Taking tomorrow off to do some Labor Day preparation stuff for Monday...
Will get it all done on Friday, and Saturday will get back to posting in this blog.
Hope all my readers have a good Labor Day weekend!
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Civil War Timeline: Remembering Joe Bastien
From The Southern: Civil War Timeline: Remembering Joe Bastien
While he would have been old enough in 1861, Joseph Bastien
did not join the Union Army until August 1862. This was just after
Lincoln’s call for 300,000 additional volunteers and the start of
rumblings that a national draft might be established.
His muster records show that he was 19, single and born in eastern Canada, which was settled by the French. Like the majority of Union volunteers, he worked as a farmer.
Despite being born in a French-speaking region, Bastien spoke English. He had dark hair, blue eyes and a dark complexion. At 5 feet, 4 inches he was about two to three inches below the average height for that time.
When Bastien was 8, his family moved near Kankakee, and shortly before the Civil War, moved again to the Oraville area, about seven miles north of Murphysboro. By 1862, Bastien lived in Murphysboro, where he worked for John A. Logan and his brother, Tom Logan.
On Aug. 30, 1862, Bastien and 30 other Murphysboro residents joined the 31st Illinois Infantry. Before the end of 1863, this initial group of volunteers would be joined by another 10 Murphysboro men.
He was recruited by Tom Logan, who enlisted in the 31st at same time. Why Bastien, not even a citizen, chose to join the fight is unknown. He served for two and a half years. Over this time, he marched well over 1,000 miles and took part in five major battles. His days as a soldier ended June 27, 1863. As he charged up Kennesaw Mountain, a bullet struck his right leg, which had to be amputated. While he was no longer an active soldier, he remained in the service until being discharged May 31, 1865, in Washington, D.C.
After his discharge, Bastien returned to Murphysboro, where he applied for and received a veteran’s pension for his war injury.
He married in 1867 only to lose both his young wife and their child within a year. Bastien married again in 1869. By 1900, he was a naturalized citizen, a successful harness maker and grocer and the father of six.
One must wonder what Bastien thought about the man who had persuaded him to join the army.
Tom Logan was a Murphysboro leader, the city’s former mayor and a member of local high society.
Just 20 days before he had enlisted Bastien, Tom Logan had proclaimed that he supported Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy. Did Bastien know this at the time? Did he wonder even then why Tom wanted to join the Union cause?
Comparing the two men’s military records makes one wonder if Bastien might have even hated Tom Logan, for while Bastien gave two and a half years of his life and lost a leg, Tom gave six months, got drunk, repeated his Jefferson Davis speech in camp, resigned — as an officer he could do this — and went back home.
If there was any resentment toward Tom Logan, or for that matter any of the other eight men who had deserted — enlisted men they could not resign — it was far eclipsed by the pride he had in his service to his adopted country. He was active in Murphysboro’s Grand Army of the Republic post and even served as its commander.
By the 1920s, he was respected as one of the few remaining Civil War veterans and well loved by Murphysboro’s citizens. He was retired and part of his daily ritual was to converse with the men who gathered at Charlie Stricklin’s Newsstand.
This was a place where a thick skin was definitely needed. No matter how respected one was, practical jokes were a part of many visits. Dr. Hrabick, who had served in World War I, also frequented Strick-lin’s.
One day the good doctor and his cohorts decided to target Bastien. Hrabick told the old veteran that he had performed many amputations during his time in France. He went on to say that it was a common practice to sew the skin flap of men who had been running from the fight toward the front and for those who were gallantly charging the enemy in the opposite direction.
Bastien’s friends goaded him to let Hrabick check out his leg. He took off his wooden leg and the doctor examined it declaring that sadly it showed Bastien had been running from the fighting.
This was too much for the normally good natured vet. He jumped up on his one good leg, picked up his cane and chased Hrabick out of the store as his friends roared with laughter.
Pvt. Joseph Bastien, Co. A 31st Illinois Infantry, died May 24, 1929. He received a military funeral conducted by the aged Civil War veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic and the young veterans of the American Legion who had fought in the fields of France only a decade earlier.
Murphysboro mourned as “Uncle Joe’s” cortege traveled from St. Andrew Church to the cemetery while the Legion band played “Tramp, tramp, tramp, the boys are marching.”
Uncle Joe and the generation that fought the Civil War and saved the Union were passing into history.
To learn more about Logan and Southern Illinois’ Civil War history, visit the Gen. John A. Logan Museum in Murphysboro and view the new exhibit, Caught in the Sweep of History: Egypt in the Civil War. To learn more history, see the museum’s website, Facebook page and YouTube videos.
— Compiled by P. Michael Jones, director of the Gen. John A. Logan Museum in Murphysboro.
His muster records show that he was 19, single and born in eastern Canada, which was settled by the French. Like the majority of Union volunteers, he worked as a farmer.
Despite being born in a French-speaking region, Bastien spoke English. He had dark hair, blue eyes and a dark complexion. At 5 feet, 4 inches he was about two to three inches below the average height for that time.
When Bastien was 8, his family moved near Kankakee, and shortly before the Civil War, moved again to the Oraville area, about seven miles north of Murphysboro. By 1862, Bastien lived in Murphysboro, where he worked for John A. Logan and his brother, Tom Logan.
On Aug. 30, 1862, Bastien and 30 other Murphysboro residents joined the 31st Illinois Infantry. Before the end of 1863, this initial group of volunteers would be joined by another 10 Murphysboro men.
He was recruited by Tom Logan, who enlisted in the 31st at same time. Why Bastien, not even a citizen, chose to join the fight is unknown. He served for two and a half years. Over this time, he marched well over 1,000 miles and took part in five major battles. His days as a soldier ended June 27, 1863. As he charged up Kennesaw Mountain, a bullet struck his right leg, which had to be amputated. While he was no longer an active soldier, he remained in the service until being discharged May 31, 1865, in Washington, D.C.
After his discharge, Bastien returned to Murphysboro, where he applied for and received a veteran’s pension for his war injury.
He married in 1867 only to lose both his young wife and their child within a year. Bastien married again in 1869. By 1900, he was a naturalized citizen, a successful harness maker and grocer and the father of six.
One must wonder what Bastien thought about the man who had persuaded him to join the army.
Tom Logan was a Murphysboro leader, the city’s former mayor and a member of local high society.
Just 20 days before he had enlisted Bastien, Tom Logan had proclaimed that he supported Jefferson Davis, the president of the Confederacy. Did Bastien know this at the time? Did he wonder even then why Tom wanted to join the Union cause?
Comparing the two men’s military records makes one wonder if Bastien might have even hated Tom Logan, for while Bastien gave two and a half years of his life and lost a leg, Tom gave six months, got drunk, repeated his Jefferson Davis speech in camp, resigned — as an officer he could do this — and went back home.
If there was any resentment toward Tom Logan, or for that matter any of the other eight men who had deserted — enlisted men they could not resign — it was far eclipsed by the pride he had in his service to his adopted country. He was active in Murphysboro’s Grand Army of the Republic post and even served as its commander.
By the 1920s, he was respected as one of the few remaining Civil War veterans and well loved by Murphysboro’s citizens. He was retired and part of his daily ritual was to converse with the men who gathered at Charlie Stricklin’s Newsstand.
This was a place where a thick skin was definitely needed. No matter how respected one was, practical jokes were a part of many visits. Dr. Hrabick, who had served in World War I, also frequented Strick-lin’s.
One day the good doctor and his cohorts decided to target Bastien. Hrabick told the old veteran that he had performed many amputations during his time in France. He went on to say that it was a common practice to sew the skin flap of men who had been running from the fight toward the front and for those who were gallantly charging the enemy in the opposite direction.
Bastien’s friends goaded him to let Hrabick check out his leg. He took off his wooden leg and the doctor examined it declaring that sadly it showed Bastien had been running from the fighting.
This was too much for the normally good natured vet. He jumped up on his one good leg, picked up his cane and chased Hrabick out of the store as his friends roared with laughter.
Pvt. Joseph Bastien, Co. A 31st Illinois Infantry, died May 24, 1929. He received a military funeral conducted by the aged Civil War veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic and the young veterans of the American Legion who had fought in the fields of France only a decade earlier.
Murphysboro mourned as “Uncle Joe’s” cortege traveled from St. Andrew Church to the cemetery while the Legion band played “Tramp, tramp, tramp, the boys are marching.”
Uncle Joe and the generation that fought the Civil War and saved the Union were passing into history.
To learn more about Logan and Southern Illinois’ Civil War history, visit the Gen. John A. Logan Museum in Murphysboro and view the new exhibit, Caught in the Sweep of History: Egypt in the Civil War. To learn more history, see the museum’s website, Facebook page and YouTube videos.
— Compiled by P. Michael Jones, director of the Gen. John A. Logan Museum in Murphysboro.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Missing Voices: Native Perspective Lacking in Civil War Accounts
From Indian Country: Missing Voices: Native Perspective Lacking in Civil War Accounts
An account of Indians in the U.S. Civil War has been issued in paperback—and with it comes a now-familiar sense of letdown. That’s because such books invariably leave out Native voices, relying on academic research and accounts. Clarissa Confer’s The Cherokee Nation in the Civil War, first published in hardcover by the University of Oklahoma Press in 2008, is no exception.
American Indian participation in the Civil War tends to be seen as an anomaly. Yet scholars and tribal historians should not be surprised that Indians took part, with men from many nations fighting on both sides. Indigenous communities of the South found themselves caught between the two American factions, while tribes that had been removed from the South and the Plains and sent to Indian Territory were drawn into the very heart of the critical debates dividing the states: disputes over Free Soil, Bleeding Kansas, slavery and abolition, sectionalism and even secession.
A handful of scholars are recognized as authorities on this subject. Most notable was Annie Heloise Abel, who laid the foundation with her tripartite study The Slave-Holding Indians, published between 1915 and 1925 by Torch Press. Her three volumes—The American Indian as Slaveholder and Secessionist; American Indians as Participants in the Civil War; and American Indians Under Reconstruction—form the basis of all such research.
Later scholars expanded upon Abel’s work. These include Gary Moulton (John Ross, Cherokee Chief, University of Georgia Press, 1978) and Kenny Franks (Stand Watie and the Agony of the Cherokee Nation, Memphis State University Press, 1979), who discussed the rivalries between these opposing elite Cherokee leaders. In 1989, Craig Gaines explained how the Confederate Cherokees came together in The Confederate Cherokees: John Drew’s Regiment of Mounted Rifles (Louisiana State University Press). William McLoughlin’s After the Trail of Tears: The Cherokees’ Struggle for Sovereignty 1839–1880 (University of North Carolina Press, 1993) focused on objectives that tribes had formed in the wake of removal, only to be interrupted by the war.
These studies were necessary for understanding what drove the Cherokees headlong into the war. But historians have since realized the need to move past these ideas for a more nuanced view of Cherokee motivations and actions, and how they affect the nation today. Authors such as Thom Hatch (The Blue, the Gray and the Red: Indian Campaigns of the Civil War, Stackpole Books, 2003) and Confer attempted to do just that. Hatch argued that the U.S. Indian campaigns during Reconstruction resulted from Civil War objectives. Confer held in part that Cherokee participation had more to do with the tribe’s struggle for self-determination and preservation than with the war itself.
Though Confer’s theory is compelling, her book falls short. By relying too heavily on the early investigations, she forfeits her chance to tell a fresh, engaging story, instead rehashing the narrative we’ve heard for decades.
She makes dubious assertions that suggest an unfamiliarity with early Cherokee history. For instance, she claims that Cherokee troops were the least experienced because they were ignorant of “conventional” military training. But Cherokee warriors served with both the British and Americans in the Revolutionary War, under Andrew Jackson in the Red Stick War, and with and against the British many times. Even if they hadn’t been trained before taking up arms, they were no greener than any other recruits.
