Battle of Jonesborough

SECTION B

Clayton News Daily, Henry Daily Herald and Jackson Progress-Argus

battle of jonesborough 50th Ann a product of the

1

iversary

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014

Union forces advance during the 1996 re-enactment of the Battle of Jonesborough. (File photo)

CIVIL WAR CALENDAR

TWO DAYS

AUG. 30 ‘3 Deep in the Yard — The Pivotal Battle of Jonesboro’ Local historian Peter Bonner will offer “3 Deep in the Yard — The Pivotal Battle of Jonesboro� at the Patrick R. Cleburne Confederate Cemetery, at the corner of Johnson and McDonough Streets in Jonesboro from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Aug. 30. During the free event, Bonner will tell stories from the Battle of Jonesborough.

Father Emmeran Bliemel memorials The Knights of Columbus Chapter at St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church will host several events to honor the life of Father Emmeran Bliemel, who died at the Battle of Jonesborough while serving as a chaplain in the Confederate army. The commemorations include a wreath-laying ceremony with a gun salute at 10:30 a.m. at the Historic Clayton County Courthouse, 121 South McDonough St. in Jonesboro.

A memorial mass will follow at noon at the church, 591 Flint River Road in Jonesboro. The Most Reverend Wilton Gregory, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Atlanta, ZLOO RIĂ€FLDWH WKH PDVV $ OXQFK ZLOO IROORZ DW 2 p.m. at the Knights of Columbus hall on the church property.

City’s short battle changed local, national history

already cleaned out his desk,� said local historian Peter Bonner, owner of Historical and Hysterical Tours and a key contributor JONESBOROUGH — It’s of information for this special rare that events unfolding in the section. “And so Jonesborough’s Southern Crescent have an impact capture allows Atlanta to fall. on an entire nation, but it did “Atlanta’s fall causes the happen in August and September people up north to say ‘You know, 1864.

Abraham Lincoln may be doing The Battle of Jonesborough — the right thing so let’s stay with as the town’s name was spelled at him,� Bonner added. the time — is not as well rememThis weekend marks the 150th bered as other Civil War battles, anniversary of the battle, which such as Gettysburg or Antietam. signaled the end of Gen. William However, its outcome did help T. Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign. to shape what would happen The fighting took place Aug. to Clayton, Henry and Butts 31 and Sept. 1, first in the area counties in the months to come between the town and the Flint afterwards.

River and eventually in JonesborIts influence even had an indi- ough’s streets. rect influence on the presidential The fall of Atlanta opened race that year. the door for Sherman to begin “Abraham Lincoln was not his March to the Sea. During going to get re-elected — he had the march, which took place in

BY CURT YEOMANS

cyeomans@news-daily.com

SEPT. 6 Barbecue at The Warren House The Warren House, 102 West Mimosa St. in Jonesboro, will host a barbecue and tours of the house Sept. 6 from 4:30 to 8 p.m. The price is $15 per person. Some RI WKH PRVW LQWHQVH ÀJKWLQJ RQ WKH VHFRQG day of the Battle of Jonesborough took place in the Warren House’s front yard.

A Confederate cavalry rider carries the flag for his troops in this undated photo from a Battle of Jonesborough reenactment. (File photo)

November and December 1864, an arm of his army again brought havoc through Clayton County before taking the war to Stockbridge, McDonough, Bear Creek, Locust Grove and Jackson.

The fighting in this area, and its aftermath, helped spur developments that reached far beyond the Southern Crescent. Less than a month after the battle, Confederate members of Sigma Chi fraternity formed an unauthorized chapter that would go on to be recognized as a cherished part of the fraternity’s history.

Decades after the battle ended, the impact it had on Clayton County in particular would help inspire the story that is considered

one of the most beloved American novels and films of all time, “Gone With The Wind.� The film version will turn 75 in December.

And visitors to the area can still get a taste of what life was like before, during and immediately after the war at Stately Oaks Plantation, which turns 175 this year.

For that reason, the Clayton News Daily, Henry Daily Herald and Jackson Progress-Argus present to you this special section.

Throughout this special section, readers will learn more about the battle, including a rough timeline of how it played out.

This section will also show readers the fallout that, in some ways, was felt for decades to come.

Kilpatrick’s Raid was the precursor

BY CURT YEOMANS

cyeomans@news-daily.com

HAMPTON — The Battle of Jonesborough wasn’t the Union Army’s first strike against the Southern Crescent.

A few weeks before Gen. William T. Sherman marched his troops into Clayton County to cut the final supply line for Confederates in Atlanta, Union cavalrymen led by Maj. Gen. Judson Kilpatrick conducted raids in an attempt to cut it. It’s a story of fire and destruction as well as fighting by the gun and the saber.

It brought the war to the heart of Jonesborough and later the Lovejoy and Nash Farm area on the Clayton-Henry county line.

But ultimately the raids were a failure. “Kilpatrick reported great accomplishments for his raid [but] Sherman recognized the exaggeration of the cavalryman’s claims when he observed on the 23rd that trains were once again arriving in Atlanta from the south,� now-retired Clayton State University professor Eugene Hatfield wrote in an essay for “History of Clayton County, 1821-1983.�

Reenactors who converged on Nash Farm last weekend for reenactments of Kilpatrick’s Raid were less than impressed with what the Union cavalry accomplished.

Kilpatrick’s job in mid-tolate August 1864 was to cut the Macon and Western rail line, which was the last supply line for Confederates in Atlanta. He struck Jonesborough and reputedly destroyed railroad tracks and burned the city’s train depot and several other buildings.

However, by the time he reached Lovejoy’s Station, he was being pursued by Confeder-

ate Maj. Gen. Joseph Wheeler’s cavalry and he is believed to have run into dismounted Texas cavalry in the area around Nash Farm, said 30th Georgia reenactor Eric Tedder. “This was their attempt to link up with the Union Army and they got to the point where they found the Texas dismounted cavalry,â€? said Tedder. “They couldn’t turn back because Wheeler was pursuing them from behind so they just hacked their way through ‌ “They were running with See KILPATRICK, Page 3B

SEPT. 6-7 Living History Event at Stately Oaks The 2nd BN Ga. Sharpshooters, Soldiers’ Aid Society and the Medical Unit of Ga. Division of Re-enactors will provide presentations on military camp life Sept. 6-7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Stately Oaks Plantation, 100 Carriage Lane in Jonesboro. The presentations will include FRRNLQJ ÀULQJ DQG GDQFH GHPRQVWUDWLRQV Admission is $12 for adults, $6 for children ages 5-11, and $9 for seniors over 55 and members of the military.

SEPT. 19-21 150th Anniversary Battle for Atlanta at Nash Farm 1DVK )DUP %DWWOHÀHOG %DEEV 0LOO Road in Hampton, expects to host 3,000 re-enactors who will recreate Kilpatrick’s Raid and the battles of Utoy Creek, Cheatham Hill and Atlanta Sept. 19-21.

Admission is $5 for children and $10 for adults. The park will also host a “School Day� for students Sept. 19 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Park hours that weekend will be 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sept. 19, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

Sept. 20 and 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. Sept. 21.

SEPT. 27

Sigma Chi fraternity will host a ceremony to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the founding of the Constantine Chapter at 11 a.m. Sept. 27 at the Sigma Chi Memorial, 11095 Tara Blvd. in Lovejoy.

The wartime chapter was founded near Lovejoy by Sigma Chis who had fought for the Confederacy during the Battle of Jonesborough in September 1864. The festivities will include remarks from Sigma &KL RIĂ€FLDOV D UHHQDFWPHQW RI WKH FKDSWHUŇ‹V formation, a rededication of the memorial and a barbecue

NOV. 15 Civil War Living History Event at High Falls High Falls State Park, 76 High Falls Park Drive in Jackson, will host presentations Nov. 15 on troops under the command of Union Gen. Judson Kilpatrick, as ZHOO DV FDPS OLIH LQFOXGLQJ FRRNLQJ DQG ÀUing demonstrations. Admission to the park is free but parking costs $5. Park hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

2B r WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014

OFXT EBJMZ DPN r IFOSZIFSBME DPN r NZKQB DPN

Warren House served as military headquarters, hospital

BY HEATHER MIDDLETON hmiddleton@news-daily.com

JONESBORO — The sounds of battle have long since been silenced in Jonesboro, but the history remains.

From Aug. 31 to Sept.

1, 1864, the Battle of Jonesborough was fought throughout the town. The Union Army bore down on the small city with the intent of destroying the Macon and Western Railroad, which was the last supply line for beseiged Confederates in Atlanta.

In this war-torn town, one home found itself in the heart of the conflict.

