Mid-morning on December 31, 1862, Dunham's Union troops, pressured on three sides, rallied around the crossroads near the Parker House but soon retreated beyond the roads and sought cover among the rolling hills to the southeast. After Forrest's main force of mounted troopers failed in an assault on the left wing of the Union battle line, they were sent eastward along a line just north of present-day Interstate 40 to envelop Dunham's right flank. To meet the threat, Dunham charged north along a split-rail fence line to a new position approximately 300 yards southeast of the intersection of Interstate 40 and State Highway 22. Forrest's cannon decimated Dunham's Brigade, forcing back several of its attacks, and Union Colonel John I. Rinaker lost a leg to shrapnel during the fighting.

Photo: Craig Swain

Photo: Craig Swain

Photo: Craig Swain

Photo: Craig Swain

Photo: Shane Oliver

Parker's Crossroads, Tennessee · USA