December, 2008

As 2008 draws to a close, it’s appropriate to take a moment and ruminate over the year that’s ending. 2008 was a landmark year: the country elected its first African-American president as the economy spiraled into a tailspin. Real pain results from the economic collapse; millions are out of jobs and more will lose them. Terrorists turned Mumbai into a bloodbath. Islamofascists remain determined to harm Americans simply because we are not Muslims. Galveston was nearly wiped off the map by Hurricane Ike.

2009 can only be a better year.

So, to my readers, Susan, Nero, Aurora, and I wish each and every one of you a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2009. And I thank you for taking your precious time to visit my little corner of the Internet and indulge my rantings. And thank you to each of you who spent your precious dollars to purchase copies of one of my books this year. I appreciate it very much.

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Fellow blogger and my co-author on the baseball project, Michael Aubrecht passed along this bit about an upcoming open house where the Wilderness Wal-Mart will be discussed:

Michael Aubrecht, local Fredericksburg area-resident and board member of the Civil War Life Foundation (www.civilwarlife.org), has offered up the following invitation to everyone concerned with the threat of a new Wal-Mart infringing on the hallowed grounds of The Wilderness Battlefield. It states: The Civil War Life Soldiers Museum in Spotsylvania County will be hosting an open house on the evening on January 7th from 7pm to 8:30pm to provide interested local citizens with information about this controversial project and our community’s opposition to it. There will be representatives on hand from the NCWL, NPS, CWPT, and other preservation and heritage groups. Talks will take place and printed information will be available for all attendees to take and share with their own constituents. There will also be complimentary snacks and beverages available. Join us for an evening of important discussions and solidarity as we collectively tackle this impending calamity that threatens yet another piece of our area’s precious history. This is an officially sanctioned Civil War Preservation Trust event and the only one of its kind in the area. For directions to the museum, please visit http://civilwar-life.com/map.htm.

If you’re in the area, please take the time to go out and let the world know you oppose this project.

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I would remiss if I did not note–with sadness and regret–the passing of Al Gambone. From the December 24 edition of the Norristown Times Herald newspaper, here is Al’s obituary.

Albert Michael Gambone, age 69, passed away Monday, December 22, 2008 at Grand Strand Regional Medical Center.

Mr. Gambone was born September 29, 1939 in Norristown, Pennsylvania, a son of the late Frank Angelo Gambone and Jennie Asko Gambone.

Mr. Gambone was a U.S. Army veteran and a retired business owner.

He relocated from Connecticut to Myrtle Beach 13 years ago with his wife Nancy.

Mr. Gambone was a member of St. Andrew Catholic Church in Myrtle Beach and a longstanding member of the Lions Club in Connecticut.

His passion in life was the Civil War.

He authored seven books and lectured extensively on the Civil War.

Mr. Gambone was predeceased in addition to his parents by his son; Michael D. Gambone and his daughter-in-law, Debbie Gambone. Survivors include his wife, Nancy M. Gambone; his sons, Stephan Gambone of Erie, PA, Chad Turtoro and his wife, Julia of Goshen, CT; his daughters, Lynn Woodel and her husband, Ken of Erie, PA, Jennifer Mitchell and her husband, Craig of Oakdale, CT, Hallie Testo and her husband, Andrew of Stratford, CT; his sister, Joan Saraceni and her husband, Tony of King of Prussia, PA; his eleven grandchildren, his in-laws, Stanley ‘Best Buddy’ Marks and Susan Marks of Myrtle Beach, SC; his brother-in-law, Donald Marks and his wife, Maria of Providence, RI; and his beloved Jack Russell Terrier, Meggie.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 A.M. Saturday, December 27, 2008 at St. Andrew Catholic Church with Monsignor Joseph Roth officiating.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be sent to the Community Kitchen of Myrtle Beach, 1411 Mr. Joe White Avenue, Myrtle Beach, SC 29578.

Al left us too soon at the age of 69, a time when he should have been enjoying his grandchildren and writing about the Civil War.

