Jackson got the nickname “Stonewall” from Confederate General Barnard E. Bee, when he moved an artillery battery up to support Bee’s troops as they retreated at the First Battle of Bull Run (called First Manassas by Confederate troops)(1). Bee said of the mostly unheralded Colonel, “There is Jackson standing like a stone wall. Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer. Rally behind the Virginians.”

Jackson was so significant to troops that his amputated arm got its own grave. While Jackson’s body is in Lexington, Virginia, his arm is a hundred miles away at Lacy Farm cemetery, where the farm house nearby had been the field hospital. His soldiers held a ceremony for the arm. The tombstone says “Arm of Stonewall Jackson, May 2, 1863″.

At The Battle of Chancellorsville on May 2nd, 1863, Jackson went on a scouting mission at night and when he returned was hit by friendly fire. Three bullets struck him and one(2) severed an artery in his arm.  They amputated the arm but and he died on May 10th, 1863 – yesterday was the 150th anniversary of that death and has led to another examination of what actually killed him, infection or pneumonia or something else.

The original medical report had listed pneumonia as the cause, a counter-intuitive finding to non-doctors after an amputation under battlefield conditions in 1863. But Confederate physician Hunter McGuire knew what he was doing and pneumonia was the third leading cause of death during the war.

How could pneumonia get him when infection did not? Joseph J. DuBose, M.D., clinical assistant professor of surgery at the University of Maryland School of Medicine and a trauma surgeon told The Associated Press that it took two hours to get Jackson to a hospital and that they dropped him en route twice. “If he had been dropped and had a pulmonary contusion, or bruise of the lung, it creates an area of the lung that doesn’t clear secretions real well, and it can be a focus that pneumonia can start in,” DuBose said. “That’s probably what happened in this particular instance.”

Dubose noted that pulmonary such embolisms occur 5.7 percent of combat casualties even today and is more common among those who have amputations.

So if the attending physician, who was clearly ahead of his time and is the best source of knowledge, said pneumonia, what is the issue?

There was no coughing. People with pneumonia tend to cough.

Dr. Philip Mackowiak, an internist who organizes a conference at the University of Maryland each year to review medical diagnoses of historical figures, says he believes a recurrent pulmonary emboli destroyed Jackson’s lung over time. Yet Dr. McGuire also did not report that General Jackson coughed up blood or had a change in pulse, shortness of breath or decreased mental ability that hypotension (low blood pressure) due a large embolism would cause.

So the debate rages on.

The “Old Jack” talk was Friday, May 10, 2013 – 1:30 p.m in Davidge Hall at University of Maryland Baltimore.

NOTES:

(1) Bull Run is a tributary stream of the Potomac River that starts in the Bull Run mountains while Manassas is the city and now the name of the National Battlefield Park.  The counter-attack inspired by Jackson’s defense caused the Union soldiers, who had been winning, to retreat, eliminating the Union notion that Confederate troops lacked resolve. Jackson was a lynchpin in that battle, securing his name in American military history and Bull Run became famous as its largest, bloodiest battle – until later in the Civil War. Jackson’s Valley Campaign in 1862 covered 646 miles in 48 days and won 5 victories using 17,000 soldiers against a combined force of 60,000. He was the most inspirational leader in the Confederate army, eclipsed by Gen. Robert E. Lee only after Jackson’s death.

(2) You can respond to the claim by anti-gun people that early Americans didn’t “need” a .50 caliber weapon by conceding the point and noting those were too small. They used .80 caliber whenever possible and would have broken the .223 some want to call an ‘assault weapon’ today over their knees. In this instance, the three bullets that struck Jackson were 0.69 caliber. It wasn’t the first time he had been shot but it would be the last and because it was friendly fire it added to the legend that no Union soldier could kill him. Three 0.69 bullets! They were not big men in the Civil War but they were clearly Big Men.

–Hank Campbell, Science2.0.com

Devil’s den at Gettysburg.

At Gettysburg in 1863, more than 160,000 Americans in blue and gray grappled with each other in a life-and-death struggle — not just for themselves, but for the two nations they represented. For the troops of General Robert E. Lee’s Confederate army, the struggle might have determined whether the South would win independence and nationhood; for the soldiers of General George Meade’s Federal army, the battle determined the fate and future of the American Union.

Elsewhere, Federal forces threatened to grip the South in a military stranglehold, but Lee’s masterful defense of Virginia kept the war and Southern hopes alive — and a major Confederate battlefield victory on Northern soil threatened to end the war in a Southern victory. The Battle of Gettysburg, however, concluded in a decisive Northern triumph.

The war would grind out its gory harvest for two more years, but never again would the South come so close to victory or the Union appear so close to destruction. It was a costly contest: at battle’s end, more than 51,000 Americans were counted as killed, wounded or missing. Gettysburg would prove to be the bloodiest battle of the Civil War — which was no small accomplishment in a conflict that claimed more than 620,000 American lives.

Such superlatives and drama are perhaps what will draw 4 million visitors to Gettysburg for the battle’s 150th anniversary — and perhaps what also makes the Civil War so fascinating. A century-and-a-half after the last arms were stacked and the final bugle was blown, there remains a phenomenal interest in the Civil War. Despite the allure of more modern attractions, each year millions of Americans make pilgrimages to historic sites with thoroughly American names like Chickamauga, Antietam, Kennesaw Mountain, Bull Run — and Gettysburg.

Throughout the nation, Civil War Round Table groups gather to remember what occurred at a rural peach orchard in Tennessee, an obscure cornfield in Maryland, a muddy creek in northern Virginia or a rock-strew ridge at Gettysburg. Authentically armed and uniformed “armies” of re-enactors devoted to historical detail exchange mock gunfire on battlefields of old, while collectors amass treasures of Civil War artwork, artifacts, autographs, photographs and literature.

Why does a distant conflict continue to kindle such enthusiastic fascination? Perhaps it is because the Civil War is so unique. It was not only the largest war ever waged on our continent, it was also America’s first modern war and its last “romantic” war. It was the source of remarkable wartime innovations — the first aerial reconnaissance (by balloon), the first combat between ironclad warships, the first extensive use of the telegraph in wartime, the first national income tax — and the introduction of instant coffee on a mass scale.

It was also a national event of great human drama, which made some figures into instant heroes and quickly doused the flame of fame for others. It was a war of remarkable irony — brother fighting brother, classmates contesting against each other, crucial battles which could have gone either way. It was marked by countless acts of courage, shocking occasions of cowardice, gigantic armies on the march, costly military bungling, staggering loss of life and repeated examples of selfless sacrifice. It was also a pivotal point in the nation’s history — an event that ended a near-century of debate about the right of secession by various parties, destroyed the institution of slavery in America forever and ensured the unification of the United States of America.

With so many of these superlatives, Gettysburg has come to represent the American Civil War itself. It was not just the largest and costliest battle of the Civil War, it was by most measures the decisive battle of the war. It also represents so much of what continues to make the Civil War so compelling to each new generation of Americans. It was a critical battle that could have gone either way. It is known for countless acts of heroism as well as more than a few examples of military bungling. It elevated some reputations and destroyed others.

