From: Robert & Mary Tyree, 71151,2020
To: Tyree Family
Date: Sun, Aug 4, 1996, 20:44
RE: Mrs. Tyree takes on the Army
Dear Family,
Do you know a Mrs. Tyree like this? (The setting is the Civil War.)
"We pursued the enemy as far as Mr. Tyree's, some eight miles. Mrs. Tyree is quite a favorite with our army. Though both her sons are volunteers, and her husband one of our most reliable scouts, she positively refused to flee from her home on the approach of the enemy. She penned her chickens, hogs, and cattle under her own eye, and armed with nothing but a single gun and a brave spirit, she was determined to stand her ground and protect herself and property. When the enemy approached, they pitched into her chicken coop and garden and she pitched into them. With a pitchfork she ran them out of her house, and returning to the other side of her house, she found several Hessians cutting her cabbage and bearing them off. Snatching up her gun and leveling it at them, they dropped their plunder and retreated in more than double quick time. The circumstances not only occasioned great diversion among the army, but her heroic conduct satisfied them that she could only be robbed by being killed, and they never after troubled anything she had by violence. Mrs. Tyree is a fine lady, of good character, and extraordinary will and nerve. She keeps one of the best hotels in western Virginia, and it is a favorite resort of all travelers."
This quote is attributed to "an unknown Confederate writer" and appears on page 85 in a book entitled "The Civil War in Fayette County, West Virginia" authored by Tim McKinney. The context strongly suggests that this confrontation took place at the Old Stone House and that the woman was Margaret McClung Tyree (born March 2, 1815), wife of Francis Tyree (born April 12, 1805). [Francis was one of Richard Tyree's sons.] We are indebted to C. Myron Amick, who currently lives about a mile down the road from the Old Stone House, for furnishing this great family story!
Robert F. Tyree
Dayton, Ohio
Home Page or 
Genealogy Page