The Battle of Fort Fisher, N.C.

Monday, May 30, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 267: The NAACP Should Get a Clue

From the May 17, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  NAACP reignites Confederate Flag debate in Indian River County School District.  (Florida)  (Loss)  And you'd think with as many problems there are in the inner city with blacks, that this organization might focus more effort on doing something about them.

**  What Confederate memorials stand for.  "Baltimore Sun)  (Loss)  This editorial was written in response to the Talbot County , Maryland Confederate memorial.  Very negative: "The statue commemorating Confederate soldiers in Easton ('Talbot Boys') does not glorify those who fought in the Civil War as much as celebrate the era of official segregation known as Jim Crow that followed the conflict."

--Old Secesh


Thursday, May 26, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 266: And a Black Power Salute

Frpm the May 17, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Mn. student ordered out of school after displaying Confederate Flag.  (Crosby, Minnesota)  (Loss)

**  Cave City man arrested after allegedly burning Confederate battle flag. (Kentucky)  (Win)  It was a window flag and there was also damage to the car exterior.  The car had a U.S. flag on the other side.

**  If Army bases can be named for Confederates, what's wrong with a black power salute?  (West Point)  Sixteen black women West Point cadets posed in uniform for a photo with fists held aloft.  This has caused waves.  I saw the picture and liked it, especially the two with crossed swords.

--Old Secesh

Wednesday, May 25, 2016

Federal Authorities Seek Death Penalty on Charleston Killer

I just heard that the government is seeking the death penalty for the person who killed the nine black churchgoers in Charleston, South Carolina, last June.

I am glad to hear it and hope he is convicted and has to pay for his actions.

His name will not be mentioned here as no mass murderers should ever have their names mentioned.

--Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 265: S.C. Gets NCAA Tournament

From the May 16, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  As Confederate symbols come down, 'Talbot Boys' endures.  (Talbot County, Maryland) (Win)  This is a monument to 84 local Confederate veterans.  No big surprise, but the NAACP wants it to come down.

**  Confederate Flag retired from in front of McPherson Governmental Complex.  (Ocala, Florida) (Loss-Win)  Marion County, Florida, had the Third National.  The First National flag was raised at the museum two blocks away.

**  South Carolina gets first planned NCAA postseason event since the Confederate Flag removal  (Loss)  Greenville will host the SEC Women's Basketball Tournament.  Personally, I would prefer that S.C. refused the "honor."

Not In My State.  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 261: Should Hampton, Virginia, Change Its Name?

From the May 9-10, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Hampton to weigh removing Confederate names from schools.  (Virginia)  (Loss)  But then, there was a Confederate general, possibly the biggest slave holder in the South, named Wade Hampton.  If they remove the school names, perhaps something else needs to be changed.

**  Confederate Memorial Day Marked With Less Fanfare in S.C..  (Loss)  Any show of support usually brings out abusive anti-Confederates.

**  S.C. government offices closed Thursday for Confederate Memorial Day.  (Win)  I'm sure this is on its way out, though.

--Old Secesh

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 264: What Next, Houston?

**  Houston renames schools named for Confederate leaders.  (Texas)

Of course, Confederate leaders and soldiers were fighting to preserve slavery only, according to our opposition.  Many of them even owned slaves.

Since the school names are being removed because of the slavery connection, I got to wondering, since Texas was a slave state, perhaps some important Texans might have owned slaves.

A little research was that this person named Sam, who was so important in Texas history that he even had a city named after him, spoke out against the institution of slavery... but owned slaves.  I found a source that said that after this man's death in 1863 an inventory of his property listed 12 slaves with a value of $10,530.20.

And, Sam's last name?

Houston.

Well, Do the Right Thing.  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 263: And, In South Dakota and Canada As Well

From the May 12-13, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  S.C. marks first Confederate Day since flag removal.  (Win)

**  Lee school name appears to be history.  (South Dakota)  (Loss)

**  Toronto school removes Confederate Flag from classroom after parent complains.  (Canada)  (Loss) It was a part of an educational display.  Really, just ONE person complained?

