Welcome to The Perryville Civil War Battlefield Website

Owners of the Perryville Battlefield

(Updated: Sunday, May 17, 2009)

(Information contained herein is the best we have at this time.  If some of it is inaccurate, we will correct it)

Henry Pierce “Squire” Bottom  (b. January 9, 1809. Age at Battle: 53)

Religion: Baptist (Grandfather was Preacher).
Occupations: Farmer, Cabinet Maker, and Justice of the Peace.
Henry was apparently illiterate since he signed his will with an “x” in 1902.
Married: Margaret “Mary” Delilah Hart Bottom in 1840. (b. 1822 or 23) Age at Battle: 43
Son: Samuel Davis Bottom (b. 1841). Age at Battle: 21 (Attended School)
Son: Rowan Bridges Bottom (b. 1848). Age at Battle: 14 (Attended School)
Lived in the “Bottom House” with William S. Bottom (b. December 29, 1784, Age at Battle: 77) William was Henry’s uncle and died one month after the Battle.

There was one Slave dwelling containing 10 Slaves as follows:
Age: 22.  Sex: Female.  Color: Black  Owner: William S. Bottom
Age: 02   Sex: Male.     Color: Mulatto Owner: William S. Bottom
Age: 62.  Sex: Female.  Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 30.  Sex: Male.      Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 25.  Sex: Female.  Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 15.  Sex: Male.     Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 12.  Sex: Male.     Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 10.  Sex: Female.  Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 05.  Sex: Female.  Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom
Age: 03.  Sex: Female.  Color: Black  Owner: H.P. Bottom

Henry P. Bottom’s farm as of 1860:

450 Improved Acres with 310 unimproved acres for a total of 760 acres.  Total cash value of the farm was $16,000.  Implements and machinery: $200.00, 16 Horses, 3 Mules, 10 Milch Cows, 2 working Oxen, 40 other cattle, 60 sheep, 120 swine for a total value of livestock: $3,250.00.

200 bushels of Wheat, 100 bushels of Rye, 2,000 bushels of Indian Corn, 400 bushels of oats, 150 pounds of wool, 20 bushels of peas and beans, 20 bushels of Irish potatoes, 100 bushels of Sweet Potatoes, 30 bushels of buckwheat.  Value of orchard products: $50.00.  Value of products, market garden: $50.00.  400 pounds of butter, 100 pounds of cheese, 10 tons of hay, 300 pounds of flax, 2 bushels of flaxseed, 40 cans of molasses, $100.00 worth of “homemade manufactures” and $300 worth of “animals slaughtered”.

War Claim Information:
List of Destroyed Property in the Claim

“Commissary”
4 head of beef cattle weighing net 2200lbs at 6cts per pound [maybe as many as 40 head of cattle]$132.00
14 head of sheep weighing 840lbs at 5cts per pound.......................................................…..............…......... $ 50.40
2800lbs of pork at 5cts per pound.......................................................................................…..........….........$140.00
1300lbs of bacon at 10cts per pound.............................................................................................……........$130.00
5 head of beef cattle weighing net 2750lbs at 6cts per pound..........................................................……........$165.00
16 head of sheep making 960lbs at 6cts per pound.......................................................................……...........$ 57.60
5740lbs of pork at 5cts per pound.......................................................................................…........…….......$287.00
3200lbs of bacon at 10cts per pound  [there was 200 pounds of bacon in the smoke house].….......................$320.00

Total Commissary: $1,282.00

“Quartermaster”
215 cords of wood at $3.30 per cord [this represents 1300 panels of “worm” fence, nine rails high] ..............$  752.00
2220 bushels of corn at 60cts per bushel  [Bottom had between 100-125 acres in corn, so it seems]..............$1320.00
14 tons of hay at $15.00 per ton [14 stacks of hay along the road].............................................…................$  210.00
50 bushels of oats at 60cts per bushel [200 other bushels were in the barn, and not included] ....….................$     30.00
1 gray mare, 15.5 hands high, 4 years old.................................................................................…..................$  150.00
1 gray horse, 16 hands high, 7 years old..................................................................................…...................$   150.00
105 cords of wood at $3.50 per cord [the rails were 10’ long and about 4” in diameter]  ........…....................$  367.50
800 bushels of corn at 60cts per bushel...................................................................................................…...$   480.00
8 tons of hay at $15.00 per ton....................................................................................................…..............$   120.00

Total Quartermaster: $3,580.00

Grand Total: $4,862.00

“At the time of the battle the plantation was in good condition with comfortable residence, barns, shop and outhouses, pretty fair rail fences and crops; corn was cut and shocked, oats had been cut and stacked or put in the barn; the hay was in stacks in different places on the farm.” - Beverly D. Williams

“there was not more than 200 yards of stone fence on the place, it was pretty much around the house” - Beverly D. Williams

“it was a worm fence and some of it was staked and ridered” - Nimrod Mullinix

“Mr. Bottom had in a bigger corn crop in the year of 1862 then before, for they cleared up the hillsides for cultivation” - Joseph C. Hafely

“He had a meadow there, it may have been 20 or 30 acres . . . anywhere from 20 to 30 stacks [of hay] along [the road] stacked over the meadow” - Jerry Wilkerson

“[Bottom] had a barn destroyed during the battle, a good one at that; it could not have been put up for less than six or seven hundred dollars; [Bottom] had a crop of wheat and oats in the barn at the time they were burned; the wheat was threshed out” - William May

