General musings

Yesterday, Susan and I traveled up to Lake Erie. There’s a place called Lakeside, which is near the Marblehead lighthouse. It’s near the Cedar Point amusement park, and also near the Johnson’s Island Confederate prison camp/cemetery site.

Lakeside is part of the Chautauqua movement. It was founded in the 1870’s, and it’s like a little oasis. It is very much like taking a step back into the past. It’s a very quaint little religious community. The place is definitely oriented toward Christianity and toward spiritual and religious growth. This was one of those times when having a good Lutheran-sounding name has its advantages. At one point last night, I jokingly told a friend in an e-mail that I hoped that we wouldn’t be struck by a lighting bolt and that we were undoubtedly the only Jews within several miles of the place. 🙂

To get there, we had to pass through the town of Bucyrus, Ohio. On Monday, Bucyrus had eight inches of rain in one day. The Sandusky River, normally not much of a stream, was horribly flooded. Nearly half of the downtown area was under water. There was floodwater everywhere. We had to find a way around it, which took the better part of half an hour. It was, without doubt, some of the worst flooding I have ever seen.

Anyway, this is Civil War week at Lakeside. They have three seminars per day for five days. The folks there had contacted me months ago, and I figured that it might be an interesting experience. They also indicated that they were willing to pay me, which is always music to my ears. 🙂

I ended up giving two different 90 minutes talks today. The first one was on the Battle of Trevilian Station and the second one was on Stuart’s ride during the Gettysburg Campaign. I had almost 130 people for the first talk and about 85 for the second. It was quite a day. Normally, I don’t like working with microphones, but they had a lavalier mic for me, and it worked perfectly. It’s a good thing, too. If I hadn’t had that, I would not have a voice left at all now. As it is, I have very little left at the moment.

It was an attentive but not especially knowledgeable crowd. I had a few good questions and few uninformed looks. However, it got me out of the office for a day, I got paid to talk about the Civil War, and Susan and I got a tiny get-away. Since we haven’t gotten to take a vacation this year, and our only out-of-town trips have been to deal with my father, any little get-away is a good thing. It looks like we will be going back again next year; my usual trick of speaking without notes had the usual effect. 🙂

Tomorrow, it’s back to work for the day, and then it’s off to Gettysburg. JD and I are meeting our third co-author, Mike Nugent, there to shoot the photos for the driving tours for our retreat book.

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The other day, I posted about how the New York draft riots drew thousands of troops away from the Army of the Potomac, thereby depleting the strength of the army. Over the course of a few weeks, the Fifth Corps division of U. S. Army Regulars, an entire brigade of Vermonters, and nine other regiments were sent to New York to keep the peace. The Vermonters and the Regulars were some of the best and most battle-tried troops in the army, and they would be difficult to replace.

The army of the Potomac suffered about 25% casualties during the battle of Gettysburg, or about 23,000 men killed, wounded, and captured. There were another 1,000 or so casualties in the fighting during the retreat from Gettysburg. Obviously, these immense losses limited Meade’s options and his choices.

As I continued to work on the epilogue to the retreat manuscript, I had another realization. In addition to the battle casualties and the detachments to deal with the New York draft riots, nine veteran regiments–two year and nine months regiments–reached the expirations of their terms of service and left the army to muster out and go home. Between the detachments to New York and the men leaving to go home, Meade lost about 15,000 veteran troops at a time when he needed every available musket in order to bring Lee’s wounded army to bay.

Thus, by the end of July, there were 40,000 less veteran soldiers in the Army of the Potomac than there were when the Gettysburg Campaign began. It is, therefore, no great surprise that Meade was particularly cautious in making his decisions about when and how to attack Lee’s army.

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My concerns about the future of Civil War Times magazine have been largely alleviated. Dana Shoaf, who’s been the editor of America’s Civil War for the last several years, has been named as the new editor of CWTI. I know Dana; I’ve done some battlefield stomping with him. I’ve also worked with him in his capacity as editor of ACW and know him to be a real pro. The magazine is in good hands.