The Warren House at 102 W. Mimosa Drive was built in 1859 for Guy Lewis Warren. It is most noted of the remaining antebellum homes because of the role it played during the battle, according to “The History of Clayton County.� Warren, a native of Connecticut, moved to the South early in life and married Mary Ruberry Vardell from Charleston, S.C. Warren owned a hardware store and served as

Once vacated, the house became Confederate headquarters and a hospital serving those injured during the Atlanta Campaign.

Following the Battle of Jonesborough, the 52nd Illinois Infantry took over the home and served as a hospital for both Union and Confederate soldiers.

The house had an operating room on the second floor and a dying room on the third. In the operating room, located to right of the front door near the side porch, a window was used to discard soldiers’ limbs. The pile was Much of the fighting on the second day of the Battle of Jonesborough took place burned every few days.

According to the New on the front lawn of the Warren House at 102 W. Mimosa Drive. (Staff Photo: Heather Georgia Encyclopedia, Middleton) “bodies of the dead and an agent for the Macon tasked with defending the pathizers from Kentucky. wounded were reputedly and Western Railroad in hinge, said local historian Many of the Kentucky piled three deep in the Jonesboro.

Peter Bonner. troops from each side were grounds behind the WarThe Warren House During the afternoon related by blood or marren House.� gained a special place in of Sept. 1, Union troops riage, Bonner added.

The wide hallways local lore when its front broke through the line Govan and about 600 of were filled with bunk yard played host to inat the Warren House and his troops were captured in beds that held recovering tense fighting on the sec- engaged Govan’s troops the Warren House’s yard, he soldiers, said Dr. Jack ond day of battle because in hand-to-hand combat, said.

Farrar. it was just behind a hinge Bonner explained. In part The house served as the Farrar is the home’s in the Confederate line. of the yard, according family home until 1864. The current owner.

Confederate troops un- to Bonner, Union troops Warrens retreated to South The hall’s walls are der the command of Brig. from Kentucky fought a Carolina prior to Sherman’s filled with soldiers’ Gen. Daniel Govan were unit of Confederate sym- March to the Sea. signatures, dates and

poems. Additionally, poems and names are on walls in downstairs rooms and signatures are preserved on the walls of the operating room. The names were discovered in the 1930s by the home’s new owner, Sheriff Ernest Adamson, when wallpaper was removed from the plaster walls. The signatures include Robert Sullivan, artillery; James B. Washington, Division 14, and Doc. B. Thompson, according to warrenhouse.net.

Farrar said soldiers were moved to the dying room when nothing else could be done for them. The window facing the railroad tracks above the second-floor operating room featured two openings through which Confederate soldiers could watch for the enemy without being noticed.

According to the home’s historical marker, “a bullet lodged in a wall and cannon balls in the yard were evidence of the proximity of heavy fighting.�

Staff writer Curt Yeomans contributed to this report

Lovejoy’s Station battles bookend Jonesborough action Kilpatrick’s cavalry was nearly trapped at Lovejoy’s Station, and one final While Confederates confrontation two weeks tried to raid Union supply later when the Confederate lines from North Georgia army reassembled there to East Tennessee, Union after evacuating Atlanta.

Gen. William Sherman, to “It’s not considered a counter their moves, sent major turning point or batJudson Kilpatrick to sever tle in the war or anything,�

Rebel supply lines in hopes said historian Peter Bonof forcing them out of ner, but he said the strateAtlanta. gies behind these battles Of course, this plan were almost comical. ultimately led to the infa“What happened there mous Battle of Lovejoy’s was, basically, one small Station — the preamble for portion of the Union Army the Battle of Jonesborough was sent against pretty and, later, a final confronmuch the whole Confedertation that kept Confederate Army,� he said. ates in control of Atlanta On Aug. 20, Kilpatrick’s through mid-September. cavalry reached Lovejoy’s Lovejoy’s Station was Station and started their the site of two battles — destroying of supplies. one Aug. 20, 1864, when However the Rebel infanBY RACHEL SHIREY

rshirey@henryherald.com

try appeared and the raiders were forced to fight in the vicinity of Nash Farm Battlefield on the ClaytonHenry line before managing to escape.

The railroad line was back in operation two days later and the Battle of Jonesborough would take place from Aug. 31 to Sept. 1 to finish the job.

However, because Maj. Gen. David S. Stanley was late during the fight in Jonesborough, the advantage was temporarily lost.

Bonner said Sherman, in an attempt to punish Stanley, sent his army to a face off with the Confederates under the command of Gen. John Bell Hood at Lovejoy’s Station for the second battle.

“I love the way generals think,� Bonner said. “‘I’m going to punish Stanley for not showing up in Jonesborough, so I’m going to send his army against the whole Confederate Army so they can get slaughtered. So you’re going to spank me for something someone else did.’�

Shortly after the battle, Sherman ended his Atlanta campaign and pulled back, while the Confederate Army camped around Lovejoy’s Station and the Crawford Plantation through mid-September. “You can see the historical markers right there at McDonough Road, Jonesboro Road, all in that area in there,� Bonner said. “That’s where the infantry

battle was fought. There’s actually Union soldiers and Confederate soldiers buried on the property there on the corner of Jonesboro Road and Freeman Road.�

In 2010, the National Park Service released a report that identified the Lovejoy’s Station battlefield as one of eight tier II battlefields in Georgia where “comprehensive preservation� was still possible. The report states the battlefield is “badly fragmented� however, because of growth in the area.

Still, there were 1,179 acres from the battlefield in Clayton and Henry counties that could be eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places, according to the

report. Nash Farm Battlefield Park, on the county line, accounts for about 204 of those acres.

Bonner said that, even though the battle at Lovejoy’s Station wasn’t a game changer during the course of the war, it’s still part of the local heritage. “It (the war) changed the face of our country,� he said. “It decided some issues for slavery and states’ rights and whether we’d be calling ourselves a bunch of city states like South America, or the United States. We need to remember it and the sacrifices made on both sides.�

And of course, the battles that would continue to be fought for a cause, such as the March to the Sea.

MARCH TO THE SEA

Sherman’s taking the South: A ‘rebirth of freedom’ legion of Union soldiers through the Deep South.

He wrote about its brutalJONESBORO — In this ity in a letter to the city. city where cranes tower over “You cannot qualify war growing skyscrapers and in harsher terms than I will,� international commercial Sherman said. “War is crueljets float down over busy ty, and you cannot refine it; interstate highways, there are and those who brought war but a few traces of war dotinto our country deserve all ting its landscape — ghostly the curses and maledictions remembrances of its former a people can pour out.� condition.

In September 1864, SherAtlanta was in the 19th man brought Atlanta to its century considered the knees. Having evidence of railroad hub of the south the effects of psychological with a wealth and producwarfare in taking Atlanta, tion scarcely touched by the Sherman endeavored to Civil War. But that changed “March to the Sea,� Nov. 15 in 1864, when Maj. Gen. through Dec. 21, with this William T. Sherman led his proven means to an end. He

BY JOHNNY JACKSON

jjackson@news-daily.com

sent troops to Macon and Augusta but they bypassed those cities and headed to Milledgeville, which was the state Capital, and Savannah.

Historian Peter Bonner said Sherman’s attitude appeared to be one of finding the simplest way to an end and win the war waged in the South. It was psychological.

Bonner said by depriving starving residents of food and raiding their supplies, Sherman’s commanders weakened morale across the Confederacy where, if soldiers themselves were not hungry, they were worried about their families back home.

Historian Eugene Hatfield

said this slash-and-burn method served a tactical purpose added to the symbolism in taking Atlanta. “Sherman had split his army into three elements and they stretched a broad swath of Georgia,� said Hatfield. “They marched south well-equipped and with much larger forces. Union forces bushwhacked their way through the Deep South. “Sherman left behind him wasted farms,� he said. “You’d see chimneys standing where there were no farms left. They lived off the land, and they made southern families howl,

literally. It took years and years and years to get out of that grinding poverty made by Sherman’s March to the Sea. He accomplished what he set out to do. And that was to bring the South to its knees.�

Hatfield said Atlanta represented a symbol that Sherman needed to capture, an image that got the attention of the world. “I think the fact that this nation was reunited — that as Lincoln said, a rebirth of freedom occurred and while it was imperfect and while great problems and challenges remained, we remained united,� said

Hatfield.

The preceding narrative was compiled from reference materials found online, at the Georgia Archives in Morrow and through interviews with historians Peter Bonner of Hampton and Eugene Hatfield of Jonesboro.

Bonner is a historian, storyteller, historical tour guide and and public speaker. Hatfield is the former chairman of the Georgia Civil War Commission and a member of the Civil War Round Table of Atlanta. He served 29 years as a history professor at Clayton State University.

