Past Meetings

Date Speaker Topic
November 27, 2012 Movie Death and The Civil War, Part 2
October 30, 2012 Movie Death and The Civil War, Part 1
September 25, 2012 Tom Lubas Benjamin Franklin Butler, Lincoln's Conundrum
August 25, 2012 Hal Jespersen The Seven Days Battles
July 31, 2012 Tom McMahon Video on the scientific evidence of what sank the Confederate submarine, the Hunley
June 26, 2012 Dr. Libra Hilde Worth A Dozen Men: Nursing in the Civil War South
May 29, 2012 Jim Campbell A Marine Artist's View of Famous Civil War Naval Battles
April 24, 2012 Ernie Manzo History of the Forts and Batteries Guarding the Golden Gate During the Civil War
March 27, 2012 Arthur W. Henrick Civil War Currency, Monetary Policy, and Soldier's Pay
February 28, 2012 John Herberich Notes from the 2011 West Coast Civil War Conference (1861: The Causes and Strategies of the Civil War)
January 31, 2012 Lee Meredith The Strategic Impact of Railroads in the Civil War
November 29, 2011 René Accornero Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
September 27, 2011 Bob Hubbs Holly Springs—Grant's Worst Nightmare?
August 14, 2011 Gary Yee Civil War Prisons – Interesting Prison Escapes
July 26, 2011 Tom McMahon The Wheel Becomes a Weapon of War, From Iron Age Cart to Iron Horse
June 28, 2011 Dr. Libra Hilde Healing Bodies, Morale, and Memory: Female Nursing in the Civil War South
May 31, 2011 Adam Arenson The Great Heart of the Republic: St. Louis and Cultural Civil War
April 26, 2011 Donald Stoker Grand Strategy in the Civil War
March 29, 2011 Larry Comstock The Union is Saved! The Atlanta Campaign of 1864
February 22, 2011 Dana Lombardy Secret Turning Points of the American Civil War
January 25, 2011 Rene Accornero Horses in the Civil War
November 30, 2010 Bill Noyes Sketch Artists of the Civil War
October 26, 2010 Hal Jespersen William S. Rosecrans
September 28, 2010 Tom McMahon Morality and War
August 14, 2010 Tom Christianson Opening of the Battle of Chickamauga
July 27, 2010 Dr. Libra Hilde (SJSU) [The cultural, social, and political trends and events that led up to the Civil War]
June 29, 2010 Dr. Joe Wagner Civil War Medicine
May 25, 2010 Larry Comstock "The Lincoln Writ" — Abraham Lincoln and the New Almaden Mine
April 27, 2010 Helen Trimpi Crimson Confederates: Harvard Men Who Fought for the South
March 30, 2010 Tom Roza Winfield Scott Hancock – A Man for the Ages
February 23, 2010 Gerald S. Henig Lincoln at 200 – In Fact Rather than Fiction
January 26, 2010 Mary Deborah Petite The Women Will Howl
November 24, 2009 Rene Accornero Retreat from Gettysburg
October 24, 2009 Larry Comstock Pickett's Charge
September 29, 2009 Tom McMahon Life, Death and Religion in the Civil War
August 16, 2009 Gary Yee A Plan Gone Wrong: The Siege of Battery Wagner (July 21, 1863 to September 7, 1863)
July 28, 2009 Bob Hubbs How Lincoln Won the War Without the Help of His Generals
June 30, 2009 Norman Patrick Doyle Two Civil War Generals in Mexico
May 26, 2009 Larry Tagg The Unpopular Mr. Lincoln
April 28, 2009 Jack Mather Sherman—Fall 1864 to the End of the War: Myth and Reality
March 31, 2009 Brad Schall The Political Climate in California 1850-1870
February 24, 2009 Larry Comstock The Other End of the Line — The Union Right Flank at Gettysburg
January 27, 2009 Charles Sweeny Aspects of Slavery During the Civil War
November 25, 2008 Jean Libby John Brown: A History and Photo Chronology
October 28, 2008 Fred Bohmfalk Baseball During the Civil War
September 30, 2008 Tom Roza John Buford at Gettysburg
August 10, 2008 Jack Leathers George H. Thomas, “The Rock of Chickamauga”

Meeting of November 27, 2012

Death and The Civil War, Part 2

From acclaimed filmmaker Ric Burns, based on Drew Faust’s groundbreaking book, This Republic of Suffering, this film tracks the increasingly lethal arc of the war from its opening, through the chaos of Shiloh, and the following major battles which left an American landscape littered with the bodies of hundreds of thousands of soldiers, many unburied, most unidentified. The staggering casualties brought death to the American experience as never before—permanently altering the character of the republic, the psyche of the American people, and posing challenges for which there were no ready answers when the war began.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of October 30, 2012

Death and The Civil War, Part 1

From acclaimed filmmaker Ric Burns, based on Drew Faust’s groundbreaking book, This Republic of Suffering, this film tracks the increasingly lethal arc of the war from its opening, through the chaos of Shiloh, and the following major battles which left an American landscape littered with the bodies of hundreds of thousands of soldiers, many unburied, most unidentified. The staggering casualties brought death to the American experience as never before—permanently altering the character of the republic, the psyche of the American people, and posing challenges for which there were no ready answers when the war began.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of September 25, 2012

Tom Lubas on "Benjamin Franklin Butler, Lincoln's Conundrum".

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of August 25, 2012

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Hal Jespersen presenting to the picnic at Ron Miller's lovely home in Milpitas

The Dorothy Miller Civil War Memorabilia Collection

Dorothy Miller was an avid collector of Civil War Memorabilia, ranging from documents and signatures (J. Davis, Halleck, McClellan, Sherman, etc.) to rare surgical tools (tooth extractor, bleeder), and personal items of Civil War soldiers (tobacco tin, photograph album, personal mirrors, etc.). The Collection also includes dozens of ribbons and pins from Union and Confederate Reunions dating back to 1895 as well as dozens of Civil War collector books, some signed, first editions. This collection has been donated to the South Bay Civil War Round Table and was on display.

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Hal Jespersen on the "Seven Days Battles"

In the Peninsula Campaign of 1862, Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan landed his Army of the Potomac at Fort Monroe, Virginia, and slowly advanced up the Virginia Peninsula in an attempt to capture the Confederate capital of Richmond. At the indecisive Battle of Seven Pines (Fair Oaks), the Confederate commander, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, was severely wounded and soon replaced with Gen. Robert E. Lee. In late June, Lee launched a series of attacks against McClellan that have come to be known as the Seven Days Battles, including the battles of Mechanicsville, Gaines's Mill, Glendale, Malvern Hill, and a few other (comparatively) minor engagements. Some historians describe the Seven Days as a campaign, others as a lengthy battle with daily engagements. If you subscribe to the latter view, the Seven Days ranks behind Gettysburg as the second bloodiest battle of the war, with approximately 36,000 casualties. Hal gave a brief overview of the initial movements and battles in the Peninsula Campaign, and then described each of the Seven Days in detail. He discussed the strategic importance of the campaign and gave his opinions on the effectiveness (or lack thereof) of the two opposing commanders.

