Keeping up with the blogs

One thing I've learned as I've entered the blogosphere (I hope I spell that term correctly) is how difficult it is just reading all the blogs I've found that looked interesting. I follow and/or subscribe to about 18 blogs now, including one I just found out about today, http://myadventuresinhistory.blogspot.com/, which appears very interesting, ,even though it's not strictly about the Civil War like most of the others I follow.

I must admit, often when I get home from work, google reader, which I use to organize all of these on one place to read, and which I have found to be very convenient, shows a dozen or more new posts total. I try to read as many of them as I can, but it's amazing the variety I find. Some are a paragraph or two, some are well-research articles, with photos, maps and lots of reading, and others are in-between. I think I occasionally put some good thought into my posts, but when I see some of the work others have done, I'm amazed.

I really wish I could fine time and motivation to read every word of every post, but I just can't. The reasonable thing to do, I suppose, would be to leave some posts marked as unread and come back later to check them out, but for some reason I hate seeing "unread" posts listed in reader, and often just mark them read instead of reading them. Shame on me.

I have deleted a few blogs from my lists over the past few weeks, a painful process, but I may have to find a way to limit how much I try to read. My preference, however, is to do a better job of reading more posts, finding more out about this conflict I study so much and maybe to find ideas to make my own writing and blogging even better. The new year is coming soon, so maybe some resolutions in how I handle blogs might be appropriate....

Anyway, I know this entry is not a Civil War entry, but with so many fine Civil War blogs out there - many of which I have not yet found, to be sure - the topics of Civil War and blogging/the war on the web will be intertwined in my mind. Finding the world of blogs has opened a new universe of ideas, articles, thoughts and opinions about the War of the Rebellion for me, one of my better accomplishments of 2009, I must say. It has been fun to see what all I had missed out in the past, some bad, but mostly good. Maybe I will better learn to handle and deal with this new area and figure out how to make it work best for me.

Mid-to-late November Addresses and Happenings

Last Thursday marked the 146th anniversary of the Gettysburg Address. I made no entry commemorating it, partially because I had discussed it on Veterans Day, just a week before, and partially because I did not have anything new to add to it, though I guess, reprinting the text of that famous speech would have been a start. I also occasionally wonder if it is Lincoln's greatest speech, or if that honor truly belongs to his Second Inaugural, as Ronald White Jr. claims. It's an interesting line of thoguht, one for which I have no good answer. The talk at Gettysburg is certainly more famous, but is fame all that matters regarding "greatness" or do more factors need to be considered? This might be a subject for a future entry, if I can ponder the question some more, but, I'm not sure there will be a right or wrong answer, as both addresses were so brilliant and so perfect for the events at which the President delivered them.

Coming up this Thursday, just 2 days from now, will be Thanksgiving, a day to remember our blessings and all the positive traits our lives posess. Surely, there are many struggles we each face, challenges that may seem impossible, and various other difficulties that life thows at us, but now is the time to remember the positives, the things about which we can be happy. I know I often worry about happenings in my life and wonder how I will get past them, but when I sit back and think about the big picutre, I find my luck is much more good than bad and that many, many people would be glad to enjoy the benefits I do. This is a special day coming up and I hope all take advantage of this time to remember our bleesings and good fortune.

Here is a Thanksgiving proclamation given by President Lincoln on October 3, 1863.

http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/thanks.htm


By the President of the United States of America.


A Proclamation.

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consiousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom. No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy. It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln

William H. Seward,

Secretary of State

Ohio Civil War 150 website

http://www.ohiocivilwar150.org/

I just found this site a few days ago and think it's a very nice one. I am glad to see Ohio is at least preparing to acknowledge the sesquicentennial (it's not much easier to type that than it is to say it) of the war and to provide sources for information about the war. I think it will be a great resource to keep checking on for updates in the region and any events that are planned.

I know the 2011-2015 period seems a long time away, but it's really only 1 year from starting; with the 150th anniversary of Lincioln's nomination and election both occuring in 2010, the prelude to this bigger anniversary is even closer.

This period may be a great opportunity - the greatest of our liftime, at least for those of us who did not live through the centennial of the war in the early 1960s - to spark interest in our country's bloodiest and most terrible conflict.

Perhaps using words like "bloody" may seem a strange way to try to attract positive attention to something, but I feel it is appropriate, maybe even mandatory to do so, as the pain, suffering, and death that occurrred during these years greatly impacted this nation and its future. Americans were fighting and killing each other, and in many instances, the cliche of "brother against brother" or "neighbor against neighbor" were literally true. Why did this happen? How did this happen? What did such a terrible war do to change the United States and its future? These are just some of the questions that more people will soon have the chance to explore and ponder. At least I do firmly hope that is the kind of opportunity these few years will provide.

This year's bicentennial of Lincoln's birth has witnessed an outpouring of new books, articles and discussions of the 16th President,  and even when I walked through grocery stores, Lincoln magazines had prominent places on the magazine racks. Who ever thought I'd buy an Abraham Lincoln publication at Remke's?

