Day 30 - Friday, June 18
I begin today’s entry with last night - having dropped off Chris where we began the day in Woodbury, we decided rather than drive back to Murfreesboro we would stay at the nice quiet municipal park that had water and wifi for the RV. We didn’t see a soul the night before. And then within 30 minutes of stabilizing the rig, filling water tanks, extending and cleaning, hordes of locals show up for T-Ball! The parking lot was full and we were surrounded by what seemed to be everyone in the town. And, it was beautiful - pure Americana.
We pulled out at 5:30am to get back to Murfreesboro where we left off. Sadly, we docked Lucky for the day as the last 5 miles yesterday on the scalding hot pavement crisped his paws and he is walking around gingerly.
My route started on a small 2 lane double lined road with no shoulder call the Old Nashville Hwy and it was set along a few civil war battle sites and then I came upon a magnificent grave yard that sat on the Battle of Stone River. It was 6:40am and the gates were closed so I hopped the 3 foot stone wall and I was alone walking through the grave sights. The sun was rising and light shown through the trees passed by the tomb stones. As I walked through, I noticed how many of the dead were just kids - I found many under 18 and could only imagine their parents grief at sending them off to fight and never seeing them again.
The Battle of Stones River (also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro) was a battle fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle TN, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign the Western Theater of the American Civil War. Of the major battles of the war, Stones River had the highest percentage of casualties on both sides. Although the battle itself was inconclusive, the Union Army's repulse of two Confederate attacks and the subsequent Confederate withdrawal were a much-needed boost to Union morale after the defeat at the Battle of Fredericksburg, and it dashed Confederate aspirations for control of Middle Tennessee.
Commanders and leaders: William Rosecrans, Alexander McCook, George Thomas, Thomas Christensen, David Stanley, Braxton Bragg, Leonidas Polk, William Hardee, Joseph Wheeler.
Union Major General William Rosecrans’ Army of the Cumberland marched from Nashville TN, on December 26, 1862, to challenge General Braxton Bragg's Army of Tennessee at Murfreesboro. On December 31, each army commander planned to attack his opponent's right flank, but Bragg struck first. A massive assault by the corps of Maj. Gen. William Hardee, followed by that of Leonidas Polk, overran the wing commanded by Maj. Gen. .Alexander McCook A stout defense by the division of Brig. Gen. Philip Sheridan in the right center of the line prevented a total collapse, and the Union assumed a tight defensive position backing up to the Nashville Turnpike. Repeated Confederate attacks were repulsed from this concentrated line, most notably in the cedar "Round Forest" salient against the brigade of Col. William Hazen. Bragg attempted to continue the assault with the division of Maj. Gen. John Breckinridge, but the troops were slow in arriving and their multiple piecemeal attacks failed.
Fighting resumed on January 2, 1863, when Bragg ordered Breckinridge to assault the well-fortified Union position on a hill to the east of the Stones River. Faced with overwhelming artillery, the Confederates were repulsed with heavy losses. Falsely believing that Rosecrans was receiving reinforcements, Bragg chose to withdraw his army on January 3 to Tullahoma TN. This caused Bragg to lose the confidence of the Army of Tennessee.
A few more miles down the road and I entered Smyrna. My mother’s friend Dick mentioned to me that this used to be the site of Stewart Air Force Base which has been in service from 1941 to 1971. This he remembers was his first duty station after graduation from flight school in 1957.
We landed in our local Walmart after a sweltering heat and decided to head up to Loveless Cafe on the recommendation of a few friends. We were not disappointed - a 1950’s style motel and old world coffee shop that seated roughly 120 people. We have gotten into the routine of finishing our day around 2 and then having lunch/dinner at 3-4. As a result, there was not a big crowd although we later learned that they serve 500,000 people per year! We started with piping hot biscuits, butter and selection of 3 home made jams. I washed this down with a Moonshine Bloody Mary. Next up a Fried Chicken salad with lettuce, tomatoes, cheddar, bacon, candied pecans and signature peach vinaigrette….chicken tenders were fried to perfection. Chris ordered fried chicken gizzards and I had pulled pork. Both dishes could not have been prepared any better and the sides - creamed corn, fried green tomatoes and mashed were outstanding. Finally a slice of peach pie and coconut custard pie - out of this world. Chris’ review: “The absolute benchmark for Americana Cuisine.”
All for now - thank you for the support.
Cheers,
David.
