THE INVOLVEMENT OF RUSSELL COUNTY, VIRGINIA IN THE CIVIL WAR

By Bonnie Ball
In the year 1861, Thomas T. Dickenson of Bickley Mills, Virginia, read an
advertisement for a Franklin Almanac and diary for that year, from a firm in
Cincinnati, Ohio. So he sent 25 cents in silver and duly received them by mail.

Thus began his diary which he continued from 1861 until the year 1912. These old
diaries are still in possession of his granddaughter, Lillian Buck Kiser, who
sent them last year to the Alderman Library at Charlottesville to be
microfilmed. They have not been returned to the owner. The contents of this old
diary fascinated me. Even though I am not related to the Dickenson Family, some
of my relatives and childhood neighbors were.

He recorded deep snows, killing of beef cattle on his farm, activities of his
men, slaves, births and deaths of relatives and neighbors; the busy lives of the
mistress of the plantation and her black slaves - since all clothing and shoes
were made at home, and practically all foods were grown on their land.

Nevertheless, he frequently took time to record important news headlines. One
could sense the tension that surrounded the area during 1861 - even on the 3rd
of January when he recorded the meeting of a Florida convention.

On January 7th, the Legislature of Virginia had called a special session.

On the 9th there was a Union Meeting, convened from the previous day, and news
that the State of Mississippi had seceded.

Two days later he recorded a cold and windy day; then added that "Cousin Nannie
Duff" came to his home which was called "Grandview." (NOTE: I immediately
recognized his cousin Nannie Duff as the first Sunday School Teacher that I can
remember in Lee County, when she was a widow.)

Next came the entry that the State of Alabama had seceded from the Union, giving
the vote as 61 pros and 39 cons. This was followed by the announcement that
Florida had seceded.

On the 26th he had made a pair of shoes for "Rode," who was apparently their
slave woman.

Next came the news that Louisiana had seceded.

On February 4th he announced the election of the 4 delegates to the Virginia
Convention (a called session). Then he wrote that he went to Lebanon to the
"Election on Peace." On February 8th, he "opened" some of his sugar trees. On
the 21st, Cousin Nannie went to the sugar camp to boil sugar water. The next
entry was to say that he had finished a pair of shoes for Cousin Nannie.

On March 4th, he went to Abingdon to trade and spent the night at Alderson's.

On March 18th, he stated that his wife Josee was ill. On the 22nd, Roda's second
child died and was buried that evening.

On Friday, April 12th, the Battle commenced at Fort Sumpter. On the 13th it
ended. South conquered. Lost no life.

On the 18th, a portion of citizens of Castlewoods met at John Banner's to form a
homeguard.

April 20th - North Carolina seceded.

April 24 - Josee and I went to the Campground at which time and place the "Rough
and Ready Volunteers" were presented with a silk bag and a Bible to each of the
highest officers, and a dinner for the company.

May 6th - Notified my Company to attend at the old Courthouse with all the guns
they have. On the 15th they had their first weekly muster at John Banner's.

Some items were recorded by Josee who had cooked the beef tallow and made a
kettle of soap. T. T. and Henry had been vaccinated and "it took effect," (which
explains why she wrote up the diary). Dr. Gibson died and was buried at Aaron
Gose's place.

In February 1862 - Josee wrote: "I went to camp and boiled (sugar) water all
day. Henry has a very bad cold. 15 Negroes ran off from this neighborhood last
night - Dave among the balance." (Dave was a Dickenson slave.) On Tuesday she
wrote again: "T. T. and Charles went to hunt up those Negroes. I stirred off 12
pounds of sugar." On Wednesday, they returned with all the Negroes. On Monday
the 9th: "Mr. Young has a sack of goods. I bought 6 silk handkerchiefs and 3
linen, and 2 coarse combs - for which I paid $36."