Hal Jespersen is the webmaster for the South BayCivil War Round Table. He is a retired software industry executive and engineer who is currently busy as a freelance cartographer. You can visit his Civil War mapping website at http://www.cwmaps.com, and his Civil War travelogues at http://www.posix.com/CW.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of July 31, 2012

Tom McMahon presented a video on the scientific evidence of what sank the Confederate submarine, the Hunley.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of June 26, 2012

Dr. Libra Hilde, Professor at San Jose State University, discussed her newly published book: Worth A Dozen Men: Nursing in the Civil War South.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of May 29, 2012

Jim Campbell on "A Marine Artist's View of Famous Civil War Naval Battles"

Jim Campbell's pen and ink drawings tracing Americas rich maritime past can be seen in galleries on the west coast as well as the east coast. Campbell's art work has been exhibited at the Mariners Museum in Newport News, Virginia, where he did a series of drawings of the famous battles of the Civil War including the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia, the first ironclads to do battle at Hampton Roads, Virginia. He has also done a series of drawings of the Confederate submarine H. L. Hunley, the first submarine in world history to sink an enemy ship. Recently discovered, the Hunley is now on display in the Warren Lasch Conservation Center in South Carolina. Jim discussed the duel at Hampton Roads and the Confederate submarine H. L. Hunley, and displayed some of his artwork.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of April 24, 2012

Ernie Manzo on "History of the Forts and Batteries Guarding the Golden Gate During the Civil War"

Ernie discussed the little known history of the series of forts and batteries that defended the Golden Gates entrance from Confederate raiding sea vessels. In order to protect the precious gold and silver coming out of the California and Nevada mountains, which financed the Union war effort, the army expended substantial resources to install fortifications.

Ernie Manzo is an amateur Civil War historical researcher, reenactor, and lecturer. His lifelong passion of military history includes many of the wars around the world of the Victorian era with a special focus on the American Civil War. Ernie has been an active member of the local reenactment community for the last 7 years, serves presently as adjutant (2nd Lieutenant) for the Union Battalion Command Staff of the American Civil War Association. Ernie holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications from University of the Pacific with a minor in history.

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of March 27, 2012

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Arthur Henrick, Paymaster

Arthur W. Henrick on "Civil War Currency, Monetary Policy, and Soldier's Pay"

Arthur's talk described what Union soldiers were paid in 1861 (Gold/Silver) and the first issue of the new paper currency in early 1862 and the result of the mass issue of these "United States Notes" (commonly called "Greenbacks") and the beginning of "Fiat" money. Confederate quartermasters paid their troops irregularly and inflation made their pay a fraction of the value that Union soldiers received. Arthur has a number of sources to cite. Readings from the Union prospective, the 1863 book "Light and Dark of the Rebellion" by Rev. Charles Edward Sester will cover the chapter "The Life of an Army Paymaster for a Day." Another book is the 1887 "Corporal Si Klegg and his Pard" by Lt. Colonel Hinman and the chapter "An Interview with a Paymaster." Data and facts from 1869 book by Hon. E. G. Spaulding, Chairman of the Sub-Committee of Ways and Means when the Greenback Law was passed in February 25th, 1862. As with 19th Century books, the full title is "History of the Legal Tender Paper Money issued during the GREAT REBELLION. Being a Loan without Interest and a national Currency." Gold, silver, copper coins and Postage and Fractional Currency will be present for inspection of those who attend.

Arthur Henrick has been an avid American Civil War historian and reenactor since 1987. He was a founder member of the American Civil War Association in 1993, which has become one of the largest CW Reenactment organizations on the West Coast. He has collected original coins and currency of the Civil War period since he was a young adult. His small but interesting collection contains 1862 US greenbacks and Confederate Currency. His reenactment career is a Union Paymaster (a Staff Major) who carries a Henry Rifle and original 1861 (old-Elliot) Army Remington and Colt pistols. His current fighting rank in the ACWA is the 1st Sgt in the 24th Michigan Infantry. Past positions have been from Private, Corporal, Sgt Major, to 1st Lieutenant of the Federal Staff over the last 25 years. He has traveled to the East Coast and has paid off 300 fellow reenactors during the 135th Antietam and 140th Nashville event. That experience matched closely what is written in the diaries and books printed during and after the Civil War.

Meeting of February 28, 2012

John Herberich on "Notes from the 2011 West Coast Civil War Conference (1861: The Causes and Strategies of the Civil War)."

Tom Roza's minutes for this meeting are posted here.

Meeting of January 31, 2012

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Lee Meredith

Lee Meredith on "The Strategic Impact of Railroads in the Civil War"

As we have studied the Civil War we have become aware of the major impact railroads had on the outcome of the war. Not even in existence 32 years before Bull Run, there were over 29,000 miles of track when the war started. The armies of McClellan, Lee, Grant, Sherman, and others could not have undertaken the massive movement of men and material without them. You can argue for Napoleon’s massive armies, however Napoleon fought on the relatively flat, cultivated open country of western Europe and Russia and not the mountainous, forested and wet lands of the eastern United States.

As you study the battles and leaders of the Civil War, one aspect of many of these campaigns is that they never would have been nor could have been fought without the railroads that were used primarily to move troops from location to location. Lee's talk focused on four of those campaigns that used railroads for extensive troop movements that affected the outcome of those campaigns. You know these campaigns but probably have never given much thought to the troop transporation aspects (and I’m not talking about Sherman’s railroad from Chattanooga to Atlanta, which was used primarily for transportation of supplies.)

The first part of the talk covered the physical aspects of the nation’s railroads to set the stage while the last portion of the talk discussed these four campaigns.

Lee W. Merideth has passionately studied history for over 50 years, devoting much of that time researching the Titanic disaster, World War II naval engagements, and the American Civil War.

Meeting of November 29, 2011

René Accornero on "Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain"

René presented a detailed accounting of the life of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, from his birth, to his early academic career, to his service in the American Civil War, and finally his life in politics and as a university president.

Minutes for the meeting are here.

Meeting of September 27, 2011

Bobb Hubbs on "Holly Springs—Grant's Worst Nightmare?"

Bob's presentation detailed the Holly Springs Raid and reviewed Grant's greatest challenge. Grant's strategy for the capture of Vicksburg and the final phase of the Anaconda Plan was introduced. The first campaign for the capture of Vicksburg and the ramifications of that effort was presented. What was Grant's reaction to the incompetent response to the attack by Van Dorn and his cavalry and the capture of Holly Springs. Why of all of the events in Grant's life would the Holly Springs Raid be worse than others?

In the business portion of the meeting, the president presented a few topics:

The treasurer reported that annual club dues are due: $15 for individuals, $25 for couples. There is approximately $3000 in the club treasury.

Meeting of August 14, 2011

Gary Yee on "Civil War Prisons – Interesting Prison Escapes"

At this year's picnic meeting in Los Gatos, Gary Yee described several of the more famous and infamous prison escapes performed by both Union and Confederate POWs. The presentation also included descriptions of the types of facilities used for prisons on both sides, along with how they were managed (or in most cases mis-managed). Gary described in detail the elaborate efforts POWs performed in escaping from their captivity. This most likely was Gary's last SBCWRT presentation since he is moving to Colorado.