Confer admits to basing many conclusions on the “motivations, rationales and realities” of the Cherokees’ male tribal elite. The nation, however, is a society that prides itself on individuality, and the people themselves determine its trajectory.
Further, Confer devotes much space to the war experiences of Sarah Watie, Stand Watie’s wife, a mixed-blood woman. While Confer has no trouble identifying what this elite woman had in common with Confederate women, she claims we cannot trace the history of “traditional” Cherokee women because they were illiterate and “left no records.” However, it is well known that members of even the poorest, most traditional families could read and write syllabary. Thousands of families possess letters, journals, ledgers and other material written in Tsalagi. There are also oral histories in such repositories as the Indian Pioneer Papers and the Doris Duke Oral History Collection.
An account of Indians in the U.S. Civil War has been issued in paperback—and with it comes a now-familiar sense of letdown. That’s because such books invariably leave out Native voices, relying on academic research and accounts. Clarissa Confer’s The Cherokee Nation in the Civil War, first published in hardcover by the University of Oklahoma Press in 2008, is no exception.
American Indian participation in the Civil War tends to be seen as an anomaly. Yet scholars and tribal historians should not be surprised that Indians took part, with men from many nations fighting on both sides. Indigenous communities of the South found themselves caught between the two American factions, while tribes that had been removed from the South and the Plains and sent to Indian Territory were drawn into the very heart of the critical debates dividing the states: disputes over Free Soil, Bleeding Kansas, slavery and abolition, sectionalism and even secession.
A handful of scholars are recognized as authorities on this subject. Most notable was Annie Heloise Abel, who laid the foundation with her tripartite study The Slave-Holding Indians, published between 1915 and 1925 by Torch Press. Her three volumes—The American Indian as Slaveholder and Secessionist; American Indians as Participants in the Civil War; and American Indians Under Reconstruction—form the basis of all such research.
Later scholars expanded upon Abel’s work. These include Gary Moulton (John Ross, Cherokee Chief, University of Georgia Press, 1978) and Kenny Franks (Stand Watie and the Agony of the Cherokee Nation, Memphis State University Press, 1979), who discussed the rivalries between these opposing elite Cherokee leaders. In 1989, Craig Gaines explained how the Confederate Cherokees came together in The Confederate Cherokees: John Drew’s Regiment of Mounted Rifles (Louisiana State University Press). William McLoughlin’s After the Trail of Tears: The Cherokees’ Struggle for Sovereignty 1839–1880 (University of North Carolina Press, 1993) focused on objectives that tribes had formed in the wake of removal, only to be interrupted by the war.
These studies were necessary for understanding what drove the Cherokees headlong into the war. But historians have since realized the need to move past these ideas for a more nuanced view of Cherokee motivations and actions, and how they affect the nation today. Authors such as Thom Hatch (The Blue, the Gray and the Red: Indian Campaigns of the Civil War, Stackpole Books, 2003) and Confer attempted to do just that. Hatch argued that the U.S. Indian campaigns during Reconstruction resulted from Civil War objectives. Confer held in part that Cherokee participation had more to do with the tribe’s struggle for self-determination and preservation than with the war itself.
Though Confer’s theory is compelling, her book falls short. By relying too heavily on the early investigations, she forfeits her chance to tell a fresh, engaging story, instead rehashing the narrative we’ve heard for decades.
She makes dubious assertions that suggest an unfamiliarity with early Cherokee history. For instance, she claims that Cherokee troops were the least experienced because they were ignorant of “conventional” military training. But Cherokee warriors served with both the British and Americans in the Revolutionary War, under Andrew Jackson in the Red Stick War, and with and against the British many times. Even if they hadn’t been trained before taking up arms, they were no greener than any other recruits.
Confer admits to basing many conclusions on the “motivations, rationales and realities” of the Cherokees’ male tribal elite. The nation, however, is a society that prides itself on individuality, and the people themselves determine its trajectory.
Further, Confer devotes much space to the war experiences of Sarah Watie, Stand Watie’s wife, a mixed-blood woman. While Confer has no trouble identifying what this elite woman had in common with Confederate women, she claims we cannot trace the history of “traditional” Cherokee women because they were illiterate and “left no records.” However, it is well known that members of even the poorest, most traditional families could read and write syllabary. Thousands of families possess letters, journals, ledgers and other material written in Tsalagi. There are also oral histories in such repositories as the Indian Pioneer Papers and the Doris Duke Oral History Collection.
Friday, August 24, 2012
Breaking Bloody News of the American Revolution, 1775
From HuffPost: Breaking Bloody News of the American Revolution, 1775
We live in a time of constant debate and discussion about political and military media coverage. Whether it is a presidential election or rebellion in the Middle East, the role of 21st-century media is constantly scrutinized. So, now is perhaps the best time to study media coverage of the American Revolution and the birth of the United States. And what better place to start than with the "shot heard 'round the world."
The biggest news story of the 18th century was arguably the violence at Lexington and Concord, the first full battle of the American Revolutionary War.
The engagement took place on Wednesday, April 19, 1775. Most of Boston's newspaper printers had fled town just before or after the battle, so details emerged at an express rider's pace and then were often delayed a little longer while waiting for weekly newspaper press dates. The pro-Crown Boston News-Letter was the first of two Boston papers to go to press following the bloodshed and published a brief, disclaimer-heavy paragraph in its April 20 edition. The neutral Boston Evening-Post printed one last issue, only two pages long, on April 24, which included a single related sentence: "The unhappy Transactions of last Week are so variously related that we shall not at present under take to give any particular Account thereof."
Printed 60 miles north of Boston, the New-Hampshire Gazette featured news of Lexington and Concord on the front page of its Friday, April 21 issue. Only two colonial printers in all 13 colonies placed this breaking news on the front page of their newspapers, displacing the typical foreign reports, advertisements or serial essays.
The April 21 New-Hampshire Gazette is also historically significant for being the only American newspaper, of 38 being printed at the time, to use an actual headline, not the usual dateline or letter salutation, for its first report of Lexington and Concord. Headlines were rarely used in early newspapers so a centered headline -- "BLOODY NEWS" -- in the New-Hampshire Gazette surely caught colonists' attention. The unique headline alerting New Englanders to the start of the American War of Independence deserves a spot at the top of the list of most important newspaper headlines in history. The article continues with an urgent -- if confused -- report from Newburyport sent by James Hudson, chairman of the local Committee of Correspondence, to Portsmouth's Committee. According to journalism historian Frank Luther Mott:
Lesser known about the April 21 issue of the New-Hampshire Gazette is Fowle's testimony about the chaos of incoming reports about the battle and his own plea for forgiveness of all errors. Tucked away in the bottom corner of the fourth and final page, Fowle prints: "The Publisher of this Paper Has been in such perpetual Confusion by the different and contrary Accounts of the late Bloody Scene, that all Mistakes must be overlook'd."
Todd Andrlik is one of America's leading Revolutionary War newspaper archivists, and serves as author and curator at raglinen.com, an online museum of historical newspapers. His book, Reporting the Revolutionary War: Before It Was History, It Was News, publishes this November. The book features hundreds of newspaper accounts published during the American Revolution and includes sprinkles of modern historical analysis by dozens of historians and experts. Portions of this blog post are excerpted from Andrlik's forthcoming book and his current column in American Revolution Magazine.
We live in a time of constant debate and discussion about political and military media coverage. Whether it is a presidential election or rebellion in the Middle East, the role of 21st-century media is constantly scrutinized. So, now is perhaps the best time to study media coverage of the American Revolution and the birth of the United States. And what better place to start than with the "shot heard 'round the world."
The biggest news story of the 18th century was arguably the violence at Lexington and Concord, the first full battle of the American Revolutionary War.
The engagement took place on Wednesday, April 19, 1775. Most of Boston's newspaper printers had fled town just before or after the battle, so details emerged at an express rider's pace and then were often delayed a little longer while waiting for weekly newspaper press dates. The pro-Crown Boston News-Letter was the first of two Boston papers to go to press following the bloodshed and published a brief, disclaimer-heavy paragraph in its April 20 edition. The neutral Boston Evening-Post printed one last issue, only two pages long, on April 24, which included a single related sentence: "The unhappy Transactions of last Week are so variously related that we shall not at present under take to give any particular Account thereof."
Printed 60 miles north of Boston, the New-Hampshire Gazette featured news of Lexington and Concord on the front page of its Friday, April 21 issue. Only two colonial printers in all 13 colonies placed this breaking news on the front page of their newspapers, displacing the typical foreign reports, advertisements or serial essays.
The April 21 New-Hampshire Gazette is also historically significant for being the only American newspaper, of 38 being printed at the time, to use an actual headline, not the usual dateline or letter salutation, for its first report of Lexington and Concord. Headlines were rarely used in early newspapers so a centered headline -- "BLOODY NEWS" -- in the New-Hampshire Gazette surely caught colonists' attention. The unique headline alerting New Englanders to the start of the American War of Independence deserves a spot at the top of the list of most important newspaper headlines in history. The article continues with an urgent -- if confused -- report from Newburyport sent by James Hudson, chairman of the local Committee of Correspondence, to Portsmouth's Committee. According to journalism historian Frank Luther Mott:
"Daniel Fowle, editor of the paper which alone of all the colonial press gave both position and headline to the Lexington story, was, as we are told by Isaiah Thomas, who knew him well, 'pacific in his disposition, agreeable in his manners, liberal in his sentiments, and attached to the cause of his country.' He is noteworthy as the founder of the New-Hampshire Gazette, which for many years before its suspension in 1943 was the oldest of American newspapers," (New England Quarterly, Vol. 17, No. 4, Dec., 1944, pp. 489-505).With a shortage of Boston newspapers immediately following the Battle of Lexington and Concord, historians have long relied on the published accounts from nearby communities, like Portsmouth (New-Hampshire Gazette), Salem (Salem Gazette, Essex Gazette), Norwich (Norwich Packet), New Haven (Connecticut Journal), Providence (Providence Gazette), Newport (Newport Mercury), and Worcester (where Isaiah Thomas relocated his Massachusetts Spy). Historian David Hackett Fischer cited many of these, including the April 21 issue of the New-Hampshire Gazette, as being "specially helpful" for the research of his popular Paul Revere's Ride (1994).
Lesser known about the April 21 issue of the New-Hampshire Gazette is Fowle's testimony about the chaos of incoming reports about the battle and his own plea for forgiveness of all errors. Tucked away in the bottom corner of the fourth and final page, Fowle prints: "The Publisher of this Paper Has been in such perpetual Confusion by the different and contrary Accounts of the late Bloody Scene, that all Mistakes must be overlook'd."
Todd Andrlik is one of America's leading Revolutionary War newspaper archivists, and serves as author and curator at raglinen.com, an online museum of historical newspapers. His book, Reporting the Revolutionary War: Before It Was History, It Was News, publishes this November. The book features hundreds of newspaper accounts published during the American Revolution and includes sprinkles of modern historical analysis by dozens of historians and experts. Portions of this blog post are excerpted from Andrlik's forthcoming book and his current column in American Revolution Magazine.
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Bean dinner linked to infantry captain
From the Mount Vernon News: Bean dinner linked to infantry captain
NEW CASTLE — The Grand Army of the Republic was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Ill., for veterans of the American Civil War and the organization reached its largest enrollment in 1890, with 490,000 members. Following the death of the last member, Albert Woolson, in 1956, the organization was dissolved.
GAR membership peaked in Ohio the same year with 49,011. As the organization declined with the passing of Civil War veterans, it was succeeded by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.
Originally the dinners were a time for the veterans to gather for a reunion. The meal was similar to what soldiers ate in the field where beans were a staple.
Today New Castle’s event is one of four GAR bean dinners typically observed in Ohio. Vinton, Rio Grande and Wilkesville also hold dinners. However, following the June storm extensive damage forced the Vinton community to cancel their 2012 event.