“The barn was off to itself and it burned and also the little square post and rail fence around it.  The haystacks were 400 yards from the barn” - Joseph C. Hafely

“I think he had four large-sized garners [in the barn that held wheat and oats].  I think he opened and showed me two of them”. - William May

Mother of Henry P. Bottom

She was the widow of Jacob Bottom (died in 1841).  She was a double Aunt and second mother to Mary Jane (Gibson), Samuel E. and Ambrose A. Bottom.  She owned $1,600.00 worth of real estate and $1,000 worth of personal Property.  She owned a slave dwelling containing two Slaves: A 57-year-old black female and a 32-year-old mulatto female.  Her house (no longer standing) was situated on the West bank of Doctor’s Fork, several hundred yards North of her son Henry’s house (Tour Stop 14).

Samuel E. Bottom (b. November 4, 1815 – Age at Battle: 47)

Occupation: Saddler - Property Value in 1850: $2,150) Married to Susan A. Barton Bottom (“Ma Susie”) (b. 1821 Age at Battle: 41). Children: Elizabeth W. Bottom Cecil (daughter b. 1841 Age at Battle: 21) Elizabeth married William Cecil in 1860 and lived in Danville; Charles F. Bottom (son b. 1843 Age at Battle: 19); Robert T. Bottom (son b. 1845 Age at Battle: 17; Robert was in the 19th KY Infantry, US.); B. Bottom (daughter b. 1848, Died 1850); Mary Sherwood Bottom (daughter b. 1850 Died 1855); John Allen Bottom (son b. 1854, Died 1855); Samuel Burton Bottom (son b. 1858 Age at Battle: 4); and Amelia Bottom (daughter b. January 16, 1861 Age at Battle: 1½). ALSO LISTED (in 1850) are: Sherwood P. Burton (b. 1813 - 37 - in KY - Occ: Merchant - Property Value $1700); Ambrose A. Bottom (b. 1813 - 37 - in KY - Occ: Saddler - Property Value $700); and Gabriel Walker (b. 1832 - 18 - in KY - Occ: Saddler) Double First Cousin to Henry P. Bottom.  Brother to Ambrose A. and Mary Jane Bottom Gibson.  Lived in the “Sam Bottom House” (no longer standing) at the top of the east bank of Bull Run Creek, about 300 yards north of the Springfield Road (Currently Private Property).

During the Battle, when they saw the cannons of Swett’s Mississippi Battery lining up in their orchard, “Ma Suzie” put the children in a spring wagon and went to a stone house nearby (most likely the Yankey House).  There was a white sheet displayed on the outside of the house, probably a notification to the warring parties that the inhabitants were peaceful.   Apparently, Sam and probably Ambrose were detained in town by the Confederates and were not allowed to return home.  In the basement of the Yankey house, young Samuel Burton Bottom was put down to sleep on what they discovered later was a slab of bacon.  The next morning, young Sam woke up a bit greasy.  When they returned to their house after the battle, they had to drive around the dead bodies.  The descendents still preserve a sideboard that sustained a bullet hole while in the Sam Bottom house during the battle.

Mary Jane Bottom “Widow” Gibson (b. 1822) Age at Battle: 40)

Married Milton Gibson (b. 1828) on October 18, 1843.
Milton Gibson died in the spring of 1862 (before the battle), of disease.
The couple had three sons, Isom Creed Gibson (b. 1852, Age at Battle: 10); Ezra Gibson (b. 1854, Age at Battle: 8); and Henry P. Gibson (b. 1857, Age at Battle: 5).

They lived on Henry P. Bottom’s farm in the “Widow Gibson Cabin” (no longer standing) several hundred yards west of the “Widow Bottom” house site (Tour Stop 22).

In 1860, they had no real estate but $1,000.00 of personal property.
Double First Cousin to Henry P. Bottom.  Sister to Samuel E. and Ambrose A. Bottom

The following is taken from Incidents of the War by Alf Burnett, Carroll & Company, Cincinnati, OH, 1864, pages 18-20

About a mile and a half to the rear of the field of battle there stands, in a large open field, a solitary log-house containing two rooms.  The house is surrounded by a fence inclosing a small patch of ground.  The chimney had been partly torn away by a cannon ball.  A shell had struck the roof of the building, ripping open quite a gutter in the rafters.  A dead horse lay in the little yard directly in front of the house, actually blocking the doorway, while shot and shell were scattered in every direction about the field front and rear of this solitary homestead.  I dismounted, determined to see who or what was in the house – “Darkness there, and nothing more.”

A board had been taken from the floor, exhibiting a large hole between two solid beams or logs.  An empty bedstead, a wooden cupboard, and three chairs were all the furniture the house contained.   Hurrying across the field, we caught up with a long, lank, lean woman.  She had two children with her: a little boy about nine, and [another] about four years of age.  The woman had a table upon her head.  The table, turned upside down, contained a lot of bedding.  She had a bucket full of crockery-ware in one hand, and was holding on to the table with the other.  The children were loaded down with household furniture of great convenience.  As it was growing dark, I inquired the nearest road to Perryville.  The woman immediately unloaded her head, pointing the direction, set one leg on the table, and yelled to the boy –

