In East Tennessee the vote against secession enjoyed a large plurality but
overwhelmed as the vote moved west. Knox and Sevier Counties were
particularly strong Unionist and remained that way. When Burnsides occupied
Knoxville and built Fort Sanders, Lee sent Longstreet up from Chattanooga
to re-take the town and re-take control of the railroads. He failed in one
of the bloodiest (barely told) battles of the war. Over 600 Confederate
soldiers died in about 20 minutes. Longstreet had first tried a blockade to
starve the Union Army into surrender, but sympathetic farmers from Knox and
Sevier Counties got food to the fort over unprotected routes and by
floating food down the river at night.  Tennessee Archives published names
of Tennessee soldiers on both sides from which I estimated 41,000 Union
soldiers.

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