One of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War and the beginning of the end for the Confederate Army, was the Battle of Franklin in my hometown of Franklin, Tennessee. Around 30,000 Union Soldiers, led by Major General John Schofield, were entrenched close to downtown near the Carter House. They arrived very early on the morning, around 4am, of November 30, 1864. Later that day, 33,000 Confederate Soldiers, led by Major General John Bell Hood, marched up the Columbia Highway towards Franklin around noon, angry the Union army passed them in Spring Hill while they slept.  What commenced at 4pm was a five-hour battle that left 2,326 Union soldiers killed, wounded, missing, or captured and 6,262 Confederate soldiers killed, wounded, missing, or captured.  Keep in mind the entire population of Franklin at the time was only 750. 

One member of the Union troops who survived the Battle of Franklin was Harvey the Yankee Dog. Harvey was an American Bull Terrier who went to war with his master First Officer, Daniel Stearns, of the 104th Ohio Volunteer Infantry in 1862. 

According to the book Bullets and Bayonets: A Battle of Franklin Primer a publication of the Williamson County Public Library, when Officer Stearns was promoted to lieutenant, Harvey received a collar with a brass plate that read, "I am Lieutenant D.M. Stearns' dog. Whose dog are you?

In 1864, Harvey was wounded and captured at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. The lucky dog was returned to his master and his unit under a flag of truce. 

No one knows what happened to Harvey after the war. However, his collar was preserved. When the 104th Ohio gathered in 1886 for a reunion of its veterans, a group photo was taken. Right in the front row, a veteran proudly held a large painting of their four-legged, missing comrade Harvey. 

**Bullets and Bayonets: A Battle of Franklin Primer was published a special project of the Williamson County Public Library to commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the battle of Franklin. A wonderful podcast is available that is produced by the Battle of Franklin Trust of the rich and fascinating history of Tennessee, including the stories and people and places touched by the American Civil War.