There’s just one more piece of history. New Castle’s bean dinner commemorates the Charles C. Nichols Post which was formed in 1897.
Nichols was born in Belmont County in 1822 and he died in Tennessee during the Civil War in 1865.
He fought at Lawrence, Kan., and spent time pursuing gold wealth (which he didn’t attain) in Colorado. His family history includes a letter he wrote while in Colorado in 1860. He described the men he traveled with as he journeyed west of Pikes Peak; finding gold in South Park, which one of his companions described as “the Garden of Eden;” and of discovering extremely large petrified stumps there. He also wrote about missing home.
He returned to Ohio and entered the military service in 1863. Specifically, he was a captain in the Ohio Volunteers Infantry, Company K, 183rd Regiment, Federal Army during the “War of Rebellion.”
His volunteer enlistment form states that at 41 years of age he had sandy hair, a light complexion, and was 5-feet, 8 1/2 inches tall. He only served two and a half months.
He died of dysentery on Jan. 1, 1865, at Clifton, Tenn., in a military hospital at the age of 42. He was buried at the family cemetery.
The first Charles O. Nichols GAR bean dinners were held, beginning in 1867, at the Nichols’ farm west of New Castle
NEW CASTLE — The Grand Army of the Republic was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Ill., for veterans of the American Civil War and the organization reached its largest enrollment in 1890, with 490,000 members. Following the death of the last member, Albert Woolson, in 1956, the organization was dissolved.
GAR membership peaked in Ohio the same year with 49,011. As the organization declined with the passing of Civil War veterans, it was succeeded by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.
Originally the dinners were a time for the veterans to gather for a reunion. The meal was similar to what soldiers ate in the field where beans were a staple.
Today New Castle’s event is one of four GAR bean dinners typically observed in Ohio. Vinton, Rio Grande and Wilkesville also hold dinners. However, following the June storm extensive damage forced the Vinton community to cancel their 2012 event.
There’s just one more piece of history. New Castle’s bean dinner commemorates the Charles C. Nichols Post which was formed in 1897.
Nichols was born in Belmont County in 1822 and he died in Tennessee during the Civil War in 1865.
He fought at Lawrence, Kan., and spent time pursuing gold wealth (which he didn’t attain) in Colorado. His family history includes a letter he wrote while in Colorado in 1860. He described the men he traveled with as he journeyed west of Pikes Peak; finding gold in South Park, which one of his companions described as “the Garden of Eden;” and of discovering extremely large petrified stumps there. He also wrote about missing home.
He returned to Ohio and entered the military service in 1863. Specifically, he was a captain in the Ohio Volunteers Infantry, Company K, 183rd Regiment, Federal Army during the “War of Rebellion.”
His volunteer enlistment form states that at 41 years of age he had sandy hair, a light complexion, and was 5-feet, 8 1/2 inches tall. He only served two and a half months.
He died of dysentery on Jan. 1, 1865, at Clifton, Tenn., in a military hospital at the age of 42. He was buried at the family cemetery.
The first Charles O. Nichols GAR bean dinners were held, beginning in 1867, at the Nichols’ farm west of New Castle
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
America's New War Over Civil Rights
It's like we're living in the twilight zone. Republicans want all voters to be able to show a picture ID before they vote, in order to prevent voter fraud.
Democrats say - only a handful of people cheat, so this law is silly. Well, only a handful of people rob banks, perhaps because there are guards around acting as a preventative.
Democrats say - minorities and old folks are unfairly singled out. Why? Why? Don't they all need IDs to get jobs, to cash their welfare checks, to do this and that. It does not cost a lot of money to get an ID. Instead of paying millions of dollars fighting this common sense law, why not pay millions of dollars to provide these folks with their IDs? Problem solved. The folks get their IDs and can go vote, and lawyers don't get any richer.
From the Atlantic: America's New War Over Civil Rights
Democrats say - only a handful of people cheat, so this law is silly. Well, only a handful of people rob banks, perhaps because there are guards around acting as a preventative.
Democrats say - minorities and old folks are unfairly singled out. Why? Why? Don't they all need IDs to get jobs, to cash their welfare checks, to do this and that. It does not cost a lot of money to get an ID. Instead of paying millions of dollars fighting this common sense law, why not pay millions of dollars to provide these folks with their IDs? Problem solved. The folks get their IDs and can go vote, and lawyers don't get any richer.
From the Atlantic: America's New War Over Civil Rights
Welcome, Dennis Lieberman and Tom Ritchie Sr., to what surely is a select group in history -- election officials who get threatened with dismissal for trying to help voters vote. The two men work in Montgomery County, Ohio, and today they are fighting for their jobs. The men are Democrats and are involved in a political fight with the Ohio Secretary of State, a Republican named Jon Husted. On Friday, Husted suspended Lieberman and Ritchie for disregarding a recent early-voting directive from his statewide office.
What was the transgression that could cost the two men their positions? Lieberman and Ritchie had the temerity to propose that county election officials should continue to offer early-voting hours on weekends to registered Ohio voters so that more of those voters could more easily cast their votes. Earlier last week, under fire and in court, Husted had decided that all elections offices statewide would limit office hours this cycle, a move Democrats said would deprive Ohioans of dozens of days worth of early voting.
On Sunday, the Columbus Dispatch reported:
Husted said he based his decision to bar weekend hours after consulting with local elections officials, many of whom were concerned about cost. But Aaron Ockerman, executive director of the Ohio Association Election Officials, told the Dispatch that "we would make that work" if directed to stay open until, say, noon the Saturday before the election.Husted now alleges insubordination. And what do his mutineers Lieberman and Ritchie say? Ritchie says that the Republican limitations on early voting hours represent "a continued attempt to suppress Americans from exercising their right to vote." Lieberman says: "I believe that this is so critical to our freedom on America, and to individual rights to vote, that I am doing what I think is right... In 10 years, I've never received a threat that if I don't do what they want me to do, I could be fired."
Two local Democrats standing up for "freedom and "individual rights" -- so naturally they have to be fired, right? The Ohio voting restrictions apply to all voters, regardless of race, color, creed, or financial status, right? That's what distinguishes today's professional assault on voting rights with the tendentious assault on voting rights in the last century, right? Wrong. There is no subtlety at play. There is no misdirection. Here is what Franklin County* Republican Party Chair Doug Priesse wrote over the weekend:
I guess I really feel we shouldn't contort the voting process to accommodate the urban -- read African American -- voter-turnout machine. Let's be fair and reasonable.Priesse's other job title? He's an election official in Franklin County. Think Husted is going to try to fire him for making such a "fair and reasonable" suggestion? Me either. In Ohio, evidently, career trouble comes only to those election officials who seek to make voting more accessible to voters. Soon, a federal judge will issue a ruling that will resolve this ugliness. That's the good news. The bad news is that the Republicans, who will likely lose, will almost certainly appeal.
1962
Fifty years ago this month, in the scorching summer of 1962, the great civil rights story was the battle over how fast (or how slowly) the University of Mississippi would be forced to desegregate itself for James Meredith, the Air Force veteran who had first sought admission to Ole Miss in January 1961. Mississippi officials had stalled Meredith by bureaucratic means, by legislative action and by endlessly appealing the case. In 1962, the battle even broke out into public view before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
At the time, the Fifth Circuit was a lonely citadel of hope for black citizens, like Meredith, who were seeking a measure of equality with their white neighbors. Eisenhower judicial appointees like John Minor Wisdom and Elbert Parr Tuttle fought doggedly against obstructionist court colleagues and bigoted state officials to enforce the United States Supreme Court's self-contradicting mandate, contained in the second Brown v. Board of Education ruling, of desegregating Southern public schools with "all deliberate speed."
Ultimately, however, it would take more than a judge's order to open up Ole Miss. It would take federalized troops sent by President John F. Kennedy. The headline over Claude Sitton's October 2,1962 story in The New York Times says it all: "3,000 Troops Put Down Mississippi Rioting And Seize 200 As Negro Attends Classes; Ex-Gen Walker is Held For Insurrection." All this, because 50 years ago there was still so much official resistance to the idea that blacks and whites should be equal under the law.
Meredith made it into the University of Mississippi. But it would take three more years, the assassination of President Kennedy, and the extraordinary legislative skills of his successor, Lyndon Johnson, to gain passage of federal legislation designed to help protect minority voting rights from the whims and caprices of the majority. That's how we got the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. After the marches and the sit-ins and the protests and the arrests and Chaney, Goodman, and Schwerner.
One stark lesson from the Meredith era was how successful local officials could be in thwarting both the letter and the spirit of the law. Voting laws have evolved between now and then. The fight isn't so much about the right to vote but about the ability to exercise that right. And that has meant new tactics from those who continue to seek ways to suppress the votes of the nation's minorities (racial, economic, and otherwise). It's a national fight. And it may determine the outcome of the coming election. The fact is, the right to vote is nowhere near as well-guaranteed as you may have thought it was.
2012
Fifty years after the Battle of Mississippi, we endure the scorching summer of 2012. Today, the great civil rights story is the intensifying battle over how fast (or how slowly) Republican lawmakers and bureaucrats can take away from their fellow citizens the effective right to vote. In Ohio and Texas and other states, it's about restrictions on early voting. In Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and other states, it's about voter identification laws, which could disenfranchise millions of registered voters this election cycle.
Sponsored by the American Legislative Executive Council and choreographed by local GOP officials, these measures all have roughly the same aim: making it harder, and not just less convenient, for certain types of registered voters to be able to effectively vote. One party, in other words, is systematically enacting and enforcing legislation designed to suppress the votes of those citizens who are most likely to vote against that party. If this were happening in Russia, we'd be aghast -- and hectoring that country insufferably.
Proponents of the state measures say they are designed to ensure voter accuracy and to preclude voter fraud. But incidents of in-person voter fraud in America are laughably few. In Pennsylvania last week, a state court judge elected as a Republican wrote that it is irrelevant, as a matter of law, that the state offered no factual bases for restricting voter access. The justification the state did offer? That the mere possibility of voter fraud was enough to justify blocking registered voters from their ballots.
During the the Civil Rights era, most Americans had nothing but scorn for southern officials who ginned up such empty rationales to deprive black people of their voting rights. Does the fact that today's measures are aimed at poor white people, too, and the elderly, and recent immigrants, make them any less odious? Earlier this year, Florida came for the ballot of a man who had fought in the Battle of the Bulge. Tennessee came for the ballot of a 96-year-old woman. Those are the stories we know about.
And yet, so far, the new civil rights war is a powerful story still without consistent protest or condemnation from America's political, spiritual or civic leaders. President Barack Obama, the former law professor, said nothing last week about the Pennsylvania voting law that is discriminatory in both its intent and its effect. Neither did Attorney General Eric Holder. No member of Congress rushed back from vacation to Washington to decry the news.
A TIME AGAIN FOR JUDGES
Why so little public outrage about such a plainly partisan effort to undermine the democratic process? For starters, voter ID laws don't make for good television. There is nothing compelling about showing an old lady not having a photo ID. And, so far, there have been no fire hoses or German Shepherds. The poor, the sick, the elderly, the hourly worker, the person without a good grasp of English -- these are not the folks who have the time to protest. If they did, they'd have time to vote early or to get the special identification the GOP now demands they have.
Who in power and authority will speak for these voiceless people? Usually, that's the role of the federal courts, the branch designed to protect the rights of individuals against the tyranny of the majority. But so far the United States Supreme Court has been largely the problem, not the solution. When the Pennsylvania judge declared last week that it was legally irrelevant that the new law had been passed expressly to suppress Democrat votes, he did so after favorably citing a 2007 decision by justices in Washington.
