The USS Monadnock: Great Naval Wonder

Found this wonderful description of the twin-turreted monitor USS Monadnock (pictured, right) while researching the life and naval service of a sailor who served aboard her from 1865-1866. This account, excerpted from a letter written by a correspondent named "Roland," is dated San Francisco, June 25, 1866. It was published in the August 4, 1866, issue of the Pacific Commercial Advertiser (Honolulu, Hawaii). I've added notes [in brackets] when appropriate.

Crowds are daily visiting this great naval wonder and the war steamer Vanderbilt, both lying off in the bay, and which arrived a day or two after we came into port. In the language of Jack Downing, I and Gen. [Irvin] McDowell together visited the first named. At a distance she looks like a half sunken ship, standing less than two feet out of water. As you approach her, flat and motionless, she bears nothing formidable or terrifying in appearance, but rather looks tame and sleepy. When once aboard, and you proceed to enter the aperture of one of her turrets, facing the grim, open mouth, of one of those famous Dahlgren “swamp angels,” [reference to the famed monster gun used by the federals in the 1863 bombardment of Charleston, S.C.] you begin to wake up to the sense of your “situation.” These enormous guns are fourteen feet in length, black and menacing, with 480 lb. balls laying beside them and consuming 60 lbs. of powder at a charge. After seeing them, you can soon begin to form a conception of their death-dealing, destructive qualities. I put my head into the muzzle of one, and concluded I had a very small head or that was a very large hole. One of the officers told me that while the monitor was at Rio, Brazil, they found one of the Brazilian officers, with his knife, trying to chip or pick into the guns, suspecting that they might be only “quaker guns,” made of wood. [Reference to wooden logs painted black; used by both sides in the Civil War to deceive their adversary.] Surrounding the inside of the turrets are suspended canvass, thickly lined with felt, which serves to deaden the sound, so that the noise of the discharge is no greater inside the turret than outside. While the Emperor of Brazil was on board, at his request two guns were loaded to be fired, himself to be allowed to discharge them. After discharging the first he hastily withdrew, requesting them to omit the other.

On the deck lay two “Baulseys” or cigar shaped water-tight boxes, about 28 feet long, and 5 feet in diameter at the center, for supplies and water in case of disaster or shipwreck. But what strikes a visitor as the most peculiar and novel are the band-box turrets, 46 feet in circumference, 10 feet high, and 11 inches thick, with little horizontal spaces, cut half an inch in width four or five inches long, for sight holes. The outside of these are ingeniously protected by a little stairway of steps, cut into each successive layer of plate, till it widens to something over a foot long and four inches wide, forcing a ball when striking to change its inclination and dart either upwards or downwards. On the top of the turrets, are removable pilot houses never used in action. The compasses are immersed in alcohol to prevent the attraction of the magnet towards the iron. In the fire rooms the average heat is 150 to 160 degrees, but it has touched 175. The highest speed attained was 9 knots an hour, but usually she makes 6 1/2 knots. She draw 12 1/4 feet of water, and has 18 engines for all purposes. She is soon to be taken to the navy yard and laid up, her officers and crew returning to New York on the steamer of July 10th or 20th.

Photo from a U.S. navy lithograph.

"The Spirit of the Age"

The Sixty-second U.S. Colored Infantry is perhaps best known for its commitment to educate the mostly illiterate slaves who joined its ranks in late 1863 and early 1864. In reading various accounts of the regiment's history, I am impressed with the African American men and the strides they made to better themselves and the white officers who linked leadership to literacy and education to citizenship.

These officers were more than men of their time. They were visionaries who contributed to the immediacy of a brutal and bloody war with a long view to addressing the future needs of what most assuredly would be a dramatically changed society in peacetime. This brings to mind the engraving of the eagle pictured here, with arrows and an olive branch gripped in it talon. It was scanned from the enlistment paper of a slave who joined the army in 1864. It represents the extremes that these men faced.

Last week I read through the original regimental order book of the Sixty-second, part of the collection of the National Archives. Preserved in this volume are all the handwritten general and special orders issued by the staff officers. Page after page, I was struck by the commitment of these men to the betterment of freed slaves.

General Order No. 36, transcribed here, caught my attention, for it illustrates both the weakness of man and the strength of human character. I like the phrase "the spirit of the age," which acknowledges this unique moment in history that transformed a race and rebuilt the very foundation of our modern democracy.

Hd. Qrs. 62nd Regt. U.S. Cold. Inf.
Brazos Santiago, Texas
November 9th 1864
General Orders
No 36

The Lieut. Col. Comdg. has learned with regret that several officers of this command have been in the habit of abusing men under their command by striking them with their fists or swords, & by kicking them when guilty of very slight offenses. This is as unmanly and unofficer like as it is unnecessary. An officer is not fit to command who cannot control his temper sufficiently to avoid the habitual application of blows to enforce obedience. Men will not obey as promptly an order who adopts the customs of the slave driver to maintain authority as they will him who punishes by a system consistent with the character and enormity of offenses and the spirit of the age. The time for enforcing authority with the sword is in case of willful disobedience of orders, mutiny, or cowardice in action, which in the ordinary course of events, will rarely occur.

While censuring the officers referred to, their commander makes allowance for the fact that, generally, the men who have received such punishment have been of the meanest type of soldiers; lazy, dirty & inefficient and provoking to any high spirited officer. But he is satisfied never-the-less that such treatment will not produce reform in them, while it has an injurious effect on all good men, from its resemblance to their former treatment while slaves.

By order of
Lieut. Colonel David Branson
Comdg. Regt.
R.B. Foster
1st Lt. & actg. Adjt.

Colored Troops in Non-Combat Roles: A Question of Military Necessity?

The most common explanations I've read or heard pertaining to the deployment of African American regiments in non-combat roles are racial bias by white soldiers who believed black men would not make good fighters, or that federal armies in desperate need of manpower used them to garrison occupied areas in the South.

A letter in the National Archives offers another reason for using colored regiments in support roles, and offers an explanation why.

On Oct. 9, 1864, Brig. Gen. James Lowry Donaldson, the Chief Quartermaster of the Military Department of the Cumberland, sat down in his Nashville, Tenn., office and penned a reply to a letter he had received a day earlier from Col. Reuben D. Mussey, a strong advocate of enlisting black troops and using them on the front lines. Mussey at the time was actively engaged in recruiting and organizing men from Tennessee and Georgia for colored regiments. His role often put him at odds with the top general in the region, William T. Sherman, who did not support the U.S. government's position on raising African American forces.

Col. Mussey fired off a letter of protest to Donaldson after he learned that colored troops were diverted to assist the quartermaster's department. Donaldson's four-page reply:

Colonel,

Your communication of the 8th inst. relative to the two Regiments of U.S.C.I. [U.S. Colored Infantries] now reporting to the Chief Quartermaster of the Dept., and requesting a statement of the duties they are assigned to and how they have discharged it has been received.

In reply I have the honor to state as follows: Last Winter and Spring when the whole resources of the North West [of the Department of the Cumberland] were being poured in upon this Depot, by both rail and river, in order to accumulate, if possible, a six months supply for Genl. Sherman's Army, in anticipation of the Summer Campaign [which ended in the capture of Atlanta], the Q.M. Dept. found itself at its wits-ends to receive and handle the vast amount of all kinds of stores that soon thronged our lines and streets. We made extra exertions to secure stevedores and laborers from the North, and speedily ran up our force of employees from six or eight thousand (6,000 or 8,000) to twelve and fifteen thousand (12,000 & 15,000) but with all our efforts we were still short of men and, as a derrier resort [last resort], I called on the Major Genl. Comdg. for one or two Colored Regts to report to me for such fatigue and guard duty as I might find necessary.

I did not want to do this, for I believe in Colored Troops and think they should take the Field and fight the same as White ones, but I know there were Colored Regts in the Dept. not yet fit for the Field and that, for obvious reasons, they had more work in them than I could get out of any other troops.

General [George H.] Thomas approved of my Requisition, and late in March sent me the 15th Regt. U.S.C. Inft., Col. T.J. [Thomas J.] Downey Comdg., and soon after, in April, the 17th Regt. U.S.C.I., Col. W.R. [William R.] Shafter Comdg., these two Regts. at that time did not number over 1,500 effective men, but they at once proved to be a great assistance to me.

They furnished me details for Fatigue purposes exceedingly large for such an effective strength, and no men ever worked better or more cheerfully. Their Officers all readily saw the necessity of hearty cooperation in order to be prepared here to sustain Genl. Sherman when he moved, and that the Colonels Comdg. especially deserve my warmest thanks.

Subsequently, when supplies were well here for the Summer and Nashville had been denuded of troops in order to concentrate every thing at the Front, I relieved these Regts from all Fatigue duty, and since then have used them only for guard purposes.

At present the 15th Regt. is stationed on the line of the Edgefield and Kentucky R.R., guarding it from Nashville for a distance of some 40 miles, with Hd. Qrs. at Springfield Tenn. At Springfield they have thrown up quite respectable and serviceable fortifications, and at various other points they are now engaged in the construction of Block Houses.