Wouldn't It be Something If Things That Offend Me, And There Are Many, Were Eliminated?  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 262: South Carolina Still Has Confederate Memorial Day

From the May 10, 2016, Google Alerts got Confederate.

**  Confederate Memorial Day Marked With Less Fanfare in S.C..  (Loss)  To be honest, there really wasn't a whole lot of observance before the S.C. murders last June.

**  S.C. government offices closed Tuesday for Confederate Memorial Day.  (Win)  But, I am surprised that they still have it.

**  Local Confederate Memorial Day ceremony is Saturday.  (Charleston, S.C.)  (Win)

**  Confederate Flag vote could impact candidates in election.

--Old Secesh

Monday, May 23, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 260: The South's "Confederate Monument Problem"?

From the May 9, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  The South's Confederate monument problem is not going away.  (Washington Post)  (Win)  I have never figured these memorials as a problem and still don't.  It is not our problem, just those of the racists who want all traces of that history erased.  I'm glad we still have them, but for how long, who can tell?

Of course, something to think about is that is the Confederate monuments offend because of slavery, what about monuments to soldiers of the Union who committed all sorts of unspeakable acts on Southern civilians during the war.

Does that mean they are next to go?  You sure can't honor people who did such horrible things to innocent civilians.

Something To Think About.  --Old Secesh


The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 259: Confederate Flags in National Cemeteries

From the May 19, 2016, Yahoo! News.

A bit out of order, but important enough to mention right away.

**  Banning Confederate Flags in veterans cemeteries supported by Louisiana Congressmen Steve Scalise, Cedric Richmond.  (Loss)  The bill passed the U.S. House by 265-159 vote.  However, four Louisiana representatives had the backbone to vote against it.

This bill bans the flying of the Confederate Flag from flagpoles on the two days a year other flags are allowed to be flown.  However, it does not ban the placement of small Confederate flags on graves.

--Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 258: Confederate Flag Over South Carolina Statehouse Again!!

From the May 8, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Confederate Flags wave at State house for Confederate Memorial Day.  (South Carolina)  (Win)  Mighty nice of them to allow it.

**  Crowds greet March of Confederacy.  (Mt. Airy, N.C.)  (Win)  Yep, they marched right down Main Street of Andy Griffith's Mayberry.  Probably stopped at Snappy Lunch for one of those great pork chop sandwiches.

--Old Secesh

Friday, May 20, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 257: 160 Confederate Flags Stolen at Cemetery

From the May 4-5, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  160 Confederate Flags stolen from cemetery.  (Bryan, Texas)  (Loss)  It is too bad the BLM Movement can't respect our dead.

**  Warren student suspended over Confederate Flag.  (Michigan)  (Loss)  Brought the flag to school three times and was warned.

**  Proposal to move Confederate monument sparks debate in East Feliciana Parish.  (Louisiana)  (Loss)  The monument is over 100 years old, having been dedicated in 1909.

Leave Out Monuments and Statues Alone.  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 256: What the Fool in Charleston Did to Us

All I can say is that the idiot in Charleston, South Carolina, who killed all those innocent and good people back in June of last year, sure brought the whole world down on us.  He essentially destroyed the Confederacy once and for all.

Things were extremely bad even before he was stupid, but they are so bad now, I doubt that we will be able to keep our heritage.

It wouldn't be so bad, but so many Southern whites have jumped on the anti-Confederate bandwagon.  Sadly, our college students seem to be doing all they can to destroy their heritage.

It's a Losing Battle.  --Old Secesh

Thursday, May 19, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 255: More On the Louisville Confederate Monument.

From the May 2-3, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Lawrence School steers away from ban of Confederate Flag.  (Kansas)  (Win)  This is a surprise in today's climate.

**  Judge temporarily halts removal of Confederate monument at UoL campus.  (University of Louisville)  (Win)  I doubt that this will stop it for long, but at least it's something positive for a change.

**  Hearing scheduled on Confederate monument.  (Louisville, Kentucky).  (Win)  Well, at least it is a hearing and not just a "do it."  However, I doubt it will be allowed to stay.

--Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 254: Charlottesville, Va., Creating a Confederate Monument Commission

From the April 29-30, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Round Rock students disciplined for Confederate Flag photo.  (Texas)  (Loss)

**  Charlottesville City Council Working on Plan for Confederate Monuments.  (Virginia)  (Loss)  They are creating a commission, but you can bet it won't find in favor of anything Confederate-related.  I sure don't know what is wrong with Virginia which used to be the Queen State of the Confederacy.  Might as well move it to New England.

**  Students protest school's ban on Confederate Flags.  (Livingston, Montana)  (Win)  At Park High School.

And It Is Strange That College Students Wouldn't Be Protesting This Slam On Personal Freedoms.  --Old Secesh

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

And, In the Meantime: 236 Murders in Chicago for the Year

From Hey Jackass 2016 States: Murder, Crime and Mayhem.  Well worth checking out their stats.

MAY 2016 TO DATE

Shot and killed--  43
Shot and wounded--  156
Total Homicides--  45

YEAR TO DATE

Shot and killed--  211
Shot and wounded--  1115
Total homicides--  236

So far this year, the Chicago police have killed 4 and wounded 2.

And. the vast majority of these shot and wounded are blacks.  Most of their assailants were also black.

I would like to point out that during the same period of time, not a single Confederate flag, memorial or statue assaulted a single black person.

Perhaps Blacks Are Going After the Wrong Danger.  We Have  Met the Enemy and They Are Us.  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 253: The Shame of Louisville

From the April 28-29, 2016,  Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Paul Ryan On Confederate Flag: "The Symbol Does Insult."  (Loss)  The U.S. Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., says the flag divides the country and "does insult."

**  Confederate Heritage Month in Mississippi Sparks Controversy.

**  Confederate monument to be removed from UoL's Belknap Campus.  (Loss) The University of Louisville and city of Louisville are taking the monument and will store it somewhere while looking for a new location.  The statue has been there 121 years.  This is a horrible case of erasing history and highly offensive to me.

Looks Like Louisville and the University Are Heading for "minor case" Through Their Shame.  --Old Secesh

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 252: Confederate Memoial Day Commemoration Turns Ugly

From the April 27, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Confederate Memorial Day Turns Ugly on the Montgomery Capitol steps.  Alabama) (Loss)  Protesters from both sides clashed.  That is too bad that the BLM movement has to be so confrontational.  The SCV was described as a Neo-Confederate Movement.

**  Confederate soldiers' headstones removed from Montgomery ditch.  (Montgomery, Alabama)  When I started reading this article I figured it was another act by BLM, but it turns out that the headstones were not from the graves.

**  Controversial Confederate marker vandalized.  (Univ. of Texas-Austin)  (Loss)  Jefferson Davis' name spray painted on a highway marker across from Sewell Park.  Wonder who did that?

--Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 251:"We've Come a Long Way Since Then"

From the April 26, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Panel debates fate of Confederate monuments  (UNC-Wilmington)  Chris Fonvielle, associate professor of history at UNC-W, a Wilmington native,  said that when his father was young, the town still celebrated Confederate memorial Day as a legal holiday and that, as a school boy, a portrait of Robert E. Lee was alongside that of President Eisenhower in his classroom.  "We've come a long way since then."

However, he expressed the opinion that the courage of Confederate soldiers should be separated from the defense of slavery.

**  ASU professor: Confederate holiday celebrates slavery.  (Alabama State University, a mostly black school)  I do not celebrate slavery when I commemorate Confederate Memorial Day.

--Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 250: Win Some, Lose a Lot

From the April 25-- 26, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  State offices closed today.  Why?  It's Confederate Memorial Day.  (Win)  (Alabama)

**  Why today is no longer Confederate Memorial Day in Georgia.  (Loss)

**  Candidates tackle Confederate Flag controversy.

**  The Stubborn Persistence of Confederate Monuments.

**  Mississippians celebrate Confederate Memorial Day.  (Win)

--Old Secesh

Monday, May 16, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 249: North Carolina Has a Lot of Confederate Monuments

From the April 22-24, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Report:  North Carolina has more Confederate monuments than 48 other states.

