"An interesting letter and newspaper clipping were received from Clarksville, Tx., from M.L. Sims, first lieutenant of Company D, Forrest's Original Battalion of cavalry, in which he expresses the highest appreciation of what has been achieved for the Camp Chase Confederate dead. He had arranged with Miss Mary Logan, of Louisville, Ky., to procure the flowers in that city and express them in time for the dedicatory ceremonies.
The flowers were sent as a tribute to all Confederate soldiers buried there, but especially to be placed at the graves of two faithful and unfortunate colored men-Haywood and Walter- if their graves could be identified.
The following clipping from the Dallas News will be interesting reading to all Confederates:
The only company from Texas in Forrest's Original Battalion was captured at the battle of Fort Donelson in February, 1862. The noncommissioned officers were sent to Camp Douglas, near Chicago, and the commissioned officers were sent to Camp Chase. These officers were L.L. Bailey, R.G. Lane, and M.L. Sims. With them were two negroes-Haywood Goodloe and Walter----. Haywood was the servant of John J. Goodloe, and Walter the servant of Sergt. John L. Jamison.
Lieutenant Sims states: ""After the surrender I advised these negroes and Ben, my servant, that we were prisoners; that we no longer had the right to control them and could not protect them, and that they might make their escape either then or in the near future. Ben took my advice and succeeded in reaching his home. Haywood and Walter seemed terrorized by the situation and remained with us. At St. Louis I again tried to get them to work their way home. They refused to do so and went with us to Camp Chase and were treated as other prisoners. In a few days they both died of pneumonia and were buried in the same cemetery in which the Confederate officers were buried. I went to the graves with the funeral party and chaplin and made a statement as to who they were and how they came to be there, a record of which was made, I think, by the Federal chaplin. Burial services were held and a headboard with the name placed by a Federal officer at each grave. When these men took sick they were placed in the prison hospital; were given clean clothing, good beds, and received the same medical attention and nursing that the Confederate officers received. Lieut. (Dr.) R.G. Lane gave each of them his special attention, and Lieutenant Bailey and myself assisted in nursing them until they died.""
I have been able to confirm that the Confederate Officers mentioned in this article were prisoners of War at Camp Chase. The Fort Donelson National Park knew nothing about this particular unit being captured at Fort Donelson. It is obvious that not all of Colonel Forrests' Cavalry made it out of the Fort. This particular unit Company D was made up of soldiers from Red River County, Texas. I do not know if the entire Company was captured or just a portion of it. If the entire company was captured and somehow not recorded by Union officials then there may be some additional soldiers buried at Camp Douglas (enlisted) or Camp Butler etc A researcher could I believe find the orginal roster to Company D (I think it does exist) and find those who may have died in prison. If they did die in prison it is likely that they were buried as unknown. This of course is under the assumption that this letter is true in which in my opinion it is. Camp Chase did receive some enlisted soldiers from Fort Donelson not all of them were junior officers. However, the enlisted seems to be either sick or wounded taken from Fort Donelson. I have noticed that the sick enlisted taken to Camp Chase were first admitted to hosptial # 6 in Louisville, Ky or to hosptial #4 in New Albany, IN., both along the Ohio River. Fort Donelson did not have a hospital within its Fort. The sick were taken to Clarksville, TN prior to Grant's taking of Fort Donelson.