Jerry and Linda Butler

Civil War Story

Story of William Neely Culp or "Neely" or "W.N. Culp" b 1825 - d 1863? and his wife Julia Emory (1831-1914). See end of story for children of Neely and Julia and verification of parts of story. We do not know for certain but speculate that Timothy Culp is Neely's father.

Family stories have him at Culp's chapel in Perry County, Tenn [which is still there as I visited this place and have a picture of it]. I don't know if he was married than, but the story starts with him going to California for the Gold Rush (Circa 1849-1850) and returning to Tennessee with considerable wealth, enough to afford as many as 100 negro slaves [note: the records I saw never showed more than 7 slaves, but the ruins of his plantation house do indicate wealth]. It is said he worked his slaves in the farm fields during the day and had them chip native rock for building purposes at night. He constructed a large underground cellar, three chimneys, cistern, well and rock fences for his house and farm. The house was a large double log, two story home built on the "Dog Track" log style of the day [owned by the town doctor Dr. Brooks in 1930 s when burned down]. The cistern was on the back porch or an extension which connected the dining-kitchen rooms to the main structure.

Neely Culp was said to be a "master carpenter" and included new or innovated features in his home and other area structures he helped build. Being a slave owner and a Southern sympathizer, he chose NOT to fight in the Civil War and by necessity had to hide out during the civil war from the soldiers (Union?) and local renegades [my grandpa Burren Culp remembers his dad (Joseph, son of Neeley) saying he was on the "home guard"]. Allegedly, his gold was hidden about the property. Beliefs as to his wealth apparently lead to his murder by a local gang. Any earlier story by Granny Culp [later Emily E. Kelley] had him hiding above the stairs during one raid by bushwhackers and fatally shooting one of the marauders from the stairwell [I remember my grandpa saying this too, "shot in the head"]. A negro house woman was told to drag the body across the orchard to the garden and cover it with one of grandma Culp s good quilts. The dead man s family later moved the body by wagon.

Another story related the passing soldiers taking good quilts for horse saddle blankets. On occasions grandma and the children would hide out in the graveyard to avoid marauders.

One account of Neely Culp s death had him cold, wet and tired from hiding and coming home to get food, supplies, and rest. He was lying in front of the fire when sounds of horse hoofs of several riders were heard approaching the house. Apparently too much for those present, the gang overpowered the Culp family and rode off with Neely tied to his own horse. The story goes that the gang killed him in efforts to make tell where his gold was hidden. The gang dumped and hid his body across the Tennessee River in the Old community area. Disposition of the body was communicated many years later to a family member of the guilty gang. Culp s body was never recovered or found.

Old omens of the day Granny Culp felt she knew he was dead when a flock of buzzards descended near the house, requiring her to fight them off with a broom [this notion was confirmed by my great Aunt Artie of Memphis, Tenn who was a spouse to Riley Culp, Joseph s son .I posted Joseph s picture yesterday]. Tales have it that some gold was later found, but through many years rumors persist that gold still remains buried on the home place. It was said that Neely Culp gave the land for the cemetery and church building and possibly helped build the church structure. The present building does look over 125 years old [there are some heavy quarry blocks in the foundation which I photographed in 1983]. Ernest Pevahouse was the custodian of the chapel in 1978 [per Charles H. Yabro] and remembers staying the night in the old Culp house. Pevahouse reports that Dr. Brooks built a doctor s office between the road and the house. Also in existence, but rotting away, is a log smokehouse near the house, believed to be a Neely structure [I saw this in 1983]. To the west and slightly near the rear of the house, past an old orchard, is an almost perfectly preserved portion of a rock wall and a square rock well.

The Neely Culp information is available in the U.S. Census for 1860, Wayne County, Tenn and there was also a Schedule of Slaves. Interview also {by Charles H. Yabro ] from Mrs. Lillian Thompson Vise of Decaturville, TN on December 27, 1971 when she was 96 years old, she died May 16, 1972. Parts verified by Burren Culp (of Scott s Hill TN), my grandfather who died in 1976, and also by an interview with Artie Culp of Memphis, TN (Burren s brother Riley Culp s spouse). My address is: Dr. Kennith Culp, 170 Ironwood Circle, Iowa City, IA 52240-4474. I also ffound old Grandma Culp (Julia grave (Neeley's wife) in the Scotts Hill, Tenn cemetary under Julia E. Kelley. Her date of death was Sept 19, 1914 and the stone says "aged 83 years, 3 months, and 7 days".

I would welcome any comments or further verification of this account from those interested!

Family listed in Wayne County, TN Census 1860 #1164 under W. N. Culp. born 1825. I would LOVE to hear from any of the descendants of his children, which include:

1. Joseph Culp (b 1853) married Fannie Culp (maiden name Culp too, b 1858) (my great grandfather, picture yesterday)
2. Sarah (Sally) Ann Culp (b 1854) who married James Andrew Pitts Thompson)
   Descendants include Thompson, Vise, Pickens, Smith (Alsonson B. Smith)
3. Walter (b 1857)... NOTHING KNOWN about descendants..
4. Dora Ellen (b 1860) who married Dr. Jim Alston descendants: Swift, Yabro

Kennith Culp,
170 Ironwood Circle
Iowa City, Iowa 52240-4474
e-mail: ken-culp@uiowa.edu