In the business portion of the meeting, it was reported that $2800 is available in the club's fund for preservation activities. An election was held for club officers for 2011–12, with the following results:

Meeting of July 26, 2011

Tom McMahon on "The Wheel Becomes a Weapon of War, From Iron Age Cart to Iron Horse"

Tom McMahon's maternal Irish grandfather was born the year the Civil War ended. Tom often wonders what life would have been for him if the military draft had reached his great grandfather in San Francisco. Tom's dad, born in 1881 in Virginia City, Nevada, maintained locomotives for the Western Pacific Railroad. Tom is having a ball, searching and discovering.

Meeting of June 28, 2011

Dr. Libra Hilde on "Healing Bodies, Morale, and Memory: Female Nursing in the Civil War South"

Meeting description provided by Gary Yee:

Prof. Hilde's book is being released by the Univ. of Virginia this coming February. There's already another book on CW nurses, but the author whose name escapes me covers mostly the North. There's a lot of presumption that the South did the same. That's where Libra differs.

In the South, it was largely a political movement. In 1861, the young Confederacy was too busy just trying to organize for the war. It ignored nursing and hospitals so women, especially upper class women moved in to fill the gap. Women had served as nurses before, but they were largely camp followers and of the lower classes. In the North, there was a lot of reluctance to allow women to become nurses because of the stigma of the camp followers. In the South, there was no initial resistance because the South was too busy with other things.

So the first hospitals in the South were set up by women. Many were by railroad junctions were they were close to transportation or roads. By 1862 however, the Confederacy was better organized and ordered those hospitals closed. Doctors/surgeons were reluctant to have women working with them and nurses were generally convalescent soldiers. The other source of nurses were freemen (or slaves). Many blacks didn't care to nurse soldiers who were fighting to keep them in bondage and the South resorted to carrot and stick. The carrot was that if one volunteered, they would be paid good wages, get good food and be treated well. If they had to be impressed, they would be treated as an impressed individual. Even with blacks and convalescent soldiers, there was not enough so Southern doctors/surgeons reluctantly took in women nurses.

Southern soldiers preferred women nurses over black men or women. It's not that black men or women couldn't do the job, but the southern soldier had his racial prejudices. Additionally, they believed that they would receive better care at the hands of a white woman than they would from a black man or woman (there are exceptions like where a personal servant had a pre-existing bond to his master and would nurse his master back to health).

Once the doctors/surgeons began working together with women, the women became trusted and the doctors/surgeons would even want the women to accompany them when they moved to a different hospital. Nursing in those days were of two types. One was the bedpan changer, drudge worker who may be changing bandages or clean out wounds. The other could change bandages or cleanse wounds, but they also nurtured or consoled the injured. She may cook for or feed a wounded soldier. She may wipe his forehead, read the bible to him, write home for him, read his letters or even advise his family where he was buried.

They would send lockets of the deceased's hair home or his personal effects along with writing a consoling letter to the family.

Confederate doctors/surgeons found that sick or wounded soldiers responded better when there was a woman around. It was their connection to home, to the mother or sister or girlfriend or wife they left behind. Morale was better and the mortality rate was half of what it was when there were no women present. Some soldiers would break down and cry if the woman left the hospital for vacation. As southern women proved their worth as nurses, they were entrusted with greater responsibilities. They became matrons and were offered a salary by the Confederate government.

Upper class women looked down on receiving a salary. After all, it was their contribution to the war effort. However, some began drawing a salary but they used it to buy provisions or other things for the wounded. Money became so scarce late in the war that they were lucky to receive it at all. As matrons, some even ran the hospital as an administrator. They received money with which they bought food or other necessary supplies to keep the hospital going. They also supervised the ward attendants (drudge nurses) who worked to higher standards in the presence of a woman.

Post war the southern woman was responsible for preserving the memory of their men and for defending their manhood. Before Jubal Early and others came along to promote the lost cause, southern women started it first. During reconstruction, women could say or do things that a southern man could not. Women were instrumental in creating cemeteries which also served as sanctuaries where ex-confederates could meet. Southern women were firebrands that their men could not be. It was concurrently a means of empowerment for them in an era when women could not hold office or employment outside of the married home. While men could be in charge of committees, it was the women who raised the money and did all the legwork for having memorials and Monument Blvd in Richmond built. The second revival of the K K K was largely due to women who used the movement as a means of empowerment. Some of the most vicious racists were southern women.

The Civil War was largely responsible for the feminization of nursing. Women in the form of camp followers had always been nurses, but the war legitimized women as a professional nurse.

Meeting of May 31, 2011

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Adam Arenson on "The Great Heart of the Republic: St. Louis and Cultural Civil War"

The Civil War revealed what united as well as what divided Americans in the nineteenth century—not only in its deadly military conflict, but also in the broader battle of ideas, dueling moral systems, and competing national visions that preceded and followed. This cultural civil war was the clash among North, South, and West, as their leaders sought to shape Manifest Destiny and slavery politics.

No site embodied this struggle more completely than St. Louis, the largest city along the border of slavery and freedom. This sweeping history reveals a city at the heart of the cultural civil war. St. Louisans heralded a new future, erasing old patterns as the United States stretched across the continent. They tried to reorient the nation's political landscape, with westerners in the vanguard and St. Louis as the cultural, commercial, and national capital.

John C. Calhoun, Frederick Douglass, Walt Whitman, and John Brown tracked the progress of the cultural contest by monitoring events in St. Louis, observing how the city's leaders tried yet ultimately failed to control the national destiny.

The interplay of local ambitions and national meanings reveals the wider cultural transformation brought about by westward expansion, political strife, and emancipation in the era of the Civil War and Reconstruction. This vibrant and beautifully written story enriches our understanding of America at a crossroads.

Adam Arenson was born in San Diego, continued his education at Harvard and Yale, conducted his research in St. Louis, Jefferson City, Columbia, Hermann, Hannibal, New York, Chicago, Davenport, Rock Island, Moline, New Haven and Cambridge, teaches in the History Department at the University of Texas at El Paso, and lives with his family in Los Angeles. His website is http://adamarenson.com/.

Meeting of April 26, 2011

Donald Stoker on "Grand Strategy in the Civil War"

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There are more than 60,000 books on the Civil War. None provide a full discussion of the conflict's strategy—except Donald Stoker's Grand Strategy in the Civil War. Stoker, of the U.S. Naval War College's NPS program, reveals, in the words of the presidents, generals, and admirals, the grand, strategic sweep of the war. The much maligned George McClellan had a vision of Union strategy stretching far beyond his ill-fated Peninsula campaign, one that could have produced Union victory in 1862. The clearest picture yet of Lincoln's evolution as a strategic thinker also emerges, one in which his clarity and decisiveness in political thought and control shines through just as brightly as his strategic failures. Lincoln had many good strategic ideas, but too often he failed to insure that his subordinates carried them out. One of these, Henry Halleck, McClellan's successor, cost the Union many lives, and was one of the reasons Union victory was so long delayed. Grant and Sherman emerge as decisive operational and strategic thinkers. Sherman, in many respects, was the best of all. The Confederates had their own problems, not the least of these was their president, Jefferson Davis, a man whose jealously of his prerogatives often sabotaged the Confederate war effort. Often credited with great strategic vision; he had none. He never developed a strategic vision for winning the war, and never asked any of his generals to do so either. The much-reviled Braxton Bragg offered one of the best of the Confederacy's strategic plans, which his superiors partially followed. Other top Confederates, such as Joseph Johnston, proved just a prickly as their civilian superior, and wasted their energies in ego-feeding duels. Johnston also consistently failed to carry out the orders of his superiors, or to exercise the initiative given him. Robert E Lee, the best of the Confederate generals, and one of the few to hatch a strategic thought, divined the solution to Confederate victory, but chose the wrong path for getting there.