The 17th Regt. has its Hd. Qrs. here at Nashville, several of its Companies are doing duty as guards to Public Store Houses &c here, and the balance I have sent to various points, up and down the Cumberland [River] from 10 to 20 miles from Nashville, to protect Govt. Wood Choppers and guard Govt. wood piles. At times I have found it necessary to detail some of them, temporarily, as guards for Govt. Steamers, to protect them from Guerrillas on the river, and they have always conducted themselves, so far, admirably.

The effective strength of both Regts. is thus fully consumed by our necessary operations here, and about here, and so far I have nothing but praise for both of them.

The Regts. are both well disciplined, and exceedingly soldierly in appearance and conduct, and no better troops could be desired any where, considering their opportunities.

The prejudice they awakened at first among some here has disappeared, if not died out, and I ask no better guards or garrisons for any purposes of the Q.M. Dept. then those furnished me.

I have only to add further, that they have discharged well all the duties to which I have found it necessary to assign them, and that, so far as my observation extends, here the Organization of "Citizens of African Descent" into U.S. Troops has, in this Military Department at least, proved an eminent and entire success. God grant that the problem of Human Slavery on this Continent may thus, at last, receive its solution, and the race so long down-trodden and oppressed be thus permitted to repay "the proud man's contumely and the oppressors wrong," by fighting to the death their rebellious masters beneath the flag of Freedom and the Union.

I find this letter of interest not only for its explanation, but for what it suggests about the officers involved: Donaldson must have been aware of the conflict between Mussey's advocacy of and Sherman's negative position on black troops, and had to have known that Sherman would readily agree to his request. Mussey's obvious concern that Donaldson's request would fuel Sherman's desire to keep African Americans off the front lines of his army are well founded. Donaldson takes the high road in declaring his support for colored troops in the field, then falls back on the tired excuse that the black soldiers "had more work in them" than others, and describes how cheerfully they fulfilled their labors. Donaldson goes on to praise the two regiments in the highest terms, but then qualifies his comments with the caveat that they are only as good as the opportunities available to them (not including a combat role).

I suspect Mussey was not at all assuaged by this reply. Leading the charge for racial equality, Donaldson's conservative attitude as implied in his explanations likely infuriated and frustrated Mussey further. However, his protest letter did produce a thoughtful, careful response from Donaldson.

Notes: Donaldson's quote "the proud man's contumely and the oppressors wrong," appears on page 393 of The Works of Vicesimus Knox, D.D., Vol. II (London: B. Bensley, 1824). Donaldson's letter is contained in Letters Received, Colored Troops Division, entry 360, file M-750-(CT)-1864, Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780s-1917, Record Group 94, at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

"You Can Whip the Whole World"

In December 1864, Maj. Gen. Quincy Adams Gillmore, pictured here, conducted an inspection of the post at Helena, Arkansas. During his visit, the troops marched in review for him. Two African American regiments, the Fifty-sixth and Sixtieth U.S. Colored Infantries, participated in the event.

An observer, James M. Alexander, watched the soldiers on parade as he stood near an artillery battery. He recalled an incident that occurred at the conclusion of the review. His account appeared in a letter published in the December 31, 1864, edition of The Christian Recorder. "There was an old colored man present, who had recently made his escape from the interior of this State, and who had been a silent spectator of the scene. As the General and his staff rode off, the artillerymen fired a salute. The old man advanced to the soldier nearest him, threw up his arms in amazement, and enthusiastically exclaimed, "Gentlemen, it's no use talking. You can whip the whole world."

I can imagine the old man's excitement, coming out of slavery and seeing others like him marching in precision along the path to freedom.

Photo of Maj. Gen. Gillmore from the Library of Congress.

An Account of the Death of Isaiah Owens

On a winter's day in 1868, two veterans sat down in the office of their local county court clerk and told the story of the death of their friend and comrade Isaiah Owens, who served as a private in the Sixtieth U.S. Colored Infantry. This account was used as evidence to secure a pension for Isaiah's mother, Melinda, who depended upon him as her main source of financial support before he joined the army.

The complete transcription of the original five-page handwritten document copied at the National Archives is included here. Although the length of this document is unusual (one to two pages is average), it shares much in common with similar legal documents of record in pension files. The use of "that," "said," and other terms is normal. Also of note is the structure: The opening always includes the introduction of the clerk and the witnesses, and ends with a statement or statements that none of the individuals appearing have any interest in the case.

The transcription has several valuable details about Isaiah Owens — if you have the focus and patience to read each and every word!

State of Missouri
County of Marion

On this 30th day of December A.D. 1868 before me, John V. Gibbon Clerk of the Hannibal Court of Common Pleas, being a Court of Record in said County & State, personally appeared Henry Combs and Zachariah Johnson residents of Hannibal in said County, whom I certify to be respectable & credible witnesses, who being by me first duly sworn, depose & state:

That they reside as stated, that they were both formerly Privates in Company “C” Capt. Eli Ramsay in the 60th Regt. of U.S. Colored Troops during the late rebellion, & that they enlisted therein in August A.D. 1863.

That they were acquainted with Isaiah Owens in his lifetime, who enlisted in the same Co. & Regt with them in September 1863. That they were both acquainted with said Isaiah Owens prior to his enlistment in said Co, said Zachariah Johnson for over four (4) years before, and said Henry Combs for over two (2) years before; that they both lived during the said time of their acquaintance with said Isaiah Owens before his enlistment as aforesaid, in the same neighborhood with said Isaiah Owens, & were quite intimate with him, and that during all the said time of their acquaintance with him before his said enlistment, said Isaiah Owens was to the knowledge of each of these deponents, a strong, healthy & perfectly well man, and continued so up to the time of his said enlistment.

Just after their said enlistment, they went with said Isaiah Owens, first to St Louis, where they were mustered into the service, and after remaining at St Louis with their said Co & Regt about 3 weeks, they went to Helena Arkansas, & arrived there about December 20th 1863.

That they remained with said Isaiah Owens & their said Co & Regt, at Helena, Ark, until on or about the 25th day of July A.D. 1864, when their said Company (“C”) with three Companies was ordered on a scout in the direction of Big Creek, Arkansas.

That at about four (4) o’clock P.M. of said 25th day of July, 1864, these deponents with said Isaiah Owens & their said Company left Helena on said scout, & marched rapidly all night until they reached said Big Creek, early the next morning, when they came in contact with the rebels & had a battle with them on or about the 26th day of July, 1864.

That during said battle they with many others of their Company became very much exhausted & fatigued by reason of constant marching & the fighting immediately afterwards, & that this was the case with said Isaiah Owens.

That in the latter part of said day by orders, the command retreated to Helena, marching rapidly, & that the fighting with the rebels continued until they got within five (5) miles of Helena.

That the next day, for the first time, they heard said Isaiah Owens complain of his back being sore, that said Isaiah Owens continued to complain of his back being sore until he was taken to the Regimental Hospital at Helena, about three days after said battle of Big Creek, Ark.

That said Isaiah Owens continued to get worse after being taken to said Hospital until the 8th day of September, 1864, when he died of said disease of his back.

That they both saw said Isaiah Owens a short time before he died, and said Henry Combs saw & recognized the Corpse of said Isaiah Owens after his death as aforesaid, in said Hospital, & that they both attended the funeral of said Isaiah Owens the next day after his death as aforesaid, & that they both also heard the Captain announce to their Company the death of said Isaiah Owens, & that they both also saw said Isaiah Owens buried.

That from the time of their enlistment into said Company with said Isaiah Owens, until after said Battle of Big Creek, Arkansas, they never heard said Isaiah Owens complain of being unwell, & that said Isaiah Owens was never sick, from the time of his said enlistment until after said battle.

That during all that time, said Isaiah Owens was as healthy & strong as any man in the Company.

That they are certain said disease of his back, which caused his death as aforesaid, was not induced or aggravated by any personal habits of said Isaiah Owens, for they know that he had no bad habits, & was never intoxicated or under arrest during all of said time, between his enlistment & said battle of Big Creek.

That they are both fully of the opinion, that the disease causing the death of said Isaiah Owens was contracted while on the march from Helena to Big Creek, Arkansas, during said battle, & while on the retreat to Helena again as aforesaid, & was caused by the exposure, & severe marching & fighting, while on said march to Big Creek in said battle, & on said retreat back to Helena.

That they are also acquainted with Melinda Owens the mother of said Isaiah Owens, deceased, & that their testimony as given at her request.

That they are not related to said Melinda Owens, not in any wise interested in her claim for a Mother’s Pension, now pending & numbered 93168.
Henry (his X mark) Combs
Zachariah (his X mark) Johnson
Witnesses to marks
L.L. Leydam
Mabel Sanders

Sworn & subscribed before me by said affiants this 30th day of December A.D. 1868, & I certify that I read & explained the foregoing statements to said Henry Combs & Zachariah Johnson before they signed the same, and I further certify that I am not in any manner interested in said claim of said Melinda Owens, nor concerned in its prosecution.

In testimony wherof I have herewith set my hand & affixed the Official seal of said Hannibal Court of Common Pleas. Done at my office in Hannibal, Missouri, the day & year last above mentioned.