• “Whoray up, Jeems; you are so slow!”
• “How far is it madam?”
• “O, about a mile and a half.  It aint more nor that, no how.”
• “Who lived in that house?” said I, pointing to the log cabin I had just left.
• “I did.”
• “Where you there during the fight?”
• “Guess I was”
• “Where is your husband?”
• “He wor dead.”
• “Was he killed in the battle?”
• “No; he died with the measles.”
• “Why didn’t you leave when you found there was going to be a fight?”
• “I did start to go, but I seed the Yankees comin’ thick, and I hurried back t’other way; and jest as I e’enamost got to the brush yonder, I seed the ‘Confeds’ jest a swarmin’ out of the woods.  So seeing I was between two fires, I rund back to the house.”
• “Weren’t you afraid you’d be killed?”
• “Guess I was.”
• “What did you do when they commenced firing?”
• “I cut a hole in the floor with the ax, and hid between the jists.”
• “Did they fight long upon your ground?”
• “It seemed to me like it wor TWO WEEKS.”
• “You must have been pretty well scared; were you not?”
• “Humph! skeerd!  Lor bless you skeerd!  That aint no name for it!”

Notes about the Bottom Family: 

William Bottom (1750-1825) Born in Virginia, was a Revolutionary War Veteran and settled in this area to raise his family.  Two of his sons, Jacob and Turner, factor into the story (We know that William S. “Uncle Will” was another son, brother to Jacob and Turner).  It is also a story about the daughters of John Bridges; sisters Mary “Polly” Bridges and Nancy Bridges.  These were big families so I’m not mentioning all the other siblings.  The Bottom brothers married the Bridges sisters.  Jacob married Mary “Polly”, and Turner married Nancy Bridges.  Jacob and Mary were the parents of Henry Pierce Bottom.  Henry’s siblings were Mariah E. Bottom (b. March 22, 1806, Age at Battle: 56, married her second cousin, Samuel Bottom, b. 1806, Age at Battle: 56); Nancy Ann Bottom (b. April 2, 1811, Age at Battle: 51, married a “Isham”); Richard Bottom (b. 1812, Age at Battle: 50); Harriet Bottom (b. January 24, 1817, Age at Battle: 45, married Harrison G. Thompson). Turner and Nancy’s children were:

Mary Jane Bottom (Gibson), Samuel E. Bottom, Ambrose A. Bottom, Turner Jr., and Elizabeth.  When Mary Jane was a newborn baby (1822), both her parents, Turner and Nancy died of typhoid fever.  Mary Jane and all her siblings moved in with Jacob and Mary “Polly”.  Thus, the “Widow Gibson” and her siblings were double first cousins to Henry but were raised as brothers and sisters.  Jacob Bottom died in 1841 leaving Mary “Polly” a “Widow Bottom”.

Joseph C. Hafely (b. 1831, Age at Battle: 31) $500.00 Personal Property

Frances A. Bottom Hafely (b. 1832, Age at Battle: 30) Wife

Children: George W. Hafely (b. 1854, Age at Battle: 8); Thomas M. Hafely (b. 1856, Age at Battle, 6); Merit H. Hafely (b. 1859, Age at Battle: 3)

 Hafely was a farm hand employed by Henry P. Bottom.  He lived on Bottom’s farm between 1858-1862.  Hafely spent the night of October 7th at the Gammon House.  His job of cutting the corn on the H. P. Bottom farm was interrupted by the battle on the day of the battle.  See quotes from Hafely’s 1904 testimony from Henry Bottom’s war claim on pages two and three above. Frances A. Bottom was the 1st cousin, once removed of Henry P. Bottom.

Berry Chatham (b. 1776, Age at Battle, 86) Born in Maryland, $2,320 Real Estate, $3,610 Personal Property. (Ben’s Father)

Nancy Chatham (b. 1789, Age at Battle, 73) Born in Virginia, $200.00 Personal Property. (Ben’s Mother) Benjamin Franklin Chatham  (b. July 13, 1832, Age at battle: 30) $300.00 Personal Property. Single Man. Future Wife:  Georgia Ann Walker (b. 1842, Age at Battle: 20) (Married 12/1863) Georgia was the daughter of John L. and Emily Walker who lived in the “Walker House”.  Other couple living in the house: G.V. Steele (b. 1839, Age at Battle: 23) and his wife Mary Steele (b. 1843, Age at Battle: 19)

There was one slave dwelling on the property and the following 10 slaves are listed as being owned by Berry Chatham.  (All Black, No Mulattos) Female 39; Female 25; Male 21; Female 18; Male 14; Female 10; Female 8; Male 6; Female 4; Female 2. 

Occupants of the “Chatham House” worked 160 acres along east bank of Doctor’s Creek.  The family may have moved to Casey County by 1868. 

Married: Francis J. “Frankie” Laws (b. June 6, 1819, Age at Battle: 43) on January 5, 1841.  On May 31, 1848, John C. Russell purchased his sibling’s shares of his father’s estate (including the farm and house).  His father, Sanders Russell, owned slaves but John did not inherit any.  There was a “Slave Cabin” on the farm but there were no slaves in the family after 1848.  The Russell Farm straddled the Mackville Road (now called Hays-May Road after one of John’s Grandsons) and his house was used as Union General Alex M. McCook as a headquarters during the battle. The house was destroyed by fire in the early 1964.

