Battle of Nashville & Beyond

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Seventeen Men

Portrait Exhibit of 17 Black Soldiers at Fort Negley.

A historical exhibit by Michigan artist Shayne Davidson containing 17 portraits of men who served in the 25th United States Colored Troops (Company G) has been on display at Fort Negley Visitor Center and Park in Nashville, Tennessee for the last six months. The exhibit has now been moved to another another venue. …more

25TH UNITED STATES
COLORED INFANTRY REGIMENT

The 25th United States Colored Infantry Regiment was organized from January 3 to March 1864. Beginning April 1, the regiment was transported to New Orleans for duty. The regiment was split in half for the trip with five companies aboard each of the two assigned transports (designated left and right wings). Off Cape Hatteras, the transport Suwanee, with the right wing onboard, sprung a serious leak and was forced into port at Morehead City, North Carolina. The transport was condemned, and the right wing of the 25th USCT was stranded at Morehead City for three weeks while new transportation was arranged. The right wing finally reunited with the left wing of the 25th USCT in New Orleans on May 5, 1864. Shortly thereafter, the regiment was ordered to Florida where it was stationed at Fort Barrancas and Fort Pickens. The regiment served in Florida until mustered out of service December 6, 1865.

Seventeen Men

Portraits of Black Civil War Soldiers

Bio’s: Left to Right

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Minnesota State Capitol

Civil War Paintings

shy's hill

Minnesota has one of the most magnificent governmental headquarters in the country. It is also home to the most iconic image of the Battle of Nashville, along with 3 other key American Civil War battles:

  • The Battle of Gettysburg
  • The Second Minnesota Regiment at Missionary Ridge
  • Fourth Minnesota Regiment Entering Vicksburg
  • The Battle of Nashville at Shy’s Hill (5th, 7th, 9th and 10th MN)

The Battle of Nashville cost Minnesota when 87 died in Tennessee. The day is remembered in Howard Pyle’s painting “Battle of Nashville” at the Minnesota Capitol.  Shy’s Hill was the site of the deadliest day for Minnesotans fighting in the Civil War, and the heaviest losses in the Battle of Nashville.

The four paintings were almost permanently relocated after a massive renovation in 2016. “The Capitol Area Architectural and Planning Board voted 5-3 to recommend that the four historic paintings not be returned to the building’s most ornate room when the $310 million Capitol renovation is completed in January.” …read more

Take a virtual reality tour of the Capitol building and the Governor’s Reception Room:

 

Click here: Take a virtual reality tour of Shy’s Hill in Nashville, Tennessee

Click here: Battle of Nashville painting by Howard Pyle

Click here: Minnesota Statue at the Nashville National Cemetery

Imagery and tour by Bob Henderson

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Peachtree Creek

Battle of Atlanta at Peachtree Creek: 

 

July 20, 1864

Note: links are highlighted red

Tanyard Creek Park Greenway Parking Lot: 482-488 Collier Rd NW, Atlanta, GA 30309

“The Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought near Atlanta on July 20, 1864, as part of the Atlanta Campaign” …read more Wikipedia

Order of Battle: Link

A 360º Virtual Reality Tour of the Tanyard Creek area of the battlefield:

virtual-reality-tour

The Civil War Trust Atlanta Campaign Video:

See more: Civil War Trust

Recommended Reading:

#battleofatlanta

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Bennett Place

The place that saved America: 

 

April 26, 1865: 90,000 Confederate soldiers were surrendered by Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. It effectively ended the American Civil War after Gen. Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Courthouse in Virginia (April 9, 1865). It was the conclusion of Maj. Gen. Williams T. Sherman’s military champaign from Georgia thru the Carolinas.

The dramatic negotiations started on April 17th, 1865. It was intensified by the telegram Sherman handed to Johnston, informing of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln (April 14). Many, including the newly sworn President Andrew Johnson, wanted the heads of the rebel leaders.

A must read about this pivotal American 30 day turning point is April 1865: The Month That Saved America By Jay Winik.

Bennett Place 360º Virtual Reality Tour

Bennett Place has a wonderful guided tour of the property. Located at 4409 Bennett Memorial Rd, Durham, NC 27705

bennettplacehistoricsite.com
(919) 383-4345
 
 

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Fort Pillow

Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest and Fort Pillow: 

 

Revised 22 December 2017

December 21, 2017 – Lt. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest’s statue was removed by the city of Memphis, Tennessee to an undisclosed location. They city bi-passed the state law on removing historical monuments from public land – so they sold it.

What will they do with his General and Mrs. Forrest buried beneath it?

February 2017: 

forrest-statue

It was with some trepidation, that I set off for Memphis to shoot Nathan Bedford Forrest. The former Nathan Bedford Forrest Park has been renamed the Health Sciences Park on Union Street. Arriving at 7 AM, I had the place to myself. Metered parking was available on South Dunlap street (no weekend fee). To my relief, there had been no desecration of the monument.

Recent efforts my the Memphis City Council to remove the statue to another city was rejected by the Tennessee Historical Commission… read more

I proceeded north towards Henning, Tennessee to shoot Fort Pillow State Historic Park. It was about and hour and a half drive.  Bass boats periodically droned up and down Cold Creek below the fort. It’s not easy to find and not very well marked. I am going to submit an update to Google Maps.

Parking at the trail and head on Crutcher Lake Road, it was about a mile hike to the restored earthworks. In the hour and a half I spent there, on a clear warm Saturday morning, I encountered no visitors. 

Suggested reading on the larger historical perspective of this controversial figure of American history: 

“Having once been a racist, Nathan Bedford Forrest became an outspoken advocate of black civil rights in Memphis, culminating in his beautiful yet largely forgotten speech before the black civil rights Pole-Bearers Association in 1875. Encouraging the black people in attendance to take an active part in their country’s government, he told them he was with them ‘heart and hand’ to help their cause in any way he could.”  – Nathan Bedford Forrest’s Redemption

Check this 3D like 360º virtual tour of Fort Pillow and Nathan Bedford Forrest park. Historical markers are embedded in the tour.

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Forrest Park: Madison Ave & S Dunlap Street, Memphis, TN 38103

Fort Pillow: 3122 Park Road Henning, TN 38041

Recommended Reading:

#fortpillow #nathanbedforforrest