GUNTERSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – When Union forces swept through Guntersville in the final year of the Civil War, all but seven buildings were burned to ash. The Col. Montgomery Gilbreath house still stands today because of an agreement between opposing forces to spare the home.
Historian Dr. Julian Sparks said the house was built around the 1850s. In the middle of the 1860s, an unnamed Union general arrived with orders to burn Guntersville to the ground, including Gilbreath’s home.
A historic marker says federal troops were out for revenge after a Medal of Honor recipient was killed in a skirmish in the nearby community of Red Hill. A Union gunboat shelled the town, and troops set fire to buildings. A cannonball struck the Gilbreath House during the shelling.
Common ground saves historic home
Sparks said the survival of the home was cemented when both the Union general and Gilbreath met and found common ground. The two men had both worked as masons. The general agreed to leave Gilbreath’s home untouched, besides the cannonball that had already hit it…