In September 1863, James Gordon’s mansion, built in 1847, served as headquarters for Union Major General William S. Rosecrans and his chief of staff, future president of the United States James A. Garfield. Today, the Gordon-Lee Mnsion is the only structure used during the Battle of Chickamauga that is still standing.
Although Rosecrans came to occupy the house just before the battle, his troops were spread out across 50 miles. Ironically, Confederate General Braxton Bragg, headquartered in the John B. Gordon Hall in LaFayette 12 miles away, was closer to Rosecrans’ men than Rosecrans himself. During the Battle of Chickamauga, the Federals used the Gordon-Lee Mansion as a hospital, with wagons placed outside the windows to collect amputated limbs. After the battle, 30 Union doctors were permitted to continue tending to the enormous numbers of wounded from both sides.
The mansion was also the site of the 1889 Blue and Gray Barbeque hosted by the Honorable Gordon Lee, the Seventh District U.S. congressman from Georgia, who now owned the home. The event was attended by 14,000 Civil War veterans, including generals John B. Gordon and William S. Rosecrans.
The Gordon-Lee Mansion, now restored to its antebellum splendor and furnished with museum-quality period antiques, currently functions as a special events facility.