FOUR OAKS – Grave markers honoring 20 Confederate soldiers who died during the three-day Battle of Bentonville, which caused nearly 4,200 Union and Confederate casualties, will be dedicated at the site on June 11. The ceremony is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources’ 2nd Saturdays summer series combining arts and history, and is also the site’s annual June Summer Seasonal Living History Program.
Starting at 10 a.m., visitors will hear artillery and musket fire such as split the air in March 1865. The permanent marker dedication ceremony will be at 2 p.m.
The farm home of John and Amy Harper became the Union Army XIV field hospital during the battle, where nearly 600 Union soldiers and an unknown number of Confederates were treated. After the battle the Union army marched on to Goldsboro , paroling at least 45 wounded Confederates left in the care of the Harpers. In spite of the Harpers’ best efforts, 23 of the soldiers died and 20 were buried on the farm.
Over the years the exact location of the Confederate graves was lost. Thanks to 21st-century technology and discovery of a late 19th-century photograph, the cemetery was found. The picture shows 20 headstones and footstones just south of the Harper family cemetery. Assistant State Archaeologist John Mintz and Wake Forest University Director of Public Archaeology Kenneth Robinson led a team of archaeologists who confirmed the graves’ location using ground-penetrating radar.
The Harper House Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, a Bentonville Battlefield support group, is raising funds to purchase headstones for the graves. To contribute, contact the site at (910) 594-0789.
During the dedication, research historian Michael Hill from the N.C. Office of Archives and History will present a talk about the care of a fallen Confederate soldier at one of the war’s first battles. Archaeologist John Mintz will speak on archaeological discoveries at Bentonville and on the treatment of the dead in the last days of the war. A musket and artillery salute by Civil War re-enactors will follow.
Bentonville Battlefield is located at 5466 Harper House Road , Four Oaks, N.C. 27524, three miles north of Newton Grove on S.R. 1008; it is about one hour from Raleigh and about 45 minutes from Fayetteville . For more info rmation, visit http://www.nchistoricsites.org/bentonvi/ or call (910) 594-0789.
Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site in the Division of State Historic Sites is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future. For more info rmation on Cultural Resources, visit http://www.ncculture.com/.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Alleghany County Public Library Honors “Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory”
Alleghany County Public Library Honors “Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory”
With Civil War Photography Exhibit on Display May 2-28
RALEIGH – Since the beginning of the Civil War (1861-1865) 150 years have passed, but its widespread impact and defining characteristics remain vivid. These can especially be seen in North Carolina due to the state’s role in the war as illustrated by the Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory: Civil War Sesquicentennial Photography Exhibit (www.nccivilwar150.com). The exhibit will be hosted by Alleghany County Public Library from May 2-28, honoring North Carolinians in the Civil War with a variety of images.
“The Civil War was the first war widely covered with photography,” explains Deputy Secretary Dr. Jeffrey Crow of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. “The Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory exhibit provides images of historic figures, artifacts, and documents that brought the reality of the war from the battlefront to the home front, then and now.”
The exhibit will travel the state from April 2011 through May 2013, visiting 50 libraries and several museums with its showcase of 24 images. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources (www.ncculture.com) commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War with images gathered from the State Archives (www.archives.ncdcr.gov), the N.C. Museum of History (www.ncmuseumofhistory.org) and State Historic Sites (www.nchistoricsites.org). A notebook will accompany the exhibit with further info rmation and seeking viewer comments.
Among the various pictures is an image of a mourning ring crafted by a North Carolina Confederate soldier. The ring, made out of a type of easily-carved rubber called guttapercha, contains mother-of-pearl and gold inlay. Mourning rings were used to buy various items in prison like socks and were also fashionably worn by Southern women as a symbol for loved ones fighting or fallen in the war.
Call the Alleghany Public Library (336) 372-5573 for more info rmation on the exhibit. Contact the Department of Cultural Resources (919) 807-7389 for tour info rmation.
The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.
With Civil War Photography Exhibit on Display May 2-28
RALEIGH – Since the beginning of the Civil War (1861-1865) 150 years have passed, but its widespread impact and defining characteristics remain vivid. These can especially be seen in North Carolina due to the state’s role in the war as illustrated by the Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory: Civil War Sesquicentennial Photography Exhibit (www.nccivilwar150.com). The exhibit will be hosted by Alleghany County Public Library from May 2-28, honoring North Carolinians in the Civil War with a variety of images.
“The Civil War was the first war widely covered with photography,” explains Deputy Secretary Dr. Jeffrey Crow of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. “The Freedom, Sacrifice, Memory exhibit provides images of historic figures, artifacts, and documents that brought the reality of the war from the battlefront to the home front, then and now.”
The exhibit will travel the state from April 2011 through May 2013, visiting 50 libraries and several museums with its showcase of 24 images. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources (www.ncculture.com) commemorates the 150th anniversary of the Civil War with images gathered from the State Archives (www.archives.ncdcr.gov), the N.C. Museum of History (www.ncmuseumofhistory.org) and State Historic Sites (www.nchistoricsites.org). A notebook will accompany the exhibit with further info rmation and seeking viewer comments.
Among the various pictures is an image of a mourning ring crafted by a North Carolina Confederate soldier. The ring, made out of a type of easily-carved rubber called guttapercha, contains mother-of-pearl and gold inlay. Mourning rings were used to buy various items in prison like socks and were also fashionably worn by Southern women as a symbol for loved ones fighting or fallen in the war.
Call the Alleghany Public Library (336) 372-5573 for more info rmation on the exhibit. Contact the Department of Cultural Resources (919) 807-7389 for tour info rmation.