That decision, Crawford v. Marion County, is part of what distinguishes this era from the Civil Rights era a half century ago. The gulf between the Warren Court and the Roberts Court is perhaps the widest in the history of the Supreme Court, a chasm marked by the Court's most liberal and most conservative eras. At least James Meredith knew that the federal courts, by and large, were on his side. No putative early voter in Ohio, no impoverished car-less worker in Pennsylvania, no Spanish-speaking citizen in Texas, can reasonably say the same thing today.
Indeed, one of the great ironies of the Republican push to disenfranchise voters is that it comes at a time when the Court's conservative justices are poised to strike down Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act, the section that requires federal pre-clearance of certain state election laws. It will be fascinating to read the future work of Justice Clarence Thomas, already long on the record against Section 5, when he writes yet again about the nation's "lack of current evidence of intentional discrimination with respect to voting."
In the coming weeks, as the political rhetoric soars and swoops, we are going to begin to see a string of federal court rulings over these restrictive voter laws. These rulings will largely determine how many people who have a right to vote in this country, and who want to vote in this country, will have their votes counted. How fair and inclusive do we want our elections to be? What does the constitutional right to vote really mean? Let's not fool ourselves: The challenge for these judges today is no less vital than it was 50 years ago, the stakes are no less high.
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Photos: Civil War Broke Out On Governor's Island This Weekend
From Gothamist: Photos: Civil War Broke Out On Governor's Island This Weekend
Last weekend, Governor's Island was host to the annual Civil War Weekend—historians portraying various units from the Civil War (including Confederate prisoners, music boys, laundresses, and officer's wives) gave participants a glimpse of what life was like on the island during the bloodiest conflict in America's history. From 1783 through 1966, the island was used as an army post, and during the Civil War it held Confederate prisoners.
Go to the link to see photographs.
Below is a Wikipedia article on Governor's Island:
Governors Island is a 172 acres (70 ha) island in Upper New York Bay, approximately one-half mile (1 km) from the southern tip of Manhattan Island and separated from Brooklyn by Buttermilk Channel. It is legally part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. Physically, the island changed greatly during the early 20th century. Using rocks and dirt from the excavations for the Lexington Avenue subway, the Army Corps of Engineers supervised the deposit of 4,787,000 cubic yards of fill on the south side of Governors Island, adding 103 acres (42 ha) of flat, treeless land by 1912 and bringing the total acreage of the island to 172.
The Dutch explorer Adriaen Block named the uninhabited island "Noten Eylant", meaning 'nut island', in 1611, doubtless after the island's plentiful hickory, oak, and chestnut trees; This became "Nutten Island" in pidgin English. Upon arrival of the first Dutch colonists to New Netherland, a fortification was erected on the island in 1624. After construction of Fort Amsterdam on Manhattan Island in 1625, Native Americans of the New York Tri-State region started to use the island as their launching pad for trade with the Manhattan settlers and referred to the island as "Paggank", a translation. The island's current name, made official in 1784, stems from British colonial times when the colonial assembly reserved the island for the exclusive use of New York's royal governors.
Defensive works were raised on the island in 1776 by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, and fired upon British ships before they were taken. From 1783 to 1966, the island was a United States Army post. From 1966 to 1996 the island served as a major United States Coast Guard installation.
On January 19, 2001, Fort Jay and Castle Williams, two of the island's three historical fortifications were proclaimed a National Monument. On January 31, 2003, 150 acres of the island was transferred to the State of New York for a nominal fee of $1. The remaining (22 acres or 9 ha) was transferred to the United States Department of the Interior as the Governors Island National Monument, administered by the National Park Service.
The 150 acre portion of the island not included in the National Monument is administered by The Trust for Governors Island, an entity of the City of New York and the successor of the joint city/state established redevelopment entity, the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation. The transfer included deed restrictions which prohibit permanent housing or casinos on the island.
On May 24, 2012, Mayor Michael Bloomberg broke ground on the new park and public spaces designed by the landscape design firm West 8, along with announcing the opening of the rehabilitated Castle Williams.
The national historic landmark district, approximately 92 acres (37 ha) of the northern half of the island, is open to the public for several months in the summer and early fall. Additionally the circumferential drive around the island is also open to the public. The island is accessed by free ferries from Brooklyn and Manhattan.
Governors Island Alliance
Since the decision by the United States Coast Guard to vacate the 172-acre (0.70 km2) Island in 1995, the Governors Island Alliance has worked collaboratively and successfully to help secure its return to New York and to ensure that the public interest determine its reuse. The Alliance and its 50 member organizations led a campaign to see Governors Island returned to New York for public purposes, a mandate embodied in GIPEC's 2003 charter to create "an educational, recreational, and cultural center that will offer a broad range of public uses", create about 90 acres (360,000 m2) of parks and public spaces, and abide by design restrictions in the National Landmark Historic District.
The Governors Island Alliance is working with its many partners to make these commitments a reality, and engage the public in their planning. The Alliance publishes a monthly electronic newsletter that provides the latest information on Island happenings. Equally important, the Alliance is working to enliven the Island with a variety of recreation and arts programs so that visitors can enjoy this harbor destination.
Immediately following the Coast Guard’s departure from the Island in 1998, the Alliance’s Foundation collaborated with First Lady Hillary Clinton, National Security Adviser Sandy Berger and American Ambassador to the Netherlands Cynthia Schneider in advancing the proposed Education and Preservation Project. The goal was to preserve the $1 State and City purchase option and to avoid the Island’s public auction past the Congressional legal deadline of September 2001. Based on the legal precedent of the 1785 Land Act, the Foundation succeeded in getting the White House to dedicate the Island to “education” on April 1, 2002. It was the basis for the American people’s surrender of the island’s “economic value” to the State and the City. Sixty-plus acres were set aside as “park” land prior to conveying the Island to the State for one dollar on February 1, 2003.
Last weekend, Governor's Island was host to the annual Civil War Weekend—historians portraying various units from the Civil War (including Confederate prisoners, music boys, laundresses, and officer's wives) gave participants a glimpse of what life was like on the island during the bloodiest conflict in America's history. From 1783 through 1966, the island was used as an army post, and during the Civil War it held Confederate prisoners.
Go to the link to see photographs.
Below is a Wikipedia article on Governor's Island:
Governors Island is a 172 acres (70 ha) island in Upper New York Bay, approximately one-half mile (1 km) from the southern tip of Manhattan Island and separated from Brooklyn by Buttermilk Channel. It is legally part of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. Physically, the island changed greatly during the early 20th century. Using rocks and dirt from the excavations for the Lexington Avenue subway, the Army Corps of Engineers supervised the deposit of 4,787,000 cubic yards of fill on the south side of Governors Island, adding 103 acres (42 ha) of flat, treeless land by 1912 and bringing the total acreage of the island to 172.
The Dutch explorer Adriaen Block named the uninhabited island "Noten Eylant", meaning 'nut island', in 1611, doubtless after the island's plentiful hickory, oak, and chestnut trees; This became "Nutten Island" in pidgin English. Upon arrival of the first Dutch colonists to New Netherland, a fortification was erected on the island in 1624. After construction of Fort Amsterdam on Manhattan Island in 1625, Native Americans of the New York Tri-State region started to use the island as their launching pad for trade with the Manhattan settlers and referred to the island as "Paggank", a translation. The island's current name, made official in 1784, stems from British colonial times when the colonial assembly reserved the island for the exclusive use of New York's royal governors.
Defensive works were raised on the island in 1776 by Continental Army troops during the American Revolutionary War, and fired upon British ships before they were taken. From 1783 to 1966, the island was a United States Army post. From 1966 to 1996 the island served as a major United States Coast Guard installation.
On January 19, 2001, Fort Jay and Castle Williams, two of the island's three historical fortifications were proclaimed a National Monument. On January 31, 2003, 150 acres of the island was transferred to the State of New York for a nominal fee of $1. The remaining (22 acres or 9 ha) was transferred to the United States Department of the Interior as the Governors Island National Monument, administered by the National Park Service.
The 150 acre portion of the island not included in the National Monument is administered by The Trust for Governors Island, an entity of the City of New York and the successor of the joint city/state established redevelopment entity, the Governors Island Preservation and Education Corporation. The transfer included deed restrictions which prohibit permanent housing or casinos on the island.
On May 24, 2012, Mayor Michael Bloomberg broke ground on the new park and public spaces designed by the landscape design firm West 8, along with announcing the opening of the rehabilitated Castle Williams.
The national historic landmark district, approximately 92 acres (37 ha) of the northern half of the island, is open to the public for several months in the summer and early fall. Additionally the circumferential drive around the island is also open to the public. The island is accessed by free ferries from Brooklyn and Manhattan.
Governors Island Alliance
Since the decision by the United States Coast Guard to vacate the 172-acre (0.70 km2) Island in 1995, the Governors Island Alliance has worked collaboratively and successfully to help secure its return to New York and to ensure that the public interest determine its reuse. The Alliance and its 50 member organizations led a campaign to see Governors Island returned to New York for public purposes, a mandate embodied in GIPEC's 2003 charter to create "an educational, recreational, and cultural center that will offer a broad range of public uses", create about 90 acres (360,000 m2) of parks and public spaces, and abide by design restrictions in the National Landmark Historic District.
The Governors Island Alliance is working with its many partners to make these commitments a reality, and engage the public in their planning. The Alliance publishes a monthly electronic newsletter that provides the latest information on Island happenings. Equally important, the Alliance is working to enliven the Island with a variety of recreation and arts programs so that visitors can enjoy this harbor destination.
Tolerance Park Alliance
The Alliance is a coalition of organizations and individuals working to celebrate the Island's unique history as the place on which the New World’s first lawful expression of religious tolerance as an individual right took place in 1624. It aims to create an unforgettable living museum-park-to-tolerance as a destination for all Americans on 30% of the Island, and ensure a fitting and sustainable reuse of New York State’s birthplace as “The Island at the Center of the New World.” Thus revealed as Liberty Island’s thematic complement, Governors Island serves as primary symbol in New York harbor and beacon to humanity whereas its historic message – the Lifeblood of American Liberty – endures for future generations.Immediately following the Coast Guard’s departure from the Island in 1998, the Alliance’s Foundation collaborated with First Lady Hillary Clinton, National Security Adviser Sandy Berger and American Ambassador to the Netherlands Cynthia Schneider in advancing the proposed Education and Preservation Project. The goal was to preserve the $1 State and City purchase option and to avoid the Island’s public auction past the Congressional legal deadline of September 2001. Based on the legal precedent of the 1785 Land Act, the Foundation succeeded in getting the White House to dedicate the Island to “education” on April 1, 2002. It was the basis for the American people’s surrender of the island’s “economic value” to the State and the City. Sixty-plus acres were set aside as “park” land prior to conveying the Island to the State for one dollar on February 1, 2003.
Friday, August 17, 2012
LOOKING BACK BY JAMES RADA JR.: Women march in Chambersburg Memorial Day parade for first time in 1929
From Punlicv Opinion: LOOKING BACK BY JAMES RADA JR.: Women march in Chambersburg Memorial Day parade for first time in 1929
It wasn't a big step forward in women' s rights, like the passage of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution that gave women the right to vote, but it was a step forward.
In fact, it was many steps forward and all of them in unison as women took to the streets of Chambersburg to march in the annual Memorial Day parade in 1929.
"For the first time women of the American Legion Auxiliary appeared in their blue capes, lined in yellow, and their blue overseas caps with yellow piping at the folds. All of the women were dressed in white adding much to the uniformity of their unit," the Public Opinion reported.
The American Legion Auxiliary had been started in 1919, shortly after the American Legion was formed. It quickly became the world's largest patriotic service organization. The Women' s Auxiliary's mission is to honor the sacrifice of those who serve in the U.S. armed forces by enhancing the lives of our veterans, military, and their families, both at home and abroad. Within a year of its formation, there were 1,342 Women's Auxiliary units in 45 states.
