Photo Credit: State Archives of Florida (Florida Memory)
Survivors of the Battle of Olustee gathered at the Monument dedication in Olustee, Florida on October 23, 1912. The Battle of Olustee was fought in Baker County, Florida on February 20, 1864. It was the largest battle fought in Florida during the American Civil War.
Cropped photo. Photo Credit: Daniel Webb/Library of Congress
This portrait shows a group of veteran Union soldiers who were POWs during the Civil War. The banner lists the various Confederate prisons: Andersonville, Libby, Belle Isle and Florence. This photo was taken at a POW reunion, possibly the 18th National Encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic in Minneapolis in 1884. The original title was “Great group of ex-Union prisoners”.
Photo Credit: Liljenquist Family Collection (Library of Congress)
Two unidentified soldiers in Union uniforms holding cigars in each others’ mouths, photographed between 1861 to 1865. The uniform of the solider on the right has blue chevrons which would rank him as an Infantry Sergeant.
William Henry Jackson/George Eastman House Collection
“John, the Cook, baking slapjacks,” 1874. This photo is a great example of everyday life on a geological survey of the American West.
Photographed by William Henry Jackson, a geological surveyor photographer and an American West explorer. He served in the Union Army during the Civil War and present during in the Battle of Gettysburg, but saw no action. After the war, he traveled throughout the west sketching and photographing the landscape and, in the summer of 1969, the new Union Pacific Railroad construction. His photographs of the latter caught Ferdinand Hayden’s attention. Hayden was organizing a geologic survey of the Yellowstone area (at that time it was unknown land). Hayden asked Jackson to come with the expedition and he agreed. Jackson’s photographs of Yellowstone helped to convince Congress to name the park as the first national park in 1872. This made Jackson the first photographer to successfully capture Yellowstone’s sights on film. From 1870-1878, Jackson accompanied other geological surveys conducted by Hayden of the west and southwest.
Library of Congress
Scotts Bluff National Monument and Oregon Trail Museum Foundation
The first of the “Letters From the Front” series is from Sullivan Ballou to his wife Sarah during the Civil War. Born and raised in Rhode Island, Ballou married Sarah Hart Shumway on October 15, 1855. They had two sons before Ballou entered the Union Army in 1861. Made famous in Ken Burns’ documentary The Civil War, this letter’s potent words of acceptance and love make a heartbreaking chapter in American history all the more heartbreaking.
July 14, 1861
Camp Clark, Washington
My very dear Sarah: The indications are very strong that we shall move in a few days—perhaps tomorrow. Lest I should not be able to write again, I feel impelled to write a few lines that may fall under your eye when I shall be no more . . .I have no misgivings about, or lack of confidence in the cause in which I am engaged, and my courage does not halt or falter. I know how strongly American Civilization now leans on the triumph of the Government and how great a debt we owe to those who went before us through the blood and sufferings of the Revolution. And I am willing—perfectly willing—to lay down all my joys in this life, to help maintain this Government, and to pay that debt . . .
Sarah my love for you is deathless, it seems to bind me with mighty cables that nothing but Omnipotence could break; and yet my love of Country comes over me like a strong wind and bears me unresistibly on with all these chains to the battle field.
The memories of the blissful moments I have spent with you come creeping over me, and I feel most gratified to God and to you that I have enjoyed them for so long. And hard it is for me to give them up and burn to ashes the hopes of future years, when, God willing, we might still have lived and loved together, and seen our sons grown up to honorable manhood, around us. I have, I know, but few and small claims upon Divine Providence, but something whispers to me—perhaps it is the wafted prayer of my little Edgar, that I shall return to my loved ones unharmed. If I do not my dear Sarah, never forget how much I love you, and when my last breath escapes me on the battle field, it will whisper your name. Forgive my many faults and the many pains I have caused you. How thoughtless and foolish I have often times been! How gladly would I wash out with my tears every little spot upon your happiness . . .
But, O Sarah! If the dead can come back to this earth and flit unseen around those they loved, I shall always be near you; in the gladdest days and in the darkest nights . . . always, always, and if there be a soft breeze upon your cheek, it shall be my breath, as the cool air fans your throbbing temple, it shall be my spirit passing by. Sarah do not mourn me dead; think I am gone and wait for thee, for we shall meet again . . .
