If interested in helping, you can send me a letter and I will forward to
County Commissioners at the meeting.  Thanks for helping!
From:Steven B.G. Stewart
Curator of Collections & Exhibits
Customs House Museum & Cultural Center
200 South Second Street
Clarksville, TN 37042
931.648.5780

June 30, 2004

Dear interested parties of history,

Cleo Hogan, a Clarksvilleattorney, with intense interest in the
preservation and promotion of historical sites in Montgomery County, TN.
and Clarksville, called me this afternoon with some disturbing news.  The
site of the training/mustering camp of the famous Kentucky Orphan Brigade,
one of the most famous fighting units of the American Civil War, just north
of Clarskville on Hwy. 70 (the road to Guthrie, KY), is under threat of
development.

Please read his email, as follows:

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Gregg, the land upon which this muster ground is located is up for rezoning
to a category that will allow truck stops, and many other uses.  It was
tried 2 yrs ago, and defeated, as I recall, altho the County Commissioner
for that District, Cissy Rankin (920-1505) will know more accurately than I.

Mr. Hooks, the owner has partnered with a Nashville developer, and I don't
have the details.

This camp was the site of mustering by hundreds, if not thousands of
Kentuckians AND Tennesseeans on horseback, taking more than a few acres
along Spring Creek for bathing, watering horses, and drilling over several
acres.  (NOTE: The KY Orphan Brigade was several infantry regiments who
would be mountd in 1864.)

The Historic Highway Marker was placed near the Mimms/Rawlins house for
security, but the muster ground was further West, on the banks of the
creek, according to now deceased Norman Rawlins, Jr, a charter member of
SCV Camp 225, Clarksville when it was reorganized about 1992.

In an era of "Historic Tourism" development, we wouldn't have to fabricate
a WBTS site--it is largely undisturbed until now, covered with large trees,
where Mr. Rawlins related the relic hunters used to find coins and harness
relics many years ago.  If this is rezoned and developed, without reserving
2 to 5 acres for a historic site, another site will be lost to future
citizens.

The Regional Plannning Commission has recommend approval of the rezoning
request without objection of any public, and that recommendation is set for
informal hearing before the full County Commission at 7pm on Thursday, July
8; and final approval on Monday, July 12, also at 7pm, I believe.

Ms. Rankin, an attorney is the elected councilperson for that district, and
she can be heard, if any affected residents oppose the rezoning.

Call me if you want to go out there.

Cleo Hogan
[log in to unmask]
[log in to unmask]
931-572-0700
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

We need to move on this now!  The first zoning meeting is Thursday, July
8th with the second on the 12th as detailed above.  We need to get dozens
of supporters there to help save this historic site.  We need to let the
County Commission know that people in the area support historic
preservation and that such sites are part of our history.  These sites are
also of great interest to tourists who come through this area to visit
Civil War sites.  Tourists mean money to our area too as they stay in
motels, eat in restaraunts and shop local stores.

Just today, members of the Clarksville CWRT and the Gracey SCV Camp met
with members of the Clarksville Customs House Museum to discuss two local
Civil War history projects, one of which is the definitive Civil War
driving tour map of all the related sites in Montgomery County.  This would
entail the sites of training camps, forts, battles, historic homes,
cemetaries, etc., oriented for the tourists that come through the area, but
also of great interest to current county residents.  The Orphan Brigade
site was a pivotal part of this planned map tour.  I know of two CWRT's
from Ohio and Indiana that have been to this site in the last two months,
one as recently as this past Saturday, and both were very excited to see
it!  They well know the history of this famous fighting command!

None of us wishes to prevent new jobs from coming to our community, but
there is a way that the developer can have their site and we historians can
have our's.  It just takes some cooperation and planning to make this
happen.  This has been successfully done in several Civil War areas of
Virginia and Georgia, where the developers incorporated Civil War sites
into their development.  Both sides win in that scenario - and that can
happen here!

PLEASE - show up at these meetings on the dates mentioned above.  This is
especially important for our Kentucky members.  As I get them I will
forward the directions to the County Commission meeting site.  We need
numbers to show up or the other side wins completely!  Many commissioners
think that the historians do not care so let's prove them wrong!

Please pass this around to all interested parties that you know.  Send to
other historians, other CWRT's, SCV camps - anyone that might care who
would come and support us next week!  Please also call Commissioner Rankin
and let her know that you support her efforts to help preserve this
property!  I have already placed a call to her as of this writing.

Thanks for reading - now let's make this happen and save that property for
all time!

Greg Biggs
President,
Clarksville Civil War Roundtable

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