John and “Frankie” had the following children:

   Isaphena Russell (b. September 5, 1845, Age at Battle: 17) Sometimes her name is mispronounced as “Josephine”.  She married Asbury May (b. 1843, Age at Battle: 19) in 1866. Asbury was a farm hand in 1860 and joined Company F, 63rd Indiana Infantry in 1861.  The 63rd was stationed in Indianapolis during the Battle of Perryville.  He returned to marry his sweetheart after the war.

    Amanda J. Russell (b. April 26, 1847, Age at Battle: 15)
        She married Edward Brown on December 16, 1863

     Susan A. Russell (b. May, 1850, Age at Battle: 12)

     John Ephraim Russell (b. March 31, 1852, Age at Battle: 10)

     Waller Clayton Russell (b. 1854, Age at Battle: 8)

     George William Russell (April 26, 1857, Age at Battle: 5)

     Sarah M. Russell (b. 1859, Age at Battle: 3)

     Luceretia Erman Russell (b. After 1860, maybe died as infant)

Also living with the family was Frankie’s mother, Susan (Bailey) Laws (b. 1779) at the age of 83 with $3,200 of personal property. She became “sick with cold and exposure” when the family fled the battle.  She never recovered and died shortly after the battle.

Her husband, Jeremiah Laws, (b. About 1761 in England) died on September 14, 1845.

The Russell Farm:  In 1860, John C. Russell has 90 acres worth $1,800.00, 11 horses worth $850.00, 7 hogs, 750 bushels of corn, total value of farm, $2,650.00.  In 1861, he has hay and wheat and less corn.  He also had a $65-dollar pleasure carriage.

Excerpts from a letter dated December 12, 1928 by Alice Matilda Laws Taylor, a niece of John C. and “Frankie” Laws Russell:

One cold evening, Uncle John Russell started to feed his fattening hogs and other stock when he saw a man running towards him, who hollered and told Uncle John to put down his buckets, catch his horses quickly as he could, hitch up the wagon and tale all the women and children to the school house.  I believe it said the Harmon School house about four miles away (location unknown).  Both armies were marching and would meet close by.  Uncle John did and got his family away before the soldiers arrived.  History calls this the Battle of Perryville. When they got back several [7?] days later they found the house had been used as a hospital.  Aunt Frankie had a lot of fine walnut and mahogany furniture she was real proud of, but it was almost all destroyed.  It had been used as firewood and the drawers used to feed the horses in.  All her chests of sheets, table covers, pillowslips, and so on, a lot of it fine old homespun, had been torn up and much of it used to doctor the wounded with.  My father said the house was a two-story southern style house with a long hall and big rooms on each side and a two-story front porch.  The house was scarred up with bullet holes, and the window lighters were all broken out and a lot of damage was done to the property.  This is all I can remember them telling about the Battle of Perryville.  When the family got back from the schoolhouse, Grandmother Susan Bailey Laws was sick with cold and exposure.  She never recovered and died that winter.  She was 84 years old.  This is the house where my dear old grandmother, Susan Bailey Laws died, and at my age I can hardly restrain the tears to write this . . ..

John C. Russell’s War Claim Testimony:

July 11, 1883. Claimant aged 62 years P.O. Perryville, KY, living two miles west of that place swears that during the war he owned a farm of 140 acres where he now lives.  In 1862, he had 20 acres in corn, 15 in wheat, and 5 or 6 in meadow.  Forgets how much in oats.  The Union troops encamped on his place for a day or so, after the battle of Perryville.  Thinks it was General [Joshua] Sill’s division . . . He did not see the stores taken or the horses in their possession.  The corn was taken from his field and they took about two stacks of sheaf oats.  General Sill’s division hemmed besides the portion of fence, one string of new rail fencing of 100 panels all used as fuel.  Previous to the battle the weather had been very dry.  There came a cold rain followed by a snowstorm.  Cannot give the names of any of the officers nor the regiments that took his forage.  No receipts or vouchers were given him . . . Made a claim against the U.S. soon after the war but thinks the paper was returned to his attorney Dr. J.J. Polk now deceased.  Has never received compensation for any of these stores.

Requested items:

Use of dwelling as a house for 17 days and damage for personal property:  $238.10
30 cords of wood at $3.00 per cord:                                                                 $90.00
40 Barrels of corn at $2.50 per barrel:                                                            $112.50
2000 Bundles of sheaf wheat at $2.00                                                              $40.00
1000 pounds of hay at $50.00 per pound                                                            $5.00
4 horses at $100.00 each                                                                                 $400.00
Total                                                                                                                $885.60

The claim was denied. He got nothing.

Family tradition is that John’s 17-year-old daughter; Isaphena Russell had the job of removing the severed limbs from the amputations just after the battle when the house was used as a hospital.  She used a pitchfork and carried away two wagonloads of arms and legs.  They were buried in trenches using a plow.

The entire site of the Russell Farm is on Private Property.

David C. Wilkerson (b. About 1801, Age at Battle: About 61)

He was a brother-in-law to John C. Russell.  He died about 1865.

Married Matilda Laws Wilkerson (b. About 1815, age at Battle: About 47) on May 5, 1840.  She was a sister of Francis “Frankie” Laws (Wife of John C. Russell). Children:

Elizabeth Par Wilkerson (b. April 8, 1842, Age at Battle: 20) 

Harriett F. Wilkerson (b. June 23, 1843, Age at Battle: 19) 

Jeremiah Law Wilkerson (b. 1845, Age at Battle: 17) 

Lucy Belle Wilkerson (b. December 13, 1849, Age at Battle: 12)

It is not known how many of the children would have been living at home at the time of the battle.  Matilda’s Mother, Susan Bailey Laws, lived in the Russell House (see above).  The “Wilkerson House” (no longer standing) was on hill, above the East bank of Wilson’s Creek, several hundred yards down stream of the point which the creek crossed the old Mackville Road (Tour Stop #28).  The house was behind Union lines during the battle.  When Union General William R. Terrill was fatally wounded, he was brought to the Wilkerson house where he died at about two-o’clock on the morning of October 9th, 1862.