Sullivan Ballou was killed a week later at the first Battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861. He was 32 years old.
His wife was only 24 years old when she became a widow. She moved to New Jersey and never re-married. In 1917, at the age of 80, Sarah passed away and was buried next to her husband.
This letter from Ballou to his wife was never mailed. It was found among his effects after his death.
The proposed Republic of Tri-Insula
In early 1861, New York City explored the idea of seceding from the Union to form the independent republic of “Tri-Insula,” composed of Manhattan, Staten Island, and Long Island. “Tri-Insula” is Latin for “three islands.” However, the public thought the idea was too radical and the “three islands” stayed in the Union.
President Herbert Hoover makes a Memorial Day address at Valley Forge, 1931. Photo Credit: White House
The first Memorial Day was observed on May 30, 1868, three years after the end of the Civil War. It was initially called Decoration Day since people would adorn the fallen soldiers’ graves with flowers as a way to honor their sacrifices. As time went by, the name changed to Memorial Day and became a nationwide celebration of all the country’s fallen soldiers, not just from the Civil War. Congress declared Memorial Day a federal holiday in 1971.
"Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. John L. Burns, the 'old hero of Gettysburg,' with gun and crutches" Photo by Timothy H. O'Sullivan, July 1863.
During the Battle of Gettysburg, [John L.] Burns, a 70-year-old civilian living nearby, grabbed his flintlock musket and powder horn and walked out to the battlefield to join in with Union troops. The soldiers took him in, and Burns served well as a sharpshooter. During a withdrawal, Burns was wounded several times and left on the field. he managed to get himself to safety, his wounds were treated, and his story elevated him to the status of National Hero briefly.
Photo Credit: Brady-Handy Photograph Collection (Library of Congress)
Robert Smalls was born on Ashdale Plantation on Lady’s Island, South Carolina. As a descendent of Guinea slaves, Smalls was hired as a deckhand on the CSS Planter, an armed Confederate military transport in 1861. He served under Brigadier General Roswell Ripley, commander of the Second Military District of South Carolina. Smalls was promoted to pilot of the Planter within a year.
On May 12, 1862, the Planter’s officers decided to have the crew spend the night ashore. In the early morning hours, Smalls, then 23, commandeered Planter. At that time, the ship was loaded with weapons and equipment for the rebel forts. Along with seven of the eight enslaved crewmen, Smalls stopped by a nearby wharf to pick up Smalls’ wife, children and twelve relatives of the other crewmen. They sailed towards the nearest Union blockading ship, Onward, with a raised white flag. Dressed in a captain’s uniform, Smalls reported shouted, “Good morning, sir! I have brought you some of the old United States’ guns, sir!”
Regarded as a national hero in the north, Smalls and his associates were given prize money from President Lincoln for their efforts and information regarding rebel locations. Smalls continued to fight in the Civil War for the Union and became the first black captain of a United States vessel. After the war, he learned to read and write and participated in the drafting of South Carolina’s state constitution. Smalls went on to serve five terms as a U.S. Congressman representing South Carolina. He moved back to Beaufort, South Carolina and served for nearly 20 years as U.S. Collector of Customs and lived, as the owner, in the same house in which he had been a slave.
Further Reading
The Atlantic
Robert Smalls on the Biographical Directory of the US Congress
RobertSmalls.org
Timothy H. O'Sullivan, photographer; printed by Alexander Gardner; negative July 4, 1863; print 1866.
Of the Civil War photographs, the most moving are the inhumanly objective records of combat deaths. Perhaps the most reproduced of these Civil War photographs is [Timothy] O’Sullivan’s A Harvest of Death, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, July 1863. Although this image could be seen as simple reportage, is also functions to impress on people the high price of the Civil War. Corpses litter the battlefield as far as the eye can see. O’Sullivan presented a scene that stretches far to the horizon. As the photograph modulates from the precise clarity of the bodies of Union soldiers in the foreground, boots stolen and pockets picked, to the almost illegible corpses in the distance, the suggestion of innumerable other dead soldiers is unavoidable. . . . Though it was years before photolithography could reproduce photographs like this in newspapers, they were publicly exhibited and made an impression that newsprint engravings never could.
