A Brief Tour of US history from Jefferson to the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement Day 3

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Breakfast at the Chanticleer Inn and B&Bon Lookout Mountain, GA consisted of fresh fruit, home made pastries and apple cinnamon pancakes with real maple syrup (the owners were from New England and knew the difference between corn syrup and maple syrup) but the southern influence was present with the abundance of sweets as we found out after three days of rich, sweet breakfasts and evening cookies.

We started our exploration of the Civil War Battlefields with the Battles for Chattanooga Electric Map and Museum. The exterior of the museum looked like a tacky tourist trap but inside we found a very knowledgable and friendly man who answered all our questions. We viewed a very instructive electronic battle map presentation about Chattanooga’s “Battle Above the Clouds”, in fact I was more impressed with the museum’s docent than the National Park next door. The museum’s program included a narrative of the area’s battles with some film clips and an impressive land display that lit up with lights indicating troop movements along the various battlegrounds. I highly recommend that you begin your Civil War explorations with this museum.

The museum’s narrative program gave us a wonderful overview of the historical battles that took place in this region allowing us a better understanding of the struggles these men had during this time in our history. After gaining as much history as we could remember we walked across the street to Point Park National Park to see some of the actual battle sites. It was difficult to imagine the struggles of these men fighting on this steep and rocky mountain through fog, rough brush and rocky crags and the cold autumn weather with little to eat. We took an hour to explore this park walking down paved paths and steps amongst the rocky outcroppings that the military somehow managed to climb, pull cannons through and hide, ready to fight in the roughest of conditions. From the rocky outcroppings in this National Park we had superb views of Chattanooga with its railroad junction, curving beds of the Tennessee River and the important battle sites of Missionary Ridge and Orchard Knob. From this vantage point we tried to imagine Missionary Ridge and the town’s people under siege in Chattanooga back in 1863.

We followed the winding road down to Cravens House where Major General Joseph Hooker laid camp during these battles. A few of the soldiers’ wives along with some consorts were also encamped in this house. These women became known as "Hooker’s women." This became the term we know today referring to prostitutes.

We were hungry for lunch and the Cafe on the Corner was so close that we submitted to temptation and were glad we did. Lunch was as good as last night's dinner. We shared a turkey-avocado-bacon club sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and a lemon, sage, rosemary and thyme (Paul Simon minus the parsley...although our waitress was too young to get my reference) aioli with tons of home made potato chips. Delicious.

From the cafe we drove to the Chickamauga Battlefield. The front desk receptionist at the Chanticleer Inn and B&B had kindly loaned us a book and audio guide to take with us while we explored the famous Chickamauga Civil War Battle half an hour away. The informative folder included a couple of CD tour guides that greatly helped us to understand the various skirmishes on this expansive site. It also told of the sacrifices and struggles in personal stories of the men fighting here. We began a several hour driving tour with the help of the narrative CD. It helps to see the topography to understand better the circumstances under which these men had to struggle. Deer and wild turkey were plentiful in the open fields that look so peaceful now but the cleared fields offered little protection to the men seeking shelter or places for ambush. Land restoration is currently in progress to give a better understanding of what the soldier’s reality was. We learned that cattle had grazed in the woods keeping the brush down between the large trees offering little or no cover for the men trying to hide from the enemy. Fog and dampness added to the soldiers’ misery and over the three day battle they were not allowed fires to dry their clothes, cook their food or warm themselves. Many men died of exposure or disease from injuries that were not treated during this three day battle.

It was getting dark when we left the battlefield so we went back to the inn to freshen up with a little coffee. We drove down Lookout Mountain into Chattanooga to have dinner (only about a 15 min drive) at the 212 Restaurant on Market. It was only 7:30PM but the restaurant was nearly empty inside, giving us some concern about its food. Contemporary in design, the rooms were spacious (bringing a greater awareness of the lack of patrons.) Dave and I shared a bison spring roll with a lightly spiced chili dipping sauce along with very spicy house kimchee and onions, delish! We both had Caesar salads that were sadly swimming in dressing. Our meals were not spectacular (Dave had a sautéed chick breast, I had sautéed trout) and the wine did not improve the ambiance. After dinner we drove back up the mountain to the inn for fresh baked cookies by the gas fired fireplace.

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