100,000 men in Kentucky were in the Union

25,000-40,000 men in Kentucky were in the Confederacy

In 1861 Kentucky declared for the Union. Kentucky’s official policy was to remain neutral.  Governor Beriah Magoffin was pro-South and replied to Lincoln’[s call for men that Kentucky would not furnish troops for subduing “her sister southern state”.  The Legislature was pro-Union and in May 1861, the State took the official position to remain neutral.  It was a State divided.

In most instances Oldham County seemed to be split geographically between Union and Confederate sympathizers.  Generally, Union supporters were from the northeastern part of the county (LaGrange and Westport area) while Confederate supporters seemed to be in the southwestern part (Ballardsville, Crestwood, Pewee Valley area).

African American Elijah Marrs, a former slave from Shelby County and later a famous educator andminister, recruited local African American slaves to runaway and join the Union at Ft. Nelson.  After the Civil War, Elijah Marrs with his brother, came back to LaGrange and established 2 of the Freedman’s schools established in Kentucky to help educate former slaves.  There were only 19of these schools in Kentucky.  Mr. Marrs was the first elected black official in Oldham County, securing the position of  “stump” for the Republican Party.  He also helped to establish and served as the first President of Simmons Bible College in Louisville which is still in operation today.

Oldham County is a part of the Henry Bibb slave narratives.  In these narratives published after Bibb’s death in 1854, he describes the horrible treatment and injustices of slavery.  Bibb became the first black editor of a newspaper in Canada.  The Oldham County History Center has ongoing archaeological investigations in Bedford on the Gatewood Plantation, the last place where Bibb was a slave before his escape to freedom.

Union troops were segregated and remained segregated through the Korean War.  Local white Union troops were organized into 5 companies form Henry, Oldham, and Shelby County that became known as Companies B, D, F, H and K of the 6th Infantry.  Company B was mustered into service on November 1, 1861 comprised almost entirely of men from LaGrange and Westport and their captain was Richard Lee from Westport.  Soldiers boarded the train at Eminence and LaGrange and were moved to Camp Sigel to the unit with Major William Hailman’s battalion.

Colored soldiers, such at the ones from the 12th United Stated Colored Heavy Artillery, were comprised primarily of runaway slaves.  These men were mustered in at eight primary recruitment stations throughout the state including Louisville and Camp Nelson in central Kentucky. Camp Nelson would become the largest recruitment center for African Americans and the third largest recruitment center for African Americans during the Civil War.   Some of the families of the slaves accompanied the soldiers to Camp Nelson where they found refuge during the Civil War.

There was a German regiment in the Union comprised of Germans who were new immigrants.  They were fleeing from the civil unrest in Germany and were against the institution of slavery.  A local citizen, Colonel Froh, headed up the German speaking regiment.  Froh later became a minister at the United Methodist Church in LaGrange.

Oldham County is home to the only official state burying ground for Confederate veterans of the Civil War.  The cemetery contains the remains of 313 soldiers, most of who were residents of the Kentucky Confederate Home in Pewee Valley.  The home closed in the 1930s and the few remaining veterans were moved to a local nursing home.