It is marked by jaw-dropping irony, and it is replete with unforgettable incidents of pathos, drama and inspiration. All these reasons make Gettysburg the must-see historic site among the long parade of American battlefields, justify the undying fascination for the battle and the war, and make the great battle genuinely worthy of commemoration 150 years after the fields of fire and glory fell silent. But most importantly, the Battle of Gettysburg also offers all Americans — and the world — a supreme expression of American courage and sacrifice that should stand forever.

Rod Gragg, a Civil War historian, is the author of “The Illustrated Gettysburg Reader: An Eyewitness History of the Civil War’s Greatest Battle,” which is newly published by Regnery Publishing.

Then Eric Holder’s Justice Department was revealed to be wiretapping the Associated Press in April and May of 2012 to nail a leaker. President Obama is not a “victim” of a “second-term curse.” This is the corrupt first term beginning to smell, it is his administration, and even the media cannot deny the odor of malfeasance.

Most liberal pundits are no longer lecturing the conservatives about how they should dump the Benghazi probe, as is their clarion call after every Democratic scandal. Too much damaging information is coming out, not to mention the stonewalling, not to mention Obama’s continuous and blatant lying, such as his thuggish insistence he called this a terrorist act from the get-go, which he did not — period.

The growing collection of the Obama scandals paints a larger picture of a president who appears comfortable with an IRS that harasses his enemies, a State Department that lies to the world and a Justice Department that’s wiretapping AP reporters on their home phones. That’s not exactly the image of Hope and Change that the press — including the Obama pals at AP — sold us in 2008.

In 2006, reporters suggested Bush might be impeachment fodder for “domestic spying” — when the National Security Agency was listening to phone calls between Americans and Muslim radicals abroad. If the media can’t summon a stronger sense of outrage when the “domestic spying” is on their journalistic colleagues, then you’ll know (again) they’re completely in the tank.

In 2011 and 2012, a disturbing number of Obama’s media coddlers tried to suggest he was miraculously free of any Obama scandals. Forget Fast and Furious. Who ever heard of Solyndra? One of Obama’s top Democratic fundraisers ran MF Global into the ground. Who knew? Tingly Chris Matthews said Obama was “perfect” and “clean as a whistle” and has “never done anything wrong.”

Some journalists still care more for Obama’s image than they do about the truth. Time assistant managing editor Rana Foroohar greeted the IRS scandal by announcing on MSNBC, “What’s so sad about it is the president has been very rightfully proud of the lack of scandal in his administration so far.”

That could be a Jay Leno punch line.

On NPR’s “Morning Edition,” anchorman Steve Inskeep sounded like he’d been asleep like Rip Van Winkle for two years. He asserted to Cokie Roberts, “this administration has been described — I don’t even know how many times — as remarkably scandal-free. But when you get into the second term of an administration, there’s often some dirty laundry that comes out.”

This is the same Steve Inskeep who gave Obama campaign manager David Axelrod a nine-minute interview on Oct. 11, one month after Benghazi — and never raised the consulate murders at all. Thanks to NPR, the “dirty laundry” stayed under the bed until Obama could be re-elected.

Apparently he buried it so well, he even he forgot the Benghazi scandal existed. Inskeep wrapped up the interview by comparing Obama to Lincoln in his reluctance to whack his opponent. “Abraham Lincoln, as historians have noted, had a habit of getting upset with someone, writing them a letter that might be a very strong letter, and then sticking it in a desk — never sending it,” Inskeep stated. “I’m interested if metaphorically, the president has been sticking a lot of letters in the desk?”

Now we know it was more along the lines of “Hello? IRS?”

Insert vomiting sound effects here. This is how NPR flagrantly demonstrates its mockery of the Public Broadcasting Act’s long-ignored language about “objectivity and balance in all programming of a controversial nature.” To them, Obama should be chiseled into Mount Rushmore even as he engages in breath-taking corruption to destroy his enemies.

If the media had acted like professionals in 2012, more of this new information would be old news by now. Voters could have made a decision between Obama and Romney with a fuller picture of how corrupt this administration truly is. By refusing to reveal that corruption, they brought that stain of corruption on themselves.

Some reporters in this moment are sounding like professionals. But too many reporters are spending too much time pining about how scandals may harm Obama’s “legacy.” Journalists shouldn’t be demonstrating great care for Obama’s historical reputation, like they’re the White House weed-whackers.

Obama’s legacy is becoming apparent. He laughably claimed to be above politics, above partisanship and dirty tricks — when the facts are proving he’s really the dirtiest pool player in today’s politics. It’s Chicago-style politics, day and night.

L. Brent Bozell III is the president of the Media Research Center. To find out more about Brent Bozell III, and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

JACKSON, Miss. — Richard Bridges seemed like a typical college student in his letters home.

He tells family members he may need more money and clothes, talks about hanging out with friends and sounds a little homesick.

But while the issues sound familiar, they were written at during the Civil War, when state fought state.

Jennifer Ford, head of archives and special collections at the University of Mississippi, holds a letter from a University Greys member. The student company fought in the Civil War. / Robert Jordan/Special to The Clarion-Ledger

Now, the letters of the University of Mississippi student are returning to the Oxford campus 150 years later.

Mike Martin of Madison, his sister Pat Owen of Rankin County other descendants of Bridges have donated to the university the 27 letters Bridges wrote when he served in the University Greys, the unit organized by students to fight against Union troops.

“We found out that it was significant in that these were only the second set of letters from one of the original 130 University Greys to ever find their way back to the university,” Martin said. “They were proud to receive them and we were proud to give them.”

The letters are housed in the university’s special collections and can be read online. Some of the letters are on display in a special exhibit that opened recently, “Preserving Our Past: Highlights from Archives & Special Collections.”

“These letters are indeed one of our treasures,” said Jennifer Ford, head of archives and special collections at Ole Miss.

Martin said the letters were handed down to his mother in the 1960s from his great aunt, Dot Batton, who lived in Crystal Springs where Bridges lived.

“I remember Aunt Dot mentioned Uncle Richard and then she pulled out this tin box. She told her (Martin’s mother), “Martha, I want you to have these,” Martin said. “Mama went home and transcribed all those letters. We knew they were special.”

Through the years, the letters were tucked away for safekeeping. After Martin’s mother died, the letters ended up in Owen’s possession. “We talked about how to keep them safe,” Martin said.

Eventually, the family decided to contact the university to see if they wanted them. “The letters needed to be back where he was,” Martin said.

Written in the graceful penmanship of the day, Bridges’ letters tell of his life from 1861 to 1863. He writes of camp life, asks for more pants and blankets, asks for money when he hasn’t received his military pay, tells briefly of battles and reports on his health, including not-so-serious and serious wounds.

There’s longing for home when he writes: “Wealth, honor and ease are but poor things to compare with the pleasure that it would afford me just to see you all once more.”

In the first letter, written Jan. 26, 1861, before he enlisted in his freshman year, he tells one of his sisters that he’s well despite a great deal of sickness, pneumonia and diptheria, in the college and how much he enjoyed the recent holidays at home. The last letter from Bridges is one he dictated in 1864 “thro’ the kindness of a Va. lady” after the amputation of his left leg when he was wounded during the Battle of the Wilderness.

-Lucy Weber, Clarion-Ledger.com

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Virginia: Civil War Soldiers left mark at ‘Graffiti House’

CULPEPER — Nestled in Culpeper County, there’s a house where the walls talk.

