Battle of Nashville & Beyond

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Zion

Sam Watkins Church and Cemetery

Private Sam Watkins

2322 Zion Rd, Columbia, TN 38401

“The Zion Presbyterian Church is a historic building in Maury County, Tennessee. The church was built between 1847 and 1849 of brick in the Greek Revival style. President James K. Polk attended a school conducted by the church. The property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 13, 1972.”

It is believed to be the oldest Church in Maury County, Tennessee.

“Zion Presbyterian Church was established in the early 19th-century by Scots-Irish families from South Carolina who moved to Maury County, Tennessee. In 1807, they organized and built a structure on 5,000 acres (20 km²) of land they purchased from heirs of Major-General Nathanael Greene, who had received the land as part of a 25,000-acre (100 km²) American Revolutionary War land grant. The original building was replaced with a brick structure in 1813. The present building was constructed in the Greek Revival style by members and their slaves using brick, limestone, and timber. The architectural styling features stepped gables and a recessed open vestibule. A gallery was also provided for slaves to attend service. In the 1880s, Tiffany Stained Glass windows were added to the church building.

With over 1,500 graves, the Zion Presbyterian Church cemetery of is also of historical significance. In addition to many of the church’s founding members, soldiers from the American Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and the American Civil War are also interred there. The church cemetery contains a monument to “Daddy Ben,” a slave who, during the Revolutionary War, refused to tell the British where his master was hiding, and survived three hanging attempts by the British Army.” – Wikipedia

It is the final resting place of Private Sam Watkins, who was raised near by:

“Samuel Rush “Sam” Watkins (June 26, 1839 – July 20, 1901) was an American writer and humorist. He fought through the entire Civil War and saw action in many major battles. Today, he is best known for his enduring memoir, “Co. Aytch,” which recounts his life as a soldier in the Confederate States Army.” – Wikipedia

NOTE: I would like to add one footnote about Sam Watkins’ narrative: Col Robert Farquharson is mentioned twice in “Co. Aytch” leading the 4th Tennessee. He was actually Colonel of the 41st Tennessee. My GGF Capt. Walter Scott Bearden served as an officer under his command. They apparently fought together at the Bloody Angle at Kennesaw Mountain.

360º Panorama of The Zion Presbyterian Church

#zionchurch

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Franklin Battlefield Drone

Franklin Battlefield from 395 feet AGL

There are not many places you can fly a UAV above a major American Civil War battlefield. From unrestricted airspace at 395′ above the ground, this is a unique perspective. This was shot with the permission of the homeowners at the corner of Adams Street and Mercury Drive.

The 4k footage starts heading 180º towards Winstead Hill in the far distance (left). It then rotates counter-clockwise passing thru Carnton, Fort Granger, Collins Farm and Loring’s Advance (green space in the foreground). Rotation stops heading north towards town. On the 395′ decent, you can see the Cotton Gin park in the center left of the frame.

Franklin @ 395′ from athensofthesouth.design on Vimeo.

#drone #franklin

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Milking the cow

5 million views later…

About this time last year, I got a strange looking email. At first, I thought it was Spam. It read that I had 500,000 views on Google Maps. I was now a Trusted Google Photographer! It was real, but big whoop. That means they trust you to put stuff on Google Street View (also called Business View) without their censorship. It also allows you to shoot business virtual tours for them – but you had to make 10 (now 50) business tours to get Certified and on their list.

For the last several years I have been adding store front images of my retail merchants to Google Maps. This enhances their Internet presence, and makes it easier for someone to recognize their building from the street. But looking at the analytics, this is not where most of my new visitors were coming from.

The summer before last, my son and I were visiting a Civil War battlefield in Virginia. I noticed him swirling around a hill top behind the Antietam visitor center. This will be interesting… He informed me he was taking panoramic photo spheres with his Android phone. He uses the Panorama 360 app. I decided to give it a try with my iPhone. There are several free apps I looked at, but I decided on Google Street View. It has pretty decent photo stitching, loads directly to Google Maps, and gives you analytics on viewers.

In the late fall of 2015, I began shooting some endangered Civil War battlefield sites around Nashville. My first panorama was some property south of Franklin. I figured this would be a good way to preserve the imagery of the landscape. For the next couple of months, I shot about a dozen more battlefield panoramas and loaded them to Street View. This is where most of my visitors were coming from.

Outdoor panoramas are pretty easy to shoot with your smart phone, but as soon as you get close to objects with straight edges (like power lines), things get complicated. This is known as parallax error. I bought a tripod adapter for my iPhone to reduce this. It helped a lot, but not enough to bring my VR’s inside.