The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available 24/7 at www.ncculture.com.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
North Carolina Monument at Allatoona
A week and a half ago (Yes, I really am that far behind), I had the opportunity to venture to North Georgia, to one of those battlefields where Tar Heels bled and died. The occasion was the dedication of a monument to the 29th and 39th NCT regiments, and I was blessed with being able to present the keynote address.
Here are a few excerpts from my talk.
The 29th and 39th Regiment were often in the thick of things during the Atlanta campaign of the spring and summer of 1864. They were engaged at New Hope Church, Picket’s Mill, Smyrna, Peachtree Creek, the battles for Atlanta, Ezra Church, and the evacuation of Atlanta in September 1864. As Hood moved north toward Tennessee, his goal was to draw out Sherman and look for an advantageous position to attack. Hood also planned to cut Sherman’s supply line coming from Tennessee, making the Federal position in Atlanta untenable. Hood’s men struck the railroad at Acworth and Big Shanty. Next lay Allatoona, with its large storehouse of provisions. Capturing Allatoona was assigned to French’s division, containing Ector’s brigade and the 29th and 39th Regiments. The three redoubts protected about 2,000 Federals. The Confederates captured the railroad and its protecting blockhouse, before demanding the Federals surrender. They declined, and the Confederates attacked. The 39th Regiment did not actively participate in the attack, being sent to serve as supports for Confederate artillery and skirmishers. The rest of Ector’s brigade were placed in support during the initial attack. During the attack, the 29th Regiment advanced under fire through some thick woods, before discovering that they had lost contact with the rest of the brigade. Major Ezekial Hampton ordered the regiment to advance at the double quick. They stopped just short of the Federal works, dropped to the ground, and reloaded. Soon Hampton ordered his men up and advanced over the works. Three color bearers were struck before the flag of the 29th Regiment was planted on the Federal works. According to one historian, “the 29th ran into the Federal trench and fought ‘hand-to-hand with swords, bayonets, rifle butts, and rocks.’ The Confederates killed many of the enemy and captured 25 or 30 prisoners… no sooner had they taken the Federal works than Major Hampton ordered his men forward again. The 29th got within 20 yards of the Star Fort before their charge was stopped.” Before French could order his men to attack the final Federal position, he received word that the Federals were coming up in his rear. Fearing the he would be cut off, French ordered his men to retreat. Hampton, in his official report, stated that the 29th North Carolina took 138 men into action, losing 12 killed, 39 wounded, and 3 missing. Colonel David Coleman of the 39th North Carolina reported that his regiment lost only two men wounded.
Here are a few excerpts from my talk.
The 29th and 39th Regiment were often in the thick of things during the Atlanta campaign of the spring and summer of 1864. They were engaged at New Hope Church, Picket’s Mill, Smyrna, Peachtree Creek, the battles for Atlanta, Ezra Church, and the evacuation of Atlanta in September 1864. As Hood moved north toward Tennessee, his goal was to draw out Sherman and look for an advantageous position to attack. Hood also planned to cut Sherman’s supply line coming from Tennessee, making the Federal position in Atlanta untenable. Hood’s men struck the railroad at Acworth and Big Shanty. Next lay Allatoona, with its large storehouse of provisions. Capturing Allatoona was assigned to French’s division, containing Ector’s brigade and the 29th and 39th Regiments. The three redoubts protected about 2,000 Federals. The Confederates captured the railroad and its protecting blockhouse, before demanding the Federals surrender. They declined, and the Confederates attacked. The 39th Regiment did not actively participate in the attack, being sent to serve as supports for Confederate artillery and skirmishers. The rest of Ector’s brigade were placed in support during the initial attack. During the attack, the 29th Regiment advanced under fire through some thick woods, before discovering that they had lost contact with the rest of the brigade. Major Ezekial Hampton ordered the regiment to advance at the double quick. They stopped just short of the Federal works, dropped to the ground, and reloaded. Soon Hampton ordered his men up and advanced over the works. Three color bearers were struck before the flag of the 29th Regiment was planted on the Federal works. According to one historian, “the 29th ran into the Federal trench and fought ‘hand-to-hand with swords, bayonets, rifle butts, and rocks.’ The Confederates killed many of the enemy and captured 25 or 30 prisoners… no sooner had they taken the Federal works than Major Hampton ordered his men forward again. The 29th got within 20 yards of the Star Fort before their charge was stopped.” Before French could order his men to attack the final Federal position, he received word that the Federals were coming up in his rear. Fearing the he would be cut off, French ordered his men to retreat. Hampton, in his official report, stated that the 29th North Carolina took 138 men into action, losing 12 killed, 39 wounded, and 3 missing. Colonel David Coleman of the 39th North Carolina reported that his regiment lost only two men wounded.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Conference in Raleigh May 20 Examines Civil War Memories
RALEIGH -- As it has for generations, the Civil War engages and fascinates students of history like almost no other topic. A keynote address by David Blight of Yale University titled “Race and Reunion : Has Civil War Memory United or Divided America?” will kick off an all-day conference at the N.C. Museum of History on Friday, May 20.
The conference, “Contested Past: Memories and Legacies of the Civil War,” is being held on the 150th anniversary of North Carolina ’s secession from the Union . It is the first of three sesquicentennial symposiums the N.C. Office of Archives and History will sponsor around the state between 2011 and 2015.
Following Blight’s address, other experts in the field of Civil War history will examine aspects of memory and the war in breakout sessions with topics that include literature, historiography, statuary, monuments, race, women, heritage organizations, and other legacies.
A registration fee of $25 covers all lectures, morning refreshments, a boxed lunch and a reception late Friday afternoon. To register, send a check made payable to the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association (NCLHA) by May 10 to Parker Backstrom, 4610 Mail Service Center , Raleigh , NC 27699-4610 . For more information, call the N.C. Office of Archives & History at (919) 807-7280, or go to www.nccivilwar150.com.