Writings and drawings on the walls of the “Graffiti House,” built in 1858 at Brandy Station in Culpeper County, share the tales of soldiers from the North and South. / Rhonda Simmons

Left from more than 150 years ago, writings and drawings cover the walls of the “Graffiti House” in Brandy Station, telling the tales of soldiers from the North and South.

Built in 1858, the Graffiti House sits adjacent to the Orange and Alexandria Railroad in Brandy Station, a perfect location for a hospital after the Battle of Brandy Station on June 9, 1863.

Though it was a Confederate hospital, the Union and the Confederate armies occupied the house at various times. In the winter of 1863, Federal troops stayed at the home when the Army of the Potomac camped in Culpeper County.

Adorning the second-floor walls of the house is charcoal and pencil graffiti of men and women with inscriptions of names and units.

“They were marking their territory,” said Bob Luddy, a Brandy Station Foundation member. “And I think a lot of the soldiers, when they came to the Graffiti House, used the opportunity to have a writing surface and essentially to make note that they were there.”

So far, researchers have identified about 60 names on the walls and 12 partial names, Luddy said.

In the years after the Civil War, nine families painted and plastered over the sketches, hiding the home’s history for 135 years. In 1992, David Guinn discovered the graffiti after pulling paneling from the walls when the decaying house was set to be demolished.

In 1995, Construction Services Inc. owner Greg Hebler bought and restored the house. He sold it to the Brandy Station Foundation in 2002.

Today, the Graffiti House has been approved for recognition by the National Register of Historic Places and as a Virginia Historic Site.

In addition to common soldiers, some noted leaders left their marks on the walls, including Confederate Gen. J.E.B. Stuart, who signed his name.

Some of the noted graffiti includes a well-dressed woman with a tiny waist wearing a lace necklace and puffy sleeves as she holds up her skirt to reveal her legs while dancing.

Barry Atchison, another foundation board member, said, “Every time we find the true story of a soldier, it’s more exciting than the speculation. … The more you stare at the wall, the more you find.”

For more information, visit www.brandystationfoundation.com/ or call Joseph McKinney at (540) 727-7718.

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Mississippi: Tupelo Marks Civil War History

TUPELO, Ms. – A new marker unveiled Friday at King’s Creek is the first installment in the Civil War driving tour around the city.

Tupelo Mayor Jack Reed Jr. and local historian Dick Hill unveiled the Civil War historical marker on Spring Street.

CVB Director Neal McCoy thanks Dick Hill, right, for speaking during the unvieling of the new Battle of King’s Creek marker on Spring Street Friday. (Thomas Wells

The location was the site of the Battle of King’s Creek on May 5, 1863. There were 43 killed in the battle, 40 wounded and 81 were taken prisoner.

“It’s the beginning of the telling of the story,” Hill said. “It’s more than just King’s Creek.”

The Civil War driving tour is part of the Heritage Trails enrichment program.

About 40 people attended the ceremony, including members of the Tupelo City Council, officials from the police department and members of the Heritage Trails advisory board.

Hill said the battle at King’s Creek was part of Union General Ulysses S. Grant’s larger effort to ensure Confederate troops were unable to send supplies to a then-besieged Vicksburg, a critical victory for the Union army.

The Heritage Trails program is an effort to educate visitors and residents about Tupelo’s history.

Neal McCoy, director of the Tupelo Convention and Visitors Bureau, which is responsible for the program, said it was the first time he had heard some of the stories about an area of the city usually recognized for its post-war industrial development.

Hill said Tupelo, though not yet incorporated, was an important area during the war, serving as a campground and a supply center.

“Sixty thousand troops were camped here after Shiloh and again after the Franklin (Tenn.) battle,” he said. Tupelo’s geography gave it a strong defensive position.

Locations for the historical markers were decided by an advisory board of local experts. The heritage enrichment trail will explore three components of the city’s past – the Civil War, civil rights and the Chickasaw Nation.

A civil rights marker was unveiled last week in front of Reed’s Book Store, formerly the location of a Woolworth’s store where a lunch-counter “sit-in” took place.

Other markers will be installed at historically significant locations around Tupelo over the next year.

-Sarah Robinson, NEMS Daily Journal

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Virginia: Civil War Veterans Honored

LEESBURG, Va. — What began as an Eagle Scout project to repair a few grave markers at the Arnold Grove Cemetery in Hillsboro culminated Saturday in a community commemoration of the service of veterans from America’s three earliest wars.

An Eagle Scout project led to the honoring of Confederate veterans at Arnold Cemetery.

Dozens of re-enactors representing troops from the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812 and the Civil War joined historians, Boy Scouts, veterans groups and area residents to unveil new veterans markers at the graves of 22 war veterans buried in the cemetery.

Potomac Falls Eagle Scout candidate Jack Craig of Troop 572 led the gravestone restoration project, which expanded with the assistance of gravestone conservator Ken Fleming.

Fleming, a past commander of the Clinton Hatcher Camp of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, organized Saturday’s elaborate service to mark the completion of Craig’s work and to highlight the role these Loudoun residents played on America’s battlegrounds—fighting for independence, turning back the British four decades later, and enlisting in the Confederate Army during the Civil War.

During the ceremony, metal veteran of war markers were placed at the graves. Additionally, the gravesites of two men, War of 1812 veteran William Butts and Ira Follin, who rode with Elijah V. White’s Comanches during the Civil War, now are marked by new headstones provided by the Veteran’s Administration.

While 22 veterans were recognized, only 21 gravesites were marked. Brothers Thomas Leslie and William A. Leslie share a grave. Thomas was injured at Bull Run and died of typhoid while recuperating at home; William was died of injuries sustained during Pickett’s Charge in Gettysburg.

The program included salutes by mounted cavalry troops and infantry re-enactors plus a thundering cannon salute by the 1st Regiment Continental Line Infantry.

-LeesburgToday.com

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Georgia:  Civil War Anniversary for Henry Bowman, Blacksmith, Tunnel Hill

DALTON, Ga. — Before the advent of the automobile, one of the most sought-after individuals was the village blacksmith. He was a valued member of any community, his trade was much needed and most appreciated.

Since it was the blacksmith who made the horseshoes and the nails to attach them, it was to him that everyone took their horses, mules and oxen when they needed shoeing. One such man in Tunnel Hill in 1863 was Henry Bowman.

He was born in North Carolina on Dec. 25, 1804. As a young man he married Mary Elizabeth Cameron and moved to Georgia before the Cherokee Removal of 1838. He eventually settled in Tunnel Hill. He and Mary Elizabeth raised five children, three sons and two daughters. He farmed a little but primarily followed the trade of blacksmith. Shortly after the war broke out his three sons joined the Confederate States Army.

The eldest son, James A. Bowman, joined as a private in Company B, 6th Georgia Volunteer Infantry, on July1, 1861. He died of a gunshot wound Sept. 16, 1862, received during the Battle of Sharpsburg (Antietam). Sarah, his young widow, came to live for a while with her father-in-law in Tunnel Hill. Later in life she drew a widow’s pension until her death on March 8, 1905.

