This is the former farm and home of Morton and Myrtle Steele from 1942 - 1982.
The house is located in Clayton County Georgia, 3 miles south of Jonesboro and across the railroad from Tara Blvd, Hwy 19-41, at an area known in the past as Orr's Crossing.
The site is currently the headquarters of the Clayton County Water Authority.
Toward the end of the Battle of Atlanta this house was Gen.William T. Sherman's headquarters September 2 - 5, 1864.
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| 1980 Painting by C.A. Johnson. Commissioned by Morton Steele's son, Charles Steele. An historical marker has been placed near the intersection of the railroad and Freeman Road. .jpg) 2007 Painting by Morton and Myrtle Steele's granddaughter, Judy UpChurch |
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| Civil War Map showing solider's camp sites and Lovejoy's Station. The Gunter-Steele house is marked in yellow. |
General Sherman's stay at this house is well documented.
William M Gunter owned the house at the time Gen. Sherman took it for his headquarters during the battles at Lovejoy's Station and in the Nash Farm area. Mr. Gunter was a Deacon at the Hebron Church that stood on present day Tara Road near the intersection of Tara Blvd - Hwy 19-41. In 1875 William M Gunter donated 2 acres of land for the church when it was moved further up the road from the Fitzgerald land. (See Civil War Map) His father, Rev Elder Isham Gunter, is buried in the still existing cemetery located next to the CVS Pharmacy.
William M Gunter's son, Dr. Ira Lawson Gunter was a Civil War surgeon who traveled with the Confederate troops into battle.
Mr. Gunter and Dr. Gunter (pictured below) exchanged letters during this time giving a well documented detailed account of the situation. Mr. Gunter wrote that
he had a conversation with General Sherman. (See the Marker below for details)
He stated that both the Confederate and Union troops destroyed his land,
cattle, crops, food and anything else they chose to take. He estimated his losses at about $10,000, a
lot of money in those times. The stench
from the slaughtered cattle, filth and destruction of his property caused him
to abandon the property. He moved to
another farm east of Jonesboro in an area now covered by Lake Jodeco.
Their descendant, Dr. Jim Latimer, of
Stockbridge, GA has preserved these letters along with an extensive family
history regarding the Civil War.
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| Dr. Ira Lawson Gunter |
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| Mr. William M Gunter |
General Sherman sent one of
the most famous telegrams of the Civil War from this house to President Lincoln
in Washington, up the chain of command, through Gen. H. W. Halleck. Conveniently, the telegraph wires ran right
in front of the house along the railroad.
A portion of the telegram is as follows:
“. . . So Atlanta is
ours, and fairly won. I shall not push
much farther on this raid, but in a day or so will move to Atlanta and give my
men some rest. Since May 5 we have been
in one constant battle or skirmish, and need rest. Our losses will not exceed 1200, and we have
possession of over 300 rebel dead, 250 wounded, and over 1500 well prisoners. .
.”
Signed: W. T. Sherman, Major General;
War Department; September 3, 1864
War Department; September 3, 1864
President Lincoln telegraphed
Gen. Sherman back, inviting him to come to Washington for a 100 gun salute
celebration. The dead were buried in the
Confederate Cemeteries in Jonesboro and Griffin, GA. The wounded were taken to hospitals
probably in Griffin. The prisoners were
taken to prisoner of war camps around Georgia.
Marker placed on the site by the Georgia Civil War Commission
Marker placed on the site by the Georgia Civil War Commission
This site is now one of the Clayton County, GA Water Authority’s
safe drinking water production plants
This Land Application System (LAN) operation treats water pumped from the Flint River. The effluent emits no harmful substances back into any stream or sewer system by spraying it over a planted pine tree forest. (Pictured Below) The trees are harvested, processed into wood pellets and used for firing a processing plant at another facility that dries effluent sludge and turns it into fertilizer.
This facility was the first public LAN system of its kind in the nation and was visited by public water system officials from all over the country and the world.
Today, this building contains an advanced computerized water treatment system called a ClearCone system and is the only one of its kind in Georgia and one of a few in the Southeastern United States. For more information visit www.ccwa.us
The Clayton
Water Authority (CCWA) Terry Hicks Water Production Plant, Freeman Road & Tara Blvd.- US Hwy 19/41 South Jonesboro, GA. The black posts contain the historical
marker about Gen. Sherman's occupation of the Gunter-Steele house and land.
The Beginnings Of The Planted Pine Tree Forest
The effluent from the water production facility was sprayed over the planted pine tree forest. The trees are harvested, processed into wood pellets and used for firing a processing plant at another facility that dries effluent sludge and turns it into fertilizer.
Pate’s Creek rises from a spring on this property, forming the Pate’s Creek Watershed, a part of the Ocmulgee River Basin which drains into the Atlantic Ocean.
The Beginnings Of The Planted Pine Tree Forest
The effluent from the water production facility was sprayed over the planted pine tree forest. The trees are harvested, processed into wood pellets and used for firing a processing plant at another facility that dries effluent sludge and turns it into fertilizer.
Pate’s Creek rises from a spring on this property, forming the Pate’s Creek Watershed, a part of the Ocmulgee River Basin which drains into the Atlantic Ocean.
The original Georgia Railroad still runs the length of the property. The railroad and telegraph lines played a big part in the Civil War and the reason Gen. Sherman chose this spot for his headquarters.
Atlanta Is Won and General Sherman
Can Now Plan His March To The Sea
One battalion came down the railroad by the Gunter-Steele house. And, once again, the Steele
families experienced the Union soldier’s invasion and the march through the
Mount Carmel area. The churches in
McDonough were used as slaughter houses where they dressed out the cattle they
had taken. The stench and filth was so
bad the churches had to be burned and rebuilt.
All crops, food, cattle, household silver was taken or destroyed. Many barns and homes were burned.
This writer recalls a couple
of stories from families in the area:
One from the Weems family that a Yankee solider road up to the window of their brick home and demanded a pillow for his saddle. After the war they papered the walls with Confederate money to keep out the cold.
Another story from the Dupree family, my aunt and uncle on my mother’s side, who lived on Hampton Road, recalled stories that the Yankee soldiers camped on their property by the creek and took food, crops and cattle from their land.
One from the Weems family that a Yankee solider road up to the window of their brick home and demanded a pillow for his saddle. After the war they papered the walls with Confederate money to keep out the cold.
Another story from the Dupree family, my aunt and uncle on my mother’s side, who lived on Hampton Road, recalled stories that the Yankee soldiers camped on their property by the creek and took food, crops and cattle from their land.
Soon the war was over and
the men came home to face the long task of putting their lives, families, farms and homes back together.
The era of The New South had begun.
The era of The New South had begun.
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