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Knoxville, Tennessee
November 17 - December 4,
1863
Knoxville was the target of a Southern offensive
in the fall of 1863. Confederate General James Longstreet
led his army there in a desperate bid to end the Union
occupation of East Tennessee. The fighting around
Knoxville was among the most brutal of the Civil War,
with Confederate attackers trying to climb the ice-covered
earthworks which encircled the city.
Current Status: Today, little remains of the
Knoxville battlefields. Only two of the sixteen forts
and gun emplacements that once protected the city
remain intact. One of those fortifications, historic
Fort Dickerson, is protected as part of a 94-acre
park maintained by the city's parks and recreation
department. The other remaining bastion, Fort Higley,
is situated on a ridge top overlooking the Tennessee
River. This fortification was the scene of fighting
during the siege of Knoxville and played an important
role as an artillery position. Unfortunately, Atlanta-based
Eagle Realty is planning a 250-condominium project
for the site.
There is no comprehensive CWSAC priority classification
for the Knoxville Campaign battlegrounds.
Most of the battles associated with Knoxville are
classified as Priority IV sites.
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