The second son, Vincent Frank Bowman, married Mary R.J. Coker and moved to Franklin County, Ala., in 1859. He joined as a private in Company E, 5th Alabama Calvary, and rose to the rank of corporal while serving under the commands of Gens. Philip Roddy and Nathan Bedford Forrest. Like his father, he was a blacksmith and worked as a government blacksmith from Dec. 15, 1862, through June 1, 1863, in Cherokee County, Ala.

On Jan. 28, 1864, he was paid $40 by Capt. C.C. Swoops, quartermaster, for making and putting on 15 mule shoes, putting on two wagon boxes and repairing several ambulances near Dalton. He served through the entire war without being wounded or captured. After the war he moved to Comanche County, Texas, where he operated a blacksmith shop and a cotton gin. He and his wife Mary raised 10 children there.

The third son, Thadius Clinton Bowman, joined as a private in Company I, 12th Georgia Cavalry, under Capt. Avery at Dalton on Jan. 10, 1862. He attained the rank of corporal and was taken prisoner in Whitfield County on Nov. 25,1863, probably while visiting his ailing mother in Tunnel Hill. He was sent to Louisville, Ky., as a prisoner of war. On June 24, 1864, he took the oath of allegiance to the United States and remained north of the Ohio River during the war.

Henry Bowman and one of his sons-in-law, Isaac A. Whitten, enlisted in the Tunnel Guards of the 1st Georgia State Guards for six months.Whitten married Elizabeth Bowman in Tunnel Hill on Sept. 1, 1861. After the war, he farmed in the Red Clay and Varnell areas.

On Sept. 9, 1863, Bowman was detailed as a blacksmith by Special Order No. 24 and probably never left Tunnel Hill. He not only served the citizens of Tunnel Hill but was called on many times to do repair work for surgeon B.M. Wible and the quartermasters of various cavalry regiments camped around Tunnel Hill. Wible was in charge of the Confederate hospital complex situated in and around Tunnel Hill.

Bowman’s earliest involvement with the medical department for which records exist is dated March 1, 1863, when he rented out a four-room house at Tunnel Hill for a hospital. Capt. A.J. Barry, quartermaster for the Army of Tennessee at Ringgold, paid $8 rent for the month of March, 1863. On March 2 he charged Barry 75 cents for steeling one ax and on April 13 was paid 25 cents for making a door latch, 75 cents for steeling another ax and 50 cents for putting two shoes on a mule. The same day he was paid a whopping $44.25 for four horseshoes, five staples, one hook, one pick ax, one pair of small gate hinges and one pair of large gate hinges, all for the quartermaster department.

In the latter part of 1863, Sgt.James Parrett of Company H, 28th Tennessee Volunteer Infantry, became ill while stationed near Tullahoma, Tenn., and was sent to the hospital at Tunnel Hill. He was married to Mahala Ann Bowman, a second cousin to Henry Bowman. In a letter to her he wrote, “Dear Wife, I have nothing important to write to you about the war. I learned about ten minutes ago that the Yankees had Vicksburg surrounded — I must tell you about your kinfolk. I have found your father’s one cousin. He lives in Tunnel Hill in Whitfield County Georgia. I stayed with him some and he did not charge me anything. His name is Henry Bowman. He is doing well and is the master worker. He is a blacksmith.”

He finished this rather lengthy letter by writing, “That knot of love that is tied to my heart will never die. Good by, James.”

On June 4, 1863, Bowman sharpened two plows for Surgeon Wible, which seems to indicate the medical department personnel were growing their own vegetables. On June 9, he also made two pot bails for the Catoosa Springs Hospitals.

Records indicate that on Sept. 8,1863, Bowman was paid $147.67 by Capt. C.W. Kennedy, quartermaster, Army of Tennessee, for 51 assorted jobs covering the summer of 1863 from June 5 through Sept. 8. Likewise, Wible had a similar list covering an assortment of 26 jobs performed for the medical department for that time frame, totaling $51.35.

From these two lists, one can pretty much follow what was going on in Tunnel Hill during that time. They seem to indicate that Henry Bowman was never out of Tunnel Hill for any length of time during his enlistment in the Tunnel Guards. In September, he made two wheels and put six shoes on a mule and horse. On Sept. 30 Bowman sold a complete set of blacksmith tools to a quartermaster for $113.49 including bellows and an anvil. He also sold him 11 bushels of corn for $16.50.

There are no records of government work for November of 1863. Perhaps it was because he was caring for his ailing wife. On Nov. 28, 1863, tragedy struck the Bowman family again. His wife of 43 years, Mary Elizabeth, passed away. Except for his widowed daughter-in-law, Henry Bowman was left alone in the middle of a gruesome war.

By Dec. 11, he was back at work mending wagons attached to Gen. Joseph Wheeler’s Cavalry Division Headquarters and shoeing as many as 32 horses for the couriers of Gen. John Kelly’s Division and 12 mules belonging to division headquarters. He also sold to the quartermaster 84 horseshoes at 40 cents per shoe. This activity rounded out the year of 1863 for Henry Bowman. He continued to follow his trade up to Feb. 6, 1864. After that date there are no further war period records available for him.

After the war Henry Bowman, now 66 years old, was still running a blacksmith shop in Tunnel Hill in 1870 along with a 16-year-old apprentice, John Teasker. Bowman passed away Nov. 5, 1875, and was buried beside his wife in Foster Cemetery in Tunnel Hill.

An appropriate C.S.A. headstone was placed at his grave in 1997 by the Tunnel Hill Historical Foundation. May he rest in peace.

- By Marvin Sowder, Dalton 150th Civil War Commission. This article is part of a series of stories about Dalton and life in Dalton during the Civil War. The stories run on Sunday and are provided by the Dalton 150th Civil War Commission. To find out more about the committee, go to www.dalton150th.com. If you have material that you would like to contribute for a future article contact Robert Jenkins at (706) 259-4626 or robert.jenkins@ robertdjenkins.com.

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I had never felt such love before.

Hooray for Hallmark.

Years passed. My own mother died. My daughter went off to college and then graduated. My son went off to college.

I see young mothers struggling with squirmy children, exhausted mothers losing their tempers in the mall, mothers and daughters walking and shopping, women my age caring for their own mothers, and I know how hard some of those moments are. But still, I am hopelessly jealous.

I want to say to those tired women, “Don’t you know how lucky you are?” — as if my saying it would somehow light a bulb in their brains, calm their nerves, make them realize that the days may be long but the years are so very short. They fly by, and suddenly you are alone at the mall, on the walk, and instead of a squirming child in your arms, you have time on your hands, instead of too many calls from your mother, there are no calls at all.

So this column is not for all the mothers who will be surrounded by family on Mother’s Day; it’s not for the sons and daughters who will be toasting their mothers on what is the biggest day of the year for eating out.

This one is for those of us who have lost our mothers, for those of us whose children won’t be with us that day, for those who never knew the joy I did or who loved and lost.

This one is for those of us who are trying to make our peace with the hardest part of being a mother (or a child), which is not sleepless nights, expense, exhaustion or aggravation. It’s letting go.

It is true. From the time our children are born, we begin the process of letting them go into the world, and they begin the process of leaving us. That is a mother’s most important job: not to hold on, but to let go. All of those stories about the mother bird sitting on her eggs and then the baby birds flying away… How could I have missed that? My mother hated birds. Maybe that’s why.

