Narrow Escapes of the Civil War

Narrow Escapes were a series of articles collected by the Ironton Register newspaper from 1886 – 1888. These narratives were gathered by a newspaper reporter who went throughout Lawrence County, Ohio searching for Civil War Veterans and then encouraging them to tell their stories. That reporter was never mentioned by name but played an important part in our nation’s history for many years.

These stories in this book were transcribed just as they were printed in the newspapers, some areas were hard to decipher and sometimes words were left out of sentences. The texts in bracket [ ] were my addition to the stories.

Some weeks there were two separate interviews and for that reason, you will notice they have the same number next to that veteran’s story. Remember, most of this area during the 1860s was pro-Union, but you will notice some of these stories are from Confederate veterans. I have added some obituaries, stories, photos, and other facts I found while researching this book.

Sheri Pettit first published this book in 1998. Before their deaths, Sheri and Rick were involved in the Guyandotte, WV Civil War reenactment group for many years. This book is dedicated to their memory.