Heartsill, W. B. W. (Willie Blount Wright), 1840-1913

W. B. W. Heartsill was born in 1841 near Louisville, Tenn., southwest of Knoxville, Tenn. He served in the Army of the Confederate States of America in many positions, including captain and Chief of Police for East Tennessee. He later served as a spy and a scout with Osborne's Scouts, an independent company of Tennessee scouts. After the war ended, Heartsill moved to Arkansas.

From the description of A Confederate desperado, undated. WorldCat record id: 70964552

W. B. W. Heartsill was born in 1841 near Louisville, Tenn., southwest of Knoxville, Tenn. He enlisted in the Army of the Confederate States of America on 8 February 1861 as a private in Captain John Paxton's Company E of the 19th Tennessee Regiment, then was appointed lieutenant in the Tennesse State Service. On 12 August 1861, he was mustered into service with Company E of the 5th Tenessee Cavalry Battalion. In 1862, Heartsill was promoted to the rank of captain and was serving as the Chief of Police for East Tennessee when he met J. J. Cox. Heartsill later served as a spy and a scout with Osborne's Scouts, an independent company of Tennessee scouts. When the war ended, he moved to Arkansas, where he apparently spent the rest of his life. It seems likely that W. B. W. Heartsill was related in some way to William Williston Heartsill, author of the published journal Fourteen Hundred and 91 Days in the Confederate Army .

From the guide to the W. B. W. Heartsill, A Confederate Desperado, (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Library. Southern Historical Collection.)