List of Men That Worked on the Fortifications at Mayfield, Kentucky

List ofMen that worked on the Fortifications at Mayfield, Kentucky August 17 to September 13, 1864 Transcribed and N ames Identified by Dieter C. Ullrich Author' s Note On the night of August 11, 1864, 1,500 Union infantry, cavalry and artillery entered and occupied the town of Mayfield, Kentucky. The troops had departed Paducah two days earlier and marched the twenty-six miles under the command of Brigadier General Eleazer A. Paine. Mayfield had been the center of the partisan movement in the Jackson Purchase and the nucleus of guerrilla activities in the region since the conflict between the States began. Paine, who was the commander of the District of Western Kentucky and headquartered at Paducah · since July 19, 1864, ordered the 134th and 136th Illinois lnfantry Regiments along with a company of the 3rd Illinois Cavalry Regiment and a detachment of the 8th United States Colored Heavy Artillery to secure the town and stabilize the region. On the morning August 12, Paine selected the residence of John Eaker, a prominent Southern sympathizer and former Kentucky state legislator, to serve as post headquarters. He next ordered that a Well be sunk near the Graves County Courthouse, the railroad between Paducah and Mayfield be repaired and that a stockade be built around the court square. Paine then authorized Colonel Waters w_. McChesney, regimental commander of 134th Illinois lnfantry, to seize the businesses and homes of outspoken Southern sympathizers for military use and 73 to house troops within the city. By the evening 12th, Union troops had moved into every churc hotel and tobacco warehouse in Mayfield. They took over the county courthouse, the girl's semin and the homes of the known secessionists. Paine returned to Paducah the following afternoon leaving McChesney as post commander. During next few doys, McChesney removed local and county officials with pro-secessionist leanings, rounded up citizens who provided aid to the reb and confiscated the property of Southern sympathizers. He sent out pickets and scouting parties daily to root out and capture roaming ba of guerrillas. On August 15, United States Congressman Lucian Anderson of Mayfield organized a rally on the courthouse square to advocate President Abraham Lincoln's management of the war and emancipation of slaves. Another local Unionist, Jo Bolinger, warned the audience that they best sub peaceably or necessary force would be applied until they obeyed. He declared that one hundred rebel families would be banished and the citizens county found not loyal to the Union would pay $250,000. The next day, McChesney appointed Major John A. Wilson and Captain Samuel L. Andrews of the 134th Illinois to coordinate the construction of fortifications about the courthouse. The first day citizens were employed to clean the streets in preparation of construction. On the second day, the doors and windows of the courthouse were planked up with heavy oak scathing, the walls punctured with loopholes for muskets and staging built for the men to shoot from. 74 The laborers also commenced on piling up earthworks at the north door entrance. Atter a tew days of constructing fortifications Private Thomas W. E. Belden, a trained civil engineer and graduate of Yale University, was detailed to lay out extensive earthworks about the courthouse. As the fortifications expanded more laborers were required and Wilson was given the task ot locating men to do the work. The method used to obtain laborers began with a list ot names ot men supplied by Unionist retugees that returned trom· Paducah with Paine's army. A well-recognized Southern sympathizer was sent to notity the disloyal individuals to report to the post headquarters at Mayfield. The number ot laborers was also supplemented by men who visited the town and could not provide proot ot being a loyal citizen. Mony ot those which reported claimed to be Union men and sought exemption from work. AII appeals tor exemption were sent to Major Wilson who decided upon their loyalty status and whether they were physically fit to work. ln most instances Wilson simply sought evidence that they took the oath ot allegiance or it a physician or surgeon found their condition too poor to conduct hord labor. Captain Andr~ws later recalled that mony ot the men ordered to .work were physically unfit due to old age and disease. ln cases where men were incapable ot pertorming hord labor a substitute could be procured tor a tee between $10 and $50 depending upon their financial status. On a tew occasions, men ot influence paid up to $300 to escape working on the fortifications. Graves County Judge W. G. Blount was initially entrusted with 75 turnishing