There is a scene in “White Oleander,” a wonderful novel about the foster care system, that describes teenage girls, abandoned by their mothers, giving birth, screaming in pain, crying out for their mothers.

To grow up without a mother’s love leaves a hole you never stop trying to fill. But no matter how we try, no matter how much we love, in ways big and small, we disappoint our children, we do things wrong, we fail them.

“Just you wait,” I want to say to those young women. “If only I could do everything again,” I say to myself.

I remember a moment, years ago, driving with my two young children in the back seat. I was one of those girls who always had an easier time with my professional life than my personal life. I knew I was smart, but no one ever told me I was pretty. I knew I could support myself, but I feared I would always be alone. And there I was with two children — my children, my blessed, beautiful children! And I wanted to freeze the moment, to be there always, right there.

But of course, that is not how life works. Children need to grow. They need to have their chance at life, with all of its ups and downs. And as they age, so do we.

So, 23 years later, I will not be toasting my new baby on Mother’s Day. I will do what I do most Sundays: go to the market, read the paper, do my work. My children will call me, and I will tell them I am fine, good luck with exams, congratulations on the new cat, I am so proud of you. I will think of my own mother, may she rest in peace. I will try to remember, really, how lucky I am, how grateful I should be. I will do my best, which, ultimately, is all any mother can do.

To find out more about Susan Estrich and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2013 CREATORS.COM

The Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was shot outside of rooms 306 and 307 on April 4, 1968. The motel is now part of the National Civil Rights Museum. (Ben Noey Jr./Fort Worth Star-Telegram/MCT)

Birmingham, Alabama

Founded in 1871, Birmingham grew so rapidly from a small town to a booming manufacturing center, it adopted the nickname “The Magic City.” It boasts a metro population of 1 million-plus and an economy that focuses on medical research, banking and the service industry. With hundreds of restaurants and a multitude of theaters, museums and sports activities, it’s an entertaining and educational getaway. Referred to as the “Cradle of the Civil Rights Movement,” it is home to the 16th Street Baptist Church, which is recognized as a key site in the struggle for African-American civil rights.

Constructed at its current location in 1911, the 16th Street Baptist Church originally was founded in 1873 as The First Colored Baptist Church of Birmingham. It served as a rallying point for movement leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., and was the site of the bombing on Sept. 15, 1963, that killed four young girls. Designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2006, it continues to hold services and offer tours for visitors. 1530 Sixth Ave. N., 205-251-9402. 16thstreetbaptist.org

Where to stay:

– Cobb Lane Bed & Breakfast: Replete with crystal chandeliers, fine china and legendary Southern hospitality, this beautifully decorated Victorian-style bed and breakfast near Birmingham’s Historic Five Points area, the downtown financial district and the University of Alabama-Birmingham. 1309 19th St. S. 205-918-9090. cobblanebandb.com

– The Hotel Highland: Located in Five Points South and close to the University of Alabama-Birmingham, the Hotel Highland is touted as the city’s premiere luxury boutique hotel. It includes 63 distinctive guest quarters with Brazilian bed linens and handcrafted furnishings. It was voted Birmingham’s top hotel in “Birmingham’s 2011 Best of the Best.” 1023 20th St. S., 205-933-9555. thehotelhighland.com.

Where to dine:

– Highlands Bar and Grill: Cited as one of the best restaurants in America by the James Beard Association, Opinionated Dining, tripadvisor.com and others, fans of fine dining have flocked to Highlands Bar and Grill for French-inspired American cuisinesince 1982. 2011 11th Ave S., 205-939-1400.highlandsbarandgrill.com

– Saw’s BBQ: Lauded by locals and websites as the place to go for barbecue with heaping helpings at a budget price, Saw’s BBQ is legendary for its mouth-watering ribs, chicken and pulled pork. It’s a bit off the beaten path but well worth the drive. 1008 Oxmoor Road, Homewood. 205-879-1937.sawsbbq.com.

Montgomery, Alabama

The capital of Alabama officially was incorporated in 1819. Once the capital of the Confederate States of America, in later years the city would serve as a backdrop for several advances in the civil rights movement, among them the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the Selma to Montgomery marches.

An exhibit at the Rosa Park Library and Museum in Montgomery, Alabama shows black residents preparing to carpool in a station wagon similar to one churches used to transport people to and from work during the year-long Montgomery bus boycott. The library sits on the spot where Parks, a black woman, was arrested 45 years ago for refusing to give up her bus seat to a white man. (Gabriel B. Tait/Detroit Free Press)

Be sure to visit the Rosa Parks Museum, which is on the Troy University campus at the corner of Montgomery and Moulton where Rosa Parks was arrested in 1955. Its 7,000 square feet include interactive multimedia, as well as a replica of a 1950s-era Montgomery city bus. 252 Montgomery St., 334-241-8615. trojan.troy.edu/community/rosa-parks-museum/

Where to stay:

– Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa: This four-star hotel includes fine dining, a fitness and recreation center and a total of 345 rooms — 50 of those are considered premium in case you’re in the mood to live large. 201 Tallapoosa St., 334-481-5000.

– Red Bluff Cottage: Victorian-inspired B&B includes breakfast, dinner and an amazing view of central Montgomery. 551 Clay St., 334-264-0056. redbluffcottage.com

Where to dine:

– Michael’s Table: This eclectic blend of soul and comfort food with a modern twist from chef Michael Hochalter is open for lunch, dinner and Sunday brunch. It’s captured numerous accolades for menu and ambiance, including a Top Fine Dining Experience nod from Alabama Magazine. 2960-A Zelda Place. 334-272-2500. michaelstable.net

– Dreamland BBQ: The legendary Dreamland Cafe opened in 1958 helmed by John “Big Daddy” Bishop. Inside you’ll find a bar and dining booths and kind-to-your-wallet plates, sandwiches, desserts and more. 101 Tallappoosa St. 334-273-7427. dreamlandbbq.com.

Greensboro, North Carolina

Originally it was known as a tobacco and textile town — but these days it’s setting its sights on computer and nanotechnology. Much of the central city’s early 20th century architecture remains intact, and there are multiple dining establishments and entertainment venues throughout the area.

For a look at significant civil rights history, the International Civil Rights Center & Museum is a visit not to be missed. The museum originally was a storefront for F.W. Woolworth Co. It also was the site of the Greensboro lunch-counter sit-in of Feb. 1, 1960, when four students, in an act of nonviolent civil protest, requested to be served like white patrons. The building remains intact, and the lunch counter is exactly as it was more than 50 years ago. The museum has nearly 20 permanent displays, as well as changing exhibits. It’s an emotionally moving step back in time. 134 South Elm St., 336-274-9199. sitinmovement.org

Seeing history — two ways. In the International Civil Rights Museum in Greensboro, you can see the lunch counter where the famous 1960 sit-in took place and in the mirrors behind the counter, you can see the scene re-enacted. (John Bordsen/Charlotte Observer/MCT)

Where to stay:

– The Biltmore Greensboro Hotel: Built in 1903, the building has served as office space, apartments and, finally, a hotel. Restored in classic detail in the 1990s, the Biltmore Greensboro came under new management in 2007. It is the only historic boutique hotel in central Greensboro and offers a chance to experience period accommodations. 111 W. Washington St., 336-272-2474. thebilmoregreensboro.com

– Dailey Renewal Retreat: This Queen Anne Victorian home was built in 1914 and offers comfortable and affordable accommodations in proximity to the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, the Greensboro Coliseum and the business and entertainment district. 808 Northridge St., 336-451-7742. daileyrenewalretreat.net

Where to dine:

– Liberty Oak Restaurant & Bar: Upscale dining and a full bar for lunch, brunch and dinner. The menu includes soups, appetizers, rainbow trout, beef tenderloin and vegetarian selections. 100 W. Washington St. 1-336-273-7057. libertyoakrestaurant.com

– Emma Key’s Flat Top Grill: Known for its affordable and irresistible beef burgers served with a wide variety of toppings, Emma Key’s also offers fish and vegan options. 2206 Walker Ave. 336-285-9429, emmakeys.com.

