Veteran Reserve Corps

Posted on February 26, 2015 by Eireann

At our Civil War Round Table last night, we had an excellent presentation about medicine, and the question arose of what happened to troops who were wounded, and what happened to them. In the North, the “Invalid Corps” gave duties to the lightly injured, and did so with dash – they had their own special uniforms to distinguish them from the regular ranks.

The corps was organized under authority of General Order No. 105, U.S. War Department, dated April 28, 1863. A similar corps had existed in Revolutionary times. The Invalid Corps of the Civil War period was created to make suitable use in a military or semi-military capacity of soldiers who had been rendered unfit for active field service on account of wounds or disease contracted in line of duty, but who were still fit for garrison or other light duty, and were, in the opinion of their commanding officers, meritorious and deserving.

via Veteran Reserve Corps – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

When Oscar met Jeff

Posted on February 24, 2015 by Eireann

A book I read the other week gave an offhand mention of Jefferson Davis hosting Oscar Wilde during the latter’s American tour. It seemed to go as well as you’d expect, given what we know of both men:

So on June 24, 1882, Wilde arrived at Beauvoir… Evidently Oscar thoroughly charmed Varina and Winnie but Jefferson- not so much. (When asked the next day why he hadn’t been a better host to their guest the 74 year old said bluntly "I didn’t like him".) It is known that Varina drew a sketch of him and that he did some readings from his poems and lectures and went swimming with Winnie. He left autographed photos of himself for the family (destroyed by Katrina sadly) and in one of his next lectures praised Davis’s history of the Confederacy as "a literary and historical masterpiece", but later said of Davis himself "He is fascinating, as are all failures".

via Intriguing meetings of famous or historical figures you don’t usually associate together – Straight Dope Message Board.

Kauai and the American Civil War

Posted on February 15, 2015 by Eireann

I do love the ripples in the pond effect of the war across the globe. Here’s a ripple I hadn’t considered before, though: The war’s influence on Hawaii. Turns out there were soldiers from there, and sectional arguments as well. With Union-impressed ships and Confederate privateers on the prowl, the war diminished Hawaii’s trade.

Two former residents of Malumalu, Kauai served as officers of the North — William Reynolds as a Union Navy officer and James Marshall, the first manager of Lihue Plantation, as a Union Army brigadier general…

Kauai was not, however, without its southern sympathizers…

Kauai and the American Civil War – Thegardenisland.com: Island History.

World Wide Words: Bulldozer

Posted on February 12, 2015 by Eireann

A surprisingly long etymology of the word “bulldoze”, which has its roots in Reconstruction and slavedriving. Pretty fascinating. If you’re a word nerd like myself, take a few minutes and read up on it.

The word is definitely American. The earliest sense had nothing to do with machinery, but referred to a severe punishment, in particular one applied with a bullwhip. Detailed explanations appear in several US newspapers in the latter months of 1876, the earliest I’ve found being the day before the presidential election of 1876, which historians suggest may have been the most hard-fought, corrupt and rigged election in the history of the Union. All say that it came into being as a result of a determined attempt by Democrat supporters in the Southern states to stop blacks from voting Republican. This is the way the origin of the expression was explained in the Gettysburg Compiler of 11 January 1877…

via World Wide Words: Bulldozer.

The Atlantic slave trade

Posted on February 11, 2015 by Eireann

A 5 minute TED Talk that looks at the Atlantic slave trade from the African side of things. Interesting both in why it developed and its lasting consequences.

The Atlantic slave trade: What too few textbooks told you – Anthony Hazard | TED-Ed.

How Cotton Remade the World

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Eireann

As a historian, one of my favourite aspects of study is to see the ripples that one stone cast in the global pond can have. This article is an excellent little summary of how the American Civil War – fought entirely in the US and by American participants – became a force for change in Britain, India, Egypt and elsewhere.

Yet given all that attention, it is surprising that we have spent considerably less effort on understanding the war’s global implications, especially given how far-reaching they were: The war can easily be seen as one of the great watersheds of 19th-century global history. American cotton, the central raw material for all European economies (and also those of the northern states of the Union), suddenly disappeared from global markets. By the end of the war, even more consequentially, the world’s most important cotton cultivators, the enslaved workers of the American South, had attained their freedom, undermining one of the pillars on which the global economy had rested: slavery. The war thus amounted to a full-fledged crisis of global capitalism—and its resolution pointed to a fundamental reorganization of the world economy.