I had the good fortune to meet Al at a couple of Ted Alexander’s Chambersburg soirees. Al was inevitably a cheerful and pleasant addition to any program, and he brought a great passion and knowledge to his presentations. He was a gentleman and a fine historian.

Al wrote several excellent biographies, including books on Maj. Gen. John F. Hartranft, Brig. Gen. Samuel K. Zook, and Darius N. Couch. He also wrote an excellent study of the role played by his fellow Norristown native, Maj. Gen. Winfield Scott Hancock, at Gettysburg, and finally, a useful volume on Ohio memorials at Gettysburg. All of Al’s books are part of Butternut & Blue’s Army of the Potomac Series, and all are still in print.

Our Civil War community is a little bit worse off today due to Al’s passing. Condolences to his family on its loss.

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From today’s issue of the Washington Post. Thanks to Todd Berkoff for bringing this article to my attention:

History Buffs Rise Against Wal-Mart
Store Planned Near Civil War Battlefield in Va.
By Nick Miroff
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, December 27, 2008; B01

Like Civil War generals, the generals of modern commercial development are attracted to large open spaces along well-traveled roads, typically on the outskirts of a town or major population center. The former picked those sites for battlefields a century and a half ago; the latter like them today for big-box stores.

And once again, great armies are mustering on the Virginia Piedmont — historians and preservationists on one side, big retail and developers on the other — this time in cash-strapped Orange County, 60 miles south of the District, where Wal-Mart wants to build a supercenter directly opposite the Wilderness Battlefield.

There, in May 1864, 24,000 soldiers were killed or wounded as the first clash between Gen. Robert E. Lee and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant produced famously hellish combat in a burning thicket of scrub oak and spindly pine trees. The National Park Service owns 2,800 acres of the core battlefield, whose larger area extends across nearly 7,000 acres.

That land is mostly undeveloped, and to Wal-Mart, it looks like a prime retail location. The parcel where the company plans to build its 138,000-square-foot store and parking lot has long been zoned for commercial development but has little more than a small shopping plaza opposite a Sheetz gas station. There are also preliminary plans for a larger retail, office and residential complex, Wilderness Crossing, that would be built adjacent to the Wal-Mart, although no formal proposals have been submitted.

Neither the supercenter nor the larger complex would be built on the core battlefield area. A study commissioned by the company found that the parcel slated for development is not historically or archaeologically significant.

But opponents contend that the supercenter would unleash a wave of sprawling development through the area, marring the mostly rural landscape and the memory of the dead. The Battle of the Wilderness was the first clash in the long Overland Campaign that would end the war 11 months later at Appomattox Courthouse, according to Pulitzer Prize-winning historian James McPherson.

“The Wilderness is an indelible part of our history, its very ground hallowed by the American blood spilled there, and it cannot be moved,” read a letter signed by McPherson and 252 other historians and preservationists that was sent Wednesday to Wal-Mart’s president and chief executive, Lee Scott. “Surely Walmart can identify a site that would meet its needs without changing the very character of the battlefield.”

The letter’s signatories include a who’s who of Civil War heavyweights: filmmaker Ken Burns, Pulitzer winner David McCullough, University of Virginia professor Garry Gallagher, Virginia Tech Center for Civil War Studies director James I. Robertson and other scholars from across the country.

“Every one of these modern intrusions on the historic landscape degrades the value and experience of that landscape,” said McPherson, who said that he has been to the proposed site and that a Wal-Mart store would take development in the area “a quantum leap higher.”

Keith Morris, a spokesman for Wal-Mart, said that the company has looked at other locations in the area but that none was as attractive. “This is the site we’re going forward with,” Morris said, describing it as “an ideal location.” The land is already zoned for commercial use and targeted for development by Orange County, he said. “There is a void here in this immediate area, especially in retail growth.”

Preservation groups in Virginia have been generally successful in recent years in steering development projects away from battlefields or reaching compromises with builders that result in partial protection for historic sites. A 214-acre portion of the Chancellorsville battlefield, a few miles down the road from the proposed Wal-Mart, was acquired for preservation by the Civil War Preservation Trust between 2004 and 2006. And in Prince William County, 127 acres of the Bristoe Station battlefield’s core section were preserved in a 2002 deal with residential developers who wanted to put hundreds of houses there.

