McMinn County War- Vets Remove Corrupt Politicians

August 1946: The McMinn County War, also known as the Battle of Athens, was a citizen-led rebellion in Athens and Etowah, Tennessee. World War II veterans, accusing local officials of predatory policing, police brutality, political corruption, and voter intimidation, took direct action against what they viewed as a corrupt local government.

After local authorities locked themselves inside the county jail with the ballot boxes, veterans, suspicious of election fraud, armed themselves and exchanged gunfire from a hill overlooking the jail. The standoff ended when the besieged authorities eventually surrendered. A meeting was then held at the courthouse, where an interim government was established, followed by an election that brought the veterans’ slate into office.

Photo: Knox Henry is sworn in as sheriff

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