Tinker Dave Beaty

David Beaty most commonly referred to as Tinker Dave was a Union guerrilla leader during the Civil War. He was a native of Jamestown Tennessee. Jamestown at this time was opposed to secession. For those who are not familiar with the Upper Cumberland area Jamestown lies on the border of Tennessee and Kentucky. Champ Ferguson was from Albany Kentucky. Ferguson had travelled down to Kentucky and got into a fight at Camp Dick Robinson with Elam Huddleston, Jim Reed, and Floyd Evans (who were friends of Tinker Dave). Ferguson killed Jim Reed who was the sheriff of Jamestown. This is widely accepted as the start of the long standing grudge between Ferguson and Beaty. Ferguson's brother Jim was a close ally of Tinker Dave's. Throughout the war Beaty and Ferguson would encounter each other, but neither one was able to eliminate the other. The closest the two men came to each other was at the Battle of Dug Hill where Beaty was fighting alongside William Stokes and Ferguson was fighting alongside George Dibrell. Both men were wounded in the battle. Beaty also worked closely with military governor Andrew Johnson to try and capture or kill Champ Ferguson. Beaty was unsuccessful however, but he did get the pleasure of testifying against Ferguson at his trial. After the war Beaty became a prominent and much respected citizen of Jamestown.

For more information about Tinker Dave Beaty I highly recommend any of the books written about Champ Ferguson. There is just not much information about Tinker Dave. Check back soon for more articles about the guerrilla war, and the men who made it.