Munfordville, KY
N 37° 15.207 W 085° 53.275
16S E 598621 N 4123568
A small town civil war battlefield that involved Confederate General Braxton Bragg and Union General Don Carlos Buell. Now it mostly serves as parkland.
Waymark Code: WM76H5
Location: Kentucky, United States
Date Posted: 09/09/2009
Views: 4
"MUNFORDVILLE, 83.8 m. (571 alt., 649 pop.), named for Richard
I. Munford, member of the House of Representatives in 1820, 1822,
and 1827, is high on the northern bank of Green River. It is the seat
of Hart County, named for Capt. Nathaniel G. T. Hart, a Revolution-
ary officer. The courthouse, of the familiar red brick schoolhouse
type, is on one of the knolls that crop up on the rough ground that
is the town site.
The major event in the history of the town was the so-called Battle
of Munfordville. The Union fort here and 4,000 men under Colonel
Wilder, together with supplies, artillery, and ammunition, were cap-
tured by Confederate General Bragg on September 17, 1863, three
days after an abortive attempt to take the town. Bragg succeeded
in reaching Munfordville in advance of Union General Buell, who was
racing towards Louisville to protect it from the advancing Confederates. Having captured Munfordville, Bragg was in a position either to fight the oncoming Union forces or to march into Louisville ahead of them. He did neither; instead he marched away to the east, leaving Buell free passage to Louisville. The withdrawal from Munfordville, and the indecision shown by Bragg from that time until his final retreat into Tennessee, were strongly condemned by the Southern press and public."
--Kentucky: A Guide to the Bluegrass State, 1940
-----
The battlefield now serves as parkland, and the city has retained the small town aspects of life. There are several other waymarks posted around town.
Book: Kentucky
Page Number(s) of Excerpt: 302
Year Originally Published: 1940
|
Visit Instructions:
To log a Visit, please supply an original image of the Waymark.