Sophia Ridgely Dashiell, daughter of Alfred Henry Dashiell and Ann Ridgely Dashiell, was born on September 10, 1826 in Elkridge, Maryland. She married on January 6, 1846, in Somerset County, Maryland, William Franklin Pitt Lytle, a widower with five children, who had been twice married before. They set up house in the original William Lytle Homestead. Sophia Ridgely Dashiell was a sister of his stepmother, Lavinia Dashiel Lytle. Although William Lytle was 20+years older than Sophia, they had seven children together. Andrew Nelson Lytle, the author, described Sophia as "having a zest for spirited horses and a black coachman named Caesar, who could keep them in line."
It is not known that if Sophia Dashiell Lytle, being born in Maryland had Union sympathies or she just knew that this was where they money was, but she consorted with Yankee soldiers. The first Yankee soldier was William Haines Lytle from Ohio, a Union soldier and kin of the Lytles. His his first visit to Murfreesboro on February 22, 1863, William Frank Pitt Lytle was still living, and William Haines Lytle described in his letter to his sister, that he had no tent and addressed a note to the Murfreesboro Lytles on the night of arrival asking if they could accommodate him with quarters. He described his room as "splendid and the whole family are kind & affectionate as possible." In this same letter he described William Frank Pitt Lytle; "the old gentleman himself is very ill but I trust is improving...and between the two armies in timber, fencing--stores destroyed and stock stolen he has lost a quarter of a million dollars. The old gentleman himself is a staunch Union man though he has a son & son in law--Dr. Patterson--and a number of other relatives in the rebel army." He describes Sophie in this same letter as "brillantly educated--a fine latin & greek scholar & a very charming lady--tho in poor health." As for the Lytles, he describes them as "no doubt kin--the Lytle sticks out all over. One of the little children Sophy is as much like the one of Uncle Neds children as a photograph."
On the Union Officer's, William Haines Lytle next visit to Murfreesboro in April 1863, Sophie was now a 36 year old widow with several children to raise, as William Franklin Pitt Lytle had died on March 9, 1863, at the age of 57 years old. Again, the Union officer stayed at the Lytle household. In fact, a source indicates that he was so captivated with Mrs. Sophie Lytle, that was in mourning at the death of her husband, that he asked his sisters to send her clothing and other items unavailable in war-torn Tennessee. This source also states that is seems possible that the relationship extended beyond freindship to romance, although no firm evidence was found. A letter to his family dated April 23, 1863, indicates that he was still staying at the Lytle household in Murfreesboro and indicated that the trunk had arrived for Mrs. Lytle from his sisters and that she was pleased. He also stated, "please tell my dear old aunts that Ms. Lytle is Union all over." His letter of April 26, 1863, indicated that Mrs. Lytle reimbursed him $146.25 for the wardrobe, so perhaps there was no romantic liasian at all.
On April 29, 1863, William Haines Lytle, Union soldier was still residing at the Lytle house when he received his commission of Brig. General. By May 1863, William Henry Lytle was on outpost and left the Lytle household. On June 23, 1863, he returned to Murfreesboro where he proivded Mrs. Lytle with another box sent from the north. Mrs. Sophie Lytle, once again, paid for the shipment (about $30). Rumor has it that she turned in her stepson, Frank Henderson Lytle, who was a Confederate soldier. Several stories have surfaced on how he was captured. Some say that he was captured carrying out a personal mission behind enemy lines. Others state that Sophia, the widowed stepmother, enamored with a Gen. Lytle, the Yankee officer, turned him in to gain favor with the officer, who knows? Nevertheless, the captured Frank Lytle, spent the rest of the war in a Yankee prison.
William Haines Lytle did not stay in Murfreesboro long as he wrote from Cowan, Tennessee on July 4, 1863. It is not known if William Haines Lytle wrote Sophia Ridgely Dashiell Lytle, from his battle march or not, as none of these letters were saved. Perhaps he didn't want anything more to do with her knowing that Sophia Lytle turned in her stepson, enemy or not, it's not the way to treat kin. However, a match between Sophia and William was not meant to be as Brig. Gen. William Haines Lytle was killed on September 20, 1863 during the bloody battle of Chickamauga. The Confederates retrieved his body and buried it carefully in a marked grave. The body was moved, a memorial service conducted, and sent to Cincinnati for its final resting place.
By this time, Carter Bassett Harrison, grandson of President William Henry Harrison, and brother of President Benjamin Harrison, had arrived in Murfreesboro. Carter Bassett Harrison was also a union soldier, and Sophia set her cap for this Yankee Officer. Carter Bassett Harrison was in his early 20's when he married Sophia Ridgely Dashiell Lytle and by 1864 had begun a family together. Carter Bassett Harrison and Sophia Ridgley Dashiel Lytle Harrison had four children together. Carter Bassett Harrison died at the age of 65 in Murfreesboro, Rutherford County, Tennessee. After his death, Sophia moved to Cincinnati, Ohio to reside with her daughter. The William Lytle homestead in Murfreesboro, Rutherford County, Tennessee set vacant and vandalized for many years until the crumbling plantation house was razed to make way for the Carnation Milk Company plant, with a shopping center across the pike.
While residing in Cincinnati, Ohio, Sophia celebrated her 100th birthday. The New York Times, dated September 11, 1926, indicates that at the Birthday Dinner there was a cake with 100 candles. She was presented with a loving cup, sent by the Presbyterian Church of Murfreesboro, of which she had been a member since she was 19, and a letter of congratulation from President Coolidge. Sophia Ridgely Dashiell Lytle Harrison died on August 4, 1927 in Cincinnati, Ohio. At the time of her death, Sophia was still in full possession of all her faculties. She is buried in the tomb at Evergreen Cemetery, Rutherford County, Tennessee, along with her husband Carter Bassett Harrison and her son, Carter B. Harrison Jr.
Sources.
1. For Honor, Glory & Union by Ruth C. Carter, Editor; published in 1999 by the University Press of Kentucky.
2. A Wake for the Living by Andrew Lytle; published in 1975 by Crown Publishers, New York, NY.