Crittenden County wasn't very active in the Civil War, as not many battles were fought on the soil of our county. But the county was over run by the troops of both armies, who often plundered and terrorized the county for their won reasons.
One documented site was at Bell's Mines. The skirmish was between Company C, 52nd Kentucky Mounted Infantry (USA) under Lt. Thomas W. Metcalfe and a band of 300 guerrillas on July 13, 1864. Metcalfe, with 46 men, had left Cloverort, Kentucky on July 5, 1864, to patrol the Green River country. The patrol was attacked at Bell's Mines by approximately 300 guerrillas. The company's records recounted its losses as 22 horses and "rigging," one man killed, and 11 men captured. The Evansville Daily Journal stated that six of the men had escaped and reached Shawneetown where they reported the action.
This Civil War Marker was placed near the Bell's Mines Cemetery in April of 2005.
Bell's Coal Mines were first owned by John Bell from Tennessee. Bell ran for President in 1860 as the candidate of the Constitutional Union Party. Kentucky was one of three states he carried. The picture on the right of the marker is of John Bell. The flag in the center was a Campaign Flyer from Bell's run for the Presidency as Constitutional Union Party.
No comments:
Post a Comment