Beyond Innocence In 1862, the Averitt House overlooked a quiet valley near a small town in Tennessee. The serenity was broken when a Union Army made camp in the valley, only to be surprised by Confederate forces early one Sunday morning. Cannon and rifle fire thundered across the valley in what came to be called the Battle of Hartsville. William Stone was left to care for the wounded. His experiences as a Confederate medical corpsman and as a Union prisoner would leave deep physical and emotional scars.