboro, Morgan was promoted to Brigadier General by CSA President Jefferson Davis.

Total Federal casualties: 59 Killed
204 Wounded and 1,834 Captured.

Southern losses: 21 Killed, 104 Wounded, 14 Missing
(12 more Southerners later died of their wounds)

In memory of all those who fell in the Battle of Hartsville

2nd Kentucky Infantry
1st Lt. Thomas M. Horne Co. A
1st Lt. Charlesr H. Thomas Co. C
2nd Lt John W. Rogers Co. K
Sgt. Thomas Maddox Co. D
Cpl. R. H. Yancy Co. B
Pvt. David S. Bickley Co. G
Pvt. S. H. Edawards Co. A
Pvt. Charles Hall Co. B
Pvt. James P. Innis Co. B
Pvt. Thomas W. Parrott Co. A
Pvt. Robert T. Payne Co. B
Pvt. James A. Pearce Co. K
Pvt. James A. Pryor Co. D
Pvt. John R. Ursry Co. D
Pvt. D.W. Weaver Co. A

9th Kentucky Infantry
2nd T. Dandridge S. Crockett Co. K
Cpl. Peter Kaye Co. K
Pvt. E.L. Bay Co. H
Pvt. J.B. Gordon Co. G
Pvt. Edward
Battle of Hartsville Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, August 21, 2021
2. Battle of Hartsville Marker
R. Mershon Co. K
Pvt. James H. Michael Co. I
Pvt. Elbert Rhea Co. H
Pvt. John Smith Co. I

8th Kentucky Cavalry
Pvt. Thomas Gilkey Co. I
Pvt. Charlton C. Headley Co. B
Lt. William S. Kendall Co. D

11th Kentucky Cavalry
Pvt. Thomas Phannon Co. E
Pvt. James Kelly Co. A

Cobb's Kentucky Battery
Pvt. W.E. Etheridge
Pvt. John Tandy Sandifer
Pvt. David Watts

Aide to Colonel Morgan
Sgt. William Craven Peyton

9th Tennessee Cavalry
Pvt. Frank Buchanan Co. F
 
Erected by Battle of Hartsville Preservation Committee and Sons of Confederate Veterans.
 
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Sons of Confederate Veterans/United Confederate Veterans series list. A significant historical date for this entry is December 7, 1862.
 
Location. 36° 22.965′ N, 86° 9.932′ W. Marker is in Hartsville, Tennessee, in Trousdale County. It can be reached from Cemetery Lane south of Tennessee Route 141, on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 108 Cemetery Lane, Hartsville TN 37074, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Middle Tennessee and in the Highland Rim. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Rev. John McGee (approx. 0.4 miles away); a different marker also named The Battle of Hartsville
Headstones of three soldiers that died during the Battle of Hartsville. image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, August 21, 2021
3. Headstones of three soldiers that died during the Battle of Hartsville.
(approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named The Battle of Hartsville (approx. half a mile away); a different marker also named The Battle of Hartsville (approx. half a mile away); Trousdale County Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.6 miles away); Captain William Alexander (approx. 0.7 miles away); Surprise at Hartsville (approx. 0.9 miles away); Morgan at Hartsville (approx. 1.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Hartsville.
 
Listing of soldiers names killed in the Battle of Hartsville image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, December 21, 2024
4. Listing of soldiers names killed in the Battle of Hartsville
Close-up of the text on the marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, December 21, 2024
5. Close-up of the text on the marker
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on December 24, 2024. It was originally submitted on August 24, 2021, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. This page has been viewed 989 times since then and 84 times this year. Last updated on December 22, 2024, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on August 24, 2021, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia.   4, 5. submitted on December 22, 2024, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.
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Jun. 13, 2026