"The Weekly Fireside"
of the American Civil War History
Special Interest Group

Submitted by GFS Jayne@aol.com, GFS Teg@aol.com, GFH Amy and GFSJim@aol.com

Edited by GFSGary@aol.com

Mission Statement:

To serve all genealogists by providing an enjoyable online environment with as many helpful and reliable resources as possible.

 

WHAT WE ARE ABOUT

OUR FOCUS: the "History of the American (United States) Civil War".

OUR GOAL: to enhance your Genealogy activity, knowledge, and "wisdom" by talking about the history surrounding their lives and actions; specifically the "Civil War" that our ancestors lived through and died because of.

Then Captain Oliver Wendell Holmes of the 20th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, says it so well.

"I think it is a noble and pious thing

To do whatever we may by written

Word or moulded bronze and sculpted Stone to keep our memories, our

Reverence and our love alive and

To hand them on to new generations

All too ready to forget."

OUR PROMISE: to provide an "online" environment that is NOT judgmental and to address ALL aspects of this "Pivotal Period" in our History, with honesty and truth (as we know it).

FOR ALL YOU 1ST TIMERS ON THURSDAY -

 

"WE REALLY WELCOME YOU TO OUR MERRY BAND" WE ENJOYED HAVING YOU, TRADING QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS AND ESPECIALLY YOUR CAMARADERIE!!! :-)... COME AGAIN OFTEN, WE "RELISH" YOUR COMPANY..

Every first-timer to the American Civil War History SIG gets put on the newsletter distribution automatically. We do this to give you an opportunity to jump right in with us. If you desire NOT to receive the newsletter, then just drop us an email saying UNSUBSCRIBE and we will quickly remove your screen name from distribution. We certainly don't want to clog your mailbox with unwanted material. Also many of you pass on the newsletter to others that don't subscribe to AOL. We really want to thank you for spreading the word. I would also like to let you know that we would be happy to add them to our list if they have email of any sort. We distribute everywhere to those that have requested it. AOL membership is not a requirement although we'd love to see you in the Chat Room :D

THE HELP DESK

This segment is to address specific questions that hit our plate on Thursday night that we didn't have a chance to answer or needed a bit of time to check it out. Hope these answer the mail :D

Editor's Note: Regimental Histories and Letters, etc. Postings: keyword "roots", after which will bring you to the main screen of the Genealogy Forum. Select the "Files Library Center", then "History Files". At that point select "Civil War Files. Lectures and the Letters, Songs and Poems evenings are also posted in the "Files Library Center" under "History Lectures" as the Lecture Subject. The "Firesides" when they eventually get there after their 30 days in the New Files section are posted in the "Files Library Center" under "Meeting Logs and Newsletters".

 

 

Andersonville lookupsFrom: frye@gnat.net (FRYE FAMILY)

Kevin Frye has offered his services for looking up Andersonville ancestors

http://www.corinthian.net/mccc/plookup.htm

Kevin is now building a website around Andersonville that informs about the prison as well as his "lookup" offer above.

The address is: http://www.angelfire.com/ga2/Andersonvilleprison/index.html

 

Submitters NOTE: Please visit this website.. it is awesome..

 

From: rosewebb@datasync.com (Rose C. Webb)

Rosie has sent us a listing of the [Bossier] VANCE GUARDS.. She was provided in the information via kayn@webtv.net of the LouisianaBlues. This list is pretty lengthy, so I'm transferring Rosie's Unit roster into a file which I'll get posted in the Civil War Files in the Genealogy Forum's Files LIbrary. If you have any difficulty getting there and accessing the file, drop the team a line and we'll certainly try to resolve getting. it.

Union and Confederate POWs and Prison Lists in Publications (GFS Jim):

CONFEDERATE P.O.W.'S Soldiers and Sailors Who Died in Federal Prisons & Military Hospitals in the North

 

Material researched from the National Archives and copyrighted in 1984 by Frances Ingmire & Carolyn Ericson. Distributed by: Ericson Books, 1614 Redbud Street, Nacogdoches, TX 75961; and Ingmire Publications, 10166 Clairmont Drive St. Louis, MO 63136

Confederate Prison Lists of Union Prisoners

 

A number of books have been printed which list prisoners in various prisons of the Union and of the Confederacy. Among the major books presenting data on Union Prisoners in Confederate prisons are:

a. A. O. Abbott, PRISON LIFE IN THE SOUTH, Harper and Brothers, New York, NT, 1866. Officers in prison in Columbia, South Carolina 1864-1865.

b. D. Atwater, UNION SOLDIERS BURIED AT ANDERSONVILLE, NY Tribune Association, New York, NY, 1868. 12000 names.

c. C. D. Berry, THE LOSS OF THE SULTANA, Thorpe, Lansing, Michigan, 1892. Steamer sinking, over 1500 exchanged Union prisoners lost.

d. A. Cooper, IN AND OUT OF REBEL PRISONS, Oliphant, Oswego, NY, 1888. 35 pages of officers imprisoned in Macon, GA. 1864.

e. W.W. Glazier, THE CAPTURE, THE PRISON PEN, AND THE ESCAPE, Goodwin, Hartford, Connecticut, 1867. Officers in Libby Prison (Richmond) and at Columbia, South Carolina 1864.

f. W.C. Harris, PRISON LIFE IN THE TOBACCO WAREHOUSE AT RICHMOND, Childs, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1862. Soldiers in prison at Richmond, VA 1861-62.

g. J. Hawes, CAHABA, A STORY OF CAPTIVE BOYS IN BLUE, Burr Printing House, New York, NT, 1888. Soldiers in prison in Cahaba, AL 1863-65.

h. A.B. Isham and others, PRISONERS OF WAR AND MILITARY PRISONS, Lyman and Cushing, Cincinnati, OH, 1890. Over 2000 officers in various prisons 1864-65.

i. W.H. Jeffrey, RICHMOND PRISONS, 1861-62, Republican Press, St. Johnsbury, VT., 1893. About 4000 names.

j. C. Lamman, JOURNAL OF ALFRED ELY, PRISONER OF WAR IN RICHMOND, Appleton and Co., New York, NT, 1862. Soldiers in Confederate prisons as of 25 November 1861. 75 pages of listings.

k. PA AT ANDERSONVILLE AND SALISBURY, Aughinbaugh, Harrisburg, PA, 1909-12. 2 volumes. Prison survivors.

l. J. L. Ransom, ANDERSONVILLE DIARY, Haskell House, New York, 1881 (1974). Camp Asylum Prison, Columbia, SC.

m. G.E. Sabre, NINETEEN MONTHS A PRISONER OF WAR, American News Co., New York, NT, 1865.

n. N. Schwartz, TWENTY-TWO MONTHS A PRISONER OF WAR, Nelson Publishing Co., St. Louis, MO, 1892. Soldiers in prison in TX 1861-63.

o. US Christian Commission, FEDERAL DEAD BURIED FROM LIBBY, BELLEISLE, DANVILLE AND CAMP LAWTON PRISONS, AT CITY POINT, AND BEFORE PETERSBURG AND RICHMOND, The Commission, Philadelphia, PA, 1865. Thousands of prisoners listed.

Published Compilations of Confederate Prisoners in Union Prison Camps

 

a. J. Barbiere, SCRAPS FROM THE PRISON TABLE AT CAMP CHASE AND JOHNSON'S ISLAND, Davis, Doylestown, PA,, 1868. 57 pages of Confederate prisoners.

b. E.W. Beitzel, POINT LOOKOUT PRISON CAMP, The Author, Abell, MD, 1972. Over 3000 prisoners who died in camp.

c. CONFEDERATES WHO DIED AT CAMP DOUGLAS, CHICAGO, IL, 1862-5, Gray, Kalamazoo, MI, 1968. Over 4400.

d. B. England, CONFEDERATE SOLDIERS WHO ARE BURIED AT ROCK ISLAND ARSENAL, The Arsenal, Rock Island, IL. 1985.

e. F. Fuzzlebug, PRISON LIFE DURING THE REBELLION, Funk's Sons, Singers Glen, VA, 1869. 600 Confederate officers in prison at Morris Island 1864.

f. C.W. Holmes, THE ELMIRA PRISON CAMP, 1864-5, Putnam's Sons, New York, NT, 1912. Almost 3000 Confederate prisoner burials.

g. Frances T. Ingmire, CONFEDERATES WHO DIED IN FEDERAL PRISONS AND HOSPITALS, Ingmire Publications, St. Louis, MO, 1985. Very large list.

h. W. H. Knauss, THE STORY OF CAMP CHASE, ITS CEMETERY, AND OTHER CEMETERIES, Methodist Episcopal Church, Nashville, TN, 1906. Confederate burials at Camp Chase, Antietam, South Mountain, and Monocacy.

i. J.C. Poe, THE RAVING FOE, Longhorn Press, Eastland, TX, 1967. Over 1200 prisoners on Johnson's Island, Lake Erie.