Jefferson McGinnis (b. About 1823, Age at Battle: 39) Real Estate: $700, Personal: $1,450

Married Emily Russell McGinnis (b. 1825, Age at Battle: 37), on October 15, 1839.  Emily was the sister of John C. Russell. Children:

William “Mick” McGinnis (b. 1838, Age at Battle: 24) (Son from 1st Marriage)
Married Lucretia E. Dye (b. 1842, Age at Battle: 20) (Daughter of John Dye) on October 20th, 1860.
Elizabeth McGinnis (b. 1840, Age at Battle: 22)
Ellie Lou McGinnis (b. 1841, Age at Battle: 21)
Nelson C. McGinnis (b. 10/15/1845, Age at Battle: 17)
Martha D. McGinnis (b. 1849, Age at Battle: 13)
Mattie Lou Belle McGinnis (b. 1851, Age at Battle: 11)
Ophelia G. McGinnis (b. 2/9/1852, Age at Battle: 10)
Samuel Thomas McGinnis (b. 1855, Age at Battle: 7)
Jordan Peter McGinnis (b. 2/14/1859, Age at Battle: 3)
Carrie Lee McGinnis (b. 1861, Age at Battle: 1)

Polly Russell (b. 1797, Age at Battle: 65) Mother of Emily and John C. Russell

Owned about 140 Acres just southwest of the Goodnight House.

Finley L. McGinnis (b. 1823, Age at Battle: 39) Real Estate $2,250, Personal $3,000
Finley was a nephew to Jefferson McGinnis.
He Married:

Mary Jane Armstrong McGinnis (b. 1823, Age at Battle: 39) on July 30, 1845

Children:

Martha McGinnis (b. 1847, Age at Battle: 15)
Susan B. McGinnis (b. 1849, Age at Battle: 13)
Mary F. McGinnis (b. 1851, Age at Battle: 11)
Emeline P. McGinnis (b. 8/28/1852, Age at Battle: 10)
William Harvey McGinnis (b. 6/28/1854, Age at Battle: 7)
Sarah Adarene McGinnis (b. 1857, Age at Battle: 5)”
Rosella McGinnis (b. 5/16/1859, d. 12/7/1860)

This family lived on a ridge about a half a mile south of the Dye House.

John Dye (b. January 8, 1817, Age at Battle: 45)
John first married Emily Lucy Hart on May 4, 1839. They had the following children.

Margaret Delilah Dye (b. July 19, 1840, Age at Battle: 22) Not living with family after 1859.
Lucretia E. Dye (b. 1842, Age at Battle: 20)
Lucretia married William “Mick” McGinnis (b. 1838, Age at Battle: 24) (Son of Jefferson McGinnis) on October 20th, 1860.
Martha A. F. Dye (b. March 17, 1845, Age at Battle: 17)
Ruth G. Dye (b. 1846, Age at Battle: 15)
Emily Lucy Hart Dye died shortly after Ruth was born.  They were living in Mercer County in 1850 and Emily was dead by then.  On January 29, 1851, John married Elizabeth Bottom Dye (b. 1828, Age at Battle: 34).  They had two more sons:

Fauntleroy Dye (b. 1851, Died Young)
James M. Dye (b. 1852, Age at Battle: 10)

Soon thereafter, the family moved to Boyle County and into the current “Dye House” that had been home to his Great Aunt and Uncle Katherine Dye and Captain Nimrod Greenwood and part-time residence of his great uncle Martin Dye, who died on the property in 1822.

He had Real Estate valued at $3,132.00 and Personal Property valued at $8,000.00

He had six slaves, apparently a family who had been with him at least twelve years:

A Father, 50-52 years old, Black
A Mother, 33-36 years old, Black
A Son, 15-17 years old, Black
A Daughter, 7 years old, Black
A Son, 5 years old, Black
A Daughter, 3 years old, Black
 

John Dye owned 120 acres of farmland and tax records show he owned 6 horses, seven cows, 4 hogs and 50 pounds of hemp.

His house still stands and was used by Confederate General Simon B. Buckner as a headquarters.  The “Dye House” is on the modern “Battlefield Road” about half way between the modern park and the town of Perryville.

 Two years before he died (1878), he and his wife sold the house and farm to Silas Tevis in 1876.  John Dye’s mother was Elizabeth Goodknight (Born December 10. 1797)

John was the nephew of Jacob Goodknight.

John L. Walker (b. 1807, Age at Battle: 55) Real Estate: $3,200.00, Personal: $3,600.00
Emily Walker (b. 1814, Age at Battle: 48) Wife
Nancy L. Walker Webb (b. 1836, Age at Battle: 26) (Married James L. Webb, see below)
Martha J. Walker (b. 1840, Age at Battle: 22)
Georgia Ann Walker (b. 1842, Age at Battle: 20) (Married B. F. Chatham 12/1863, see above)
Robert A. Walker (b. 1847, Age at Battle: 15)
The Walker family owned five black slaves living in one slave dwelling.