Butts County along route to river crossing during 1864 march

BY MICHAEL DAVIS mdavis@myjpa.com

After leaving McDonough by separate routes, with a division of engineers heading east on the Keys Ferry Road to eastern Henry County and northern Butts County’s Worthville area, Union Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard’s southbound corps split again in Locust Grove.

All three columns of the Right Wing were headed toward Planters’ Factory near Seven Islands at the Ocmulgee River where they would cross into Jasper County. The crossing would take from Nov. 18 until Nov. 20, 1864.

According to Civil War historian Jimmie Hobgood, the vice president of the Butts County Historical Society, Howard trav-

This wood print shows Union soldiers destroying rail lines during an unspecified leg of Sherman’s March to the Sea through central and middle Georgia. During the march, Sherman sent troops through Clayton, Henry and Butts counties. (Image courtesy Library of Congress)

eled with a division from Locust Grove into Jackson via the Sylvan Grove Plantation, part of which is now the site of Sylvan Grove Hospital. “When Howard arrived in Jackson, the last wag-

ons of his column were leaving Locust Grove,�

Hobgood said.

Howard’s men had been harassed and fired upon along the route toward Jackson by local residents, according to Hobgood,

and when the troops arrived they burned the town.

Jackson became the Right Wing’s headquarters Nov. 17, 1864, according to a Georgia Civil War Heritage Trails Inc.

publication.

The other group departing Locust Grove continued south toward the High Falls area, setting camp near the site of Liberty Baptist Church, Hobgood said, before turning east toward Indian Springs on Nov. 18, where the three groups that made up the entire federal Right Wing — about 33,000 men and cavalry — would meet to begin crossing the Ocmulgee River.

Hobgood said the engineers, about 8,000, were sent along a different route to avoid congestion and because materials they carried to build the pontoon bridges at the Ocmulgee crossing would damage the roads ahead of the wagons, canons, herd of cattle and other supplies being moved by the Right Wing. The engineers

camped at Worthville the night of Nov. 17 and moved toward Planters’ Factory the next morning to begin laying the pontoon bridges.

According to a Georgia Historical Commission historical marker on the Jackson town square that details the crossing of the Ocmulgee, the Right Wing moved from in and near Jackson the morning of Nov. 18 to begin the crossing at Seven Islands. The engineers and pontoons arrived by 11 a.m. and by 1 p.m. two bridges were ready for the Right Wing to begin its crossing.

Heavy rains, however, had made the steep east bank of the river difficult to climb and the troops didn’t clear the bridges until the afternoon of Nov. 20, according to the marker.

3B r WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014

OFXT EBJMZ DPN r IFOSZIFSBME DPN r NZKQB DPN

Priest killed at Jonesborough holds historical significance

BY CURT YEOMANS

troops along his way. “He wasn’t going there to replace him, but that’s how JONESBORO — While he got around,� said Bucsek. the Battle of Jonesbor“He got credentials to travel ough is known as the final because nobody, even the battle that led to fall of priests, was allowed to move Atlanta, there is another around back then. But if way in which the fight was you had credentials and you significant. could show that, you could Among the trading of move around, and that’s how rifle and artillery fire, there he got through the (Union) was a Catholic priest from lines and everything. He was Bavaria. This priest’s story pretty sharp on what he did.� would end up being so sigBucsek and Bonner said nificant that the archbishop Bliemel met up with the of Atlanta — the leader of Confederate Army around all Catholics in the metro Chattanooga or Dalton after area — is expected to visit the Battle of Chickamauga.

Jonesboro this weekend Bonner said Bliemel to preside over a mass was assigned to the 10th commemorating the 150th Tennessee, which didn’t anniversary of his death.

The Knights of Columbus chapter at St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church in Jonesboro commissioned this watercolor have the best reputation.

After his death, he painting of Emmeran Bliemel’s death in the early 1980s. The priest was killed by a Union cannonball during the He traveled with the Army Battle of Jonesborough. (Image courtesy of the Knights of Columbus) would find himself tied to through Georgia and a famous Old West gunended up at Jonesborough. slinger and a well-known at its assembly hall on the Nashville in a bind and Bliemel’s death came American author. church property. that ultimately opened the while he was kneeling That priest was EmBliemel’s ties to the door for Bliemel to join over a dying Col. William meran Bliemel. He was Civil War began long the Army, said Bonner.

Grace. He was adminisdecapitated by a cannon before he got to JonesThe commander went tering Last Rites when a ball while performing his borough and illustrate his to the archdiocese and Union cannonball deduties as a chaplain with wily side. asked church leaders to capitated him somewhere the Confederate Army on Bucsek and local hisdo something to stop him between the present day the first day of the battle. torian Peter Bonner, who from breaking the law. sites of St. Philip Benizi “The thing is he’s the has portrayed Bliemel at “He said, ‘I’m going to and First Baptist Church first military chaplain re-enactments in the past, have to execute this guy of Jonesboro, said Bucsek. to die in action in any said the priest was leadat some point, but if I do He was buried in the American battle,� said ing a parish in Nashville that, I won’t ever be able yard of the Holliday Ed Bucsek, a member of before he joined the army. to go home again because family, a Catholic family the Knights of ColumBonner said Bliemel my sister is a nun and living on the present day bus chapter at St. Philip — who had been tryif I execute a priest, my site of the Historic ClayBenizi Catholic Church in ing unsuccessfully to family won’t ever have me ton County Courthouse.

Jonesboro. “He’s not the get permission from the back for supper,’� Bonner By being buried in the first to serve. There were Archdiocese of Nashville said. “So with the pushing Hollidays’ yard, he would other priests who served to join the Confederate of the Yankee commander become tied to two of before him in other actions Army — regularly found and Father Bliemel asking their relatives who would but none of them were ever himself in hot water with and asking, finally the later go on to achieve killed.�

Union Army leaders who archdiocese said ‘OK, fame: Doc Holliday and Bucsek is organizing the oversaw Nashville after get out of here’ and he Margaret Mitchell.

Knights of Columbus Emits capture early in the rode out of Nashville on a Bliemel’s body was meran Bliemel Assembly’s war. Bliemel, Bonner said, mule.� later moved twice. He was events to commemorate was frequently arrested Bucsek said Bliemel first moved to the Patrick The Rev. Emmeran Bliemel shortly before his death Bliemel’s death Aug. 30. while trying to smuggle carried paperwork that Cleburne Confederate The activities will medicine to hospitalized said he was being sent Cemetery in downtown include a military service a.m. Bucsek said a mass Philip Benizi, 591 Flint Confederate soldiers. to replace another priest, Jonesboro, but he was at the Historic Clayton presided over by ArchRiver Road. The Knights His status as a Cathonamed Orango, in Teneventually moved again County Courthouse, 121 S. bishop Wilton Gregory of Columbus chapter will lic priest put the Union nessee so that he would to a Benedictine parish in McDonough St., at 10:30 will follow at noon at St. host a luncheon at 2 p.m. commander in charge of not be stopped by Union Alabama. cyeomans@news-daily.com

Coleman Thompson, left, of the 16th Georgia Jackson’s Rifles re-enactment unit and Joe McElroy, of the Ninth Georgia, re-enact Kilpatricks Raid at Nash Farm on Saturday.

(Staff Photo: Curt Yeomans)

r'SPN 1BHF # their tails between their legs, trying to get back to Sherman,� Tedder later added.

Fellow re-enactor Micah Skelton said even in failure, Kilpatrick’s Raid set off a domino effect that would be felt across Clayton, Henry and Butts counties over the next few months.

Hatfield wrote in his essay that Sherman decided to send his troops en masse to cut the rail line at Jonesborough after Kilpatrick’s failure. Historians generally agree that Sherman’s victory at Jonesborough caused Confederate troops to evacuate Atlanta hours later.

That was quickly followed by the Battle of Lovejoy’s Station and months later, Sherman began his famous March to the Sea. But Skelton said the dominoes would have fallen anyway even if Kilpatrick’s Raid hadn’t occurred. “It made a lot of difference in terms of how soon Atlanta fell, but if he hadn’t come down here, it maybe would have been five more days,� said Skelton.

