East Tennessee Roots
Major
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2010
- Location
- Kingsport, Tennessee
Pictured are Mr.& Mrs Henry and Sarah Carroll Blakely of Sullivan County, Tennessee, their children, and grandchildren. Photo taken about Sept.1919. They were married on March 6, 1880. Henry was born Dec.22, 1856. Sarah on Nov.5, 1855. My paternal grandmother Annie Blakely Land was their youngest child born in 1894. I suspect the photos were made as part of an early celebration of their upcoming 40th wedding anniversary. Two of their sons had migrated to Iowa as young men and are in the family photo. My grandmother is the pretty dark-haired lady in the dark dress in the center of the photo, between her mom & dad, holding my aunt Clara. My aunt Louise is standing next to her grandpa Blakely.
On Sept.22, 1863 in Sullivan County, Tennessee. Henry's father, Jackson Blakely enlisted in Co.G 8th Tenn Union Cavalry. On Sept.25th in Knoxville, Tenn Sarah's father, James William Carroll enlisted in Co.F of the same regiment. Not quite 3 weeks later in a severe skirmish at Zollicoffer, Tenn elements of the Union 8th Tenn Cav were routed by Confederates. There are no after-battle reports in the OR, only this account by the Kentucky Confederate, Edward O. Guerrant : http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=11638042
October 19, 1863 - Skirmish at Zollicoffer ( Bluff City, Tn. )
The account of a Confederate staff officer
With a mournful pen I record the death of Lt. Col. Bottles, who was killed
yesterday in a fight below Zollicoffer. He was a Lt. Col. of one of the
Vicksburg Reg[iment]'ts, had me up a Batt'n of East Tennessee troops & been
serving as commandant of scouts, pickets, &c. was invaluable to us in East
Tenn.-as he was thoroughly acquainted with the country, & was a brave &
dashing officer. He was acting in conjunction with Lt. Col. Witcher & overtook
a Reg[iment]'t of the enemy 11/2 miles below Zollicoffer. In a charge upon
them Col Bottles was shot from his horse while leading his battalion. The ball
entered his right lung & he lived but two hours. We routed the Yankees, killed
& captured 57. We lost but two. . .
Two of the captured Tennessee Yankee Volunteers were Henry & Sarah's fathers. They were imprisoned at Danville, Va. Private Carroll died that December. Private Blakely was reportedly shot while attempting escape on or about April 14, 1864. This true story related to me as a young boy in the 1950's, no doubt helped spark my interest in our nation's great tragedy of the mid-19th century.
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