Sponsors include the North Caroliniana Society, the North Carolina African American Heritage Commission, the North Carolina Civil War Tourism Council, and the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association
On May 20, 1861, delegates meeting in the State Capitol voted to take North Carolina out of the Union and align with the Confederate States of America . For the next four years North Carolinians , other Southerners and those in the North engaged in a protracted war touching every part of society.
A team of North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources staff, operating with an advisory panel of leading historians, has planned more than 200 events, lectures and exhibits across the state to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.
The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources (www.ncculture.com) is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future.
Presenters
David W. Blight, Class of 1954 Professor of History at Yale University , is the author of “Race and Reunion : The Civil War in American Memory,” for which he received the Bancroft, Lincoln, and Frederick Douglass Prizes.
John Coffey is the deputy director for art at the North Carolina Museum of Art where, since 1989, he also has been the Curator of American and Modern Art.
Adam H. Domby is a graduate student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . His current research explores the memory of dissent and intra-community violence in North Carolina .
Mark Elliott is associate professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro . Along with John David Smith, he co-edited Undaunted Radical: The Selected Writings and Speeches of Albion W. Tourgee.
James Gillispie teaches history at Sampson Community College in Clinton . He is the author of Andersonvilles of the North: The Myths and Realities of the Northern Treatment of Civil War Confederate Prisoners.
John Haley is a retired professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington . The study of race relations and the Civil War and Reconstruction are his areas of specialty.
Michael C. Hardy maintains the blog “ North Carolina and the Civil War.” In 2010 he was named North Carolina Historian of the Year by the North Carolina Society of Historians.
John C. Inscoe, University Professor and Albert B. Saye Professor of History at the University of Georgia , is author of “Race, War, and Remembrance in the Appalachian South” and “Writing the South through the Self.”
Elizabeth C. King is a survey specialist in the Eastern Office of the State Historic Preservation Office. She is completing a comprehensive survey of historic architectural resources in Beaufort County .
Leonard Lanier is a graduate student at Louisiana State University . His research interests include post-Civil War political violence in eastern North Carolina .
David Madden, the Robert Penn Warren Professor Emeritus at Louisiana State University and founding director of the United States Civil War Center, recently retired to Black Mountain .
Jaime Martinez is an assistant professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where her primary teaching area is 19th-century U.S. history.
Chris Meekins is correspondence archivist at the North Carolina State Archives and serves as chairman of the symposium subcommittee of the North Carolina Civil War Sesquicentennial Committee.
Barton A. Myers, assistant professor of history at Texas Tech University , received the Jules and Frances Landry Award for “Executing Daniel Bright: Race, Loyalty and Guerrilla Violence in a Coastal Carolina Community, 1861-1865.”
Erica St. Lawrence is a Master’s degree candidate in public history at North Carolina State University . Her interests include myth and memory-making in public history and early modern European history.
Shannon SanCartier is an archivist for the Historical Society of the Lower Cape Fear. Her thesis about Fort Fisher was selected best history thesis ( University of North Carolina at Wilmington ) in 2010.
David Silkenat is an assistant professor of history and education at North Dakota State University . He is the author of “Moments of Despair: Suicide, Divorce, and Debt in Civil War Era North Carolina.”
Tom Vincent is a local records management analyst for the North Carolina State Archives. He maintains the Web site “North Carolina Civil War Monuments Survey” (http://ncmonuments.ncdcr.gov/).
The conference, “Contested Past: Memories and Legacies of the Civil War,” is being held on the 150th anniversary of North Carolina ’s secession from the Union . It is the first of three sesquicentennial symposiums the N.C. Office of Archives and History will sponsor around the state between 2011 and 2015.
Following Blight’s address, other experts in the field of Civil War history will examine aspects of memory and the war in breakout sessions with topics that include literature, historiography, statuary, monuments, race, women, heritage organizations, and other legacies.
A registration fee of $25 covers all lectures, morning refreshments, a boxed lunch and a reception late Friday afternoon. To register, send a check made payable to the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association (NCLHA) by May 10 to Parker Backstrom, 4610 Mail Service Center , Raleigh , NC 27699-4610 . For more information, call the N.C. Office of Archives & History at (919) 807-7280, or go to www.nccivilwar150.com.
Sponsors include the North Caroliniana Society, the North Carolina African American Heritage Commission, the North Carolina Civil War Tourism Council, and the North Carolina Literary and Historical Association
On May 20, 1861, delegates meeting in the State Capitol voted to take North Carolina out of the Union and align with the Confederate States of America . For the next four years North Carolinians , other Southerners and those in the North engaged in a protracted war touching every part of society.
A team of North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources staff, operating with an advisory panel of leading historians, has planned more than 200 events, lectures and exhibits across the state to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Civil War.
The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources (www.ncculture.com) is the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future.
Presenters
David W. Blight, Class of 1954 Professor of History at Yale University , is the author of “Race and Reunion : The Civil War in American Memory,” for which he received the Bancroft, Lincoln, and Frederick Douglass Prizes.
John Coffey is the deputy director for art at the North Carolina Museum of Art where, since 1989, he also has been the Curator of American and Modern Art.
Adam H. Domby is a graduate student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill . His current research explores the memory of dissent and intra-community violence in North Carolina .
Mark Elliott is associate professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro . Along with John David Smith, he co-edited Undaunted Radical: The Selected Writings and Speeches of Albion W. Tourgee.
James Gillispie teaches history at Sampson Community College in Clinton . He is the author of Andersonvilles of the North: The Myths and Realities of the Northern Treatment of Civil War Confederate Prisoners.
