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One of the older towns in Bedford County,
Fairfield was established because of the farmer and
planter’s need for milling. The location was considered
the best site for a mill north of the Duck River within
Bedford County. Originally, two towns sprang up, one on
either side of Garrison’s Fork. Fairfield was on the
western side, Petersburg on the east. The two
communities fused in 1840, as Fairfield grew to become
the second most important town in the county after
Shelbyville. It not only provided the usual milling and
commercial services, it became, after 1846, the site of
a Baptist-run academy. However, when the Nashville and
Chattanooga Railroad came through the area in 1851,
creating Bell Buckle and Wartrace in the process,
Fairfield was doomed. By 1886, there were no more than
fifty inhabitants left, and little today remains save
for Heidt Tavern, now the Gleaves Home.
During the Tullahoma campaign, two
brigades of Confederate general A. P. Stewart’s division
were deployed in the area to watch the line of the
Murfreesboro-Manchester Pike. William Bate’s brigade
was stationed just north and east of Fairfield, and it
would be these regiments that would attempt to hold off
John T. Wilder’s mounted U.S. infantry at Hoover’s Gap.
As well, when Union general George H. Thomas’ corps came
through the gap, they pushed all Confederate units in
the area back against and through the town in order to
move them away from the main road. As a result of these
engagements, Confederate soldiers are buried in the New
Hope Cemetery.
Historic Resources:
Heidt (Gleaves) Tavern--Singleton House
–
The only period structure remaining in Fairfield, the
1850s tavern served as an inn as well. The house has
been remodeled and today is a private residence.
Encampment Marker
– A state historical marker designates the area as
Bate’s encampment.
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