Browsing All Posts filed under »Re-inventing CW memory«

A Virginia slave in pursuit of freedom

June 3, 2010 by

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I just finished reading something about John M. Washington, a slave who spent some time in Staunton, Virginia in the mid-1850s. To me, finding any account of a slave, for any amount of time in the Valley, is refreshing as it adds new dimensions to an understanding of what life was like here. Regretfully, I […]

The Southern Citizen Rescue Expedition of 1861-1865

June 2, 2010 by

2

I enjoy looking at history from different angles, and I’ve actually been thinking about the Southern Unionists thing in a different way. Interestingly, in a ListServ discussion today (I know, Kevin, I still haven’t learned my lesson), it came to mind once again. It might seem trivial to some, but I don’t necessarily believe it […]

What?! No “love” for John Brown?!

May 16, 2010 by

15

Just an observation, but May 9 came and went a week ago today with not so much as one post about John Brown. Actually, until earlier this week, I didn’t have a clue that JB was born on May 9 (hmmm, a stubborn Taurus…). Rather, Brown had been defined, at least in my “memory”, by […]

A matter of treason: is it really so hard to accept?

May 7, 2010 by

27

Kevin’s post earlier this week left me thinking about several things. I think it is an excellent piece about separating our sentiments today, from the sentiments of people from the past… and the complications that historians may find in being objective. I’d like to expand on this more later, in another post, but, for now, […]

The voice of the Southern people left unheard…

April 26, 2010 by

11

Took a little “virtual walk” among some items in the Valley of the Shadow today and found quite a bit that was of interest, but wanted to throw these out for consideration… all from the Feb. 26, 1861 issue of the Staunton Spectator… The Natchez Courier “Contends that the people of Natchez were not in […]

Rockingham County, Virginia’s John Francis Lewis: his position on secession, the Confederacy, and postwar Virginia

April 23, 2010 by

6

Following-up on my passing mention of Rockingham County, Virginia’s delegates to the Virginia Secession Convention in this post the other day, I thought it might be of interest to readers to know a little more about one of those delegates. As the obituary from the New York Times indicates, John Francis Lewis was openly opposed […]

History-focused Memorials/Monuments and History Months

April 22, 2010 by

4

I enjoy the occasional visit to “Walking in the Berkshires” and, while I haven’t visited the blog much recently, I spent a little while the other day catching-up on a few posts made over the past few months. I found the post focused on the controversy surrounding South Carolina’s Secession Ordinance Monument quite enlightening. When […]

A snowball effect: the continued propagation of bad history in Confederate History Month in Va.

April 21, 2010 by

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It just continues to get worse. As Kevin pointed out in a post yesterday, the S.C.V. camp in Harrisonburg/Rockingham County placed a proclamation in the Harrisonburg Daily New Record. Rockingham isn’t my home county, but I do have ancestry (including one third great grandfather in Co. A of the 58th Virginia Militia, and several cousins […]

Comparing reasons why the CW was fought with today’s tea party movement? Oh, come on!

April 17, 2010 by

2

“The War Between the States was fought for the same reasons that the tea party movement today is voicing their opinion. And that is that you have large government that’s not listening to the people, there’s going to be heavy taxation,” Fayard said Monday from his home in Duck Hill, Miss. “And the primary cause […]

Virginia’s John S. Mosby speaks…

April 15, 2010 by

1

Something to think about… The South had always been solid for slavery and when the quarrel about it resulted in a conflict of arms, those who had approved the policy of disunion took the pro-slavery side. It was perfectly logical to fight for slavery, if it was right to own slaves. – John S. Mosby, […]

Their own worst enemy

April 14, 2010 by

9

Last night, when I was thinking about developing a post about how [many] Confederate celebrationists have essentially made things worse for themselves for not having acknowledged different historical facts in their efforts to “honor” the Confederate soldier, this was posted by Brooks Simpson. What a fine example of how these celebrationists have gone down the […]

… and then there is the history-warping media…

April 13, 2010 by

16

While CNN and others challenge the idea of Virginia’s proclamation for Confederate History Month, I think it’s a fine time to point out that many in the media are doing an equal amount of injustice to history as those who want to take Confederate history down the “Moonlight and Magnolias” path. It’s really sad, but […]

Was Appomattox really sad for ALL those who loved the South in 1865?

