Lamb’s Ferry Road and Lamb’s Ferry
were strategic military locations during the Civil War. Union and Confederate forces used them for movement of troops and supplies through the area and across the Tennessee River. The area was occupied by both armies at various times
John Adams (July 1, 1825 – November 30, 1864) was an officer in the United States Army. With the onset of the American Civil War, he resigned his commission and joined the Confederate States Army, rising to the rank of brigadier general before being killed in action.
during the war. On May 4, 1862, Confederate Gen. John Adams and his cavalry troops were at Lamb’s Ferry. In mid-1862, Union Gen. James S. Negley marched his unit from Pulaski, TN, to Lamb’s Ferry. After engaging in a
James Scott Negley (December 22, 1826 – August 7, 1901) was an American Civil War General, farmer, railroader, and U.S. Representative from the state of Pennsylvania. He played a key role in the Union victory at the Battle of Stones River.
number of small skirmishes, he moved west and the first Union general to occupy Florence. After September 1863, Confederate Col. George H. Nixon, Commander, 20th Tennessee Cav Regt., set up headquarters at Lamb’s Ferry to bring his unit up to combat readiness and to guard the river crossing. During the winter and spring of 1863-64, the Regt. fought several successful skirmishes in the area. Before and after the Civil War, large cotton farms operated near the river and Lamb’s Ferry.
Lamb’s Ferry was one of the oldest ferries crossing the Tennessee River in Lauderdale County. The ferry was built by John Lamb from Giles County Tennessee in 1809 four miles south of where the town of Rogersville is now located. The traffic involved in cross river trade on the road to Lamb’s Ferry was instrumental in the founding of Rogersville in 1827.