- Gardner’s Art Through the Ages
Fred S. Kleiner & Christin J. Mamiya, Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, Twelfth Edition: Volume II, Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning, 2005, 850.
Photo via The J. Paul Getty Museum website.
This 1879 picture details a parade by Rex, an all-male krewe (semi-mythological creature) whose leader is known as the “King of Carnival.” The Krewe of Rex established the official Mardi Gras colors of green, gold, and purple. Photo Credit: Howard Tilton Memorial Library/Tulane University/AP/TIME
The earliest date given to the beginning of the Mardi Gras celebration in the United States is 1703. However, New Orleans was not its birth place, it was in fact Mobile, Alabama and was originally called Boef Gras (Fat Beef). [Zim's Side Note: New Orleans was not founded until 1718, fifteen years after the first Mardi Gras celebration.]
Joe Cain dressed as the make-believe Chickasaw chief Slacabamarinico. Photo Credit: The University of South Alabama Archives/Alabama Heritage
One of the earliest, well-known celebration occurred in 1830 on New Year’s Eve. It was begun by Michael Krafft and his friends who did not want to end a dinner party. After raiding a nearby hardware store, the group proceeded down the town streets with their stolen rakes, hoes and cowbells and woke the town up. Afterwards, the group formed Moblie’s first modern mystic organization called the Cowbellion de Rakin Society. Ten years later the Cowbellions presented their first parade with floats and a carnival theme.
During the Civil War, Mobile was under Union occupation and city soon became discouraged. The stress of the war had halted the Mardi Gras celebration until 1866 when Joseph Stillwell Cain dressed as “Chief Slacabamorinico” in full Chickasaw Indian regalia. Unbeknown to the Union army as well as the United States Government, Cain was making a political statement with his attire. It was meant to be a reminder that the Chickasaw never surrendered during the war and by suit, the people of Mobile should never surrender as well. Cain revived the celebration for future generations and while donning feathers and a skirt he rode the streets while encouraging the city. He was not punished because the government did not understand the meaning behind his costume. Because of his efforts in reviving Mardi Gras, the Sunday before Mardi Gras Day is called “Joe Cain Day,” where the city dresses in costume and celebrates him.
The date of Easter determines the date of Mardi Gras. Mardi Gras Day also known as “Fat Tuesday,” takes place on the Tuesday before the Ash Wednesday.
Sources
Mobile Mardi Gras website.
Carpenter, Allan and Carl Provorse, compl. Facts About the Cities. 2nd ed. New York: The H.W. Wilson Company, 1996, 5.
Old Soldiers: 1913
July 1913. “Gettysburg reunion: Veterans of the G.A.R. and of the Confederacy, at the Encampment.” Harris & Ewing glass negative.
Daniel Butterfield
Brigadier General Daniel Butterfield, a Union Army general in the Civil War, is credited with composing the iconic “Taps.” In 1862, Butterfield was camped at Harrison’s Landing in Virginia and it was here where he first played the tune. It has been argued that ‘Taps” was not an original idea but was instead a revision of several bugle calls. Butterfield’s version became popular during the war and the U.S. Army officially adopted ”Taps” in 1874.
It received its name because the music could be done with taps of a drum if there was no bugler available.
Due to his actions during the Civil War, Butterfield received the Medal of Honor for his service.
Villanueva, Jari. “24 Notes That Tap Deep Emotions,” found online here.
Daniel Butterfield’s photo.
Map of San Juan Island
As westward exploration expanded, it was common for land to have overlapping claims between Spain, Great Britain and the United States. This was especially common in the Oregon region, including present states of Washington, Idaho, Oregon, portions of Wyoming and Montana, in addition to British Colombia.