John Haley is a retired professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington . The study of race relations and the Civil War and Reconstruction are his areas of specialty.
Michael C. Hardy maintains the blog “ North Carolina and the Civil War.” In 2010 he was named North Carolina Historian of the Year by the North Carolina Society of Historians.
John C. Inscoe, University Professor and Albert B. Saye Professor of History at the University of Georgia , is author of “Race, War, and Remembrance in the Appalachian South” and “Writing the South through the Self.”
Elizabeth C. King is a survey specialist in the Eastern Office of the State Historic Preservation Office. She is completing a comprehensive survey of historic architectural resources in Beaufort County .
Leonard Lanier is a graduate student at Louisiana State University . His research interests include post-Civil War political violence in eastern North Carolina .
David Madden, the Robert Penn Warren Professor Emeritus at Louisiana State University and founding director of the United States Civil War Center, recently retired to Black Mountain .
Jaime Martinez is an assistant professor of history at the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, where her primary teaching area is 19th-century U.S. history.
Chris Meekins is correspondence archivist at the North Carolina State Archives and serves as chairman of the symposium subcommittee of the North Carolina Civil War Sesquicentennial Committee.
Barton A. Myers, assistant professor of history at Texas Tech University , received the Jules and Frances Landry Award for “Executing Daniel Bright: Race, Loyalty and Guerrilla Violence in a Coastal Carolina Community, 1861-1865.”
Erica St. Lawrence is a Master’s degree candidate in public history at North Carolina State University . Her interests include myth and memory-making in public history and early modern European history.
Shannon SanCartier is an archivist for the Historical Society of the Lower Cape Fear. Her thesis about Fort Fisher was selected best history thesis ( University of North Carolina at Wilmington ) in 2010.
David Silkenat is an assistant professor of history and education at North Dakota State University . He is the author of “Moments of Despair: Suicide, Divorce, and Debt in Civil War Era North Carolina.”
Tom Vincent is a local records management analyst for the North Carolina State Archives. He maintains the Web site “North Carolina Civil War Monuments Survey” (http://ncmonuments.ncdcr.gov/).
Thursday, April 14, 2011
A Tar Heel's view on Fort Sumter, pt. 2
A fleet of steamers arrived off the bar early in the day and came to anchor. The number was afterwards increased, for on Sunday, when we went down the harbor, we saw seven.
We were told by gentlemen from Morris Island that Anderson had signal lights burning constantly, and that his flag was at half-mast a part of the time. The vessels did not seem to take any notice of him.
The conduct of this fleet is enough to bury the stars and stripes forever in infamy. They had witnessed the fight all day, riding quietly at anchor in sight of the wharves and not more than three miles from Fort Sumter. When night came every one confidently expected the attempt would be made to come it, or land troops, and if they had their own time to choose out to five years, they could not have been favored with so many advantages. There was a splendid tide, the wind was in their favor, it was as dark as pitch, rainy and misty and there were no lights burning on the old hulks in the harbor as there had been the night before. Their attempt was regarded as so certain that preparations were redoubled at every point. Every one looked to see a general engagement—Thus the night wore away.
Early Saturday morning the fire was resumed, and in a very short while the cry went through the city, “Fort Sumter is on fire,” and so it was. A dense volume of smoke rose from the fort, and lurid flames leaped up visible to the naked eye.—Anderson still kept up his fire on the Floating Battery and Fort Moultrie, but it evidently became slower and weaker. The boys on Morris Island gave him three cheers for every gun he fired. And now there comes a tremendous explosion in the fort, resembling the blowing up of a house, and throwing smoke and flame high in the air. Some said the magazine had exploded; others that he was blowing up the barracks to stop the flame; but the truth was that a shell or hot shot had struck some hand-grenades and loose ammunition, causing the explosion. Anderson’s fire ceased altogether, as the devouring element enveloped the fort; but the shell from his enemies burst around him with increased rapidity and fury as he endeavored to extinguish the flames. At last, a yell from the whole line of spectators along the wharves and battery announced the fall of the flag which had been defiantly floating throughout the engagement, but which had been shot away. It was so long before the flag was raised again that the opinion became general that his men were exhausted or smothered with smoke, or killed, and that he could not raise the flag again, and accordingly, Col. Wigfall started in a small boat from Morris Island, bearing a white flag for Fort Sumter. Before he reached the fort, however, Maj. Anderson had showed the stars and stripes again, together with a white flag; but the firing continued at the sight of the former, and Col. Wigfall entered the fort through a storm of shell and shot, and asked for Major Anderson. – When he made his appearance, Col. Wigfall said that seeing his distress, his utter inability to hold out, and the his flag was not raised, he, as aid to Gen. Beauregard, claimed a surrender. Major Anderson wish to know upon what terms he was expected to surrender, to which Col. Wigfall gracefully replied, that Gen. Beauregard was a gentleman and a soldier, and know how to treat as brave an enemy as Major Anderson; whereupon an unconditional surrender was made to Gen. Beauregard in behalf of the Confederate State. The stars and stripes were then hauled downed and the batteries on Sullivan’s Island ceased their fire.
At the first appearance of the white flag, the enthusiasm and excitement became very great all over the city and among the troops, and when the Palmetto and Confederate flags were raised on the parapet, the ordnance from all points of the harbor pealed forth their joyful thunder. The water was alive with craft of all sorts. The details of surrender were made. Major Anderson was allowed to carry out his property and side arms and to salute his flag. The Isabel went down from the city, at his own request, to take him to New York.
