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Daring and Suffering: A History of the Andrews Railroad Raid
Daring and Suffering A History of the Andrews Railroad Raid Author:William Pittenger During the evening of April 7, 1862, twenty-four men infiltrated the Confederate lines below Shelbyville, Tennessee. Their goal was to steal a train and head north, disrupting rail service between Chattanooga and Atlanta by burning bridges, tearing up track, and cutting telegraph wires. If successful, they would isolate Chattanooga and possibly ... more »facilitate its capture, enabling the city to serve as a base for Union raids into Alabama. They failed. Three never made it. Seven were hanged as spies. Eight escaped. Six languished in a Southern stockade until they were paroled. Eighteen received the Medal of Honor. Although little was gained militarily by the adventure, the story of the Great Locomotive Chase (also known as the Andrews raid) has fascinated generations of Americans with its many ironies and particularly the dogged persistence of one man; William Fuller, the conductor of the stolen train who relentlessly pursued the raiders. Fuller followed them on foot, by handcar, and by locomotive, even running an engine in reverse at speeds up to ninety miles an hour. Among the raiders was Cpl. William Pittenger. Shortly after he was mustered out, he composed an account of the mission, which was enlarged over subsequent editions and supplemented to become the most well-known and best-regarded account of the adventure. This book is a reproduction of the 1887 edition. It has been duplicated exactly as it appeared at that time with the addition of a brief introduction by Col. James G. Bogle.« less