YSA Retreat

Last weekend I spoke at a Young Single Adult Conference. Hosted by the McMinnville Tennessee Stake, it was held at Fall Creek Falls State Park. As luck would have it, it snowed, making it a beautiful place to be.

The retreat included three sessions, so I ended up delivering my presentation of Tennessee Mormon History three times. It was a short 45 minute survey of just the hilights of LDS history in Tennesse. So much material, so little time. Just like other presentations, I ended up meeting many like minded people. Mormons like their history.

At the Cane Creek Cemetery

[This is part three on a presentation I gave about Cane Creek and local Mormon History. You can read the other two parts about the Church Family Cemetery and the places we stopped along the way.]

At Charles Talley Road the asphalt gave way to chert, a local rock used for gravel roads. We drove on the twisted path, keeping off the private driveways of the several homes now on what was once the Conder farm. Each of the homes were built for one of the descendents of the Talley family, who were Mormon over three generations back.

A sign led us to the right as we crossed a tiny brook. We drove up the road another 50 yards and found the well manicured cemetery on the right side. I don't know who keeps it so good looking, but I'll ask Charles when I meet him later this summer.

The group gathered around the stone marker for Riley and Martin.The two were buried together in a single grave. The marker itself was place by the Church in 1934 at the instigation of Miles L Jones, who was then the local mission president. When the stone arrived it was dedicated by Charles A. Callis, who was the newest member of the Quorum of the Twelve.

Here we began the story of the shooting itself, about where the missionaries spent the night and how Elder Jones found himself alone and late for the meeting. I described his capture and interogation by the mob. Then we followed the vigilantes as they went to the Conder farm, how they over-powered Jim Conder at the gate and forced their way into the house. We talked about the bravery of the two sons of Sister Malinda "Sues" Conder, who tried to fend off a well-armed mob of about 15 with two muzzle loading shot guns. I described how each of the missionaries died and how Elder Henry B. Thompson was able to escape.

We ended with questions about the people who lived here, and about the Conder home itself, and I told how it had been burned down in 1895 leaving only a chimney, and that by the mid-20th century there was nothing left to see but an empty field.

After the people thanked us for our time, and we took photographs, they left one by one. I took the time to photograph the other stones in the graveyard. I noted that even though it is called the Conder Cemetery, the only Conder buried there is Martin. Buried next to Martin and Riley was Riley's own father John R. Hudson. A little ways away was his paternal grandfather. A few members of the branch were buried here to: Mary Sealy and her parents Eli and Barby Talley, the first two to get baptized at Cane Creek. Then I turned to leave as well. After a brief stop at the site of the log chapel, now an open lot cleared down to the dirt, I turned back home.

On the Road to Cane Creek

[This is part two on a presentation I gave about Cane Creek and local Mormon History]

From Shady Grove we piled into our several cars and headed towards the home site of Sam Hoover. There is nothing remaining of the home, and site is overgrown with trees and brush [and poison ivy]. So standing in the shade on the road side we talked about the site.

Sam had married one of Abraham Church’s daughters and so was closely associated with the Church family. Although Mrs. Hoover was a member, Sam was not. Regardless, he was good friend to the missionaries and knew them well.

After B. H. Roberts received J. Golden Kimball’s telegram with the details of the shooting, he borrowed some cash from a local Jewish merchant who had befriended the LDS church in Chattanooga. With this he purchased two steel caskets which he had sent to the home of Sam Hoover.

After donning his “hobo” disguise, B. H. Roberts sent the wagon crew on ahead to the Hoover home, while he walked through the corn fields with the intent of meeting them there. It was a game of deception. He wanted to be sure no one could say they saw him (Roberts) leave with the wagons or the caskets. That way, no one would be expecting him in Lewis County. But too be sure, he mingled around many people he knew at the Hoover home, and not a single person recognized him. Confident that his disguise would work they continued on their way to Cane Creek with the wagon now loaded.

Our next stop was a rail road trestle on the only line between Centerville and Lewis County. At the time the rail line had been abandoned. The railroad had been built to support the iron ore industry in the area, but the foundry had gone bankrupt. There was iron ore to be sure, but not enough to mine profitably. It was this path the Willis E. Robison took to sneak into Cane Creek a few days after the shooting. He needed to know his friends at Cane Creek, both member and missionary we safe. So he left behind his companion and road the train as far as it went. At Centerville he began walking. But just before the trestle he was intercepted by guards placed there to stop any Mormon missionary from coming in. He had the foresight to remove his temple garments and put on the clothes of a cotton picker. They tore open his shirt to check for the garments and offered him chewing tobacco. He passed all the tests, and they began escorting him across the trestle. Elder Robison didn’t know if they really believed him. He even thought they might try to push him from the 40 foot high bridge as they crossed. He was determined that if the did he would take one of them with him. It didn’t come to that, however. He made it to Cane Creek, and after learning there was little he could do to help, he returned by the same route. We don’t know if this is the same trestle, but the height is right and the site is about right.

We also drove by Totty’s Bend, where there was another branch of the Church, but we didn’t get out and talk there. We also briefly pointed out about where Tom Garrett’s home was. Then we drove down Cane Creek Road and then on to Charles Talley Road.

[to be continued]

At the Church Family Cemetery

A couple of weeks ago I was asked to take a group of temple missionaries around to see the site of the Cane Creek Massacre and other places of interest. My Bishop was really the organizer behind it, and it is hard to tell him no. Not that I was even tempted to turn him down.

So I spent Saturday afternoon, visiting some of the more historic LDS sites in middle Tennessee. It was really fun, though I think my kids would have been bored.

We started at the cemetery of the Abraham Church family. Although I have been researching this for a couple of years, I hadn't been to this cemetery before so I was following some detailed directions. Since someone may want to follow my directions in the future, I thought I would post them here.

I started by heading west on Highway 50 from Columbia, Tennessee, for about 13 miles. Take the first left, immediately after crossing the Duck River. As of 2011, this was an unpaved road. Take this road down for about 2,000 feet, going under the Natchez Trace Parkway, until you come to a fork in the road. A "keep out" sign is posted on the left fork. Take the right fork for about 600 feet and stop. The Cemetery is about 100 feet off to your right in a grove of trees. There is a road going back to it, but it is overgrown and unrecognizable in the spring and summer. The cemetery itself is fenced with a combination iron and chain link fencing.

Inside there are graves for Abraham Church, Haden Wells Church, Robert Robins Church, and many other. Most of the stones have been broken off below the inscription.

Bishop Pennington thoughtfully brought some equipment to clear the growth and made a large enough clearing for us and the 8 temple missionaries who showed up. Also there were some of Bishop Pennington's family, bringing our crowd to just over twelve.

To get us started I talked about the history of the Church in Middle Tennessee, and how the Church family joined the LDS Church. We talked about how this place served as the cradle of the missionary effort, and who spent time there. We talked of B. H. Roberts and J. Golden Kimball, and others. And we talked about the fate of the home that stood a few hundred feet away.

[Next time: our drive to Cane Creek]