Monthly Archives: May 2012

With a Determination Like Julius Caesar’s

Posted on May 31, 2012 by SUMPTER

And a fatalism like Napoleon’s On May 25, 1862 Stonewall Jackson’s Confederate army won the First Battle of Winchester. As The Civil War 150th Blog points out Jackson had “had become a national hero”. Here’s some evidence for that from … Continue reading →

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Blowing Bubbles

Posted on May 30, 2012 by SUMPTER

People have been blowing bubbles a long time, apparently. You can read a description of the picture’s elements at the Library of Congress

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“impatiently awaiting the order for the final attack”

Posted on May 29, 2012 by SUMPTER

So near and yet so far We haven’t heard from George M. Guion, the captain of Company A, 33rd New York Volunteers, since last December. In this letter he uses the first paragraph to review the engagement near Mechanicsville. Without … Continue reading →

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Trying to avoid being “sent to our long home”

Posted on May 26, 2012 by SUMPTER

There was a fight near Mechanicsville, Virginia on May 23-24, 1862. It involved the Union brigade led by General John W. Davidson. The 33rd New York Infantry Regiment took part. Apparently a member of the band wrote the following letter … Continue reading →

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Street People

Posted on May 25, 2012 by SUMPTER

There’s no room at the inns of Richmond for transient Confederate soldiers. A newspaper thinks that situation could easily be corrected. From the Richmond Daily Dispatch May 24, 1862: Neglected soldiers. –Attention has been frequently called to the fact, that … Continue reading →

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Stars and Stripes “Over” Richmond

Posted on May 24, 2012 by SUMPTER

Or, at least its northern suburbs From the Richmond Daily Dispatch May 24, 1862: Yankee Devices –Our Northern brethren are now engaged in an assiduous endeavor to restore the Union and set the Stars and Stripes afloat in Richmond, by … Continue reading →

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Fiat Money in Memphis

Posted on May 23, 2012 by SUMPTER

P.G.T. Beauregard’s Fiat: Accept Confederate Money or Get Arrested From the Richmond Daily Dispatch May 22, 1862: Confederate Monkey [Money] at Memphis. –General Beauregard has taken the Confederate credit in hand at Memphis. as will be seen by the following … Continue reading →

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Coffee Concoction

Posted on May 22, 2012 by SUMPTER

Seven Score and Ten has published some interesting southern coffee substitutes. The following is a letter from a patriotic Confederate woman, who shares her recipe, encourages the good women of Richmond to manufacture the stuff, and thinks a regiment should … Continue reading →

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Death of a Sharpshooter

Posted on May 21, 2012 by SUMPTER

We’ve had stories about the Berdan’s Sharpshooters before. Here’s a story from the South about a Yankee marksman getting a dose of his own medicine from a rebel Kentuckian. From The New-York Times May 21, 1862: BERDAN’S SHARPSHOOTERS. From the … Continue reading →

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Ghent Aid

Posted on May 19, 2012 by SUMPTER

Fundraising Concerts for Beleaguered Textile Workers Like the Lancashire Cotton Famine the American Civil War was disrupting cotton-based business in Belgium. From the Richmond Daily Dispatch May 19, 1862: Destitution of the Artisans of Belgium –The Belgian Minister of War … Continue reading →

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