Memphis, Tennessee

Perhaps known best for its mix of blues, barbecue and Elvis Presley, Memphis also is the site of Martin Luther King Jr.’s death. On April 4, 1968, the civil rights leader was slain on the balcony of the Lorraine Motel.

That motel since has been converted into the National Civil Rights Museum. With additions and restoration, the site houses many interactive exhibits and offers visitors a tour through Dr. King’s room at the time of his death. Updates to the site are currently prohibiting full tours of the Lorraine. However, a special balcony tour to the scene where Dr. King once stood will be available until work is completed in the first quarter of 2014. 450 Mulberry St. 1-901-521-9699.civilrightsmuseum.org

Where to stay:

– The Peabody Hotel: This sumptuous hotel was built in 1869 and is known for its daily march of mallard ducks to and from the hotel’s fountain. With 464 guest rooms and 11 stories, the Peabody also offers pet-friendly rooms and such modern amenities as a day spa, art galleries and more. 149 Union Ave. 901-529-4000. peabodymemphis.com

– The Roulhac Mansion: Recently added to the National Registry of Historic Places, The Roulhac Mansion — built in 1914 — boasts six breathtakingly beautiful rooms and includes a dining area, living room, hearth room and full-size kitchen. 810 E. McLemore Ave. 901-775-1665. roulhacmansion.com

Where to dine:

– Chez Philippe: If you’re staying at the Peabody, don’t pass up the opportunity to experience the classic French cuisine of chef Andreas Kisler. Dinner and afternoon tea are available Wednesday through Saturday. 149 Union Ave. 901-529-4188. peabodymemphis.com

– Soul Fish Cafe: Popular local favorite offers big servings of tasty comfort food like fried seafood, smoked chicken and a variety of fresh vegetables. 862 South Cooper St. 1-901-725-0722. soulfishcafe.com

-David Aaron Moore, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Though they were outmanned and outgunned, the momentum of the war seemed to be on the side of Generals Robert E. Lee and “Stonewall” Jackson in Northern Virginia.

But the tide turned in the American Civil War not long after Jackson’s own men inadvertently shot him that May night at the battle of Chancellorsville in Virginia.

And for that, say two researchers, Americans can thank that full moon.

Stonewall Jackson’s left arm is interred separate from the rest of his body.

It’s an intriguing concept put forth by astronomer Don Olson and researcher Laurie E. Jasinski from Texas State University in a study appearing in this month’s issue ofSky & Telescope magazine.

They say that when the men of the 18th North Carolina Infantry Regiment fired upon Jackson, the whitish lunar light likely obscured the target.

They didn’t know it was him.

In other words, they say, a moon phase is partly responsible for the molding of a nation “dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal,” as President Abraham Lincoln put it in the Gettysburg Address.

The two reconstructed the scene of the shooting using moon phases and maps, and published the results 150 years after the incident.

Moonlight or no?

History seems divided on whether or not the moon shone bright that night, the researchers say, but they back up their hypothesis with recorded anecdotal accounts.

“The Moon was shining very brightly, rendering all objects in our immediate vicinity distinct…,” one confederate captain wrote years later. “The Moon poured a flood of light upon the wide, open turnpike.”

Jackson rode out with a party of officers on a scouting mission to see if the Confederate Army could find a way to cut off Union Army troops, according to the National Park Service, which cares for the nation’s Civil War battlegrounds.

They were shot as they returned.

Olson and Jasinski say that a Confederate officer spotted them in the moonlight and ordered his men to open fire.

Jackson was wounded in his left arm, which had to be amputated,according to the Virginia Military Institute, where Jackson taught.

He died from complications on May 10, 1863.

His arm was buried separate from the rest of his body.

The South went on to win the Battle of Chancellorsville, but without Jackson, took a decisive blow in July 1863 at the bloody Battle of Gettysburg, often thought of as the turning point of the war.

Back lighting

If Jackson’s reconnaissance party was riding in bright moonlight, then his own men should have recognized them as they returned from the Union’s side, but Olson and Jasinski say they did not — for good reason.

“The 18th North Carolina was looking to the southeast, directly toward the rising moon,” they said. It stood at “25 degrees above the horizon” at the time, just at the wrong angle.

“The bright moon would’ve silhouetted Jackson and his officers, completely obscuring their identities.”

The Confederate infantrymen likely thought their own men returning were Union cavalrymen on the approach.

“Our astronomical analysis partially absolves the 18th North Carolina from blame for the wounding of Jackson,” Olson says.

It comes too late for the man who gave the order to fire.

Maj. John D. Barry died at age 27 — just two years after the end of the war.

“His family believed his death was a result of the depression and guilt he suffered as a consequence of having given the order to fire,” the Virginia Military Institute site says.

Stonewall Jackson may have appreciated the Texas State researchers’ hypothesis, not only because it would have alleviated the conscience of the men who took his life.

Before joining the Confederate Army, he was a science professor.

-CNN

ATLANTA — Aunt Pittypat, don’t faint. A metro Atlanta resident has created an online petition calling for the removal of the Confederate monument from the face of Stone Mountain.

Pittypat, as film buffs and reading enthusiasts know, was Scarlett O’Hara’s easily agitated aunt in “Gone with the Wind.” At the mention of yankees, she’d sway on her feet.

She’d probably hit the floor if she heard about McCartney Forde.

“It’s almost like a black eye or an embarrassing smudge on our culture,” said petitioner McCartney Forde of the Confederate monument at Stone’s Mountain.

Forde, who lives in DeKalb County, recently created the petition, which asks that the carved images of Confederate President Jefferson Davis and Gens. Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson be removed from the mountain. In their place should be a carving honoring veterans who were killed, wounded or taken prisoner in all U.S. wars since World War I, the petition says.

The petition also asks that Memorial Hall, which faces the monument across the park’s sprawling lawn, be remodeled to commemorate America’s war dead since 1900.

The “three men embossed on the face of arguably the most famous landmark in the great state of Georgia represent the root cause for what is widely considered the darkest period in our nation’s history,” reads the petition, addressed to Gov. Nathan Deal, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and a handful of metro-area Georgia lawmakers. “…Some might argue that this monument honors so-called heroes of the Civil War, but in reality it is a monument that perpetuates the perception of Georgia as an icon of racism, slavery and oppression.”

Forde could not be reached for comment Tuesday. On Monday, he told WXIA 11Alive that the monument, 90 feet tall, 190 feet long and stretching across nearly two acres of rock, needs to go.

