Champ Ferguson, Appalachian Outlaw 

I live in Saltville Virginia and this story is still very much alive. The hospital wasn’t in Saltville though. It was in Emory Virginia at Emory and Henry college.

ferguson was my great, great, great grandmothers nephew. tinker dave beaty was my great, great, great grandfathers cousin. my ancestors were obliged to abandon their farm until the end of the war because of fergusons depredations

My mothers family is from Clinton County Kentucky. Champ is a Cousin of mine. I've heard my grandfather talk of Champ although he heard this from his grandfather who actually knew him. Kentucky of course was a border state and divided so my grandfather's relatives were union supporters. My cousins the Fergusons talk of Champ as he is their grandfather many times removed but thier Grandfathers/Great Grandfathes were actually we're alive when Champ was alive....so we are old...lol Thanks for keeping this alive as our children and grandchildren are not interested in such historical thing with some exceptions of course. P.S. I smell the makings of a major motion picture!

Thx for this video! Would you mind citing sources for the still house, gambling, hog sale, larceny charges, reed’s relation to the evans’ brothers, slicing the thumb, rolling heads down hillsides, Cherokee stopping the saltville massacre, killing 2 men after being discharged, and champ’s statement upon being handed a guilty verdict? I haven’t been able to get my eyes on any historical documents outlining these events, but I would like to. Ty!

there is no rules of war, nor should they be.

I`m Paul Ferguson from north Alabama, wonder if I`m related?

Champ was a hell of a man

I do always look forward to your stories. 6th generation Texan, but seems most of my genealogical records lead through Appalachia. Common among us old anglo Texas families. And it does seem to dovetail smoothly into our family attitudes and traditions.

My name is Bobby Ferguson. I live in north Georgia. I wonder if im related to Champ.

This is a little off subject . I would like your thoughts on The Feral people of Appalachia , truth or ghost story ? My granny would scare us with tells of these people when we were small

Champ used his farm to pay his two lawyers that defended him. I have a copy of the letter he wrote in prison lamenting the fact he had nothing to leave his poor wife and daughter.

Tinker dave wasn't no saint either

I just started to read up about these men sue monday and champ.you dont hear about the bushwacker in school just the big battles and about the generals not these giys i think some of there story are more interesting to me.the fighting in the Missouri before the war started was the real start of war and it did have something about slavery in those two states but i think the other states fought for state rights .those where some real tough men back then .you can see why men like jesse james fought in the war .those men after the war had no chance if they where Gorillaz .because they didnt fight in the reg army and where branded outlaws with no country to come back too.i think if they let all of them come back as they did with the regular army guys people like jesse wouldnt have turn out as they did so the government had a little to do with all this crazy shit that happened after the war.

Y'all sure do give the Yankee side of the story

Now I don't agree with Champ's way.................but you fergot the part where they (the union) killed his boy...........