A new Tennessee Civil War Trails marker was unveiled on December 5 which focuses on Knoxville as a bitterly divided city. Located at the Knox County Courthouse, the marker tells the story of the happenstance of simultaneous Union and Confederate rallies taking place in April 1861 only blocks apart on Gay Street. Knoxvillian Samuel Bell Palmer witnessed the rallies firsthand and, with amazing accuracy, sketched the scene from memory while a prisoner-of-war at Camp Douglas, Illinois. Those familiar with downtown will recognize several of the buildings, such as the Lamar House on the south end of Gay.
Remarks began at 12:15 p.m. with...