Something similar will - hopefully - take place starting in 2011, perhaps on an even grander scale. Time for planning events and coming up with ideas will pass by quickly, so I am glad to see this site from the state neighboring my home. I also am glad to see the list of states that also have similar sites, according to a link on Ohio's, including Arkansas, Connecticut, Kansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. (Here's a link to get to those pages:  http://www.ohiocivilwar150.org/links/ )

Unfortunately, my beloved native Kentucky is not on that list. Hopefully that changes soon.  These four years can hopefully help people, especially children, develop and further interest in the Civil War and history overall.

At the James A Ramage Civil War Museum, I know that one of the key goals of 2010 will be to start developing plans for 2011 and beyond (especially 2012, the 150th anniversary of the Siege of Cincinnati.) Coming up with ideas, determining which ones to pursue and how to do them will all be important steps. Hopefully (I know I use that word a lot in describing this anniversary period) we may even be able to collaborate with other local history and Civil War groups in at least some events.

This will take a lot of planning and effort, and I'm glad to see several states have already started this process with these websites dedicated to the war's 150th anniversary. Hopefully (again) more states start soon, or have already started, but just not with websites yet.

Again, I give credit to the Ohio Historical Society for developing this website, as well as to other state societies. I look forward to watching them for updates, event schedules, ideas and other ways to promote the exciting Civil War sesquicentennial.

Gettysburg Address as a Veterans Day tribute

Abraham Lincoln wrote and delivered this famous speech over half a century before the United States had an official Veterans Day holiday (or Armistice Day, as it originated) but this message is very suitable to re-read  and ponder today, especially the closing paragraphs. The sentiments Lincoln expressed for the brave soldiers who perished at Gettysburg are certainly applicable to how Americans should feel for all of our veterans, whether they perished in war or survived it, including those living today.

Reading this while thinking about Veterans' Day may give you a new perspective on the speech, other than the readings on "normal" days and the usual acolades and interpretations this address receives. The connection of it with Veterans Day (and  Memorial Day, for that matter) is one that just came to mind today, and it seems like a perfect match to me. What brilliant words by President Lincoln and what remarkable feelings they express. This is certainly an appropriate day to take this speech to heart.

(I took this version from http://showcase.netins.net/web/creative/lincoln/speeches/gettysburg.htm)


Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here.

It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

Happy Veterans Day to all

I realize Veterans' Day is actually on Wednesdy, but the Ramage Museum held our annual commemoration of this day earlier today at Highland Cemetery in Fort Mitchell, and it was just awesome.

The weather was incredibly good for early November, with a beautiful, clear sky and warm temperatures that must have been around 70 degrees. It was simply gorgeous.

The service went well. We chose to focus on World War II Veterans for this year's event. I was a bit nervous about doiung that instead of celebrating all veterans, but it went very well and we had around 70 men and women from that war show up. It was simply awesome to see them all in one place and to get to meet many of them, shaking their hands and telling them "thank you." Some were on walkers or wheelchairs and all, of course, are quite ederly, but it was so special to see so many gathered together, being honored for their courage, bravery and patriotic service.

It truly was an amazing day and event.

Thank you to all veterans, no matter when you served. God bless you all.

Book Review: No Soap, No Pay, Diarrhea, Dysentery & Desertion

No Soap, No Pay, Diarrhea,Dysentery & Desertion: A Composite Diary of the Last 16 Months of the Confederacy from 1864 to 1865

Editor: Jeff Toalson

Copyright 2006

iUniverse, Inc.

Despite the long, unwieldy title (which is just as long as some of the entries inside the book), Mr. Toalson's work is very enjoyable, readable and informative. The many authors who contributed to it all add their own perspectives - often these match what others say, but even when that's the case, each author has his or her own way or describing the situation and its impact on his or her life.

The editor researched many letters, diaries and other accounts of what life was like in the Confederacy in the later stages of the American Civil War, for both civilians and military personnel, concentrating on writings that were made while events were ongoing instead of memoirs or books written years or decades later (with a few exceptions.) This decision by Mr. Toalson added a feel of authenticity to the book - people describing events as they were, not as they tried to remember them being (or wanted to remember them, which often happens in books or descriptions written decades later.)

He pulled out many interesting entries and partial entries, usually showing the struggles many people faced, in terms of finding food or clothing, coping with diseases, the army's struggle to pay the troops and the emotions faced by families missing each other while one or more were fighting for the Confederate army or navy. Times were tough and the entries in this book show just how difficult this period was, including soldiers' entries on the lack of soap needed to cleanse themselves and their clothes, and descriptions of how rapid inflation impacted civilians throughout Southern states.

It is a very enjoyable book, and is the kind you can read all the way through, or can put down for a few days or weeks and pick back up where you left off, without needing to remember what had previously happened, like with most traditional books. It is over 400 pages long, but reads like a shorter book, because most of the entries are only a couple of sentences long. The book's format, with so many different entries from different writers, gives it a different flow than most narratives, but this allows it to be the "composite diary" its title promises.