John V. Gibbon — Clerk

Sarah's Story

On March 14, 1900, Sarah Commodore appeared at the federal pension office in Baltimore and was interviewed by a special examiner regarding her recent application for widow's benefits. Her husband, George William Commodore (right) served as a landsman in the navy from 1864 to 1867. Sarah told the examiner about her marriage and life after his death. Her four-page testimony is preserved in her pension file (with his tintype) at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

Here is the transcript of her statement. The original is one long paragraph. I divided this transcript into paragraphs, inserting breaks where it appears the special examiner asked a question. The line of questions is based upon a preliminary investigation in 1899 and a review of Commodore's service record.

I am about 65 years of age but cannot state positively. My post office address is 1623 Brunt St. Balt. Md. & a laundress. I am the widow of George W. Commodore who served in the U.S. Navy during the Civil War. I cannot say when he enlisted or was discharged. I think he enlisted early in the war. He served for three years. He enlisted at Baltimore and a few days afterward I visited him in the ship he was on. I think it was called the “Allegheny.” I did not see my husband again until he was stationed at the Washington Navy Yard & I then visited him often. He was not then on a vessel but was a cook on shore in the Navy Yard.

The picture that I now show you was taken at Washington, I think, while he was there in the Navy Yard. I know that he sent it from there to me & I have kept it ever since.

The enlistment I have stated was the only time he was in the Navy & he was never in the Army or in any other service. I am sure he enlisted under his own name which was George William Commodore.

My husband died in April and I think 15 years ago. A society he belonged to gave me a lot at the time of his death & my husband is buried in that lot. I show you the deed. (She owns that lot 385. B. Sharp St. Cemetery, Balt. Was deeded by the Trustees of said Cemetery to Sarah Commodore on Apl. 23, 1885. The deed is signed by the Pres. & Sec. with seal embossed. M.A.W. Spl. Ex.).

I was married several years before the war but cannot give the date or even approximate. I had a certificate but lost it years ago & failed to have it renewed. I was married to sailor Geo. W. Commodore by Rev. Savage Hammond a minister of the A.M.E. Church, & was pastor of the Bethel Church Baltimore. I was married at the house of a cousin of mine, Mrs. Susan Golden who lived on Little Monument St. bet. St. Mary and Orchard St. Mrs. Golden is dead. Georgiana Jefferson was my bridesmaid. She is now Georgiana Clayton & is still living. Mrs. Harris was also present when I was married and she is now dead. Rev. Hammond died years ago, either during the war or soon afterward, in Baltimore. I do not recall any one except Mrs. Clayton who was present when I was married & who are now living.

My maiden name was Sarah Jones. Both my husband & myself were raised in Baltimore and both were freeborn. We were boy & girl together & I had known my husband for six or more years before we were married. He was about 3 years older than I was. I have not remarried since my husbands death but am still his legal widow. Neither my husband nor myself have been married before our marriage to each other. We were never separated but lived together for about 40 years & he was with me & I nursed him during his last illness & until his death.

We then lived on St. Mary St., had half a house with a man named Pearce & my husband died there of heart disease. We had 7 children but all are dead. The last child died about 7 years since. But one was living when my husband died & she was married at that time.

I do not know my husbands age when he enlisted. Cannot say whether he was 39 or 40 or what, but my oldest living child was about 8 years old when her father enlisted & she was my fifth child then being 4 children older but who were dead at that time.

My husband had no marks or scars of any kind that I remember. My husband never had small pox since I first new him. He has said that when young he had small pox but he had no marks of such so far as I ever saw or knew of.

He was a dragman when he enlisted. He was short in height, not very stout, was dark in complexion, hair & eyes. He wore his mustache as shown in likeness when he went away to enlist, if I recollect correctly. My husband was at the Washington Navy Yard most of his time. I think he only served on vessels for a few months not a year altogether.

So far as I know or heard my husband had good health while in the service. Never knew or heard of him being sick at any time until after the war, when he first had trouble with his heart.

Soon after my husband left the Navy he bought a little piece of land across the river from Washington, in Maryland, & his mother & sister went there to live. We never received any benefit from it and after his mother & sister died I do not know what became of it. We never attended to it or paid taxes on it & never visited it. After my husband died I just let it be as before & have never paid taxes on it. I can’t say what it cost but my recollection is that my husband paid about $80.00 for it. He did not own any other property. He had no life insurance. He belonged to the Odd Fellows & they buried him & gave me the lot. I have never received any other benefits from any society or in any way, and have never had any income of any kind except from my own labor.

My daughter could not help me for she had to work for her children, for her husband did not help her. After her death I have had to take care of my daughters children, & I have them still with me. The two eldest help me a little & the two youngest are at school. The eldest is nearly 19.

After my husbands death I went out to service, first with Mr. Arthur Palmer with whom I worked 11 months. I then went to Bishop Paret & served there 4 years. Then my daughter died & I had to take care of her children, so rented two rooms & have had them with me ever since supporting myself & them, by washing & other work that I can get to do.

My husband did not apply for a pension during his life time. He had good health & so have I & we get along comfortably so did not think we were entitled. He was only sick about a year before he died. After his death I did not apply for a pension because I had lost my marriage certificate & my husbands discharge. Lately I was told by a friend that I could get a pension under another law, & would not need the papers I had lost, so I put in a application as I was greatly in need of help & was getting old. I do not know who I can furnish to prove that my husband or myself were not married before our marriage, except Mrs. Clayton. I know that Richard Owens and Maria Johnson both knew me when I was young and since but I don’t know where they live. Sarah Chambers also knew me.

I will be present here if I can when my witnesses are examined by my attorney. Mr. A. Parleff Lloyd is prosecuting my claim. I have made no arrangement with him as to fee, and have never paid him any fees. My statement has been read to me, I have understood your questions & am correctly recorded.

Witness: N.N. Hill

Sarah (her X mark) Commodore
Deponent

Layton Morris: Missing in Action

Today I received this low-resolution scan of Corp. Layton Morris of the Twenty-fourth U.S. Colored Infantry. It appeared for auction on eBay, date unknown.

The individual who sent it to me is a genealogist who specializes in researching African American descendants. This person does not own the original image, which appears to be a carte de visite inserted into a period photograph album page.

I want to find out who the rightful owner of this image is, and, if he or she would share this photograph with me for my forthcoming book on African American soldiers.

Please contact me if you have any information about this image.

Unique Wartime Letter Proves Awareness of Historic Role

A letter written by the surgeon of the Eighth U.S. Colored Infantry less than a month after the Battle of Olustee is unique in several respects.

The author, Alexander Peter Heichhold (1825-1882, pictured right) a white Pennsylvania physician in his late thirties, was a staunch supporter of equal rights. According to a biographer, “The doctor was an ultra Republican, and an early advocate for the enlistment of colored troops.” Dr. Heichhold took the first opportunity afforded him to leave his original regiment, the 105th Pennsylvania Infantry, and join the Eighth.

The letter describes in detail the regiment's participation in the Battle of Olustee, Florida, on Feb. 20, 1864. It suffered the loss of more than half its men and officers, one of the highest casualty rates of any regiment in any battle during the entire war. While battle letters are fairly common, the descriptive quality of this account is as impressive as its accounting of events. An excerpt:

[Brig. Gen. Truman Seymour] now came up, and pointing in front towards the railroad, said to Col. [Charles Wesley] Fribley, commander of the 8th, "take your regiment in there," a place which was sufficiently hot to make veterans tremble, and yet we were to enter it with men who had never heard the sound of a cannon. Col. Fribley ordered the regiment, by company, into line, double-quick march, but, before it was fairly in line, the men commenced dropping like leaves in autumn; still, on they went, without faltering or murmuring, until they came within two hundred yards of the enemy, when the struggle for life and death commenced...

The letter was published in the March 12, 1864 edition of The Christian Recorder, a weekly newspaper distributed to black regiments.

Heichhold makes a point in his letter that proves he (and more than likely the men with whom he served) were very aware of the historic role in breaking through color barriers as they fought for their own freedom:

Here, on the field of Olustee, was decided whether the colored man had the courage to stand without shelter, and risk the dangers of the battle-field; and when I tell you that they stood with a fire in front, on their flank, and in their rear, for 2 1/2 hours, without flinching, and when I tell you the number of dead and wounded, I have no doubt as to the verdict of every man who has gratitude for the defenders of his country, white or black.

Photo of Surg. Heichhold from the American Civil War Research Database.

On Private Soldiers and Line Officers

I am fond of repeating "The history of the Civil War is the stories of its soldiers" and other such sayings to convey the essence of what drives me to do what I do. During the past week I came upon a Civil War veteran with a similar view.

Captain George Hillyer of the Confederate Ninth Georgia Infantry noted, "It is interesting to talk about the privates and line officers. We all admire the generals and our eyes kindle and beam, and our ears are full of enthusiasm as we pay deserved tributes to their fame. But it is to the private soldier and the line officers, many of them just as brave as the most famous general, to whom full justice has not been, and can never be done."

This quote appears on page 13 of My Gettysburg Battle Experiences (Thomas Publications, 2005), edited by Gregory A. Coco.