How Cotton Remade the World – Sven Beckert – POLITICO Magazine.

Lincolniana Auction

Posted on January 29, 2015 by Eireann

There was an important auction this week of Lincoln and assassination memorabilia. I was surprised by this discrepancy:

The lock of hair, taken by Surgeon General Joseph K. Barnes shortly after Lincoln was shot by John Wilkes Booth, sold for $25,000.

An 1861 letter written by Booth to a friend boasting about his career and value as an actor sold for $30,000.

You’d have thought anything of Lincoln’s, much less his actual hair clipped by the doctor on site for his autopsy would be worth more than a simple letter by JWB. Thankfully, the article followed up with a handy explanation:

"The public was so disgusted by Booth’s atrocity that most all letters, signatures and documents mentioning him were destroyed after Lincoln’s death, making any that survive 150 years later exceedingly rare and valuable," said Don Ackerman, Consignment Director for Historical Americana at Heritage Auctions.

via Lock of Lincoln’s hair among items auctioned in Dallas – Yahoo News.

Replica of Lincoln’s Coffin on Tour

Posted on January 19, 2015 by Eireann

I’m posting this too late for it to be of use to Indiana buffs, but there are enough interesting facts to merit mentioning it anyway. If you ever wanted to know the difference between a coffin and a casket, for instance – I’d never given it much thought before. I’d also not given much thought to the size of a coffin needed to bury a 6’4″ President. It says here that Lincoln’s coffin was only 2″ taller that the big man himself, which is a surprise. Was he buried shoeless and after a haircut?

April 14, 2015 marks the 150th anniversary of the death of Abraham Lincoln. In remembrance of this historic date, a replica of the well-loved president’s coffin will be on display for public viewing at Farley Funeral Homes and Crematory in January.

This replica, known as the Lincoln Replica, was made by the Batesville Casket Company in Batesville, Indiana. According to a Batesville representative, it is one of four replicas touring the country. A fifth coffin is on permanent display in Springfield, Missouri, Lincoln’s birthplace. The coffin, authentic down to the smallest details, measures 6 feet 6 inches long and is constructed of solid walnut. It is completely covered in black broadcloth and has a white satin interior.

via Replica of Lincoln’s coffin to visit the Suncoast – Sarasota News | Mysuncoast.com and ABC 7: Featured.

King Cotton

Posted on January 12, 2015 by Eireann

Here’s a quick look at South Carolina’s addiction to cotton. Like other kinds of junkies, its love of the white stuff led it to make rash decisions and sacrifice its future. By the looks of it, the effects of the Civil War are still plaguing the state.

“The story of cotton itself is as interesting as the stories about its place in American history,” Cox said.

That includes cotton’s role in the Civil War. Thanks to cotton, U.S. Census data ranked South Carolina third in wealth among the states on the eve of the war. With most young men fighting, cotton production fell 96 percent during the war. And since then, South Carolina has consistently been in the bottom 10 in per capita income in the U.S.

The state’s fortunes were tied to cotton long after the war. In the 1880s, some cotton farmers went from the richest men in the state after boom years with good weather to bust in just a few years when drought returned.

via BISHOPVILLE, S.C.: Cotton may not be king, but it’s still vital to SC | State | The State.

Lincoln’s War With the Press

Posted on January 10, 2015 by Eireann

Lincoln’s relationship with the press was an ongoing source of drama and great quotes. Now, Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer has released a new book on the topic, and it looks intriguing. That revelation about Lincoln’s co-ownership of a newspaper is a particular surprise.

Throughout his career, Lincoln understood the urgency, and difficulty, of using the press, especially since during election season presidential candidates were expected to stay home and not campaign.

“Public sentiment is everything,” he said during his 1858 debates with Stephen Douglas, and he went to great lengths to shape that sentiment — including writing editorials himself, anonymously, and even, for a time, secretly co-owning a German-language newspaper in Illinois.

As president he spent hours tending to the prodigious egos of important newspaper editors and cultivating the goodwill of energetic young reporters. Journalists would show up at the White House, uninvited, at odd hours, and the president would have them in, put his feet up on his desk and exchange news and gossip, no matter how weary he was.

via Lessons of Abraham Lincoln’s war with the press: Commentary | masslive.com.

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