The Richmond climax. (Richmond, Ky.) 1897-1914, 1899-05-31
Where Fell Col. chenauIt and Morgan's
Men.

Madison county contributed SO many
brave boys to the Confederacy and to
the Union Army that the following
article will be read with interest, espec-
tally by the friends OF those WHO gave
up their lives at Green River. 1t is a
fresh contribution to history from the
pen of the gallant and gifted Green r.
Keller, editor of the Carlisle Mercury:
The editor of the Mercury had the
pleasure. last Friday, of driving peace
fully and quietly across the old wooden
bridge tina: spans the classic Green
river, about eight miles from Camp
bellsville, in Taylor county. on the
turnpike road leading to Columbia, in
Adair county. The crossing of an old
wooden bridge peacefully would not or
dinarily lie worthy of note. but to us it
brought vivid recollections of the fact
that the fourth day of July, 1868, we,
with others, were willing to risk our
lives just for the pleasure OF crossing
this famed and ancient structure. On
that day Gen. John II. Morgan and his
famous raiders, who were Just entering
upon the most daring enterprise they
had ever undertaken, finding about 500
as brave Yankees as ever drew bead
on Johnny Red, met with the first
reverse OF the trip, and left dead upon
the field battle some of our most gal
liant Kentuckians.
The Federal forces guarding the
bridge numbered about 500 men, under
the command of Col. Moore, of Mich
igan. They had formidable stockade
made with fair-sized logs set on end,
and round about was a ditch filled with
water, and beyond this the felled trees
were placed with their sharpened
branches pointing toward the enemy.
Outside of these works on marrow
ridge formed by the river making
great bend, rifle pits were dug and
earthworks were thrown across the
road. Our first attack was upon the
outer work, but this was not so serious
a matter, as our artillery soon made
dust piles of them, but when we at
tackled the stOckade, which could not
be reached by our battery. the real
work began. Our recollection is that
Col. ID Howard Smith and Col. Chen
ault made two or three determined
and vicious charges through the woods
and over the fallen timbers, hut were
unable to gain entrance to the stock
ade.
We have vivid recollection OF the
seriousness of the occasion, and the
Bourbon county company-Company
G, Fifth Kentucky-had occasion to
mourn the loss of several OF its MEM
bers, among them the gallant Thomas
j. Currant. Col. Chenault was killed
while leading his regiment in the
charge, and Major Thomas L. Brent of
the Fifth Kentucky, fell while leading
US right up the stOckade
AS we rode over the ground last
Faiday our mind naturally turned to
the scenes OF thirty-six years ago, but
our eyes met nothing that we could
recall. The ak of the woodman has
done its work in the forests, and peace
full homes and cultivated fields have re-
moved all marks that might have been
made by wars demands. A comfort
able residence occupies the site of the
stOckade, time has flied the trenches
and leveled the rifle pits, while on the
eminence on the southwest side of the
road, where the last resistance was
made, a granite Stands like a lone
sentinel to mark the spot where "Mor-
gan's men fell on the fourth day of
July, 1868"