Kilpatrick

Confederate ‘soldier’ Morgan Reeves staggers about after being ‘shot’ during a re-enactment of Kilpatrick’s Raid at Nash Farm in Hampton Sunday. Union cavalry reenactor Steve Fox rides up behind Reeves to make sure he doesn’t try to “escape.� (Staff Photo: Curt Yeomans)

4B r WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014

OFXT EBJMZ DPN r IFOSZIFSBME DPN r NZKQB DPN

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014 r 5B

DID YOU KNOW? ‡ 'XULQJ WKH ÀUVW GD\ RI WKH EDWWOH %DYDU LDQ &DWKROLF 3ULHVW (PPHUDQ %OLHPHO EHFDPH WKH RQO\ FKDSODLQ EHOLHYHG WR KDYH EHHQ NLOOHG LQ D QRQ FRPEDW UROH GXULQJ WKH &LYLO :DU %OLHPHO ZDV DGPLQLVWHULQJ ODVW ULJKWV WR D G\LQJ &RQIHGHUDWH FRORQHO SRVVLEO\ DURXQG SUHVHQW GD\ )OLQW 5LYHU 5RDG ZKHQ KH ZDV GHFDSLWDWHG E\ D 8QLRQ FDQQRQEDOO +H ZDV LQLWLDOO\ EXULHG LQ WKH IURQW \DUG RI D &DWKROLF FRXVLQ RI ´*RQH :LWK WKH :LQG¾ DXWKRU 0DU JDUHW 0LWFKHOO 7KH +LVWRULF &OD\WRQ &RXQW\ &RXUWKRXVH QRZ VLWV RQ WKDW VLWH ‡ 6L[ 0HGDOV RI +RQRU ZHUH DZDUGHG IRU DFWLRQV WDNHQ GXULQJ WKH %DWWOH RI -RQHVERU RXJK 7ZR RI WKHP ZHUH DZDUGHG IRU DFWLRQV WDNHQ WKH ÀUVW GD\ 7KH UHPDLQLQJ IRXU ZHUH DZDUGHG IRU ÀJKWLQJ LQ WKH IURQW \DUG RI WKH :DUUHQ +RXVH RQ WKH VHFRQG GD\ ‡ &RQIHGHUDWH $OOHQ &DQGOHU FRXVLQ RI &R FD &ROD LQYHQWRU $VD &DQGOHU ORVW DQ H\H LQ WKH %DWWOH RI -RQHVERURXJK EXW VXUYLYHG WKH ZDU +H HYHQWXDOO\ EHFDPH *HRUJLDҋV JRYHU QRU DQG ODWHU VHUYHG DV WKH VWDWHҋV ÀUVW DUFKL YLVW ,Q WKH *HRUJLD $UFKLYHV PRYHG WR 0RUURZ ³ D IHZ PLOHV QRUWK RI -RQHVERUR ‡ 1RQH RI WKH WRPEVWRQHV LQ WKH 3DWULFN &OHEXUQH &RQIHGHUDWH &HPHWDU\ DUH OLNHO\ ORFDWHG RYHU WKH ERG\ WKH\ ZHUH LQVWDOOHG IRU 7KLV LV EHFDXVH LW LV HVWLPDWHG WKHUH DUH PRUH WKDQ XQLGHQWLÀHG &RQIHGHUDWH VROGLHUV EXULHG LQ WKH FHPHWHU\ DQG QR RQH LV VXUH ZKHUH VSHFLÀF VROGLHUV DUH EXULHG

%DWWOH RI (]UD &KXUFK $XJ

$WODQWD

81,21 3(5,0(7(5

F

rom Aug. 31 to Sept. 1, 1864, Union and Confederate forces fought the Battle of Jonesborough, as Jonesboro’s name was then spelled. The objective was to cut off the Macon & Western Rail Road, the last supply line for Confederates entrenched in Atlanta, said historian Peter Bonner, owner of Historical & Hysterical Tours/ peterbonner.com. The Union won the battle and forced an immediate evacuation of Atlanta by Confederate troops. Historians and Civil War scholars believe the fall of Atlanta, in turn, guaranteed Abraham Lincoln’s re-election as president, said Bonner.

&21)('(5$7( 3(5,0(7(5

6c Ko

Àe O dҋ

s

0a

5RXJK DQG 5HDG\

rcK

TK

o

P

as

Ň‹0

arcK

+oZardҋs 0arcK

%DWWOH RI -RQHVERURXJK 'D\ 7ZR 6HSW

%DWWOH RI -RQHVERURXJK 'D\ 2QH $XJ

Mid to Late August, 1864 8QLRQ %ULJ *HQ -XGVRQ .LOSDWULFN OHDGV D FDYDOU\ UDLG LQ -RQHVERURXJK $XJ DLPHG DW GHVWUR\LQJ WKH ODVW UDLO OLQH OHDGLQJ LQWR $WODQWD 5DLOV DUH GXJ XS DQG EHQW .LOSDWULFN LV DOVR EHOLHYHG WR KDYH FODVKHG ZLWK &RQIHGHU DWH IRUFHV DURXQG 1DVK )DUP LQ D VHSDUDWH UDLG DURXQG WKLV VDPH WLPH 7KH UDLO OLQHV DUH UHSDLUHG DQG RSHUDWLRQDO DJDLQ E\ WKH IROORZLQJ PRUQLQJ $PRQJ WKH EXLOGLQJV VKRZQ LQ D ZRRG FDUYLQJ RI .LOSDWULFNŇ‹V 5DLG ZKLFK ZDV SXEOLVKHG LQ +DUSHUŇ‹V :HHNO\ LV WKH %ODORFN +RXVH ZKLFK LV VWLOO VWDQGLQJ RQ 0DLQ 6WUHHW 8QLRQ 0DM *HQ :LOOLDP 7 6KHUPDQ GHFLGHV WR VHQG KLV IRUFHV HQ PDVV WR -RQHVERURXJK WR FXW RII WKH UDLO OLQH $ERXW 8QLRQ WURRSV DUH VHQW WR WKH WRZQ &RQIHGHUDWH *HQ -RKQ % +RRG JHWV ZRUG WKDW WURRSV DUH PRYLQJ WRZDUG -RQHVERURXJK EXW EHOLHYHV LW LV D VPDOO UDLGLQJ SDUW\ +H VHQGV /W *HQ :LOOLDP - +DUGHH DQG /W *HQ 6WHSKHQ ' /HH ZLWK D FRPELQHG WURRSV WR GHIHQG WKH FLW\

DAY ONE — AUG. 31 Morning/Afternoon — &RQIHGHUDWH IRUFHV EHJLQ ÀULQJ XSRQ 8QLRQ WURRSV FDPSHG RXW DORQJ WKH )OLQW 5LYHU QHDU WKH SUHVHQW GD\ VLWH RI ( - 6ZLQW (OHPHQWDU\ 6FKRRO %RWK VLGHV WUDGH ÀUH LQ WKLV DUHD WKURXJKRXW WKH UHPDLQGHU RI WKH GD\ Evening — 7KH UHPDLQLQJ &RQIHGHUDWH IRUFHV SXOO EDFN LQWR -RQHVERURXJK DQG EHJLQ GLJJLQJ LQ DORQJ WKH HDVWHUQ DQG QRUWKHUQ VLGHV RI WRZQ LQ DQ XSVLGH GRZQ ´/¾ VKDSHG VDOLHQW DQJOH VWUHWFKLQJ DSSUR[LPDWHO\ IURP DSSUR[LPDWH O\ DURXQG SUHVHQW GD\ (DVW 0LPRVD 'ULYH WR /HH 6WUHHW (OHPHQWDU\ 6FKRRO 7KH KLQJH LV DW 7KH :DUUHQ +RXVH

+,6725,&$/ 0$5.(5

Late evening — 8QLRQ 0DM *HQ :LOOLDP 7 6KHUPDQ DUULYHV LQ -RQHVERURXJK +H ZLOO RYHUVHH WKH UHPDLQGHU RI WKH EDWWOH IURP WKH DUHD MXVW ZHVW RI WKH SUHVHQW GD\ VLWH RI WKH LQWHUVHFWLRQ RI 7DUD %RXOHYDUG DQG 1RUWK $YHQXH