Shooting interiors of buildings require a camera that has a fixed nodal point. This is the point in space where the images converge in the camera lens. There are a few point and shoot cameras, such as the Ricoh Theta and the Iris 360. But, I ended up upgrading to a DSLR mounted on a robotic tripod (Gigapan Epic Pro) for much better picture clarity (up to 28k wide). This also allows you greater zoom quality. For instance, I was able to shoot a virtual tour of a bookstore, so detailed, that it allows viewers to read the title of the books on the shelf.

“ You have to milk the cow a long time, for a little bit of cheese.”

Shooting panoramas with a DSLR is tricky. It requires manual settings for everything in order for all the images (typically 54 shots per tour point) to line up.

Critical manual DSLR settings:

  • Focus – no auto focus
  • ISO – manual
  • F-stop – manual
  • Shutter speed – manual
  • Color balance – manual
  • Camera balance – perfectly level tripod
  • Lens-robot calibration – this varies for each focus point
  • Nodal point rail calibration – this varies for each focus point and needs to be within 1 millimeter!

Wow, this was getting complicated, but I really enjoyed the challenge. Drawing from my photography training, many moons ago, one quote from my MTSU professor (Norton) rang in my ears: “you have to milk the cow a long time, for a little bit of cheese”.

As a history nut, I began to lay claim to the virgin virtual world around me: Battles of Franklin, Nashville, Murfreesboro and about 30 more. In most cases this is the first, and only 3D* like imagery taken. They are now on Google Maps and my American Civil War history blog: battleofnashvillfe.com. At least half are from the iPhone. Some are better than others, as I improve over time and replace previous works.

Right Click Google Maps

I also found many historical sites that where literally not on the map (Google Maps). Siri, directions to the Sherman Reservation (where my GGF fought). Unable. So, I submitted the site to Google, and after approved, I was able to load a 360º to it. Now Siri knows this, and the many descendants of those brave men can pilgrimage to that beautiful forgotten obscure park, at the North end of Missionary Ridge.

GPS POI is another geographic data base that many GPS devices load coordinated from. Bing is another, but who uses Bing? Google still accounts for over 90% of web searches.

I have since found many more places like these. They are missing, or located in the wrong place. Ever had a GPS take you to the wrong location, or the wrong way? This is what you can do about it. It’s truly amazing how many businesses do not know to list or claim themselves >> they are invisible on the Internet. BY THE WAY: those pesky telemarketers that call you to claim your business? Liars, Google won’t call you for this.

…anyway, back to Google Street View: So after a Google Trusted Photographer shoots 50 professional** virtual tours, you get Certified. That means Google will list you as a private contractor on the Street View site. I am the 7th in Middle Tennessee and one of about 25 in the state. I just passed 5 million views on Google maps, mostly from the last 12 months. Now, if I could just get a penny from each one. Tips are welcome…

*Technically this is not 3D, although I think that name will stick. It’s pretty close to it, but 3D requires a different image for each eyeball.

**This can be any interior other than homes for sale. For instance, in addition to local merchants, I shot the Downtown Presbyterian Church and the Fort Negley Visitor Center for them. From the Athens of the South – Bob Henderson

#streetview #nashville

 

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Champ Ferguson

Confederate Guerrilla Raider: 

• Revised: 04 MAY 17 •

 
chain-ball
Ball and chain used during Champ Fergusion’s Trial • Tennessee State Museum

From the Tennessee Civil War Trails signage:

Champ Ferguson (1821-1865) was born in Kentucky, the oldest of ten children. He moved to White County, Tennessee, in the 1850s. During the Civil War, he showed passionate loyalty to the Southern cause and extreme hatred for the Union. The alleged reasons for his zeal range from a desire to settle longstanding grudges with local Unionists to revenge against the Union soldiers who he said raped his wife and daughter1 and killed his son2. Regardless of his motives, Ferguson was one of the most notorious Confederate guerrillas to roam the Upper Cumberland. He was most infamous for the Saltville Massacre, in which he supposedly directed the murders of several wounded and captured US. Colored Troops at Saltville, Virginia, in 1864. Federal officials arrested him after the war. He was convicted of 53 counts of murder, although he claimed to have killed more than 100 Union soldiers, insisting it was his military duty. Ferguson was sentenced to death by hanging. He requested that his body be taken to “White County, Tennessee, and be buried in good Rebel soil.” Ferguson is interred here in the cemetery named for the France family.