Women had marched in other parades prior to this, but because Memorial Day focused on the military and its veterans, women hadn't found a place in the parade line-up. It was only with the organization of the Chambersburg American Legion Auxiliary that the women of Chambersburg became connected with Memorial Day.
The parade also featured the Morris Frock Drum and Bugle Corps of Hagerstown, Md. They were dressed colorfully in red, blue and black and performed military maneuvers as they played music.
Veterans of three wars participated in the parade. "The ever-thinning ranks of the Civil War rode in autos. There were Spanish War veterans with the blue shirts, campaign hats and khaki trousers and leggings and World War veterans, some in khaki uniform and some in civilian attire," the Public Opinion noted.
However, it was the marching women that made the headline on the article in the Public Opinion about the parade.
More than 150 school children, including the high school band, marched in the parade. Also participating were other local civic and patriotic groups.
The May 30, 1929, parade was one of two large Memorial Day activities for Chambersburg. The other event was a special service at the Grand Army of the Republic plot at Cedar Grove Cemetery.
The Rev. Clyde Meadows of the King Street United Brethren Church spoke at the service saying, "Today we love and come to honor the men who for us have exposed limb and life that we might enjoy this freedom. We hate the machine war that made it necessary for these noble men to render such sacrificial service."
He recalled the service that veterans from Chambersburg had rendered in the Civil War, Spanish-American War and World War I.
Then Meadows said, "Today and in the future we shall gain no victory if we lose faith in our dreams. 'Where there is no vision the people perish.' Our dreams are dreams of liberty that have drawn myriads across the seas. Dreams of justice that have heartened the oppressed, where ever the name America was spoken; dreams of opportunity that have gleamed before the eyes of the humble and poor. Dreams of brotherhood and peace that have beckoned the weary and warring peoples of Europe in years past. They are dreams of the America that never can be except as a part of a world freed from the burden of mutual national distrust and hatred, and deceit."
- - -
Looking Back is published every other Monday. James Rada Jr. is an award-winning writer living in Gettysburg. He is the author of four historical novels and has written historical articles for a number of regional and national magazines. For more information, visit his website at http://www.aimpublishinggroup.com.
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Richmond: Confederacy museum's Sept. 27 lecture covers Britain's Civil War role
Auction Central News: Confederacy museum's Sept. 27 lecture covers Britain's Civil War role
RICHMOND, Va. - One hundred fifty years ago this September, the British cabinet considered intervention in the American Civil War. Economically dependent on Southern Cotton and impressed by Confederate military success, but revolted by Southern slavery, Britain’s leaders and people were torn in their loyalties. The course that Britain followed might well determine the outcome of the war in America.
Hear Dr. Amanda Foreman’s lecture September 27th, as she delves into the important role that Britain played during the American Civil War, the topic of her book, A World on Fire. Co-Sponsored by the University of Richmond’s Department of History, the lecture will be held in UR’s Ukrops Auditorium, Robins School of Business 7:30 – 9 p.m.
As a resident of London and New York, Foreman has used her resources and knowledge to write this history of British-American relations that has become a bestseller on both sides of the Atlantic. A Visiting Research Fellow at the University of London, Foreman has become a world-wide presence as both a historian and writer and has gained recognition for her book Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire, a number one best seller in England, and best seller for many weeks in the United States. A World on Fire was selected by the New York Times as one of the 10 Best Books of 2011. Dr. Foreman received the Fletcher Pratt Award for A World on Fire.
The event is free but reservations are required. Visit the museum online at www.moc.org to register or contact John Coski at 855-649-1861 ext. 131 or by email at: jcoski@moc.org.
RICHMOND, Va. - One hundred fifty years ago this September, the British cabinet considered intervention in the American Civil War. Economically dependent on Southern Cotton and impressed by Confederate military success, but revolted by Southern slavery, Britain’s leaders and people were torn in their loyalties. The course that Britain followed might well determine the outcome of the war in America.
Hear Dr. Amanda Foreman’s lecture September 27th, as she delves into the important role that Britain played during the American Civil War, the topic of her book, A World on Fire. Co-Sponsored by the University of Richmond’s Department of History, the lecture will be held in UR’s Ukrops Auditorium, Robins School of Business 7:30 – 9 p.m.
As a resident of London and New York, Foreman has used her resources and knowledge to write this history of British-American relations that has become a bestseller on both sides of the Atlantic. A Visiting Research Fellow at the University of London, Foreman has become a world-wide presence as both a historian and writer and has gained recognition for her book Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire, a number one best seller in England, and best seller for many weeks in the United States. A World on Fire was selected by the New York Times as one of the 10 Best Books of 2011. Dr. Foreman received the Fletcher Pratt Award for A World on Fire.
The event is free but reservations are required. Visit the museum online at www.moc.org to register or contact John Coski at 855-649-1861 ext. 131 or by email at: jcoski@moc.org.
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
NY: Genesee Community College to host Civil War lectures
From GatesChiliPost: Genesee Community College to host Civil War lectures
GCC continues its ongoing look at the "War Between the States" when its lecture series begins anew this fall. Historian Maxfield kicks off the series on Wednesday, Sept. 5 when he presents "Man or Monster? Prophet or Madman? Reconsidering General William Tecumseh Sherman." The free lecture starts at 7 p.m. in the Conable Technology Building on GCC's Batavia campus. Maxfield revisits the lecture at the Medina Campus Center at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 20.
Wednesday, Oct. 3, Batavia Campus
In October, the series takes a look at how climate and topography affected the war. Aaron Wheeler of Capital Community College will discuss how army commanders from both factions used the lay of the land to try to secure victories. He will cite specific examples of battles in which terrain was a key factor, and others in which no amount of planning could overcome the challenges posed by Mother Nature. "The Search for Good Ground and Fair Weather: The Role of Climate and Topography in the Civil War" is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 3 in the Conable Technology Center at GCC's Batavia campus.
Wednesday, Oct. 10, Batavia Campus
Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Columbia University Professor Eric Foner will be on the Batavia campus for a special event on Oct. 10. His lecture at 1 p.m. in the Stuart Steiner Theatre will be part of a month-long exhibit examining Lincoln's influence in the college's Alfred O'Connell Library, "Abraham Lincoln: A Man of His Time, a Man for All Times." The travelling exhibit features oversized panels that take the viewer through Lincoln's roots, his presidency and the Civil War. Foner will be signing copies of his book in the theatre lobby after his lecture.
Wednesday, Nov. 7, Batavia Campus
The role and experiences of aboriginal Americans will be the focus on the final lecture this fall, "Among the Many Fires: Trials, Opportunities and Experiences of Native Americans in the Civil War." GCC history instructor Dan Hamner explores the wide range of challenges the American Civil War produced for native individuals and communities. His lecture starts at 7 p.m. and is scheduled for Nov. 7 in the Conable Technology Center.
All lectures are free and open to the public. More information on GCC's ongoing initiative is available at the college's Civil War blog: civilwaratgcc.
Rochester, N.Y. —Genesee Community College will host the following Civil War lectures from September to November.
Wednesday, Sept. 5 Batavia Campus and Thursday, Sept. 20 Medina CampusGCC continues its ongoing look at the "War Between the States" when its lecture series begins anew this fall. Historian Maxfield kicks off the series on Wednesday, Sept. 5 when he presents "Man or Monster? Prophet or Madman? Reconsidering General William Tecumseh Sherman." The free lecture starts at 7 p.m. in the Conable Technology Building on GCC's Batavia campus. Maxfield revisits the lecture at the Medina Campus Center at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 20.
Wednesday, Oct. 3, Batavia Campus
In October, the series takes a look at how climate and topography affected the war. Aaron Wheeler of Capital Community College will discuss how army commanders from both factions used the lay of the land to try to secure victories. He will cite specific examples of battles in which terrain was a key factor, and others in which no amount of planning could overcome the challenges posed by Mother Nature. "The Search for Good Ground and Fair Weather: The Role of Climate and Topography in the Civil War" is set for 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 3 in the Conable Technology Center at GCC's Batavia campus.
Wednesday, Oct. 10, Batavia Campus
Pulitzer Prize-winning author and Columbia University Professor Eric Foner will be on the Batavia campus for a special event on Oct. 10. His lecture at 1 p.m. in the Stuart Steiner Theatre will be part of a month-long exhibit examining Lincoln's influence in the college's Alfred O'Connell Library, "Abraham Lincoln: A Man of His Time, a Man for All Times." The travelling exhibit features oversized panels that take the viewer through Lincoln's roots, his presidency and the Civil War. Foner will be signing copies of his book in the theatre lobby after his lecture.
Wednesday, Nov. 7, Batavia Campus
The role and experiences of aboriginal Americans will be the focus on the final lecture this fall, "Among the Many Fires: Trials, Opportunities and Experiences of Native Americans in the Civil War." GCC history instructor Dan Hamner explores the wide range of challenges the American Civil War produced for native individuals and communities. His lecture starts at 7 p.m. and is scheduled for Nov. 7 in the Conable Technology Center.
All lectures are free and open to the public. More information on GCC's ongoing initiative is available at the college's Civil War blog: civilwaratgcc.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
60 is the new 40
On August 10, 2012, the Cheyenne chapter of the AARP hosted a seminar
called Gray Matters - which was free and provided a free lunch -
unfortunately fish and cheesecake, blech - from 4 to 6 was a reception
for all travelers who had come in for the AARP National Spelling Bee to
be held on the 11th.
I attended that and it was a lot of fun. The emcee introduced a few folks, we talked about words, there was a "mock" spelling bee (which only consisted of about 20 people getting up and being questioned on one word...._ and so on. And there were finger foods there - Chinese food to be precise. Don't know where they got it from or if they cooked it on site (Little America is a hotel and resort where people come to play golf among other things) but it was delish.
The spelling bee started at the ungodly hour of 8:30 am (Well...8:30 is not so ungodly but I had to get up at the ungodly hour of 6:30 to get there in time for registration, etc.) It started with 4 rounds of 25 words each - which was a Written Test.
The first 25 words were extremely easy. They asked words like "Greetings" and "Navel" and "Mince." I suppose a few might have been considered difficult... "Animus" and "Lacuna."
The second 25 words were equally easy, but I did miss MUGWUMP.
I assume they did this just to help everyone settle the nerves and get new people used to what was going on. People had trouble hearing some of the words (hey, they were all over 50 and most over 60) and the Pronouncer would come down and tell them the word face to face and have them say it back, etc. Indeed, the Pronouncer did an excellent job.
Third round was where they started asking the difficult words.
I missed:
QUESTIONARY INERCALATE
TUATARA
SKOSH
VIRIDITY
WIMBLE
The fourth round was the real killer. I only got 12 out of 25 right. I missed:
FELICIFIC
DOVEKIE
FLYTING
NAPERY
COTYLEDONARY
WELTSCHMERRZ
OPPUGNER
AECIOSPORE
SYNCYTIAL
KNUR
IRIDIUM
TUYERE
HYOSCYAMINE
I then stayed for the Oral rounds and was joined by one of my friends from my Scrabble Club. (I think an audience could have assembled for the Written rounds, too. There were chairs there and family were in them...but I think most people only wanted to come see the Oral rounds where you actually saw the speller's faces as opposed to their backs, etc.)
Two of the people I met last night at the reception made it to the Orals. One of them it was his first trip to the Bee and he was successful his first time out. Made it through about 10 rounds. (In the Orals, you miss two words and you're out.) Another one was an elderly woman from Minnesota who also got through about 10 rounds before being knocked out.
There were three sisters and a brother who had come as a sort of family reunion. The eldest sister made it to the Oral rounds but was bounced after only two rounds. This was too bad and it was because she was a bit unlucky - she got two 6-syllable words in a row while some of the others were getting much easier ones (but still, not ones I could have spelled). But she was disqualified along with several other people in the same round, so hopefully she didn't feel too bad.
The words in the Oral Rounds were extremely difficult. Several times more difficult than the toughest words in the final round of the Written.