"The Happiest Moments of His Life"

Col. Ozora Pierson Stearns (1831-1896) of the Thirty-ninth U.S. Colored Infantry, in an interview with an historian, recounted his participation in the ill-fated Battle of the Crater along the front lines at Petersburg, Virginia, on July 30, 1864. In this excerpt, Stearns' graphic account of the battle caught my attention:

At the mine explosion in front of Petersburg July 30, Colonel Stearns’ regiment was the last to go into the fight after the rebels had rallied and formed a cordon of fire along the whole front. As they were passing the crater, moving by the flank, a cannon-ball took off the head of one of his men near the front of his regiment, and threw the head of the column into some confusion. The air was full of grape canister-shells and minie-balls. The colonel mounted a chunk of clay about three feet high, and drew his sword and shouted to his regiment with a voice that could be heard above the din of the battle, and it immediately came into line and filed past him in excellent order. Those were, he declares, the happiest moments of his life.

The last sentence brought to mind Gen. Robert E. Lee's often repeated quote, "It is well that war is so terrible — lest we should grow too fond of it." I suspect that Stearns, who went on to become a respected judge, serve a stint as U.S. Senator, and become a staunch supporter of women's suffrage, would not have ever wanted to be in such a position of danger again. And yet, it is clear that in that moment at the edge of the Crater, as he stood atop a boulder with a commanding view of the utter chaos unfolding around him in contrast to the orderly procession of his men, he experienced two extreme emotions almost simultaneously, the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat.

How you or I would react to such battlefield stress is an unknown. Would we feel elated, as Stearns recalled in later years, or would we be forever damaged by the experience? Or both?

Stearns' recollection of the Battle of the Crater continues:

When the rebels made their final charge, after nearly the whole line had given way, Colonel Stearns rallied a few men and was holding a short piece of the line just at the right of the crater, when a shell burst, seemingly right in his face, which stunned him for a moment. When he recovered he was alone — all others had fallen or fled. There were some still fighting in the crater. He went into it to see what could be done. He saw it was impossible to hold it. This was just after the Forest massacre. He thought, if captured, he would be hung. He concluded to try and reach the Union lines, one hundred and fifty yards away. As he started, several started with him. They had gone but a few yards when every man that started with him had fallen. In his mind he gave up all hope and said: “Well, you’ve got me now, and you’ll shoot me in the back, but you shan’t shoot me running.” He then stopped running, took out his sword and walked slowly, clipping weeds. He reached the old line of works, leaped over them, and commenced preparing for an expected assault on that line. Just then another shell burst, seemingly in his face. Against his right shoulder was a cavalry soldier and against his left a colored soldier. The shell tore off the shoulder of the cavalry soldier so he could see the beating of his lung, and tore away the chin of the colored soldier. The colonel was unharmed. He lost in this engagement ten officers and one hundred and eighty-five men killed and wounded. His colors had thirteen ball holes through them. His color-bearer, at his request, was voted by congress a medal of honor for bravery in the battle.

— Butterfield, Consul Willshire. “Bench and Bar of Duluth.” Magazine of Western History (March 1889). Photo from Wikipedia.

"Commanded by Black Officers"

On April 11, 1864, J.P. Campbell, Baltimore correspondent for The Christian Recorder, a weekly newspaper distributed to black regiments, wrote about the parade of the Thirty-ninth U.S. Colored Infantry through downtown Baltimore. Of special note is the mention of a black captain, George A. Hackett (1806-1870), a prominent local leader and an activist for African American rights. Hackett was not a member of the Thirty-ninth. It appears he had the honor of riding at the head of the regiment as it marched through the city. This account was published on April 16, 1864:

The 39th Regiment U.S.C.T., had a grand parade on last Thursday. The occasion was, that the Rev. A.W. Wayman, had invited them through Col. Bowman, to his church on that day, to hear a sermon preached for their especial benefit. The Colonel consented to this proposition. They came to Bethel Church, and the sermon was preached by Bro. Wayman. It was well received; and, at the conclusion, a resolution was passed, requesting a copy of the original for publication, to be distributed among the soldiers. the day was pleasant, and hundreds of persons were in attendance upon the occasion. Anxious spectators of both sexes were there, and several gentlemen of the clerical order; among whom, we noticed the Rev. S.H. Chase, an out-spoken advocate for the rights of his race. It would have done your soul good, to have seen our colored Captain, George A. Hackett, mounted upon a white charger, dressed in full military costume, commanding this regiment, marching through the streets of Baltimore, after the heart-cheering notes of a new brigade band, and gazed upon by admiring hosts. They marched, not through the back streets, lanes and alleys, but through the main, the fashionable, and the most aristocratic streets of the city. What a wonderful thing, if not a miracle, to see a regiment of colored soldiers, commanded by black officers, marching through the streets of the city of Baltimore, unmolested by slaveholders and their miserable wretched minions; but so it is, and they cannot prevent it.

What Will Be Gained by the Present War?

This is a question that Sgt. Charles W. Singer of the 107th U.S. Colored Infantry asked and then answered in a letter to the editor of the Christian Recorder (Philadelphia, Pa.). This is an excerpt of the complete letter published on Oct. 8, 1864.

The question has frequently been asked: What will be gained by the present war? I ask, in return: What will you not lose by a mongrel state of peace? We would lose the best opportunity that has ever been afforded us to show the whole world that we are willing to fight for our rights. Why should not the black slave of the South fight for his liberty as well as the white serf of Russia? A slave is but a slave, and a man is but a man. Age or color is nothing - blood will tell all. The so-called southern Confederacy is fighting for the establishment of a Government, which will have for its corner-stone the perpetuation of human slavery - the degradation of the many for the purpose of elevating the few; but never shall they succeed so long as I can raise my arm against them. Who ever learned in the school of base submission the lessons of freedom, courage and independence? When did submission to a wrong induce an adversary to cease his encroachments? Some say: "Show me what the colored man has to fight for, and then I will go." You cannot see it now; but wait until some future day, and it will unfold itself most gloriously to the whole country. We want the rights of freemen, and must have them; but we can never get them if the South gain its independence. If I were now a slave at the South, my motto would be: "Give me liberty, or give me death!" I hope that motto will ring throughout the entire length and breadth of the rebel States, and fire the hearts of the men. Shall we not console our aged mothers with the hope, that, when hereafter their souls, crowned with the garlands of martyrdom, look down from the home of the blessed, the united joys of the heavens shall thrill through their immortal spirits, seeing their dear people free from the bondage of slavery?

Ulysses S. Grant Goes Undercover

I came across the following anecdote while searching for information about the Union military hospital at Point of Rocks, located along the Appomattox River near City Point, Virginia, where Maj. Gen. U.S. Grant (pictured right) established his headquarters during the Siege of Petersburg in 1864-1865.

The story appears on pages 213-214 of Under the Guns: A Woman's Reminiscences of the Civil War by Annie Wittenmyer (1827-1900), who served as a nurse during the war. She writes that the most notable feature of the Point of Rocks hospital was its kitchens and the high-quality, seemingly home-cooked meals that came from them. She adds that their fame quickly spread along the lines, and attracted a great number of surgeons to learn if the reports were true. "To many it seemed incredible that the cooking for the very sick could be so well managed right along the front lines." Bolstered by the positive feedback, she took it upon herself to extend an invitation to the top army commander:

At my request, General Grant, commanding the United States forces with headquarters at City Point, visited these famous kitchens.

Himself and two of his staff went in disguise.

With his slouch hat drawn down, and coming in citizen's clothing, no one noticed him. They stood by the door of the largest kitchen, while the dinner was issued. He asked, when the food had been sent out, a few questions and looked at the bill of fare, then followed to the wards to see the patients receive it.

He said, when I next came down from Washington and called at headquarters, that he thought it was the most wonderful thing he had ever seen. He was unusually enthusiastic.

"Why," said he, "those men live better than I do; and so many of them too. How they manage to cook such a variety for so many hundreds is what puzzles me."

The he told me about his going through the wards while they were taking their dinner, and noticing how greatly they enjoyed the food. And when told THAT THE MOST OF THIS FOOD CAME FROM THE COMMUTATION OF GOVERNMENT RATIONS, he was still more surprised.

When he was passing through one of the wards, a convalescing soldier, taking him to be a delegate of the Christian Commission, called out, "Say, Christian, won't you bring me a pair of socks?"

"I'll see that you get a pair," the general responded, and passed out; but he arranged to have the man get a pair of socks.

Progress Report

Yesterday I emailed my editor at The Johns Hopkins University Press an end-of-the-year update on the African American book. To date, I have secured scans of 74 images, and researched and written 15 profiles. I had set a goal of 75 images and 10 profiles, and so am pleased with my progress.

This year's goal is to locate 21 more images (for a total of 95) and write 45 more profiles. This will be a challenge, and I am cautiously optimistic.

Also mentioned in my email: "Looking ahead, 2012 marks the 150th anniversary of the first organized black regiments, and 2013 the 150th of the U.S. War Department making the organization of black troops official. The publication of the book with these dates in mind may be advantageous."

Time to get to work!

