"When the Civil War began, Cleveland was a divided community with most residents being sympathetic to the Union.
Confederate troops occupied the area in 1861 to control the East Tennessee and Georgia Railroad and to protect the vitally
important Hiwassee River bridge. President Abraham Lincoln worried about the future of the railroad junction at
Cleveland, but the town remained under Confederate occupation until 1863. The first engagements between Confederate
and Union troops in Bradley County occurred in the autumn of 1863 as part of the struggle for Chattanooga."

.....Glenn, I had this in my files, but its not much help. Bob