General Lee’s Horse “Traveler” and General Jackson’s “Little Sorrel”

General Robert E. Lee had a horse named “Traveler” who is buried near his master outside neighboring Washington & Lee’s Lee Chapel but General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson may have had a more famous horse. Jackson acquired the horse in 1861 after the Confederates captured a Union supply train that included horses. The horse was a foot shorter than the 6-foot Jackson. He named the horse “Little Sorrel” because of his size and light brown coloring and planned to give the gelding to his wife, after riding him once to make sure he was tame. However, the minute he mounted the horse, he realized it was his.

Jackson was riding the horse in the battle of First Manassas in northern Virginia when a general looked up and remarked that he looked “like a stone wall” in the face of the enemy. The nickname stuck.

The connected skeleton of the horse stood in a biology class at Virginia Military Institute for about 40 years then the bones crammed in boxes at the museum.

In 1997, the bones of the revered Civil War horse was buried on the parade ground at VMI with fife and drum playing Dixie and re-enactors firing a salute to “Little Sorrel”.

Rogersville’s Captain Clay’s horse stolen and ridden by Gen. Gilliam

General Morgan’s horse “Sir Oliver”

In an almost similar story of capture of horses was one that took place in Rogersville, Tennessee during the Civil War. Captain H. B. Clay came to Rogersville from Kentucky. He was assigned by Confederate Lieutenant General Kirby Smith to duty on the Staff of Brig. General John Pegram Com’dy Cavalry Brigade, Bragg’s Army. Captain Clay became part of General John Hunt Morgan’s command, and was with General Morgan when the latter was killed at Greeneville, Tennessee on September 6, 1864. He had to identify the body of the dead Morgan to verify for the enemy they had truly killed General Morgan of “Morgan’s Raiders, CSA. General Morgan had a horse named “Sir Oliver”, said to be a magnificent chestnut sorrel thoroughbred.

Captain Clay lived in Rogersville on Main Street (present-day brick building adjacent to the library). He was in Rogersville on August 21, 1864 when Brigadier General Alvin C. Gilliam attacked the town. Main and Depot Streets were filled with men running wildly as they were pursued by the Union soldiers.

While in Rogersville, during the surprise raid, Sergeant J. H. Pharr, of Company A, of the 13th, captured a fine black blaze-faced horse belonging to Capt. Clay. General Gilliam rode this horse throughout the campaign of East Tennessee.

Later, Clay was on the Staff of Basil W. Duke, and was with Duke’s Brigade in April 1865, when Duke’s Brigade formed part of the escort of President Jefferson Davis.

Horse Belonging to Frederick S. DeWolfe

A few months prior to this raid, also in Rogersville, the Federals came through Stanley Valley and took the horse of Frederick S. DeWolfe who ran a stage line between Bristol, Virginia and Knoxville, TN. These Federals were camped at Big Creek. When the Confederate forces under Brig. Gen. William E. Jones and Col. Henry Giltner (of which the 10th KY Cavalry under Colonel Trimble were part of) captured the men at Big Creek, the horse became the Confederates. The Battle of Big Creek was fought on November 6, 1863. The next few months there would be much correspondence about this horse.

On March 29, 1864, Mr. DeWolfe appeared before David Lyons, a Justice of the Peace for Hawkins County, and with witness, William Skelton, stated that Federal soldiers took from a pasture field last fall a few days prior to the Rogersville fight, an iron-gray horse belonging to DeWolfe which was branded U.S. and that the said horse had never been used in the Confederate service, also that the horse was worth $1,000. A mule has also been taken from DeWolfe but had been given back to him.

William Hord stated that he gave Mr. DeWolfe the horse, that he had raised the horse and it was worth $1,000. Mr. Hord also stated that he had seen the horse at the Headquarters of Col. May near Bull’s Gap, and the he said in the presence of both Col. May and Mr. DeWolfe that was the horse he had given DeWolfe, that it was DeWolfe’s horse. The horse was in the possession of a soldier belonging to the 10th KY Cavalry commanded by Col. May, Giltner’s Brigade.

Well, after this Col May in his report wrote:

Dear Col- Your note in reference to the horse of Capt. Wolfe received. The horse is his--was captured by one of my men at Rogersville. I understand the rule adopted by you to be that the capture by the enemy destroys the right of property in the citizen......... I have no objection to Capt. DeWolfe having his horse, but I would like to have this question authoritatively settled by the _____ County so that under it I may reclaim my horses and have an established rule for the future........ Respectively, A. J. May, Colonel, 10th Ky Cav.