In the Shadow of Robert Gould Shaw

A young officer with a promising future serves as colonel of a colored regiment and is killed leading his regiment into battle. His tragic death is mourned by his troops, who go on to further their hard-earned reputation as fighting men. This of course is the story of Robert Gould Shaw of the Fifty-fourth Massachusetts Infantry.

It is also the story of Charles Wesley Fribley of the Eighth U.S. Colored Infantry. He and Gould have much in common.

Both attended college. Boston-born Gould spent three years at Harvard and Fribley, born and raised on a farm in Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, attended Dickinson Seminary in Williamsport.

Both began their Civil War service in a three-month regiment and became line officers in other regiments before taking the helm of colored infantrymen. Gould served in the Seventh New York and Second Massachusetts and rose in rank from second lieutenant to captain. Fribley served in the Eleventh and Eighty-fourth Pennsylvania and rose in rank from sergeant to captain and adjutant.

Both became colonels in colored regiments in 1863. Gould became major of the Fifty-fourth in March and advanced to colonel in April. Fribley became colonel of the Eighth in November.

Both men died in action after being in charge of their regiments for three months. Gould suffered a mortal wound in the assault on Fort Wagner, South Carolina, in July 1863. He died at age twenty-five. Fribley suffered a mortal wound rallying his men in the Battle of Olustee, Florida, in February 1864. He died at age twenty-eight.

Both men were buried with their men on the field of battle. Those who survived went on to fight with distinction in other battles until the end of the war

Gould left behind more than 200 letters. His story, and those of the men of the Fifty-fourth, were told on the big screen in the movie Glory.

Fribley and the Eighth were memorialized in Hymn of the Freedman soon after the colonel's death. His story, and those of his men, have faded from national memory.

Photo credits: Robert Gould Shaw from the National Gallery of Art; Charles Wesley Fribley from the American Civil War Research Database.

Streamlining the Military Courts

The military service file of a soldier in the Eighth U.S. Colored Infantry includes a document that details the proceedings of a trial. It is fairly common to find records of this kind for individuals who have broken the rules and are brought before a formal courts martial. However, this case is different, because the soldier appeared before a less formal Field Officers Court.

This is the first time I've come across this reference, and it required me to make a side journey off the main research trial to learn more about this type of organization.

I emailed my friend Michael Schaffner, who has a keen interest in clerical and other bureaucratic functions of the volunteer armies during the war and has portrayed a clerk as a living historian. He replied quickly, and, in a follow-up discussion in person the next day, explained how the Field Officers Court came into existence by an 1862 Act of Congress. The goal was to relieve stress on the general courts martial by allowing minor infractions to be tried on the regimental level. The field officers presiding over each trial were led by the lieutenant colonel or major.

Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman was a fan of the innovation. He wrote in his Memoirs (Vol. 2, p. 397):

In camp, and especially in the presence of an active enemy, it is much easier to maintain discipline than in barracks in time of peace. Crime and breaches of discipline are much less frequent, and the necessity for courts-martial far less. The captain can usually inflict all the punishment necessary, and the colonel should always. The field-officers' court is the best form for war, viz., one of the field-officers — the lieutenant-colonel or major — can examine the case and report his verdict, and the colonel should execute it. Of course, there are statutory offenses which demand a general court-martial, and these must be ordered by the division or corps commander; but the presence of one of our regular civilian judge-advocates in an army in the field would be a first-class nuisance, for technical courts always work mischief. Too many courts-martial in any command are evidence of poor discipline and inefficient officers.

The Field Officers Court was not adopted by all regiments. The Eighth U.S. Colored Infantry did, and in the case of the soldier mentioned above, he plead guilty to being absent without leave and received a ten dollar fine: A small infraction handled appropriately and quickly be his peers, without bogging down the larger organization in extra paperwork and taking time from an already overburdened court system and the officers detailed to it.

An Acre at Malvern Hill

When the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) call to action to help save 178 acres of Malvern Hill came in the mail the other day, my thoughts went to three captains that I've researched whose lives were touched by the fighting during this last engagement of the Seven Days' Battles.

George Pierce of the Tenth Massachusetts Infantry, who suffered a gunshot wound in the right arm in the fighting there on July 1, 1862. Dennis Moore of the Sixty-first New York Infantry, struck by an artillery shell in his right calf at nearby Nelson's Farm on June 30, 1862. A surgeon amputated Moore's damaged leg below the knee on the battlefield, and he lay there the next day as the battle raged at Malvern Hill. Motier Norton of the Eighteenth New York Infantry, who fell ill with typhoid fever shortly after the battle. Exposure to the rigors of campaigning in the field compromised his health and forced him to resign his commission. Each of these men are profiled in Faces of the Civil War: An Album of Union Soldiers and Their Stories.

It was with these veterans in mind that I wrote a check to save an acre of Malvern Hill. And to preserve the land that these three captains and tens of thousands of other soldiers fought over. And for future generations of men and women, boys and girls, who might someday walk across a pristine plot of ground in Virginia and wonder about the soldiers who happened on that spot a long, long time ago.

It feels good to contribute to something much larger than yourself.

Tis always the season.

Visit to the Butler Civil War Round Table

I knew I was going to enjoy my visit to the Butler Civil War Round Table soon after arriving when one of its members, Dottie Cress, pulled a small album out of her bag and showed me some of the original cartes de visite and tintypes she has collected. Beautiful images all. She is on the hunt for original photographs of two of her ancestors who fought, James and Joseph Nunamaker of the Tenth Pennsylvania Reserve Infantry.

I also met Paul Means, a artist and photographer who specializes in painting murals. We had a great conversation about art and its impact on our lives.

Bill May, the leader of the group, wore a Santa hat and led us through a trivia contest, raffle and Christmas carol singalong. I've spoken before a number of round tables, but this is the first singing round table!

My presentation, Faces of War, has three parts: The history of early photography, a sampling of cartes de visite of Pennsylvania soldiers, and a collection of charts from my soldier database. Judging from the comments afterward, I was very pleased with its reception.

The presentation has been a work in progress this year. I have been honing it from event to event. I will continue to refine it for future engagements.

Perhaps my favorite moment of the evening was talking with a schoolteacher named Steve. He appreciated the cards I handed out. (Each member receives a card in the beginning of the presentation which features a soldier image, his name and hometown; after the presentation, each member receives another card with the soldier's story.) Steve would like to use to help his eighth graders relate to the Civil War through the stories of the soldiers who fought. I will make all the cards available to him.

Lincoln Looks to Johnson for a Champion

While researching the origins of the Corps d'Afrique, I came across this private letter written by President Abraham Lincoln to then Sen. Andrew Johnson of Tennessee. Lincoln's hope for a quick end to the war by raising regiments of black troops, and his desire to find prominent white leaders to make it happen, is evidenced by its contents:

Executive Mansion
Washington, March 26, 1863

Hon. Andrew Johnson:

My Dear Sir: I am told you have at least thought of raising a negro military force. In my opinion the country now needs no specific thing so much as some man of your ability and position to go to this work. When I speak of your position, I mean that of an eminent citizen of a slave State, and himself a slave-holder. The colored population is the great available, and yet unavailed of, force for restoring the Union. The bare sight of 50,000 armed and drilled black soldiers upon the banks of the Mississippi would end the rebellion at once. And who doubts that we can present that sight if we but take hold in earnest? If you have been thinking of it, please do not dismiss the thought.

Yours, very truly,
A. Lincoln

From The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series III, Volume III, p. 103.

Do Unto Others

The Thanksgiving holiday brought to mind an excerpt of a speech given in 1871 by Lt. Col. David Branson (1840-1916) of the Sixty-second U.S. Colored Infantry. He spoke on occasion of the dedication of Lincoln Institute in Jefferson City, Mo. He and his comrades contributed money and helped found the school known today as Lincoln University of Missouri.

In his brief comments, Branson spoke to the value of education and religious freedom in the Reconstruction era, as Americans struggled to deal with a new political, economic and social order as a result of the Civil War and the end of slavery. He states:

The future peace of our country is threatened more by the unwise zeal of religious men than by anything else, unless it be ignorance itself; and ignorance is the tool of such unwise zealots. Inquisitions, burnings at the stake, and hanging of the best men and women of their time, have been their work in the past, and will be in the future, unless prevented by just such schools as this, managed by liberal-minded men like Prof. Foster here, who, while holding strong religious convictions of his own, fully recognizes the right under our glorious Constitution of the United States, of every man, be he Christian, Jew or Mahomedan, to his own creed, untrammeled by any law whatever. And right here I cannot refrain from denouncing those men who are trying to insert a religious amendment in the Constitution of the United States.

A well-known author and close observer of events has well said that "It is the point of a wedge whose butt end is an established Church;" and an established Church in England has produced great wars in the past, and I will venture to predict, will deluge the British Isles in blood during the next generation.

But some may ask. Are we to have no religion? no morality? I have this to answer, on the best authority ever given us, and it is the sum of all the commandments, based on justice, tempered with mercy, and adorned by love: "Whatsoever ye would that men do to you, even so do ye unto them."

