Kennesaw (Big Shanty) in the 19th Century Written by Robert C. Jones Kennesaw, Georgia Copyright 2000, 2006 by Robert C. Jones Robert C. Jones POB 1775 Kennesaw, Georgia 30156 [email protected] Table of Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS ..........................................................................2 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................3 TIMELINE ...........................................................................................3 CHEROKEE INDIANS ...........................................................................4 THE COMING OF THE WESTERN AND ATLANTIC RAILROAD ..................6 EXCERPTS FROM THE 1837 W&A SURVEY, BY S.H. LONG CHIEF ENGINEER WESTERN AND ATLANTIC RAILROAD OF GEORGIA ........................................... 8 WHAT’S IN A NAME? ............................................................................... 10 THE 1860 COBB COUNTY CENSUS FOR BIG SHANTY ........................... 11 KENNESAW AND THE CIVIL WAR ...................................................... 14 THE LACY HOTEL ..................................................................................... 15 CAMP MCDONALD/PHILLIPS LEGION ......................................................... 16 THE GREAT LOCOMOTIVE CHASE ............................................................... 17 SHERMAN’S ATLANTA CAMPAIGN .............................................................. 19 AFTERMATH ........................................................................................... 23 1870-1900........................................................................................ 23 INCORPORATION OF KENNESAW ................................................................ 25 THE CENTURY TURNS ....................................................................... 26 POPULATION ................................................................................... 27 SOURCES ......................................................................................... 27 ABOUT THE AUTHOR ........................................................................ 28 2 Introduction This brief history of Kennesaw (Big Shanty) in the 19th century will attempt to capture major events in the city’s history – the coming of the railroad, the Civil War, incorporation as a town – and also try to give a flavor for what the town and it’s environs might have been like during various points of the 19th century. I have had the honor of being the president of the Kennesaw Historical Society since 1993. During that time, I’ve collected most of the material that appears in this booklet. My work doesn’t stand alone though – I have benefited either directly or indirectly from the work of many others, including: . Mark Smith, who wrote a History of Kennesaw, parts of which appeared in the Kennesaw Gazette in 1980 (parts of it remain unpublished) . Dr. Betty Smith of Kennesaw State University, who has done extensive studies on the Lacy Hotel, and on local Cherokee Indian trails . The Kennesaw Civil War Museum (formerly Big Shanty Museum), home of the General . Dent Myers, noted Civil War expert I should also point out that I have only covered the Great Locomotive Chase somewhat briefly, as it has been well covered elsewhere. Big Shanty’s role in Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign is covered in detail, as this has not been well covered in other easily accessible sources. Timeline Kennesaw in the 19th Century Date Activity c. 1838/39 Railroad shanties built by spring 1838 Last Cherokees removed from Georgia 1853 First postmaster named, Wm. M. Elliot June 11, 1861 Camp McDonald established April 12, 1862 Great Locomotive Chase June 6, 1864 Big Shanty falls to Union troops; used as a supply 3 Kennesaw in the 19th Century Date Activity base, hospital, and headquarters by the Union army June 27, 1864 Battle of Kennesaw Mountain October 3, 1864 Big Shanty briefly falls to Confederate troops under John Bell Hood November 14, The Lacy Hotel burned to the ground by Union 1864 troops September 21, City of Kennesaw is incorporated 1887 c. 1890s . Sole City income was from the "street tax" - $.50 for the head of every household . Scarlet fever epidemic; smallpox scare (affected houses marked with red flannel flags) 1891 . First Mayor, J .S. Reynolds . City Council of Kennesaw shows a balance in the city coffers of $3.69 Cherokee Indians 1830 map of the Cherokee Nation in Georgia (Anthony Finley Co.) 4 In the early 1800s, Northwestern Georgia was home to over 20,000 Cherokee Indians. Unlike other tribes, the Cherokees made a significant effort to adopt white ways. They created a form of government based on the U.S. Constitution, created a capitol city in New Echota, GA in 1825, and published their own