The Location
This cache is placed at the cannon on the historic Spring Hill Battleground with their kind permission. The Battle of Spring Hill was the prelude to the Battle of Franklin. On the night of November 28, 1864, Gen. John Bell Hood’s Army of Tennessee marched toward Spring Hill to get astride Maj. Gen. John M. Schofield’s Union army’s line of retreat towards Nashville. Cavalry skirmishing between Brig. Gen. James H. Wilson’s Union cavalry and Maj. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest’s Confederate troopers continued throughout the day as the Confederates advanced. On November 29, Hood’s infantry crossed Duck River and converged on Spring Hill. In the meantime, Maj. Gen. Schofield reinforced the troops holding the crossroads at Spring Hill. In late afternoon, the Federals repulsed a piecemeal Confederate infantry attack. During the night, the rest of Schofield’s command passed from Columbia through Spring Hill to Franklin. This was, perhaps, Hood’s best chance to isolate and defeat the Union army. The engagement has been described as “one of the most controversial non-fighting events of the entire war."
The Area
Maury county was formed in 1807 from Williamson County and Indian lands and named in honor of Major Abram Poindexter Maury, a member of the Tennessee legislature. Columbia, the county seat is known as the "Mule capital of the world," Columbia annually celebrates the city-designated Mule Day each April. Columbia and Maury County are acknowledged as the "Antebellum Homes Capital of Tennessee", with more pre-Civil War homes than any other county in the state. Columbia is home to one of the last two surviving residences of the 11th President of the United States, James Knox Polk, the other being the White House.
South Central Tennessee
South Central Tennessee’s back roads can be the best roads to find adventure! Find American history, outdoor adventure, peace and quiet, culinary delights, charming towns and one-of-a-kind attractions just a short drive from Nashville's famous tourist destinations. Whether visiting our historical civil war sites, traveling along the Natchez Trace Parkway, hiking in our beautiful state parks tours, sampling local libations at our distilleries and vineyards, shopping in our charming small towns or exploring our great geocaches, you are sure to find adventure as you Discover South Central Tennessee!
The Discover South Central Tennessee GeoTour
The Discover South Central Tennessee GeoTour is a series of geocaches along the backroads and small towns of South Central Tennessee. There is no fixed itinerary, like on a traditional trail, but rather a series of points of interest in a self-guided, goal-oriented plan. We have created a special passport, which you can download here, which lets you track your progress as you hunt specially placed geocaches along the tour. This passport will help you collect “code words” to qualify for special geocoins for completion of the GeoTour.
While Discovering South Central Tennessee you may also want to check out our other Official GeoTour
click below for more information.
