Jackson McDowell

Jackson McDowell was the editor of The Cookeville Times newspaper in Cookeville, Tennessee. He was the son of Curtis McDowell who lived in Sparta, Tennessee and ran Cumberland Institute. The McDowell family lived in the Cherry Creek community in White County. Cherry Creek is near the Calfkiller River where Champ Ferguson lived. At the outbreak of the Civil War the McDowell family split. Jackson chose to side with the Union, and his brother Fayette served with the Confederacy. Jackson was very outspoken about his Union beliefs. He wrote many pro-Union articles in The Cookeville Times. By living so close to Champ Ferguson, many of his friends and brother decided to join the Ferguson gang. Jackson however did not want to fight. He said that he could not fight against his brother. One day Jackson was working in his office in Cookeville, when a drunk Champ Ferguson and his gang raided it. They threatened to kill Jackson for his Union beliefs. Luckily Jackson was able to escape before Ferguson and his men could string him up. Jackson decided that it was too dangerous to stay in Tennessee, so he fled to Kentucky. He promised his family that he would come back as soon as the war ended. As promised he did return at the war's end. Jackson most likely escaped certain death by fleeing to Kentucky. He also proved to be a man of his word by coming back home to Tennessee. He and his brother were able to make up and start a business together. The McDowell family proved that their bond was to great to be broken by the Civil War.

For more information about Jackson McDowell and the Civil War in Tennessee, I suggest that you check out the book Soldiers, Spies, and Spartans.

Stay tuned for more blog posts about tales from Tennessee and beyond.