Weekly Web Sites We've Received

 

These are from GFH Amy/AJWRJW:

In response to questions on Civil War Prisons, here are some sites provided by GFH Amy & GFS Jayne:

Thanks Jayne and Amy

These are from IrishInCal

 

Thank you Grace :)

A Bit of Humor from Alysabeth:

 

From GFS Jayne:

War of the Rebellion - Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies http://www.nara.gov/nara/naralibrary/ref/armyreb.html

 

These are from IrishInCal:

 

Bless your heart Grace :D You are indeed a "wealth"!!

These are from one new to our group - DeesRoots:

 

Thanks Dee for jumping right in there :-)

from AJWRJW

 

thanks Amy

from GFS Cindy - "some Civil War Christmas Sites"

 

"Building New Holiday Traditions http://www.ancestry.com/tour/tour2.along.htm

 

{{{Cindy}}} these are great!

from IrishInCal:

 

from GFS Jayne:

On there you will find a new column "Bits of Blue and Gray" It will be a monthly column and the January one has made it's debut already <G>

.... DID YOU KNOW....

 

What was happening during Christmas 1861, the first Christmas of the war? In Washington, the Lincolns had guests for Christmas dinner at the White House. He and his Cabinet also met at some length on this Christmas Day -- in the White House, as was the custom.

In the field this first Christmas, Union and Confederate shooting --- skirmishing, they call it --- took place near Frederick, Maryland. Union ships stopped and seized a Reb blockade-runner off Cape Fear. A minor Union expedition was in motion in Missouri --- no great results to report.

It was a Wednesday, and just days before there had been consternation in the LIncoln White House over Mary Todd Lincoln's spendthrift ways. She had already exceeded her congressional appropriation for interior refurbishment, and she was in tears over the embarrassing issue. Husband Abraham was upset, too, saying none too prettily, "It would stink in the nostrils of the American people" to know he approved expenses "overrunning an appropriation of $20,000 for flub dubs for this damned old house, when the soldiers cannot have blankets."

In any case, the presidential home did look much better for the holidays, and despite the tragedies of war there was momentary joy and warmth for the Lincolns in being all together one last time. Eldest son Robert was down from Harvard, and his young brothers Willie and Tad were on hand as well. Two months later, Willie, only eleven, would be dead, a victim of fever. After that shock, Mary Todd Lincoln, already subject to emotional swings, would never be the same again.

Christmas Day of 1862, the second Christmas of the war, came to a nation far more war-weary. The Lincolns marked their holiday by visiting the wounded in Washington hospitals. Fighting --- no major battles, but real fighting --- took place at widely scattered sites. William T. Sherman was moving down the Mississippi from Memphis to Vicksburg, and there was fighting near Brentwood and on the Edmonson Pike in Tennessee; at Ripley, Mississippi; and near Warrenton, Virginia; and at Green's Chapel and Bear Willow in Kentucky. Few could be happy with the state of the divided nation this day.

On Christmas Day of 1863, a Friday, little change in the inclinations of the belligerents would have been apparent to the unacquainted spectator looking down from on high. Except, perhaps, for more naval action. In South Carolina's Sono River, Federal gunboats dueled with Confederate shore batteries, with severe damage to the Union's Marblehead. A similar exchange took place between the USS Pawnee and shore guns at St. John's Island near Charleston. Ashore, Union troops destroyed Rebel salt works at Bear Inlet, North Carolina, and fought the Johnny Reb at Fort Brooke, Florida.

By Christmas Day of 1864, a Sunday (since 1864 was a Leap Year), the obvious end was now in sight -- obvious except that the Union suffered ignominious defeat in its attempt to land sixty-five hundred troops, supported by nearly sixty warships, at Fort Fisher, North Carolina.

The entire assemblage had to sail back to Hampton Roads in Virginia to round after round of recriminations among the Federal commanders. The amphibious assault would be repeated three weeks later, on January 13, 1865, with far greater success.

Elsewhere on Christmas Day, John Bell Hood's shattered Army of Tennessee was hurrying as well as it could out of Tennessee, with skirmishing at Richland Creek, Anthony's Hill, and White's Station. Petersburg, Virginia, was under tight siege by the Union forces commanded by U.S. Grant. And in the western theater Sterling Price's Rebel forces were in retreat from Missouri. The Confederacy was shrinking in size and spirit day by day. What would the next Christmas Day hold for all?

By Christmas Day of 1865, a Monday, there was little joy, but the heart-rending war was over. It had been over for several months, but its stark images would linger and haunt for generations. By now the Confederacy had fallen; Jefferson Davis was a prisoner; Henry Wirz, commandant of the notorious Andersonville Confederate Prison in Georgia, had been hanged; Abraham Lincoln had been assassinated; and Tennessee-born Andrew Johnson was president. Four alleged conspirators in the Lincoln assassination, including a woman, Mary Surratt, had been hanged. And, an interesting postscript, the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution -- abolishing slavery -- had gained final ratification, with Alabama, North Carolina, Georgia, and Oregon all voting for it since December 1.

MEMBERS HELPING MEMBERS!!..

 

Here's how it works.. If you are trying to get photographs of a gravesite or battlefield, to collect for your Civil War ancestor research and records, then send us a request and we will post it here... Other members seeing your request and being in the near vicinity, and are willing to assist can email you direct (this protects your privacy) and work out the details. We HIGHLY recommend the "Requestor" pay for all film costs and any postage involved for a helping member. This is intended to be a "Free" assistance between members (with the exception of defraying film and postage costs). Do unto others as.... you know :-) Keep us posted on how this is working, so we can share them in the "Fireside"!!

GFS Jim

IF YOU HAVE RECEIVED ANSWER(S) TO YOUR QUESTIONS, PLEASE BE SURE TO LET US KNOW!!!!!

Thanks!! - The Editors

 

We have had some gracious members offer their assistance in this area. Their screen names and areas they have offered to help in are listed.... Please honor their "goodness" and don't abuse them :-).... We ask that you do follow the guidelines indicated above....

 

From: CW1865

  • My gr gr grandfather, Pvt. Adam Schneider, 183rd Ohio Infantry, died on the Sultana on April 17, 1865 while coming home from Confederate prison with over 2,000 other parolees. Shortly after, his family in Cincinnati was visited by a survivor of this disaster who was also his friend, Pvt. Michael Conrad, and Conrad told my gr gr grandmother what happened to her husband. I am looking for descendants of Conrad in the hopes that they can tell us Michael's version so what happened the night the Sultana went down.

Thanks so much!

Pam Newhouse

  • {{{Pam}}} - I'm glad to hear from you J We'll be sure to put this in the newsletter and see what hits we get :D Anyone able to help Pam out, please respond to GFS Jim@aol.com and CW1865@aol.com. Ed. Note: for those that don't recognize Pam, she is the Editor and Publisher of a newsletter "The Sultana Remembered" published for descendants and interested persons. (The Sultana Descendants meet annually in Knoxville TN on the date of the disaster - April 27, 1865)
  • IllinoisCW is looking for someone living in or near Livingston County, NY. He's trying to locate a possible gravesite. If you think you might be able to help, e-mail IllinoisCW@aol.com for further details
  • TEAPOT311 wants to know if there would be records at the National Archives if an ancestor was a "scout" for General Grant... Teapot311 does not know if ancestor was actually in the military. Any help out there????

From: MRB1330

  • Teapot, Check this page. I recently had a question about a pension that my ancestor received which was discontinued . The record gave a number to check as the reason. I contacted NA and was called by telephone the next day to verify the problem and to tell me how to get more records (the rest of the story) on my ancestor. Perhaps they can answer your question about the scout for Gen. Grant. Good luck,
  • Peggy http://www.nara.gov/research/
    •

     

    From: Jab0615

    • Photo request for Brigade markers of Smith's Brigade on East Conferderate Ave. on the East slope of Culps Hill in Gettsyburg. My grgr grandfather was in Co. "G" 31st Virginia Inf. that fought there.

    J. Beale

    • {{{{{JAB}}}}} Try the following website... there are some really neat pictures there. Behind the Stonewall - 360 Degree Panoramic Images From Civil War Battlefields http://ww.jatruck.com/stonewall/
  • Anybody out there able to help JAB???
    •

    Carol jake

    • Carol jake is still looking for someone to take a picture for her at the Philadelphia National Cemetery, Haines St. and Limekiln Pike of her soldier ancestor John HEDGLIN in Section B grave 639. She has a map of the cemetery she will scan if you need it.
    • She is also still looking for information about the 184 PA Inf, Co. B

    From: MRB1330

    • I have a friend who offered to help Carol Jake with her request next time he visits Phila. National Cemetary. He would like a map if she can provide one. He is a reenactor for the 69th PA Regt. and one of the kindest men I have ever met. He also gave me the name of a person who may have some information on the 184 PA inf. I'll try to contact that person also for Carol. Please tell Carol to contact me and I'll see that she gets an email address for my friend in Philadelphia. I haven't been to the chat room recently, just can't seem to stay up late (happens when you grow old). Love it though and miss being there. I'll be back. Keep the newsletters coming. I enjoy them so much.
  • Thanks much,
    •

    Peggy Brill aka MRB1330

    • Thanks Peggy :-) LOL I know that "growing older feeling" Heh Heh !! Carol - send Peggy an email with the particulars her friend needs and you may be in business :D Good Luck..