Meeting of March 29, 2011

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Larry Comstock on "The Union is Saved! The Atlanta Campaign of 1864"

Larry's talk covered two campaigns proceeding at the same time in the spring of 1864. The first of these was the military campaign of the army group under General William T. Sherman to attack General Joe Johnston's Army of Tennessee encamped at Dalton, GA and to drive towards Atlanta, GA. The key figures in the three armies making up the force were presented. The logistics of the campaign was discussed with particular reference to the Western & Atlantic Railroad that supported both armies (from each end). Two significant battles of this military campaign (Resaca and the Battle of Atlanta) were emphasized. This campaign was one of the five campaigns directed by the new commander of the Union Army, Lt. General U.S. Grant. By mid-July the Atlanta campaign was the only one with any likelihood of significant military success. This was the result of the Army of the Potomac being in a standoff with the Army of Northern Virginia with both entrenched around the Richmond-Petersburg lines.

The second campaign being fought in the spring was on the political front driven by the presidential election in the North. It was clear to both the northern and southern governments that the reelection of Abraham Lincoln was required to continue the war to a successful conclusion. The south could win by not losing. It was clear that the military situation near election time in November would determine the outcome of the election. The personalities and issues of the election were presented.

The capture of Atlanta in September was the military success that the Lincoln administration was anticipating and was a key event that resulted in the reelection of Lincoln which justifies the phrase: The Union is saved!

 

Meeting of February 22, 2011

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Dana Lombardy on "Secret Turning Points of the American Civil War"

Dana Lombardy, designer and editor of the battlefield guidebook The First Battle of Bull Run: Campaign of First Manassas, presented one his popular series of "secret" turning points lectures with a look at the decisions (and non-decisions) that have been overlooked or downplayed in most books written about America's Civil War. What nearly happened in 1862 that could have crippled or stopped President Lincoln's war plans? What act of disobedience enabled the Union army to stay and fight at Gettysburg after its initial defeat on July 1?

Dana Lombardy was an Associate Online Editor for Weider History Group web sites (WHG publishes Civil War Times and America's Civil War magazines). Dana is best known for his nearly twenty television appearances, including multiple episodes of The History Channel's "Tales of the Gun" series. He has contributed as an editor, cartographer, graphic artist and designer on many books, games and magazines, and was Publisher of Napoleon Journal magazine from 1996-2000.

Meeting of January 25, 2011

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Rene Accornero, DVM, on "Horses in the Civil War"

Rene's discussion on horses in the Civil War included man's relationship to the horse and why over a million horses and mules died in the war. The ancestral horse was discussed as well as purchasing horses, care and diseases of horses, and horses in battles such as in the Peach Orchard and the Bliss farm in the Battle of Gettysburg. Pictured here are some of the eighty-eight horses of Capt. Bigelow's battery killed at the Trostle farm. Famous horses of generals were mentioned and the fact that Gen. Grant permitted the Confederates to keep their horses after the surrender at Appomattox.

Rene's PowerPoint slides (about 116MB!) are available here.

Meeting of November 30, 2010

Bill Noyes on "Sketch Artists of the Civil War"

The following description has been provided by Bill after his talk:

The American Civil War was the beginning effort at illustrated journalism on a large and comprehensive scale on our side of the Atlantic and a far bigger and more successful effort than had occurred anywhere. The first such weekly newspaper, the Illustrated London News, had been established in 1842 and covered the Crimea and Garibaldi campaigns but not to the extent that our war was covered. American papers merely copied their coverage during these conflicts.

By 1861 three American weeklies had illustrators in the field: Leslie's, 1855, Harper's, 1857 and the New York Illustrated News, 1859. While these Special Artists rarely totaled more than a couple handful in the field at any one time they, along with other contributors of various sorts, produced over 6,ooo illustrations concerning the Civil War in the 3 American papers and the Illustrated London News, which was widely distributed to the US and surreptitiously to the Confederacy.

These illustrations gave the American people an emotional and informed connection to their armies such as had never been felt before. The influence of news images upon our wars began with Civil War soldiers witnessing the most penciled war in the papers they read. WW2 might be dubbed the most talked about due to radio broadcasts but then the Vietnam War became the most openly photographed war. Now, with shock and awe so accessible to us we can digitally accompany a bomb to its target. War imagery has become a huge factor in our military schemes.

The drawn images from this period, though used often to illustrate modern books, beginning with Battles and Leaders of the Civil War, have not got the attention in terms of academic study and conservation that they deserved over the years. The various artists with a few exceptions, such as Winslow Homer or Edwin Forbes, haven't had the attention they deserve as chroniclers of the most important American war. What these men were about was a critical beginning in what has become The Media and reporting today. It all began, for us, with PT Barnum and has indeed become the greatest show on earth! Still, the Wauds and Schells and Lovies and Simplots, and others, are not well documented and studied in modern times, though there is a new book out about Frank Vizetelly, the chronicler of the Confederate side.

Working fast, usually from enough distance to allow them to move to another view or a different station on horseback, the artists sketched quick line drawings of important scenes, focused upon details and individuals which they would later recall and build into expanded drawings. Their ability to mentally retain the image data for later workings of their sketches was paramount. The graphic achievements of Frank Schell for Leslie's at Antietam wonderfully show what the Specials could do and how. In the battle for largest circulation, and the resulting monetary reward, Leslie's dominated until after mid 1863 when Harper's finally worked its way to prominence in sketch men and engravers.

Photography would not push drawing and hand engraving out of the printing limelight until late in the nineteenth century but by then the stage was set for ascendance of the visual in our information industry. Today, all must travel at the speed of light to deliver the information we need (usually in video format) to our computers, where we become impatient with download speeds of longer than a minute. It all began with the Civil War sketch artists who laboriously produced the images they figured we needed to see to understand and appreciate our war. They did an excellent job.

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A. Waud, Wilderness wounded H. Lovie, Gen. Lyon F. Vizetelly, Draft riots

Meeting of October 26, 2010

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Hal Jespersen presented the life of one of his favorite Civil War generals, William S. Rosecrans, and asked the question: "How did a man of so many accomplishments fall from the heights of strategic success into relative obscurity?" Hal's answer: an acerbic tongue that made enemies of at least two powerful men-Ulysses S. Grant and Edwin M. Stanton-and one poorly worded order at the battle of Chickamauga. Hal covered Old Rosy's entire life, but concentrated on his Civil War campaigns, including Iuka/Corinth, Stones River, Tullahoma, and Chickamauga.

The maps for Hal's presentation are available on his website and Hal invited members to subscribe to his CW travelogues by sending him an email. Click here to download the Powerpoint or here to download a PDF of Hal's slides.

Meeting of September 28, 2010

Tom McMahon on "Morality and War"

President's Message: The annual vote for officers was held at the August SBCWRT picnic. These officers agreed to serve for one more year: John Herberich, President; Steve Wetlesen, Vice President; Rene Accornero, Treasurer; Larry Comstock, Secretary; Tom Miller, Membership; Bill Noyes, Preservation; Hal Jespersen, Webmaster; Gary Moore, Historian. Kevin Martinez has assumed the Publicity Director position previously held by Fred Rohrer. Since we are switching to a Web site, the Newsletter position will be left vacant.

