East Tennessee
More Civil War Sites
Greeneville and Area
Dickson-Williams Mansion
108 N Irish St, Greeneville TN 37743
423-787-0500
Road map
Confederate cavalry hero Gen. John Hunt Morgan spent the last night of his life in this Greeneville showplace built in 1821. He was ambushed and killed in the home’s garden Sept. 4, 1864. Much on the Civil War history during guided tours, including Morgan’s room with its original furnishings. The building was used by officers of both sides during the war. Guided tours daily 1 pm. $10/adult. Civil War Trails signs.
Andrew Johnson National Historic Site
121 Monument Ave, Greeneville TN 37744
423-638-3551
Road map
 Johnson was a central figure in Tennessee before, during and after the Civil War. He came to Greeneville as a teenager and began a tailoring operation. Quickly becoming involved in politics, eventually he was elected governor and senator from the state before the war. Remaining loyal to the Union, he was appointed military governor of Tennessee in 1862 and was elected Lincoln’s vice-president in 1864. Becoming president after Lincoln’s death, Johnson was embroiled in Reconstruction politics and was impeached but not convicted by the Senate. He returned to Greeneville after his term as 17th president of the United States. A visitor center houses a very good museum and film and the Andrew Johnson Tailor shop. Make reservations for home tours there. Visitor center open 9 am–5 pm daily (home tours on the half hour).
Bridge Burners: Hangings at the Depot
Trails sign at 103 Loretta St, Greeneville TN 37743
Road map
After Union sympathizers burned several area railroad bridges in November 1861, Confederate military authorities arrived to rebuild the bridges and catch the perpetrators. Two of the bridge burners were captured and held until they were hanged Nov. 30.
Tusculum College
Trails sign at 60 Shiloh Road, Greeneville TN 37743
Road map
This building, Old College (1841), is the only structure remaining from the earliest days of the Tusculum College, the oldest college in Tennessee. Students here were divided on the secession question in 1861. Southern-leaning students burned then-Sen. Andrew Johnson in effigy before classes were finally suspended. The college suffered greatly during the war due to occupation by soldiers of both sides.
Battle of Blue Springs
Trails sign at 6766 W Andrew Johnson Highway, Mosheim TN 37818
Road map
Union forces under Gen. Ambrose Burnside — on their way to relieve Chattanooga — were confronted by Confederates here Oct. 10, 1863. The Confederates withdrew following a day-long battle. Another Union force confronted Confederates here Aug. 23, 1864, with the same result.
Pottertown Bridge Burners
Trails sign at 1270 Pottertown Road, Mosheim TN 37809
Road
map
A memorial to the Unionists who burned area railroad bridges Nov. 8, 1861, stands in this cemetery along with the remains of two of the men hanged for the effort. The plans for the burnings, with strong support from the government in Washington, were made in this area. About 60 men took part.
Bridge-to-Bridge Driving Tour
40-mile tour follows Route 11E (paralleling I-40/81) beginning east of Knoxville and ending southeast of Bull’s Gap
 The major theme of this self-guided tour is the fight for control of the critical East Tennessee and Virginia Railroad, one of the few rail connections between the Eastern and Western Confederacy. Although the line was under Confederate control most of the war, Union sympathizers and guerillas managed to burn bridges and tear up rail, bedeviling the road’s operations. Following the Union occupation of Knoxville in late 1863, Southern forces moved east along the railroad toward Virginia. Confederate Gen. James Longstreet’s troops spent a miserable winter there before being recalled to Lee’s army in the spring of 1864. Among the highlights of the tour are several views of bridges which replaced ones burned during the war and tales of skirmishes and hangings.
On the tour:
Rose Center
442 W Second North St, Morristown TN 37814
423-481-4330
The Rose Center has a good Civil War section and is the source for the Bridge-to-Bridge tour brochure.
Longstreet’s headquarters still stands in Russellville.
Cumberland Gap
Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
Visitor center located near Middlesboro KY off Route 25E
606-248-2817
This 20,000-acre park includes acreage in Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia and offers both natural beauty and history. The strategic importance of this natural path through the mountains was recognized early by both sides. The Civil War history is explored in the visitor center, and some earthworks remain at Fort Lyon near the Pinnacle Overlook. Visitor center open 8 am–5 pm daily. Free.
