Typical soldier hut at Fort Donelson, Fort Donelson National Battlefield

TOUR STOP 3:  LOG HUTS

Stop 3 on the tour of Fort Donelson National Battlefield is at a reproduction of a typical cabin that soldiers lived in while stationed at Fort Donelson. When the fort was active, there were approximately 400 such cabins inside the fort walls. However, there were not enough for everyone, and many soldiers lived in tents, or worse yet, just slept out in the open under a blanket. At the time the Battle of Fort Donelson took place in mid-February 1862, it had just snowed.

The Union army occupied the fort after the battle but had to burn all the cabins due to a subsequent measles outbreak. A new fort was eventually constructed in 1863 closer to the town of Dover, approximately at the location of the National Cemetery. For some reason, the name Fort Donelson was kept despite it being the name of a Confederate general. All I can think of is that either the Union Army had its own General Donelson, or since everyone knew where Fort Donelson was located, there wasn’t any reason to confuse people with a new name.