“I was a Southern Man at the start. I am yet, and will die a Rebel. I believe I was right in all I did . … I have killed a good many men, of course, I don’t deny that, hut I never killed a man whom I did not know was seeking my life …. I repeat that I die a Rebel out and out, and my last request is that my body he removed to White County, Tennessee, and he buried in good Rebel soil.” – Champ Ferguson, before his execution, 1865

Other Confederate veterans buried in France Cemetery include four brothers, all of whom died during the war: Sgt. Solomon Carmichael and Pvt. Thomas Carmichael (25th Tennessee Infantry), Pvt. Hance Carmichael (28th Tennessee Infantry), and Pvt. William L. Carmichael (8th Tennessee Cavalry).

Champ Ferguson Grave | France Cemetery | Calfkiller Highway (Hwy. 84)

Reports from Stokes Brigade, claimed that Champ was wounded in a skirmish near the Calfkiller River by the 5th Tennessee Cavalry.

Operations against guerrillas about Sparta February to April: Johnson’s Mills February 22, Sparta and Calfkiller River February 22, 1864. During this time frame, Captain Ferguson was accused of Murdering 19 men of the U.S. 5th Tennessee Cavalry.

Likely position of the February 22 engagement on the Calfkiller River near Long Hollow:

March 18, 1864 the 5th U.S. Cavalry attacked Confederate Colonel Hughes camp two miles from Beersheba Springs. This is most likely the location on the Collins River to the northwest of Beersheba Springs, near the base of the Cumberland Mountains:

Champ Ferguson: Confederate Guerilla and Jack Hinson’s One Man War

Emory & Henry College – Confederate Hospital

Footnotes:

1 After the war, Champ was put on trial for 53 murders. This included the execution of a Lt. Smith with the U.S. 13th Kentucky Cavalry, and 10 of his men. In testimony regarding his motivation, Champ denied that his wife and daughter had been molested. There is a strong suspicion that this was to protect their reputations.

2 According to Broomfield L. Ridley’s Battles and Sketches of the Army of Tennessee, published in 1906: “Champ was a citizen at his home when the tocsin was sounded, and stayed there until his own precincts were invaded. A rabid fire-eater past his house with a troop of blues. You ask why he was so desperate? It was told in camp that Champ Ferguson’s little three-year-old child came out onto the porch waving a Confederate flag. One of the men in blue leveled his gun at Champ and killed the child. Oh anguish! How the father’s heart bled! His spirit welled up like the indomitable will of a primitive Norsemen. In a moment of frenzy he said that the death of his baby would cost the “bluecoats” one hundred lives. And it did. One hundred twenty is believed to be the number he put to death (Comrade S.H. Mitchell got this from Champ himself.)”

#civilwar #guerrilla #champferguson

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Davis Bridge

Battle of Davis Bridge in Hardeman County, Tennessee 

Also know as the Battle of Hatchie Bridge

Wikipedia


October 5, 1862 | Southwest Tennessee

Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn vs Maj. Gen. Edward O.C. Ord

“By late spring 1862, United States forces in the West threatened to cut the Confederacy in two, having captured both New Orleans and Memphis on the Mississippi River, and the vital railroad hub at Corinth, Mississippi, thereby severing the Memphis & Charleston Railroad, the South’s only east-west connection linking the Atlantic to the Mississippi Valley. Efforts to complete the split stalled that summer when Union naval forces failed to capture Vicksburg, and the field armies struggled to control the vast territory occupied in the spring offensive. The Confederates seized on this lull to launch General Bragg’s invasion into Kentucky, and, in early October, sent an army to capture Corinth. However, repulsed there with heavy losses after two days of brutal fighting, this Southern force retreated back towards Davis Bridge on the Hatchie River in Hardeman County, Tennessee.

When the Southern Army blocked by Federals advancing from Bolivar, Tennessee, fierce fighting engulfed the crossing. The day-long conflict ended east of the river with the Confederates escaping to the south. The failure to retake Corinth proved the last Confederate offensive in Mississippi, as Union forces seized the initiative, and began a final relentless nine-months offensive to capture Vicksburg and take control of the Mississippi River”. – Davis Bridge Shiloh National Park 

This very remote battle site is actually part of the Shiloh Military Park over 30 miles to the east. It’s very hard to find, not marked from Highway 57.

Davis Bridge: 1145 Essary Springs Rd. Pocahontas, TN 38061

Metamora Hill: 1845 Pocahontas Rd. Pocahontas, TN 38061

This 3D like virtual tour covers three point os the Battlefield: the Hatchie River bridge site, cemetery and Metamora Hill.

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#davisbridge