“It’s almost like a black eye or an embarrassing smudge on our culture,” he said.

Jack Bridwell begged to differ. The Moultrie resident, commander of the Georgia division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, learned of the petition Monday night when a fellow SCV member called him.

“When I got over laughing about it, I got a little mad,” said Bridwell, a retired educator who traces his Confederate roots to Zion Bridwell, an Atlanta newspaperman who gave up printing for soldiering in the 1861-1865 war. “The only reason this fellow (Forde) is doing this is to get his name in the news, in the newspapers.”

Bill Stephens was more diplomatic. He’s CEO of Stone Mountain Memorial Association, the state authority that oversees the park.

“I think people have the right to express their opinions,” said Stephens.

The monument is a park “showpiece,” Stephens said. He’s confident the three gentlemen, whose likenesses took decades to complete, will remain on the mountain, looking away, looking away.

Jayland and Diane Arp hope so. Residents of Vancouver, Wash., they came to Georgia to sample its attractions. In six days, they’d visited Savannah, Tybee Island and Cleveland. On their last full day in the state, they came to Stone Mountain.

They aimed cameras at the monument, a quarter mile away, and marveled. The Arps also snorted when the learned of Forde’s petition.

“It is a part of our history, and it’s art,” said Diane Arp. “If you don’t like it, don’t come look at it.”

Her husband nodded. “It’s a great part of our history,” he said. “I hope they keep it.”

Odds are good that Georgia will. As of Tuesday evening, the petition had 131 signatures.

Pittypat, relax.

–Mark Davis, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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Mississippi: Confederate Soldiers Memorialized

MERIDIAN, Miss. —  The relative silence in downtown Meridian Monday was pierced by the sounds of rifle fire, Rebel yells and the lyrics of “Dixie” at the Lauderdale County Court House for Confederate Memorial Day.

Riflemen with the Jones County Rosin Heels 27 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans blast off a salute Monday at the Confederate Soldier Memorial Statue during Confederate Memorial Day.
Brian Livingston / The Meridian Star

Members of the Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest 1649, Sons of Confederate Veterans, the Robert E. Lee 2561, United Daughters of the Confederacy, and W. D. Cameron 1221, Sons of Confederate Veterans and the Jones County Rosin Heels 227, Sons of Confederate Veterans, gathered on the west side of the court house to remember those men who left their homes to fight for their government.

Elliott Poole, of the W. D. Cameron Camp 1221, SCV, said it was important to keep the memories of the men who fought for the South.

“We are here today to remember those who fought and died for what they believed,” Poole said.

Confederate Memorial Day is a state holiday in some states in the United States. It gives people a chance to honor and remember the Confederate soldiers who died or were wounded during the American Civil War during the 1860s.

Confederate Memorial Day is a state holiday in Alabama, Florida, and Georgia on the fourth Monday in April. In Mississippi it is observed on the last Monday in April. In South Carolina and North Carolina it falls on May 10.

During the years in which the actual war started on April 12, 1861, at Fort Sumter in South Carolina until the last cease-fire was signed at Fort Towson, Okla., on June 23, 1865, it is estimated that more than 600,000 soldiers died. About 260,000 of those were Confederates.

Rev. Chris Gully said the Civil War was a time in which tens of thousands of men felt compelled to seek comfort in the Christian beliefs in which they were raised. Gully said it is no wonder that in the decades following the war, the South was termed the Bible Belt based on the staunch Christian foundations that came from the conflict.

“The Southern army was the first to employ chaplains because the leaders, such as Gen. Lee, saw the importance of giving his men the opportunity to worship God,” Gully said. “Many viewed the Southern soldier as a bunch of Godless, backwoods men but actually they were almost all raised in churches.”

The role of chaplains in America’s military branches today can be traced to the South’s insistence in giving their soldiers exposure to religion.

At the end of the ceremony taps was played as a volley of gunfire from the Jones County Rosin Heels 227, SCV, reverberated among the buildings in the downtown area. A wreath commemorating the fallen was placed at the foot of the Confederate Soldier’s Statue on the court house grounds.

Local musician, Britt Gully, led the group with a rendering of “Dixie” that closed the memorial.

–Brian Livingston, The Meridian Star

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Florida: Daughters Remember Confederate Ancestors

TAMPA - This is the second in an occasional series on ancestral and linage societies with chapters in Tampa.

Dressed in white, a group of women recently remembered the past, honoring relatives who served in the Confederate States of America’s army, navy or civil service.

Gail Crosby of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, Tampa Chapter 113, of the Confederacy places rose petals at a Confederate statue at the former Hillsborough County Courthouse during an April 13 Confederate Memorial Day Celebration. / LENORA LAKE

Members and guests of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, Tampa Chapter 113, gathered on a recent Saturday morning for the Confederate Memorial Day Celebration.

Meeting around the Hillsborough County Confederate Monument, called Memoria In Aeterna, the women read names of ancestors from across the South. As the names were read, member Gail Crosby dropped rose petals on the steps of the Italian marble statue in front of the former Hillsborough County Courthouse.

As church bells downtown rang, the Rev. Robert Brookover, who gave the invocation, said: “We are reminded of when another church bell rang – when mothers and fathers committed to the life they shared throughout the South.”

The United Daughters of the Confederacy is a women’s lineage society and heritage association, founded in 1994, dedicated to honoring the memory of those who served in the military and died in service to the Confederate States of America.

Tampa Chapter 113 was chartered in June 1897 and meets monthly from September through May, with the next meeting May 11 at the Columbia Restaurant. The chapter has 46 members and is part of the Florida division of the national organization.

“We don’t want another battle between the states,” said June Bolen, chapter president. “But we do want to honor our ancestors.”

The organization also is involved with today’s veterans, said Gail Grosby, a past Florida division president.

“We are extremely busy with patriotic activities, giving hours and goods to the James A. Haley VA Hospital and much more,” Crosby said. “We work with students wishing to apply for various UDC scholarships.”

Crosby said the chapter sends cards and notes regularly to 15 “real daughters” whose fathers actually served in the Civil War.

“They were born between the early 1900s and 1930 to their father’s second or third wife,” she said.

Tampa Chapter 113 also sponsors Belles & Beaux Chapter 887, Children of the Confederacy.

The chapter’s members also maintain downtown’s historic monument, funded by the United Daughters of the Confederacy, and unveiled Feb. 8, 1911. The Italian marble piece originally was at the southwest corner of Franklin and Lafayette streets and moved to its location at 419 Pierce St. in 1952.

The statue has a solider facing north – representing the warrior heading off to war in 1861 – and a soldier facing south as the battered and injured veteran returns home.

For information the organization, see www.hqudu.org. For information about the Tampa Chapter 113, contact Crosby at yayadahlin@hotmail.com.

–Lenora Lake, Tampa Tribune

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Louisiana: Event Demonstrates Civil War-era Cooking Methods

PORT ALLEN, La. — Hearth cooking instructor Gayle B. Smith scooped up a shovelful of hot, glowing red coals from the fireplace and told her cooking class audience, “This is your burner.”

Smith, along with West Baton Rouge Museum employees Linda Collins and Tracy Flickinger, were demonstrating what Southerners would have cooked during the United States’ Civil War of 1861-1865, what food stuffs would have been available and what recipes were used.