But that was before the current economic slump.

“I think economic downturns clarify some things,” said R. Mark Crawford, chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, which will ultimately decide on the proposal. “In this environment, to have a major retailer like Wal-Mart still want to come in is fairly significant, and not something we can be casual about.”

Johnson said he plans to support Wal-Mart and thinks a majority of the five-member board will vote to approve the supercenter. The company’s proposal first must be reviewed by county planners and state transportation officials, and then it will go to a public hearing, Johnson said. He said he expected the proposal to come before the supervisors for a vote between February and April.

Based on sales estimates, the Wal-Mart is expected to generate about $500,000 a year in tax revenue for Orange County. The county’s budget, including its school spending, is roughly $90 million, Johnson said, and tax revenue is falling.

“In order to have a healthy economy, you need retail in order to satisfy demand,” Johnson said. “If [the project] doesn’t happen in Orange County, it’ll happen in Spotsylvania County, and then we’ll lose that revenue.” There are three Wal-Mart stores in the Fredericksburg area, including Spotsylvania County, and one in Culpeper.

Opponents of the Wal-Mart plan said they are not against the company or its presence in Orange County, only its proposed location. They are urging Wal-Mart to build a few miles down the road, closer to the Lake of the Woods gated subdivision, which has about 4,000 residents and would be the store’s major source of customers.

“It’s got nothing to do with Wal-Mart,” said Jim Campi, spokesman for the Civil War Preservation Trust, the group leading the fight. “But this is the worst possible location. I believe this is the closest Wal-Mart has ever tried to build next to a national park.”

The Wilderness Battlefield is part of the National Park Service’s Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, which also includes the Chancellorsville Battlefield.

Wal-Mart spokesman Morris said the company should be judged only on the merits of its proposed store and not by other development that it might attract. “All we have control over is what we’re proposing,” he said. “Don’t criticize this plan because you’re afraid something will get built after that. We shouldn’t be held accountable because people’s real concern is future commercial development a year or five years down the road.”

The company has offered to place commemorative markers and other monuments to the battle at the supercenter. “There’s no reason why [the battlefield and the store] can’t coexist,” Morris said.

As for residents, some said they were willing to trade a little history for convenience.

“I think we need it here,” said Nina Hudson, who said she drives 30 to 40 miles round trip to shop at Wal-Mart in Culpeper or Fredericksburg.

“That’s the past, and we have to think about the future,” said Jackie Lee, who also lives near the proposed store. “The world’s growing, and you can’t stop that.”

Stuart Stevens, a naval police officer, said he’s dead set against the Wal-Mart. “They don’t care about history,” he said. “They just care about the almighty dollar.”

Earlier this month, not far from the proposed Wal-Mart site, the park superintendent, Russ Smith, and the park historian, Eric Mink, took a walk out to a headstone near Ellwood Manor, a 1790s house under restoration that served as headquarters for Union commanders during the battle. The view from the front porch had changed little in 150 years, encompassing mostly open fields, old barns and rolling hills.

“These are sacred spaces,” Smith said, worrying that visitors to the historic home would also face views of Wal-Mart.

The crudely cut headstone in a cornfield near the house is marked “Arm of Stonewall Jackson,” designating the spot where the general’s amputated arm was supposedly buried after his accidental and mortal wounding by his own men in the 1863 Chancellorsville battle.

The Park Service excavated the site but never found the arm, Smith said.

Let’s hope that this kind of publicity in a major newspaper like The Washington Post will help to mobilize opposition to the Wal-Mart project.

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This evening, I have posted a new article here on the site. The article deals with one of my favorite figures of the American Civil War, David Frakes Day, Medal of Honor winner, fearless scout, and scoundrel. I first discovered Day while researching and writing my book The Battle of Monroe’s Crossroads and the Civil War’s Last Campaign, and became fascinated by his story. This article was originally written for publication, but I’ve instead decided to post it here. Enjoy.

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My neck is slowly but surely getting better. I’ve had three treatments with the chiropractor and feel significantly better. I’m not 100% yet, but I’m getting there. I expect to start posting again regularly next week.

