From the August 26th Fayetteville (NC) Observer.
The town was ravaged in the closing months of the war when the Union army passed through. When someone would inquire about the damage, the typical response was "Sherman done it."
As General Sherman's army marched across Georgia, South Carolina and into North Carolina, it had become very proficient at destroying things. You could say they had it down to an art. They unleashed the full-brunt of their ability on Fayetteville.
The city was an important object because of the Fayetteville Arsenal, one of the South's largest. Its stone buildings were knocked down in a half day using rails hung from tripods like battering rams of old. An engineer band played lively tunes each time a wall came down.
Confederates had burned the old Clarendon Bridge during their retreat, but it didn't take Sherman's pontooners, the 58th Indiana long to build a replacement across the river.
Brigadier General Absalom Baird was in charge of Fayetteville during the three day occupation. Along with the arsenal, four cotton factories and two foundries were destroyed.
Get 'Cher Shermanized Steak. --Old B-Runner
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