    From: Carol jake

    • Hi All And Thank You to the Fireside Newsletter, Peggy and most of all BILL !!!!!!!!
    • Bill did take the pictures and I heard from him today, he has developed the film and I should have the picture of the stone soon. As Peggy says "It pays to advertise"
    • THANKS A MILLION TO ALL IF I CAN HELP ANYONE PLEASE LET ME KNOW! ( this will be forwarded to the Mercer County Website to their Civil War Section) :)
  • {{{{Carol}}}}} Whoppee!!! Paydirt, Heh Heh Thanks Peggy and Bill. This really does work... :-)
    •

    Pugnutty is also still looking for someone to take photos of CW ancestors' graves.....

    • Daniel Boone CORBIN Co. F, 10th MO Infantry of the war and discharged 17 Oct. 1862. He died 15 Nov. 1925 and is buried in New Salem Cemetary, Couch, MO.
    • William Henry CORBIN, Private, Co. E, 24th MO Infantry, he served for 3 yrs 6months, 21days and was shot in the hip and held in Libby Prison. Died 5 Jan 1934. Buried Melbourne, MO.
  • ED. NOTE: anybody near either of those cemeteries????
    •
    • Jim, Hello, Just to let you know---my request for getting photos of cemetary headstones in Missouri has been partly fulfilled. My very own brother, made a trip two weeks ago to West Plains,MO and asked me if I wanted him to bring anything back!!! I told him photos of our Great Grandfathers, Civil War Veteran, Daniel Boone CORBIN's headstone in the New Salem Cemetary in Couch. So I am thrilled. Just wanted you to know you can remove that request.
  • Thank You,

    Kathleen

    {{{{Kathleen}}}}} .............finally you made it! :-) Nuff said ....

    •

    From: hood@rica.net (Jan Hood) and passed to us from SusiCP

    • SIMON POLK enlisted in the Confederate Army on 16 April 1862 at Rudes Hill, New Market, VA. He went in as a Private. He was assigned to the 2nd VA Infantry, Company F, Winchester Rifles. This Company and Infantry rode with Stonewall Jackson throughout the war and was part of "Stonewall's Brigade." SIMON POLK was listed as 'sick' in September 1862, and in a hospital at Bunker Hill, West Va. He was later moved to a hospital in Martinsburg , W. Va., where he died on 11 October 1862. The hospital is not named.
  • I would appreciate anyone who may be able to help me, with any lookup or advice.

    Thank you VERY much.

    Jan in Shenandoah Co., Va.

    "Jan" - we're glad your "plea" was passed on to us. We'll put this to the membership who many dedicated and expert researchers in all aspects of the Civil War and see what we can find..... :-) Hey Faithful!.... What say ye??

     

    •

    From: TUBES14

    • Hi Jim: Jab0615 has been sent the information on his ancestors regiment from Gettysburg - Tom
    • "Tom" (GFS TEG) - thanks partner :D

    A BIT OF COMMUNITY...

     

    Check out the following member inputs for comments and requests for information, Feedbacks, Items of Interest and Plea's for HELP...

     

    From: GFS Jayne as delivered by ZOOM UP

    Custer's CW Trooper

    by Capt. Jayna M. Legg

     

    ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, Ill. (Army News Service, Nov. 16, 1999) -- Soldiers from the 7th Cavalry at Fort Hood and reservists from the 85th "Custer" Division spent Veterans Day helping provide a full-honor military burial to a veteran of the Little Big Horn. Pvt. Michael Keegan was left behind to guard the supply wagons when the rest of his unit left their base camp in Montana June 25, 1876. By the time the sun set along the Little Big Horn River that day, 261 of Keegan's comrades in Company L, 7th U.S. Calvary and their commander, Brevet Maj. Gen. George A. Custer, lay dead at the hands of Sioux and Cheyenne warriors.

    Keegan was one of the lucky ones who survived the massacre. But the fickle winds of fortune soon shifted on Pvt. Keegan. In December of the same year, chronic rheumatism led to his discharge from the Army he had served for 21 years. For the next ten years, the Civil War veteran lived in soldiers' homes until he moved to Chicago in 1886. There he lived in a boarding house until he died of cancer at the age of 74 and was buried in a pauper's grave in Evanston, Ill.

    Since he had no family, the $55 bill for Keegan's burial in Cavalry Cemetery remained outstanding, as did the debt his adopted country owed him for his dedicated military service - until now. Nearly 150 years after he left Ireland in search of a better life in America, and 99 years after he died alone and penniless, Keegan received a military burial with full honors and was laid to rest on Veterans Day in the cemetery at Fort Sheridan, Ill. He was reburied near three of his 7th Cavalry comrades.

    "He was given a raw deal but now he's being buried with more honor than he could have imagined," said Jerome Kowalski of Elmhurst, Ill., who assumed the role of a Civil War Union general for the ceremony. "We are honoring not only him, but veterans of all wars (who fought) so the flag may continue to fly."

    Under an overcast November sky, several hundred people watched as more than 250 people participated in the memorial service for Pvt. Keegan. Chicago's consul general of Ireland joined soldiers and their ladies from Civil War re-enactment units; bagpipers from the Chicago Police Department's Emerald Society; real-life soldiers from the active Army 7th Cavalry out of Fort Hood, and the Army Reserve's 85th Division (Training Support) as well as the members of the Schaumburg, Ill., Veterans of Foreign Wars post responsible for orchestrating the reburial.

    "I ordered my guys here," said retired Chief Petty Officer Art Frith, a Fort Sheridan resident and Boy Scout leader. "None of them has seen a full honor military funeral. It's a once-in-a-lifetime event."

    Pat Friend, the wife of one of the members of VFW Post 2202, also appreciated the uniqueness of attending the funeral of a Civil War veteran in 1999. "I've never seen anything like this, and I don't think I ever will again," she said. "I brought my three grandkids, and I don't think they'll ever see anything like this again, either. It was just overwhelming. And to think that so many people came. I'm just honored to be here."

    Palatine, Ill., resident Randy Johnson, a Vietnam veteran and Post 2202 member, was the man who discovered Keegan's unmarked grave in Evanston in 1988. Johnson was on a mission for the Little Big Horn Association, photographing graves of soldiers who participated in Custer's last stand. The first thing Johnson saw to after he learned about Keegan was getting the veteran a proper headstone. Then when Johnson joined Post 2202 in the mid-1990s, he persuaded the group to rebury the Custer soldier at Fort Sheridan, alongside fellow 7th Cavalry soldiers John Hackett, Phillip Spinner and August B. Seifert.

    "We thought it would be fitting to have him buried with comrades," Johnson said. "We thought it was important enough to bring it forward and do it right," said Post 2202 Quartermaster Fred Gallien. "He should have been buried as a veteran, not as a pauper. Now we'll do it 100 years later." Gallien declined to say how much the post spent to exhume Keegan and rebury him at Fort Sheridan, other than to say "it cost us a few dollars." "Our lawyer hadn't even heard of someone doing something like this ... Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine it would turn out like this," said Johnson as he waited in the parking lot of the North Shore Memorial United States Army Reserve Center before the Nov. 11 ceremony. Nearby, Abe Lincoln (Max Daniels of Wheaton, Ill.) gave interviews, while Civil War re-enactors polished their muskets and readied their cannons and horses, and present-day soldiers straightened their uniforms and rehearsed their color guards.

    "I'm a little nervous," Johnson admitted. "I feel quite honored. So many people have come forward to help." Brig. Gen. Ronald Mangum, commander of the 1st Brigade of the 85th "Custer" Division, said there was no question the 85th would participate in a ceremony for a soldier who served with Custer. "The 85th embodies the present-day spirit of Civil War General George A. Custer," Magnum said. "We carry forth his tradition in our mission of training soldiers to defend the freedom of the United States."

    Sgt. Shabir Syed, from 85th Division headquarters based in Arlington Heights, Ill., was happy to march in the Custer Division color guard. "I'm very proud to participate in this," he said as he readied his flag for a practice march to the cemetery. "I'm proud to be an American soldier."

    Another color guard in the ceremony was provided by the present-day 7th Cavalry, which serves worldwide, said Lt. Col. Anthony Ieraldi, commander of the 1st Squadron, 7th Cavalry, Fort Hood, Texas. Units of the 7th Cavalry are stationed at Fort Stewart, Georgia, and in Korea as well as at Fort Hood. "It's a chance for us to honor the sacrifices of all veterans, as well as Keegan," Ieraldi said, admitting that the duty was an unusual one for his soldiers.