And we would be glad to close this brief narrative here—but the worst and the best thing connected with the battle of Fort Sumter, happened subsequently. The hand of Providence seemed to be in this flight. History records no where the fact that skilful artillerist on both sides have fired for 33 hours without killing, or seriously wounding a man. Major. Anderson’s men were so small in number that, notwithstanding the fort is a scene of desolation inside, they could all be safely stowed away in the casemates and thus escape the iron hail. The sand batteries and iron batteries protected the South Carolinians wonderfully. The only loss of life was experiences occurred when Major Anderson’s men were saluting his flag immediately previous to leaving the fort. In firing one of the guns, some shells of loose ammunition lying on the parapets caught and exploded, killing one man instantly, and mortally wounding three or four others, two of whom have since died. Gen. Beauregard ordered that the one that was killed should be buried with military honors, which was done.
From the Wilmington Herald
Reprinted The Daily Register, April 20, 1861.
We were told by gentlemen from Morris Island that Anderson had signal lights burning constantly, and that his flag was at half-mast a part of the time. The vessels did not seem to take any notice of him.
The conduct of this fleet is enough to bury the stars and stripes forever in infamy. They had witnessed the fight all day, riding quietly at anchor in sight of the wharves and not more than three miles from Fort Sumter. When night came every one confidently expected the attempt would be made to come it, or land troops, and if they had their own time to choose out to five years, they could not have been favored with so many advantages. There was a splendid tide, the wind was in their favor, it was as dark as pitch, rainy and misty and there were no lights burning on the old hulks in the harbor as there had been the night before. Their attempt was regarded as so certain that preparations were redoubled at every point. Every one looked to see a general engagement—Thus the night wore away.
Early Saturday morning the fire was resumed, and in a very short while the cry went through the city, “Fort Sumter is on fire,” and so it was. A dense volume of smoke rose from the fort, and lurid flames leaped up visible to the naked eye.—Anderson still kept up his fire on the Floating Battery and Fort Moultrie, but it evidently became slower and weaker. The boys on Morris Island gave him three cheers for every gun he fired. And now there comes a tremendous explosion in the fort, resembling the blowing up of a house, and throwing smoke and flame high in the air. Some said the magazine had exploded; others that he was blowing up the barracks to stop the flame; but the truth was that a shell or hot shot had struck some hand-grenades and loose ammunition, causing the explosion. Anderson’s fire ceased altogether, as the devouring element enveloped the fort; but the shell from his enemies burst around him with increased rapidity and fury as he endeavored to extinguish the flames. At last, a yell from the whole line of spectators along the wharves and battery announced the fall of the flag which had been defiantly floating throughout the engagement, but which had been shot away. It was so long before the flag was raised again that the opinion became general that his men were exhausted or smothered with smoke, or killed, and that he could not raise the flag again, and accordingly, Col. Wigfall started in a small boat from Morris Island, bearing a white flag for Fort Sumter. Before he reached the fort, however, Maj. Anderson had showed the stars and stripes again, together with a white flag; but the firing continued at the sight of the former, and Col. Wigfall entered the fort through a storm of shell and shot, and asked for Major Anderson. – When he made his appearance, Col. Wigfall said that seeing his distress, his utter inability to hold out, and the his flag was not raised, he, as aid to Gen. Beauregard, claimed a surrender. Major Anderson wish to know upon what terms he was expected to surrender, to which Col. Wigfall gracefully replied, that Gen. Beauregard was a gentleman and a soldier, and know how to treat as brave an enemy as Major Anderson; whereupon an unconditional surrender was made to Gen. Beauregard in behalf of the Confederate State. The stars and stripes were then hauled downed and the batteries on Sullivan’s Island ceased their fire.
At the first appearance of the white flag, the enthusiasm and excitement became very great all over the city and among the troops, and when the Palmetto and Confederate flags were raised on the parapet, the ordnance from all points of the harbor pealed forth their joyful thunder. The water was alive with craft of all sorts. The details of surrender were made. Major Anderson was allowed to carry out his property and side arms and to salute his flag. The Isabel went down from the city, at his own request, to take him to New York.
And we would be glad to close this brief narrative here—but the worst and the best thing connected with the battle of Fort Sumter, happened subsequently. The hand of Providence seemed to be in this flight. History records no where the fact that skilful artillerist on both sides have fired for 33 hours without killing, or seriously wounding a man. Major. Anderson’s men were so small in number that, notwithstanding the fort is a scene of desolation inside, they could all be safely stowed away in the casemates and thus escape the iron hail. The sand batteries and iron batteries protected the South Carolinians wonderfully. The only loss of life was experiences occurred when Major Anderson’s men were saluting his flag immediately previous to leaving the fort. In firing one of the guns, some shells of loose ammunition lying on the parapets caught and exploded, killing one man instantly, and mortally wounding three or four others, two of whom have since died. Gen. Beauregard ordered that the one that was killed should be buried with military honors, which was done.
From the Wilmington Herald
Reprinted The Daily Register, April 20, 1861.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
A Tar Heel’s views of Fort Sumter
What We Saw in Charleston
We left Wilmington on Thursday night last to witness, and, if allowed to participate in the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Our journey was full of excitement which one might expect to realize when on his way to the field of battle for the first time. On Friday morning, when about twenty-five miles from Charleston, we heard the heavy ordnance of Sumter and the different batteries on the islands, and as the jarring thunder steadily and a regular intervals broke upon the early morning air. The excitement on the cars increased to fever heat and the passengers could scarcely restrain their impatience at one or two very brief stoppages of the train to take up several South Carolinians who were hurrying to the scene of action. As the train approached the city, the dull, heavy explosions shook the air in rapid succession like thunder-claps, and at last the clouds of smoke from the different batteries became visible, and the smell of burnt powder was wafted pleasantly on the breeze. We found the streets comparatively quiet--the citizens and strangers of both sexes having crowded down to the Battery—and, eating a hurried break fast, we ascended to the roof of the Mills House, with a friend, to take a view. And such a view!
