Appalachian History Series
Why East Tennessee mattered in 1863
When Union Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnside moved into East Tennessee in late summer 1863, his columns relied on thin railroad guards to keep the East Tennessee and Virginia line open. One of those guard posts sat at the Limestone Creek railroad bridge and nearby depot at Telford. A short, sharp fight there on September 8 became one of the most lopsided small actions of the campaign. The National Park Service’s consolidated Tennessee operations list records the day succinctly: skirmishes at Limestone and Telford Station, with Union losses listed as 12 killed, 20 wounded, and 240 missing.
Who fought there
On the Union side stood a detached portion of the 100th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, posted to protect the railroad. The NPS unit profile for the 100th highlights the event plainly, noting “Telford Station and Limestone, Sept. 8” and that 240 men were captured while guarding the railroad.
Confederate forces in the area were led by Brig. Gen. Alfred E. Jackson. County and battlefield summaries consistently place about one thousand Confederates on the field, a figure echoed on the state historical marker at Limestone Station.
September 8, 1863, at the bridge and the depot
Just west of Telford, the railroad crosses Limestone Creek. Here the 100th Ohio traded fire with Jackson’s men, then fell back toward the station as ammunition ran low and the pressure grew too great. The on-site marker summarizes the sequence and result: a short skirmish at the bridge, a forced withdrawal, and the eventual surrender at the depot with more than 250 Federals taken prisoner.
Contemporary official records back the outline of events. In the War Department’s Official Records, Series I, Vol. 30, Pt. II, the East Tennessee section includes both formal reports and an “Itinerary of the Twenty-Third Army Corps” covering August through late September. The itinerary entry for September 8 notes the Limestone and Telford affair, confirming a Union detachment of the 100th Ohio was overwhelmed while guarding the railroad.
What the participants said
We are fortunate to have first-person testimony from a captured officer. Lt. Douglass O. Kelley of the 100th Ohio wrote from Confederate captivity later that fall, describing how the detachment faced a much larger force near Limestone Station and how he was taken prisoner when escape became impossible. His letter offers a ground-level view of the panic and confusion that followed the stand at the bridge.
On the Confederate side, the War Department in Richmond printed a 72-page pamphlet in early 1864 transmitting several reports to Congress. Among them are Lt. Col. M. A. Haynes’s accounts of engagements at Knoxville, Limestone Creek, and Carter’s Station. This contemporary Confederate printing helps confirm dates, places, and the scale of Jackson’s East Tennessee operations, including the blow struck at Limestone.
Aftermath and numbers
By every official reckoning the result was decisive. The NPS summary for Tennessee gives the Union loss totals for September 8 as 272 men in all categories, with the 100th Ohio’s unit page specifying roughly 240 captured while guarding the line. These figures match the numbers preserved in modern site profiles used by preservationists and local historians.
Mapping Limestone into its community
Limestone Station sat within a small web of settlements between the Nolichucky River and Little Limestone Creek. The National Register nomination for the nearby Broylesville Historic District places the 1863 skirmish in that landscape, tying the station and bridge to the trades, roads, and farms that bound Washington County together before and after the war.
What to call it
You will see the action cataloged under a few names: “Limestone Station,” “Telford’s Station,” and sometimes “Limestone Creek.” The Tennessee Civil War Sourcebook and federal rosters use those labels interchangeably for September 8, which is helpful when searching reports and itineraries.
Why the fight still matters
Limestone is a reminder that campaigns turn on rail lines as much as on grand battles. Burnside’s army gained East Tennessee, yet along the tracks small detachments carried heavy risks. The men of the 100th Ohio stood their post at a bridge and depot, then paid for it with a mass capture that rippled through the regiment’s roster for months.
Sources and further reading
War of the Rebellion: Official Records, Series I, Vol. 30, Pt. II, East Tennessee section. See the “Itinerary of the Twenty-Third Army Corps (Aug 1–Sept 30, 1863)” for the September 8 entry on Telford and Limestone. Portal to Texas History index listing. The Portal to Texas History
Official reports of battles… Richmond, 1864. Confederate War Department pamphlet that includes Lt. Col. M. A. Haynes’s reports on Knoxville, Limestone Creek, and Carter’s Station. HathiTrust full-view record. HathiTrust
Tennessee Civil War Sourcebook, “Action at Limestone Station, Sept. 8, 1863,” and “Action at Telford’s Station, Sept. 8, 1863.” Tennessee State Library and Archives compiled extracts. ShareTN+1
Lt. Douglass O. Kelley, 100th OVI, prisoner letter discussing capture at Limestone Station, edited transcription at Spared & Shared 22. Spared & Shared 22
National Park Service, Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System, 100th Regiment, Ohio Infantry unit profile. Notes “Telford Station and Limestone, Sept. 8” and 240 men captured while guarding the railroad. National Park Service
National Park Service, Tennessee operations list showing “Sept. 8, Skirmishes, Limestone and Telford Station,” with Union losses summarized. National Park Service
Tennessee Civil War Preservation Association, site overview for Telford Station and Limestone area. tcwpa.org
National Register of Historic Places, Broylesville Historic District nomination PDF, contextualizing Limestone Station within the Little Limestone Creek landscape. NPGallery
Historic Marker Database entry and photo, “Battle of Limestone Station,” confirming location and on-site summary.
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