But, had I studied for a year, I think I could have handled them.
And it is my intention to study for a year and get into the Orals next year.
So, why is the title of this blog entry 60 is thenew 40?
Because it is.
People are living longer. You don't want to outlive your money and more importantly you don't want to outlive your sense of enjoyment of life. And learning new things every day is enjoyment and keeps the mind active.
The AARP Spelling Bee is held every year, and it gives you an excellent reason to travel to Cheyenne and see The Cowboy State. You'll meet lots of interesting people.
You do have to study.
I studied very desultorily for about a month...combine all the time I studied and it was about 10 hours. Not nearly enough, but then, I'm a good speller so the Written Rounds were relatively easy - except for that killer last round.
Why learn words that you'll never, ever say in real life?Well, because they're interesting. And the concepts of what you'll learn, you can apply in other areas. So it's a win win.
So start planning to live a long, healthy, active, intellectual life, and do it now, however old you might be!
I attended that and it was a lot of fun. The emcee introduced a few folks, we talked about words, there was a "mock" spelling bee (which only consisted of about 20 people getting up and being questioned on one word...._ and so on. And there were finger foods there - Chinese food to be precise. Don't know where they got it from or if they cooked it on site (Little America is a hotel and resort where people come to play golf among other things) but it was delish.
The spelling bee started at the ungodly hour of 8:30 am (Well...8:30 is not so ungodly but I had to get up at the ungodly hour of 6:30 to get there in time for registration, etc.) It started with 4 rounds of 25 words each - which was a Written Test.
The first 25 words were extremely easy. They asked words like "Greetings" and "Navel" and "Mince." I suppose a few might have been considered difficult... "Animus" and "Lacuna."
The second 25 words were equally easy, but I did miss MUGWUMP.
I assume they did this just to help everyone settle the nerves and get new people used to what was going on. People had trouble hearing some of the words (hey, they were all over 50 and most over 60) and the Pronouncer would come down and tell them the word face to face and have them say it back, etc. Indeed, the Pronouncer did an excellent job.
Third round was where they started asking the difficult words.
I missed:
QUESTIONARY INERCALATE
TUATARA
SKOSH
VIRIDITY
WIMBLE
The fourth round was the real killer. I only got 12 out of 25 right. I missed:
FELICIFIC
DOVEKIE
FLYTING
NAPERY
COTYLEDONARY
WELTSCHMERRZ
OPPUGNER
AECIOSPORE
SYNCYTIAL
KNUR
IRIDIUM
TUYERE
HYOSCYAMINE
I then stayed for the Oral rounds and was joined by one of my friends from my Scrabble Club. (I think an audience could have assembled for the Written rounds, too. There were chairs there and family were in them...but I think most people only wanted to come see the Oral rounds where you actually saw the speller's faces as opposed to their backs, etc.)
Two of the people I met last night at the reception made it to the Orals. One of them it was his first trip to the Bee and he was successful his first time out. Made it through about 10 rounds. (In the Orals, you miss two words and you're out.) Another one was an elderly woman from Minnesota who also got through about 10 rounds before being knocked out.
There were three sisters and a brother who had come as a sort of family reunion. The eldest sister made it to the Oral rounds but was bounced after only two rounds. This was too bad and it was because she was a bit unlucky - she got two 6-syllable words in a row while some of the others were getting much easier ones (but still, not ones I could have spelled). But she was disqualified along with several other people in the same round, so hopefully she didn't feel too bad.
The words in the Oral Rounds were extremely difficult. Several times more difficult than the toughest words in the final round of the Written.
But, had I studied for a year, I think I could have handled them.
And it is my intention to study for a year and get into the Orals next year.
So, why is the title of this blog entry 60 is thenew 40?
Because it is.
People are living longer. You don't want to outlive your money and more importantly you don't want to outlive your sense of enjoyment of life. And learning new things every day is enjoyment and keeps the mind active.
The AARP Spelling Bee is held every year, and it gives you an excellent reason to travel to Cheyenne and see The Cowboy State. You'll meet lots of interesting people.
You do have to study.
I studied very desultorily for about a month...combine all the time I studied and it was about 10 hours. Not nearly enough, but then, I'm a good speller so the Written Rounds were relatively easy - except for that killer last round.
Why learn words that you'll never, ever say in real life?Well, because they're interesting. And the concepts of what you'll learn, you can apply in other areas. So it's a win win.
So start planning to live a long, healthy, active, intellectual life, and do it now, however old you might be!
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Posts resume Monday
I'm participating in the AARP Cheyenne Spelling Bee today, Saturday, and need to recover Sunday....
So Monday, posts resumes.
So Monday, posts resumes.
Tuesday, August 7, 2012
CA: Lincoln, the Constitution, and the Civil War Exhibit in Rocklin
From Rocklin & Roseville Today: Lincoln, the Constitution, and the Civil War Exhibit in Rocklin
OCKLIN, Calif., - William Jessup University is the host site for a traveling museum exhibit known as Lincoln, the Constitution, and the Civil War funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and administered by the American Library Association. The Paul Nystrom Library will be hosting the exhibit from August 16 through September 24 in collaboration with the university's History and Public Policy departments.
The exhibit examines how President Lincoln used the Constitution to confront three intertwined crises of the Civil War-the secession of Southern states, slavery and wartime civil liberties.
"We are delighted to have been selected as a site for this exhibition," said Kevin Pischke, Jessup's Library Director. "As a new president, Lincoln was faced with enormous challenges. This exhibition shows how he struggled with issues of secession, slavery and civil liberties-all questions our country's founding charter left unanswered. Each section of the exhibit features information about a different aspect of Lincoln's presidency and helps visitors understand why Lincoln's struggle with the Constitution still matters today."
Lincoln is widely acknowledged as one of America's greatest presidents, but his historical reputation is contested. Was he a calculating politician willing to accommodate slavery, or a principled leader justly celebrated as the Great Emancipator? This exhibition provides no easy answers. Rather, it encourages visitors to form a nuanced view of Lincoln by engaging them with Lincoln's struggle to reconcile his policy preferences with basic American ideals of liberty and equality. This exhibition develops a more complete understanding of Abraham Lincoln as president and the Civil War as the nation's gravest constitutional crisis.
The National Constitution Center and the American Library Association Public Programs Office organized the traveling exhibition, which was made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH): great ideas brought to life. The traveling exhibition is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center.
The traveling exhibition is composed of informative panels featuring photographic reproductions of original documents, including a draft of Lincoln's first inaugural speech, the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment.
The library is sponsoring two free programs for the public in connection with the exhibition. The opening lecture will be held on August 30 from 7-8:30 pm and have a historical focus. The University's Public Policy Department's Constitution Day events are planned just before the closing of the exhibit and will have a political/constitutional focus.
isit www.jessup.edu/library/events for more information.
OCKLIN, Calif., - William Jessup University is the host site for a traveling museum exhibit known as Lincoln, the Constitution, and the Civil War funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and administered by the American Library Association. The Paul Nystrom Library will be hosting the exhibit from August 16 through September 24 in collaboration with the university's History and Public Policy departments.
The exhibit examines how President Lincoln used the Constitution to confront three intertwined crises of the Civil War-the secession of Southern states, slavery and wartime civil liberties.
"We are delighted to have been selected as a site for this exhibition," said Kevin Pischke, Jessup's Library Director. "As a new president, Lincoln was faced with enormous challenges. This exhibition shows how he struggled with issues of secession, slavery and civil liberties-all questions our country's founding charter left unanswered. Each section of the exhibit features information about a different aspect of Lincoln's presidency and helps visitors understand why Lincoln's struggle with the Constitution still matters today."
Lincoln is widely acknowledged as one of America's greatest presidents, but his historical reputation is contested. Was he a calculating politician willing to accommodate slavery, or a principled leader justly celebrated as the Great Emancipator? This exhibition provides no easy answers. Rather, it encourages visitors to form a nuanced view of Lincoln by engaging them with Lincoln's struggle to reconcile his policy preferences with basic American ideals of liberty and equality. This exhibition develops a more complete understanding of Abraham Lincoln as president and the Civil War as the nation's gravest constitutional crisis.
The National Constitution Center and the American Library Association Public Programs Office organized the traveling exhibition, which was made possible by a major grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH): great ideas brought to life. The traveling exhibition is based on an exhibition of the same name developed by the National Constitution Center.
The traveling exhibition is composed of informative panels featuring photographic reproductions of original documents, including a draft of Lincoln's first inaugural speech, the Emancipation Proclamation and the Thirteenth Amendment.
The library is sponsoring two free programs for the public in connection with the exhibition. The opening lecture will be held on August 30 from 7-8:30 pm and have a historical focus. The University's Public Policy Department's Constitution Day events are planned just before the closing of the exhibit and will have a political/constitutional focus.
isit www.jessup.edu/library/events for more information.
New Study: U.S. Military Suicide Rate Now Likely Double or Triple Civil War’s
From Time Magazine: New Study: U.S. Military Suicide Rate Now Likely Double or Triple Civil War’s
ditor’s note: we spent a lot of time trying to dig up historical data on suicide in the U.S. military for our recent story on the current epidemic. The Army itself has only been keeping accurate suicide statistics for about 30 years, making historical comparisons difficult. A pair of scholars in the field has just released a paper focused on suicides in the U.S. Civil War that might be of interest to Battleland readers. They summarize their findings in the following Q&A:
Can medical data from the U.S. Civil War help us better understand military suicides?
Your recent Time cover story in the July 23 issue detailed the tragic facts that suicide rates among active-duty U.S. military personnel rose dramatically over the past decade. Military suicide rates doubled between 2001 and 2006, while remaining flat in the general population, with more military fatalities attributed to suicide than to actual combat in Afghanistan during that period.
To make matters worse, we do not understand why. Stressors related to military training, overseas deployment, transition back to civilian life, and combat are widely believed to be major driving factors. However, 31% of soldiers who committed suicide had never been deployed to a war zone. Furthermore, suicide rates in British military forces have also increased recently, though to a lesser degree, and do not exceed the rate of the general population.
Is there a lack of historical context?
Compounding our inability to understand this current phenomenon is the lack of adequate historical data to provide context on whether high suicide rates were typical of prior wars. Review of archival records from past wars might help shed some light on the current military suicide epidemic.
In a recent study (Frueh & Smith, 2012) we reviewed historical medical records on suicide deaths among Union forces during the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865), a brutal war that many consider the first modern one, and for the year immediately after the war to estimate the suicide rate among its Union combatants. We also reviewed these same historical records for data on rates of alcohol abuse and other probable psychiatric illnesses.
White active-duty Union military personnel suicide rates ranged from 8.74 – 14.54 per 100,000 during the Civil War, and surged to 30.4 the year after the war. For black Union troops, rates ranged from 17.7 in the first year of their entry into the war (1863), to 0 in their second year, and 1.8 in the year after the war.
For comparison, the current rate of U.S. military suicides is just over 20 per 100,000 troops. To further put these figures into current context, there were more military suicides in 2010 (total suicides = 295), than during the entire four years of the Civil War, for which we found 278 documented Union suicides, and forces were of comparable size.
Thus, current suicide rates in the U.S. military are probably two to three times higher than those documented during the Civil War. Rates for other available psychological domains, including chronic alcoholism, “nostalgia,” and insanity, were extremely low (< 1.0%) by modern day standards during the Civil War.
Of course, we should interpret data from the U.S. Civil War cautiously, not simply because of its age, but because medicine and society in the 1860s were psychologically naïve. There was almost no awareness or understanding of mental illness then. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), now understood to be a common post-combat reaction did not exist in the medical literature at the time. Moreover, it is possible (but by no means certain) that the stigma of suicide and psychological problems may have biased against reporting.
What about combat intensity?