    The man behind the parade and full military honor funeral was bugle-player Tom Day, who has 550 military funerals under his belt as well as Chicago's welcome home parade for Vietnam veterans. The Berwyn, Ill., resident, state lottery employee and commander of The Mariners, Black Sheep Squadron, said he called Johnson to offer to play taps after reading about the reburial in the newspaper. "He said he needed more than a color guard," Day said. "He needed someone to organize the funeral."

    During the funeral service, the consul general of Ireland in Chicago, Earmon Hickey, explained that Keegan came to the United States "as part of the great human tide of more than one million people, who saw America as the land of promise." Keegan arrived in the country sometime before 1855, when he enlisted in the U.S. Army in Missouri and then fought in the Civil War with the 2nd Cavalry, which was later redesignated Company E, 5th Cavalry.

    "More than 160,000 Irishmen fought with the Union," Hickey said. "They fought at Gettysburg, Fredricksburg, Vicksburg ... they were generals and privates and every rank in between. "Today in honoring Michael Keegan, we honor all who served."

    Since Keegan has no known descendents, the pallbearers from Company B of the 8th Illinois Dismounted Cavalry Civil War re-enactment unit presented the flag that draped Keegan's coffin to Hickey, who said it will be preserved in a museum in Keegan's hometown of County Wexford, Ireland.

    "Thanks for keeping the faith with Michael Keegan ... We're very grateful for this recognition," Hickey said. "And I think we can assume he'd approve. "May his faithful soul be on the right-hand side of God."

    The ceremony ended with the mournful wail of bagpipes playing a medley of Irish songs picked just for Keegan and the salute of cannons and muskets cutting the crisp fall air.

    [Submitters note: Capt. Jayna Legg is the public affairs officer of the 85th Division (Training Support).] The link to original news item:

    http://www.dtic.mil/armylink/news/Nov1999/a19991118custer.html

     

    "Gordon" - great news story.... Thanks for sharing...

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    FBenway's Thanksgiving Poem

    THANKSGIVING

     

    By Frank Benway

    Oh Boy we're going on a trip

    To Grandma's house today

    We go there every year

    For it's Thanksgiving Day today

    Their farms but just miles away

    Oh I can see it now

    Grandpa's in the orchard picking

    Red Apples for the day

    Grandma's in the kitchen

    A big turkey there to stuff

    While in the oven Pies now bubble

    As they cook so Golden Brown

    On the table is our treat

    Cookies made like Pilgrims

    Turkey and some others

    Fresh baked to day for Sis and I

    With Cider chilling in the ice

    Oh what a day this one is

    Are we getting close

    We ask our Dad

    In an hour he replies

    The miles slip by beneath our wheels

    As we work on our cards

    One for Grandma she's so nice

    One for Grandpa he likes to grouch

    But always its for fun

    Today I will help him on the farm

    He lets us gather up the eggs

    The chickens then we feed

    We sneak away into the barn

    To jump there in the hay

    We see the house and the barn

    Oh at last we're here

    We enter into the great long hall

    The aromas pull us on

    Into the kitchen filled with smells

    Delicious food is every where

    We get our hugs and kisses

    She shoo's us back outside

    Hey there's Grandpa way up there

    Picking apples Big and Red

    With Joyful Glee we run to his tree

    He drops to us a Rosey Apple

    As he laughs so heartily

    The day goes on as we planned

    Until the bell rings out

    Holding hands with Grandpa

    We head back to the house

    We first must wash to look our best

    At the table now we gather

    It looks so Bountiful

    A turkey big and Golden Brown

    With stuffin bulging out

    Mashed potatoes, peas and turnips

    Cranberry sauce ,giblet gravy

    With pies on the side board

    Oh what a Happy Day

    We all are seated with folded hands

    While Grandpa gives Grace

    Plates are passed to be filled

    With all of Grandma's wonders

    Grandpa shyly looks at us

    With a Jolly grin he slices off

    The drum sticks just for us

    With a steaming plate before us

    I blurted out, Boy those Pilgrims

    Had a great idea, Thanksgiving

    For all the World

    All the years have swiftly passed

    I'm old and a Grandpa in that tree

    I wait now for my Grandchildren

    To run to me so I may drop a

    Big Red Apples in their eager hands

    As tears of Joy gently do appear

    Ben

    "Ben" - as always you "spoil" us greatly.... Thank you !!

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: SusiCP

    Thanks for a fabulous newsletter.. So fitting at this time... Love Susi

    {{Susi}} :-) thank you...

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From GFS Jim: My friend Alysbeth (she allows me to call her Beth 'cause I don't pronounce her given name very well - heh heh ) of strong Welsh and Irish "Roots", sent me these two which are just incredible for Thanksgiving :-)

    Thanksgiving forecast

    Turkeys will thaw in the morning, then warm in the oven to an afternoon high near 190 F. The kitchen will turn hot and humid, and if you bother the cook, be ready for a severe squall or cold shoulder.

    During the late afternoon and evening, the cold front of a knife will slice through the turkey, causing an accumulation of one to two inches on plates. Mashed potatoes will drift across one side while cranberry sauce creates slippery spots on the other. Please pass the gravy.

    A weight watch and indigestion warning have been issued for the entire area, with increased stuffiness around the beltway. During the evening, the turkey will diminish and taper off to leftovers, dropping to a low of 34 F in the refrigerator.

    Looking ahead to Friday and Saturday, high pressure to eat sandwiches will be established. Flurries of leftovers can be expected both days with a 50 percent chance of scattered soup late in the day. We expect a warming trend where soup develops. By early next week, eating pressure will be low as the only wish left will be the bone.

    * * * * * * *

    Thanksgiving

     

    We walk on starry fields of white

    And do not see the daisies;

    For blessings common in our sight

    We rarely offer praises.

    We sigh for some supreme delight

    To crown our lives with splendor,

    And quite ignore our daily store

    Of pleasures sweet and tender.

    Our cares are bold and push their way

    Upon our thought and feeling.

    They hang about us all the day,

    Our time from pleasure stealing.

    So unobtrusive many a joy

    We pass by and forget it,

    But worry strives to own our lives

    And conquers if we let it.

    There's not a day in all the year

    But holds some hidden pleasure,

    And looking back, joys oft appear

    To brim the past's wide measure.

    But blessings are like friends, I hold,

    Who love and labor near us.

    We ought to raise our notes of praise

    While living hearts can hear us.

    Full many a blessing wears the guise

    Of worry or of trouble.

    Farseeing is the soul and wise

    Who knows the mask is double.

    But he who has the faith and strength

    To thank his God for sorrow

    Has found a joy without alloy

    To gladden every morrow.

    We ought to make the moments notes

    Of happy, glad Thanksgiving;

    The hours and days a silent phrase

    Of music we are living.

    And so the theme should swell and grow

    As weeks and months pass o'er us,

    And rise sublime at this good time,

    A grand Thanksgiving chorus.

    --------------------------------------------------------------------

    Wilcox, Ella Wheeler 1896. Custer and Other Poems.

     

    Ella Wheeler Wilcox (1850-1919) was an American journalist, poet, and activist. Ella was born November 5, 1850. In April, 1852, the Wheeler family moved to a farm at Westport, Dane County, a short distance north of Madison. Though her parents could support their children only meagerly during the Civil War years, they gave them a rich inheritance of intangibles. Reading was an important part of their daily life, and correct grammar was demanded of all. The parents' tolerant attitudes were later reflected in Ella's work, and she took pride in her heritage of health and vitality. Ella attended the local one-room school where she excelled in composition but rarely passed an arithmetic test. In 1867 her parents sent her to Madison where she was a junior in the Female College, a part of the University of Wisconsin. Ella wanted to spend all of her time writing and begged to come home. She also was painfully aware of the difference between her homemade clothes and the dresses of city girls. After one year she was allowed to end her formal education and return home.

    Ella became an accepted part of the literary and social life of Madison and Milwaukee. Governor Fairchild gave her his personal congratulations. He had lost one arm in the Civil War, but embraced her, saying, "I wish I had two arms to put around you, little girl. I am so proud of you." Her personal popularity was indicated by financial backing from friends and the support of Milwaukee newspaper literary critics.

    The Wisconsin years of Ella Wheeler Wilcox have been called the Midwest's Golden Age of Literature. Transplanted New England cultural roots gave Wisconsin a literary flowering. Ella Wheeler Wilcox was one of the brightest blooms. It has also been said that her life was an autobiography of American history as her writings parallel social and economic changes of the Victorian

    Era.

    {{{{{{Alysbeth}}}}}} Thank you much!!!! They are treasures :D

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: KINFOLK919

    The Rebel flag still excites passions. I ran across this newspaper article.....

     

    BY KAREN SAMPLES of The Cincinnati Enquirer

    WARSAW — Behind every Confederate flag is a man who will go on and on about it. They aren't shy, these guys.

    They hate big government and love Southern grit. They romanticize rebellion. They say today's African-Americans should get over slavery, because it happened so long ago.

    They are people like Paul Crowfoot of Gallatin County, who has Confederate flags on his vehicle and in his house.

    The federal government is out of control, he says. It's keeping guns from law-abiding citizens and giving billions to other countries while ignoring poverty at home.