That, however, creates an altogether new problem, which is finding a new editor for ACW. Hopefully, someone as talented as Dana will be located and will step up to the plate.

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I would be remiss if I didn’t at least acknowledge the 10,000th loss in the history of the Philadelphia Phillies, which occurred on Sunday afternoon while we were driving back to Columbus. Number 10,001 then occurred on Monday night.

As some of you may know, I was born in Philadelphia and raised in the area. My father is a lifelong Philadelphia sports nut (although he was primarily an A’s fan while they were there), and some of my very earliest memories are of watching Richie Allen hit long home runs at Connie Mack Stadium with my dad. I’m a diehard Phillies fan and have been for my entire life. Perhaps it explains why I am such a glutton for punishment.

The team has been around since May 1, 1883, when it lost its first game. That means that it has taken 124 years to reach the magic 10,000 number. It has won only about 8800 games over those years. The next closest team, the Braves, has lost 9600 or so games, meaning that it’s a large gap. In those years, the Phillies have only been to the World Series five times: 1915, 1950 (the Whiz Kids), 1980, 1983 (the Wheeze Kids), and 1993. They’ve won only once, 1980. That’s one world championship in 124 years.

And then there were the Fizz Kids. In a season that featured Jim Bunning’s Father’s Day perfect game and Richie Allen’s incredible rookie of the year accomplishments, the 1964 Phillies had a six game lead with twelve to go. They proceeded to lose ten in a row and finished second. Go figure. To this day, the pain from that episode still lingers in the City of Brotherly Love.

It’s well documented that Phillies fans would boo Santa Claus. If they booed the greatest third baseman to ever pick up a glove–Mike Schmidt–they will boo anyone. At the same time, once they love a player, they love him forever. We’re very loyal. Where else would a team lose 10,000 games and have its fans celebrate such a dubious accomplishment?

Every day, I read the coverage of the Phightin’s in the Philadelphia newspapers, and I watch them whenever I can. I remain as loyal to them as ever, and always will. Thus, I would be remiss if I didn’t join in the celebration of our team’s 10,000 losses. At least we’ve got that distinction to savor: the Phillies are the only professional sports franchise to EVER lose 10,000 games.

Take that, Michael Aubrecht. You and your damned Yankees can’t claim this magical accomplishment. 🙂

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Unfortunately, I will be away from the blog for a few days. My father, who is five weeks from turning 87, had a serious stroke this morning. We’re going to head to my parents’ house tomorrow to do what we can to help. I will report back when I can. In the meantime, please keep my father in your prayers.

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Those of you who regularly read this blog know that I visited the Antietam and Harpers Ferry battlefields a week ago today. I posted about the visit, and put up a bunch of photos, including one of my very favorite battlefield monument, the one to Sgt. William McKinley, for bravely serving coffee to the troops under fire and without orders. I called it–and quite rightfully–silly, but pointed out that it reflects McKinley’s enormous popularity at the time of his assassination.

One of McKinley’s living relatives wrote in and apparently took umbrage with my calling the monument silly. Sorry about that, Theresa. I certainly didn’t mean to offend, but given the incredible bravery demonstrated by so many soldiers under fire that day–such as John B. Gordon still leading his troops in the fighting for the Sunken Road in spite of having been shot in the face–that I find it pretty damned silly to erect a large monument to a soldier whose contribution to the Union victory at Antietam was bringing buckets of coffee to the front lines. It just seems preposterous to me.

That in no way is intended to suggest that McKinley was not a brave or competent soldier. In point of fact, he was. He was clearly a capable soldier, or he never would have made the leap from private in 1861 to major by the end of the war at the young age of 22. Obviously, there was a reason why he would received so many promotions, and that reason is competence. So, I’m not suggesting that the 25th President of the United States did not deserve recognition for his military exploits. I’m simply saying that the field at Antietam and the reasons for the monument are not especially appropriate.