By the early 1800s, Spain had let go of their claims in the Oregon region, but the U.S. and Great Britain still had overlapping land claims. One particular region in competition was the San Juan Island, an island located between Washington and Vancouver Island. Great Britain attested that the island was legally theirs since the British-run Hudson’s Bay Company had operated trade and commercial activities before the American’s claim. The backbone of the American claim rested on their idea of “manifest destiny” and saw the British threatening their idea of expansion.
British Capt. Geoffrey Hornby
The Hudson’s Bay Company set up a post on the island around 1818. Not long after, American settlers took notice of the island’s fertile land and set up farms. Tension between the two mounted and on June 15, 1859, it erupted over quite a small matter. On that day, American Lyman A. Cutler killed a Hudson’s Bay-owned pig because it kept destroying his garden. The pig repeatedly disrupted Cutler’s potato patch and he discussed the issue with the pig’s owners but they did very little. After the pig’s death, the Hudson’s Bay Company demanded that Cutler reimburse $100 dollars for the slain pig. Cutler refuted that he would not pay $100 dollars for “a $10 pig.”
American Capt. George Pickett
Because Cutler refused to pay the fine, the Hudson’s Bay Company threatened to bring him to trial and sentence him under British law. Since Cutler is American, he sought protection from the U.S. government. The British sent five vessels, stationed them in the straits by the island, and were authorized to land if necessary. They were commanded by Captain Hornby. The U.S. dispatched troops commanded by Captain Pickett from Oregon. Both captains realized the situation would not end well if further military action occurred. Both governments agreed upon joint military occupation on the island until they agreed upon a finalized border. Great Britain gave up their claim on the island in 1873.
The Pig War resulted in one casualty – the pig.
[Zim’s Note: Captain Pickett is most known for his actions in the Civil War. During the Battle of Gettysburg, he, a Confederate Major General, led the Pickett’s Charge. The charge was a bloodbath, with over 50 percent of those who fought in it were either killed or wounded. Until his death, Pickett regretted having anything to do with Pickett’s Charge.]
Sources:
New York Times, “State Department Recounts Tale of a Pig That Nearly Caused Conflict With Britain,” August 1, 1948.
New York Times, “A Pig Nearly Causes a War,” July 17, 1892.
“The Pig War” on the National Park Service website.
Henry Ward Beecher. Photo Credit: Kansas Historical Society
The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 created the territories of Kansas and Nebraska. The act also gave the territories the power to choose to be either a free state or a slave state. By doing this the Act negated the Missouri Compromise of 1820 in which any new state in the West or north of Missouri’s lower state line entered into the Union as a free state.
The country itself was balancing precariously on the cusp of a Civil War. Kansas, in furor over the Act of 1854, experienced bloody battles between anti-slavery abolitionists and those who supported Kansas as a slave state. Because of the fighting, Kansas was nicknamed “Bleeding Kansas.” Ultimately, Kansas entered as a free state in January 1861.
During Kansas’ upheaval, abolitionists across the Union sent supplies, and in some cases, fighters to help establish a free state. One of these abolitionists was New York preacher Henry Ward Beecher. He, along with his congregation, wanted to help anti-slavery agenda. The one thing he believed the new Kansas emigrants needed most was guns. His group raised around $625 and bought Sharps rifles, costing $25 each, and 25 Bibles. The crates of weapons were labeled “Beecher’s Bibles,” so it would not arouse suspicion. On February 8, 1856, the New York Tribune ran a article on Beecher in which it discusses the ideology behind the guns.
He [Henry W. Beecher] believed that the Sharps Rifle was a truly moral agency, and that there was more moral power in one of those instruments, so far as the slaveholders of Kansas were concerned, than in a hundred Bibles. You might just as well. . . read the Bible to Buffaloes as to those fellows who follow Atchison and Stringfellow; but they have a supreme respect for the logic that is embodied in Sharp’s rifle.
Beecher’s sister, Harriet Beecher Stowe, wrote Uncle Tom’s Cabin, a powerful anti-slavery novel still popular today.
Information
Patrick, E.J. The Civil War Reader: Facts, Trivia, Legends, and Lore. New York: MJF Books, 2008, 5-7.
|
© History By Zim |
Powered by WordPress The Aesthete theme by vatuma.com |
Recent Comments