McCoy Farm & Gardens hosts fundraiser, Civil War history talk

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park historian Jim Ogden is the featured speaker for a fundraiser at McCoy Farm & Gardens Friday, Oct. 6. He will speak about Civil War history on Walden's Ridge. (Staff file photo by C.B. Schmelter)
Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park historian Jim Ogden is the featured speaker for a fundraiser at McCoy Farm & Gardens Friday, Oct. 6. He will speak about Civil War history on Walden's Ridge. (Staff file photo by C.B. Schmelter)

McCoy Farm & Gardens is hosting a fundraiser for the property's renovations, featuring wine, heavy hors d'oeuvres and a talk by historian Jim Ogden titled "The Civil War on Walden's Ridge." The event will be held on the McCoy grounds Friday, Oct. 6 from 5:30-7:30 p.m.

"Come to enjoy the place and come to enjoy each other's company," encouraged McCoy board member and event chairwoman Linda Collins. "It's kind of like a neighborhood party where everyone is welcome, and it's an opportunity to learn more about the history of Walden's Ridge."

Ogden, historian at Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park, will speak about the Union supply route that traversed Walden's Ridge during the siege of Chattanooga in October 1863, said Mickey Robbins, president of McCoy Farm & Gardens Inc. The nonprofit group of citizens is responsible for the property's upkeep and ongoing renovation.

The Walden's Ridge supply route was the only route from Bridgeport, Ala., where Union troops kept their supplies, into Chattanooga that wasn't controlled by Confederate troops, Robbins said. A large storehouse on the McCoy property was used to supply the Union men who maintained the roads on the route, which saw between 50 and 80 supply wagons each day during the siege.

"He's a very good speaker," Robbins said of Ogden. "He has a wealth of information and knows stories of individual soldiers - not just facts and figures."

There is a suggested minimum donation of $30 per person. As McCoy Farm & Gardens has no administrative costs, with all work done by volunteers, all funds will go toward ongoing renovations at McCoy, said Collins.

Renovations to the kitchen and first floor of the McCoy home are already complete, and the remodeling of the carriage house bathrooms was recently finished as well. Next, volunteers plan to renovate the second floor of the house, as well as paint the window frames and do some caulking, said Collins. Eventually, volunteers plan to restore the gardens and redo the barn, Robbins said.

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