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Today is the 144th anniversary of the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg. That means that the Town of Gettysburg is jam packed with tourists. It means that there are far too many people, too many cars, and too many motorcycles in town for the anniversary commemoration of the battle. Personally, I can’t imagine being there during this chaos. I’ve been there on the anniversary of the battle twice, and that was more than enough for me. I can’t imagine anyone WANTING to be there now–you can’t find a parking space, a table in a restaurant, or a quiet place to reflect on the meaning of the day. Consequently, I swore I would never be there on the anniversary of the battle again if I could help it, and I’m sitting here in my family room in Columbus as I write this. I’ll live the crowds and chaos to the others, including J. D., who enjoy being there at this time of year. Have fun, guys.

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Please be sure to check out Ranger Mannie Gentile’s hilarious post about our Antietam visit last Sunday. It’s good for a belly laugh.

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Fifteen years ago today, Susan and I were married. It hardly seems possible that so much time could have passed in what seems like the blink of an eye, but it certainly has.

Thanks for the fifteen best years of my life to my best friend and favorite companion. Here’s to many more to come.

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I got to Gettysburg at 1:00 on Friday afternoon. I hooked up with pal Dwayne Siskey, and we met Dave Roth, the publisher of Blue & Gray magazine at the visitor’s center. We loaded into Dave’s truck and headed down to the south end of the field, so I could show Dave the traditional interpretation of Farnsworth’s Charge. Dave shot a bunch of photos for it and some in the Wheatfield for another article, and we then headed up to Carlisle. We shot some photos for my piece on Stuart’s shelling of Carlisle, including a couple at my alma mater, Dickinson College. We also found a house just behind the campus that was struck by one of Breathed’s shells. We headed back to Gettysburg via York Springs and Heidlersburg, where I showed Dave one of my very favorite obscure spots, where Rhodes’ Division camped on the night of June 30, 1863. It was a spot that Dave had never seen, which was the best part. We got back to Carlisle and said goodbye to Dave, who headed back here to Columbus. Dwayne and I had dinner at the Gingerbread Man, and I then gave him a quick and dirty tour of East Cavalry Field. We stopped by Stan O’Donnell’s mansion by East Cavalry Field and had a beer with him before going to the bookstore at the Farnsworth House, and then on to the Reliance Mine Saloon. When we got to the Mine, I was pleasantly surprised to find old pal Blake Magner there. Blake’s done the maps for seven of my books, and he’s a guy I really enjoy working with. I had no idea Blake would be there, so that was fun. Randy Sauls, who is a regular reader of this blog, also walked in with several of his pards. Randy recognized me, and we sat and talked for quite a while. I enjoyed that. J. D. showed up about 9:00, and we all hung out until about 11:30. We then went back to Dwayne’s to try to get some sleep.

Saturday morning, we got up early, had breakfast at The Avenue (no visit to Gettysburg is complete without at least one breakfast at The Avenue), and headed south. When we got to Westminster, we couldn’t find the site of encampment, as it wasn’t marked. The event was nice, but it was poorly organized. Nobody knew anything of what was going on, and we had to figure it out on our own. We finally found the site, set up our display, and waited. And waited. And waited. We sold six books the whole time we were there. It didn’t even pay for the gasoline for the trip.

J. D. and me talking at the Corbit’s Charge event. We had about ten people listening to us.

More of Dwayne’s good camera work while we were discussng our book.
The passage of the horses was a major distraction. For me, too.

There was a very nice ceremony honoring the men who participated in Corbit’s Charge. The bulk of the Confederate fighting was done by the 4th Virginia Cavalry of Fitz Lee’s Brigade. Nine reenactors of the 4th Virginia participated in the ceremony to honor the brave men who fought there. They were quite good–authentic and well disciplined.

The local SCV chapter provided an honor guard that featured a bag piper and drummers. This photo shows that honor guard.

Last June, a handsome monument was dedicated to Corbit’s Charge. The monument sits in the small veterans’ park across the street from the Carroll County Courthouse. Here it is after the wreath laying ceremony.

