When the Civil War began both sides realized the importance of the railroad. For the first time in history of warfare there was an efficient way to move men, horses, equipment and supplies. To control the rail lines meant control of the military distribution system. At every opportunity the Confederate army harassed the rail lines in Kentucky, capturing trains, destroying bridges and trestles and tearing up track.
The L&N Railroad bridge over the Salt River at Shepherdsville was, like all other railroad bridges, a vulnerable point on the rail line. It was vital to Union supply lines that the bridge remain intact. From the Fall of 1861 through 1865 there was a military presence in the city. Camp Washington was set up on the grounds of Paroquet Springs Resort. About 100 citizen soldiers reported there in October of 1861. In December of that same year six companies of the Third Regiment Minnesota Volunteers were ordered to Shepherdsville to guard the bridge.
In late summer 1862, the Confederate Army launched an invasion of Kentucky. Union commanders were quick to place troops on the routes leading to Louisville, including the vulnerable bridge at Shepherdsville. Their efforts there were ineffective. On September 27 - Confederate Col. John Wharton gave orders to occupy Shepherdsville and destroy the bridge. Major Smith occupied the city as ordered but was unable to destroy the bridge, lacking both a drill and powder. Major Smith did, eventually get the needed supplies and the bridge over Salt River was destroyed.
The occupation of Shepherdsville provided to be short-lived. On October 2, Federal forces under the command of General Don Carlos Buell drove the Confederates out of the city. Union actions in other locations soon forced the Confederate troops out of Bullitt County and to the south. The Confederate withdrawal and Union pursuit culminated at the Battle of Perryville on October 8th. While the battle was technically a Confederate victory the Confederate forces continued their withdrawal. By the end of October they had abandoned Kentucky.
After the invasion the Union army improved its defenses all along the L&N. By December 9, a stockade had been erected to safeguard the Salt River bridge and prevent a recurrence of Confederate destruction. The stockade was completed just weeks before Gen. John H. Morgan began his Christmas Raid. A dispatch from Lebanon Junction concerning the trestles at Muldraugh's Hill sent the afternoon of December 28 stated "Fight at both trestles; our forces surrendered." Morgan's objective was to destroy the L&N as far as Louisville. The commander at Shepherdsville believed he would be attacked before morning. Morgan's force was estimated to be between 8,000 and 12,000 men with six pieces of field artillery.
Col. John Harlan was in pursuit of Morgan. By December 29 revised estimates put his strength at 3,000 men and "some guns". Harlan met up with Morgan when his forces attempted to destroy the Rolling Fork Bridge, near Lebanon Junction. A brisk skirmish ensued and Morgan's men retreated. Morgan abandoned his plans to move toward Louisville and turned south. The bridge at Shepherdsville was safe.
Morgan once again targeted the bridge during his Great Raid. On July 6, 1863 Morgan was at Bardstown and moving towards Shepherdsville. Major I.N. Stiles in command of the stockade at Shepherdsville, telegraphed Gen. Jeremiah T. Boyle for artillerists to work the 12 pounder gun at the stockade. Boyle sent Lieut. W. H. Brown and ten men of the Sixth Michigan Battery. On the evening of July 7, Morgan was so close that they could hear the shouts of his men. The next morning, however, General Edward H. Hobson who had been in pursuit of Morgan, was very close. Morgan quickly left the vicinity, departing toward Brandenburg. Once more an attack on the bridge over the Salt River was averted.
Morgan was captured in Ohio on July 26, but he was not the only threat to the railroad. Through 1863, the Union army continued to reinforce its defensive positions along the L&N Railroad. By the end of October, the stockade at Shepherdsville had been improved and given the name of Fort DeWolf. The fort was manned with one company of men and had not one but two 12 pounder Napoleon cannons.
SHEPERDSVILLE IN THE CIVIL WAR
When the Civil War began both sides realized the importance of the railroad. For the first time in the history of warfare there was an efficient way to move men, horses, equipment and supplies. To control the rail lines meant control of the military distribution system. At every opportunity the Confederate army harassed the rail lines in Kentucky, capturing trains, destroying bridges and trestles and tearing up track.
The L&N Railroad bridge over the Salt River at Shepherdsville was, like all other railroad bridges, a vulnerable point on the rail line. It was vital to Union supply lines that the bridge remain intact. From the fall of 1861 through 1865 there was a military presence in the city. Camp Washington was set up on the grounds of Paroquet Springs Resort. About 100 citizen soldiers reported there in October, 1861. In December of that same year six companies of the Third Regiment Minnesota Volunteers were ordered to Shepherdsville to guard the bridge (McDowell 1956: 407-408, OR Series I, Vol. 7: 466).
