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Civil War tensions

This episode is based on three articles telling of violent events between Union and Confederate sympathizers during and just after the Civil War, both involving the prominent Baker family whose home is now known as the Baker Peters House. The first event is the shooting death of Dr. Harvey Baker in his home, and the second is the lynching of his son in downtown Knoxville. Steve Cotham follows the readings with some comments about the Baker family and tensions between neighbors during this period.

To read about the ghost legend of the Baker Peters house, check out Mysterious Knoxville by Charles Edwin Price. For more about Governor "Parson" Brownlow, see chapter 8 of Betsey Beeler Creekmore's book, Knoxville!

About the Podcast

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Knox Pods
Podcasts of Knox County Public Library

About your hosts

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Melissa Brenneman

Melissa listens to hours of podcasts on most days. She started the habit with the intention of taking long walks, but podcasts proved to be more addicting than exercise. She records, edits and mixes podcasts for the library.
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Alan May

Alan May works as a librarian at Lawson McGhee Library. He holds an MFA in creative writing and a Master's of Library and Information Studies, both from the University of Alabama. In his spare time, he reads and writes poetry. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in New Orleans Review, The New York Quarterly, The Hollins Critic, The Idaho Review, Plume, Willow Springs, and others. He has published three books. His latest, Derelict Days in That Derelict Town: New and Uncollected Poems, is forthcoming in 2025.