Morgan in Alexandria

Morgan in Alexandria (HM1ETV)

Location: Alexandria, TN 37012 Dekalb County
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Country: United States of America
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N 36° 4.66', W 86° 2.019'

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Inscription

Preparing for a Raid

From late in 1862 to mid-1863, Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg fortified his defenses in Middle Tennessee while Union Gen. William S. Rosecrans reinforced his army. To disrupt the extended Federal communication and supply lines, late in 1862 Bragg ordered Gen. John Hunt Morgan to attack the Louisville and Nashville Railroad. On this occasion, and again in 1863, Morgan initiated a cavalry raid into Kentucky from here in Alexandria.

Alexandria offered well-watered areas near the fairgrounds sufficient to assemble thousands of mounted men, a road leading north to multiple Cumberland River crossings and a supportive population. The presence of the Confederate raiders was no secret, however, and there were those who felt that Morgan's use of the area left the residents open to Federal reprisal.

On December 22, 1862, Morgan headed north from Alexandria with 3,100 cavalrymen and several artillery pieces on his "Christmas Raid." Five days later, he reached Elizabethtown, Kentucky, where his men destroyed Louisville and Nashville Railroad trestles and bridges, temporarily rendering the line impassible. Pursuing Federal forces failed to block his return to Tennessee.

Morgan's most daring raid began here when, on June 11, 1863, he led 2,400 cavalrymen through Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio in the deepest penetration of the North by Confederate troops. Federal gunboats patrolling the Ohio River prevented Morgan from returning south, and tireless pursuit by Federal forces led eventually to his capture and imprisonment.

(captions)
(lower left) Morgan's Raiders, Harper's New Monthly Magazine (Aug. 1865)
(upper center) Gen. John Hunt Morgan Courtesy Library of Congress
(upper right) Morgan's Christmas Raid
(lower right) Morgan's Ohio Raid

Details
HM NumberHM1ETV
Series This marker is part of the Tennessee: Tennessee Civil War Trails series
Tags
Placed ByTennessee Civil War Trails
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Thursday, September 18th, 2014 at 1:06am PDT -07:00
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Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)16S E 587010 N 3992994
Decimal Degrees36.07766667, -86.03365000
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 36° 4.66', W 86° 2.019'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds36° 4' 39.60" N, 86° 2' 1.14" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)615
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 107 W Main St, Alexandria TN 37012, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

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