Three weeks later Mr. Dickenson apparently resumed with his diary: Josee
complaining. "Can't walk to do any good. On Monday the 30th our third son, John
Thomas, was born. Nancy B. Gray came down. Paid Dr. Gibson."

April 1st - At this time Josee was quite ill and the baby was not well either.
Dr. Kernan had visited them. By May 3rd, she had grown weaker and was too hoarse
to talk. During her illness there has been few notes on the war. On May 2nd, he
had sold 596 pounds of bacon to the army for $1.00 per pound. He had gone to the
camp to get some medicine from Dr. Whipple for Josee.

On May 28th, Giltner's men took their horses from his father's place. On the
28th Josee was "rather worse." The next day she was "worse than common." On June
1st she was "some pearter." By June 22nd she had grown very weak and had given
instructions as to the future of her children. "She advised me to break-up
housekeeping."

The Conscript Board was at Lebanon.

Dr. Gibson and Dr. Easterly were visiting Josee regularly. On July 2, 1862, she
died at l:00 p.m. Josephine Bonaparte Dickenson was buried at father's at half
after 5:00 on July 4, 1862. Gray went away and took John Thomas Dickenson to his
grandpa's to be raised.

On July 9th, "J. T. Dickenson and I started to Lee County. Got to Carter's in
Rye Cove. Tuesday the 11th J. T. Dickenson, Nannie, M. E. Duff and I went up the
creek to Mr. Young's. Returned on the 12th."

On August 6th, he and W. J. Dickenson attended a quarterly meeting at McClure's
Chapel, where he spoke to Rev. E. Kesser about preaching Josee's funeral, which
was not held until October 25th. No more entries int he diary until October
14th, when he reported there had been some fighting around Bristol between
General William's Company and General Booker. This was still going on the
following day when General Williams fell back above or east of Abingdon.

On November 3rd, he had gone to Lebanon to Court and had reported his taxable
property to the Confederate States.

At this point my only access to the old diary was through microfilm copy which
was not too clear. However, the war news seemed to decline and problems of the
home front took precedence.

A letter was written by General Humphrey Marshall from Lebanon, Virginia, dated
March 8, 1862. It was addressed to the Honorable Jefferson Davis, President of
the Confederacy, but marked "Private." He began by saying: "I want you to know
what I don't want to put upon record officially, through the War Office, and
therefore I write again thus directly to you." In this letter he described the
apathy of the people of the area, and the unwillingness of men to be drafted
into service. He had been in Lebanon almost a week, and had spent three weeks in
Wise County.

As I depart from the old diary to describe briefly Russell County's involvement
in the Civil War (which has been called the War Between the States, the War of
Secession, etc.) I might add that this conflict also included a portion of what
is now Dickenson and Buchanan counties. There were maneuvers along Lick Creek.
There were about 75 Confederate pensioners left in Russell County by 1902, and
17 of them were either widows or mothers of Confederate soldiers. Buchanan
County had 58, including widows, and Dickenson County had 75.

The 72nd Regiment of the Russell County Militia was organized in March of 1862
at Lebanon and immediately mustered into service of the Confederate States of
America. This was quite different from those organized in 1861. There were no
spirited parades nor enthusiastic good-bye parties. The recruiters were not in
search of adventure or glory. Virginia troops were sickly - having gone through
sieges of mumps, measles and smallpox.

The period for which they were paid was short. Most of them were not paid at all
after November 1862. They knew that because of its geographical location Russell
County would either become an anvil or a hammer - or both. Its geographical
location was one of the main factors that led her to form the Russell County
militia. She was only a short distance from the Virginia counties that were to
become a part of the new state of West Virginia; only a few miles east of
Kentucky and north of the Tennessee and North Carolina borders. The eastern
Tennessee counties remained loyal to the Union and, after the fall of Nashville
in 1862, all of Tennessee was placed under Federal military rule. Kentucky was
unsteadily balanced between the Union and the Confederacy. In the beginning, she
furnished many soldiers to the Confederacy but, after much controversy, she
became loyal to the Union and served as a back door of the Confederacy for the
enemy.