There lay the waters of the beautiful harbor, sparkling and heaving gently to the kiss of the morning breeze. Directly before us arose out of the deep the beleaguered fortress, all its angles softened by the distance—the once glorious ensign of a once glorious republic floating proudly over its walls, and the whole scene looking as peaceful and beautiful as God intended it should be. But see! from a point on the right a white puff of smoke is sent, and, ere the report reaches us, a red flame burst over the flag-staff of Fort Sumter and the dreadful bomb scatters its fragments over the doomed fort and comes to the ear with a report almost equal to that of the mortar from which it proceeded. Another puff from the opposite wise where the floating battery and Fort Moultrie are located, an answer from Maj. Anderson, a round shot hurtles through the air from Cumings Point; and so it goes. We hurry down, passing the bulletin boards of the Mercury and Courier offices, and learning there that, as yet, “nobody is hurt.” Arrived at the Battery… we find several thousand ladies and gentlemen, citizens and strangers gazing at the conflict and all impressed with the character of the drama which was being enacted. Soldiers on horback and on foot, messengers and aids hurry to and fro. There was no weeping—no apparent distress—but upon the faces of all,--men, women and children, Determination was stamped in unmistakeable characters. We took our stand and watched every shot from every battery on each of the islands and from Fort Sumter. “There goes Stevens’ Battery,” ‘There goes Anderson,” “Look at that shell,” “now for the Floating Battery,” “Ripley keeps up the fire from Fort Moultrie gloriously,” “I’d give $100 to be there,” and a thousand other similar expressions constantly greeted the ear, while every time a should would explode over Sumter, leaving its little cloud of white smoke, a cheer would go up from the large concourse of spectators. Major Anderson generally alternated his shots with the different batteries (five or six in number) that were playing on him; but sometimes he would open fire from both sides at once.—He seemed about 9 o’clock on Friday to be paying his particular respects to Fort Moultrie, and a rumor reached the city that 30 or 40 men had been killed there, and that the battery was terribly exposed; but a short time proved these and various other rumors to be false. Moultrie kept pegging away slowly and steadily, as did the others. Fort Sumer replied briskly. Dispatches now came that the iron battery (Stevens) on Cummings’ Point, was rapidly making a breach in the Southwest wall of Sumter, and we think Major Anderson did not fire at Cummings’ Point after 2 o’clock on Friday. Cheering news arrived from all quarters, of the harmlessness of Anderson’s shots and the good spirits of the “boys.” The firing was kept up under dark, which there seemed to be only one gun about every ten or fifteen minutes, as it intended to keep Major Anderson awake.
To be continued….
We left Wilmington on Thursday night last to witness, and, if allowed to participate in the bombardment of Fort Sumter. Our journey was full of excitement which one might expect to realize when on his way to the field of battle for the first time. On Friday morning, when about twenty-five miles from Charleston, we heard the heavy ordnance of Sumter and the different batteries on the islands, and as the jarring thunder steadily and a regular intervals broke upon the early morning air. The excitement on the cars increased to fever heat and the passengers could scarcely restrain their impatience at one or two very brief stoppages of the train to take up several South Carolinians who were hurrying to the scene of action. As the train approached the city, the dull, heavy explosions shook the air in rapid succession like thunder-claps, and at last the clouds of smoke from the different batteries became visible, and the smell of burnt powder was wafted pleasantly on the breeze. We found the streets comparatively quiet--the citizens and strangers of both sexes having crowded down to the Battery—and, eating a hurried break fast, we ascended to the roof of the Mills House, with a friend, to take a view. And such a view!
There lay the waters of the beautiful harbor, sparkling and heaving gently to the kiss of the morning breeze. Directly before us arose out of the deep the beleaguered fortress, all its angles softened by the distance—the once glorious ensign of a once glorious republic floating proudly over its walls, and the whole scene looking as peaceful and beautiful as God intended it should be. But see! from a point on the right a white puff of smoke is sent, and, ere the report reaches us, a red flame burst over the flag-staff of Fort Sumter and the dreadful bomb scatters its fragments over the doomed fort and comes to the ear with a report almost equal to that of the mortar from which it proceeded. Another puff from the opposite wise where the floating battery and Fort Moultrie are located, an answer from Maj. Anderson, a round shot hurtles through the air from Cumings Point; and so it goes. We hurry down, passing the bulletin boards of the Mercury and Courier offices, and learning there that, as yet, “nobody is hurt.” Arrived at the Battery… we find several thousand ladies and gentlemen, citizens and strangers gazing at the conflict and all impressed with the character of the drama which was being enacted. Soldiers on horback and on foot, messengers and aids hurry to and fro. There was no weeping—no apparent distress—but upon the faces of all,--men, women and children, Determination was stamped in unmistakeable characters. We took our stand and watched every shot from every battery on each of the islands and from Fort Sumter. “There goes Stevens’ Battery,” ‘There goes Anderson,” “Look at that shell,” “now for the Floating Battery,” “Ripley keeps up the fire from Fort Moultrie gloriously,” “I’d give $100 to be there,” and a thousand other similar expressions constantly greeted the ear, while every time a should would explode over Sumter, leaving its little cloud of white smoke, a cheer would go up from the large concourse of spectators. Major Anderson generally alternated his shots with the different batteries (five or six in number) that were playing on him; but sometimes he would open fire from both sides at once.—He seemed about 9 o’clock on Friday to be paying his particular respects to Fort Moultrie, and a rumor reached the city that 30 or 40 men had been killed there, and that the battery was terribly exposed; but a short time proved these and various other rumors to be false. Moultrie kept pegging away slowly and steadily, as did the others. Fort Sumer replied briskly. Dispatches now came that the iron battery (Stevens) on Cummings’ Point, was rapidly making a breach in the Southwest wall of Sumter, and we think Major Anderson did not fire at Cummings’ Point after 2 o’clock on Friday. Cheering news arrived from all quarters, of the harmlessness of Anderson’s shots and the good spirits of the “boys.” The firing was kept up under dark, which there seemed to be only one gun about every ten or fifteen minutes, as it intended to keep Major Anderson awake.