Male, 67; Female, 52; Male, 25; Female, 7; and Female 2.

The family lived in the large brick “Walker House” (Still Standing) across from the current park entrance in “Walkers Bend”  The house was used as Union General Philip Sheridan’s Headquarters a few days after the battle.

Jacob Goodnight (b. January 15, 1807, Age at Battle: 55)
Uncle to John Dye
Susannah Clariborne Hankla Goodnight (b. May 14, 1808, Age at Battle: 54) Wife
Married on December 23, 1829. Sister to Henry Atkinson Hankla.

Children of Jacob and Susannah:

James Goodnight  (b. July 19, 1833, Age at Battle: 29)
Thomas Davis Goodnight (b. March 09, 1835, Age at Battle: 27)
Elizabeth Hankla Goodnight (b. March 05, 1837, Age at Battle: 25)
Hugh Logan Goodnight (b. March 02, 1839, Age at Battle: 23)
Mary Frances Goodnight (b. December 29, 1840, Age at Battle: 22)
Henry Edward Goodnight (b. May 29, 1843, Age at Battle: 17)
William Wallace Goodnight (b. May 04, 1846, Age at Battle: 16)
Malcolm Randolph Goodnight (b. February 05, 1849, Age at Battle: 13)

Lived in the “Goodnight House” (No longer Standing) along the Chaplin River, several hundred yards up stream from the Walkers.  The Goodnight House was used as a hospital by Cheatham’s Division, and some of the Confederate Soldiers who died there were buried in the Goodnight family cemetery.

Henry Atkinson Hankla (b. April 17, 1810, Age at Battle: 52)
Sarah Bellows Dye Hankla (b. May 25, 1821, Age at Battle: 41)
Lorenzo Goodknight Hankla (b. July 12, 1846, Age at Battle: 16)

Henry was a brother-in-law to Jacob Goodnight.  They were neighbors of the Goodnights and lived just across the Chaplin River from the Boards. Lorenzo helped bury the dead after the battle. He was the grandfather to the current owners of the Goodknight, Walker, and Hart farms, Lorenzo “Ren” Hankla and Scott Hankla

James L. Webb (b. March 8, 1830, Age at Battle: 32) Farmer, $500.00 Personal Property
Nancy L. Walker Webb (b. June 30, 1836, Age at Battle: 26) (Daughter of John L. Walker)
George L. Webb (b. 1855, Age at Battle: 7)
Emily P. Webb (b. 1858, Age at Battle: 4)
Oscar G. Webb (b. 1859, Age at Battle: 3)

Family lived at the “Webb House” (no longer standing) that was located on the old road between the Dye House and the Crawford House.

Andrew G. Yankey (b. 1822, Age at Battle: 40) $11,000.00 Real Estate

Nancy J. Yankey (b. 1828, Age at Battle: 34) Wife
Martha J. Yankey (b. 1848, Age at Battle: 14)
Eliza C. Yankey (b. 1850, Age at Battle: 12)
Jacob W. Yankey (b. 1851, Age at Battle: 11)
John S. Yankey (b. 1853, Age at Battle: 9)
Joseph R. Yankey (b. 1855, Age at Battle: 7)
Thomas C. Yankey (b. 1858, Age at Battle: 4)

The Family owned seven slaves who lived in two slave dwellings.

Male, Black, 42; Female, Black, 35; Female, Mulatto, 32; Male, Mulatto, 20; Female, Mulatto, 9; Female, Mulatto, 7; Female, Mulatto, 5.

Lived in the white stone “Yankey House” since 1850.  The house (no longer standing) was situated on the northern bank of Wilson Creek, facing the creek, near the new Mackville Road. The house was made of limestone.  It had four rooms downstairs, two rooms in the attic, and a basement.  Two small windows were on either end of the gable and had four panes of glass, each measuring eight by ten inches.  There were fireplaces in the basement and on the main floor.  The basement was accessed by steps under the front porch. One room had wooden cupboards with floor to ceiling doors.

The farm around the house consisted of 240 acres.  Jacob Yankey bought the house and farm from Samuel Ewing for 437 pounds, five shillings, and six pence.  In 1850, Jacob Yankey sold the house to his youngest son, Andrew G. Yankey.  There was a nice spring on the property.

Silas Tevis (b. 1811, Age at Battle: 51) Farmer with $2,740 in real estate $4,500 in personal property.  Martha Tevis, wife (b. March 24, 1805, Age at Battle; 57) $6,520 in real estate and $10,000 in personal property – 175 Acres Two Slave Dwellings, Six Slaves, 42 Female Mulatto, 19 Female Mulatto, 12 Male Mulatto, 16 Female Black, 13 Female Black, 11 Female Mulatto.  Listed in 1860 Census as “Silas Lewis”.  Owned property near mouth of Doctor’s Creek.

Crawford House (Still Standing), used as Bragg’s Headquarters.

