Presenters of Living History©
Civil war Battle Sites
 

On April 6-7 of 1862, a battle would occur that set the standard for loss during the war. And it all began around a little church called Shiloh...

 

Shiloh

Fields and trees.
In the distance, you are looking at the location of the Hornet's Nest, where a small group Union forces held off eight charges from Confederate forces. There is some thought that if this engagement had not happened, Grant's forces may have been completely defeated this first day.

 

All photos on this page by: JoNell Franz

Where fell Johnston:  Jefferson Davis said, "In his fall, the great pillar of the Southern Confederacy was crushed."

The Bloody Pond This small pond is on the edge of the battlefield at the left-hand side of the Hornet's Nest. Wounded soldiers, hurting and thirsty, crawled here to get a drink of water. By nightfall, the pond was stained red with blood.

 

Some of the wildlife now living at the Park. The turkeys were much less cooperative.

 

Forrest's only marker in Shiloh. Poor Patrick. Forrest is proving most difficult to track down!

 

The Hornet's Nest As the sign reads, this is where the center of the Union Line in the "Hornet's Nest" is thought to have been. It is a well-wooded area and is now quite peaceful. Off the regular auto tour, there weren't as many cars driving by or people wandering around. I think we saw one car drive by while we were here. Such a difference from the chaos that had ensued here almost 150 years ago...

 

Some Union artillery in the Hornet's Nest. The Confederate army finally did force the surrender of General Prentiss and his troops.

 

62 cannon at point blank range. It took all these canons coordinated in one attack to force the Union Troops to surrender.

 

This Sunken Road is where Prentiss ordered the Union to defend. They used the woods on the left for cover with the open field in front of them. Far across to the right, beyond that field, is where the line of canons fired into the Hornet's Nest.

 

The Peach Orchard: Where petals fell like snow amid the raging gunfire. They are currently replanting this orchard; all the little fences mark the new trees! Someday, peach blossoms will fall on this grass again, but in moments of serenity and calm.

 

The ridge above Pittsburg Landing: Grant's Last Stand. Pittsburg's Landing is where General Buell brought his reinforcements during the night, without which the Union would not have been able to turn the tide of the battle the following day.

 

That night, across the Tennessee river, came Buell.

 

The Union forces buried the many Confederate dead in a number of mass graves scattered around the battlesite.

 

Click Here to continue the pilgrimage at Fort Donelson
 

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