Inscription
Behind the Lines
"The end of an evil year in the history of America—what another year will bring forth remained to be seen—perhaps and most likely the bloodiest war ever known in America, God forbid!" — Tipton County Court Clerk John T. Douglas, December 1861On June 10, 1861, 943 residents of Tipton County voted in favor of secession with only 16 votes against. Local men already had begun forming volunteer military companies. The first of these, the Tipton Rifles, trained and drilled at the old fairgrounds in Covington under the command of Capt. John Turner until they departed for Germantown to become part of the 4th Tennessee Infantry. In all, the county furnished twelve companies for the Confederacy.
Although West Tennessee quickly came under the control of the Union army, Confederate Col. Robert V. Richardson completed the organization of the 1st Tennessee Regiment of Partisan Rangers at its main camp near Bloomington. Federal attempts to curtail the Rangers' activities resulted in numerous engagements throughout the county. The largest of these occurred in the Lemmon Woods near Covington in March 1863, where Union Col. Benjamin H. Grierson's cavalry attacked and scattered the Confederates then destroyed their camp and equipment.
Most of Tipton County was left untouched by war, with the exception of the town of Randolph. In September 1862, a band of guerillas fired upon an unarmed Union packet boat laden with relief goods intended for Southern families. Union Gen. William T. Sherman gave orders to destroy Randolph, leaving one house standing to mark the location of the town. Two years later, Confederate partisans attempted to commandeer the steamer Belle Saint Louis at the Randolph landing but were driven off after a short fight.
(captions)
(lower left) Col. Robert V. Richardson Courtesy Tennessee Civil War National Heritage Area
(lower center) Confederates firing on Union gunboats Courtesy U.S. Naval Historical Center
(upper right) Confederate recruits drilling in camp, Harper's Weekly, Nov 9, 1861
Details
| HM Number | HM1F4H |
|---|---|
| Series | This marker is part of the Tennessee: Tennessee Civil War Trails series |
| Tags | |
| Placed By | Tennessee Civil War Trails |
| Marker Condition | No reports yet |
| Date Added | Monday, September 8th, 2014 at 11:53pm PDT -07:00 |
Pictures
Photo Credits: [1] PAUL ERWIN [2] PAUL ERWIN
Locationbig map
| UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 16S E 260179 N 3938802 |
|---|---|
| Decimal Degrees | 35.56390000, -89.64610000 |
| Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 35° 33.834', W 89° 38.766' |
| Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 35° 33' 50.04" N, 89° 38' 45.96" W |
| Driving Directions | Google Maps |
| Area Code(s) | 901 |
| Closest Postal Address | At or near 103 E Pleasant Ave, Covington TN 38019, US |
| Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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