Samuel Crawford (b. 11/4/1787 - d. 8/14/1868, Age at Battle: 75 almost 76) His wife: Catherine Crawford (b. 5/21/1790 – d. 7/10/1861) died the previous July at the age of 71.  They are buried in Hillcrest Cemetery in Perryville. There were many Crawfords living in the area at the time.  On the Beers Map, Thomas J. Crawford lived northwest of the “Crawford House” and J.M. Crawford lived southwest of the “Crawford House”

Families living west of Perryville on the Springfield Road:

John Dorsey (Dawsey) (b. 1815, Age at Battle: 47), Farmer $2,415 Real Estate, $1, 800 Personal
Mary E. Dorsey (b. 1816, Age at Battle: 46) Wife
Sara E. Dorsey (b. 1852, Age at Battle: 10) Daughter
Mary E. Bowling (b. 1842, Age at Battle: 20) Lived with Family
Rachael “Rachie” A. Bowling (b. 1844, Age at Battle: 18) Lived With Family

Family owned one slave, an 18-year-old Female Mulatto.

The “Dorsey House” (No longer Standing) was about four miles west of Perryville on the Springfield road and was used by Union Army Commander General Don Carlos Buell as a headquarters.

Jordon Peters (b. 1808, Age at Battle: 54) $10,070 Real Estate, $9,330 Personal Property
Mary F. Peters (b. 1808, Age at Battle: 54) Wife, Born in Virginia
M.M. Peters (b. 1846, Age at Battle: 15) Son
Richard Peters (b. 1848, Age at Battle: 14) Son
Isabelle M. Peters (b. 1850, Age at Battle: 12) Daughter
Owned a house (no longer standing) where Doctor’s Creek crossed the Springfield Road. About two miles West of Perryville.  His farm included the high ground between Doctor’s Creek and Bull Run, known as “Peters Hill”.  In 1904, an African American named “Mingo Peters” testified at Henry P. Bottoms’ War Claim.  Although the description of the testimony hinted that Mingo might have been a slave of Jordon Peters, there is no evidence that Mr. Peters owned slaves in the Slave rolls.  The tax rolls have not yet been checked.

John Bradford Harmon (b. 1823, Age at Battle: 39) $2,000 Real Estate, $1,000 Personal
Catherine J. Montgomery Harmon (b. 1825, Age at Battle: 37) Wife
William “Will” T. Harmon (b. 1848, Age at Battle: 14)
Nancy A. Harmon (b. 1850, Age at Battle: 12)
George Harmon (b. 1852, Age at Battle: 10)
Elias A. Harmon (b. 1854, Age at Battle: 8)
John C. Harmon (b. 1857, Age at Battle: 5)

The family owned one Mulatto Slave; a 55 year old Female.

The Harmon House (Still Standing) is on the South Side of the Springfield Road west of Perryville, just west of where the road crosses Bull Run Creek.  It is at the eastern base of “Peters Hill”.

James F. Edwards (b. 1820, Age at Battle: 42) Real Estate $6,400, Personal $1,700
Martha Edwards (b. 1822, Age at Battle: 40) Wife; Very ill from childbirth, died in December, 1862.

Josephine Edwards (b. 1849, Age at Battle: 13)
Willie O. Edwards (b. 1851, Age at Battle: 11)
Mary Belle Edwards (b. 1854, Age at Battle: 8)
James B. Edwards (b. 1859, Age at Battle: 3)
George Washington Edwards (b. August 31, 1862, Age at Battle: 1 month)

The Edwards House (no longer standing) was just west of Perryville on the Springfield Road, just outside the town limits, but still east of the tollhouse.

In Town:

Dr. Jefferson J. Polk (b. March 10, 1802, Age at Battle: 60) Doctor in Town.
Eliza Tod (b. 1806, Age at Battle: 56) Wife

Martha F. Polk (b. October 15, 1824, Age at Battle: 38)
William Tod Polk (b. January 03, 1827, Age at Battle: 35)
Ephraim Jehosephat Polk (b. January 16, 1829, Age at Battle: 33)
Margaret Grant Polk (b. March 07, 1833, Age at Battle: 29)
John M. Polk (b. November 22, 1835, Age at Battle: 27)
Rosa F. Polk (b. September 05, 1839, Age at Battle: 23)
Thomas Jefferson Polk (b. March 17, 1842, Age at Battle: 20)
Eliza Bell Polk (b. October 18, 1845, Age at Battle: 17)

None of the children were still living at home in 1860.

Owned One Slave: 62 year old Black Female. Polk believed in colonization.  He would buy slaves, set them free, then arranged them to be returned to Africa.

His Office and House still stand on “Merchants Row” in town. He had a severe dislike for H.P. Bottom.  Polk sold his Danville farm and moved to Perryville in 1840. He practiced medicine for nineteen years, but he was forced to retire in 1859 after his health failed from what he called "a severe bronchial affection [sic]." During his career as the town's primary physician, Polk attended to 14,000 patients and delivered 825 babies.  Serving as a local minister as well, Polk preached 1,560 sermons, including temperance lectures and political speeches.

On October 8, 1862, the Civil War arrived in Perryville. After five hours of fighting, more than 7,500 casualties covered the fields. Nearly every church, barn, and home was converted into a hospital.  Local citizens were left to bury the dead and to care for the living.

Called from retirement by these circumstances, Polk helped scores of the wounded.  At his home and office in downtown Perryville, several of the injured recovered from their horrific wounds. Shortly after the battle, Polk was appointed surgeon to a makeshift hospital. This "hospital", which was actually a barn containing 40 wounded troops, was owned by a farmer who served as Polk's surgical assistant. The farmer gave the wounded whiskey to dull their pain, and when Polk would operate, the farmer-turned-nurse would sit and play his fiddle. 