    "The government is trying to pressure people to be ro bots," says Mr. Crowfoot, a 32-year-old Teamster truck driver. "They don't want free spirits, leaders with their own minds and their own say so."

    The Confederate flag isn't about hate, he says. It's a relic from the time Southerners fought back.

    The rest of America isn't so sure. From San Francisco to South Carolina, the flag's public display has outraged some and brought out the stubbornness in others.

    Before the civil rights victories of the '60s, people battled racism in the written law and formal practice of this country. Some lost their lives for the cause. It was easy to see the outrage in Southern degeneracy.

    The Confederate flag, however, is a more ambiguous target. Arguments over its meaning begin to sound like referendums on political correctness.

    In California last year, the United Daughters of the Confederacy were not invited to a July Fourth parade because of their flag. They vowed to sue, claiming violation of free speech.

    In Pittsburgh, African-Americans protested the inclusion of "Dixie" in a high-school band performance with a Civil War theme. They also opposed the drill team's use of a Confederate-like flag.

    In South Carolina, a Rebel flag continues to fly above the capitol, despite this year's boycott of the state's tourism industry by an African-American organization.

    These are murky disputes. Mr. Crowfoot's spin on the flag helps explain why.

    Scattered throughout Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky are like-minded folks who display it with impunity. Their isolation — be it geographic or intellectual — keeps them clear of competing ideas. They don't personally know any African-Americans, so it's easy to make sweeping claims, however suspect they sound.

     "We have very few colored people in this area, but the ones who are here don't think anything about (the flag)," says Harold "Bud" Wilson of Florence. He and his wife, Gloria, sell Native American gifts from their White Winds store in Union. A section in the back is devoted to Confederate paraphernalia.

    Here, the flag decorates belt buckles, wallets, rings, pins, shot glasses and earrings. It appears on T-shirts and stickers with messages like these: "Pride, not Prejudice," "Rebel by Choice," and "National Association for the Advancement of Rednecks."

    Mr. Wilson, 67, read a book about the Civil War in Boone County and discovered three of his relatives fought for the South. One chose to stay in a Northern prison rather than sign an oath to put down his arms.

    Your word meant something then," Mr. Wilson says.

    His wife is similarly enamored of the South.

    "I've always had this dream of coming down these big, wide steps at a plantation, in the big, wide skirt, the corsets and the whole nine yards," she says.

    Slavery shouldn't have happened, the couple agrees. But they say the Civil War was about something else.

    "For some reason, (the North) just decided the South would have to do what it said," Mr. Wilson offers.

    "Everyone should be allowed to do what they want," says his wife.

    Slavery eventually would have died out, anyway, because people can't be kept down forever, Mr. Wilson says.

    Such a casual view of an abominable institution isn't limited to Kentucky.

    On a tree-lined street in Norwood, Confederate flags hang in the upper windows of a white, two-story house.

    John Weiler, 44, shares the place with his mother. Parts of the inside are painted red or gray. Mr. Weiler has about 30 flags, and his cat is named for Gen. Stonewall Jackson.

    "I guess I'm just fascinated by the Confederacy," Mr. Weiler says.

    He especially likes to read about the South's John S. Mosby, known as "the Grey Ghost."

    "As far as I can find out, he's the only one on either side who never lost a battle."

    Mr. Weiler's adolescent daughter pipes up.

    "My friend thinks it's a prejudiced flag, and she thinks you're prejudiced," she tells her dad.

    "Well, she's mixed," he says, referring to the child's racial background.

    "She can say whatever she wants," he adds.

    When asked flat-out, Mr. Weiler says he isn't racist.

    But such a connection is all too easy to make.

    About five years ago at the National Afro-American History Museum and Cultural Center in Wilberforce, Ohio, a bomb threat was traced to an individual with swastikas and Confederate flags in his home, says John Fleming. He's executive director of the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, which will open in Cincinnati in 2003.

    Part of the center's mission will be to encourage racial reconciliation. "We'll be talking about some very uncomfortable issues," Mr. Fleming says. These will include the effect of slavery on race relations today.

    The battle over states' rights was an issue in the Civil War, but only because Southerners owned slaves, Mr. Fleming says. "There's no question that slavery was at the center of the Civil War," he says.

    Today, African-Americans have made great strides in joining the middle class, but a disproportionate number remain at the bottom. Mr. Fleming sees slavery as part of the cycle.

    "Just as you inherit wealth, and you seem to benefit from generation to generation, I think you can inherit poverty, and it becomes very difficult to break out of poverty," he says.

    Despite the spin offered by its fans, the Confederate flag will always be associated with America's greatest moral failure.

    Some people just don't seem to mind.

    "Kinfolk" - thanks for sending the article... You're certainly correct in your opening statement. The old Flag still incites passion and I just read a different prospective from every person interviewed.

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: ZOOM UP

    I was in Shreveport LA for several days last week and spent some time roaming the woods on the south side of the VA hospital there which is on the site of the old Fort Humbug. The first time I've done that since I was probably 10 - 12 years old and I'm now almost 70. As a young kid we used to play there on occasion since it was a short bicycle ride from our homes.

    My reason for doing this was simple curiosity. I can faintly remember from so many years ago seeing some in-ground brass markers designating the locations occupied by various units during the Fort Humbug CW action. Alas, I could not find a single one. Either they were removed when the hospital was built in the 1960s, they were stolen over the years, or they might now be buried. There is a plaque on a post at the corner of Stoner and Market/Centenary streets next to the entrance to the National Guard armory, but that appears to be the only notation that now exists.

    Do you happen to know of a Civil War group in Shreveport or the nearby area that I could contact to suggest that they might like to take on as a project researching and remarking that site. I was born in Shreveport in 1930 and lived there until 1961. During that time and and certainly before, all Shreveporters were well acquainted with Fort Humbug and its history. However, with the intervening years I suspect that few under the age of 65 now know anything about it. It could be an interesting project for a CW group.

    Gordon L. Jennings

    Houston TX

    Gordon - the only person I know that has visited the SIG that might be able to help is our little friend "Jennie" who sometimes frequents our "haunt" on Thursdays. Her email is GenKidlet1. Send her an email and see if she can advise you. In the mean time, if any on distribution can aid Gordon send us an email :D

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: JRose10700

    I am sorta excited. I am going to be interviewed on the radio, a nationally syndicated show, Saturday, as a relic of this century!! The Motley Fools, who run all those investment programs, Tom and David Gardner, are going to call me and talk to me and ask me to speak words of wisdom about money and how I have viewed it over the years.

    It will be broadcast in 111 markets. It also can be "heard" right here on line...from noon to 3 p.m. EST.

    If anyone is interested, try http://www.fool.com/radio/radio.htm

    I talked at length to the producer today, and I think it is going to be fun. If anyone hears it -- I think I am going to be toward the beginning, or maybe start of second hour - let me know what you think. Anyway, I have a five minute segment.

    Joan

    {{{Joan}}} I went out and "listened" to the radio interview and I loved it. "Rosie the Riverter" Huh!!!! I thought I'd let the membership go listen if they had a notion even though this isn't Civil War History it is sure interesting history :D

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: IrishInCal

    All I can say is..WOW! what a newsletter..Great Job!! Sure love reading it.

    Grace

    {{Grace}} These kind of feedbacks let us know we're doing OK !! Thank you Ma'am......

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: DeesRoots

    I had a great find! While doing my sons genealogy, I was permitted to borrow the family bible, a 5 inch thick leather bound bible. I went through page by page and found a tin type photo of one of my sons ancestors in full dress Civil War uniform. If only I could find a photo of one of my ancestors like that!

    I am starting to collect books on the Civil War, if there are any that you know of that are particularly good, please pass the titles on to me. You probably already know about these sites, but I will forward just in case. If you happen to know about any other good CW sites, please pass them along.

    Dee

    {{Dee}} We're tickled to death with your "find". Yes indeed we all wish!!!! Heh Heh -- I got your sites and they are posted up in the "Help Desk" in the Web Sites for the week area. They are old favorites of ours, but it always pays to republish them because they are soooo good. Now to respond to your "book" question. For a good (not too deep) summary of the major events in the Civil War, I prefer "The Atlas of the Civil War" by James M. McPherson.

    For a quick reference to day to day history of the Civil War, try "The Civil War Day By Day", by E.B. Long with Barbara Long.

    Three great starter books for you are 1) Gods and Generals by Jeff Shaara; 2) Killer Angels by Michael Shaara (that's Jeff's father) and 3) The Last Full Measure by Jeff Shaara. They all three read like novels and are three of my favorites. We'll "ply" the membership and see what their preferences are... :-)

    OK Faithful --- Heh Heh --- Tell Dee your favorites.

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: Shilohtn

    Thank you so much for this!!!!!....I will look forward to being in the Golden Gates....and thank you...this was absolutely wonderful and so interesting....again, thank you!!!! I really appreciate getting this very much!!!!

    "Shilohtn" - You have made our day :-) Thank you.

