Several notable events took place in Hawesville and Hancock County during the Civil War. Among them are:
The murder of Thomas Hale at the hands of nightriders at Weberstown in south Hancock County in 1863
Occupation by Union troops after shelling by Federal artillery and gunboats
The exploits of Major Walker Taylor, who before coming the western Kentucky to recruit Confederate geurrillas in 1864, was a scout and secret service agent for the Rebel army and schemed to kidnap President Abraham Lincoln in 1862
The final days and death of Bill Davison, the notorious Confederate captain from Hawesville whose band of guerrilas burned courthouses and terrorized western Kentucky counties along the Ohio River during 1864-1865
The successful effort by Hawesville lawyer William P. D. Bush to correct the inequities of the Federal draft system in the 2nd Congressional District of Kentucky in 1864
The Pate House, four miles east of Lewisport on KY-334, is where 18-year-old Abraham Lincoln successfully defended himself for operating a ferry without a license. Judge Pate was so impressed by Lincoln that he encouraged him to study law, and the rest is history. Also on KY-334 is the Emmick Plantation House, built in 1854 with bricks made on the farm.
CIVIL WAR HISTORICAL MARKER NEAR HAWESVILLE:
Lincoln Acquitted (State Marker 667, 3 mi. W. of Hawesville, KY 334, Hancock Co.)
For additional information:
Hancock Historical Society, PO Box 605, Hawesville, KY 42348
Hancock County Museum (270)295-6637
Fearful Times: A History of the Civil War Years in Hancock County, KY, Glenn Hodges