Attendance was high for our first meeting of the 22nd year of the SBCWRT. Since we are approaching the beginning of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, I think it would be interesting and educational to begin each meeting with a brief history of the events of the comparable month of 150 years ago. All members are encouraged to contribute.

Dr. Helen Trimpi made a presentation to the group regarding a matching fund contribution she wanted to make to the battlefield at Bentonville, N. C. In March 1865, it was the site of the last major attempt of the Confederates to check Sherman's advance. As Helen explained, her great-grandfather, Pvt. Josias Pinkerton, was with the 25th Iowa Infantry which fought over the very ground the Civil War Preservation Trust is trying to purchase. During this battle, the unit suffered its highest losses of the war. Pending a move to be closer to her family, Helen has been selling most of her extensive library of Civil War history books. Donating $500 of the proceeds to the CWPT, Helen asked the group to match her generous contribution; it was agreed to by unanimous consent. The CWPT will match the combined contribution made by Helen and the SBCWRT for a grand total of $2,000! It makes for a very special occasion when direct descendants of a Civil War Veteran can make a direct contribution in memory of their ancestor.

Following a suggestion made last year by Steve Wetlesen, Tom McMahon led a very lively and interesting round table discussion on the philosophical topic: "War and Morality."

Steve will be hosting the October 26th meeting in my absence. John Herberich

Meeting of August 14, 2010

Tom Christianson on "Opening of the Battle of Chickamauga"

In the history of the Civil War, the Western Theater has long been overshadowed by the the Eastern Theater. Only recently have serious studies by renowned historians Stephen Z. Starr in his three volume work, The Union Cavalry in the Civil War (1985) and David Evans' Sherman's Horsemen (1996), focused on cavalry operations in the Western Theater. During this same time, the battle of Chickamauga has become one of the most studied events of the war, researched by William Glenn Robertson, and a number of other military historians including our own Lt. Col. Tom Christianson, U. S. A. (Retired). As a military historian, Tom taught history at West Point and the Army Command and General Staff College. He has worked with Glenn Robertson and participated in the "staff walks" for military leadership classes studying the battles and battlefields of the Civil War. Other than Gettysburg, perhaps no other site has been studied as closely as Chickamauga, which was designated as the first National Park in 1890.

At our August Picnic meeting Tom gave a rousing account of the events leading up to the fight for Chattanooga. This city was strategically critical to both the North and South since it was the gateway to the heart of the industrial and agricultural South. For the first time in the Civil War, the Federal Cavalry played a pivotal role. It had taken the first two years of the War for the small Union Cavalry force in the West to evolve into an effective fighting force equal in their own right to the infantry and artillery. As David Evans notes, by 1864, "more than one out of every ten Civil War soldiers was a cavalryman."

As the two great armies moved toward Chattanooga, the Union forces were not adequately prepared to meet nor well informed as to the size and proximity of Braxton Bragg's Army. In the initial Confederate attack on September 18, the Federal cavalry played a critical role in buying the time Rosecrans desperately needed. Against odds of 7 to 1, Colonel Robert H. G. Minty's small brigade of Cavalry, which included the only Regular Cavalry Regiment in the Western Theater, the 4th United States, held off for ten hours the advance of Bushrod Johnson's 7,000 Rebel infantry at Reed's Bridge. This action foiled a determined attempt by Braxton Bragg to turn the Federal left flank. At the same time, Colonel Wilder's Brigade of Cavalry held the Rebels at Alexander's Bridge, about 1600 yards south, buying Rosecrans' command the time needed to avoid almost certain disaster. As a result, Rosecrans was able to concentrate his corps and effectively meet Bragg's army on the 19th. An intense two-day battle followed ending with the Union forces withdrawing to Chattanooga, where they were they were isolated by Confederate forces, setting the stage for the "Siege of Chattanooga." This Confederate "victory" caused the South 17,800 casualties, the Union 16,000. Stunned by his losses, Bragg failed to take this opportunity to destroy the Union army. Instead he occupied Missionary Ridge, Lookout Mountain, and the Chattanooga Valley, effectively blockading the city.

Meeting of July 27, 2010

Dr. Libra Hilde, Assistant Professor, Dept. of History, San Jose State University, discussed the cultural, social, and political trends and events that led up to the Civil War. Her exceptional presentation covered a wide variety of issues and generated numerous questions from her enthusiastic audience. Her overall theme dealt with Southern masculinity and the militaristic culture that helped propel the South into a war it could not win.

Lincoln was not an abolitionist and initially maintained a moderate position on the issue of slavery. He was not, however, in favor of expanding the institution into new states and territories. The Republican Party had been founded to limit the expansion of slavery and Southerners feared Lincoln's election moved the Washington power base from the South to the North. Both sides had fragmented into a number of opposing parties and positions, which allowed events, fueled by emotions, to quickly take over. There was no ability to compromise. The Secessionists, who were better organized and feared Federal intervention, took advantage of the passions of the elections to act, but there was by no means uniformity or consensus among the seceding Southern states.

Slavery itself was not the primary issue at the start of the war, but all of the tensions that led to the rebellion evolved around the institution of slavery and its possible expansion into new territories. Slavery had created a unique Southern cultural pyramid and mind set. While slave holding families represented only 25% of the Southern population, the poorest white farmer could always aspire to move up into the landed aristocracy. It had also created a massive slave population which needed an outlet—ideally into new states. Southerners, who were a majority fighting in the Mexican War, felt they had a right to these territories. All Southerners lived in fear of slave uprisings and had created numerous local and state militias to patrol areas and to capture runaway slaves. From the militias to the wealthy families, the military was an integral part of their way of life. Southerners outnumbered Northerners at West Point and those unable to get in went to the numerous Military Academies established in the South. Masculinity and chivalry in the South were tied to the military. Southerners had no doubt they could easily defeat the effete Northern city boys. They could not be beaten.

The War created a Southern Nationalism that not only squelched any Southern opposition to slavery but created a militant defense of slavery as a moral good. Both sides used Federalism and states rights when they were convenient. Ironically, the issue of states rights handicapped the Southern Confederacy as a number of seceding states refused to relinquish their State Militias to the Confederacy or to cooperate fully with the Confederate government.

The post Civil War South that we know today was created by the Civil War.

Meeting of June 29, 2010

Dr. Joe Wagner on "Civil War Medicine"

Civil War Medicine, with one major exception, was virtually unchanged from practice in the dark ages. Bacteria were unknown. Sanitation was primitive, handwashing by surgeons considered unnecessary. The one enormous discovery that was used extensively by both Union and Confederate surgeons was anaesthesia. Nitrous oxide (laughing gas) was discovered in 1845, ether in 1846, and chloroform in 1847. Smallpox vaccination was mandated but not rigidly enforced. Soldiers shared vaccine materials, often with disastrous effects. Measles, a childhood illness, was far more serious in adults. In one battle, half a regiment was out of action due to measles. Many soldiers from rural areas had no exposure to common childhood illnesses, and hence no immunity.

Joe received his M.D. from the University of Toronto in 1954 and had a distinguished career as an orthopaedic surgery professor at UCLA and the California College of Medicine (later University of California at Irvine School of Medicine) before his retirement. He and his wife Dolores have been married for 60 years.

