Will the Family Circle Be Broken?: Civil War in Carroll County, Tennessee

Westport, Tennessee, 1850. Every week, a circle of friends gathers at the mercantile for coffee, the latest newspapers, and a shot of Thompson whiskey. They argue about a nation pulling itself apart. Within fifteen years, that argument will reach their own front porches.The Bradfords of Carroll County are farmers, not soldiers. But as secession sweeps through Tennessee, staying neutral is no longer possible. Two brothers ride with the Union's Seventh Tennessee Cavalry, hunting Nathan Bedford Forrest. Two others join a Confederate unit in Arkansas. And Kathy, the young woman who delivers the county's newspapers, is keeping a secret that could get everyone she loves hanged: her wagon is a station on the Underground Railroad.One morning in 1862, bushwhackers strike the Bradford farm, and the war stops being a headline. With no courts and no law left in Carroll County, the coffee drinkers must decide what justice looks like and what it will cost them.Will the Family Circle Be Broken? is inspired by the author's real ancestors. Each chapter includes a short account of what was happening across the nation from 1850 to 1865. It is a story of loyalty, courage, and a family fighting to hold together while their country splits apart.Pull up a chair at the coffee shop and find out whether the Bradford family circle can survive the war.