One problem I expected when I picked up this volume was that it would be difficult to get to know any of the "characters" like I usually do when reading diaries, collections of letter or journals, and to some extent that happened a bit, but not as much as I feared. There are several people whose entries are frequent enough that I felt I was almost developing a relationship with them and kind of knew what to expect them to say. The most prominent example is Mrs. Catherine Edmondston, an outspoken plantaion wife from North Carolina, whose strong pro-Confederate opinions also featured criticism of Southern politicians and their actions or thereof. She was certainly anything but shy in her opinions.

John B. Jones, the war clerk in Richmond, provides updates on prices of various items and the worth of Confederate money, with other commentaries about daily life sprinkled in as well.

Private Johnny Green, part of the Confederate Cavalry, reported on the hardships his unit faced; he was one of several soldiers whose writings are frequent in this book, giving their perceptions of soldier life.

This book has a nice variety of writers represented - infantry and cavalry soldiers, sailors, as well as several women. Fathers, mothers, sons, generals, privates, officers, government officials, and inspectors all preseent their opinions and views throughout this book, providing it with a very good diversity of sources (though, of course, no slaves or African-Americans writings are represented as they were not truly Confederates, the subject of this book, and given the educational beliefs at the time, not many such writings exist.)

Another source of variety that I truly appreciated was the geographic diversity of the writers. While reading the introdution and of the editor's research in various depositories in Virginia, I thought this might be more of a "Virginia-centric" book, giving opinions only from that theater of the war, but I was completely and totally wrong. The wide geographic variety of the writers certainly is a very positive aspect of this book, as it includes entries from several states, like Virginia, Georgia and Louisiana, among others, Confederate ships, hospitals, and even Union prison camps.

For anyone interested in an enjoyable, readable book, No Soap, No Pay, Diarrhea, Dysentery & Desertion is absolutely worth acquiring and reading. It is a wonderful additon to a Civil War library and adds great perspective to some of the struggles many southerners faced during this era

(As always, opinions expressed in this review are soley mine, and no compensation is involved in any book I review.)

Dr. Sweet's Infallible Liniment

From The New England Almanac, and Farmer's Friend, for the Year of Our Lord Christ 1863, I found this charming old advertisement, which I especially like due to the product's immodest self-description of "Infallible.".

Here is the text of this wonderful old document. 

DR. SWEET'S INFALLIBLE LINIMENT,

THE GREAT

EXTERNAL REMEMDY,

for the speedy and permanent cure of

RHEUMATISM,

Sprains, bruises, burns and scalds, neuralgia, stiffness of the joints, lumbago, headache, toothache, quinsy, sore throat, wounds, sores, piles and all

Rheumatic and Nervous Disorders.

This Liniment is prepared from the recipe of

DR. STEPHEN SWEET, of Connecticut.

THE GREAT NATURAL BONE SETTER,

whose name and fame have been as familiar as household words throughout the United States for nearly forty years, during which time, though never having changed his residence, his professional practice has embraced TWENTY-THREE STATES, and is believed to have comprised a larger experience in the treatment of external injuries than that of any other man living. This Liniment, now for the first time made public, is the result of his wide experience and practical skill: and having been thoroughly tested for twenty years, is fully guaratneed to perform all it promises, and is justly entitled to the term INFALLIBLE. It is truly a FRIEND IN NEED, which no Family, Hotel, Manufactory, Steamboat, Vessel, or Railroad, should be without; and the moderate price at which it is offered, places it within the reach of all. As a UNIVERSAL EXTERNAL REMEDY, for the IMMEDIATE RELIEF OF PAIN, it is unrivalled by any preparation before the public, of which the most skeptical may be convinced by a single trial.

Full Directions accompany each Bottle, Price 25 and 50 cts.

Richardson & Co., Proprietors, Norwich Ct.

or sale by Druggists Everywhere on the Continent

Abraham Lincoln on the campaign trail in Illinois

Here are a couple of campaign stories from the Lincoln Farm Almanac 1909. I guess establishing relationships with neighbors and potential voters has always been crucial to being a successful politician, and these stories demonstrate Lincoln's abilities in that area.

The first is one I've read often before, but the second is a new one to me. These are on page 16 of this booklet.

When Lincoln was a candidate for the Illinois Legislature, he called on a prosperous farmer in his district, in harvesting time. The men banteringly told him they would vote for him if he could "hold his own" in the wheat field.

Lincoln accepted the challenge, took a cradle, and, with his long, sinewy arms, cut a much wider swath than any of the others, and left them far behind. They all promised to vote for him.

On another occasion, he and his rival called at the same time on a certain farmer who was away from home. Each candidate tried to outdo the other in his attentions to the farmer's wife who was just going out to milk. Lincoln's rival seized the pail and insisted on doing the milking. But he found that his remarks received little attention, for Lincoln and their hostess were chatting in the most friendly way at the bars. When he finished milking, the woman thanked him for giving her "such a nice chance to talk with Mr. Lincoln.

I guess that man would not have appreciated the "Got Milk?" advertising campaign of recent years...