desolation and despair

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The eight soldiers in this image are thought to be members of the 20th Tennessee Infantry taken at Rock Island prison sometime in the winter of 1863 to 1864. The soldier on the extreme left is pos-sibly Sgt. Joseph K. Marshall of Company D. He was captured on Missionary Ridge November 25 and arrived at Rock Island on De-cember 9th. Surprisingly, the men are all clad in six or seven button identical frock coats. Reports show the following men of the 20th captured at the battle of Missionary Ridge, J.G. Andrews, R.A. Jor-dan, Thomas Stovall, C. Buchanan, J.R. Marshall, T.J. Wilson, G.W .Davis, Fred Beech, Paul Beech, Theo(Todd) Carter and Thomas A. Tanner. Ambrotype courtesy Battle of Franklin Battlefield Trust.

By D.A. Serrano

Desolation & Despair

J ust when you think

that all great images

are discovered, pub-

lished, or otherwise seen

by the Civil War public,

collectors and historians

are treated to a rare photo

that has hidden in obscu-

rity for 150 years. Group

photos of Confederate

soldiers in the field or out-

doors are extremely rare.

Only a handful come to

mind, the three rebel pris-

oners at Gettysburg taken

by Brady after the battle,

the Rosenstock photo of

Confederate soldiers in

marching column at Fred-

erick, the large group of

Confederate prisoners

taken during the 1864 Vir-

ginia Overland campaign

are some of the more

The Story of the 20th Tennessee Infantry CSA

www.con fede r a t ep l ane t . com

famous. Recently, an image of several Confed-

erate soldiers purportedly taken at Rock Island

Prison has come to light and with it a story of

one of the most traveled, hardest fought regi-

ments in the Army of the Tennessee, the 20th

Tennessee Volunteer Infantry.

With the call to arms in April of 1861 many

companies and recruits from throughout Ten-

nessee arrived at Camp Trousdale to be or-

ganized into regiments. With names like the

Hickory Guards and Swanee Rifles, 10 compa-

nies from several different counties in middle

Tennessee were organized into the 20th Regi-

ment. By June of that year the Regiment re-

ported 880 men and was led by Seminole War

veteran 50-year-old Joel A. Battle, a wealthy

plantation owner from Davidson County.

Although in the beginning they were poorly

armed and would perform guard duty and

drill carrying sticks instead of rifles, the new

recruits made up for their lack of training and

equipment with spirit and determination. Some

brought old flintlocks from home and others

General John C. Breckenridge would al-ways be fondly remembered by the veter-ans of the 20th. The Mexican war veteran was a Kentucky native and politician be-fore the war, his wife made silk flag for the 20th that was inadvertently left in Atlanta by mistake. Breckenridge had a deep dis-like for Braxton Bragg and felt that Bragg was incompetent. At Murfreesboro Bragg sent Breckenridge’s division on a near suicidal charge against union lines that almost wrecked the 20th Tennessee along with the rest of the division. In the waning months of the war the capable general was made Secretary of War by Jefferson Davis. USAMHI.

J. L. Cooper was one of the unlucky men of the 20th captured at Fishing Creek. While a POW he was detailed as a hospital attendant and was paroled in August of 1862. He was promoted to Sgt. September 1, 1863 and was wounded at the battle of Missionary Ridge. His recuperation only took a few months and he was back in the ranks for the Atlanta campaign being promoted as Aide De Camp to Gen. Tyler. History of the 20th Tennessee Infantry.


were eventually armed with a collection of

military antiques from the arsenal in Nashville.

Their many travels started when the regiment

were briefly ordered to Virginia and stationed

at the town of Bristol for only two weeks

before they were ordered to the Cumberland

Gap at the apex of Tennessee, Kentucky and

Virginia. Eventually, they were placed in the

brigade of General Felix Zollicoffer along with

the 15th Mississippi, the 19th and the 25th

Tennessee Infantry. The green Regiments band

supposedly only knew two songs, “The Girl I

Left Behind” and “The Bobtail Horse”.

The regiment’s first taste of real war was at

Fishing Creek, Kentucky [Mill Springs]. Un-

der the inexperienced leadership of Zollicof-

fer the regiment was cut to pieces sustaining

110 casualties, a large amount considering

it was a small engagement like so many in

the beginning of the war. Many of their anti-

quated flintlocks were ineffective because of

the dampness “not one musket in 10 would

fire” and the Regiment barely escaped across

the Cumberland River. Gen. Zollicoffer wear-

ing a white raincoat stumbled into Union lines

and was shot and killed, the first Confederate

general killed in the West. It also marked the

first Union victory of the war. Once on the op-

posite bank of the Cumberland the steamship

they escaped on was set fire by Private David

Marion Brown and the dispirited men began a

retreat lasting eight miserable days in the dead

of winter. The Twentieth’s Col. Battle was com-

mended by all for his ability and courage.

