William Cate’s Civil War Southern Claims Commission File — Deposition of Capt. A. E. Blount
Additional Testimony for the Commissioners of Claims at Washington
Claim of William Cate of Bradley county, Tennessee no. 15.774 and 20702
Deposition of Captain A.E. Blount
who in answer to the question deposes and says my name is Ainsworth E. Blount, aged 41 years. I am a farmer and Postmaster at Cleveland, Tennessee.
From a statistical report which I kept for the year 1874 from the best sources of information I could obtain for Bradley county Tennessee I find that the average of William Cate’s wheat crop was about eleven bushels per acre. That the average of his oat crop is about thirty six bushels per acre. The said Cate reported 25 acres of hay cut at the time of the report averaging a ton an acre.
The average crop of the year 1874 fell off 20/100 from the crop of 1857. The fall sowing of oats last year was nearly up to the average crop in Bradley. A ton and a half is about an average crop of hay for Bradley County Tennessee. But last year the hay crop was about one-third short.
The claimants farm is an average, or over average creek valley farm for Bradley county, Tenn.
Question by claimant – Did you not hear me say at my own house that I had lost as much or more of farm products than any farmer in this county?
Answer – My best recollection is that I did hear claimant say something of that kind in August or September 1864.
Question – Did you not introduce me to various officers after the war as a staunch Union man of Bradley county?
Answer – I think I did.
Question – Did John Steed tell you that I had told him that I had never lost anything by either army.
Answer – He did.
Question – Did Campbell Steed ever tell you that I told him that I never lost anything by either army?
Answer – He did.
Question – Did Leonard Carrouth ever tell you that I told him that I never lost anything by either army?
Answer – He did
Question – At what time did my associations with disloyal men begin?
Answer – About 1868.
Question – Who were these disloyal associates?
Answer – I only noticed that William Cate had changed his associations, but I don’t recollect any particularly except C.L. Hardwick.
Question – Have you known of any disloyal acts by the rebels or anybody else about Cleveland since 1868.
Answer – I cannot mention any at present.
Question – Did you see me assisting to raise a Union flag on a tall pole in Cleveland in the spring of 1861.
Answer – I believe I did.
Signed,
A.E. Blount
before, John W. Ramsey – Special Commissioner
Links to each section of the transcribed file:
- Introduction & Part VIII — Conclusion
- Part I — William Cate’s Claimed Losses
- Part II — Notes from the Office of the Commissioners of Claims
- Part III — Depositions Taken in 1875 Regarding Claimant’s (Cate) Loyalty
- Part IV — Opinion Submitted by John B. Brownlow, U. S. Special Commission
- Part V — Additional Testimony for the Commissioners of Claims at Washington
- Depositions:
William Cate ~ Joseph H. Davis ~ Leonard Carrouth ~ Capt. A. E. Blount ~ John A. Steed ~ J. F. Larrison ~ Mrs. Sidney Henderson ~ Col. D. M. Nelson ~ Samuel Grigsby ~ Andrew J. Maples ~ John A. Hague ~ Herman Foster ~ Thomas L. Cate ~ James McGhee ~ Thomas Rains ~ D. B. Oneal ~ Thomas A. Cowan ~ C. L. Hardwick ~ Joseph Calloway ~ J. C. Steed ~ Joseph R. Taylor ~ William W. Wood(s) ~ James H. Brown ~ James S. Robertson ~ John H. Craigmiles ~ John H. Parker ~ John McReynolds ~ John W. Witcher
- Depositions:
- Part VI — Summary of All Evidence for and Against Cate’s Loyalty
- Part VII — Opinion of Witnesses by John W. Ramsey
- Part VIII — William Cate’s Letter to Judge A. O. Alder
The information in these articles was formerly linked from Bradley County TNGenWeb to a site owned by Danny Roy Williams at Geocities. The site was last available in 2009. It is available through the Internet Archive here. No copyright infringement is intended.