| Sources |
- [S104] Cocke County, Tennessee, and its People, Cocke County Heritage Book Committee, (Walsworth Publishing, 1992), 239, 269, 270.
- [S101] 1880 Census, District 5, Jefferson County, Tennessee, 519B.
Name Relation Marital Status Gender Race Age Birthplace Occupation Father's Birthplace Mother's Birthplace
Jacob C. THOMAS Self M Male W 49 TN Farmer VA VA
Nancy THOMAS Wife M Female W 48 TN Keeping House TN TN
Nancy J. THOMAS Dau S Female W 24 TN At Home TN TN
Elizabeth THOMAS Dau S Female W 22 TN At Home TN TN
Howard THOMAS Son S Male W 19 TN Farm Hand TN TN
George THOMAS Son S Male W 16 TN Farm Hand TN TN
Martha THOMAS Dau S Female W 14 TN At Home TN TN
Charley L. D. THOMAS Dau S Female W 11 TN TN TN
Toliver THOMAS Son S Male W 10 TN Farm Hand TN TN
Texoregan J. C. J. THOMAS Dau S Female W 8 TN TN TN
Hattie L. K. S. L. T. THOMAS Dau S Female W 6 TN TN TN
Charley PATTON Other S Male B 40 TN Laborer TN TN
H. Millie EAVENS Other S Female MU 40 TN Servant TN TN
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 4B, 31 Jan 2012.
Jacob Cline Thomas served as a Confederate soldier during the Civil War. At the outset of the war, Thomas and his wife, the former Nancy Sisk, enjoyed a prosperous life, living alongside the French Broad river between Old Town and Rock Hill. The family later moved to Jefferson County, where Jacob and Nancy lived the rest of their lives. They were the parents of ten children, including a son Toliver Thomas, named for Nancy’s father, Toliver Sisk.
Toliver Thomas, Sr., a minister, was married twice and fathered a large family, including sons Allen Thomas, who lived at Parrottsville, and Toliver Thomas II, who resided in White Pine. Longtime Cocke County teacher, Miss Elizabeth Thomas, was a daughter.
David Thomas, a son of the younger Toliver Thomas, listened intently to the stories told by his father and Uncle Allen and has researched his great grandfather’s service in the war.
David Thomas provided the following information about his ancestor’s service and experiences during the war.
“Company C in the Battle of Murfreesboro”
Jacob Cline Thomas enlisted on October 18, 1862 as a Private (later a Corporal) in Company C of the 26th Tennessee Infantry (CSA) at “Taylorsburg” (presently Edwina/Bridgeport community according to "Cocke County Confederates" by Darby O’Neil Taylor & William D Taylor). The unit had been surrendered to General Grant at Fort Donelson (near Nashville) in February 1862, and at the time of Jacob’s enlistment, Captain Edwin Allen was back in Cocke County to recruit replacements so he could reorganize his company and return “the 26th” to the army of Tennessee in Middle Tennessee.
Company C and the 26th regained regimental strength and participated in “The Battle of Murfreesboro” (or Stones River as it was known to the Union Army) as a part of Major General John Hardee’s Corps. (Dec 31, 1862 to Jan 2, 1863). The 26th suffered 110 casualties and lost Captain Allen during that battle. In particular, Company C was part of the second reserves for a two-pronged attack against a Union cannon emplacement during the battle. This attack required crossing an open field, then crossing the stones river, and charging up a small hill against this cannon emplacement. the Confederates had trouble coordinating the two prongs of the attack and the first wave was wiped out. The coordination problems also plagued the attack by the first set of reserve troops and that attack suffered heavy casualties. The commander of second reserves determined that unless he was sure that the attack could be properly coordinated, he would not commit his troops to suffer a similar fate to those involved in the first two attempts.
I have stood on the site of the Union cannon and realized that had Company C’s commander not refused to waste his troops, I would likely have not been born because my grandfather was not born until 1869 – well after the war ended.
“Jeff Davis”
So I was told, soldiers in Company C (possibly all units) paired-up like for marching, mess (meals) & possibly combat, similar to a wing-man that you hear fighter pilots mention. Jacob Cline Thomas & his “wing-man” picked-up a little bantam rooster during one of their longer infantry marches and named him Jeff Davis. They alternated letting “Jeff Davis” ride on their rifles as they marched along so he could keep-up with them over long trip toward what was to be the battle of Chickamauga. During the afternoon before that battle, they discussed that neither of them expected to survive the battle and they knew that “Jeff Davis” would be lost to them. Rather than let “Jeff Davis” fall into the hands of other soldiers, they determined that they might as well have one last meal of chicken before they died; “Jeff Davis” became dinner that night.
“Corn on the Cob”
During a long voyage to one battle the trip was shortened by placing the soldiers on a steam boat. Jacob Cline Thomas hadn’t eaten for a couple of days (or very minimal rations) and when the steam boat stopped to take on wood for the boiler, he saw a river bottom field full of corn in the roasting-ear stage. He jumped off the boat & gathered a dozen ears of corn and hurried back to the river boat. as they got back under way, he cooked the ears of corn by laying them against the boiler and ate all twelve ears.
