Franklin after Nashville

[larry_cockerham]

In an attempt to divert the attention of our two jousting Franklin scholars just a bit, I'm hoping they can enlighten us further with the events mentioned in this promotion posted locally by Compatriot Joe Smyth with the Save The Franklin Battlefield group. I suspect my gg grandfather Cockerham with the 10th TN US Cav was in this ruckus.

STFB HOSTS BATTLEFIELD TALK AT HARLINSDALE FARMS

10:00 A.M. Saturday, September 20

On Saturday, September 20th, Save The Franklin Battlefield (STFB) will host a battlefield talk at Harlinsdale Farm in Franklin, Tennessee. The talk will highlight the importance of the Harlinsdale property and the part it played during the Civil War years of 1863 and 1864. The tour will be led by The Carter House’s military curator and executive director David Fraley.

Following the Battle of Nashville, the disorganized remnant of the Confederate Army of Tennessee, refused the victory they had fought so hard for there, began a desperate southward retreat. Several thousand Federal cavalrymen, followed by a more cumbersome infantry force, rode in earnest pursuit of this shattered army. The mid-December weather of 1864 was atrocious—freezing, miserable conditions in which the two armies battled one another for days in an almost constant running fight, through frozen and often blood-stained mud.

The opening guns of one of these early clashes took place on December 17, 1864, across what is today Harlinsdale Farm on the north side of Franklin. Here, in a little-known battle that raged across the Harpeth River and into town, a beleaguered Confederate rearguard of a few hundred cavalrymen, infantrymen and artillerymen engaged in a bloody contest with a Federal cavalry force numbering into the thousands. Suffering heavy losses, the Confederate rearguard purchased precious time with their blood for the southward escape of their army.

To learn more about these heroic acts of American bravery on the fields of Harlinsdale, plan to meet at 9:30 a.m. at the Franklin Church of Christ, one-half mile north of downtown Franklin on Franklin Road (S.R. 31). There will be very little walking, so bring a folding chair if you desire.

As always, this tour is free and open to the public and STFB members. For more information, please call the STFB office at (615) 500-6612.

Save The Franklin Battlefield, Inc. is a tax-exempt non-profit corporation dedicated to the preservation, protection, and promotion of Civil War sites in Williamson County. Members and prospective members meet at 6:30 p.m. on the second Monday of each month at the Heritage Foundation boardroom in Franklin. For more information visit the STFB website at www.franklin-stfb.org.


Joe Smyth

[richard]

David is such an engaging speaker, I hate to miss his talk. Also, David had I beleave two ancesters in the 9th Indiana Cavalry who fought in that very spot on that day. This talk should be a very good one.

[larry_cockerham]

Hello Richard, glad to see you on the board again. The Indiana and Tennessee boys were the same lot who followed the AOT to Alabama and fought at Rutherford Creek, Lynville, Richland Creek, Anthony's Hill and lastly at the final battle at Sugar Creek on December 26. Commanders Hatch, Croxton, Hammond, and Harrison under James H. Wilson walked, or rode slowly into one of the war's great ambushes. I'm anxious to learn more about this newly acquired property just north of downtown Franklin and hope to pick up more details on gg Grandpa's travels.