In late summer 1862 the Confederate Army launched an invasion of Kentucky. Union commanders were quick to place troops on the routes leading to Louisville, including the vulnerable bridge at Shepherdsville. Their efforts there were ineffective. On September 27 Confederate Col. John Wharton gave orders to occupy Shepherdsville and destroy the bridge. Major Smith occupied the city as ordered but was unable to destroy the bridge, lacking both a drill and powder. Major Smith did, eventually get the needed supplies and the bridge over the Salt River was destroyed (OR Series 1, Vol. XV1/2: 886).
The occupation of Shepherdsville proved to be short-lived. On October 2 Federal forces under the command of Gen. Don Carlos Buell drove the Confederates out of the city. Union actions in other locations soon forced the Confederate troops out of Bullitt County and to the south. The Confederate withdrawal and Union pursuit culminated at the Battle of Perryville on October 8. While the battle was technically a Confederate victory the Confederate forces continued their withdrawal. By the end of October they had abandoned Kentucky.
After the invasion the Union army improved its defenses all along the L&N. By December 9 a stockade had been erected to safeguard the Salt River bridge and prevent a recurrence of Confederate destruction. The stockade was completed just weeks before Gen. John Hunt Morgan began his Christmas Raid. A dispatch from Lebanon Junction concerning the trestles at Muldraugh’s Hill sent the afternoon of December 28 stated "Fight at both trestles; our forces surrendered." Morgan’s objective was to destroy the L&N as far as Louisville. The commander at Shepherdsville believed he would be attacked before morning. Morgan’s force was estimated to be between 8,000 and 12,000 men with six pieces of field artillery (Lt. George Burroughs to Lt. M. D. McAlister Dec. 9, 1862; National Archives RG 393, part 1, entry 3541; OR Series I, Vol. XX/2: 259).
Col. John Harlan was in pursuit of Morgan. By December 29 revised estimates put his strength at 3,000 men and "some guns." Harlan met up with Morgan when his forces attempted to destroy the Rolling Fork Bridge, near Lebanon Junction. A brisk skirmish ensued and Morgan’s men retreated. Morgan abandoned his plans to move toward Louisville and turned south. The bridge at Shepherdsville was safe (OR Series I, Vol. XX/2: 274; OR Series I, Vol. XXIV/1:138-141).
Morgan once again targeted the bridge during his Great Raid. On July 6, 1863 Morgan was at Bardstown and moving towards Shepherdsville. Major I. N. Stiles, in command of the stockade at Shepherdsville, telegraphed Gen. Jeremiah T. Boyle for artillerists to work the 12 pounder gun at the stockade. Boyle sent Lieut. W. H. Brown and ten men of the Sixth Michigan Battery. On the evening of July 7 Morgan was so close that they could hear the shouts of his men. The next morning, however, General Edward H. Hobson, who had been in pursuit of Morgan, was very close. Morgan quickly left the vicinity, departing toward Brandenburg. Once more an attack on the bridge over the Salt River was averted OR Series I, Vol. XXIII/1: 654).
Morgan was captured in Ohio on July 26, but he was not the only threat to the railroad. Through 1863 the Union army continued to reinforce its defensive positions along the L&N Railroad. By the end of October the stockade at Shepherdsville had been improved and given the name Fort De Wolf. The fort was manned with one company of men and had not one but two 12 pounder Napoleon cannons (Report in the National Archives, October 31, 1863).
Morgan’s Great Raid was the last time that Shepherdsville was threatened by Confederate action. The Union army was not about to be caught unprepared, however. The railroad was the lifeline of the army, transporting troops and supplies. Through the remainder of the war the defenses of the L&N Railroad were upgraded again and again. Reports made in 1865 note that five hundred feet of inclined palisade was built to enclose the barracks and fort at Fort De Wolf and that the fort itself was repaired and improved. A June 1865 inspection report stated that the defenses at Shepherdsville consisted of one enclosed fort, mounting three guns (OR Series I, Vol. XLIX/2: 274; OR Series I, Vol. XLIX/2: 958).
Shepherdsville was occupied only very briefly during the Civil War but the bridge over the Salt River and, by extension, the city itself was threatened repeatedly by Confederate raiders. The citizenry lived with a military installation on the edge of the city and the almost constant presence of military personnel. Daily lives were disrupted and inconvenienced. Sons and husbands went to fight on both sides and some did not return. Even though Shepherdsville was not the scene of a battle the residents were affected by the war, some deeply.
After the war the residents of Shepherdsville and Bullitt County took up the lives they had lived before the war. Agriculture, as it had for many years, remained the primary occupation of the citizens of the county. Shepherdsville continued to grow, albeit slowly. Between 1870 and 1880 the population increased by only thirty-two people, from 267 inhabitants to just 299. In 1887 Perrin, in his History of Kentucky, wrote of the city: "It is too near to Louisville, and already too old to ever become a large city." For many years Perrin seemed to be right (Bullitt County Historical Society, no date; Collins 1874: 100; Lee 1981:202; Kleber 1992: 140, 818-819; Perrin 1887: 651)
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