Dana Lombardy
Dana presented diagrams and data to show how the artillery evolved in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War, and compare its effectiveness to the guns used by their primary opponent, Robert E. Lee’s Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Gun types, numbers and organization, plus a look back at Napoleon’s artillery at Waterloo were also covered.
Tom Roza provided the following summary of Dana’s talk.
Q#1 – What famous European general did all West Point students study?
Q#2 – At Gettysburg, what was the ratio of cannons to troops?
Q#3 – During the Civil War, what was the average number of troops required to operate a cannon?
Q#4 – What was the name of the British artillery engineer who invented case shot?
Q#5 – What was the shape of the shell used in a civil war rifled artillery cannon?
Q#6 – What was marked on each paper fuse plug used in Civil War artillery?
Q#7 – What phrase was used to describe the volume of artillery smoke that covered a battlefield?
Q#8 – At the battle of Gettysburg, what weapon caused the most casualties?
Q#9 – At the beginning of the Civil war, where did the Confederates get the majority of their cannons?
Q#10 – What was the tactical advantage to having more batteries with fewer cannon in each?
Q#11 – What was the number of cannon Union General Henry Hunt positioned along Cemetery Ridge in advance of Pickett’s Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg?
Q#12 – During the Confederate artillery barrage that proceeded Pickett’s Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg, what event E. Porter Alexander observe that made him advise General Longstreet to commence Pickett’s Charge?
Q#13 – On July 1, the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, how many more cannons did the Confederates have when compared to the Union?
Q#14 – What was the term used when one side has more artillery than the other side?
Q#15 – Why was there no artillery reserve in Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia?
William Henry Seward (Wikipedia)
William Henry Seward was a politician who was born in 1801 in the state of New York. Seward studied law at Union College, graduating as a member of Phi Beta Kappa and was then admitted to the New York State Bar. In 1821 he met Frances Adeline Miller and they married 3 years later and raised six children.
In 1846 Seward defended an African American who was accused of stabbing four people to death. Seward was an advocate of prison reform and better treatment for the insane, and won a verdict for the defendant using the defense of insanity. Many whites felt bitter toward Seward for defending a black man who had killed whites.
Seward encountered a problem while traveling and a stranger named Thurlow Weed stopped to help out. That was the beginning of a life-long friendship and Weed helped Seward enter politics and was instrumental in this role throughout Seward’s political career. Seward first served as a member of the New York State Senate. In 1839, he won election as the 12th Governor of New York. And from 1849-1861, he served as US Senator from New York. Continue reading