Meeting of May 25, 2010

Larry Comstock on "The Lincoln Writ" — Abraham Lincoln and the New Almaden Mine

Larry discussed the writ issued by President Abraham Lincoln in May 1863 to be enforced by the U.S. Marshall in San Francisco:

"Whereas, Andres Castillero and divers persons have under a pretended grant from the Republic of Mexico occupied the New Almaden Quicksilver Mine. And, Whereas By the decision of the Supreme Court it has been adjudged that the grant is fraudulent and void.

Now, therefore I, Abraham Lincoln, President of the United States do hereby order you to seize the property and deliver it to Leonard Sweet, an agent who has been authorized by me to take possession of the same for the United States."

Larry discussed the history of the New Almaden quicksilver mine located just to the south of San Jose. He then discussed the uses of mercury in the mid 19th century and then the litigation over the ownership of the mine that led to the issuance of the writ quoted above. Lastly, he showed how the writ was presented to the owners of the New Almaden Mine and the reaction of the miners in California. The writ was ultimately withdrawn because of the negative reaction.

Larry's PowerPoint slides are available here.

Meeting of April 27, 2010

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Helen Trimpi on "Crimson Confederates: Harvard Men Who Fought for the South"

Helen, one of the original members of the South Bay Round Table, told how she researched and wrote her book about Confederates who attended Harvard University.


Meeting of March 30, 2010

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Winfield Scott Hancock

Tom Roza on "Winfield Scott Hancock – A Man for the Ages"

Tom delighted the club members his presentation on Winfield Scott Hancock. Tom provided a very thorough and detailed description of Hancock from his childhood growing up in Pennsylvania, attending West Point, and participating in his first combat during the Mexican War. The presentation included Hancock’s extensive experience as an Army Quartermaster in duty assignments that ranged from Florida, to the Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions and California. Tom described the deep and warm friendships that Hancock developed with fellow soldiers such as Lewis Armistead, Richard Garnett and Harry Heth The presentation covered Hancock’s extensive Civil War experience in the Eastern Theater where he rose from a regimental commander to the best Corp commander in the Army of the Potomac. The Club members learned of Hancock’s post war experiences dealing with the Plains Indians, labor strife, and as military Governor of Louisiana where Hancock was the first Northerner to reach out to Southern citizens in an act of reconciliation. The presentation concluded with Hancock’s three attempts to become President of the United States and his final days as the ranking General in the Army up until his death in 1886.

Meeting of February 23, 2010

Gerald S. Henig on "Lincoln at 200 – In Fact Rather than Fiction"

As we commemorate the bicentennial anniversary of Lincoln’s birth, our 16th president remains an enigmatic figure shrouded in myth and legend. Many questions still surround this well-loved but perplexing man. For example, Lincoln had less than a year of formal education: How did he achieve such literary grandeur? Lincoln was a commander in chief with no military training or experience: How did he prove so effective? He opposed the abolitionist movement: How did he become the great emancipator? By focusing on Lincoln as orator, advocate of freedom commander of Union forces, and wartime political leader, Professor Gerald Henig helped us separate fact from fiction in order to understand better this uncommon common man.

Gerald S. Henig is emeritus professor of history at California State University, East Bay, where he received the Outstanding Professor Award and was a four-time winner of the Pi Kappa Delta Best Lecturer Award. After graduating from Brooklyn College, Jerry earned his M.A. from the University of Wisconsin and his Ph.D. in American history from the Graduate Center, City University of New York. His most recent book, Civil War Firsts: The Legacy of America’s Bloodiest Conflict, was a selection of the History Book Club and the Military Book Club. In April 2007, the book was published in a paperback edition, with a new format, a generous number of photos and illustrations, and a new title: A Nation Transformed: How the Civil War Changed America Forever.

Meeting of January 26, 2010

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Mary Deborah Petite on "The Women Will Howl"

Slicing through Civil War history is not unlike cutting through a layer cake. The icing represents themes of grandeur and glory, the first layer, the epic battles and their heroic outcomes. The next layer represents the decorated heroes and martyrs, the major players. Following them are the histories of the Armies, Divisions, Brigades, and their bold leaders. Finally, and after all else, come the stories of the common soldier. What is frequently overlooked, however, is that the stage upon which these great battles are fought, the land across which armies of tens of thousands surge, also represents the lives of the millions of civilians who depend on that land for their industry and survival. Their voices are rarely heard. And so it was with the women mill-workers of the small mill town of Roswell, Georgia, when William Tecumseh Sherman's cavalry swept into town on July 5, 1864. After the mills were burned and all the industry destroyed, Sherman issued an unusual order, deporting nearly 1,000 of the female textile workers to cities in the North. The women did howl, but, until Deborah Petite discovered, their story in 1996, it was a silent cry. After years of research, which Deborah shared with us at the January meeting, their story has been meticulously documented and told in her recently published book, The Women Will Howl. With passion and emotion, the women of Roswell have found their voice through Deborah Petite. It was an inspiring presentation!

Mary Deborah Petite, a member of our Round Table since 1992, is author of The Women Will Howl. Information about Deborah and her book can be found at www.women-will-howl.com.

Meeting of November 24, 2009

Rene Accornero on "Retreat from Gettysburg"

Rene talked about the massive efforts of General Robert Lee and his command as they sought to move people, eguipment, and scavenged supplies back to Virginia after being defeated at Gettysburg. More than 57 miles of wagons and ambulance trains and tens of thousands of livestock accompanied the army back to Virginia. The adverse conditions of the driving rain and muddy quagmires were described as General Meade attempted to attack the trains. Battles were fought at South Mountain, Hagerstown, and Williamsport, but Lee's skillfull use of terrain and defenses allowed him to escape. Washington's criticism of Gen. Meade was also discussed. Meade's failure to destroy the Army of Northern Virginia prolonged the war for two more years.

Rene's PowerPoint slides (about 75MB!) are available here.

Meeting of October 24, 2009

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Pickett's Charge map by Hal Jespersen, www.CWmaps.com

Larry Comstock on "Pickett's Charge."

In this talk the attacks by the Army of Northern Virginia and the response by the Union Army of the Potomac over the first two days of the battle of Gettysburg were outlined. The status of the Army of Northern Virginia after the first two days and the alternatives perceived by General Robert E. Lee for the third day were presented. The factors that led Lee to choose a frontal attack on the center of the Union line on Cemetery Ridge were then discussed. The talk then detailed the massive artillery barrage followed by the advance of Pickett, Pettigrew, and Trimble’s divisions toward Cemetery Ridge. The “High-Water-Mark” of the advance and the actions by the Union Army that led to the repulse of the Charge were presented. All the reasons for the failure of the Charge followed by some observations by men who participated in the charge were then discussed. Download slides (PDF format, about 9MB).

Larry's slides in PowerPoint format (about 20MB) are available here.

Meeting of September 29, 2009

Tom McMahon on "Life, Death and Religion in the Civil War."

Tom McMahon set the scene for his talk by establishing his position as ordained Catholic priest, former US Army chaplain, and California licensed Mental Health Therapist. Tom choose the title of his talk based on the work in which he has been involved for over 50 years.