For now, I want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas, Happy Chanukah, happy Kwanzaa, and for those who celebrate it, Happy Festivus, the holiday for the rest of us. Let’s gather around the aluminum pole and air the grievances…..

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I apologize for being quiet this past week. It turns out that the lasting legacy of the whirlwind trip to Virginia last week was a badly pinched nerve in my neck as a result of that crappy bed and even worse pillow. I’ve been in a LOT of pain for most the week, although a visit to the chiropractor on Friday helped. It still hurts, and one of the things I’ve realized is that until it gets better (I’m going back to the chiropractor tomorrow), I need to limit my time on the computer.

I hope to be back to full speed later this week.

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Wow…what a long day….

We just got home from a whirlwind trip to Virginia for a speech to the Louisa County Historical Society on the Battle of Trevilian Station. It’s about 450 miles from my house to Louisa, so it’s not exactly around the corner.

We left on Friday afternoon, 2.5 hours later than I had wanted or planned to leave. It meant that we had to make most of the trip in the dark, and much of it in pretty heavy snow. It started snowing while we were still in Ohio and continued snowing the whole way through West Virginia, only quitting about the time we crossed from West Virginia into Virginia. We didn’t get to Louisa until 11:00 after a tough trip. There were places and times where it was almost whiteout conditions coming through the mountains of West Virginia between Charleston and Beckley.

Louisa is a small town and there’s only one motel. It’s kind of seedy, so we stayed at a bed and breakfast where we’d stayed previously. The place has changed hands since then. The woman who now owns it as nice as can be, and makes a mean breakfast. However, she’s completely re-decorated the place. It went from understated and fairly plain to stuffed to the brim. As just one example, there must have been 100 or so Boyd’s Bears and beanie babies in our room, and they were only a small percentage of the total amount of junk filling the room. It was so incredibly crowded that I was genuinely afraid I would knock something over every time I turned. I had to move a bunch of stuff just to clear a place to put my keys, wallet, watch, etc. There was so much junk in this room that it was actually stressful, so much so that I cannot ever envision myself staying there again.

The talk went well. I had about 40 for the talk, and signed a bunch of books. From there, we drove to Fredericksburg to meet old friend Melissa Delcour and her beau for lunch. I had two choices of routes from Louisa to Fredericksburg. One is shorter but requires the driver to spend about 15 miles on Route 3. The other is longer, but misses Route 3 altogether. I opted for the Route 3 choice, meaning that we passed through a whole series of battlefields along the way: Verdiersville (where Stuart was nearly captured and lost his plumed hat in August 1862), Mine Run/Locust Grove, the Wilderness, Chancellorsville/Salem Church, and finally Fredericksburg. We also passed the spot where WalMart wants to build its new blight–sorry I mean superstore. Route 3 is a traffic nightmare, especially on a Saturday twelve days before Christmas. The construction of the WalMart will only extend the traffic nightmare farther west to Orange County.

After fighting our way through the traffic nightmare, we had a spectacular lunch at a place called Bistro Bethem, and then visited a nearby wine store. We then wandered over to the visitor center on Marye’s Heights and arrived in time to visit with Frank O’Reilly while he and his colleagues were placing luminaria for the evening commemoration of the 146th anniversary of the Battle of Fredericksburg.

I’m used to the ridiculous crowds that infest Gettysburg on the anniversary of the battle, so I was surprised that the crowds in Fredericksburg were much smaller than what I expected. We saw a few farby Confederate reenactors wandering around downtown, and one fairly large tour group on Marye’s Heights, but, other than many more cars than usual, it didn’t really seem like a special occasion. But for the luminaria, in fact, it probably wouldn’t have seemed any different than any other day.

Last night, the Trevilian Station Battlefield Foundation threw an invitation-only dinner in my honor. The incoming president of the TSBF, Kathy Sheridan-Stiles (a direct descendant of an uncle of Gen. Philip H. Sheridan), owns a lovely old home and private party facility called Early House. Kathy hosted the dinner last night, and a good time was had by all.