From left, attendees Annell Hiersche, Julia Allen, Mary Byrd, Lynn Mire, Linda Lengyell and Jeannie Luckett, in doorway, watch as Gayle Smith, third from right, conducts a cooking class on “A Battle for Food: Civil War Era Southern Recipe Books” using food stuffs and recipes from 1861-1865 era in Port Allen, La.

For a recent class on “A Battle for Food: Civil War Era Southern Recipe Books,” the three women donned costumes appropriate to the era and demonstrated how to cook on coals on the hearth in the museum’s kitchen, which is set up to reflect the 19th century. They prepared an apple pie (with no apples), potato soup, planked fish, squirrel stew, corn pone and collard greens. All the recipes came from Civil War-era cookbooks.

Smith, who said she has been cooking at the hearth for 18 years, learned the ancient art at Magnolia Mound Plantation in Baton Rouge. She has studied at open-hearth cooking schools in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, visited open-hearth kitchen programs in the South and in Canada, and been a guest cook at Oakley Plantation in St. Francisville and Hermann-Grima House in New Orleans,

Before the Civil War, wealthy Southern families enjoyed a variety of dishes which were usually prepared by slave cooks, who “were given only enough spices for that day’s cooking,” Smith said.

“Dinner, the big meal of the day, was eaten from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. in the afternoon pre-Civil War. Bowls went around the table. At night supper was leftovers. Breakfast could be salads, greens were not uncommon,” Smith said.

Collins pointed out that the kitchen was separate from the “big house” because of the danger of fire to avoid the smells and heat from the kitchen.

Slaves “might be given sweet potatoes to put in coals at night,” Smith said.

They also received regular allotments of molasses and of pork and corn or cornmeal, which were believed to give strength and muscle, she said.

“At the time of the Civil War, the slaves were gone. Who was cooking?” Smith asked her audience. “Some slaves were still around, but everyone in the South was on the same plane as far as cooking and eating. The small yeoman farmers and the people in the big house were all equal in eating, too.”

Families in the North did not suffer the severe food shortages that those in the South did, Smith noted. Since most of the war was fought on Southern soil, it was Southerners’ crops that were confiscated to feed troops.

Flickinger held up a catfish tied to a plank, which had been propped on the side of the fireplace hearth to cook.

“In south Louisiana you can fish,” and that’s what people often did to put food on the table, Collins said.

The cook would take “a fresh fish with the look of life in its eyes and place it on hard wood which had been soaked overnight,” Smith said. “Planked fish is a big deal now in restaurants. Back in the day this was what you did to live.”

As Collins untied the fish from the plank, she commented, “I’m not sure about the fish. You can never be sure about fish,” if it has cooked enough to be save to eat.

People also ate collard greens, seasoning them with bacon, Smith said. “You might have pork from wild hogs and you ate anything from the garden the Union soldiers hadn’t stolen.”

They ate potato soup made with red potatoes and “if hungry, you’d go hunting,” which perhaps meant squirrel stew for dinner.

“Everyone talked about eating bad beef, which didn’t keep well,” Smith said. And, “you can put eggs in the ashes on the hearth and bake them. You put down a layer of ashes and lay the eggs on it. Then, another layer of ashes, then hot coals.

“I’ve learned from experience the egg blows up if the hot coals touch it,” she added.

The recipes the three women demonstrated were from “Civil War Recipes: Receipts from the Pages of Godey Lady’s Book” and “Confederate Receipt Book: A Compilation of Over One Hundred Receipts Adapted to the Times.”

INEXACT MEASUREMENTS

Recipes usually didn’t include measurements and those that offered some guidance were often vague.

For example, Smith asked, what is a measuring cup? She showed a variety of cups that might have been used by a cook in a mid-19th century kitchen. They ranged in size from a demitasse cup to a substantial tin cup.

Measuring spoons also present a similar problem for the modern cook trying to interpret the era’s recipes, Smith said.

Gourds were turned into useful kitchen tools, Smith said, holding up a ladle gourd. “You also could have used gourds as cups and bowls or as funnels.”

She also showed whisks made from broom corn and dogwood stems.

Various herbs and spices, some more valuable than others “because they came from far away,” were used for flavoring dishes, Smith said. For example, rabbit soup or squirrel stew might be flavored with nutmeg, pepper, sweet marjoram and mace.

CORNBREADS

Smith and Flickinger also prepared the flat, coarse cornmeal cakes known as corn pone. “It was also called hoecakes because slaves sometimes put it on the blade of a hoe to cook,” Smith said. “Pone was water and white cornmeal. At this time-frame white cornmeal was what was used. White corn was grown here.”

Corn pone, which comes from the Indian word “apone,” or “apan,” meaning baked, was also known as ash cakes because it was baked in ashes.

Another version went by the name Johnny or Johny cake, which some have suggested is a derivation of the word “journey,” according to “Around the Southern Table: Innovative Recipes Celebrating 300 Years of Eating and Drinking” by Sarah Belk (Galahad Books, 1991), Smith said.

“Each colony, each community, had its own versions and names, a tradition that faded as the iron kitchen range made all hearth cakes virtually obsolete .,” wrote Karen Hess in historical notes and commentaries in “The Virginia House-wife” by Mary Randolph, a facsimile of the first edition, 1824, along with additional material from the 1825 and 1828 editions, published in 1984 by the University of South Carolina Press.

MOCK APPLE PIE

Class participants liked the corn pone, which was served with molasses, better than the “apple pie without apples” that Smith and Flickinger prepared from a recipe from the “Confederate Receipt Book: A Compilation of Over One Hundred Receipts, Adapted to the Times,” with an introduction by E. Merton Coulter (The University of Georgia Press, 1960, 1989 printing).

The recipe calls for using a small bowl of “beaten biscuits,” which were very hard, unsalted crackers.

“The recipe only says make sure the crackers aren’t hard and to soak them, but doesn’t say whether to use water or milk,” Smith said as she broke white unsalted crackers into little crumbs.

It also says to “sweeten to taste” so Smith added a half-cup of sugar.

“Sugar usually was in the form of a cone and you snipped off what you needed, but they could have used sugar — house sugar — which is not brown or white, but honey-colored.”

Collins added, “In Louisiana and Texas, people had plenty of sugar” even during the Civil War.

The recipe also says to add “some” butter so Smith decided to use about 2 tablespoons of melted butter. It was flavored with a “very little” nutmeg.

“It would have been baked in a tin in a preheated large Dutch oven with coals under and top of it so it was cooking as in an oven,” Smith said. “But, you only can control the heat temperature by practice.”

The consistency of the mock apple pie “looks like mush,” Smith said, adding “I had my husband taste it. He couldn’t tell what it was. It’s more interesting than delicious.”

Some class participants also liked the squirrel stew, which the three presenters made using an 1861 recipe for rabbit soup.

The original recipe from the pages of Godey’s Lady’s book says to strain the soup into a tureen and add the grated yolks of six hard-boiled eggs and some croutons.

“Usually presentation was a big deal” at the tables of pre-Civil War plantation homes, Smith said. “But at this time, the big house was probably not concerned about it, only in not starving.”

–Cheramie Sonnier, The Advocate

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