Stories-a History Of Appalachia, One Story At A Time

In April 1865 a riverboat that carried cargo from Illinois south to New Orleans was hired to transport newly freed Union prisoners from Vicksburg, Mississippi, home.  Unfortunately, many of them would end up dying during this trip. Today we tell the story of the man claimed to be the last survivor of this ill-fated trip, a man born and raised in Blount County, Tennessee.