Today, we got up extra early, as Susan wanted to do a little shopping in Leesburg on the way home. That meant we had to drive 90 miles to get there, passing right through the Brandy Station battlefield along the way. We arrived in Leesburg, got the things Susan wanted, and then headed for home. We covered about 1000 miles in 48 hours, drove by or past a whole bunch of major battlefields, and finally got home about 6:30, just in time to pick up the dogs at the place where we board them.

It was a whirlwind of activity. It was a lot packed into a very short period of time, but it was worth the trip. But, boy, what a whirlwind of activity, and I got to be in Fredericksburg–even just for a couple of hours–on the anniversary of the battle, which is something I’ve never done before. On top of all of it, I have two very intense days coming up tomorrow and Tuesday….

Thank heavens my Civil War travels are at an end for about 90 days or so. I really need the rest.

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About a month ago, I was contacted by the Civil War Preservation Trust to see whether I would be a signatory of a letter from concerned Civil War historians to the CEO of WalMart regarding the proposal to construct a WalMart superstore on a piece of the Wilderness battlefield.

The letter was released today, and it’s really quite remarkable. Over 250 historians have endorsed it. Here it is:

Mr. Lee Scott, President and CEO
Walmart Stores, Inc.
702 SW 8th Street
Bentonville, Arkansas 72716-8611

Dear Mr. Scott:

I urge you in the strongest possible terms to pursue alternate building locations for the Walmart Supercenter proposed in Orange County, Virginia. The site currently under consideration lies within the historic boundary of the Wilderness Battlefield and only one quarter mile from the current boundary of the Wilderness Battlefield unit of Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park.

The Battle of the Wilderness was among the most significant engagements of the Civil War. It marked the first time legendary generals Robert E. Lee and Ulysses S. Grant faced off against one another on the field of battle. During two days of desperate conflict in a harsh, unforgiving landscape tangled with underbrush, 4,000 Americans lost their lives and nearly 20,000 were wounded.

The proposed location will greatly increase traffic through the area and encourage further development to encroach upon and spoil the battlefield. This, in turn, will seriously degrade the experience for the many tens of thousands of heritage tourists who visit this National Park every year. The Wilderness Battlefield is easily the biggest tourist attraction in Orange County, with visitors coming from around the world to experience its serenity and contemplate its history and significance.

As a historian, I feel strongly that the Wilderness Battlefield is a unique historic and cultural treasure deserving careful stewardship. Currently only approximately 20 percent of the battlefield is protected by the National Park Service. If built, this Walmart would seriously undermine ongoing efforts to see more of this historic land preserved and deny future generations the opportunity to wander a landscape that has, until now, remained largely unchanged since 1864.

The Wilderness is an indelible part of our history, its very ground hallowed by the American blood spilled there, and it cannot be moved. Surely Walmart can identify a site that would meet its needs without changing the very character of the battlefield.

There are many places in central Virginia to build a commercial development, but there is only one Wilderness Battlefield. Please respect our great nation’s history and move your store farther away from this historic site and National Park.

