Madison County – Several months ago, the Tribune did a couple of stories on the Shelton Laurel Massacre, one from the history of the historical markers series and the other from Dan Slagle, a Madison County Genealogical Society member who added more to the story.
Slagle gave a presentation of his decades of research to the society at their September monthly meeting. The meeting turned out to be the group’s largest ever, with people coming from Tennessee to attend.
Some background about the massacre to enlighten or refresh memories: the massacre took place in the remote Shelton Laurel Valley in Madison County. The massacre was committed by a Confederate detachment under the command of Colonel Lawrence Allen, who led the 64th North Carolina Regiment. The inhabitants of Shelton Laurel were predominantly Unionists, opposed to secession. They raided the supplies at Marshall to get salt, which had been deprived to the Unionists. Salt was vital to survival in the 1800s. The Confederate soldiers acted on orders purportedly issued by Confederate General Henry Heth. They rounded up suspected Union sympathizers, including older men and teenage boys, and subjected them to summary executions. At least 13 men and boys were brutally murdered in cold blood (the other articles can be found at tribpapers.com, searching ‘Shelton Laurel’).
Slagle’s talk focused on 15 questions he believes get overlooked and concentrated on five sources:
– 1863 – The New York Times, dated July 24.
– 1867 – Thrilling Adventures of Daniel Ellis, by himself.
– 1894 – Partisan Campaigns of Col. Lawrence M. Allen, by A. P. Gaston.
– 1981 – Victims, by Philip Shaw Paludan.
– 1988 – Bushwhackers, by William R. Trotter.
The first question was, what resulted from Madison County’s vote on the secession convention? None of the sources recorded a vote except for Paludan, who stated that 532 were against the convention and 345 for the convention. “According to the Raleigh Register of March 9th and 13th, 1861, Madison County votes were 532 against convention and 345 for convention… but those results were for the vote of February 1861, not the final vote of May 13, 1861. Madison’s numbers in the May election are elusive, but we do know the majority vote was for holding a convention,” said Slagle.
Who did Madison County send to the Convention? None of the sources answered those questions, but the Journal of the Convention of the People of North Carolina, 1862, stated the county elected Joseph A. McDowell as their delegate.
Where did Sheriff Merrill retreat to after shooting Elisha Tweed during the raid? Both Paludan and Trotter agreed it was a nearby house or storage building. “In his deposition, James Nichols stated that ‘he saw James Hagan strike the storehouse door with a hatchet when he wrestled the hatchet from him.” Thoms Brooks deposed that, “After the front door was opened, Neely Tweed walked in, crossed over the counter and shot Merrill.” (Madison Criminal Actions’ 61-’65, NC State Archives).
Slagle’s next question was where and when the salt raid occurred. While Ellis did not say, all other sources agreed it was Marshall and in January. Slagle said, “Captain John Peek’s pension file shows the raid happened in Marshall on January 8, 1863. Peek was wounded in the engagement. Lt. Colonel James Keith wrote that the raid occurred in Marshall on January 8.”
Gaston is the only one to answer the fifth question: Who led the salt raid? Gaston says Bill Kirk from Greene County, TN. This is confirmed in Keith’s letter.
Read more in the follow-up article.