April 11, 2010 by

17

Once again, while reading today’s post by Kevin, I’m compelled to write something longer than a comment to the post. Specifically, there was a comment at Richard Williams’ blog that was reflective of one contemporary person’s opinion of what April 9, 1865 meant to “all of us who love the South.” Well, to be frank, […]

“Good Confederates” by default

April 7, 2010 by

13

In the wake of posting about the annual proclamation for Confederate History Month in Virginia yesterday, I have some additional thoughts. First, were Virginians in the Civil War era, by default, Confederates? Absolutely not. Were those who lived throughout the South at the time of the war, by default, Confederates? No. So, why do people […]

A more realistic alternative to Confederate History Month in Virginia… or anywhere else in the South

April 6, 2010 by

15

Keying off of both Kevin Levin’s and Brooks Simpson’s posts on Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell’s proclamation (an annual proclamation from the Governor’s office for a number of years back) about Confederate History Month (this year’s is actually modified slightly from last year’s proclamation), I felt the need to toss in a few comments of my […]

Dashing “Won Cause” mythology

April 1, 2010 by

6

It’s funny, but Civil War Memory is a double-edged sword. Being a Southerner, I’m used to the heavy dose of Lost Cause mythology, and several years ago, I finally came to the point where I could start to distinguish between myth and reality when it comes to the history of Southern Confederates in the war. […]

“It’ll tickle yer innards”

March 24, 2010 by

10

Yes, I’ve been quiet for a bit, but… I’m more of a mind to chat when there is something to actually chat about… I’ve recently taken notice of the $125,000 Joseph E. Johnston statue at Bentonville and… uhhhhhh… I think it detracts more than adds to Bentonville. To each his own, but really… First, it’s […]

Maryland and “the despot’s heel”

January 8, 2010 by

13

The deeper I get into the history of events in central and western Maryland, the more I am convinced that the “despot’s heel” argument really holds little weight. Not only is the state song out of date, it never really reflected the Civil War era opinion of the state as a whole. What prompted today’s […]

On the opinion that the Emancipation Proclamation didn’t free any slaves…

December 18, 2009 by

12

I’m somewhat embarrassed by it, but until late this past summer, I didn’t realize that Maryland took action to free slaves in the state… and yes, this happened before the end of the Civil War. I’ve been looking into this a bit more and mostly following the flow of thoughts and events through the wartime […]

Understanding Unionism in the Maryland “borderland”

September 30, 2009 by

11

Some are aware of my latest efforts in developing a unit history for Cole’s Cavalry, so I thought I’d occasionally share samplings of some findings. One of the things that strikes me about some of the Marylanders in the unit is the way that they considered themselves Southerners… and most really were since the majority of men […]

“Think of it!” A Confederate reflects on the duties of slaves with the Army of Northern Virginia

September 8, 2009 by

9

I recently saw this article come across the Web… and, quite naturally, was taken aback by the claim that these people make regarding the “rebel flag” flying “for freedom” and, of course, that “at least 100,000 blacks… fought in the war,” seemingly in the name of freedom as provided courtesy of the flag. So, when I found […]

Here’s hoping for better in the Sesquicentennial

August 31, 2009 by

24

“Turncoat Virginians”

August 27, 2009 by

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When reviewing a Confederate unit history recently, I ran across a remark made by the contemporary author (not a person who actually lived during the Civil War) about the men of Samuel Means‘ Loudoun Rangers (see this link for an interesting history of the unit… strange to say, the author of this article also uses the word “turncoat” […]

A misunderstanding of the circumstances behind Virginia’s seizing Harpers Ferry?

July 1, 2009 by

7

Reading a comment in another blog today, I can’t help but lay-out the facts surrounding Virginia’s seizing of the Harpers Ferry Arsenal in April 1861.  The question is, was it really a “legal” action from the perspective of the (then) Virginia government? The fact of the matter is that the plans to seize the US Arsenal in […]

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