More Stolen Horses in Hawkins

Being mounted in East Tennessee was not always an easy thing especially near the end of the war. Horses were often stolen. Sometimes someone would take a horse and leave his old, worn-out one in its place. Some hid their horses.

Robert Cooper wrote to James M. Cooper, “Your mare and my mule were stolen. Your gray filley and mule is still in the pasture up there yet. Some 250 Yanks came from Knoxville and through Rogersville to Kingsport the state road taking negroes and horses.”

When the 39th Infantry came home from Vicksburg, Captain James D. Spears told David S. Booker to go home and get him a horse. Booker lived in the Stacy area of Hawkins County. Before he reached his farm he was picked up by the Federals and put in prison until the end of the war. Others in Booker’s regiment got horses and rode as cavalry with Gen. John C. Vaughan.

Horses for the company of John Q. Arnold’s “Blue Birds”

The following ad appeared February 12th, 1863, in the Greeneville newspaper in the advertisement section pertaining to the 12th TN Cavalry BN, B Company, which was organized as an independent cavalry company on June 28, 1862 with men from Greene County:

..........Notice is hereby given to all absent members of Captain John Q. Arnold’s Company on all leaves whatsoever to report to the company commander at Camp Lyon, Hawkins County, Tenn. The Captain feels assured that his men will report without any threats of punishment on his part - so come along and we will “welcome our enemies with bloody hands and hospital graves.” There is not time to be lost, for the command is even now on the move.

..........Any friend furnishing any member of this company with a horse for a month or two will receive ample compensation. Capt. Arnold, Comdg. “Blue Birds”.

Pass The Mule Please

Not all horses and mules were used for battle. After the war, J. B. King of Church Hill, TN, wrote that he was in the 61st TN, Company E, and that while they were stationed at Vicksburg, MS, battle of Big Black River Siege of Vicksburg, they lived for forty-eight days on mule meat, rats, or whatever they could get. He came home on horse back and on the way back, he said he had to beg for food to eat.

A Famous Old Army Horse is Dead (Hawkins County, TN)

(as written in the ROGERSVILLE REVIEW, 1893)

Probably one among the oldest and most famous horse that ever trod on Tennessee soil, died here at the ripe old age of thirty-five years. This famous gray mare first saw the light of day in the bluegrass regions of Kentucky, April 10, 1860. In the year 1863, she was used as Light Artillery horse in General Buel’s army, where she received much attentions and military training. She was a clean gray in color, except her left shoulder, which was black as a Nubian prince. She was of the famous stock of horses known as Gray Eagle, which all turfmen are well acquainted with , as they are remarkable for speed and endurance and a high degree of instinct. This mare was full 16 hands high, coupled with the action of a cat, and swift as a kangaroo At the close of the war she was purchased by Mr. George Drinnon, and brought to Hancock County and sold to Mr. Pleasant Seal, near Swan Island on Clinch River. Mr. Seal kept her eight years and sold five hundred dollars worth of colts from her; at last she became the property of Jackson Seals, of Luther, who kept her as a relic of the late Rebellion; until she died of old age. She remained spirited and ambitious “till the end, and never forgot her military training as long as she lived. During thunder storms, she would mistake the lighting for the flash of the powder and the thunder for the report of the cannon, and would charge on anything before her, she would become unmanageable during hard storms. Several times her master escaped serious injuries while trying to manage and control her by his suppleness and activity. But true valor and patriotism is always admired even though it be among horses, and it must truly be said that but few such horses ever lived.

But old gray is gone now where all good horses go, and whither it is, there is nobody that knows, and like many men who served their country well, she died poor, and the most shameful thing about it is a heartless tanner is now tanning her hide. So you see she served men for thirty-five years, body and hide together, and how long her hide will serve some blacksmith for bellows covers, God only knows, but he won’t tell.

Shanks’ Mare

And -- if all else failed, there was always Shanks’ Mare. It was considered the most common type of personal transportation in these parts after the war. You place your feet on the ground and move - walk in the direction you are going - you are now riding Shanks’ Mare.

As J. A. Brewer of Sneedville, TN stated after the war was over, he came on the train to Russellville, Tennessee about 30 miles from home and walked the rest of the way home. He said it took him four and one half days to walk to his home.

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(Sources: VMI buries Stonewall Jackson’s war horse, Associated Press, Kingsport TIMES-NEWS, July 22, 1997; Clay family records, H.B. Stamps Library, Rogersville, TN);OR’s; Greeneville newspaper; ROGERSVILLE REVIEW, May 10th, 1893.