newspaper. Christian missionaries, including the Moravians, were welcomed in Cherokee territory. Although the territorial rights of the Cherokees were upheld by two Supreme Court decisions in 1831/32, events conspired against them. Gold was discovered in the North Georgia Mountains in 1828, and Georgia slowly passed laws denying the rights of the Cherokees. In 1828, Georgia passed an act that placed the parts of the Cherokee Nation in Georgia under Georgia law. In 1831, Georgia began the process of surveying the Cherokee Nation to be divided up into 40 acre (in the gold region) and 160-acre lots, to be raffled off in a land lottery. Seeing no other options, the Cherokees signed the Treaty of New Echota in 1835, surrendering claim to their homeland in “exchange for $5,000,000, seven million acres in Oklahoma and an agreement to remove within two years”.1 By 1838, almost all of the Cherokees had been driven out of Georgia, under the watchful eye of 7,000 troops commanded by General Winfield Scott. On the “Trail of Tears” to Oklahoma, up to 4,000 Cherokees died. The 1830s survey maps for the land lottery still exist, and show that there were some Cherokee structures located approximately at the intersection of Route 41 and Highway 293 in modern day Kennesaw (land lot 138, on the 1832 survey map). The Cherokees were undoubtedly attracted to the more than 12 springs in the Kennesaw area. The largest, Equa Ganuga Gr Ama – “The Big Spring of Water”, is located behind City Hall in Kennesaw. Parts of modern day Route 293 were built on top of the Cherokee Peachtree Trail (or “Standing Peachtree Trail” in some sources.) 1 Cherokee History: Part Two, Lee Sultzman 5 Equa Ganuga Gr Ama The coming of the Western and Atlantic Railroad An early Kennesaw railroad building. (Mark Smith identifies this as an 1880 photo). The person standing (4th from the left) is Agent G.L. Howell. On Dec. 21, 1836, the Georgia legislature authorized the building of a railroad – the Western and Atlantic - that would eventually stretch from the Mile 0 marker in Atlanta to Chattanooga. The Western & Atlantic was one of several Georgia railroads built in the mid-1800s, including the Rome Railroad, the Georgia Railroad, the Macon & Western, and the Montgomery & West Point. It was somewhat unique, as it was owned and operated by the State of Georgia, which still owns the right of way (some Union Civil War dispatches actually refer to the W&A as the “Georgia State Railroad”). After the difficult route was surveyed in 1837 by S.H. Long, “Chief Engineer of the Western and Atlantic Railroad of Georgia”, construction started in 1838. Small towns sprung up along the Western & Atlantic right-of-way as track laying progressed north, including Vinings, Smyrna, 6 Big Shanty and Acworth. Big Shanty sat at the highest point of the line between the Chattahoochee and Etowah Rivers. A collection of railroad shanties built near a spring by laborers on the W&A Railroad grew up at this spot. This was the beginning of Kennesaw. Thus, Kennesaw was founded as a railroad town, and the railroad would continue to be an important part of life in Kennesaw throughout the 19th century, as these examples show: . In the 1860 census, over 12% of the population of the unincorporated area known as Big Shanty was employed by the W&A . In 1862 (April 12), one of the most famous incidences of the Civil War started at Big Shanty – the Andrews Raid . In June of 1864, fighting erupted around Big Shanty as William Tecumseh Sherman followed the W&A southward towards Atlanta The Coming of the Western and Atlantic Railroad Date Activity Dec. 21, 1836 The Georgia legislature authorizes the building of a state-owned railroad from Chattanooga to Terminus, Georgia (now Atlanta) 1837 Surveying (S.H. Long Chief Engineer Western and Atlantic Railroad of Georgia) 1838/40 Over 500 men (including some Cherokee Indians) work on grading, road bed, and trestles 1845 First 20 miles of track in operation 1850 The last section (Tunnel Hill) of the 138-mile W&A was completed on May 9, 1850. Total cost for the line was $4,087,925.50. April 12, 1862 W&A is sabotaged by Union Raiders 1870 . Georgia legislature passes law requiring W&A to be leased (not run by State) . W&A is leased for 20 years to a group headed by former GA Governor Joseph E. Brown 1890 W&A leased for 29 years by Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis Railroad 7 Two c. 1870 railroad shanties, destroyed in 1994 Excerpts from the 1837 W&A Survey, by S.H. Long Chief Engineer Western and Atlantic Railroad of Georgia "The difficult and arduous task of discovering and choosing the most favorable route for a railroad, leading from a point in the Tennessee line, "at or near Rossville," to some point on the Chattahoochee between Winn's Ferry and Campbellton, separated