Tag Archives: Fire-Eaters

a little less fire

Posted on August 3, 2013 by SUMPTER

The famous fire-eater, William L. Yancey, died of kidney disease at his home in Montgomery, Alabama on July 27, 1863. From the Richmond Daily Dispatch August 1, 1863: The late William L Yancey. The death of William L. Yancey, Confederate … Continue reading →

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Election in Fredericksburg

Posted on March 18, 2013 by SUMPTER

Americans are fortunate that we mostly have “free and fair” elections. 150 years ago yesterday the people of Fredericksburg, Virginia apparently relied on Confederate troops to ensure that the Yankees on the other side of the Rappahannock did not try … Continue reading →

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Fire-eaters’ New Target

Posted on March 10, 2011 by admin

Jefferson Davis, Stephen Mallory, et.al. Apparently some unidentified Fire-eaters are taking aim again – this time at the new government of the CSA. From The New-York Times January 11, 1861 (The New-York Times Archive): SECESSION NOT CONTENTED. — The Provisional … Continue reading →

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Fire-eater and Firepower

Posted on January 25, 2011 by admin

150 years ago this week The New-York Times BRECKINRIDGE correspondent commented on affairs in the newly independent Alabama. Here are some excerpts (The New-York Times January 26, 1861): THE DISUNION QUESTION.; SOUTHERN CORRESPONDENCE. FROM ALABAMA. HOW IT SEEMS TO BE … Continue reading →

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Alabama Fasts; Baptists Ready for War

Posted on December 9, 2010 by admin

The following excerpted article from The New-York Times mentions a Colonel Watts along with the famous fire-eater William L. Yancey. I’m assuming Watts is Thomas H. Watts, who became Alabama’s governor in 1863. This article was written by The Times’ … Continue reading →

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War in the Fourth Estate

Posted on December 6, 2010 by admin

As the Daily News sites have noted the Charleston Mercury has been beating the drum for South Carolina’s secession, especially since Lincoln’s election. The Mercury was edited by Robert Barnwell Rhett, Jr., whose father was a well-known fire-eater. Robert Barnwell … Continue reading →

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Thanksgiving: Charleston 1860

Posted on November 22, 2010 by admin

From The New-York Times. November 22, 1860: CHARLESTON, Wednesday, Nov. 21. Thanksgiving passed off with remarkable quietness. The American Sunday School Union this morning unfurled a white banner, with a palmetto tree, five stars and an open Bible, and the … Continue reading →

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Palmetto State: Three Vignettes

Posted on November 15, 2010 by admin

Seven Score and Ten and Civil War Daily Gazette have been doing a great job keeping us up-to-date on the rabid secession fever in South Carolina since Lincoln’s election on November 6th (1860, of course). Here are three paragraphs from … Continue reading →

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“Secession in New-York”

Posted on November 12, 2010 by admin

OK. I admit it – my eyes bulged out of my head when I read this headline from The New-York Times. The main idea was that Southern medical students met to decide whether, given Lincoln’s election and the secessionist activities … Continue reading →

Posted in 150 Years Ago This Week, Secession and the Interregnum, The election of 1860, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Fire-Eater Plays Lexington

Posted on October 29, 2010 by admin

William Lowndes Yancey was a well-known Fire-Eater. Fire-Eaters were a group of Southerners who strongly supported states rights, slavery and the resumption of the slave trade, and eventually secession. On October 23, 1860 (about two weeks before the presidential election) … Continue reading →

Posted in 150 Years Ago This Week, The election of 1860 | Tagged , , | 2 Comments