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Friday, January 17, 2014

The Church with the Cannonball - Greeneville, TN

The Church with the Cannonball - Greeneville, TN

The Greeneville Cumberland Presbyterian Church building found itself in the middle of the Civil War and ended up having a cannonball lodged between some bricks. On either side of the front door are some lamps. A foot or two above the lamp on the right, or about 8-10 feet off the ground is a small cannonball which became lodged as it must have hit the brick just right. A state of Tennessee Historic Marker adds this info:

Rev. Isaac S. Bonham founded the congregation with thirty charter members in 1841. The present church was begun in 1860 on land purchased from Andrew Johnson by Rev. John P. Holtsinger. The church was shelled on September 4, 1864, the day Confederate General John H. Morgan was killed across the street. This is also the site where The American Presbyterian, Cumberland Presbyterian newspaper, was published in the 1850's by Rev. Joseph P. Dobson.

A second marker placed by the church on the front of the building adds this:

Founded 1841. The war between the states saw the church used as a hospital and stable. The cannon ball in the front wall was fired there September 4, 1864 during the skirmish in which General John H. Morgan lost his life.

The Church with the Cannonball - Greeneville, TN

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