Shiloh

Hello, blog! This is Cory. I have been added as a guest writer to Mom and Dad's blog. I guess they were so envious of my blogging talents from Trailblogger(please visit that blog, by the way) that they had to have me write some on this blog.

We are currently parked in Chattanooga, TN. Apparently, for every city we visit there is a song recorded by someone who died before I was born. When we were in Nashville, it was Nashville Cats. Dad was really proud to find that one. But that was nothing compared to Chattanooga Choo Choo. I haven't heard that one yet. While we were in Memphis, mom found the Elvis channel on XM satellite radio, and I still haven't got Hound Dog out of my head. She was listening to a song, when I asked, "Mom, why is Elvis so famous?" and she replied, "He was famous for how he could curl his lip." I blinked. That's all it takes? But she said it was harder to do than it looks. So we all tried to do it while parked in a Shell gas station while Dad was inside getting some drinks. He came back to the car to find us all looking like angry chipmunks.

But before we arrived here in Chattanooga, we saw the battle of Shiloh. This was a battle fought during the Civil War, in which Generals Grant, Buell, Sherman, Beauregard, and Johnston all played a part. Grant and Buell, in an attempt to attack and secure Confederate railroads(an essential means of communication) Memphis and Charleston, and Mobile and Ohio. the Union forces settled a command post on Shiloh hill, with forward camps by Shiloh Church. General Johnston, knowing about these camps, planned to attack the Federals and take them by surprise, stopping them from reaching Corinth. Grant, unaware of the attack, waited for reinforcement from Buell. On April 6, Johnston attacked the surprised Federals and forced them to retreat to an area called the Hornet's Nest. The Confederates soon fell into disorganization, seeing that their element of surprise was starting to slip. This was heightened tremendously when Gen. Johnston was shot in the leg, killing him. Gen. Beauregard was then placed in command of the Confederate army. Wave after wave of the Confederates attacked the Hornet's Nest and were repelled. But, finally, 12 southern batteries were brought out to try to blast the Federals out of their defensive position. It eventually worked. Outnumbered and outgunned, the Federal troops retreated back to Grants position, where they would be able to repel the confederates. Happy with their victory, but exhausted, the Confederates set up camp, to attack Grant's position on the next day. Buell arrived with reinforcements that night, however, and when the Confederates attacked the next morning, Grant was able to easily repel them. The battered Confederates then retreated back to Shiloh church, where Beauregard rallied them and retreated them to Corinth.

We watched the film at the beginning of the tour, then toured the museum for a while. I nearly had a hernia trying to explain to Will about the guns used and the tactics that were used in the battle. I admit, I am a bit of a fanatic about the subject. As we took the driving tour, I was constantly singing out, "12 pound Howitzer!" or "6 pound Field Gun!" The driving tour took us past the Hornet's Nest, the batteries of the Confederates, and Grant's last Line. Unfortunately, some of the minor roads were closed. When we started the tour, one of the roads for the beginning of the tour was closed. Next to it was a road that said "Do not enter." Mom took one look at that, then said, "Let's go that way." Dad blinked. I looked at all the warning signs and said, "Hey...hey mom? Are you sure that's a good idea?" "Yes, of course I'm sure! Drive!" So Dad hit the gas and we took off the wrong way down the trail. About halfway up the trail, we realized that the whole thing made a big loop, and that we were going the wrong way up the loop. So we quickly turned around, or as quickly as we could in our Panzer (that's what I call our truck) and sped back the right way down the trail. We then passed the Union Cemetery (unfortunately closed) and the Confederate Burial trenches. We also took pictures of all the memorials erected for each of the units of Militia that played a part in the battle.

Unfortunately, we had to turn back home, as our very unhappy dogs were waiting to be fed. I've placed Shiloh on my list of top ten favorite battlefields.

Well, looks like my first post is over. Thank you blog, you've been a wonderful audience and I'll be back soon! *crickets chirp* Goodnight, Chattanooga! *more crickets* I'm...leaving...now *thunderous applause*