Signed,

Terrie Aamodt, Walla Walla University
Edward D. Abrahams, Silver Spring, Md.
Sean P. Adams, University of Florida
Garry Adelman, History Associates, Inc.
Nicholas Aieta, the Marlborough School, West Springfield, Mass.
A.J. Aiseirithe, Washington, D.C.
James Anderson, Ashburn, Va.
Adam Arenson, University of Texas
Jonathan M. Atkins, Berry College
Arthur H. Auten, University of Hartford
David Bard, Concord College
Alwyn Barr, Texas Tech University
Craig A. Bauer, Metairie, La.
Erik Bauer, West Hollywood, Calif.
Dale Baum, Texas A&M University
Edwin C. Bearss, Historian emeritus, National Park Service
Caryn Cosse Bell, University of Massachusetts at Lowell
Jeffrey R. Bennett, Waterford, N.Y.
Shannon Bennett, Ellettsville, Ind.
Melvyn S. Berger, Newton, Mass.
Arthur W. Bergeron, Shippensburg, Pa.
Edward H. Bergerstrom, Port Richey, Fla.
Eugene H. Berwanger, Colorado State University
Fred W. Beuttler, Deputy Historian, U.S. House of Representatives
Darrel Bigham, University of Southern Indiana
John Bloom, Las Cruces, N.M.
Frederick J. Blue, Youngstown State University
Christopher Bobal, Lees Summit, Mo.
Thomas Bockhorn, Huntsville, Ala.
Keith Bohannon, University of West Georgia
Phillip S. Bolger, San Diego, Calif.
Patrick Boyd, the Pomfret School, Pomfret, Conn.
Vernon S. Braswell, Corpus Christi, Tex.
Roger D. Bridges, Bloomington, Ill.
Ronald S. Brockway, Regis University
Col. George M. Brooke, III, USMC (Ret.), Lexington, Va.
Bruce A. Brown, Cypress, Calif.
Norman D. Brown, University of Texas, Austen, Tex.
David Brush, the Pomfret School, Pomfret, Conn.
Jim Burgess, Manassas National Battlefield, Va.
Ken Burns, Walpole, N.H.
Brian Burton, Ferndale, Wash.
Victoria Bynum, Texas State University-San Marcos
Peter S. Carmichael, West Virginia University
Marius M. Carriere, Christian Brothers University
Katherine Cassioppi, National-Louis University
Gary Casteel, Lexington, Va.
Jane Turner Censer, George Mason University
William Cheek, San Diego State University
John Cimprich, Thomas More College
Thomas G. Clemens, Hagerstown Community College
Leon F. Cohn, Plantation, Fla.
Thomas B. Colbert, Marshalltown Community College
James R. Connor, Chancellor emeritus University of Wisconsin-Whitewater
William J. Cooper, Jr., Louisiana State University
Janet L. Coryell, Western Michigan University
Charles E. Coulter, Yankton, S.D.
Robert E. Curran, Richmond, Ky.
Thomas F. Curran, Saint Louis, Mo.
Gordon E. Dammann, National Museum of Civil War Medicine
Guy Stephen Davis, Atlanta, Ga.
Joseph G. Dawson, III, Texas A&M University
Mary DeCredico, United States Naval Academy
James Lyle DeMarce, Arlington, Va.
Charles B. Dew, Williams College
Steven Deyle, University of Houston
Richard DiNardo, Marine Corps Command and Staff College
Luis-Alejandro Dinnella-Borrego, Warwick, N.Y.
Richard R. Duncan, Alexandria, Va.
Kenneth Durr, History Associates, Inc.
David Dykstra, Poolesville, Md.
Mark Elliott, University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Robert F. Engs, University of Pennsylvania
C. Wyatt Evans, Drew University
Daniel Feller, University of Tennessee
Rex H. Felton, Tiffin, Ohio
Paul Finkelman, Albany Law School
Jeff Fioravanti, Lynn, Mass.
Joseph C. Fitzharris, University of Saint Thomas
J.K. Folmarm California, Minn.
George B. Forgie, University of Texas Austin
Lee W. Formwalt, Organization of American Historians
Janet B. Frazer, Narberth, Pa.
Garry W. Gallagher, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Va.
Jonathan Gantt, Columbia College
Jason Gart, History Associates, Inc.
Louis S. Gerteis, University of Missouri, St. Louis
Kate C. Gillin, the Pomfret School, Pomfret, Conn.
Mary Giunta, Edinburg, Va.
Martin K. Gordon, Columbia, Md.