First elected captain and then major of the 20th Fred C. Claybrooke would be considered one of the bravest officers of the Regiment. At Murfreesboro, Claybrooke rallied his men by riding back and forth in front of the Regiment holding the colors aloft. He died of wounds re-ceived at Hoover’s Gap in June of 1863. History of the 20th Tennessee Infantry.

Another casualty of Fishing Creek was John L. Gooch Capt. of company E. His debilitating wounds forced him to resign July 19, 1862. He died after the war on his farm in Smyrna, Tennessee. History of the 20th Tennessee Infantry.


One of the sadder stories of the war came in the final months of the struggle. Thomas Benton Smith was a brigadier when captured at the Battle of Nashville. While being led to the rear, he was viciously attacked by Col. W. L. McMillan of the 95th Ohio infantry with-out any provocation. The drunken Col. struck Smith three times with his saber opening a ghastly wound to his head. Barely alive, Smith was rushed to Union surgeons who thought the wound moral. Luckily, Smith would survive. Later in life he would suffer from bouts of se-vere depression and erratic behavior. His sister after finding out that Smith, naked and painted like an Indian carrying a bow and arrows was practicing his archery on passersby. She eventu-ally had him committed to the Tennessee State Insane Asylum where he would remain for the next 47 years. His one joy during this period was occasionally attending reunions of his old comrades in the 20th Tennessee. History of the 20th Tennessee Infantry.

Postwar view of Missionary Ridge in the approximate area where the 20th fought. Library of Congress. Library of Congress.


As terrible as Fishing Creek was, it was a mere

skirmish compared to what was ahead. By

April of 1862 the 20th was in General John

C. Breckenridge’s division and were again

decimated at Shiloh losing 187 in killed and

wounded out of approximately 400 engaged.

Their beloved Col. Battle was captured on the

second day and never returned to the Regi-

ment.

In the Army reorganization of May 1862 the

Regiment selected 22-year-old Thomas Benton

Smith as their Col. and were sent to Vicksburg

under Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn’s District of

the Mississippi. By now traveling was in their

blood and the Brigade was sent south to Loui-

siana, first engaged at Baton Rouge and after-

ward at Port Hudson. Many of the men in the

Regiment were quite sick with fever and chills

further depleting their numbers. At Murfrees-

boro the Regiment fought in front of the Cow-

en House and suffered more casualties. They

finally got a rest at Tullahoma and it was there

that the 20th received a new flag made by

Gen. Breckenridge’s wife. They fought again at

Hoover’s gap and eventually retreated to

Chattanooga.

In the middle of the debacle on Missionary Ridge, division commander William B. Bate handled his three brigades skillfully. His posi-tion became untenable after being flanked by General Hazen’s Federals. His rearguard action helped stem the Union forces pursuit of Braggs beaten army. In later life he would become governor of Tennessee and also a US Senator. USAMHI.

Capt. of Company A, William G. Gwin first enlisted in the “Hickory Guards” as a private. In 1863 he made a claim for a stolen mule and in 1864 purchased a haversack from the Macon Arsenal for $40, showing how deval-ued Confederate money had become. At the battle of Kennesaw Mountain he suffered a severe wound in the leg leading to its am-putation. Even incapacitated he refused to leave the service and in later life was elected clerk of the Davidson County Court. History of the 20th Tennessee Infantry.


At the battle of Chickamauga the 20th was

almost annihilated. Company E alone lost 17

of 23 men engaged. But for once the Army

of the Tennessee was victorious and Braxton

Bragg seemed to be on the verge of complete

victory. As the Federals retreated from Chicka-

mauga, Bragg hesitated and invested the city

of Chattanooga. The 20th was put to work

fortifying Missionary Ridge and the Confeder-

ates waited to starve the federals out of the

city. As most of Bragg’s plans, this would not

end well. General Grant was able to reinforce

his army and go on the offensive. What should

have been an impregnable position on Mis-

sionary Ridge was instead a death trap. As

part of Bate’s Division the 20th maintained its

reputation for courage and discipline hold-

ing the line on the crest of the ridge. As the

onslaught of blue clad troops slowly clawed

their way up the hill, Bates and the 20th held

out. As confederate forces to his right and left

Right: William J McMurray was wounded five times during the war. After being paroled in was admitted into a U.S. Army hospital and had his left arm amputated on May 24, 1865 not only did she write a compelling history of the 20th he also became a highly respected physician after the war. History of the 20th Tennessee Infantry.

