Early Life
Harden D. Wilson was born in Owsley County in southeastern Kentucky on March 1, 1843, and worked as a farmer in the years before the Civil War.
Civil War
On July 25, 1863, Wilson enlisted at Irvine, Kentucky, as a private in Company C of the 47th Kentucky Mounted Infantry. With troops raised at Irvine and Camp Nelson, the 47th Kentucky was primarily organized to defend Kentucky from Confederate cavalry raids and mitigate the explosion of guerilla activity that gripped the state. On October 5, 1863, most of the 47th Kentucky, including Wilson, was mustered into Federal service at Irvine, while the Camp Nelson companies were mustered in later in November and December. Colonel Andrew W. Clark was placed in command of the regiment.
Throughout the winter of 1863 and into the early spring of 1864, the 47th Kentucky was active in eastern Kentucky, conducting various expeditions through the region, hunting, and fighting various guerilla bands and Confederate raiders. By the summer of 1864, the unit was based in and around Paintsville, Kentucky, under the overall command of General Edward H. Hobson. In June of that year, Confederate General John H. Morgan led a raid through the state to destroy and capture as many U.S. regiments and supplies as possible. On June 11, 1864, Hobson and a small detachment of roughly thirty men from the 47th Kentucky Mounted Infantry, including Pvt. Wilson, became engaged with a portion of Morgan’s command at the Battle of Keller’s Bridge, just north of Cynthiana.
In the resulting six-hour fight, Hobson’s force was ultimately surrounded and forced to surrender to Morgan’s men, including the detachment of the 47th Kentucky Mounted Infantry. After U.S. forces drove Morgan out of the state, the 47th Kentucky was ordered back to Camp Nelson. By then, Wilson was paroled and back in active service. From there, the regiment spent the rest of the year fighting bands of guerillas in the commonwealth. Wilson was mustered out of Federal service at Lexington on Dec. 26, 1864.
Post-War Life
After the Civil War ended, Wilson married Manerva Jane Hurst on Oct. 18, 1866. Over several decades, Wilson acquired 270 acres of land in and around Sturgeon, Kentucky, and raised ten children with his wife. By Oct. 2, 1938, Wilson passed away in Sturgeon.
Camp Nelson National Monument
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service