‡ 7ZR ZRPHQ LQ -RQHVERURXJK ZHQW LQWR ODERU LQ WKH PLGGOH RI WKH EDWWOH 2QH ZRPDQ OLYHG LQ WKH OLQH RI 8QLRQ DUWLOOHU\ ÀUH $ FDQ QRQEDOO FUDVKHG WKURXJK WKH EHGURRP ZDOO RI WKH RWKHU ZRPDQҋV KRPH WKHQ WKURXJK KHU EHGҋV KHDGERDUG DQG ODQGHG LQ KHU ÀUHSODFH 7KH ZRPDQҋV IDWKHU ZDYHG D ZKLWH à DJ IURP WKH KRXVH ZKLFK XOWLPDWHO\ FDXVHG 8QLRQ 0DM *HQ -RKQ $ ´%ODFNMDFN¾ /RJDQ ³ ZKR ODWHU FRPPLVVLRQHG WKH $WODQWD &\FORUDPD ³ WR WDNH KLV GRFWRU DQG FKDSODLQ WR GHOLYHU WKH EDE\ JLUO ZKR ZDV QDPHG 6KHOO $QQLH 7LGZHOO ‡ 7KH RWKHU SUHJQDQW ZRPDQ ZKR OLYHG LQ ZKDW LV QRZ WKH :HOOV )DUJR %DQN RQ 6RXWK 0DLQ 6WUHHW ZDV DEDQGRQHG E\ KHU IDPLO\ DQG D QHLJKERU ZKR IRXQG KHU HYDFXDWHG KHU IURP WRZQ 6KH GLHG ZKLOH JLYLQJ ELUWK WR KHU VRQ LQ WKH QHLJKERUҋV ZDJRQ ‡ $OWKRXJK WKH 6WDWHO\ 2DNV 3ODQWDWLRQ KRXVH LV LQ WKH VRXWKHDVW FRUQHU RI WKH WRZQ LW ZDV ORFDWHG QRUWK RI WRZQ GXULQJ WKH EDWWOH DQG ZDV WKHUHIRUH QRW LQ WKH OLQH RI ÀUH +RZ HYHU 8QLRQ WURRSV ZHUH DVVLJQHG WR JXDUG WKH KRXVH DIWHU LW ZDV UDQVDFNHG DURXQG WKH WLPH RI WKH EDWWOH ‡ 7KHUH DUH UHSRUWV WKDW 8QLRQ VROGLHUV URGH WKHLU KRUVHV LQWR RQH KRPH LQ -RQHVERURXJK DQG WRRN D à DJ D IDPLO\ %LEOH DQG D WRUWRLVH VKHOO FDUG FDVH IURP WKH IDPLO\ WKDW OLYHG WKHUH 7KH %LEOH DQG FDUG FDVH ZHUH UHWXUQHG WR WKH IDPLO\ 7KH à DJ KRZHYHU HYHQWXDOO\ IRXQG LWV ZD\ WR WKH VWDWH &DSLWRO ZKHUH LW LV LQ SLHFHV DQG QRW RQ GLVSOD\ ‡ 7KH WRZQ RI &OHEXUQH 7H[DV LV QDPHG IRU &RQIHGHUDWH 0DM *HQ 3DWULFN &OHEXUQH

CONFEDERATE MAJOR PLAYERS

UNION MAJOR PLAYERS

24,000 troops 2,000 casualties

70,000 troops 1,149 casualties

Lt. Gen. William J. Hardee

Lt. Gen. Stephen D. Lee

Maj. Gen. Patrick K. Ronayne Cleburne

Source: Peter Bonner, owner Historical & Hysterical Tours/Peterbonner.com

Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman

Maj. Gen. John A. “Blackjack� Logan

Maj. Gen. Oliver Howard

COME SEE ONE OF OUR AGENTS AT THE CLAYTON COUNTY FARM BUREAU AND DISCOVER HOW MUCH MORE WE ARE THAN JUST ANOTHER INSURANCE COMPANY!

Brig. Gen. Jefferson C. Davis

DAY TWO — SEPT. 1

CALL TODAY FOR MORE INFORMATION 770-478-3317

Overnight — /HH DQG KLV FRUSV ³ DERXW KDOI RI WKH &RQIHGHUDWH IRUFHV DW -RQHVERURXJK ³ DUH UHFDOOHG WR $WODQWD E\ +RRG ZKR LV XQDZDUH RI WKH ÀJKWLQJ WKDW WRRN SODFH $XJ /HH EHJLQV KLV WUHN DW DERXW D P 7KLV PRYH OHDYHV RQO\ DERXW &RQIHGHUDWH WURRSV WR GHIHQG -RQHVERURXJK GXULQJ WKH UHPDLQGHU RI WKH EDWWOH Early Morning — 6KHOOLQJ DQG SLFNHW ÀUH EHJLQV EHIRUH VXQULVH DURXQG 7KH :DUUHQ +RXVH 8QLRQ OLQHV DUH RSSRVLWH WKH &RQIHGHUDWHV DQG DUH DV IDU QRUWK DV WKH SUHVHQW GD\ VLWH RI -RQHVERUR +LJK 6FKRRO 7KH KLQJH RI WKH 8QLRQ OLQH LV DURXQG WKH SUHVHQW GD\ VLWH RI WKH &OD\WRQ &RXQW\ 3XEOLF 6FKRROV $GPLQLVWUDWLRQ %XLOGLQJ Afternoon — 8QLRQ IRUFHV EUHDN WKURXJK WKH &RQIHGHUDWH OLQHV DW 7KH :DUUHQ +RXVH 7URRSV IURP ERWK VLGHV UHVRUW WR KDQG WR KDQG FRPEDW LQ WKH KRXVHҋV IURQW \DUG $ERXW &RQIHGHUDWHV WURRSV XQGHU WKH FRPPDQG RI %ULJ *HQ 'DQLHO *RYDQ LQFOXGLQJ *RYDQ KLPVHOI DUH FDSWXUHG DW WKH KRXVH Evening — +DUGHH DQG KLV IRUFHV UHWUHDW WR /RYHMR\ 6WDWLRQ DIWHU QLJKWIDOO :LWK -RQHVERURXJK LQ UXLQV ³ DQG LQ 8QLRQ KDQGV ³ +RRG HYDFXDWHV $WODQWD /HH EHJLQV D FRXQWHU PDUFK VRXWKZDUG +H DQG +RRG HYHQWXDOO\ PHHW XS ZLWK +DUGHH DW /RYHMR\ 6WDWLRQ Sources: Peter Bonner, owner Historical & Hysterical Tours/Peterbonner.com; The Road To Tara Museum; the Georgia Historical Society and The Campaign for Atlanta by William R. Scaife.

THE AFTERMATH Sept. 2-6

The Battle of Lovejoy Station takes place around the Crawford Plantation, which is a few hundred yards north of the Clayton-Henry County border. The Crawford Plantation house is now known as the Crawford-Talmadge House. Hood stayed at the house after he evacuated Atlanta.

Early November Sherman begins his March to the Sea. Forces under the commands of Kilpatrick and Maj. Gen. Oliver Howard begin by moving through Clayton and Henry counties. Howard moves through Morrow Station and fights skirmishes around Stockbridge. Kilpatrick moves along the Flint River and fights skirmishes around Lovejoy Station and Bear Creek Station (present-day Hampton) before turning toward McDonough, where he meets up with Howard at Walnut Creek.

Fiddle-Dee-Dee! Let’s Have Tea!

20 PER PERSON

$

Gone with the Wind Christmas Tea-at Stately Oaks 100 Carriage Lane, Jonesboro, Georgia December 6 - 2:00 p.m.

Call 770-473-0197 for reservations

208892-­1

CIVIL WAR/ VINTAGE Memorabilia Antique Guns Antique Books (t"t3 UCV

Period Artwork

Pins/Buttons Ammunition Purses Furniture

Gerhardt’s World, LLC

.BDPO 4USFFU t .D%POPVHI ("

207523-­1

6B r WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014

OFXT EBJMZ DPN r IFOSZIFSBME DPN r NZKQB DPN

‘Gone With the Wind’

Mitchell’s masterpiece still a moneymaker for Clayton

BY KATHY JEFCOATS

Scarlett decides to go into Atlanta to ask Rhett Butler for the money to pay taxes JONESBORO — In on Tara after the war ends.

Clayton County, tomorrow “The hat even has a isn’t just another day, it’s chicken’s foot on it because another day to benefit from the one in the movie did,� being the fictional home of Conroy said.

Scarlett O’Hara.

In the same display as As people around the the curtain dress is a settee world know, Miss Scarlett is actually used in the movie. the heroine of the most be“We do have original loved work of fiction ever to items here,� she said. “It’s grace a bookshelf — “Gone great to have interesting With The Wind.� pieces and people love to The 1939 Atlanta presee the costumes.� miere of the film adaptation The museum recently got of Margaret Mitchell’s one a donation of a dress worn and only book celebrates its by actress Ann Rutherford, 75th anniversary this year. who portrayed one of ScarAs all fans know, the O’Hara lett’s sisters, Carreen. family plantation is set in “Her daughter donated Jonesboro and much of the it,� Conroy said. “She told book is set in and around us she believed her mothClayton County.

Red velvet seats from Loew’s Theater where “Gone With The Wind� premiered in At- er’s wish was to leave items Clayton County Conven- lanta in 1939. The seats and a section of yellow iron balcony railing are on display at to our museum.� the Road to Tara Museum in Jonesboro. (Staff Photo: Kathy Jefcoats) tion and Visitors Bureau A set of white and blue Director Danielle Conroy pantalets worn by Vivien said those fans from all over more than $1 billion in The Tara plantation is the Battle of Jonesborough Leigh as Scarlett is also on the world visit the Road to 2012, according to Georgia fictional but that doesn’t stop — as the city was spelled display.

Tara Museum every day.