When we are able to live up to that law, then it will be time to think of teaching creeds and theologies in our public schools; and then they will not be needed or thought of. The future of our own free government depends on us who have the advantages of education. Whether we wish it or not, we must educate the masses pouring in from Europe on the East and Asia on the West, or they will destroy our free government and render despotic government a necessity.

It is our destiny to lift up the races that are down, and we need not be dragged down in the work, but rather buoyed up to a still higher level. Let us then each and all do what lies in our power for the elevation and happiness both of ourselves and others; and so living we shall not, when called from this world to the great unknown, fear to meet the spirits gone before; but rather approach it as we do a new country, whither our friends have preceeded us to enjoy greater happiness than in the land of our birth.

I find Branson's message as appropriate today as they were almost 140 years ago. Read the full speech.

"Preparing for This New Time"

By January 1866, only 200 of the original 1,000 men who enlisted in the Sixty-second U.S. Colored Infantry remained in the ranks. The War Department ordered the ten companies consolidated to four and the reduction of the regiment’s officers.

Two of the discharged officers, Capt. Richard B. Foster and 1st Lt. Aaron M. Adamson, had served in Company I.

According to Capt. Foster, soon after he learned that he would be mustered out of the army, “Lieutenant Adamson was one day talking with me, as comrades about to part will do, of the past and future, when, referring to the fact that many of the enlisted men had learned to read and write, imperfectly of course, while in the service, I remarked that it was a pity these men should find no schools when they returned to Missouri,” from where they had enlisted in 1863.

Both men reflected on the transformation of the enlisted men with whom they served. “No more shall the auction block be mounted by human chattels. No more shall education be forbidden and virtue be impossible for any part of our population. The fugitive slave law is behind us. Universal suffrage is before us.”

The conversation brought to the surface a question that burned within Foster: “Have I any special work to do, however humble, in preparing for this new time?”

1st Lt. Adamson supplied the answer: “If our regiment will give money enough to start a school in Missouri, will you take charge of it?”

Foster eventually answered in the affirmative. The officers and men raised $1,379.50, and Foster went on to establish Lincoln Institute in Jefferson City, Missouri. Today, it is known as Lincoln University.

Read Foster's historical sketch of the founding of the school.

On a Rant About Time Off and Pay

Like many Americans throughout history, the Civil War soldier had his frustrations with government. Leroy D. House was no exception. A clockmaker from Bristol, Conn., House served as a captain in the 108th U.S. Colored Infantry. On duty guarding Confederate prisoners at Rock Island, Ill., during the holidays, he made the best of life far away from the front lines in sub-zero temperatures — but couldn't resist venting in this excerpt from a letter penned on Dec. 24, 1864, to friends at home in Connecticut:

"Congress has adjourned over the holidays, and the members have gone home to receive their Christmas & New Years Presents. They ought to give the army power to adjourn over the Holidays and let the soldier go home. But we do not expect the same privileges as citizens. A member of Congress when he thinks his pay is insufficient can vote himself more, while the soldiers must wait with patience for Congress to do him justice. We expect an increase of pay before Congress adjourns in the spring. We view it as an act of justice, but if the powers that be do not see fit to do it, we shall not find fault with Uncle Sam, but try to bring our expenses within our means. Nearly all Civil officers of the government as well as all clerks and Provost Marshals have had their pay raised since the commencement of the present war, while the officers in active service receive no more to day than he did four years ago when all of the necessaries of life cost but little more than one third the present price."

This letter is part of the collection of the Connecticut Historical Society.

National Archives Staffer Goes Above and Beyond the Call of Duty

I was caught off guard a couple weeks back after an unexpected package arrived from the National Archives. Inside I found photocopies of the military service record for a soldier who served in the Fifty-sixth U.S. Colored Infantry.

A few weeks earlier, I had requested his file only to learn that the MSRs from his regiment are part of an eighteen regiment group (Forty-seventh to Sixty-fifth) of files currently closed to researchers because Archives staff is microfilming them. A supervisor in the Archives library asked me to leave my address in the event that they might be able to help. While I appreciated her proactive suggestion, her tentative manner lowered my expectations and convinced me that nothing would come of my request. I resigned myself to the reality that it might be years before the file would appear in microfilm.

The arrival of the package surprised and delighted me. It also encouraged me to make a new request for the file of another soldier in the closed group — a sergeant from the Sixty-second. On Friday, I stopped by the Archives library and filled out the appropriate form. By coincidence I met the very person who mailed me the package, Dennis Edelin. He instantly recognized my name and asked me if there were any problems with the package he sent. Dennis promised to pull the file of the other soldier and send it to me.

The Archives staff could have easily rejected my request and forced me to wait for microfilming to finish — a scenario that would likely have prevented the stories of these two soldiers from ever making it into the book. But thanks to Dennis Edelin, their stories will be told and their images seen.

Thank you, Dennis.

A Memorial and Visitor Center for New Market Heights

Received an email from my friend and former co-worker Lauren Burke, who has been involved in an effort to secure funds for a memorial and visitor center on the battlefield of New Market Heights, where, in 1864, an assault on the Confederate entrenchments by U.S. Colored Troops earned fourteen African American infantrymen the Medal of Honor. Lauren has teamed up with a friend, who works for U.S. Congressman Bobby Scott. Rep. Scott, who represents Virginia's Third District, has this item listed in his FY2010 Appropriations request list:

Henrico County, Virginia
P. O. Box 90775
Henrico, VA 23273-0775

$10,000,000 - New Market Heights Memorial & Visitors Center - The Battle of New Market Heights fought on September 29, 1864, remains among the lesser known engagements of the Civil War. Its significance, in American military history and African-American history deserves recognition. 14 Congressional Medals of Honor were awarded to African-American-American soldiers who fought in the Battle of New Market Heights. The funds will be used for land acquisition, site preparation and toward construction of a memorial and visitor’s center at New Market Heights, adjacent to the Richmond National Battlefield Park in Henrico County, Virginia.

Lauren, a Washington, D.C.-based photographer, is collecting images of the fourteen men who received the Medal of Honor. Check out her Flickr photostream on the subject. She is looking for photos of these four men:

Alfred B. Hilton
Sergeant, Company H, 4th U.S. Colored Troops. Place and date. At Chapins Farm, Va., 29 September 1864. Entered service at:------. Birth: Harford County, Md. Date of issue: 6 April 1865. Citation: When the regimental color bearer fell, this soldier seized the color and carried it forward, together with the national standard, until disabled at the enemy's inner line.

Miles James
Corporal, Company B, 36th U.S. Colored Troops. Place and date: At Chapins Farm, Va., 30 September 1864. Entered service at: Norfolk, Va. Birth: Princess Anne County, Va. Date of issue: 6 April 1865. Citation: Having had his arm mutilated, making immediate amputation necessary, he loaded and discharged his piece with one hand and urged his men forward; this within 30 yards of the enemy's works.

Charles Veale
Private, Company D, 4th U.S. Colored Troops. Place and date: At Chapins Farm, Va., 29 September 1864. Entered service at: Portsmouth, Va. Birth: Portsmouth Va. Date of issue: 6 April 1865. Citation: Seized the national colors after 2 color bearers had been shot down close to the enemy's works, and bore them through the remainder of the battle.

Edward Ratcliff
First Sergeant, Company C, 38th U.S. Colored Troops. Place and date: At Chapins Farm, Va., 29 September 1864. Entered service at: ------. Birth: James County, Va. Date of issue: 6 April 1865. Citation. Commanded and gallantly led his company after the commanding officer had been killed; was the first enlisted man to enter the enemy's works.

Rare Artistic Pose of a Union Artillery Officer

Securing image scans and permissions, and researching and writing about African Americans who participated in the war is my top priority. However, I remain an avid collector of cartes de visite. A recent addition is this image of John Aiken Millard Jr., photographed in the studio of Pine & Bell of Troy, New York.

Millard's artistic pose in certainly unusual for the period. He reclines against a fabric and tassel covered box surrounded by the trappings of an officer: Binoculars and case, sword and scabbard. A leather bound journal lay open, leaning against his forage cap. On the page most visible to the camera appears to be writing. Upon closer examination, the "writing" is nothing more than wiggly lines added in ink by the photographer or an assistant. The presence of the book is perhaps symbolic of an man of letters. Millard's well-tailored uniform, cuff links, and lace handkerchief suggest he hails from a family of privilege and wealth.

The ink inscription in the upper left of the print area identify the sitter as "Lieut Millard 1 Reg Art'y A.P." He officially served as a second lieutenant in Battery H of the First New York Light Artillery, part of the the Army of the Potomac. On the right side of the image is stamped a large letter M, and is written the date, Nov. 29, 1864. Millard officially mustered in to the First a month later. He survived the war and left the army in June 1865.

Cartes de visite like this are rare. I am aware of only one other like it. Check out a larger version on Flickr.

Ghostly Phantoms at Petersburg

Captain Ludlum Crossman Drake (1839-1924) wrote a twenty-page account of his Civil War experience titled War Reminiscences, a memoir of his service with the Eighteenth Michigan and the 114th U.S. Colored Infantries. This document is part of the Survey of State and Local Historical Records by the Works Progress Administration. It was filed on June 2, 1937. The handwritten narrative is undated. A reference to Spanish American War veterans indicates Drake wrote it in 1898 or later.