Still, the determined Federals began raiding the railroad lines from Knoxville
to Marion, Virginia. On December 16, 1864, the Richmond Times Dispatch reported
that the enemy had taken a group of Southwest Virginia railroad officials by
surprise and captured all of them but one who escaped to report the capture. On
the same day they captured several flat cars, an engine and an undetermined
number of prisoners. By breaking the railroads they were able to prevent
Confederate troops from being sent down the line to reinforce Saltville. With no
reinforcements, Saltville was doomed.

On December 18th, they struck with an overwhelming force of 10,000 men. They
succeeded in destroying a part of Abingdon, including the Courthouse, and the
salt works. They destroyed property as they went. A Virginia- Tennessee railroad
official, who had escaped capture, reported that they had destroyed every
railroad bridge in Southwestern Virginia.

The county's geographical location caused her another disadvantage. As the
Federals charged toward Saltville, their forces often fell back into other
Southwestern Virginia counties. But Union soldiers were not the only deserters.
As the war dragged on these Confederate and Federals who had advocated the war
in the beginning were the first to desert. According to the writer, there were
more than 100,000 deserters.

The mountainous terrain made an ideal hideout for deserters. In May 1863, Major
General Samuel Jones of the Headquarters Department of Western Virginia,
reported over half of those from the western Virginia rolls absent. So these
forces could not be relied upon. Russell County also sheltered a large number of
refugees from other parts of Virginia and bordering states.

North Carolina was also unsteadily balanced. So it seemed inevitable that
Russell County would be in direct conflict with these bordering states. Captain
John A. McFarland's one company of cavalry was formed from Russell County
militia in June 1862, and soon encountered battles with her neighboring "Union
Committed" states.

Russell County Cavalry was called upon during General Jubal Early's Shenandoah
Valley campaign in June 1864. Major McFarland's Cavalry was transferred several
times in 1863 and finally became a part of the 34th Battalion of Virginia
Cavalry as Company B and Company I also known as Witcher's Battalion of Mounted
Rifles.

Another factor that led Russell County to play an important role in the war was
her location between the Federal forces and Saltville. The north knew that the
south needed salt to preserve its pork and other meats and was determined to
capture the salt works located in Smythe County.

As early as December 29, 1862, Confederate Brigadier General Humphrey B.
Marshall at Abingdon reported that he had received a telegraphic dispatch from
Morristown, Tennessee, that 4,000 Federals were marching towards Southwest
Virginia. Not knowing if the enemy would direct their efforts towards Lebanon,
Abingdon or Saltville, all routes had to be defended. Forces were placed between
the old Russell County Courthouse and Hansonville; others between Abingdon and
Saltville and still others at Richlands. Residents were warned by Miss Molly
Tynes of Tazewell County.

Skirmishes occurred for two years. By 1864 the Saltville fortifications and
reserves had grown weak. On October 2, 1864, a force of 4,800 Federals advanced
from Kentucky to attack 3,000 Confederates, were repulsed and retreated to
Kentucky - pursued by the Confederates.

Also, there were lawless groups that roamed the mountains. During the last year
of the war, there were few safe regions in the state, but Russell County was
safer than most others. Eastern invasions drove more refugees to Southwestern
Virginia. Destruction of property and theft became woefully common. People began
to direct strangers more than a Federal invasion. Soldiers left the army to
defend their homes and families.

They were now less concerned with State Rights and preservation of slavery, or
of the Union, than they were about their ruined farms, broken families, their
fatigued bodies and their imprisoned, ill, wounded and dead comrades - and, most
of all their peaceful way of life.

Sources: Diary of Thomas T. Dickenson, Records of E. J. Sutherland, Roster of
Confederate Pensioners of Virginia, A feature article: "Russell County's
Involvement in the Civil War," Lebanon News of June 23, 1976, by Jerry Harrison
Chafin.

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