Department of Economic tourists from stopping in at then — and the county’s “These are the acThe guest book includes Development’s numbers. the museum and asking for role in the Civil War. tual ones she wore,� said visitors from New Zealand, Conroy said it isn’t known directions, Conroy said.

But the rest of the Conroy. “We aren’t sure Australia, Japan, China, how many of those dollars However, the museum is museum is devoted to the which scene they were in, England, Sweden, Norway come from “GWTW� fans. a haven for “GWTW� fans. movie, which is always though.� and Finland.

Clayton County’s tourism There is a gift shop where playing on a television set One corner of the “For some reason, we’re industry supports more than porcelain figurines of the into the wall. There are re- museum is devoted to the very popular with Scandi30,000 jobs and generated major characters and other productions of dresses worn Atlanta premiere, including navian countries,� she said. more than $166 million in merchandise promoting the by several actors, including three red velvet seats and a “But we love it, we appreci- state and local tax revenues, movie are sold. Through the green velvet gown fayellow iron balcony railing ate all our visitors.� according to the economic the gift shop is the museum, mously created from “Miss from Loew’s Theater. The Tourism in Clayton drew development numbers. part of which is devoted to Ellen’s portiers� when museum also boasts four kjefcoats@news-daily.com

Historic Jonesboro waltzes through history at Tara Ball

BY CAILIN O’BRIEN

cobrien@news-daily.com

JONESBORO — Dancers didn’t need the dance caller to know the ball had begun.

The room echoed with the clinks of silverware being set down on plates and the soft swishes of hoop skirts brushing the ground as women accepted the hands of suit and uniform-clad officers to begin the grand march — the first dance of the evening.

Several couples sailed around the dance floor as the Eighth Regiment Band played through the dances, but occasional giggles broke out as some less experienced dancers stumbled over large skirts and bumped into each other.

From the perimeter of the dance floor, a man took in the scene through the view finder of his digital camera.

This was the Tara Ball — a reenactment of a typical 19th century ball hosted Historical Jonesboro/Clayton County Inc. in the Eagle’s Landing Country Club Aug. 9.

Historical Jonesboro volunteer Kay Dreyer showed up in her own hoop skirt and declared the night a success. “I think that everybody who was there really enjoyed it and really enjoyed stepping back in time,� she said.

In fact, Dreyer said participants from South Carolina, Florida and as far away as Texas came to enjoy the authentic atmosphere of the first Tara Ball the historical society had hosted in years. “We used to do this annually, but it became such a financial burden that we just simply couldn’t do it anymore,� she said. “But this year was very special.�

This year marks three anniversaries important to Dreyer and the rest of the Jonesboro Historical Society — the 75th anniversary of the film version of Margaret Mitchell’s classic novel, “Gone With The Wind,� the 175th anniversary of the building of Jonesboro’s Stately Oaks Plantation home and the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Jonesborough.

right down to the number of musicians — 14 brass and 20 percussion,� he said. “We call ourselves ‘the living museum of 19th century emotions.’�

The group even dresses the part, wearing a mix of Confederate and Union uniforms as they play tunes on antique instruments that capture what Carruth describes as the more “mellow� sound of the day. “That is one of the main reasons we wanted to get them — because they were a brass band that would be typical of the time,� Dreyer Dancers honor their partners before a dance at the Tara said. “(Ball-goers would expect to hear) a town band Ball Aug. 9. or a military band. Some of Around the time Union a ball in the right fashions that would depend on the soldiers tried to distract the could mean everything. area you were in and what Army of Tennessee long “Having the white gloves was available at the time.� enough to take Atlanta at and fans and the correct hairThe authentic music waftthe Jonesborough’s historistyles — all of that showed ing throughout the country cal battle in 1864, civilians your status,� Dreyer said. club begged for authentic on both home fronts were Those throwing the ball dancing. Luckily, members trying to continue on with could also show their status of Historical Jonesborough’s their lives. by acquiring a talented band. Dance Society were standing Dreyer said the Tara Ball The Jonesboro Historical by to demonstrate and teach paid homage to some of the Society gave itself an exinterested party-goers the fancier of the social dances traordinary reputation the popular dances of the period. held during his era, since it night of the Tara Ball when The team danced the included a sit-down dinner it commissioned an authen- Grand March before leadbefore any dancing began. tic re-enactment band to ing participants from the “It was just like today,� ensure participants enjoyed audience in two waltzes, the she said. “If people went the same music as their 19th Carolina Promenade, the to a really formal ball, then century counterparts.

Virginia Reel and the Patty they’d expect more than just “(The Eighth Regiment Cake Polka. hors d’oeuvres.�

Band) travels all over the “It was expected of most A sit-down dinner proba- U.S. and Canada and it’s people that you would know bly didn’t present much of a a very prestigious thing to the dances,� Dreyer said. challenge to trained, formal have them now,� Dreyer “But you have to understand ladies of the Civil War era, said. “I think the music was that in each region and even but many of the women at one of the highlights of the in different states, they did the Tara Ball pondered how evening.� the same dances a little difto sit down in the traditional The Eighth Regiment ferently.� hoop skirts they were so Band of the Georgia VolThe dancers on the floor unfamiliar with. unteer Infantry is a group of the Eagle’s Landing “It takes a little bit to of musicians that comes to- Country Club may not have get used to how wide you gether under the direction of been as natural as dancers at are,� said Ashleigh Roell, a John Carruth to play music the 19th century balls they Historic Jonesboro volunteer that would have been played were emulating. At least one and one of the dance misby military bands from both woman fell to the ground tresses for the evening. the North and South at the during the Carolina PromRoell was wearing a silky time. enade and more than a few full hoop skirt gown that Carruth began this couples narrowly missed Dreyer said a typical woman modern reenactment of the colliding during at least one would have worn if she were Eighth Regiment Band in of the waltzes. to attend a formal ball in the Rome, Ga., in 1986 when But a look at each particiyears before the Civil War. he was conducting the pants’ flushed face showed Women’s styles tended to Rome Symphony Orchestra. that they were having fun change in the years during After practice one day, he — which was exactly what the war, favoring narrower asked several members of their Civil War-era counterskirts that took up less exthe orchestra to stay after parts had in mind when they pensive fabric. Eventually, practice and work on Civil held balls like this. the bustling look came into War-era music. Slowly, a “I think the people that style. reenactment regiment band came truly experienced what Of course, styles differed was born. it was like to step back into by region — but for women “We recreated a regithe 1800s,� Dreyer said. everywhere, showing up to ment band from the 1860s “And they enjoyed that.�

round portraits of the four major characters that hung on the Richardson Building across from Loew’s — Leigh, Clark Gable, Leslie Howard and Olivia de Havilland. “The premiere was a big to-do in Atlanta,� Conroy said. “It was a state holiday, a three-day premiere. There were different functions the actors participated, including luncheons and balls and the Cyclorama. Clark Gable supposedly joked that everything to do with the war was in the Cyclorama except him.�

Legend has it that one of the artists later painted Gable’s face onto the figure of a dying soldier in the diorama, she said.

Conroy said the interest in “GWTW� seems neverending, which will continue to mean tourism dollars for Clayton County and Jonesboro. “It’s still a phenomenon,� she said. “The museum still attracts people from right down the road and from as far as away as Japan.�

In other words, unlike Rhett Butler, fans still give a damn.

Access www.visitscarlett. com for information about the museum and Road to Tara sites.

Ensuring tomorrow for Tara facade

BY PETER BONNER

peter@peterbonner.com

Desi Arnaz Jr. looked out across his studio lot, once known as Selznick Studios 40 Acres, in 1959 and made the decision to dismantle the Tara facade seen in “Gone Peter Bonner With the Wind.�

Little did he know that he had set in motion a second act for the iconic movie set that would culminate in a dairy barn south of Atlanta.

There were big plans for the Tara facade when it arrived in Atlanta with much fanfare in 1960.

There was an official greeting at the state Capital for the tractor-trailers that held its pieces. A banner stating “Welcome Home Tara� for the facade that had been created and housed in Hollywood but seen by movie-goers all over the world, starting with those in Atlanta at the premiere of “Gone With the Wind� in 1939.

But like many “best laid plans,� a museum for the Tara facade failed to materialize and it was relegated to a barn in north Georgia for the next 20 years.

In 1979, Betty Talmadge — the wife of U.S. Sen. Herman Talmadge — purchased the Tara facade with hopes of displaying it in one of the south metro Atlanta counties with direct ties to Margaret Mitchell’s Pulitzer Prizewinning story of the Old South.

For a while, the interest seemed genuine as a number of counties presented million dollar proposals to create the only museum to Tara in the world. But like the first proposals in 1960, these plans collapsed under their own weight and the facade was left to languish in “Miss Betty’s� dairy barn for the next 30 years.