Cathy Gorn, University of Maryland
Thomas M. Grace, Amherst, N.Y.
Susan W. Gray, Severna Park, Md.
A. Wilson Greene, Pamplin Historical Park and National Museum of the Civil War Soldier
Debra F. Greene, Jefferson City, Mo.
Jim Griffin, Frisco, Tex.
Linda J. Guy, Clearville, Pa.
Edward J. Hagerty, American Military University
Alfred W. Hahn, Midlothian, Va.
Judith Lee Hallock, South Setauket, N.Y.
Jerry Harlow, President, Trevilian Station Battlefield Foundation
D. Scott Hartwig, Gettysburg National Military Park, Pa.
David S. Heidler, Colorado State University
Jeannie Heidler, United States Air Force Academy
John S. Heiser, Gettysburg National Military Park, Pa.
Earl J. Hess, Lincoln Memorial University
Libra Hilde, San Jose State University
T. John Hillmer, Jr., Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, Mo.
David Hochfelder, State University of New York – Albany
Sylvia Hoffert, Texas A&M University
Patrick Hotard, Philadelphia, Pa.
Richard Houston, Harwich, Mass.
Randal L. Hoyer, Madonna University
Richard L. Hutchison, Fort Worth, Tex.
Brian M. Ingrassia, Georgia State University
Perry D. Jamieson, Crofton, Md.
Jim Jobe, Fort Donelson National Battlefield, Tenn.
Willie Ray Johnson, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Ga.
Vivian Lee Joyner, New Hill, N.C.
Whitmel M. Joyner, New Hill, N.C.
Walter D. Kamphoefner, Texas A&M University
Amalie M. Kass, Harvard Medical School
Philip M. Katz, Washington, D.C.
Brad Keefer, Kent State University
Brian J. Kenny, Denver, Co.
Victoria A. Kin, San Antonio, Tex.
George W. Knepper, University of Akron
Christopher Kolakowski, National Museum of the U.S. Army Reserve
Carl E. Kramer, Indiana University Southeast
Arnold Krammer, Texas A&M University
Robert K. Krick, Fredericksburg, Va.
Michael E. Krivdo, Texas A&M University
Benjamin Labaree, Saint Alban’s School, Washington, D.C.
Dan Laney, Austin, Tex.
Connie Langum, Wilson’s Creek National Battlefield, Mo.
William P. Leeman, Coventry, R.I.
Kevin Levin, Charlottesville, Va.
Richard G. Lowe, University of North Texas
Robert W. Lowery, Jr., Newport News, Va.
M. Philip Lucas, Cornell College
R. Wayne Mahood, Geneseo, N.Y.
Daniel Martin, Lancaster, Pa.
William Marvel, South Conway, N.H.
Matthew Mason, Brigham Young University
Dinah M. Mayo-Bobee, University of Massachusetts, Amherst
George T. Mazuzan, Springfield, Va.
Nathan McAlister, Hoyt, Kan.
David McCullough
Dennis K. McDaniel, Washington, D.C.
James M. McPherson, Princeton University
Kathleen G. McKesson, Eighty Four, Pa.
James G. Mendez, Chicago, Ill.
Brian Craig Miller, Emporia State University
Roger E. Miller, Eagle River, Alaska.
Wilbur R. Miller, State University of New York – Stony Brook
Eric J. Mink, Fredericksburg, Va.
Robert E. Mitchell, Brookline, Mass.
John Moody, Orange Park, Fla.
Richard Moore, Woodbridge, Va.
Richard Morey, Kent Place School, Summit, N.J.
Geoffrey Morrison, Saint Louis, Mo.
Brenda Murray, North Pole, Alaska.
Richard J. Myers, Doylestown, Pa.
Eric Nedergaard, Mesa, Ariz.
Robert D. Neuleib, Normal, Ill.
Kenneth Noe, Auburn University
Justin Oakley, Martinsville, Ind.
Kristen Oertel, Millsaps College
Marvin Olson, La Crescenta, Ca.
Beverly Palmer, Claremont, Ca.
John T. Payne, Lone Star College
Graham Peck, Saint Xavier University
William D. Pederson, Louisiana State University, Shreveport
William E. Pellerin, Santa Barbara, Ca.
Don Pfanz, Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, Va.
Michael Pierson, University of Massachusetts, Lowell
Kermit J. Pike, Western Reserve Historical Society, Mentor, Ohio
Ann Poe, Alexandria, Va.
Kieth Ploakoff, Rossmoor, Ca.
Lawrence N. Powell, Tulane University
Adam J. Pratt. Baton Rouge, La.
Gerald Prokopowicz, East Carolina University