One of the highlights is the following paragraph, in which Drake describes Union POWs at Petersburg, Va., in early 1865.

I never can forget some exchanged prisoners brought into our lines as they went staggering by. Those once strong men with eyes like eagles and nerves like steel. Men who had stood by Grant in the Wilderness and by Thomas at Chicamauga. Men who had rode with Sheridan in that wild hurricane which swept the Shenandoah. Men who had helped Grant take Vicksburg and Sherman capture Atlanta, now slowly and scientifically starved till the marrow had rotted from their bones and the light of reason gone out. Ghostly phantoms belonging to neither this world nor the next. Their wasted forms and idiotic features haunt me to this day.

— Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, Michigan Commandery Records, 1885-1951. Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan.

These few lines convey the shock Drake still felt four decades after seeing these human skeletons, and remind us today that the horrors of war are as real today as they were a century-and-a-half ago.

Visiting Owens Dawson

Researching the life and times of Q.M. Sgt. Owens Dawson of the Twenty-fifth U.S. Colored Infantry has provided me an opportunity to get to know a man who died fifty-nine years before my birth. I've imagined him waiting on tables in a Philadelphia restaurant before the war, marching to the sound of drum and fife on the drill ground at Camp William Penn, mourning the untimely death of his first wife, traveling to Washington, D.C., to begin a new life, and, in his dotage, chatting up aged veterans at a Grand Army of the Republic reunion.

Today, I visited his grave site at Arlington National Cemetery, located a few miles from my home. I enjoyed a quiet moment to reflect on a life of joy and sorrow, in service of country, for the betterment of our nation.

Little could he have imagined that 105 years after his death that I would be standing at his grave site, snapping pictures of a cool marble slab that marks the spot where his earthly remains lie undisturbed, a silent stone witness to the memory of a man.

"The Men Always Felt This a Grievance"

If there was ever any question that African American soldiers could and would fight, no one bothered to tell Frederick Lyman Hitchcock, an officer in the 132nd Pennsylvania Infantry who suffered two wounds at Fredericksburg and went on to be colonel and commander of the Twenty-fifth U.S. Colored Infantry. After the war he had this to say about the character of the men in the Twenty-fifth:

"I desire to bear testimony to the esprit du corps, and general efficiency of the organization as a regiment, to the competency and general good character of its officers, to the soldierly bearing, fidelity to duty, and patriotism of its men. Having seen active service in the Army of the Potomac, prior to my connection with the Twenty-fifth, I can speak with some degree of assurance. After a proper time had been devoted to its drill, I never for a moment doubted what would be its conduct under fire. It would have done its full duty beyond question. An opportunity to prove this the Government never afforded, and the men always felt this a grievance."

From Bates' History of Pennsylvania Volunteers, Vol. V, pp. 1026-1027.

I admire Hitchcock's confidence in his men, and his clear dissatisfaction for never having been sent to see the elephant with his command.

Slavery: Simple Words, Stark Reminder

"I owned Silas Brown."
— Dr. Cyrus N. Brown, Yazoo City, Miss.

"He was owned before & during the war by Dr. C.N. Brown’s wife, thereby getting the name of Brown."
— Tibby Johnson, wife of Silas Johnson, formerly Silas Brown.

These references to Silas Johnson's early life as a slave appear in his application for a Civil War pension. Both are still in my mind weeks after I read them. These simple declarations provoked an immediate emotional response: Surprise that these individuals acknowledged slavery in such a dispassionate way; sadness for a man deprived of freedom and education during his early life; repulsion and disappointment for a man who participated in the ownership of another human being; a sense of loss for the millions of men and women of color who endured centuries of racism.

All of this feeling charged through my body in an instant. Simple words. Stark reminder.

I was unprepared for the depth of my feeling. I know slavery is a moral wrong and that it is at the center of our greatest national crisis. I learned this from books. Silas Johnson and Dr. C.N. Brown lived it. Their simple, dispassionate acknowledgment of the fact, devoid of feeling, somehow makes it all that more personal for me.

It is experiences like this that drive me to tell the stories of men like Johnson.

Post-Civil War Labor Contracts

The phrase labor contracts instantly brings to mind images of the massive reform movement of the late nineteenth century and the powerful political organizations of the twentieth. My father was an active member of his labor union, which protected his rights as a worker in a scissor manufacturing plant in New Jersey. He served as shop steward at one time.

Transcribing the 1866 agreement between Cyrus N. Brown, owner of the Alterra plantation along the Yazoo Delta in Mississippi, and the freedman who were formerly his slaves, I wondered what impact contracts like this (preserved on rolls and rolls of microfilm at the National Archives) had on the larger efforts of labor reform. Here is the transcribed contract:

Yazoo City Jany 5th 1866

We the undersigned foremen agree to work faithfully & honestly for C.N. Brown for the year 1866 for the following considerations. All field hands are to have one third of the corn & cotton made on this plantation for the year 1866, our employer to furnish teams & farming essentials, good rations & medical attention, half of every Saturday to be given to our own pursuits, with team and farming essentials for the cultivation of our gardens, patches & the sawing of wood. All hands are permitted to raise poultry, & four hogs to each family, to furnish their own corn in rearing & fattening their hogs. The hands will select from their number a foreman or leader to be governed & controlled by him as to hours for working & the time to come in from the field. We the foremen of Alterra plantation do agree to obey & respect the orders of the foreman or leader.
All stock shall be regularly attended to on Saturday & Sunday.

C.N. Brown
Samuel (his X mark) Hustin
Dolley (her X mark) Hustin

From Records of the Field Offices for the State of Mississippi. Bureau of Refugees, Freedman, and Abandoned Lands, 1865-1872. I became aware of these files after finding Freedom's Women: Black Women and Families in Civil War Era Mississippi (Indina University Press, 1999) by Noralee Frankel.

A Most Unusual Photo Album

First Lieutenant Theodore Francis Wright of Dorchester, Mass., was described as a student of a serious turn of mind and a dedicated diarist. In the spring of 1864 he wrote in his journal, "I have for some time been deliberating about leaving college to go to the war, and I have, at last, with the consent of my parents, determined to study for a commission in the colored troops."

Wright (pictured here, standing on the right, in his uniform) received a commission as first lieutenant. He explained his first assignment:

"My assignment to the 108th U. S. Colored Infantry organizing at Louisville, Kentucky, came June 14th, 1864, and I was ordered to report immediately. Attached to 'F' Company, Captain John H. Lee of New York, I spent one month at Louisville, the month of August at Maysville, Ky., aiding the enlistment of negroes; September at Muldraughs Hill, Ky., guarding from guerillas the Louisville and Nashville R. R., enjoying military life exceedingly. About October first the entire regiment, under command of Lieutenant Colonel John J. Bishop of Indiana, started for Rock Island Barracks, Illinois, where we spent the long and very severe winter, guarding rebel prisoners. The men improved scanty moments of leisure to learn to read and write, while I studied over my old classics."

In March 1865, 1st Lt. Wright and his company stepped into a Rock Island photographer's studio. Each man had their carte de visite portrait taken. Wright penned a brief note on the back of each image. On the reverse side of Kendrick Allen's carte, Wright wrote, "Now Serg't and an excellent one, and commands dedication." Allen made the army his career after the war as a Buffalo Soldier. Wright wrote honest appraisals of his men: On the back of the carte de visite of Pvt. Alfred Thompson is written "Second rate man."

Wright placed the entire collection of company cartes into a photograph album and presented it to his mother, Sarah Augusta (Hunt) Wright.

Wright (1845-1907) went on to study theology and earn two degrees from Harvard University. He is best remembered for his contributions as a pastor and author. Yet the photograph album he presented to his mother, filled with brief, honest remembrances of a company of African Americans who fought for freedom, is among the most unique of all Civil War photograph collections. The album is part of the Randolph Linsly Simpson African-American Collection, James Weldon Johnson Collection in the Yale Collection of American Literature, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, Yale University.

Setting Deadlines

One word to describe the first nine months of this book project is discovery: Locating images, securing rights and permissions, searching for primary sources, finding resources, reading articles and books on the African American war experience, sorting lists and databases. In short, getting started on the manuscript journey, traveling down unfamiliar paths, finding some dead ends, but other paths that lead to other paths and roadways.

I have a long way to go yet. However, the roads are starting to feel familiar. For the first time since last year, I have a sense of how long it will take to get there. My estimates:

By the end of 2009
75 images secured
10 profiles researched and written

By the end of 2010
95 images secured
60 profiles researched and written

By June 2011
Manuscript complete

Fall 2012
Book published

It will be interesting to find out how accurate my estimates compare to reality. Time will tell. This may seem like a fruitless exercise to some, but it helps me to know that a plan of sorts is formed.

New Site for Historic Newspapers is Helpful Resource

I've often benefited from the content in old newspapers, but have been less than enthusiastic about combing through poor-quality microfilm or difficult to navigate web sites. In truth, it is almost always a painful experience, but one that I endure because the payoff — an obituary or other article of interest — breathes life and adds context to my research subjects.

