"I had many ancestors who served in the Confedederacy. Some were killed in battle, or died from disease, while others suffered lifelong pain from their injuries. I am proud of all of them, but especially proud of my great great grandfather, William Thomas Mitchell. He was exempt from service because he was a blacksmith, a much needed occupation in the Civil War. At the age of 43, with 2 sons already serving in the Confederacy, he left his wife, Jedidah Perkins Mitchell and their young children at home to answer the desperate call for volunteers to defend Atlanta as a 4th lieutenant in Co H 4th Regiment Georgia Volunteers. After the fall of Atlanta, his unit was sent to defend Macon, the only resistance General Sherman met on his March to the Sea. The heroic assault by the rag-tag band of old men and young boys was no match for Sherman's most experienced troops, resulting in 500 Confederates being killed, compared with only 90 Union soldiers. William Thomas Mitchell died as a result of that battle, known today as The Battle of Griswoldville. He is buried in the Rose Hill Cemetery in Macon Georgia. The middle initial on the plaque on his grave is incorrect."
Herbert Lee Mitchell |