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From "Friend" Alysabeth:

    WANING TRUST

    Americans' trust in other people has declined steadily for at least 20 years, new research at Ohio State University suggests. The study looked at data from a nation wide survey that asked several questions about trust, such as whether respondents thought people usually "would try to take advantage of you if they got a chance." Results showed that trust in individuals declined about 10 percent between 1975 and 1994, a rate of about one-half percent each year. Overall, the results show that the sense of community in the United States - what sociologists call social capital - has declined in the United States, but not alarmingly, said Pamela Paxton, author of the study and assistant professor of sociology. "I don't think there's a crisis," she said. "People still talk to their neighbors, they still participate in associations and theygenerally trust the major institutions of society. But the decline in personal trust is troubling."

    {{{Beth}}} great piece - thanks. I'm thinking the solution here is not words or pronouncements, but examples in real life... Walk the Walk! There's a bit of biblical wisdom that applies here... "Do unto others as you would have them do unto You ....

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: FAD33

    Jim, I have just checked the pigpen site for the Confederates who surrendered and were paroled at Vicksburg. Again, neither of my known kin, for whom I have the papers from the Military Park as being paroled, were listed. The only sure way of knowing is to consult with the Park at Vicksburg. Terry Wenschel is the currant historian.

    I STILL have trouble getting on line Thursday nights. I miss hearing all the good stuff! - Frances Ann

    {{{Francis}}} Thank you for the feedback. Francis was referring to a WebSite posted some weeks ago for the Vicksburg Memorial Park history and material. She gives excellent advice. The Web Sites we post are only as accurate and complete as the originators put forth in the efforts. Many are good but incomplete. The term for these is called "Construction In Progress". That progress could take awhile. Also many have asked why the census records and their like (in terms of records) aren't online. To get all those records online would require complete re-entry by hand of EVERY piece of information. There isn't a scanner in the world today that could do any type of translation scan of that much hand-written information. Have you ever actually read the reproduced copies of that information. Heh Heh I can't even read some of it...

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    .... Holiday Poems and Greetings....

     

    Sent by GFS Pilgrim:

    Twas The Day Before Yesterday

     

    TWAS the day before yesterday and all through the branches,

    NOT a name to be found, none of my ancestors.

    THE Journals and Bibles were dusty and worn,

    WHY should we care, these kinfolk are gone.

    THE pictures of children and family, long ago dead,

    ARE scattered, crinkled, and crammed under beds.

    DAD in his chair, and I with a book,

    HAD just settled back to give the TV a look.

    WHEN out on the street there arose such a clatter,

    I sprang to my feet to see what was the matter.

    ON the way to the window I tripped with a crash,

    I tore open the curtains and looked through the glass.

    THE sun in the sky was nowhere in sight,

    THE clouds were so gray, it could have been night.

    WHEN what to my wondering eyes should appear,

    THE Mailman with packages, letters and cards of good cheer.

    THE driver was grumbling while sorting his letters,

    I knew in a moment, things had to get better.

    THE size of one letter stood out from them all,

    A distant cousin was asking about family, one and all.

    THE names of Grandpa and Grandma, Great Grandparents all

    NEXT came my Father, my Brother, and Uncle Paul.

    FROM cousins and uncles to aunts and nephews,

    NIECES and in-laws, just to name a few.

    SO through the many journals and photos, and stuff I possessed,

    MY search for my ancestors slowly progressed.

    WHILE up the family tree I gradually climbed,

    MY ancestors names, I was seeking to find.

    UPON that tree I have carved many a name,

    THE branches of which, will never be the same.

    THE tree is now filled with many I've found,

    BUT in the search for others, now I am bound.

    THE ancestors whose names, I have written with love,

    THE Lord has gathered to take to His Father above.

    WITH so many names yet to be carved on that tree,

    I have little time to waste on games and TV.

    GATHERING names, photos, histories and places,

    REQUIRES a lot of love, patience, and God's good graces.

    SOME were Farmers, Soldiers and such, Mothers and Fathers who struggled much.

    SOME were Settlers, who traveled far, some Adventures, who followed the stars.

    SOME were rich but most were poor, they came by ship, seeking more.

    SOME died young, others old, many their stories yet untold.

    I cried when I thought of those brothers and sisters,

    FOR I am who I am, thanks to my ancestors.

    MY family is but one branch on the Tree of Life,

    A tree that grew strong through toil and strife.

    ALONE, I'm just a bare twig or a stub,

    TOGETHER we build a Family Tree of Love

    (Written by Linnie Vanderford Poyneer one night after a long day of research)

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    from GFH Amy - After the chat last nite I had to dig out my Whitman book!

    Memories of President Lincoln -

     

    "Hushed Be the Camps Today (May 4, 1865)

    Hush'd be the camps today,

    And soldiers, let us drape our war-worn weapons,

    And each with musing soul retire to celebrate,

    Our dear commander's death.

    No more for him life's stormy conflicts,

    Nor victory, nor defeat - no more time's dark events,

    Charging like ceaseless clouds across the sky.

    But sing, poet, in our name,

    Sing of the love we bore him - because you,

    dweller in camps, know it truly.

    As they invault the coffin there,

    Sing - as they close the doors on Earth upon him - one verse,

    For the heavy hearts of soldiers.

    This Dust Was Once The Man

    This dust was once the man,

    Gentle, plain, just and resolute, under whose cautious hand

    Against the foulest crime in history known in any land or age,

    Was saved the Union of the States.

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: Saxonm444

    Hi! I am certainly enjoying the newsletter and I have received a lot of good ideas. I need help with a site I think was on the Fireside a few weeks ago. (My printers out so I can't currently print out the info that I want) The site had to do with the Hospital at St. Louis, MO during the war. Am now looking for someone who died there. Any help? Keep up the good work.

    And, thanks for the prompt reply on my previous question! You are super people on the Fireside!

    Mary Saxon

    {{{Mary}}} This is the only posting that fit your question.......

  • Military Hospitals in the North
    •

    Material researched from the National Archives and copyrighted in 1984 by

    Frances Ingmire & Carolyn Ericson. Distributed by:

    Ericson Books, 1614 Redbud Street, Nacogdoches, TX 75961; and Ingmire Publications, 10166 Clairmont Drive St. Louis, MO 63136

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: DeesRoots

    I had a great find! While doing my sons genealogy, I was permitted to borrow the family bible, a 5 inch thick leather bound bible. I went through page by page and found a tin type photo of one of my sons ancestors in full dress Civil War uniform. If only I could find a photo of one of my ancestors like that!

    I am starting to collect books on the Civil War, if there are any that you know of that are particularly good, please pass the titles on to me. You probably already know about these sites, but I will forward just in case. If you happen to know about any other good CW sites, please pass them along.

    Dee

    {{Dee}} here's some more feed back from JRose10700: Right, Jim, the Shaara books (father and son) rank among my all-time favorites. Right up there with the old Bruce Catton books, which got me started on Civil War-ana way back at Christmas, 1939, when I got one in my Santa stocking! Can't remember if it was Mr. Lincoln's Generals or Glory Road since I read them all as they came out. And still do!

    But I want to recommend one that my son gave me last year for Christmas, and it has been a jewel. I keep it by my computer as handy reference when surfing sites, during the Thursday chats and when planning trip itineraries. So handy. It is called "Civil War Sourcebook - A Traveler's Guide" by Chuck Lawliss, published by Harmony Books of New York and available locally at Barnes and Noble. Mine is paper back.

    I picked up an old copy of Blue and Gray, both volumes in one, at a flea market the other day and am enjoying dipping into it. In my retirement days second-hand books have to do me, and thank goodness! there are bunches of great CW books that folks are letting loose of. Besides, browsing the haphazard shelves is such great fun. You never know what you might find. And by the way, thanks for the prompt reply! You are super people on the Fireside

    love

    joan

    * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: Doclynch

    Well I received an answer to my search for information on the graves located in the old Vineland Cemetery here in Orange County, Florida. This is the information I received from Robert Morss at rdmorss@morssweb.com

    Here are some leads:

    Charles H. Foster

    Residence Lawrence MA; a 35 year-old Farmer.

    Enlisted on 8/9/62 as a Private.

    On 9/4/62 he mustered into "B" Co. MA 3rd Cavalry

    He was discharged on 5/20/65

    Source: Massachusetts Soldiers, Sailors and Marines in the Civil War

    Washington Ludwig

    Residence not listed; 22 years old.

    Enlisted on 9/28/61 at Lockport, NY as a Private.

    On 10/14/61 he mustered into "Batty M" Co. NY 1st Light Artillery

    He was discharged on 10/12/64 Atlanta, GA

    Promotions:

    * Corpl 11/1/62

    * Private 4/29/64 (Reduced to ranks)

    Sources: New York, Report of the Adjutant-General

    I am more certain of the Foster ID than the Ludwig. For my Ludwig to be correct, you'd have to check the gravestone and see it if confirms the above. I suspect it says "Co. M NY. LT. A." (What appeared to be "In" is actually "N" I think) Are you close enough that you could check the actual stones?