When I approached the Talmadge family in 2013 with the idea of restoring the Tara facade on their property in Lovejoy and opening it up for tours, I was speaking from my

experience of creating the first and only “Gone With the Wind� Tour.

It is an important artifact of the past and arguably one of the most iconic movie sets so it is important to preserve and restore so it can be visited.

The facade is in pieces so my volunteers and I are going through them to reassemble doors, windows and porches. We match each piece with other parts of that set by following the “ghosts,� which are paint markings and scuffs from its original construction.

After identifying the parts, I personally build all the “flats� which are cradles that hold the windows, shutters and doors upright and off the floor.

My plan was to take it slow, pay for all the work out of my pocket and get help from volunteers rather than follow the previous unfulfilled paths of investors, stakeholders and possible corporate gifts.

The Saving Tara Project, as I call it, will be done with grassroots efforts and will bring the Tara facade to the forefront through social media and word of mouth.

I am guiding tours where visitors can see the pieces of the most iconic of all movie sets, Tara, as it is being restored and displayed in the same old dairy barn on the Talmadge property.

The Tara facade tour is being given by me on particular days each month and by appointment for groups of 20 or more. You can find out more about the facade by visiting www.savingtara.com or on Facebook at Saving Tara.

I can also be contacted regarding the other tours and programs I provide through my website www. peterbonner.com.

Peter Bonner is a local historian and owner of Historical and Hysterical Tours. He was a key contributor to this Battle of Jonesborough website, and more information about his work, including school programs, historic presentations and “Gone With The Wind� tours, can be found on his website, www. peterbonner.com.

OFXT EBJMZ DPN r IFOSZIFSBME DPN r NZKQB DPN

Stately Oaks

WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014 r 7B

Above, Stately Oaks docents participate in a 2002 reenactment of Christmas 1863.

(File photo) Right, former Stately Oaks docent Jim Dowd reads the newspaper in the plantation house’s parlor in July 2008. Dowd passed away about three years ago. (File photo)

Longtime Stately Oaks docent Ted Key with a colleague in this undated photo.

Key, a local historian, passed away two years ago. (File photo)

Local plantation garners national attention

BY CURT YEOMANS

cyeomans@news-daily.com

EDITOR�S NOTE: This story was originally published in the March 15 edition of Clayton News Daily. It has been updated to include new information on the house’s history.

JONESBORO — After 42 years on the National Register of Historic Places, Stately Oaks Plantation finally has something to show for it.

The 1839 plantation house, which has operated as a living history museum since the 1970s, received the plaque that shows it is part of the register during a short ceremony March 14.

The plaque was presented to Historical Jonesboro/Clayton County Inc. officials by Janet Batchelor, a descendant of the house’s builder, Whitmill Allen.

Batchelor and other descendants of Allen bought the more than $600 plaque on behalf of Historical Jonesboro. She was one of four descendants who attended the presentation ceremony. “There’s just an emotional connection for us,�

Janet Batchelor, left center, and Butch Allen, center right, unveiled a National Register of Historic Places plaque for Stately Oaks on March 14. Batchelor and Allen are descendants of the home’s builder, Whitmill Allen. Also pictured is fellow Allen descendant, Carol Allen Dial, left, and Butch Allen’s wife, Maria Allen. (Staff Photo: Curt Yeomans)

said Batchelor. “We can’t be here physically as often as we’d like to be. We could be docents if we lived nearby, but we wanted to have some connection that was visible and that would allow future generations to know about the house.�

The presentation of the plaque came during a key year in Stately Oaks’ history. The plantation house celebrates its 175th birthday this year. It is also being featured on the cover

of Georgia’s state tourism guide this year.

Allen was the home’s builder and original owner, but he is only one of the many residents whose stories are told by Stately Oaks docents. Many of the tales Historical Jonesboro docents tell about the house are tied to the McCord family, which owned the house during the Civil War, and the Orr family who deeded the building to Historical Jonesboro.

Stately Oaks is one of the few buildings in Clayton County that survived the Civil War and the destruction caused during the Battle of Jonesborough in 1864.

However, Stately Oaks has seen changes since the War Between The States.

For at least the first 50 years of its life, the house was known as “The Oaks� but its name was changed by the Orr family to its current moniker sometime after 1889, according to “History

of Clayton County, 18211983.�

Stately Oaks was originally about four miles north of town, near the presentday location of the intersection of Tara Boulevard and Mount Zion Road, said Historical Jonesboro President Barbara Emert during the plaque presentation ceremony. It was moved to 100 Carriage Lane in Jonesboro in 1972.

The new plaque lists the house’s name, when it was built and that it was donated

by Allen’s descendants. “It’s custom,� said Emert. “A lot of them just say this property is on the National Register of Historic Places and don’t say what the property is or anything like that.

But this has all of the names on it, so that really makes it special.�

The Allen family owned the house for nearly 20 years, until it was sold to Robert McCord in 1858, according to “History of Clayton County.� The book shows the McCord family remained in the house through the war, but sold it in 1879.

Around the time of the Battle of Jonesborough,

Union troops also briefly called The Oaks property home. “Northern soldiers camped in the grounds surrounding the McCord home and ordered Mrs. McCord, her daughters and servants to prepare meals for them,� the “History of Clayton County� book states.

Over the next 10 years, the family passed through a couple of owners, but the Orr family bought it in 1889, according to the book.

The register was created by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 and is maintained by the National Park Service, according to the register’s website. It is intended to be “the official list of the nation’s historic places worthy of preservation,� the website states.

The register shows Stately Oaks was added March 16, 1972, and is one of five Clayton County locations listed in its rolls. The other sites are Rex Mill in the Rex village, the Crawford-Dorsey House and Cemetery near Lovejoy, the Jonesboro Historic District and the Orkin Early Quartz Site near Fayetteville.

Sigma Chi monument shows another side to area’s history

BY CURT YEOMANS

cyeomans@news-daily.com

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is reprint of an article that ran in the May 9 edition of Clayton News Daily. It has been updated with new comments from Sigma Chi officials as well as details about the upcoming Constantine Chapter 150th anniversary celebration and plans to renovate the monument.

LOVEJOY — Thousands of drivers pass a white marble cross on a hill overlooking Tara Boulevard just north of Lovejoy every day and it’s possible they may not know why it is there.

A Clayton County Parks and Recreation sign at 11001 Tara Blvd. marks it as the “Sigma Chi Memorial,� but drivers would have to pull off the road and walk up to the granite monument to discover why it is there and what it means. The cross is the symbol of Sigma Chi fraternity.

But residents may ask why the county has a monument dedicated to a college fraternity? Or they may just drive by and not even notice it’s there. “I grew up in Griffin, going back and forth to Atlanta

The white marble cross known as the Sigma Chi Memorial sits on a hill overlooking Tara Boulevard, but many residents may not know the history behind it. The monument, which commemorates a Civil War chapter of the college fraternity, turns 75 this year. (File photo)

and you’d drive by that thing and go, ‘I wonder who’s buried up there?’� said Sigma Chi member Leon McElveen. “You never really knew what it was. I finally rode up there one day and read the one marker we had out there at the time and read that it was the Constantine Chapter of Sigma Chi. “I later went to Georgia Tech, joined Sigma Chi and they gave me the pledge book and I realized what it was all of the sudden and that I’d been there and I’ve been involved with it ever since,� McElveen added.

The monument is there

because it marks the county’s role in what the fraternity considers a significant chapter in its history. It’s a history that ties into events that took place during the Battle of Jonesborough.

It commemorates a shortlived unofficial Sigma Chi chapter that was made up of fraternity members serving in the Confederate army. “The significance of the Constantine Chapter in Sigma Chi fraternity is that these young men, right out of college or some who were still in college, thought enough of the fraternity that they risked their lives to go

outside their campgrounds and initiate two young men,� said monument warden Rob Petry.

Sigma Chi records state a group of Confederate soldiers who were members of the fraternity founded the unofficial Constantine Chapter near the site of the memorial. Confederate troops camped out in the Lovejoy Station area after the fall of Atlanta on Sept. 1.

The soldiers and fraternity brothers, led by a University of Virginia graduate named Harry St. John Dixon, established the chapter Sept.

17, 1864.

A little more than two weeks before that meeting, Jonesborough had fallen to Union troops, which was the final act that led to the fall of Atlanta. But Sigma Chi records show that even as Union troops were sweeping through the area, Sigma Chis were trying to retain their ties to their northern brothers. “They were worried that the north and south would split apart and since most of the fraternity was in the north, they wanted to continue it in the south,� said Petry.

McElveen said several of

the chapter members had fought at Jonesborough.