To be continued….
Friday, April 08, 2011
State Capitol Commemorates 150th Anniversary of North Carolina ’s Secession Vote
RALEIGH – On May 20, 1861, delegates from across the state met in the House Chamber of the State Capitol and voted to sever North Carolina ’s ties with the Union . On Saturday, May 21, 2011, the Capitol will present “North Carolina Secedes,” a living history program commemorating the historic vote and a look at the state’s early wartime preparations.
The free event will take place from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and is open to the public. It is part of the North Carolina Civil War Sesquicentennial, a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War in North Carolina (www.nccivilwar150.com).
The re-enactment of the Secession Convention’s vote will take place in the historic House Chamber at 11 a.m. Contemporary accounts of the day recall that following the unanimous vote, a handkerchief was dropped from the west portico as a signal to the crowd below that North Carolina had seceded and joined the Confederacy. Stephen Dodson Ramseur’s artillery unit was posted on the grounds for the occasion and announced the historic moment by firing its cannons and infantry. Approximately 100 re-enactors from the 26th North Carolina Regiment will portray Ramseur’s battery and re-enact the infantry firing on the southwest grounds.
In the afternoon, the event will feature a drill and dress parade, a field music concert and lectures on the state’s military organization, war flags, and the early uniforms and equipment of both North Carolina and Union soldiers. Additionally, a facsimile of North Carolina ’s Ordinance of Secession will be on display inside the Capitol.
For those hoping to get a glimpse of Confederate camp life, the 26th NC (http://www.26nc.org/) will be encamped at Historic Oak View County Park on the east side of Raleigh . On Sunday, the group will present “Preparing for War: The 26th NC in 1861” at the park from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Visit http://www.wakegov.com/parks/oakview for details.
The State Capitol’s mission is to preserve and interpret the history, architecture and functions of the 1840 building and Union Square . The Capitol is bounded by Edenton, Salisbury , Morgan and Wilmington streets. For more info rmation, visit www.nchistoricsites.org/capitol/default.htm or call (919) 733-4994.
Administered by the Division of State Historic Sites, the State Capitol is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available 24/7 at http://www.ncculture.com/.
The free event will take place from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and is open to the public. It is part of the North Carolina Civil War Sesquicentennial, a commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War in North Carolina (www.nccivilwar150.com).
The re-enactment of the Secession Convention’s vote will take place in the historic House Chamber at 11 a.m. Contemporary accounts of the day recall that following the unanimous vote, a handkerchief was dropped from the west portico as a signal to the crowd below that North Carolina had seceded and joined the Confederacy. Stephen Dodson Ramseur’s artillery unit was posted on the grounds for the occasion and announced the historic moment by firing its cannons and infantry. Approximately 100 re-enactors from the 26th North Carolina Regiment will portray Ramseur’s battery and re-enact the infantry firing on the southwest grounds.
In the afternoon, the event will feature a drill and dress parade, a field music concert and lectures on the state’s military organization, war flags, and the early uniforms and equipment of both North Carolina and Union soldiers. Additionally, a facsimile of North Carolina ’s Ordinance of Secession will be on display inside the Capitol.
For those hoping to get a glimpse of Confederate camp life, the 26th NC (http://www.26nc.org/) will be encamped at Historic Oak View County Park on the east side of Raleigh . On Sunday, the group will present “Preparing for War: The 26th NC in 1861” at the park from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Visit http://www.wakegov.com/parks/oakview for details.
The State Capitol’s mission is to preserve and interpret the history, architecture and functions of the 1840 building and Union Square . The Capitol is bounded by Edenton, Salisbury , Morgan and Wilmington streets. For more info rmation, visit www.nchistoricsites.org/capitol/default.htm or call (919) 733-4994.
Administered by the Division of State Historic Sites, the State Capitol is part of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources, the state agency with the mission to enrich lives and communities, and the vision to harness the state’s cultural resources to build North Carolina ’s social, cultural and economic future. Information on Cultural Resources is available 24/7 at http://www.ncculture.com/.
Tuesday, April 05, 2011
A look around the Old North State…
You can find some real interesting figures about women in Raleigh in 1860 by visiting the CivilWarTime blog. I wonder how those numbers had changed by 1865?
Josh Howard’s quest to find how many Tar Heel soldiers died during the War continues to make headlines, including this post on Fox News and the Wall Street Journal.
The Asheville Citizen Times is trying to help people find their Civil War ancestors. Check it out here.
More information about Civil War/family research can be found here.
The Battle of Big Bethel get’s an early reenactment this year. Learn more here.
Dr. Judkin Browning is going to be speaking at the Western North Carolina Civil War Round Table in Sylva next Monday – you can learn more here.
An interesting story about a Yankee who dig relics off the Bentonville Battlefield can be found here.
An article on the Tweets of a member of the 30th NCT can be here in the Raleigh News and Observer.
And,
The Burlington Times-News has an article on the Kirk-Holden War. Check it out here.
Josh Howard’s quest to find how many Tar Heel soldiers died during the War continues to make headlines, including this post on Fox News and the Wall Street Journal.
The Asheville Citizen Times is trying to help people find their Civil War ancestors. Check it out here.
