1866 Peseux Map of the Battlefieds near Nashville, TN during the U.S. Civil War

This is a separately issued 1866 Peseux map of the battles surrounding Nashville, Tennessee which took place on December 15th and 16th 1864. Oriented towards the east, the map depicts the region from the Cumberland River to south of Overton Hills and from Confederate strongpoints east of the city to the Charlotte Pike west of Nashville. Highly detailed, the regions topography is meticulously engraved, with elevations of nearly every high point noted. Most of these were locations for Union strongpoints and forts along the defensive lines constructed south of Nashville. Numerous streets are illustrated heading into / leaving from Nashville, including the Franklin Pike and the Granny White Pike, both of which were used by the defeated Confederate army in their retreat back toward Franklin. The battle is traced in astonishing detail, with each unit represented and colored with a different color scheme to make them easier to identify. Both Rebel and Union works are illustrated, with Rebel works colored red, while Union works are colored blue. Movements from both days of the battle are highlighted, although almost exclusively from the Union perspective.

The Battle of Nashville

The battle of Nashville was the last major battle in the Western Theater of the U.S. Civil War and represented the end of large scale fighting outside the coastal states. Fought between the Confederate Army of the Tennessee command by Lieutenant General John Bell Hood and a combination of Federal forces under the overall command of Major General George H. Thomas. Remembered as one of the largest Union victories during the war, Thomas took the initiative and attacked and routed Hood's army, effectively neutralizing its capacity to wage war.

Census and Publication History

This map was drawn by M. Peseux, reduced and engraved by the Army Corps of Engineers, and originally published in the Report of the Chief Engineer to the 39th Congress in 1866. We believe this example to have been separately issued and it has been mounted on linen.