Polk risked his own health while tending to the wounded. While working in the music-filled barn, Polk noted that "Here I labored day and night until my health gave way, and I was compelled to desist from my work. Many of my friends thought my illness would prove fatal; but, thank God, I soon recovered."

As the last wounded soldier left Perryville, Dr. Polk again retired from the medical profession. After the Civil War, Polk served as a claim agent for Federal troops and as the local postmaster. Years later one Perryville resident called Polk "the worst stooped man I ever knew, almost bent double and had coughing spells that were body-breaking." Little did this citizen know that this bent and hacking physician was caretaker to scores of soldiers who fell during the Battle of Perryville.

 Always political, always devout, the coughing and stooped Dr. Polk died on May 23, 1881. He is buried in Perryville's Hillcrest Cemetery with his wife and a number of his nine children. 

George B. Calvert (b. 1820, Age at Battle: 42) Physician, $2,000 Real Estate, $300 Personal
Agnes Calvert (b. 1832, Age at Battle: 30)
Harriet A. Calvert (b. 1851, Age at Battle: 11)
E.J. Calvert (b. 1856, Age at Battle: 6) Daughter
Mary F. Calvert (b. 1799, Age at Battle: 63) George’s Mother
 

J.J. Rust (b. 1827, Age at Battle: 35) $1,200 Real Estate, $200 Personal
Mary E. Rust (b. 1837, Age at Battle: 25)
Emma F. Rust (b. 1858, Age at Battle: 4)
J.J. Rust was the Perryville Town Marshall and was born in Virginia.

J. B. Bolling (b. 1827, Age at Battle: 35) Physician, $300 Real Estate, $300 Personal
Susan Bolling (b. 1827, Age at Battle: 35) Wife
 

Thomas J. Hughes (b. 1835, Age at Battle: 27) Plasterer, He went South and joined Company I, 1st LA Cavalry in 1863 with James H. Hope and four other men from Perryville.  Boarded with the Bollings.

Henry Gray (b. 1835, Age at Battle: 27) Merchant, boarded with the Bollings.

G.R. Latimar (b. 1837, Age at Battle: 25) Clerk, boarded with the Bollings.

J.B. Bolling lived in a house (no longer standing) in Perryville on modern Bragg Street, is a lot south of the Baptist Church.  Bolling was a contract surgeon after the battle and testified in H.P. Bottom’s War Claim.

James H. Hope (b. 1839, Age at Battle: 23) Farmer with  $200 in Personal Property.  He was living with Robert Philips as a farm hand. He went south and joined Company I, 1st Louisiana Cavalry in 1863 with Thomas J. Hughes and four other men from Perryville (The other men who joined Company I, 1st Louisiana Cavalry, CS Army were: Thomas Burton, George May, John Morris, and Schlyer Sweeney, the chaplain of the regiment).

Beverly D. Williams (b. July 4, 1822, Age at Battle: 40) Lieutenant in Company “G”, 4th KY Inf. Served on General James S. Jackson’s staff as Quartermaster, was a local resident.  He testified at H.P. Bottom’s War Claim.  We don’t know where he lived.

Need More Information:

John Hart (Hartz) – Not yet found. Lived in a House (No longer Standing) just North of current park, on the modern Hankla Farm. Likely related to Henry P. Bottom’s Wife.

“Widow Sweeney” House (No longer Standing)

On the East Bank of the Chaplin River near the “Board House”. 

Occupied by Maria Board Sweeney (b. Abt. 1810, Age at Battle: Abt. 52)
Her late husband was named John L. Sweeney and he died sometime before 1850.

Two of her sons were Confederate Cavalrymen.  Schlyer Sweeney (b. Abt. 1830, Age at Battle: Abt. 32) who joined the 1st LA Cavalry and became their chaplain in 1863.

Basil P. Sweeney (b. Abt. 1843, Age at Battle: Abt. 19) He enlisted on August 25, 1862 as a private in Company G, 6th Kentucky Cavalry Regiment (Confederate).  A notation indicates he was a POW on August 25, 1862. The 6th had many individuals from the Perryville/Danville area.

Other Children of Maria Board Sweeney:
Martha Sweeney (b. Abt. 1832, Age at Battle: Abt. 30)
Thomas M. Sweeney (b. Abt. 1834, Age at Battle: Abt. 28)
Benton Sweeney (b. Abt. 1836, Age at Battle: Abt. 26)
Minerva L. Sweeney (b. Abt. 1841, Age at Battle: Abt. 21)
Louisa B. Sweeney (b. Abt. 1845, Age at Battle: Abt. 17)
James H. Sweeney (b. Abt. 1848, Age at Battle: Abt. 14)

“Wayne House” (No longer Standing)
Between the Goodnight House and the “Board House”

Kirkland House (No Longer Standing) situated where the modern “Battlefield Road” crosses Doctor’s Creek, on the northern bank of the creek.  Agnes White currently lives in a house that was built within yards of the site.  This needs a deed search to find the wartime owner and his immediate family.

“Widow Reynolds Cabin” On the north bank of Doctor’s Creek, between the Old Mackville and Springfield Roads.

Gammon House (No Longer Standing).  North of the modern park, near the county line, may be in Mercer County records.

Board House (Still Standing) Where Modern Claunch Road crosses the Chaplin River.

Not Researched.

Any information that would help to complete or correct this document should be sent to:

Perryville Battlefield
State Historic Site
Box 296
Perryville, KY 40468

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