As noted by preeminent Harvard psychologist, Richard J. McNally (2012), these Civil War findings occurred within the context of extremely intense combat operations. In reviewing historical data on rates of killed in action, he notes that the death rate for Union forces during the Civil War was 48 times higher than for modern U.S. troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. And yet, emotional problems and disability (from many different causes) has risen dramatically among U.S. military personnel and veterans, even since the Vietnam war.
Are there other explanations?
These Civil War data raise more questions than they answer because they remind U.S. that combat intensity by itself is not necessarily a good predictor of suicide rates. Thus, we still do not know why military suicides have soared in the modern era. The “true” explanation is probably multifactorial: a combination of general military stressors, combat trauma, economic stressors, societal stressors, and changes in recruitment standards. We also need to examine whether recent increases are related to changes in military esprit de corps, aggressive use of prescription medications military physicians that may deregulate emotions and cognitive functioning, and even reduced psychological hardiness in society in general. These are all factors worthy of additional study.
Is there a sociopolitical element?
There is another sociopolitical element to the story of this publication. Six scientific journals declined to publish our military suicide paper (Frueh & Smith, 2012) because peer-reviewers were reluctant to accept the accuracy of the data. Devoid of empirical or archival evidence to critique our paper, most reviewers from these other journals rejected our findings out of hand purely because they could not accept them to be true – they thought the numbers were impossibly low.
Some of these reviewers may have been motivated by a perceived need to protect current troops or the Department of Defense. Although a popular narrative currently, our data suggest that simply attributing the recent surge in military suicides entirely to combat stressors or multiple deployments is insufficient to understand the phenomenon. We need to start asking other questions and looking for other possible explanations – which may lead U.S. to possible solutions.
Historically speaking, the medical data from the U.S. Civil War show that more is at play in the recent spike in military suicides. Perhaps incorporating a historical perspective can help U.S. begin to tame this tragic epidemic of military suicides.
B. Christopher Frueh, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist, and is professor of psychology at the University of Hawaii, Hilo, Hawaii, and McNair Scholar and director of research at The Menninger Clinic, Houston, Texas. Jeffrey A. Smith, Ph.D. is an American historian, and assistant professor of history at the University of Hawaii, Hilo, Hawaii.
ditor’s note: we spent a lot of time trying to dig up historical data on suicide in the U.S. military for our recent story on the current epidemic. The Army itself has only been keeping accurate suicide statistics for about 30 years, making historical comparisons difficult. A pair of scholars in the field has just released a paper focused on suicides in the U.S. Civil War that might be of interest to Battleland readers. They summarize their findings in the following Q&A:
Can medical data from the U.S. Civil War help us better understand military suicides?
Your recent Time cover story in the July 23 issue detailed the tragic facts that suicide rates among active-duty U.S. military personnel rose dramatically over the past decade. Military suicide rates doubled between 2001 and 2006, while remaining flat in the general population, with more military fatalities attributed to suicide than to actual combat in Afghanistan during that period.
To make matters worse, we do not understand why. Stressors related to military training, overseas deployment, transition back to civilian life, and combat are widely believed to be major driving factors. However, 31% of soldiers who committed suicide had never been deployed to a war zone. Furthermore, suicide rates in British military forces have also increased recently, though to a lesser degree, and do not exceed the rate of the general population.
Is there a lack of historical context?
Compounding our inability to understand this current phenomenon is the lack of adequate historical data to provide context on whether high suicide rates were typical of prior wars. Review of archival records from past wars might help shed some light on the current military suicide epidemic.
In a recent study (Frueh & Smith, 2012) we reviewed historical medical records on suicide deaths among Union forces during the U.S. Civil War (1861-1865), a brutal war that many consider the first modern one, and for the year immediately after the war to estimate the suicide rate among its Union combatants. We also reviewed these same historical records for data on rates of alcohol abuse and other probable psychiatric illnesses.
White active-duty Union military personnel suicide rates ranged from 8.74 – 14.54 per 100,000 during the Civil War, and surged to 30.4 the year after the war. For black Union troops, rates ranged from 17.7 in the first year of their entry into the war (1863), to 0 in their second year, and 1.8 in the year after the war.
For comparison, the current rate of U.S. military suicides is just over 20 per 100,000 troops. To further put these figures into current context, there were more military suicides in 2010 (total suicides = 295), than during the entire four years of the Civil War, for which we found 278 documented Union suicides, and forces were of comparable size.
Thus, current suicide rates in the U.S. military are probably two to three times higher than those documented during the Civil War. Rates for other available psychological domains, including chronic alcoholism, “nostalgia,” and insanity, were extremely low (< 1.0%) by modern day standards during the Civil War.
Of course, we should interpret data from the U.S. Civil War cautiously, not simply because of its age, but because medicine and society in the 1860s were psychologically naïve. There was almost no awareness or understanding of mental illness then. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), now understood to be a common post-combat reaction did not exist in the medical literature at the time. Moreover, it is possible (but by no means certain) that the stigma of suicide and psychological problems may have biased against reporting.
What about combat intensity?
As noted by preeminent Harvard psychologist, Richard J. McNally (2012), these Civil War findings occurred within the context of extremely intense combat operations. In reviewing historical data on rates of killed in action, he notes that the death rate for Union forces during the Civil War was 48 times higher than for modern U.S. troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. And yet, emotional problems and disability (from many different causes) has risen dramatically among U.S. military personnel and veterans, even since the Vietnam war.
Are there other explanations?
These Civil War data raise more questions than they answer because they remind U.S. that combat intensity by itself is not necessarily a good predictor of suicide rates. Thus, we still do not know why military suicides have soared in the modern era. The “true” explanation is probably multifactorial: a combination of general military stressors, combat trauma, economic stressors, societal stressors, and changes in recruitment standards. We also need to examine whether recent increases are related to changes in military esprit de corps, aggressive use of prescription medications military physicians that may deregulate emotions and cognitive functioning, and even reduced psychological hardiness in society in general. These are all factors worthy of additional study.
Is there a sociopolitical element?
There is another sociopolitical element to the story of this publication. Six scientific journals declined to publish our military suicide paper (Frueh & Smith, 2012) because peer-reviewers were reluctant to accept the accuracy of the data. Devoid of empirical or archival evidence to critique our paper, most reviewers from these other journals rejected our findings out of hand purely because they could not accept them to be true – they thought the numbers were impossibly low.
Some of these reviewers may have been motivated by a perceived need to protect current troops or the Department of Defense. Although a popular narrative currently, our data suggest that simply attributing the recent surge in military suicides entirely to combat stressors or multiple deployments is insufficient to understand the phenomenon. We need to start asking other questions and looking for other possible explanations – which may lead U.S. to possible solutions.
Historically speaking, the medical data from the U.S. Civil War show that more is at play in the recent spike in military suicides. Perhaps incorporating a historical perspective can help U.S. begin to tame this tragic epidemic of military suicides.
B. Christopher Frueh, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist, and is professor of psychology at the University of Hawaii, Hilo, Hawaii, and McNair Scholar and director of research at The Menninger Clinic, Houston, Texas. Jeffrey A. Smith, Ph.D. is an American historian, and assistant professor of history at the University of Hawaii, Hilo, Hawaii.
Friday, August 3, 2012
VA: Legacy Museum's exhibit on the Civil War to open Sunday
From NewsAdvance.com: Legacy Museum's exhibit on the Civil War to open Sunday
The Legacy Museum of African American History
will open its new Civil War exhibit on Sunday, after the June 29 derecho
delayed plans to open last month.
“We had a wonderful wine and cheese reception the
Friday night the storm came,” said Dianne Swann-Wright, who curated the
exhibit, “Trouble Don’t Las’ Always, African American Life in Central
Virginia During and After the Civil War, 1860-1890.”
“We had a chance for just a few people to go through
and see it, so we were really looking forward to the next day when it
would be open for the general public,” she said. “We were just on pins
and needles and made the decision that we just couldn’t welcome people
without power. It was so hot that day.”
The museum, located onMonroe Street, lost power for
five days, but Swann-Wright said there was no damage to the building or
grounds.
“We had a tent that had been set up, and that was
blown away,” she said. “But it was recovered, and it turned out that
that wasn’t a problem.”
She said concerns about more severe weather contributed to their decision to wait a month to reschedule.
“We didn’t know if the power was going to be back
on, and we didn’t know if there would be another storm coming,” she
said. “Hopefully people will be in town, and they’ll be looking for
something to do [this weekend].”
The exhibit, which will remain up for two years,
depicts how daily life, work life, worship and education evolved for
African Americans during and after the Civil War. More than 90
artifacts, collected from the community and donated from other museums,
will be on display.
“[We’re] just very eager to have people see what it
is that we’ve been working on,” Swann-Wright said. “I can’t wait to talk
to people who actually have artifacts in the exhibit. To see how long
everyone stands in one spot, which artifacts will be their favorite.
“I’m looking forward to hearing a lot of ‘wows’ and ‘I didn’t know that.’”
The reception is set to run from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday. For more information, call (434) 845-3455.
Thursday, August 2, 2012
Culpeper in the Civil War: 150 Years Ago
From Fredericksburg.com: Culpeper in the Civil War: 150 Years Ago
The full schedule for August’s 150th anniversary events commemorating Culpeper’s role as the “most marched upon, camped upon, and fought upon” county in the American Civil War, as historian Clark B. Hall puts it:
World Première Reception for “Marching Through Culpeper,” a story of love across the battle lines based on the popular historical novel of the same name. 5–7 p.m., Friday, Aug. 3. Daniel Technology Center, Germanna Community College, Culpeper Campus, with celebrity guests including Dr. James I. “Bud” Robertson Jr., Dr. Frank Stringfellow and J.E.B Stuart IV. Celebrate Virginia Morton’s book’s coming to life onstage, with music, wine, food. $95 includes reception, admission to play’s première with priority seating and intermission dessert buffet. Business or period attire. Questions? 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m. Tickets for the reception can be purchased at the Stellar One Bank’s Lake of the Woods branch until Friday. A limited number will be available at the door of the Daniel Technology Center at 5 p.m. Friday.
Multimedia Première Performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m., Friday, Aug. 3. Eastern View High School, 16332 Cyclone Way, Culpeper, Va. 22701. The facility seats 950 and there is plenty of room for those who want to attend the performance only. Advance tickets: adults, $18; under age 18, $9. At door: adults, $20; under 18, $10. Tickets good any performance. No credit cards. Proceeds benefit battlefield preservation. Call 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m. Buy tickets in advance at Stellar One Bank, Main Street, Culpeper or at Stellar One’s Lake of the Woods branch; and Museum of Culpeper History; or online at friendsofcedarmountain.org or marchingthroughculpeperonstage.com.
Walking tour, downtown Culpeper. 9:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 4. Includes locations in the book and stage production “Marching Through Culpeper,” conducted by author Virginia Morton. Start at depot Visitor Center, 111 Commerce St. $10, adults; $5, under 18. Reservations recommended: vamorton@comcast.net or 540/825-9147. Benefits Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield. friendsofcedarmountain.org.
Civil War encampment at Salubria. 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 4. Company E of the Chesapeake Volunteer Guards will encamp at Salubria, a 1757 manor house five miles east of Culpeper. The living historians will portray life at this Georgian-style architectural gem after the Battle of Cedar Mountain on Aug. 9, 1862. Re-enactors’ camp visits, free. Tours of Salubria, $10. germanna.org; 540/423-1700. Sponsored by The Memorial Foundation of the Germanna Colonies in Virginia.
Luncheon with Dr. James Robertson at the Inn at Kelly’s Ford. 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 4. 16589 Edwards Shop Road, Remington. innatkellys ford.com. After barbecue buffet, the esteemed scholar and Virginia Tech history professor emeritus will speak on the conflict between Confederate Gens. A.P. Hill and “Stonewall” Jackson at Cedar Mountain. Dr. Robertson will sign his newest book, “The Untold Civil War,” published by National Geographic Society. Other activities include cavalry and artillery demonstrations, hay-ride tours of Kelly’s Ford, the war’s most heavily used ford. Silent auction to benefit Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield. Tickets $40; casual attire. Mail checks FCMB, Box 1853, Culpeper, Va. 22701. friendsofcedarmountain.org or 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m.
“Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 4, and 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 5. Second and third multimedia performances of of this story of love across the battle lines, based on the popular historical novel. Eastern View High School, 16332 Cyclone Way, Culpeper. See above for ticket prices.
Civil War encampment at Salubria. 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 4. Company E of the Chesapeake Volunteer Guards will encamp at Salubria, a 1757 manor house five miles east of Culpeper. The living historians will portray life at this Georgian-style architectural gem after the Battle of Cedar Mountain on Aug. 9, 1862. Re-enactors’ camp visits, free. Guided tours of Salubria, $10. germanna.org; 540/423-1700. Sponsored by The Memorial Foundation of the Germanna Colonies in Virginia.
Battle of Cedar Mountain Symposium. 8:45 a.m.–4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 9. For the Civil War’s sesquicentennial, six nationally known speakers will explore 1862 battle in Culpeper County where Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson ended Union Maj. Gen. John Pope’s drive on Gordonsville, shifting action from the Virginia Peninsula to Northern Virginia. Daniel Technology Center Auditorium, Germanna Community College, Culpeper.
Topics and speakers:
The Army of Virginia – Todd Berkoff, historian and lecturer
Jackson‘s 2nd Corps and Hill’s “Light Division,” Army of Northern Virginia – Clark B. “Bud” Hall
The Battle of Cedar Mountain – Greg Mertz, Supervisory Historian, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
One Regiment’s Story, The 10th Maine – Nicholas Picerno, historian and lecturer
The Stonewall Brigade – Jeffrey Wert, author, lecturer and educator
Battlefield Preservation – Tanya Gossett, preservation & compliance coordinator, American Battlefield Protection Program, U.S. Department of the Interior. $45 includes catered lunch; $15 under age 21, under age 12 free. Sponsored by nonprofit Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield Inc., friendsofcedarmountain.org. Mail checks to FCMB, Box 1853, Culpeper, Va. 22701. Contact: Lon Lacey, lmml@comcast.net
Battlefield: Brass-band music, artillery firing, guided walking tour, lectures and more at Cedar Mountain, on the battle’s 150th anniversary. 6:30 p.m. to dusk, Thursday, Aug. 9. First Class Brass of Warrenton will perform music of the Civil War, including popular ballads. Living historians from Carpenter’s Battery, CSA; Thompson’s Independent Battery “C,” Pennsylvania Volunteer Light Artillery; and 23rd Virginia Infantry will talk with visitors, share exhibits, give artillery demonstrations. These units have appeared in films “Gettysburg” and “Gods and Generals” and on Gettysburg, Antietam battlefields. A closing service will honor those who fought at Cedar Mountain. The public is invited to identify and comment briefly on their ancestors who fought at Cedar Mountain. BRING SEATING. Water will be provided. $10 per-vehicle parking fee. See friendsofcedarmountain.org or call 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m.
Multimedia performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 10. Eastern View High School, Culpeper.
Sesquicentennial anniversary weekend, Cedar Mountain battlefield. Friday, Aug. 10, through Sunday, Aug. 12. Living history programs with Carpenter’s Battery, CSA; Thompson’s Independent Battery “C,” Pennsylvania Volunteer Light Artillery; and the 23rd Virginia Infantry continue. Artillery demonstrations in mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Sponsored by Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield Inc.
Living History Walking Tour in downtown Culpeper. 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 11. Sponsored by the Museum of Culpeper History, 803 S. Main St. $10 per person. 540/829-1749. culpepermuseum.com or 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m.
Kelly’s Ford & Stevensburg Tour. 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 11. Departs from the Graffiti House, 19484 Brandy Road, Brandy Station. Two-hour tour covers the June 9, 1863 ,Union river crossing at Kelly’s Ford, and follows the route of Union cavalry commanded by Col. Alfred Duffie to Stevensburg, where J.E.B. Stuart’s volunteer scout, Capt. William Farley, was mortally wounded. $10 per person. Car caravan; arrive before 10 a.m. Sponsored by the Brandy Station Foundation. The historic Graffiti House will be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday. brandystationfoundation.com.
Multimedia performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 11. Eastern View High School, 16332 Cyclone Way, Culpeper.
Final multimedia performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 12.
The full schedule for August’s 150th anniversary events commemorating Culpeper’s role as the “most marched upon, camped upon, and fought upon” county in the American Civil War, as historian Clark B. Hall puts it:
World Première Reception for “Marching Through Culpeper,” a story of love across the battle lines based on the popular historical novel of the same name. 5–7 p.m., Friday, Aug. 3. Daniel Technology Center, Germanna Community College, Culpeper Campus, with celebrity guests including Dr. James I. “Bud” Robertson Jr., Dr. Frank Stringfellow and J.E.B Stuart IV. Celebrate Virginia Morton’s book’s coming to life onstage, with music, wine, food. $95 includes reception, admission to play’s première with priority seating and intermission dessert buffet. Business or period attire. Questions? 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m. Tickets for the reception can be purchased at the Stellar One Bank’s Lake of the Woods branch until Friday. A limited number will be available at the door of the Daniel Technology Center at 5 p.m. Friday.
Multimedia Première Performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m., Friday, Aug. 3. Eastern View High School, 16332 Cyclone Way, Culpeper, Va. 22701. The facility seats 950 and there is plenty of room for those who want to attend the performance only. Advance tickets: adults, $18; under age 18, $9. At door: adults, $20; under 18, $10. Tickets good any performance. No credit cards. Proceeds benefit battlefield preservation. Call 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m. Buy tickets in advance at Stellar One Bank, Main Street, Culpeper or at Stellar One’s Lake of the Woods branch; and Museum of Culpeper History; or online at friendsofcedarmountain.org or marchingthroughculpeperonstage.com.
Walking tour, downtown Culpeper. 9:30 a.m.–11:30 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 4. Includes locations in the book and stage production “Marching Through Culpeper,” conducted by author Virginia Morton. Start at depot Visitor Center, 111 Commerce St. $10, adults; $5, under 18. Reservations recommended: vamorton@comcast.net or 540/825-9147. Benefits Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield. friendsofcedarmountain.org.
Civil War encampment at Salubria. 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 4. Company E of the Chesapeake Volunteer Guards will encamp at Salubria, a 1757 manor house five miles east of Culpeper. The living historians will portray life at this Georgian-style architectural gem after the Battle of Cedar Mountain on Aug. 9, 1862. Re-enactors’ camp visits, free. Tours of Salubria, $10. germanna.org; 540/423-1700. Sponsored by The Memorial Foundation of the Germanna Colonies in Virginia.
Luncheon with Dr. James Robertson at the Inn at Kelly’s Ford. 12:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 4. 16589 Edwards Shop Road, Remington. innatkellys ford.com. After barbecue buffet, the esteemed scholar and Virginia Tech history professor emeritus will speak on the conflict between Confederate Gens. A.P. Hill and “Stonewall” Jackson at Cedar Mountain. Dr. Robertson will sign his newest book, “The Untold Civil War,” published by National Geographic Society. Other activities include cavalry and artillery demonstrations, hay-ride tours of Kelly’s Ford, the war’s most heavily used ford. Silent auction to benefit Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield. Tickets $40; casual attire. Mail checks FCMB, Box 1853, Culpeper, Va. 22701. friendsofcedarmountain.org or 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m.
“Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 4, and 2:30 p.m., Sunday, Aug. 5. Second and third multimedia performances of of this story of love across the battle lines, based on the popular historical novel. Eastern View High School, 16332 Cyclone Way, Culpeper. See above for ticket prices.
Civil War encampment at Salubria. 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 4. Company E of the Chesapeake Volunteer Guards will encamp at Salubria, a 1757 manor house five miles east of Culpeper. The living historians will portray life at this Georgian-style architectural gem after the Battle of Cedar Mountain on Aug. 9, 1862. Re-enactors’ camp visits, free. Guided tours of Salubria, $10. germanna.org; 540/423-1700. Sponsored by The Memorial Foundation of the Germanna Colonies in Virginia.
Battle of Cedar Mountain Symposium. 8:45 a.m.–4 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 9. For the Civil War’s sesquicentennial, six nationally known speakers will explore 1862 battle in Culpeper County where Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson ended Union Maj. Gen. John Pope’s drive on Gordonsville, shifting action from the Virginia Peninsula to Northern Virginia. Daniel Technology Center Auditorium, Germanna Community College, Culpeper.
Topics and speakers:
The Army of Virginia – Todd Berkoff, historian and lecturer
Jackson‘s 2nd Corps and Hill’s “Light Division,” Army of Northern Virginia – Clark B. “Bud” Hall
The Battle of Cedar Mountain – Greg Mertz, Supervisory Historian, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
One Regiment’s Story, The 10th Maine – Nicholas Picerno, historian and lecturer
The Stonewall Brigade – Jeffrey Wert, author, lecturer and educator
Battlefield Preservation – Tanya Gossett, preservation & compliance coordinator, American Battlefield Protection Program, U.S. Department of the Interior. $45 includes catered lunch; $15 under age 21, under age 12 free. Sponsored by nonprofit Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield Inc., friendsofcedarmountain.org. Mail checks to FCMB, Box 1853, Culpeper, Va. 22701. Contact: Lon Lacey, lmml@comcast.net
Battlefield: Brass-band music, artillery firing, guided walking tour, lectures and more at Cedar Mountain, on the battle’s 150th anniversary. 6:30 p.m. to dusk, Thursday, Aug. 9. First Class Brass of Warrenton will perform music of the Civil War, including popular ballads. Living historians from Carpenter’s Battery, CSA; Thompson’s Independent Battery “C,” Pennsylvania Volunteer Light Artillery; and 23rd Virginia Infantry will talk with visitors, share exhibits, give artillery demonstrations. These units have appeared in films “Gettysburg” and “Gods and Generals” and on Gettysburg, Antietam battlefields. A closing service will honor those who fought at Cedar Mountain. The public is invited to identify and comment briefly on their ancestors who fought at Cedar Mountain. BRING SEATING. Water will be provided. $10 per-vehicle parking fee. See friendsofcedarmountain.org or call 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m.
Multimedia performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 7:30 p.m. Friday, Aug. 10. Eastern View High School, Culpeper.
Sesquicentennial anniversary weekend, Cedar Mountain battlefield. Friday, Aug. 10, through Sunday, Aug. 12. Living history programs with Carpenter’s Battery, CSA; Thompson’s Independent Battery “C,” Pennsylvania Volunteer Light Artillery; and the 23rd Virginia Infantry continue. Artillery demonstrations in mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Sponsored by Friends of Cedar Mountain Battlefield Inc.
Living History Walking Tour in downtown Culpeper. 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 11. Sponsored by the Museum of Culpeper History, 803 S. Main St. $10 per person. 540/829-1749. culpepermuseum.com or 540/825-5549 before 8 p.m.
Kelly’s Ford & Stevensburg Tour. 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 11. Departs from the Graffiti House, 19484 Brandy Road, Brandy Station. Two-hour tour covers the June 9, 1863 ,Union river crossing at Kelly’s Ford, and follows the route of Union cavalry commanded by Col. Alfred Duffie to Stevensburg, where J.E.B. Stuart’s volunteer scout, Capt. William Farley, was mortally wounded. $10 per person. Car caravan; arrive before 10 a.m. Sponsored by the Brandy Station Foundation. The historic Graffiti House will be open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday. brandystationfoundation.com.
Confederate scout Frank Stringfellow confers with Redmond Burke and John Mosby.
Final multimedia performance of “Marching Through Culpeper.” 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 12.
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