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The Battle of La Vergne
From an account written by J.T. Dougherty in the book titled Green Trees by Shirlie Runnels Chaney (available in the La Vergne Public Library).
General Crittenden commanded one of the Union Corps making its way to Murfreesboro by way of La Vergne. On December 26, 1862, the corps was one mile north of La Vergne, a small community with few stores and a railroad depot sitting in the center of town. Gaining the depot was an important part of the Union Army plan to conquest General Braxton Bragg and the Confederate soldiers because the Union would be able to move supplies and men closer to Murfreesboro.
Crossing through thick tanbles of cedar in the Hurricane Creek, the Union soldiers moved closer and closer, but 2500 men and a battery of artillery were waiting for major engagement. With more and more soldiers coming to both sides, the skirmish became house to house combat with Confederate soldiers firing from windows and doorways.
When the Confederate soldiers eventually retreated, their losses were minor and it was considered a victory because it gave the forces more time to prepare for the Battle of Stones River, that followed a few days later.
On January 23, 1938, the following was (possibly) printed in a newspaper called the Appeal, “75 years ago. The little village of La Vergne, half way between Nashville and Murfreesboro on the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad, which has been the scene of many skirmishes between the Confederacy and the Federals, has at last been destroyed. Not a single building remains.”
Evidence of the Civil War can still be seen around La Vergne over a century later, but the loss of the railroad depot and many old homes of the area is still felt.
From an account written by J.T. Dougherty in the book titled Green Trees by Shirlie Runnels Chaney (available in the La Vergne Public Library).
General Crittenden commanded one of the Union Corps making its way to Murfreesboro by way of La Vergne. On December 26, 1862, the corps was one mile north of La Vergne, a small community with few stores and a railroad depot sitting in the center of town. Gaining the depot was an important part of the Union Army plan to conquest General Braxton Bragg and the Confederate soldiers because the Union would be able to move supplies and men closer to Murfreesboro.
Crossing through thick tanbles of cedar in the Hurricane Creek, the Union soldiers moved closer and closer, but 2500 men and a battery of artillery were waiting for major engagement. With more and more soldiers coming to both sides, the skirmish became house to house combat with Confederate soldiers firing from windows and doorways.
When the Confederate soldiers eventually retreated, their losses were minor and it was considered a victory because it gave the forces more time to prepare for the Battle of Stones River, that followed a few days later.
On January 23, 1938, the following was (possibly) printed in a newspaper called the Appeal, “75 years ago. The little village of La Vergne, half way between Nashville and Murfreesboro on the Nashville and Chattanooga Railroad, which has been the scene of many skirmishes between the Confederacy and the Federals, has at last been destroyed. Not a single building remains.”
Evidence of the Civil War can still be seen around La Vergne over a century later, but the loss of the railroad depot and many old homes of the area is still felt.