Two lieutenants of the 4th Virginia Cavalry were killed during the fighting that followed Corbit’s Charge. One of them, Lt. John William Murray, still rests in the Episcopal churchyard across the street from the courthouse. There was a wreath laying ceremony at his grave that featured a 21-gun salute by the reenactors of the 4th Virginia Cavalry. Here they are firing that salute.

Local historian Tom LeGore has dedicated more than 40 years to the study of Corbit’s Charge. He’s the one responsible for the monument, and Tom is also responsible for the commemoration of the charge. This is J. D. and me with Tom by Lt. Murray’s grave.

Here’s a shot of Lt. Murray’s grave after the wreath laying ceremony.

We left Westminster at 4:00. As I said, we sold six books the whole day. From a financial standpoint, the day was a disaster, big time. Another author sold only two. However, his trip was much shorter, so it cost him less, and he lost less. I was glad we got to see the ceremony, and we also had a good opportunity to hang out with two old friends, Alan Shikhvarg and Gerry Mayers, who were there as their alter egos, Lt. Gen. James Longstreet and Maj. Fairfax, who was Longstreet’s adjutant. Pete Huey and his lovely wife also made the trip over to see us, and brought us some really cool stuff pertaining to his great-grandfather, Bvt. Brig. Gen. Pennock Huey. It was great to meet Pete and to see just a small percentage of what he’s got.

We drove back up to Gettysburg via Taneytown, where we saw Meade’s and Hancock’s headquarters on the night of June 30. When we got to Gettysburg, we stopped by Dean Shultz’s house for a while. Dean was hosting a pig roast for the Gettysburg College Civil War Institute. We visited for a while, and I got to catch up with regular reader Pete Vermilyea. From there, it was off to dinner at the Cozy Inn in Thurmont, Maryland. J. D. has a hollow leg, and he can really pack it away. Consequently, buffets are very popular with him, and this one was no exception. From there, it was back to Mine for a while. Although the day was not a financial success, it was nevertheless a good one.

Sunday morning, it was off to Antietam. Time was short, so we stopped at McDonald’s for breakfast. I ran into Rick Carlile, who gave me the last set of letters for my history of the Lancers and his friend Craig, so we visited with them for a while. They were in town for the annual relic show at the Eisenhower Convention Center. We got there about 9:30 for a general overview tour. We had what may be a first: a meeting of four Civil War bloggers. If you click on the picture, you will be taken to a larger view.

Here are the four bloggers, from left to right: Ranger Mannie Gentile, me, J. D., and Dimitri Rotov. Dimitri has written up his account of the tour, and so has J. D..

Mannie gives a killer overview tour. I’ve spent a good amount of time at Antietam and know the battle reasonably well, but I was impressed by his tour.

This is the Dunker Church from the Cornfield.

Union Second Corps monuments at the West Woods.

The Sunken Road.

This is my all-time favorite Civil War monument on any battlefield: the monument to Sgt. William McKinley, for bravely serving coffee to the troops under fire and without orders. It’s really the silliest monument ever, but it’s also testimony to the incredible popularity of McKinley at the time of his assassination.

A shot of Burnside’s Bridge from above.

At the end of the tour, Dimitri left us–he had stuff to do and had to take off. It was great to meet him, and I think his idea of a blogger get-together is a great one. Dwayne, J. D., and I then headed down to Harpers Ferry for a quick visit. We had lunch and wandered around for a couple of hours. Given the gorgeous weather, it’s no surprise that the place was jam packed.

This is the Jefferson Rock on Loudoun Heights, overlooking the Shenandoah River. Pres. Thomas Jefferson stood on this rock, which is the origin of the name.

Here’s the confluence of the Shenandoah and Potomac Rivers near the arsenal at Harpers Ferry.

This is a shot of J. D. and Dwayne at the Jefferson Rock.

J. D. and me at the Jefferson Rock, with the Shenandoah River behind and below us.

We then headed back to the Antietam visitor’s center, where I had left the car, and I hit the road for home.

Many thanks to Dwayne for being a good sport, a good host, and for doing an excellent job as official photographer for the weekend.

It was a very intense weekend, with a LOT packed into a very short period of time. No wonder I’m tired tonight. 🙂

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