John Quist, Shippensburg University
Steven J. Rauch, Evans, Ga.
S. Waite Rawls, III, Museum of the Confederacy
Carol Reardon, Pennsylvania State University
Douglas Reasner, Durant, Iowa
Michael Reis, History Associates, Inc.
Robert V. Remini, Office of the Historian, U.S. House of Representatives
James Renberg, Southern Pines, N.C.
Gordon Rhea, Mount Pleasant, S.C.
Jean Richardson, Buffalo State College
Jeffrey Richman, Brooklyn, N.Y.
Harris D. Riley, Jr., M.D., Nashville, Tenn.
James I. Robertson, Jr., Virginia Tech
Stephen I. Rockenbach, Virginia State University
Sylvia Rodrigue, Baton Rouge, La.
Rodney A. Ross, Center for Legislative Archives, Washington, D.C.
Jennifer Ross-Nazzal, Johnson Space Center
Jeffrey J. Safford, Montana State University
Frank Scaturro, New Hyde Park, N.Y.
Mark S. Schantz, Hendrix College
Laurence D. Schiller, Deerfield, Ill.
Christopher A. Schnell, Springfield, Ill.
Glenna R. Schroeder-Lein, Springfield, Ill.
Frederick Schult, Jr., New York University
Donald L. Schupp, Warrenton, Va.
Richard D. Schwartz, Morristown, N.J.
Cynthia Seacord, Schenectady, N.Y.
Tomas Seaver, Woonsocket, R.I.
Diane Shalda, Chicago Military Academy
Peter D. Sheridan, Torrance, Ca.
Mark Snyder, Akron, Ohio
John Sotak, O.S.A., New Lenox, Ill.
Clay W. Stuckey, DDS, Bedford, Ind.
Carlyn Swaim, History Associates, Inc.
Andrew Talkov, Virginia Historical Society
Robert A. Taylor, Florida Institute of Technology
Paul H. Tedesco, Northeastern University
James Thayer, Milford, Mass.
Emory M. Thomas, University of Georgia
JoAnne Thomas, Peoria, Ill.
Joseph Trent, Worcester, Mass.
Tony R. Trimble, Plainfield, Ind.
I. Bruce Turner, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
Edwin C. Ulmer, Jr., Feasterville, Pa.
Charles W. Van Adder, Forked River, N.J.
Charles Vincent, Baker, La.
Joseph F. von Deck, Ashburnham, Ma.
Brent Vosburg, Elizabethtown, N.J.
Robert Voss, Lincoln, Neb.
George N. Vourlojianis, Lorain County Community College
Christopher R. Waldrep, San Francisco State University
John Weaver, Tipp City, Ohio
Robert Welch, Ames, Iowa
Lowell E. Wenger, Cincinnati, Ohio
Jeffrey Wert, Centre Hall, Pa.
Bruce E. Wilburn, Glen Allen, Va.
Diana I. Williams, Wellesley College
Mary Williams, Fort Davis National Historic Site, Tex.
Terry Winschel, Vicksburg National Military Park, Miss.
Roger Winthrop, Lansing, Mich.
Eric J. Wittenberg, Columbus, Ohio
Ralph A. Wooster, Lamar University
Donald Yacovone, Harvard University
Shirley J. Yee, University of Washington
Mitchell Yockelson, National Archives and Records Administration
William D. Young, Maple Woods Community College
Mary E. Younger, Dayton, Ohio
Jack Zevin, Queens College, City University of New York

To my readers: you may not be a historian, and you may not have signed this letter. However, you have a voice, and you can make it heard. Please take the time to send a letter to Mr. Scott imploring him to find another location for this store. We have plenty of WalMarts. We only have one Wilderness.

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I apologize for being quiet the past couple of days. I’ve been busy finishing a couple of pieces on the Philadelphia Phillies for the baseball project. I’m just having a blast working on this project.

Major hat tip to Drew Wagenhoffer for bringing the existence of this blog to my attention. The good folks from Civil War Interactive have started running news items in a blog format. I highly recommend it, and I have added it to the blog roll.

Since he’s taking an indefinite sabbatical from blogging, I have also removed the link to Paul Taylor’s blog. If he starts blogging again, I will immediately add a link back in.

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