    3rd Mass Cavalry was attached to the Army of the Gulf and later the Army of the Shenandoah.

    1st NY Lt Arty served with the Army of the Potomace, Twelfth Corps, which (a few months after Gettysburg) was transferred to the Army of the Cumberland, participating in the Chattanooga and Atlanta campaigns.

    From the above it seems there is no connection between the two men. It appears they both survived the war. Their burial in the same graveyard in Florida I would guess is coincidental -- i.e. they both moved there after the war.

    Let me know if this helps, and keep me posted if you find the stones?

    Regards,

    Robert Morss

    [from Sharon] I believe he is right on target with his information. I spoke with a volunteer at the local Family History Center here in Orlando and she had actually seen these two headstone 2 years ago. She has offered to take me to the site and show me where they are located. She checked the 1956 FHC microfilm that was referenced in the little cemetery book and we discovered Corp. Ludwig's information should of read Co. M InY.L.A. not " Y.T.A. " After receiving Robert Morss's e-mail I am convinced the " In " should be a capital " N " This will match up with what information Robert sent.

    Also I discovered a cemetery file contributed to the USGenWeb Archives by William Morgan listing the Civil War Veterans (Confederate and Union) buried in Orange County, Florida :

    ftp://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/fl/orange/cemetery/civil.txt

     

    His information also lists these two Union veterans and identifies Corp. W. Ludwig as being a member of the 1st NY Light Artillery.

    I plan to visit this old abandoned cemetery that mother nature has reclaimed and try to locate the headstones. I will try to photograph them if they are still there.

    Thank you for any time you have given to helping me in this matter. Keep up the wonderful work you do. By learning about our veterans their memories will not be lost even though they have been called home. Two days ago they were just names in a little book now look what we have learned and what more there is to still learn about them since the end of the Civil War in 1865!!!!

    Sharon Lynch

    "Sharon" - Congratulations on your find with Jayne's support.... :-) Your success makes the "idea" of this newsletter and the SIG work....

    - * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: HoganCE

    Thanks Jim for the info on Christmas in 1861-1865. Hadn't really ever thought about it before. I had heard Lincoln's comment on the $ being spent on the Whitehouse and the soldiers without blankets. Anyway take care. Happy Holidays!

    Carin

    Carin - Thanks for the feedback.

    "* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

    From: FI WATROUS

    Berwick Police were involved in an unusual incident whilst checking for speeding motorists on the A1 road between Oldhamstocks and Grantshouse. Last May, they were using a hand-held radar device to trap unwary motorists on the Edinburgh-to-London trunk road. One of the unnamed officers used the device to check the speed of an approaching vehicle, and was surprised to find that his target had registered a speed in excess of 300 miles per hour.

    The radar device then seized up and could not be re-set by the befuddled PCs. The radar had in fact latched on to a NATO Tornado aircraft in the North Sea, which was taking part in a simulated low-flying exercise over the Borders and Southern Scotland.

    Following a complaint by Sir William Sutherland, Chief Constable of the Lothian & Borders Police force to the RAF liaison office, it was revealed that the officers had a lucky escape.

    The tactical computer on board the aircraft not only detected and jammed the "hostile" radar equipment, but had automatically armed a Sidewinder air-to-ground missile ready to neutralise the perceived threat. Luckily the Dutch pilot was alerted to the missile status and was able to override the automatic protection system before the missile launched.

    The Police have so far declined to comment, although it is understood that officers will be advised to point their radar guns inland in future.

    {{Ike}} - I dying laughin...... This is indeed rich! Thanks for the lift...

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    From: Jowhara7

    Season's Greetings

    to all my Genealogy Friends and Cuzzies

    May this holiday season bring you peace, love, joy and a new cuzzin or two.

    You all have made this year very important to me.

    May whoever you worship bless you and keep you in the years to come.

    Your genie friend,

    Jacque Sue

    {{Jacque}}

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    From: Janewimb

    We are having such a good time reading the newsletter. Laughing at some and getting tears in some of the poems. This has been such a great experience. Wish all the hosts a Merry Christmas and all the Visitors the same. Really great place to visit and helps to push us all on in our research.

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    From: DeeW84 and family:

    To all of you at the "Fireside", a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday to start the new Year of 2000!!!!

    You all have my sincere thanks for giving me a wonderful year full of the greatest Civil War stories. I have learned so much more than I had ever known of the true stories of that War. I also am very grateful to all the people who work on the Civil War SIG--May you have many presents under your trees!!!

    Jim, thank you for your visits, you are a wonderful person and I am so very appreciative of your calls. They have made my days!!! Hope Santa leaves you everything you wrote and asked him for!!

    Jayne, Thanks for your kindness and help this past year, it has meant a lot to me. May Santa's pack be empty when he leaves your house after leaving your gifts and that he leaves lots of love, peace and happiness.

    Teg, Thanks for all the hard work you have done for us, your presentations have been terrific. Is Santa leaving you lots of the wonderful family and history books that you need?

    Amy, Thanks for being a part of the Fireside--I know we shall enjoy getting to know you well this coming year. I wish you all the Happiness for your Santa gifts.

    And now I must go, with this wish for all the Firesiders, Peace in your hearts and Love in your manner, Health in your House and Friendship for all. We need a much more friendly planet and as the saying goes, :et there be Peace on Earth and Let it Begin with me!

    Above all, Remember the Blessed Season and be Kind to one another.

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    From: GENESGENE

    Happy Holidays Jayne, Jim,And other leaders of the pack. I am sure you are wondering why I would send this link, but if you will go there,you will find history,click on it and you will find a very little known, but intriguing part of the Cherokee nation in the war between the states.

    Welcome to Locust Grove, Oklahoma http://www.locustgroveok.com/

     

    Happy Holidays to You and Yours.

    Jean

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    From GFS Jayne:

    Another year has passed already and what a year it has been!! Tom has been with us a little over a full year now and has gifted us with many of his stories. Amy has recently joined "the team" and I know you are all going to enjoy having her on board as much as we do.

    To my "Pard" Jim, I'd like to say thank you for a little over a year and a half of absolutely fantastic Thursday nights as your "pard". You've touched so many with your "way with words". Your love of music, history and life is being passed on to the rest of us. I guess it's a little contagious. We miss you when you aren't with us but we also know the paying job comes first.

    To my lil' brother Tom, I want to say thanks for everything you do to help me. Your generosity is beyond belief. When you say something is running thru your head, I know what's happening and I can't wait to read the resulting story. Your knowledge amazes me and I'm thankful you share it with me.

    To Amy... welcome aboard!!!! You've joined quite a team here and we're mightly glad to have you with us.

    To the Faithful, thank you for being the inspiration to keep us all going. The inspiration for us to make the room and the Weekly Fireside even better than they are. You all have become like an extended family and I look forward to seeing everyone each week. Thank you for sharing your stories, your letters and your poems with us. All of that is what makes our room so special.

    May you all have Health, Happiness, Friendship and most of all I wish you Love (sounds like a song to me!) for this Holiday Season and the New Year to come.

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    From: HoganCE

    Christmas Greetings from Denver, Colorado!

    I just wanted to take a minute and say hello and wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a New Year filled with happiness, health and joy. It has really been a privilege to get to know you through the Civil War chat room. One of these days we will have to get GFS TEG, Ladytubes1 and GFS Jayne out to Colorado. Jim and I already experience it on a daily basis. I do look forward to meeting you someday.

    Here we are on the verge of a New Year, a New Decade, a New Century and a New Millennium..........what a blessing it is to be a part of it. Just think of what the next 10, 100 and 1000 years will bring. And somewhere along the way someone will be laughing at our computer age.............100 years ago they never thought man could fly or walk on the moon.......what an incredible time we are a part of.

    God Bless you all!

    Carin

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    From: JRose10700

    Back in October, when I made plans to go to Missouri and to stop at Wilson's Creek near Springfield, Jayne suggested that I may want to write a report about my visit.

    Now, a month later, I finally have gotten around to it. It comes to about 2300 words.

    I am going to send it to you guys in two hops so I don't have to make an attachment that you are afraid to open and get a virus. (I am not contagious but I have had so much trouble with this darn Compaq that I would not surprise if it did not develop some brand-new never-heard-of-before infections and I would not want to contaminate you.)

    What do I expect you to do with this masterpiece of work?

    Anything you want to. Read it, print it. Chop it up in pieces. Whack it in two. Trash it. It is done, I have let go, and it is yours.

    It is my Christmas present to you. Happy Holidays!!!

    love

    joan

    {{{Joan}}} What a precious Christmas Present to the SIG.. Bless your heart.. Here's what we're gonna do. We read it and loved it; we "un-whacked" it from two pieces to one, and we've scheduled it as a "Story Night" for February 17, 2000.