Theodrick (Todd) Carter was captured on Missionary Ridge and as an officer, sent to Johnsons Island prison in December of 1863. One of the few prisoners to escape in route to Ft. Delaware by jumping out a train window in Pennsylvania, he rejoined his regiment that March in Dalton for the Atlanta campaign and ultimately Franklin. Todd had not been home for three and a half years. As the 20th charged the Union works Captain Carter shouted “I’m almost home, follow me boys”. The young cap-tain would be mortally wounded 525 yards southwest from his family’s property during the battle and die on Dec 2nd. Photo courtesy Battle of Franklin Battlefield Trust.


slowly melted away the Division was eventual-

ly flanked and forced to retreat. The Regiment

along with the rest of the Confederate Army

regrouped in northern Georgia during the win-

ter of 1864. The badly decimated 20th was able

to briefly rest and the Army under the leader-

ship of newly appointed General Joseph E.

Johnson resupplied and waited. The campaigns

in northern Georgia slowly took their toll.

The 20th requited themselves with their usual

gallantry fighting continually from Dalton to

Atlanta. A member of the 60th North Carolina

Regiment that briefly was brigaded with the

20th said “they could out fight and out steal

any set I ever saw”. By the fall of 1864 the

20th found themselves marching towards their

home state, Tennessee. Hoods invasion would

place the Regiment on familiar ground in front

of Franklin. Sadly, Capt. Todd Carter would be

killed on his family’s homestead and many in

the regiment were compelled by close prox-

imity to their own homes to leave the ranks.

Briefly diverted to Murfreesboro to assist

Forrests Calvary, they were unluckily recalled

to Nashville, “The death angel was there to

gather its last harvest.” By now the ranks of

the 20th were the mere size of a company and

the Army of the Tennessee was quickly routed.

What was left of the regiment eventually found

its way to North Carolina. Their last battle,

Bentonville was far from their beloved homes.

In the final reorganization of the army on April

9, 1865 the 20th was consolidated with other

Tennessee regiments to form the Fourth Con-

solidated Tennessee Infantry. Still faithful to

the colors only 34 men were left.

History of the 20th, Tenn Inf. 1904 ,W.J. Mc-

Murry, Co. Aytch 1900, Sam Watkins, Captain

Tod Carter,1978. Dr. Rosalie Carter.

Special thanks to Joanna Stephens, Curator,

Battle of Franklin Trust.

— Sources —

Stereoview taken from the steps of the State Capital looking west towards the battle of Nashville, December 15, 1864. Library of Congress.


The STrAnge CASe of Colonel Shy

One cold winter day on Christmas Eve 1977, the police were called to investi-

gate a crime. On arrival at the antebellum home on Del Rio Pike the grisly remains of a young man, headless and clad in a black tuxedo was found on top of the grave of Civil War hero Colonel William M. Shy of the 20th Tennessee infantry, “ modest as a woman, as gentle and kindly to all he came in con-tact. In the heat of battle he was the embodi-ment of courage, determination and brave to a degree”. He had been killed in the Battle of Nashville defending Compton Hill with the remnants of his regiment. Forensics determined that the body had been dead for no more than 2 to 6 months, was a Caucasian male, 5’11” between 26 to 29 years old and weighed approximate-ly 175 pounds and the Colonel’s body was undisturbed. A murder had been commit-ted. The case would proceed in the follow-ing weeks and a further investigation would

slowly reveal the awful truth. This was no recent murder; nevertheless it was murder if war could be called that. The headless body was that of Colonel Shy dead for 113 years. Because the corpse was in such an excellent state of preservation, [the skin was still pink] no one would originally believe it was from the Civil War. But large quantities of arsenic a mid-19th century embalming method were found in the body. The further examination of the cast-iron coffin revealed a hole where the body had been pulled out. The grisly work of grave robbers or just local pranksters was the final evaluation. On February 13, 1978 a brief ceremony performed by Rev. Charles Fulton was per-formed at the grave site. Silently carrying the coffin of Colonel Shy were six members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. Surrounded by flags of his beloved Confederacy, Colonel Shy was again placed at rest.


desolation and despair

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