Harrogate
Abraham Lincoln Library and Museum
6965 Cumberland Gap Parkway, Harrogate TN 37752
423-869-6304
Road map
Located at the main entrance to the Lincoln Memorial University, this museum features significant art and artifacts from the museum’s 30,000-item collection devoted to the president’s life plus other Civil war material. Open Monday–Friday 9 am–4 pm, Saturday 11 am–4 pm, Sunday 1–4 pm. $5/adult.
Blountville
Three Tennessee Civil War Trails signs describe the action here Sept. 22, 1863, during a battle for control of the vital Virginia and Tennessee Railroad. Federal guns on Cemetery Hill shelled Confederate forces in town, setting fires, before a late afternoon Union attack cleared Confederate resistance from the town. Trails signs are located at the Union and Confederate positions and at the Sullivan County Courthouse, the interior of which was burned during this action.
- 3411 Highway 126, Blountville TN 37617 (Courthouse)
Road map
- 147 County Hill Road, Blountville TN 37617 (Union position)
Road map
- 251 Franklin Drive, Blountville TN 37617 (Confederate positon)
Road map
Lenoir City
Lenoir Plantation
Trails sign located at 200 E Broadway St
Lenoir City TN 37771
Road map
A June 19, 1863, Union raid and subsequent Federal occupation changed the lives of the owners of the 2,700-acre plantation along the railroad line here. The Lenoir family later claimed damages of more than $70,000 including losses of livestock, timber and grain.
Lenoir’s Station
Trails sign located at mill site, 206 Depot St
Lenoir City TN 37771
Road Map
On June 19, 1863, in an effort to cripple Confederate held railroads in the area, Union troop led by Col. William P. Sanders attacked, destroying the depot, general store and Confederate military supplies here. According to local tradition, the mill was spared due to the exchange of Masonic signs between the owner and the Union military. After this encounter, Sanders continued east, destroying other railroad facilities.
Johnson City
Tipton-Haynes Historic Site
2620 S Roan St, Johnson City TN 37601
Road map
This was the home of Landon Carter Haynes, a Confederate senator and supporter of states’ rights in an area laced with strong pro-Union sentiment. He served in the Confederate congress 1862-1865. After the war he was pardoned by President Andrew Johnston but moved away, fearing reprisals from local citizens.
Pall Mall
Travisville
Civil War Trails sign near Forbus General Store,
near Pall Mall TN 38577
Road map
The first Civil War military action in Tennessee occurred here Sept. 29, 1861, when Union cavalry attacked a Confederate camp. The surprised Southerners scattered after a brief defense, leaving four dead. One of those killed in the action is buried here in a marked grave.
Niota
Niota Depot
Civil War Trails sign, 201 E Main St, Niota TN 37826
Road map
This is the only Civil War-era station surviving along the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad. Both sides vied for control of the railroad during the war with the Federals occupying Niota (then known as Mouse Creek) after September 1863. Gun ports in the walls created by Union soldiers still can be seen.
Lafollette
Big Creek Gap
Civil War Trails sign a block beyond the Lafollette Utilities Building, 302 N Tennessee Ave, Lafollette TN 37766
Road map to Utilities Building
This is one of the few natural openings through the Cumberland Mountains. Early in the war Confederates ringed the famous Cumberland Gap (about 30 miles northeast of here) with defensive works. Union forces exploited this gap in 1862, using it to flank Confederates in Cumberland Gap and force their withdrawal. Remains of Civil War fortifications are still extant in this area.
Charleston
Charleston on the Hiwassee
Trails sign at Charleston City Park, 117 Worth St, Charleston TN 37310
Road map
The East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad bridge here – connecting Knoxville and Chattanooga -- was an important supply line and tempting target during the war. Union loyalists burned it in Nov. 1861 and both sites damaged it during the war. Confederates raided a Union wagon train here Dec. 28, 1863.
Cleveland
Cleveland During the Civil War
Trails sign at Museum Center at Five Points, 200 Inman St East, Cleveland TN 37311
Road map
Confederates occupied the area early in part to control the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad. The railroad and the station here caught the attention of Abraham Lincoln, who compared the taking of this place to the “taking and holding of Richmond.” Following the Battle of Missionary Ridge, Nov. 25, 1863, Union troops occupied and fortified the town, holding off a Confederate cavalry raid Aug. 17, 1864.
Website links to these places: Tennessee Links
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