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    From: SusiCP

    Would you like these.????? Sounds like a great site and more data for you to use.... Susi

    ....."While doing some research on Ephraim Elmer Ellsworth (the 1st Union officer killed in the Civil War), I came across the Cornell University's digital books site, "Making of America", which contains copies of The War of the Rebellion journals and over 100 volumes of digitized books. A great site for history buffs and genealogy enthusiasts. The address for this site is: http://moa.cit.cornell.edu/MOA/moa-main_page.html

     

    One book in the collection is "Genealogical Notes of New York and New England Families", compiled by S.V. Talcott in 1883. The Table of Contents is on page xiii, and the name Indexes start at page RB1 for New York and page RB23 for New England. This book , like the others in this collection are a bit tedious to look through since they are photo images, but the effort is worthwhile if you find something you can use.

    The address for this book site is too long to handle, so go to the address shown above and then to the Browse MOA Book Collection, then to "T" (since the books are sorted by Author).

    Another site that I came across is devoted to Civil War information with lots of region - specific information including the home pages described, below http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/american_civil_war

     

    A home page for the 134th New York Volunteer Infantry which was formed at Schoharie. It includes the full muster roll for the unit. http://members.aol.com/gconkman/

     

    {{{Susi}}}} OF COURSE we want it ... LOL Thank you muchly.

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    From: FI WATROUS

    Can anyone help this fellow?

    "Subj: Re: [NYALBANY] Civil War/34th NY Infantry Regt.

    From: Trimmerrw@aol.com

    Anyone familiar with the 34th NY, sometimes called the Herkimer Regt., but had many from Albany including my great-great-grandfather and brother? Lt. Louis Chapin of Albany wrote the regimental history in 1903."

    "Ike" - we'll put this in the newsletter and see what hits.....

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    From: BARTUP

    I love the weekly fireside newsletters. I am usually working and cannot make the chats very often.

    One thing I have noticed lately is the changing of fonts. Looks like italics and some bolded. I don't like to be a complainer but these fonts are coming through blurry and very hard to read if you have several lines of this type type together.

    I will continue to enjoy your letters. Maybe its just my old eyes.

    Barbara Palosky

    {{{Barb}}} got your note and I've removed the italics in these areas to make it easier to read....

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    From: Lorgriff

    Thank you for your list of Christmas music. I sang with a local madrigal group for ten years and some of our favorite songs were the Burt carols. Being in Michigan, and knowing that a lot of his pieces were composed in Marquette, MI (where I lived for several years), made singing his carols that much more special for our group. I play my tape of our Burt carols every holiday season, and now its nice to know that a re-issue is available.

    Happy holidays, All

    Lorrie

    {{{Lorrie}}} We're glad you enjoyed it and a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you.

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    From: Snow Beri

    We were watching TV last night and there was a bit on CW....and why the battles took place where they did... The man said at first it looks like there is no logic where the battles occured until you put an overlay on the map showing the bourbon distilleries. Then it starts to make sense.... and also the time frame... When it would normally take soldiers 2 days to cross a section of land, instead it took 10 days. They were stopping at the distilleries.

    I don't know if he was telling a joke or if he was serious... but it's an amusing story anyway.

    Diane

    {{{Diane}}} I love it. And it just the right "ring" to it to be true... LOL

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    From: GFS TEG

    To: DeesRoots

    Hi Dee: From what I can see looking at the photo it is a very close match to one of two regiments. First its is not a Southern regiment. It is a very close match to either the 72nd PA or 155PA. Its kind of hard to decide which one for sure I will have to do some more research at the Park archives as soon as I have some free time.

    GFS TEG (Tom)

    Tom

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    This has been just an awesome year for GFS Jayne and I as we've been joined by the prodigious talents of GFS TEG and GFH Amy which brings our Hosting Team to Four. This has been our best year yet and it's all due to your heart-felt and enthusiastic participation. You represent some incredible talent and you don't hesitate to share it with your stories, e-mails, letters, poems, wisdom and knowledge week after week. You represent close to Three Generations (in genealogy terms of 20 years per generation) in age and to hold the attention of that span of living just blows me away. We can honestly say that the BEST FOLKS ON AOL come to our SIG!! That ain't bad out of 15 million AOL members. Jayne, Amy, Tom and I do wish to thank you from the bottom of our hearts and to wish you and yours the best ever Merry Christmas and Happy New Year at the close of this Millenium.......

    Schedule of Upcoming Events

     

    01/06/2000 - Can you believe it's 2000? Well we're going to leave this OPEN CHAT so you can bring your Questions and Answers and We'll "Collectively" Try to Answer them...........

    01/13/2000 - It's our Monthly Special again; Letters, Songs and Poems night.

    01/20/2000 - OPEN CHAT

    01/27/2000 - "Matson Slave Trial or How Lincoln Got His Outhouse" - provided by IllinoisCW. Frank has provided a great story which GFS Jayne will "read" to us .... Don't miss this one.

    02/03/2000 - OPEN CHAT

    02/10/2000 - It's our Monthly Special again; Letters, Songs and Poems night.

    02/17/2000 - Wilson's Creek - A Treatise by Joan Rose

    02/24/2000 - OPEN CHAT

    We'll See You Thursday Night..!

    Your Joyful, Intelligent and Fun-lovin' Host's/Hostess's :-)

    GFS Jim, GFS Jayne, GFS TEG and GFH Amy

     

    Note:

    The Following Musical suggestions were published during December for your Christmas Enjoyment. Suggest you save them for next year. Some excellent choices and suggestions for Holiday Enjoyment

     

    What a perfect evening to work on the newsletter. It's snowing outside and the wind is blowing and I'm in my cubby-hole playing my Christmas music and just smiling. --Sigh-- Life can be simple when you allow it. I was remembering the story from last Thursday and thinking to myself that I can never forget what happened there. Oh my! What a great turnout Thursday night..... We had a great tale about Grant and Lee in 1864. It was a sobering time from the Wilderness to Petersburg. Thanks for coming out and sitting by the fireside with us. Tom's (GFS TEG) cider was incredible Heh Heh !

    The Music: Well, here it is December!!!!!! Can you believe it?? As promised, I've done a little gathering of titles and here are some great Christmas CDs for you. I just have to talk about them a little, 'cause I wouldn't list anything here that I haven't listened to. :-) Here we go:

    1. The first one is a re-release of the Christmas Carols of Alfred S. Burt which was originally released as "The Christmas Mood". This release is called "This Is Christmas" which is a complete collection of the Alfred S. Burt Carols done by the Voices of Jimmy Joyce. Burt is probably the only recognized later day "master" of Christmas Carols not written in the 18th and 19th centuries. You will certainly recognize "Some Children See Him" and "Caroling Caroling". Alfred was a slender ministers son, who was a young jazz trumpeter who composed Christmas carols. He wasn't with us long as he died at the age of thirty-three. This CD is a quite and traditional collection of Christmas Carols.

    2. Two CD's that are different, but just great with their accurate depiction of the Christmas music of their time is "The Bells of Dublin" by The Chieftans. and "Thys Yool" a Medieval Christmas in the 16th Century by the Martin Best Ensemble.

    3. Another style of choral for you are these 5 CDs. "The Many Moods of Christmas" by Robert Shaw and the Atlanta Symphonia Orchestra and Chorus, "The Songs of Angels" by Robert Shaw and the Robert Shaw Chamber Singers, "The Little Drummer Boy" by the Harry Simeone Chorale, "Sing We Christmas" by Chanticleer, and finally "In Bleak Mid-Winter", featuring 5 singing groups; Kings College Choir, Clare College Choir, The Bach Choir, The Purcell Singers and the Royal Choral Society. I can't vote on any of these five because I'm an avid lover of all these performing groups.

    4. For those of you that enjoy the style of Celtic music but aren't purists, the Windham Hill Collection has released three CDs called Celtic Christmas I, II and III.

    5. Finally some Easy Listening CDs. An awesome CD called "The Gift" by one of my favorite pianists Jim Brickman, "Miracles" by Kenny G, and "Remembering Christmas" by David Benoit.

    6. And because I live in the shadow of "Purple Mountains Majesty" - Pike's Peak and call Colorado my home, I have to list John Denver's "Rocky Mountain Christmas"..

    I also have another choice CD for you. Her name is Charlotte Church from Wales and her CD is called Voice of an Angel. What an incredible talent. Charlotte is 13 years old and was the singer in "Joan of Arc".

    The Music: This is a perfect choice for the Christmas season. I've had this CD for some time and have enjoyed it immensely. Lorenna McKinnitt is one of my all time favorite Celtic female vocalists and her arrangements are just incredible. This particular CD is called "Dicken's Dublin". There is one incredible song she has arranged of the same name where Lorenna sings a Celtic backdrop while a little 5 year old girl tells the story of Christmas in her own words. It just takes your breath away. Absolutely unique to anything I've heard, and the little girl just steals your heart.... Enjoy!!!!

    These give you a pretty wide range of artists and styles to try or put on your old Perry Como, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Boston POPs, "Bev" Shay and turn them on and curl up by the tree with a fire in the fireplace and take time for the music.... It's good for the heart .. Heh Heh

     

     

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