The war between South and North has been waging for almost five months. Kentucky is now aligned with the Union, following Confederate incursions in the state a few days earlier, a move that violated the state’s (then) neutrality. Nonetheless, much Confederate sentiment remains within the Bluegrass state during the war.
Virginia, likewise, harbors divided loyalties. West Virginia – with majority Union supporters – is in the process of separating from the Confederate eastern part of the state. Confederate General Robert E. Lee is now in the western part of the state, tasked with rallying Confederates to oppose Union forces.
Today’s Richmond Daily Dispatch declares that the time for debate has passed: “Words are now of no avail: blood is more potent than rhetoric, more profound than logic.”
The Richmond paper also reports on a story from Cheat Mountain in the western part of the state:
A gentleman from Cheat Mountain tells the following:
‘ A squad of Indiana volunteers, out scouting, came across an old woman in a log cabin, in the mountains. After the usual salutations, one of them asked her–
‘”Well, old lady, are you secede?”’ ‘”No,”’ was her answer. ‘”Are you Union?”’ ‘”No.”’ ‘”What are you then?”’ ‘”A Baptist, and all’ wys have been.”’
The Hoosiers let down.
Three days hence, the Battle of Cheat Mountain commences, as the Confederates attempt to drive Union forces off the mountain. This is Lee’s first time leading troops into battle during the war. Foggy and rainy weather, mountainous terrain, thick forests, and poor communication foil the Confederate offensive. Lee withdraws after a three day battle that involves little engagement with the enemy. The Union emerges victorious.
As to the old-time Baptist living on Cheat Mountain, her fate is unknown.
Sources: “September 1861: Settling in for a Long War,” Smithsonian Magazine (link); “Showing Her True Colors,” Richmond Times Daily Dispatch (link); Battle of Cheat Mountain (link); illustration (link)