Who knows the psychology of the men who were combatants in the violence of the American Civil War? Surely not ourselves as we simply were not there. Yet members of the audience could be carrying the DNA of ancestral people who served both in South and North. Tom used the DNA of the Irish Brigade as best Tom would read of such and trace in his own Irish background family, his great grandfather being a resident of San Francisco during the Civil War. Emphasis was heavy on the Good Death, the age old experience of dying surrounded by family, an archetype or fundamental way of life learned in childhood, which was shattered by the massive number of battlefield deaths with bodies left unattended for days. We heard the story of Confederate Corporal Montgomery as he wrote his blood stained death letter to his father, knowing that his family would cherish his last words.

Massive changes in burial practices came about, such as the funeral home and embalming, along with abuses of grieving parents, and the government hastened to find suitable burial ground. We heard Abraham Lincoln as ministerial person delivering his Gettysburg address over the ground hallowed (made holy) by the blood of those who died in battle.

Tom's final encouragement was for serious students of the Civil War to be aware that human beings were the basic participants, persons with feelings and hope for a good life and that we might have this in mind in todays warfare lest partly paraphrasing Lincoln those of old and these modern warriors will have died in vain.

August 16, 2009, Picnic Meeting

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Gary Yee

Gary Yee on "A Plan Gone Wrong: The Siege of Battery Wagner (July 21, 1863 to September 7, 1863)"

Charleston harbor was defended in the Civil War by Fort Sumter in the middle of the channel and, in the north, on Sullivans Island by Fort Moultrie and, to the south of Fort Sumter, on Morris Island by Battery Gregg. To defend Battery Gregg from attack from the south, Battery Wagner was established on Morris Island by the Confederates. The Federal commander of the attempt to capture Charleston was Brig. Gen. Quincy Gilmore and his plan was to land troops on Morris Island and capture both Batteries Wagner and Gregg and then reduce and capture Fort Sumter which would allow the navy to steam into Charleston harbor.

Gary described the failed attempt by the famed black 54th Massachusetts regiment to capture Battery Wagner on July 18, 1863 (depicted in the movie Glory). After the failure to seize the battery by coup de main, Gary described Gilmores plan to reduce it by a siege. He discussed all the aspects of a siege, including how parallel trenches were dug and zigzag approaches were prepared with saps and artillery to suppress the defense. The siege started on July 20th and was assisted by naval guns under the command of Admiral John Dahlgren. Gary then focused on the use of sharpshooters by the Confederates using superior Whitworth rifles purchased from England to harass the Union engineers building the trenches. This was so effective that the Union was initially forced to build the trenches only at night. The Union responded by forming a sharpshooter corps using standard Springfield rifles.

mapGary went on to describe the different stages of the siege and the final success in establishing a parallel trench just 50 yards from Battery Wagner. On September 7th the Federal forces prepared to storm Battery Wagner, but the Confederates abandoned the battery as well as Battery Gregg. Gary mentioned that the campaign to capture Charleston was abandoned by orders of General Grant and the city was not captured until February, 1865.

The presentation was well received with many questions.

Meeting of July 28, 2009

Bob Hubbs on "How Lincoln Won the War Without the Help of his Generals"

Bob's presentation focused on Lincoln's relationship with his generals in high command during the Civil War. Among the "highlights" or major points of Bob's presentation were:

Meeting of June 30, 2009

generalsNorman Patrick Doyle on "Two Civil War Generals in Mexico"

Patrick's presentation included an overview of the Mexican-American War, 1846-1848, beginning with the actions of President James K. Polk that were, to a great extent, factors that precipitated the conflict. Patrick then sequenced the significant battles of the war, beginning with the first major battle, May 8, 1846, at Palo Alto, adjacent to modern day Brownsville, Texas, and concluding with the culminating battles of the war at Churubusco (on September 19, 1847) and Chapultepec (September 14, 1847). Gen. Winfield Scott's troops continued to occupy Mexico City until the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo on May 22, 1848 which officially ended the war.

In each of the respective major encounters Patrick highlighted the roles and contributions of future well known Civil War personalities, such as Robert E. Lee, James Longstreet, and Pierre Gustave Toutant Beauregard.

Intertwined in his presentation Patrick related the actions and interaction of the two central figures of his presentation, Gen. David E. Twiggs and Gen. William S. Harney, with those of John Riley, the charismatic leader of mostly Irish deserters (from the U.S. Army) who became known as the San Patricios fighting alongside the Mexicans.

Patrick concluded his presentation recounting the roles both Twigg (on the Confederate side) and Harney (on the Union side) would later play in the Civil War.

Meeting of May 26, 2009

LincolnLarry Tagg on "The Unpopular Mr. Lincoln"

Larry's presentation focused on the central and most meaningful aspects of his recently released book, entitled The Unpopular Mr. Lincoln: The Story of America’s Most Reviled President. It revealed a number of interesting and informative insights relative to the immense unpopularity of Lincoln as he assumed the Presidency following the election of 1860. Among the highlights of Larry's presentation were the following:

Larry concluded his presentation his presentation by stating, "If one considers politics as the art of the possible, Lincoln was the consummate politician. What he accomplished, in view of his initial unpopularity, is all the more remarkable. The depth of Lincoln's travail is much of what ennobles him to us today."

Here are two brief excerpts from Larry's book (both PDF files):

These excerpts are used with permission from publisher Savas Beatie. For more information, please visit www.savasbeatie.com.

Meeting of April 28, 2009

Jack Mather on "Sherman—Fall 1864 to the End of the War: Myth and Reality"

Jack's presentation evolved around the two following communications:

Oct. 9, 1864, Sherman to Grant: "Until we can repopulate Georgia, it is useless to occupy it, but the utter destruction of its roads, horses and people will cripple their military resources ... I can make the march and make Georgia howl."

Nov. 9, 1864, Sherman to his troops: "In districts and neighborhoods where the army is unmolested, no destruction of such propery should be permitted; but should the inhabitants burn bridges, obstruct roads, or otherwise manifest local hostility, the army commanders should order and enforce a devastation more or less relentless, according to measures of such hostility."

Jack's presentation focused on two questions: 1) To what extent were Sherman's actions consistent with these communications and 2) Are the accounts of Sherman's actions a reality or mostly myth?

Meeting of March 31, 2009

Brad Schall on "The Political Climate in California 1850-1870"

Brad's presentation centered around the crucial elements of the 1856 and 1870 elections. He examined both the role and impact of California's first two Senators: William Gwin and John C. Frémont. He addressed "Why the South needed California to be a Slave State" and to what extent did slavery already exist in California. Within this context Brad related the stories of Mary Ellen Pleasant and the David Broderick vs. David Terry duel.

Meeting of February 24, 2009

Larry Comstock on "The Other End of the Line — The Union Right Flank at Gettysburg"

Most attention about the battle of Gettysburg is given in the popular press and in the movie Gettysburg to the attacks on July 2, 1863, on the Union left flank and on the center of the Union line on July 3rd (Pickett's Charge). Who has not heard about Little Round Top, Devils Den, the Peach Orchard, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, and the 20th Maine? Larry's excellent presentation described the events that took place on the Union right flank that were equally important. The geography of Gettysburg and the military importance of the surrounding hills were emphasized. The persons who made the key decisions to establish the force on Cemetery Hill as a rallying point and to direct a force to the adjacent Culp's Hill on July 1st were identifed: The importance of defending these hills that controlled the approach to Gettysburg by the Baltimore Pike were explained. The defenses of the key positions, primarily by the Union XI and XII Corps and the key individuals were described. The unsuccessful attacks on these hills and the intervening ground by the Confederate forces under Lt. Gen. Richard Ewell's Second Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia starting late in the afternoon of July 2nd and continuing the next morning were outlined.

