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Scallywags & Heroes
Written By: Donna Rhodes | Issue: 2021/10 – October
Raider George W. Kirk was feared and revered by many, yet his actions struck close to home here on the Plateau.
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Hero to some, scoundrel to many, George W. Kirk deserted the Confederacy and enlisted in the Union Army.
He and his followers patrolled the North Carolina/Tennessee border, serving as guides for Unionist mountaineers and escaped POWs, often providing safe houses for refugees. He stirred the pot by recruiting men to be on-call guerrillas and leaders – in other words, raiders.
In 1863 he was made colonel at age 25. The following year he was promoted to major. One wonders if his falling out with the South was because officers disapproved of his tactics. Whatever the reason, the North took the stand: What goes on in the mountains stays in the mountains.
While his Tennessee compatriots cheered his raids, North Carolinians feared his ruthless tactics. Kirk’s intent was to gather intelligence and steal horses, but he crossed the line in more ways than one. He used human shields in battle and gave his men confiscated spoils of war. He was known to attack men in church on at least one occasion.
Yet, it should be noted that he was following Union orders – mostly.
Kirk and his cohorts were to return to the mountains of North Carolina, gather an army of straggling soldiers, citizens, Cherokee – whomever they could recruit. Once Kirk had a couple hundred men, he was to mount those soldiers on private or captured steeds, thus creating the Third Regiment of North Carolina Mounted Infantry. The raiders’ orders: To “descend upon the rebels and destroy stores and means of transportation.”
They hit close to home: Cashiers Valley, Whiteside Cove, and Horse Cove.
Colonel John Alley of Rutherford County, North Carolina, settled at the base of Whiteside after serving and being wounded in a Mexican altercation. When Kirk’s rapscallions roared through the area they found Colonel Alley at home. One of Kirk’s soldiers recognized him as a man who’d saved his life in the Mexican War. Reciprocally, Alley’s life was spared, but the soldier who spoke on his behalf was murdered by Kirks’ renegade robbers and murderers. Alley’s brother-in-law was also murdered … in front of his wife and children.
After the war and his reign of terror came to an end, he got a job as policeman, oddly enough, at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
To learn more about history’s champions and scallywags, take a fascinating trek through Ran Shaffner’s Heart of the Blue Ridge. Or explore local history by visiting: highlandshistory.com or emailing [email protected].
by Donna Rhodes
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