“Life Back Home”
It’s easy to focus on the soldier’s story & there’s good reason to capture & remember those stories, but it’s just as important to recognize the sacrifices that the families back home were experiencing. at the time that Jacob Cline Thomas enlisted with the 26th, he left behind his wife, two daughters (ages 6 & 7) and a son who was about to turn 4 years old. Nancy Sisk Thomas did have two servants to help her with farm & house work, but it still was not easy to be the wife of a Confederate soldier in East Tennessee during “The War.” Uncle Allen and my dad recalled stories of raiding (foraging) troops taking food, crops, and any valuables that they could find. To combat this and ensure the feeding of the family, one of the servants dug a pit below a stall in their barn; he lined the pit with straw and hid their meat supplies in this pit. to conceal the pit, he placed boards over the pit, covered the boards with straw, and finally spread manure back over the floor of the stall. Whenever they needed meat, the servant would have to remove all of this and replace everything after retrieving the meat.
“The Premonition & The Trip Home”
My Great Grandfather Jacob Cline Thomas, enrolled in the Confederacy in the Fall of 1862 (Oct 1862). the 26th fought in the battle of Murfreesboro (Stones River), remained in southern Middle Tennessee until the summer of 1863, fought at Hoovers Gap, then retreated southeast. After being stationed at Loudon and Charleston (between Athens & Cleveland, TN) in July and August of 1863, the 26th moved south to take part in the Battle of Chickamauga. (This was the trip where the “Jeff Davis” story took place.) At Chickamauga (Sept 19-20, 1863), the 26th suffered over 40% casualties (killed or wounded), including their Colonel (Lillard). This is the background that puts in perspective the story that dad & Uncle Allen told me, as follows:
In November of 1863 (around Dalton, GA), Jacob Cline Thomas had a dream; he called it a “premonition.” He dreamed that his wife, Nancy, was “bad sick.” the next day he thought about that premonition and determined that his duties to his wife & family were greater than his duties to the Confederacy, which seemed to be a dying cause. That evening, after mess, he told his commanding officer that he would be leaving for home the next morning. His commander told him that he was describing “desertion” and that “I’ll have to shoot you, Jake.” Great, grand-dad told the commander that, “then you’ll have to shoot me, because tomorrow morning, I’m going home. Nancy is sick and I’m going home to see about her.”
The next morning, the fog was terribly thick; so thick that Jacob couldn’t see the sun and thus didn’t know which way was north. He fell in line and began the march with the rest of the company. His commander saw him marching and told him, “Jake, I thought you were going home, this morning.” Jacob replied, “I am, just as soon as I can see the sun so I’ll know which way to head.” When the sun burned-off the fog so that he could determine his direction, Jacob Cline Thomas stepped out of line, leaned his rifle against a stump, and began his journey north toward his home & family in Cocke County.
A quick look at a map indicates that he would have likely come-up the Sweetwater Valley along the present US Highway 11; what we do know is that he was picked-up by Federal troops and was thrown into a Union jail around Loudon. Luckily, a good friend of his was a Union officer who just happened to pass though that facility. He asked Jacob what he was doing in the jail and upon hearing the story, the Union officer offered to release him and write a note for Jacob to carry, in case he happened to be stopped again.
Following his release, he resumed his trek toward Newport and made it to around Knoxville before he was captured again. This band of Union troops would be described as a “thugs” in today’s language, and I was told that “he was afraid to show them the note because I thought they might think it a forgery.” (This puzzled me for years until I discovered, in Census records, that Jacob Cline Thomas could neither read nor write; thus he had no idea exactly what was on the note.)
Once again, God was watching out for my Great, grandfather; the same Union Captain just happened to come through the Knoxville camp where he was imprisoned. The Union Captain was very confused as to why he was there, since he had given him a note to carry. Jacob relayed the experience and his fear that the soldiers would think the note was a forgery. Jacob’s Union Captain friend told him, “I’ll write you a note this time that any Union soldier would be afraid to challenge.”
Jacob had found three of his Cocke County friends imprisoned in the same camp, so he told the Captain, “you’re mistaken, there are three of me now.” evidently the Captain was a very good friend and offered to write notes for all three of them.
My Great-grandfather Jacob was an avid whistler. After an uneventful trip from Knoxville to Cocke County, he whistled as he walked across his farm toward the house. Nancy’s two servants (one male & one female) were in the house with her when the male servant recognized Jacob’s whistling and told them so. Neither Nancy nor the house servant would believe him, but he had indeed recognized Jacob’s distinctive whistling.
Nancy had truly been very sick, but recovered and delivered four more daughters and one son to Jacob over the rest of their life together. That one son was my grandfather, Rev. Toliver B Thomas.
“After The War – Trying To Vote”
As we know, East Tennessee was very divided between Union & Confederate loyalties during “The War.” Even after the war was over, divisions did not subside quickly. Former Confederate troops that took the oath of loyalty were to have their voting rights reinstated. However after taking the oath, Jacob Cline Thomas and some of his friends were repeatedly turned away at the polls, during at least two elections. The Scotch-Irish in him rose and he and his friends determined that they had fought for their rights before, and would do so again if necessary. On the next election day, Jacob and his friends went to vote, rifles in hands; fortunately, for everyone, the sight of the men and their rifles were enough to cause a change of heart at the polling place. They were allowed to vote in that election and all subsequent elections.
Smoky Mountain Homeplace
- [S92] Cocke County, Tennessee Census, 83-699, 1850.
ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/tn/cocke/census/1850cens.txt
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