Meeting of January 27, 2009

Charles Sweeny on "Aspects of Slavery During the Civil War"

Charles Sweeny's presentation focused primarily on slavery and its ramifications during the Civil War, but his presentation also examined slavery in a more comprehensive context. Among the key points of his presentation were:

Meeting of November 25, 2008

Jean Libby on "John Brown: A History and Photo Chronology"

Brown
Image purchased on eBay by Jean Libby in 2001. It was one of the mystery photographs (date, original sitting and photographer unknown) examined at the November 25th meeting.

Jean’s presentation charted twelve photographs of John Brown the abolitionist through three time periods:  the organization of the Underground Railroad and resistance to the Fugitive Slave Law (1846 - 1850), Free State vs. Slave State (1854 - 1857), and the Harpers Ferry Raid (1858 - 1859).

There are several versions of the dozen photos studied, including "How many photo portraits are there of John Brown with his beard?" 

Jean’s original chronology in 2002 was made with forensic anthropologist Eileen Barrow at Louisiana State University, who specializes in making aging models of missing children. Her original research on the subject has convinced archivists and experts that some dates and places of commonly viewed photo images of John Brown were incorrect. 

The final question is: Was there a photo made of Brown in 1859, after he shaved his beard previous to the raid on Harpers Ferry? There were no photographs made of John Brown in Virginia from the raid, trial and execution.

Mrs. Jean Libby is a retired teacher of history and ethnic studies at community colleges in northern California. She is the author of John Brown, Bearded Patriarch, published by Palgrave Macmillan in a collection entitled The Afterlife of John Brown, and "The John Brown daguerreotypes, a leader uses his likeness for remembrance and promotion" in The Daguerreian Annual 2002-2003. She is also the publisher and principal author of John Brown's Family in California, an illustrated pamphlet-style book which features Santa Clara County history and locations.

A review of Jean's book by Steve Wetlesen is available here.

Meeting of October 28, 2008

Fred Bohmfalk on "Baseball During the Civil War"

Civil War "buffs" and baseball enthusiasts alike were in for a real treat as Fred Bohmfalk's presentation of "Baseball during the Civil War" enlightened us relative to the origin and somewhat obscure beginning of the game to its reputation as our "national pasttime" of the modern era.

Fred revealed Abner Doubleday's role and contribution to the game of baseball. More specifically, Fred examines baseball as it existed and was played and enjoyed by soldiers during the Civil War—its impact on troop morale and its distraction from the din of battle.

Fred's presentation was filled with facts and noteworthy information relative to the evolution of the game—such as in the early days there were no innings, no errors, no three bases, no limits on strikes, etc. The ball, larger than today, was dark in color—and was always thrown underhand.

Of specific interest were the events, growing out of Civil War baseball, that led to the recognition of talented players, the formation of professional baseball clubs, leagues, rule changes and the orderly progression of baseball as we know it today—millionaire owners and "bonus baby players".

Meeting of September 30, 2008

Tom Roza on "John Buford at Gettysburg"

Although covering other aspects of of John Buford's life and Civil War exploits, this presentation focused primarily on his role and strategic contributions to the Union cause at the Battle of Gettysburg. Here is a brief synopsis of Buford's role on that fateful first day of the battle:

"On the morning of July 1st, 1863, Buford's men faced west as the sun rose to their backs. Shortly after daylight, one of his troopers posted on the road to Cashtown fired at the advance of Maj. Gen. Henry Heth's entire Confederate division, sending up the alarm in Buford's camp. The dismounted cavalrymen, acting like infantry skirmishers, put up a stubborn, slow defense over the two miles to Buford's main battle line atop McPherson's Ridge. The Union tactics here called for measured, deliberate resistance that traded ground for time. By the time Heth's men reached Herr's Ridge opposite Buford's main line, two hours of precious daylight had passed and supporting Federal infantry had approached to enter the brawl. Buford, and then infantry commander Maj. Gen. John Reynolds, had their eyes on the ultimate prize—the higher, better ground to the east and south of the town." This action, combined with the strategic decision of commanding the high ground would have a major impact on the outcome of the Battle of Gettysburg.

Tom sent the following description:

John Buford left an enduring legacy with was his embodiment of the dismounted, dragoon-style fighting that he so splendidly executed on July 1, 1863 at Gettysburg. Buford opted for operational flexibility and versatility over devotion to a particular tactical model. Above all, he strove to enhance and promote the basic qualities of the mounted soldier, which are speed and mobility.

In place of mounted saber shock tactics the Army had borrowed from the Age of Napoleon, Buford substituted light cavalry tactics he had mastered during prewar campaigns against the Plains Indians. His emphasis on dragoon-style operations featuring dismounted troops fighting with carbine and pistol helped transform the Yankee horsemen from ineffective screening forces into a potent, mobile, versatile arm of the service.

Those qualities have carried forward to the mechanized warfare of today. Buford’s deathbed wish—that he might live on in his profession—has been granted as his tactics have become part of the modern military’s mode of operation.

Meeting of August 10, 2008

Jack Leathers' presentation on "George Thomas - The Rock of Chickamauga"

Although Jack's presentation was comprehensive in covering much of George Thomas's personal history and military career, Jack began by focusing on what was to be his most notable battle—the September 19-20, 1863, Battle of Chickamauga, the one that would earn him the acclaimed nickname of "The Rock of Chickamauga."

Following his recounting of this momentous battle, Jack reviewed the career of George Thomas—how Thomas graduated near the top of his class at West Point in 1840 and received his first assignment to fight the Seminole Indians in Florida.

Jack next touched on Thomas's service during the Mexican War as he served under Gen. Zachary Taylor and proved himself in the battles of Monterrey and Buena Vista.

With the outbreak of the Civil War, Thomas, although a Virginian and slave owner, chose to remain with the Union, saying "It is not my wish to leave the service of the United States as long as it is honorable for me to remain with it."

Jack's presentation continued with a look at other noteworthy battles, apart from Chickamauga, in which Thomas and his troops participated—Mill Springs, Chattanooga, the Atlanta Campaign, and the battle for Peachtree Creek, culminating his Civil War career in the two-day battle of Nashville.

In his conclusion, Jack touched briefly on Thomas's post-war years—his assignment as a subordinate of Sherman in the Military Division of the Mississippi and a later command of the Pacific in San Francisco. In these later years rumors and controversies swirled around reports, from western newspapers, that Halleck had written a letter indicating that Grant had once planned to remove Thomas in favor of Schofield—that the Nashville campaign had already been won at the Battle of Franklin. Thomas's men rushed to his defense, adamant that "Ole Pap" Thomas had brought the contest to a thorough conclusion at Nashville.

Thomas died at his desk on March 28, 1870, with his own comments almost complete.

Even today the sightless eyes of George Thomas's bronze equestrian monument on Boulevard Circle look South upon a Washington for whom he constantly delivered—only to receive everlasting minimal respect from his superiors.

Business Meeting

A brief business meeting followed Jack's talk, which included the following: