![]() The Confederate losses included 361 killed in action, another 2,160 wounded and an incredible 4,146 missing! Corporal George Burch was among the casualties with a gunshot wound to his left leg just above the ankle that, according to his later pension application, severed a ligament rendering him unable to walk. The Federal victory produced 5,428 casualties that included 753 killed in action, another 4,722 wounded and 349 missing. General Braxton Bragg commanded the Army of Tennessee that numbered 44,010. Grant commanded a Federal force of 56,359 in the Military Division of the Mississippi. On November 24th and 25th of 1863, he participated in the battle of Missionary Ridge right outside of Chattanooga, Tn.Īt this Battle Major General U. He joined the Confederate Army on Main Madison, Fl and was assigned to the 1st Florida Infantry Battalion. He was a soldier in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. (BELOW IS A TRUE LIFE STORY OF A ONE TIME PATIENT OF UNION HOSPITAL NO 3 IN NASHVILLE)ġ59 years ago today (11-25-1863) my Great Grandfather, George C Burch, was shot. ![]() ![]() If we've learned anything during the pandemic of 2020, it's how incredibly vital fully staffed and fully equipped hospitals are! Hospitals aren't my favorite place to go-either as a patient or a visitor-but I'm truly thankful for the modern medical facilities available to us these days. As I walk the halls and climb the stairs, I can't help but wonder what sights and sounds those old brick walls witnessed. I've had the privilege of spending time in an 1840s private home outside of Nashville where wounded Union soldiers were taken after the battle. Several private homes that were used as hospitals remain intact, including Carnton Plantation in Franklin. Today, most of the buildings that once housed these makeshift hospitals are gone or have been transformed into businesses and condominiums. Men even had to wait outside in the bitter cold before room could be found inside, usually because another poor soul had died. Blood-soaked floors were lined with bodies. Approximately 10,000 casualties resulted from the two-day battle. In fact, despite the seemingly large number of hospitals set up in the years prior to the battle, the number of wounded far exceeded the preparations. All provided excellent grounds and even views of the city.īut in December 1864, these hospitals would overflow with gravely injured and dying men after the Battle of Nashville. The same was true of hospitals located in Howard high school, Hume high school, and Hynes high school. The neighborhood was quiet and the hotel offered lovely grounds where the men could get some fresh air and exercise. If an officer was wounded or fell ill, he was taken to the Planter's Hotel to recuperate. Separate hopsitals were also created for prisoners of war as well as black patients. If a patient was diagnosed with small pox, they were immediately taken to a hospital for that specific disease in order to prevent spreading. Others took over schools where learning came to an abrupt halt and students were replaced with men suffering from dysentery, venereal diseases, infections, and fevers. That enormous number means that thousands upon thousands of men needed a hospital at some point during the years between 18.Īt least two Nashville hospitals were housed in former Confederate gun factories. Wounded or ill soldiers would have been brought to one of these reinvented businesses, depending on the soldiers' rank, color, and the level of nursing skill required to meet their particular needs.įor more than a century, it has been estimated that about 620,000 Americans died in the conflict, with more than half of those dying off the battlefield from disease or festering wounds. In March 1863, a list of Union hospitals was published in the local newspaper. Nashville was a Confederate-held city until Federal troops took control of it in February 1862. The vast majority of injured soldiers were carried to private homes, businesses, hotels, schools, and churches where doctors, nurses, and an army of volunteers-both white and black-did their utmost to care for the gravely and mortally wounded men from both sides. While researching the book, I was surprised to discover that most of the hospitals that sprang up after this battle, as well as the Battle of Franklin (November 30, 1864), were not hospitals at all. My novel Under the Tulip Tree takes place in Nashville and includes scenes from the Battle of Nashville that took place December 15-16, 1864. And while those images may describe some hospitals that existed in the 1860s, most "hospitals" used during the Civil War looked very different. I picture clean sheets, sterile instruments, surgical areas, and plenty of beds for all who need them. Like most of us, when I think of a hospital, I think of a building specifically created for the care of the sick and injured.
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