George Washington Kirk was a soldier who served in American Civil War.[2] Born and raised in Tennessee, he married Maria Louisa Jones in 1860. At the start of the war he served in the Confederate States Army, but his views were Unionist and he left the state to join the Union Army. Advancing to the rank of colonel, in 1864 he raised the 3rd North Carolina Mounted Infantry (Union) and led many raids into North Carolina.[3] Because of the regiment's guerrilla-like tactics, the regiment became known as Kirk's Raiders.[4]
George Washington Kirk | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | June 10, 1837 Greene County, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Died | February 17, 1905 (aged 67) Gilroy, California, U.S. |
| Allegiance |  Confederate States of America United States |
| Service |  Confederate States Army United States Army |
| Years of service | 1861–62 1862–65 |
| Rank |  Colonel |
| Commands | 3rd North Carolina Mounted Infantry |
| Battles / wars | American Civil War |
| Spouse(s) | Maria Louise Jones[1] |
In 1870, Kirk was tasked by North Carolina Governor William Woods Holden to raise and lead a militia into Alamance and Caswell counties to quell the Ku Klux Klan. Though he was successful in breaking up Klan activity, none of the 100 men he arrested were charged by local authorities. In addition, the action led to Kirk's own arrest, and the impeachment of Governor Holden.[3] With the help of the United States Marshal, Kirk was able to escape from jail, and later was given a position as a police officer with the capital force in Washington, D.C.[5]
In 1890, it was reported that "several very rich finds" of gold, in the Maryland hills near the Potomac River, were discovered, and "being worked", on Kirk's land.[6] He died on February 17, 1905 in Gilroy, California.[7]
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Kirk with his wife Mariah Louisa Kirk -
Kirk with his father Alexander (standing) and brother John (seated left)
with_brother_and_father_(standing).jpg)
See also
editReferences
editBibliography
edit- Bumgarner, Matthew. 2000. Kirk's Raiders; A Notorious Band of Scoundrels and Thieves. Piedmont Press, LLC.
- Hardy, Michael C. 2018. Kirk's Civil War Raids Along the Blue Ridge. The History Press.
Citations and Notes
edit- ^ Tennessee State Marriage Record, February 28, 1860, Greene County, Tennessee
- ^ Philips, Michael M. (9 May 2014). "Still Paying for the Civil War". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
- ^ a b Trelease, Allen W. (9 Nov 2000). Powell, William S. (ed.). Dictionary of North Carolina Biography: Vol. 3, H-K. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press. ISBN 9780807867136. Retrieved 2018-08-21.
- ^ Bumgarner.
- ^ "Cut-Throat Kirk; A Specimen Martyr in the Bloody Shirt Crusade". Daily American; Nashville, Tennessee, Pg 2. October 6, 1876.
- ^ "Gold Near the Capital". The National Tribune, Pg7. October 16, 1890.
- ^ Trelease, Allen W. (1988). "Kirk, George W." NCPedia. NC Government & Heritage Library. Retrieved May 30, 2024.