Civil War

Civil War. In 1861, several southern states asserted the sovereignty of individual states within the United States and seceded from the Union. Kentuckian Jefferson Davis of Fairview became president of the newly formed Confederate States of America., Responding to these unparalleled initiatives, Kentuckian Abraham Lincoln of Hodgenville, as President of the United States, took deliberate military steps to preserve the integrity of the Union., Kentucky was a boarder state in the civil conflict, and Kentuckians served in the arms of both the Confederate States and the United States. The first Kentucky "Orphan" Brigade emerged as a notably successful unit of the Confederate Army, fighting in nearly every western campaign., Following the failure of the Confederate offensive at the Battle of Perryville, in October 1862, Confederate attempts to seize and maintain control of Kentucky ceased., More than 100,000 Kentuckians took up arms during the four year war, of these, 36,000 served in the army of the Confederate, another 64,000, including many freedom-seeking slaves, enlisted in the Union Army and approximately 13,000 constituted the home guard. 10,000 Kentuckians lost their lives wile fighting for the Union Army., The Frankfort Cemetery is the final resting place for many Kentucky soldiers who fought for both the Confederate and the Union armies. Among the Union soldiers laid to rest here are Generals Thomas L. Crittenden, Daniel W. Lindsay, and George W. Monroe. Among the Confederate command buried here are General Simon Bolivar Buckner and Surgeon Luke F. Blackburn, both distinguished former governors of the Commonwealth of Kentucky., Thomas L. Crittenden (Union) and George B. Crittenden (Confederate) were brothers, their deaths indicate the bitter division and harsh tragedy which struck the hearts of many Kentuckians during the Civil War.