The chapter also served as a way to give Sigma Chis fighting in the Atlanta campaign a way to keep track of each other, according to the fraternity’s records. “From their meeting sprang new hope for reunifying their fraternity — in the North and South,� the Monuments and Memorials guide states. “Sigma Chi sought unity, even during intense division, and it would survive the Civil War through Dixon’s acts and his inspiration.�

The chapter last met Jan. 1, 1865, fraternity records show.

The chapter’s name was inspired by the Roman Emperor Constantine, who brought Christianity to the Roman Empire and is an inspiration behind Sigma Chi’s ideals, according to fraternity records. Constantine’s cross is the symbol of the fraternity.

The Norman Shield states the memorial was erected 75 years ago this month and it was rededicated in 1979.

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the chapter.

Sigma Chi is planning to commemorate the anniversa-

ry Sept. 27 with a ceremony at 11 a.m. at the memorial, 11095 Tara Blvd. in Lovejoy.

The festivities will include remarks from Sigma Chi officials, a re-enactment of the chapter’s formation, a rededication of the memorial and a barbecue.

Earlier this month, the fraternity got the county commission’s blessing to renovate the memorial park before the ceremony.

The improvements include the refurbishments of the monument’s bronze plaques, replace the concrete pedestal at the memorial with one that is made of either marble or granite, seal coating the driveway and parking area, add picnic tables and benches, adding engraved brick pavers, adding flowering bushes and evergreen bushes around the monument and possibly repairing the park’s irrigation system to a working condition, according to county documents.

Another proposed renovation on the fraternity’s wish list is the replacement of the existing pea gravel shieldshaped base with one made of either bluestone or a similar material to replicate the fraternity’s shield.

8B r WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 27, 2014

OFXT EBJMZ DPN r IFOSZIFSBME DPN r NZKQB DPN

Salute Jonesboro’s Heritage 175th Anniversary of Stately Oaks 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Jonesborough 75th Anniversary of Gone with the Wind movie release

EVENTS and LOCATIONS: Stately Oaks Plantation, Normal entrance fees apply

t 4BUVSEBZ BOE 4VOEBZ BOE BN o QN

t $BSSJBHF -BOF KVTU Pò +PEFDP 3E

t 5IF QMBOUBUJPO BMTP LOPXO BT .BSHBSFU .JUDIFMM .FNPSJBM 1BSL XJMM CF iB CV[[w XJUI BDUJWJUJFT PO CPUI 4BUVSEBZ BOE 4VOEBZ 4FF IPX CPUI DJWJMJBO MJGF BOE NJMJUBSZ MJGF XFSF EVSJOH UIF $JWJM 8BS 3FFOBDUNFOUT QSFTFOUFE CZ UIF OE #/ (" 4IBSQTIPPUFST 4PMEJFST "JE 4PDJFUZ BOE UIF .FEJDBM 6OJU PG (" %JW PG 3F FOBDUPST 7JTJUPST DBO TFF IPX UIF TPMEJFST MJWFE CZ WJTJUJOH UIFJS FODBNQNFOU 5IFSF XJMM CF IPVTF UPVST DPPLJOH BOE EBODJOH EFNPT BVUIFOUJD QFSJPE BSUT DSBGUT HBNF QMBZJOH BOE NVDI NPSF

t Special events:

t o $PPLJOH %FNP

t o 1PTUBM DBODFMMBUJPO DPNNFNPSBUJOH UIF UI̓"OOJWFSTBSZ PG UIF #BUUMF PG +POFTCPSP BOE UIF UI̓"OOJWFSTBSZ PG 4UBUFMZ 0BLT 1MBOUBUJPO -*.*5&% &%*5*0/ o $PMMFDUPS *UFNT 4BUVSEBZ POMZ

t o 'JSJOH %FNP

t o 3FFOBDUNFOU i'PSHPU UP -PDL UIF %PPSw

t o 'JSJOH %FNP

t o 3FFOBDUNFOU i1SPUFDUJPO GSPN .BSBVEFSTw

t o %BODF %FNP t "MM EBZ FWFOUT .FEJDBM EJTQMBZ $BNQ MJGF $JWJMJBO -JGF )PVTF UPVST UPVST CFHJO PO UIF IPVS BOE UIF MBTU UPVS CFHJOT BU QN

t 5PVS UIF POF SPPN TDIPPM IPVTF $SFFL *OEJBO WJMMBHF QMBOUBUJPO T DPPL IPVTF UFOBOU GBSN DBCJO XFMM IPVTF BOE +VEEZ T DPVOUSZ TUPSF t +VEEZ T 4UPSF JT TUJMM JO PQFSBUJPO BOE PQFO UP UIF QVCMJD (P SJHIU JO BOE CVZ B $PLF .PPOTIJOF +FMMZ CPPLT DPVSUJOH DBOEMFT (POF XJUI UIF 8JOE HJGUT BOE PSOBNFOUT BOE TP NVDI NPSF t XXX )JTUPSJDBM+POFTCPSP PSH Road to Tara Museum o %JTDPVOU Pò BENJTTJPO JG ZPV NFOUJPO UIJT BE

t 4BUVSEBZ o BN o QN

t / .BJO 4U MPDBUFE JO UIF )JTUPSJD 5SBJO %FQPU

t i8IFUIFS ZPV SF B (POF XJUI UIF 8JOE GBO PS IJTUPSZ CVò UIF 3PBE UP 5BSB .VTFVN CPBTUT JUFNT GSPN UIF GBNPVT NPWJF BOE CPPL BMPOH XJUI BSUJGBDUT GSPN UIF $JWJM 8BS 4FF UIF QSPHSFTTJPO GSPN UIF SFBM IJTUPSZ PG UIF $JWJM 8BS T "UMBOUB $BNQBJHO BOE UIF #BUUMF PG +POFTCPSP UP .BSHBSFU .JUDIFMM T BOE )PMMZXPPE T (POF 8JUI UIF 8JOE w

t XXX WJTJUTDBSMFUU DPN Jonesboro’s Farmers’ Market

t 4BUVSEBZ BN OPPO

t -PDBUFE JO UIF DJUZ T QBSLJOH MPU PO 8 .JMM 4U KVTU XFTU PG .BJO 4U

t :PV MM öOE TVDI UIJOHT BT GSFTI GSVJUT WFHFUBCMFT QJDLMFT IPOFZ BSUT BOE DSBGUT Jonesboro Fire House Museum and Community Center o /P DIBSHF

t 4BUVSEBZ BN o QN

t 8 .JMM 4U

t $PNF MFBSO BCPVU UIF IJTUPSZ PG UIF +POFTCPSP 7PMVOUFFS 'JSF %FQBSUNFOU

t -PPL UISPVHI QIPUPHSBQIT UP WJTVBMJ[F UIF IJTUPSZ PG +POFTCPSP BOE JUT QFPQMF

t 4JU B TQFMM UP SFMBY XIJMF ZPV FOKPZ MJHIU SFGSFTINFOUT BOE HPPE DPOWFSTBUJPO Patrick R. Cleburne Confederate Cemetery o /P DIBSHF

t 0QFO EBJMZ GSPN EBXO EVTL

t -PDBUFE PO UIF DPSOFST PG / .D%POPVHI 4U BOE +PIOTPO 4U

t $PNF QBZ USJCVUF UP PWFS $POGFEFSBUF TPMEJFST XIP GPVHIU BOE EJFE JO JO UIF #BUUMF PG +POFTCPSP Warren House o

t 4BUVSEBZ QN o QN

t 8FTU .JNPTB %S BU UIF DPSOFS PG )XZ

t $PNF ESFTTFE JO QFSJPE DPTUVNF OPU SFRVJSFE

t %PO U NJTT UIJT o UIF IPVTF IBT OPU CFFO PQFO GPS UPVST JO PWFS ZFBST

t 4FF UIF IPVTF JO TUZMF XJUI HVJEFE UPVST CZ EPDFOUT JO QFSJPE ESFTT

t 4FF XIBU TPMEJFST XIP GPVHIU JO UIF #BUUMF PG +POFTCPSP XSPUF PO UIF XBMMT XIJDI BUUSBDUFE UIF BUUFOUJPO PG .BSHBSFU .JUDIFMM

t &OKPZ B EFMJDJPVT #BS # 2 EJOOFS

t %BODF PS KVTU UBQ ZPVS UPFT UP FSB BOE NPEFSO NVTJD QMBZFE CZ #JMM 5VSQJO BOE 5IF 4IPVMEFSCPOF $SFFL 0SDIFTUSB

t XXX XBSSFOIPVTF OFU

CIVIL WAR Reenactment

LIVE MUSIC

BAR-B-QUE DINNER S R E M FAR MARKET

HOSTS: City of Jonesboro | Stately Oaks – Historical Jonesboro/Clayton County | Warren House For tickets, sponsorship opportunities and additional information go to www.JonesboroNowAndThen.com or call 770-473-0197