Morgan's Men Here
Winchester, Clark County, Kentucky
Marker Inscription
"Morgan's Men" Here. CSA Gen. John H. Morgan's cavalry first raided Kentucky July, 1862. Took Cynthiana but, faced by large USA forces, withdrew. Destroyed arms here on 19th and went to Richmond. On last raid, June 1864, after two battles at Mt. Sterling, they moved by here to Lexington and to Cynthiana where they met defeat on 12th and retreated to Virginia. See map on other side. Dedicated March 9, 1964.
Erected by Kentucky Historical Society
The Story
The cavalry of Confederate General John Hunt Morgan swept through this part of Clark County during the war's dramatic raids into Kentucky. On his first raid in July 1862, Morgan took Cynthiana but withdrew before superior Union forces, destroying captured arms here before moving on to Richmond. On his last raid in June 1864, his men passed through again after two battles at Mt. Sterling, only to meet defeat at Cynthiana and retreat into Virginia.
Why it matters
Morgan's raids brought the shock of Confederate cavalry deep into Union-held Kentucky, rallying Southern sympathizers and forcing Federal troops to guard a restless border state.
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Related people
- · John Hunt Morgan
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Battle of Mount Sterling
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On March 22, 1863, some 300 Confederate cavalrymen under Colonel R. S. Cluke swept into Mount Sterling and captured the town, taking 438 prisoners along with wagonloads of military stores, hundreds of mules, and a thousand stand of arms. The raid cost each side only a handful of casualties but stripped the Union garrison of its supplies. It was one of the many mounted strikes that made Civil War Kentucky a running contest of cavalry.
Battle of Irvine
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On July 30, 1863, Confederate Col. John S. Scott and his troopers rode into Irvine intending to capture the 14th Kentucky Cavalry, but held the town only briefly. Union Col. W. P. Sanders pursued, catching part of Scott's rear guard, and the two forces exchanged fire across the river as Scott's men crossed and slipped away. It was the only Civil War engagement in this stretch of eastern Kentucky.
Gen. Basil W. Duke, C.S.A.
Georgetown, KY
Scott County native Basil W. Duke (1838–1916) served the Confederacy as the trusted lieutenant and brother-in-law of John Hunt Morgan, giving discipline and dash to the famed 2nd Kentucky Cavalry. Twice wounded in 1862 and captured during the 1863 Indiana–Ohio raid, he later took command of Morgan's brigade and helped escort Jefferson Davis in the war's final weeks. Afterward he practiced law in Louisville, entered politics, and wrote the History of Morgan's Cavalry.
Confederate Governor George W. Johnson
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This was the home of George W. Johnson, a Scott County native who in November 1861 was named Kentucky's first Confederate governor—leader of a shadow government in a state that never left the Union. When Confederate forces withdrew from Bowling Green into Tennessee in early 1862, Johnson followed. He served as an aide to General John C. Breckinridge but insisted on fighting as a private at Shiloh, where he was mortally wounded in April 1862, still holding the title of governor.