More information about Civil War/family research can be found here.
The Battle of Big Bethel get’s an early reenactment this year. Learn more here.
Dr. Judkin Browning is going to be speaking at the Western North Carolina Civil War Round Table in Sylva next Monday – you can learn more here.
An interesting story about a Yankee who dig relics off the Bentonville Battlefield can be found here.
An article on the Tweets of a member of the 30th NCT can be here in the Raleigh News and Observer.
And,
The Burlington Times-News has an article on the Kirk-Holden War. Check it out here.
Monday, April 04, 2011
Allatoona Battlefield this Saturday.
Having a job as a full-time Civil War historian has its perks – ok, it has a lot of them, like working with original sources, handling original artifacts, unveiling conserved flags, and talking to scores of great folks. One those many perks is getting to spend time on original battlefields.
This Saturday, at 11:00 am, I get to speak on one of those battlefields. The Georgia Division and the North Carolina Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans, are unveiling a monument to two North Carolina regiments that fought at the battle of Allatoona Pass. And yours truly gets to spend fifteen or twenty minutes talking about those two regiments and what they did during the battle. Everyone is invited. If you have ancestors who served in one of those two regiments, the event organizers would like you to help unveil the monument. This Saturday, April 9, 2011, looks to be a great day! I hope you can join me on the Allatoona Pass Battlefield.
This Saturday, at 11:00 am, I get to speak on one of those battlefields. The Georgia Division and the North Carolina Division, Sons of Confederate Veterans, are unveiling a monument to two North Carolina regiments that fought at the battle of Allatoona Pass. And yours truly gets to spend fifteen or twenty minutes talking about those two regiments and what they did during the battle. Everyone is invited. If you have ancestors who served in one of those two regiments, the event organizers would like you to help unveil the monument. This Saturday, April 9, 2011, looks to be a great day! I hope you can join me on the Allatoona Pass Battlefield.
Saturday, April 02, 2011
Volume XVIII: Junior Reserves and Detailed Men in the North Carolina Troops, 1861-1865: A Roster series is now available for ordering!!!
Volume XVIII contains the history and rosters of the North Carolina Senior Reserves. The Senior Reserves were men between the ages of 45 and 50, drafted in the last year of the war, as the Confederacy faced a disastrous shortfall in manpower. Between the spring and fall of 1864, North Carolina raised five regiments, four battalions, and two independent companies of Senior Reserves. These men guarded bridges and depots, rounded up deserters, and guarded prisoners at Salisbury and elsewhere. The exigencies of the war drew them into active service, some in South Carolina with General Hardee as he attempted to hold off the Federal advance to North Carolina; some in defense of Fort Fisher, south of Wilmington; and some at Bentonville, the last major battle of the war.
Also in the last year of the war, the Confederate government decided that it could no longer afford to have white men working “on detail” in ordnance works, quartermaster service, recruiting service, or other non-combat operations. In the fall of 1864, North Carolina began organizing its detailed men into military units. Eventually, three regiments, two battalions, and an independent company were organized from the detailed men in the state, but the war ended before they had an opportunity to participate in combat.
An authoritative 114-page history of the Senior Reserves begins the volume. The history is followed by a complete roster and service records of the officers and men that served in the Senior Reserves. The service records include important information such as full name, rank, county of birth and residence, occupation, place and date of enlistment, age, whether the individual was wounded, captured, hospitalized, paroled, transferred, or promoted and whether or not he died during the war or survived. A 19-page history of the Detailed Men is followed by a complete roster and service records of the officers and men that served in those units. A detailed index completes the volume.
To learn more about this important, new contribution to Civil War scholarship (and to order a copy), please visit:
http://nc-historical-publications.stores.yahoo.net/3499.html
Also in the last year of the war, the Confederate government decided that it could no longer afford to have white men working “on detail” in ordnance works, quartermaster service, recruiting service, or other non-combat operations. In the fall of 1864, North Carolina began organizing its detailed men into military units. Eventually, three regiments, two battalions, and an independent company were organized from the detailed men in the state, but the war ended before they had an opportunity to participate in combat.
An authoritative 114-page history of the Senior Reserves begins the volume. The history is followed by a complete roster and service records of the officers and men that served in the Senior Reserves. The service records include important information such as full name, rank, county of birth and residence, occupation, place and date of enlistment, age, whether the individual was wounded, captured, hospitalized, paroled, transferred, or promoted and whether or not he died during the war or survived. A 19-page history of the Detailed Men is followed by a complete roster and service records of the officers and men that served in those units. A detailed index completes the volume.
To learn more about this important, new contribution to Civil War scholarship (and to order a copy), please visit:
http://nc-historical-publications.stores.yahoo.net/3499.html
Friday, April 01, 2011
In Old Wilkes
Last night, I had the opportunity to speak at the opening of the new Civil War exhibit at the Wilkes County Heritage Museum. Not only did I speak, but so did Gary Coffey, commander of the James B. Gordon Camp, Sons of Confederate Veterans, who sponsored the event; Skip Smith, Colonel of the 26th North Carolina Troops, Reactivated; and Chris Hartley, author of the new book on Stoneman’s Raid.
If you get a chance, stop by the Old Wilkes Court House and check out the exhibit – it includes weapons, flags, and uniforms, and is well worth the ride. Thanks again to the Wilkes Museum for allowing me to come and speak for a few minutes. I look forward to working with them in the future.
If you get a chance, stop by the Old Wilkes Court House and check out the exhibit – it includes weapons, flags, and uniforms, and is well worth the ride. Thanks again to the Wilkes Museum for allowing me to come and speak for a few minutes. I look forward to working with them in the future.
Michael C. Hardy, Chris Hartley, and Skip Smith.