substitutes and collecting tees. A week atter Judge Blount was assigned the position, hete ill and Major Wilson took over those responsibilities. Captain Andrews would list close one thousand names ot those that worked on the tort before construction ceased on September 13. Suttering trom a serious illness, Colonel McChesney boarded the train tor Paducah on September 4 and would not return. General Paine was removed from command the tollowing day by order ot General Henry W. Halleck. The official notice ot Paine's removal reached Mayfield on September 12. Brigadier General Salomon Meredith replaced Paine and traveled to Mayfield on the 13th On his arrival he assembled the workers and remaining troops at Mayfield and declared that all men that had worked on the tortifications were to be relieved ot their duties and to return to their homes and tarms. The fortifications were then to be leveled by the troops and the grounds brought back to their original state. AII horses and mules confiscated from disloyal citizens were to be returned and buildings used tor military purposes to be evacuated and restored to their rightful owners. The 134th Illinois departed Mayfield on September 18 leaving a tew cavalry companies to scout the nearby countryside tor Contederate a.dvances into the region or track down bushwhackers. The cavalry abandoned the town on October 15 atter reports ot Contederate troop movements in West Tennessee. Four days later, a band ot guerrillas invaded Mayfield and burned the Graves County Courthouse the ground. 76 Colonel McChesney was placed under arrest at his home in Chicago·and ordered to stand trial tor bribery, embezzlement and the misappropriation of seized property tor persona! use. He died of the illness he contracted in Kentucky before a court be convened. Paine was brought before a military tribunal in late February of 1865. The charges consisted of twenty-seven specifications stemming from coercion, illegal arrests and confinement, unlawful property seizures, misappropriation of private property, banking improprieties and derogatory denouncements made against high ranking officers and government officials. He was acquitted of all charges except that of insulting a superior officer. The list of workers was preserved by Captain Andrews and submitted as evidence in the court martial of General Paine. The records from Paine's trial were retained by the Judge Advocates General's Office of the United States Army. Those records were relocated to the National Archives and presently housed at the National Archives Records Administration under the Records of the Judge Advocates General 's Office (Army), Entry 15, Court Martial Case Files, 1809-1894, File no. MM-1609, Boxes 1032-1033. The list of names below is the transcription of that list. A cross reference of the surnames indexed in the Graves County, Kentucky Census of 1860 by Pat Record in 1979 was conducted in 2013 to locate the possible identities of those that worked on the fortifications. The information mentioned in brackets is likely matches to the names in the 1860 Federal census and the ages of the men that worked on the 77 fortifications. The letter "x" signifies that the surna was not found in the census or very common na such as Jones, Smith, etc. which were so numero that it was impossible to identify the names in the index to the work list. lt is important to note that the census and the work list were written phonetically and in mony instances improperly spelled. August 17, 1864 1. W. 0. Melvin [20] 2. L. Melvin [Levi Melvin - 14] 3. J. S. Melvin [James or John- 25 or 23] 4. E. B. Carter [46] 5. James C. Carter [22] 6. A. P. Carter x 7. A. J. Carter [14] 8. William Dick x 9. John Myers [22] 10. J. H. Patterson [J. R. Patterson - 43] 11. D. B. Turner [41] August 18, 1864 12. J. M. Y arborough [46] 13. W. A. Yarborough [37] 14. Hugh Hendley [35] 15. J. D. Beasley [52] 16. J. H. Grigg [42] 17. H. Overby x 18. A. Humphries [67] 19. B. F. Johnson [33] 20. Wm. Cochrain [58] 21. J. W. Ryan [34] 22. Samuel Yandle [43] 23. Daniel Justice [39] 24. Aaron Hendon [62] 25. John Wilkins [45] 78 6_ A. H. Sheridan [33] 27 . J. F. Hudspeth [20] 2s. J. S. Hudspeth [17] 29. E. M. Ligon [E. M. Liggon - 57] 30. J. W. White [35] 31. J. C. Leach [43] 32. J. W. Watts [50] 33. B. S. Crofford [B. S. Crawford - 3 7] 34. Thomas W est x 35. John Harpole [John W. Harpool - 52] 36. J. D. Crouch [33] 37. J. I. Simmons [34] 38. William Davis [3 7] 39. Dave Orr [67] 40. Thomas Collins [55] 41. James A. Boyd x 42. Frank Metcalf x August 19, 1864 43. Frank Mayes [28] 44. W. G. McNeely [54] 45. W. C. Pullen [51] 46. J. A. Pullen [4 7] 47. M. P. McNeely [25] 48. Nathan Moore [64 or 21] 49.

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