Champ Ferguson

Champ Ferguson
Champ Ferguson in 1865
Born	(1821-11-29)November 29, 1821 Clinton County, Kentucky
Died	October 20, 1865(1865-10-20) (aged 43) Tennessee
Resting place	France Cemetery White County, Tennessee 36°01′32″N 85°20′15″W / 36.02567°N 85.33742°W / 36.02567; -85.33742
Criminal penalty	Death by hanging
Criminal status	Deceased
Conviction(s)	Murder, 53 counts {Suspect claimed over 100 victims}

Champ Ferguson (November 29, 1821 – October 20, 1865) was a notorious Confederate guerrilla during the American Civil War. He claimed to have killed over 100 Union soldiers and pro-Union civilians. He was arrested, tried, and executed for war crimes by the US government after the war.

Ferguson was born in Clinton County, Kentucky, on the Tennessee border, the oldest of ten children. This area was known as the Kentucky Highlands and had more families who were yeomen farmers; they generally owned few slaves. Like his father, Ferguson became a farmer. But the younger Ferguson also earned a reputation for violence even before the American Civil War.

Reportedly, in 1858, he led a group of men who tied Sheriff James Read of Fentress County, Tennessee to a tree. Ferguson rode his horse in circles around the tree, hacking at Read repeatedly with a sword until he was dead. He also allegedly stabbed a man named Evans at a camp meeting, though Evans survived. In the 1850s, Ferguson moved with his wife and family to the Calfkiller River Valley in White County, Tennessee.

During the Civil War, East Tennessee, a mostly mountainous region, was generally opposed and, in many areas, strongly opposed to secession from the Union. The remainder of the state, which had more slaveholders, particularly in the plantation areas of West Tennessee, supported the Confederacy. This historical division made East Tennessee a target for unofficial engagements by both sides. In addition, Confederate troops were committed to engagements with local partisans, which took place far from the front. From 1862, Tennessee was occupied by Union troops, which contributed to the tensions and divisions. The mountainous terrain and lack of law enforcement during the war gave guerrillas and other irregular military groups significant freedom of action. Numerous incidents were recorded of guerrilla and revenge attacks, especially on the Cumberland Plateau. Families were often divided among their members. For example, one of Champ Ferguson's brothers fought as a member of the Union's 1st Kentucky Cavalry and was killed in action.