Recently I learned about NewsinHistory.com, a digitized collection of more then 1,100 newspapers spanning two centuries. I arranged for a trial subscription and determined to test it with one of my more difficult subjects, Edwin S. Likens, a Civil War veteran who has proved hard to track.

Civil War military service records list two men named Edward S. Likens who wore Union blue: One who served in two New York regiments, and another who served in two Pennsylvania regiments. But a search of other sources suggest only one man, a Philadelphia native, with this name. After a number of unsuccessful attempts to solve this history mystery, I reluctantly moved his file to the bottom of the priority list.

After my NewsinHistory.com user name and password arrived, I entered the name Likens in the search box. The results included an article in the March 12, 1863, edition of the Philadelphia Public Ledger announcing the marriage of Lieut. Edwin S. Likens to Josephine Ophelia Dodd. This article is the missing link to my research, for it connects Likens the Pennsylvania officer to the New York Likens whose widow, Josephine O. Likens, filed for a government pension after her husband's death.

Mysery solved! Thank you NewsinHistory.

The site's strength, aside from the number of newspapers and search capability, is the functionality that makes it easy to pan and zoom, scroll, flip and scan pages. The yellow keyword search highlights are also a plus. Reminds me of Google Books and Amazon. (I am a fan of both sites.)

Two minor changes would improve the site experience:

1. Add the name of the publication and date to the pdf download, a detail offered by the New York Times on its archived articles.
2. Move the search bar to the top of the home page and all the results pages. The strength of this site is the search, and yet it seems to be hidden in the design.

Overall, NewsinHistory gets a big thumbs up. I plan to add it to my research tool kit, and recommend it to any individual or institution involved in genealogical and other historical studies.

Kendrick Allen, Buffalo Soldier

A note penned on the back of the carte de visite of Kendrick Allen, written by his commanding officer, praises him as an excellent soldier — a fine compliment to an eighteen-year-old sergeant new to soldiering in the 108th U.S. Colored Infantry. Allen served in the regiment from 1864 until 1866.

Five years later he returned to the military, this time in the regular army as a corporal in the Twenty-fourth U.S. Infantry, one of the Buffalo Soldier regiments. He later transferred to the Ninth Cavalry and retired as a sergeant in 1897.

This the first Buffalo Soldier I've documented. If you have any information about Sgt. Allen, please contact me.

USCT Soldier Surfaces at Richmond Show

I had not been to the North South Trader's Show in Richmond for some years. My gut told me to make the trip yesterday and am glad I did. About a quarter of the way through the show I walked by C.J. Delery's table (he operates The Historical Shop, and I have a fond memory of a Pennsylvania show some years ago at which I of purchased a pristine group of officer cartes de visite, all members of the Fifty-third Massachusetts Infantry). Delery asked if he could help. I told him about my latest project and he pointed me in the direction of Howard Norton's table.

Within a few minutes I was at Howard's table looking at a quarter plate tintype of Pvt. William Wright of the 114th U.S. Colored Infantry. An airtight identification by way of a piece of paper attached to the back of the metal plate, inscribed in period pen.

To be certain that Wright was a member of the regiment, I whipped out my laptop only to find there was no wireless access in the building. So, I called up Anne at home and joked that I was stuck at the Civil War show and required immediate table-side assistance from "AnneStar." She logged on to our home computer and I guided her through the American Civil War Research Database operated by Historical Data Systems. In minutes she verified that Wright did indeed serve in the 114th. I left with the image, a detail pictured here.

Howard and I talked for awhile after completing the purchase. Turns out he had come into possession of this photograph six weeks ago after buying a group of images from a Missouri collector. Howard is a long-time dealer, and I've seen him at a number of shows. His soft Southern accent reflects his Mississippi roots and birth in Arkansas. He is sixty-eight years old. His father, a Spanish American War veteran, was the same age when Howard was born. We finished our conversation reflecting on our shared joy of Civil War photography. "The ability to see the face of a soldier, then read about his life and what happened to him in the war is a powerful thing and it puts me in a different place" I explained to Howard, who nodded his head in agreement. He knew exactly what I meant, "I know, I know. You're There. It takes you There."

Howard Norton said it better than I could.

You're There.

Manassas Museum Memories

Just back from a speaking engagement and Faces of the Confederacy book signing at the Manassas Museum. Memories:

• Store Manager Jane Riley's efficiency. She made the event go off without a hitch and brought in a respectable crowd! I owe her a debt of gratitude.
• Ethel's excellent feedback: She appreciated my new introduction — The Photo Generation — and purchased the lone copy of Faces of the Civil War, the Union counterpart.
• Charlotte and Patty's late arrival: They missed the presentation due to traffic, and generously purchased copies of the book.

Speaking and Book Signing at Manassas Museum

This Saturday, Aug. 15, I'll be at the Manassas Museum speaking about Faces of the Confederacy: An Album of Southern Soldiers and Their Stories. Afterwards, I will sign copies of the book. My presentation includes profiles of several Virginians featured in Faces, including the soldier on the cover, Sgt. William Crawford Smith of the Twelfth Virginia Infantry. Also included is a statistical survey of soldiers from my database of 200 Civil War veterans.

This event is part of the Civil War Trails Old Town Walking Tour. Led by guides in period clothes, the tour is focused on the Second Battle of Manassas (Bull Run), fought on Aug. 28–30, 1862. This year marks the 147th anniversary of the Confederate victory. The tour begins at 10 a.m. Cost: $10/person. For more information about this tour contact the Manassas Museum at 703-368-1873.

The museum is located at 9101 Prince William St., Manassas, VA 20110-5615.

Seeking the Story Behind an Iconic Image

The Chicago Historical Society possesses one of the finest collections of African American soldier photographs that I've ever seen. Of these twenty-seven terrific tintypes, one is identified: Sgt. James L. Baldwin of the Fifty-sixth U.S. Colored Infantry. His iconic image, shown here, has appeared in numerous publications.

All the published examples of Baldwin's likeness I've found include the briefest of captions. It is for this reason that he will be included in my book. I want to tell his story. I started researching his life and military service yesterday and found that he started the war with the Third Arkansas Infantry (African Descent). Government authorities later designated the regiment as the Fifty-sixth. Baldwin applied for a disability pension in 1889.

I look forward to learning more about him, and providing a fresh take on this image by providing details of his war service. If you have any information to share, please comment.

Mystery Plantation

Alluva. Alliva. Altura.

These are a few of the variations I used to search for a Mississippi plantation referenced in a document contained in the pension file of Sgt. Silas Brown, who served in Company I of the Ninety-Sixth U.S. Colored Infantry. The penmanship of the individual who prepared the document (a clerk, as Johnson could not write) is not easily transcribed, and I struggled with this single pronoun.

The document did provide the location of the plantation: In Yazoo County, Miss., along the Yazoo River near Belle Prairie. I also learned that the plantation was owned by Dr. C.N. Brown and his wife, Lou.

Determined to find the name of the plantation, I called the president of the local historical society. She referred me to past president Sam Olden, grandson of a Confederate veteran captured at Vicksburg. Olden recommended me to John Ellzey of the B.S. Ricks Memorial Library in Yazoo City.

I called Ellzey, a soft-spoken man with a smooth regional accent, and told him what I had learned and what I hoped to find out. After a brief pause, he told me the details sounded familiar. Within a couple minutes, Ellzey supplied the name of the plantation: Alterra.

Ellzey followed up with a package of materials, including period maps showing the property and two death notices for Lou Brown.

Ellzey's knowledge of the area and the wealth of local information is critical to my efforts to tell the stories of soldiers who served in the war. He is one of the many unsung heroes I regularly encounter along the research trail who provide critical details that help bring life to these veterans.

More on the Nimrod Burke Image

The image tentatively identified as Nimrod Burke has appeared on the cover of one book and a PBS program according to Tim Kernan, who currently owns the tintype. In both instances, it is listed as an unidentified soldier. The photo may have also appeared in other publications. How the identity of the image came to be lost and found again is a developing story. My working scenario, based upon interviews by telephone and email with Burke ancestor Henry Robert Burke, Peggie and Tim Kernan, members of the Washington County (Ohio) Historical Society and others:

A member of the Burke family who did not appreciate the sentimental and historical value of the photograph sold the original tintype as many as twenty-five years ago to an unknown person or persons. At the time of this transaction, the identity was lost. At some point the family received a photograph of the original tintype. This copy print was made with a non-digital camera not from the original, but from a reproduction printed in some publication, perhaps a book. The family has come to think of this copy print as the original photo of Nimrod Burke. This copy print has since been scanned and uploaded to Henry Robert Burke's web site.

The tintype was sold at some point to noted collector Herb Peck Jr., a Nashville, Tenn., photographer who worked in Vanderbilt University's Department of Fine Arts. This was one of Peck's first purchases in the early 1980s after his original collection was stolen. A year or two before his passing in 2004, he sold it to Tim Kernan.

This scenario is subject to revision as more information is obtained.

Also unresolved is a uniform issue: Burke is listed as having served as a sergeant during his enlistment. The soldier pictured here wears a corporal's chevrons. I'll be checking Burke's military service records at the National Archives to determine if he ranked as a corporal and sergeant.