Ohio (I)

DESCRIPTION: The singer remembers the dead at Stones River. He recalls finding a dying youth. The soldier sends greetings to his family, then dies
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1939 (Eddy-BalladsAndSongsFromOhio)
KEYWORDS: Civilwar dying
HISTORICAL REFERENCES:
Dec 31, 1862-Jan 2, 1863 - Battle of Stones River/Murfreesboro
FOUND IN: US(MW)
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Eddy-BalladsAndSongsFromOhio 127, "Ohio" (1 text, 1 tune)
Salt-BuckeyeHeritage-OhiosHistory, pp. 86-87, "Stone River" (1 text, 1 tune)
ST E127 (Full)
Roud #5343
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Battle of Stone River" (subject: The Battle of Stones River/Murfreesboro)
NOTES [178 words]: Salt's version of this is not the same as Eddy-BalladsAndSongsFromOhio's, and indicated no source; I am more than slightly dubious about its authenticity. But the plot seems to go here.
It is hard to say who won the Battle of Stones' River/Murfreesboro. The battle pitted William S. Rosecrans's Army of the Cumberland against Braxton Bragg's Confederate army. Rosecrans had been advancing into Tennessee, and Bragg set out to stop him.
In the first phase of the battle, on Dec. 31, Bragg drove back but did not destroy Rosecrans's right. Jan. 1, 1863 was quiet, but Bragg tried again on Jan. 2. Again he failed to decisively defeat the Federals.
Although it was probably ahead "on points," after spending the day of Jan. 3 on the field, Bragg's army retreated. The federal army had been so badly mauled that it would be half a year before it moved again -- but Rosecrans held the field and his gains. So a marginal tactical defeat was hailed by Union supporters as a strategic victory.
For a fuller account of the battle, see "The Battle of Stone River" (sic.). - RBW
Last updated in version 5.3
File: E127

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