Virginia has 96.  Georgia and North Carolina are tied for second with 90.    N.C.  also have additional places named after Confederates such as buildings and two roads bringing a total of 140.  Most of these date to the early 20th century, well before the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s-1960s.

**  Confederate memorials in Virginia can be pulled by local governments.  (Loss)  Any place with a majority of blacks running the government can get rid of anything Confederate.

**  Trump is top suggestion to replace Robert E. Lee in school's name.  (Texas)  Can't help but laugh at that one.

--Old Secesh


The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 248: Racist Group Lists Confederate Tributes

From April 21, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  SPLC study finds 1,500 government-backed tributes to the Confederacy across the U.S..  This would be the Southern Poverty Law Center, a truly racist outfit if there ever was one.  Making the list was admirable, but their reason is to identify items that need to be eliminated according to their racist views.

Not surprising, most Confederate tributes are located in states that made up the former Confederacy, but they have also found ones as far away as California and Massachusetts.

718--  Monuments and statues, with nearly 300 in Georgia, Virginia and Florida.

109--  public schools named for Confederates  (and, that number is dropping quickly)

80--  counties and cities named for Confederates

9--  official Confederate holidays in six states

10--  military bases named for Confederates

To show how racist this group is, they also included an action guide for removal campaigns.

I tell You, We Just Can't Get "No" Respect.  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 247: Hatred of Confederate Heritage Month

Just because I haven't been writing about it, doesn't mean it has stopped.  The Confederate-haters are numerous and very driven to erase all aspects of the Confederacy.  They are especially mortified now with April being Confederate Heritage month in many Southern states.

From the April 21, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Virginia Senate fails to overturn veto of Confederate monument bill.  (Loss)  The governor vetoed the bill aimed at local governments to prevent their arbitrary removal of all things Confederate.

I sure know one governor I wouldn't vote for if I lived in Virginia.

Hey, the Blacks have Their Black History Month!!  --Old Secesh

Friday, May 13, 2016

Other Civil War Items in the Wayne County Museum

The Wayne County Museum is located in Goldsboro, North Carolina, in the former Women's Club Building which served as a USO during World War II.

There is a huge diorama of the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge which took place on December 17, 1862.  Goldsboro was spelled Goldsborough back then.

There is also a huge collection of rifles, bullets and cannon shells taken from the Battle of Averasboro site.

--Old Secesh


Confederates From Goldsboro and Wayne County, North Carolina-- Part 2

JOHNPROBERT COBB--  Goldsboro Rifles.  At Fort Macon in 1861.  Later became commissioned officer in the 2nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment and rose to the rank of colonel and command of the regiment.

He lost his leg at the Battle of Winchester.

HERMAN WEIL--  1842-1878.  Born in Germany.  Served in the Goldsboro Volunteers which became Co. D of the 4th North Carolina Infantry Regiment.

Returned to Goldsboro after Lee's surrender at Appomattox.  Purchased a store with his brother Henry and began Weil Brothers.  Herman Park in Goldsboro is named after him.

--Old Secesh

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Confederates From Goldsboro and Wayne County, North Carolina-- Part 1

The Wayne County History Museum in Goldsboro, North Carolina, has pictures and write-ups on these men.

MARSHALL D. CRATON--  Captain in Goldsboro Rifles.  At the outbreak of the war, he was ordered by Governor John W. Ellis to capture Fort Macon on April 15, 1861.  he commanded the first military group in the state to take action against the Federal government.

JOEL JACKSON DENMARK--  2nd Lt. in Goldsboro Rifles of the 27th North Carolina Infantry regiment.  Killed in action at the Battle of Bristoe Station, Virginia, on October 14, 1863.

--Old Secesh

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Memorials Already in the College Station Veterans Park

These memorials are already in the park with date of dedication::

THE WAR ON TERROR MEMORIAL--  2005--  the first memorial in the park.

AMERICAN REVOLUTION MEMORIAL--  2010-- bronze Continental soldier named "Liberty or Death"

COME AND TAKE IT--  2010--  War for Texas Independence-- 175th anniversary of the Battle of Gonzalez.

KOREAN WAR ANNIVERSARY--  2011--  60th anniversary--  statue of a South Korean and American soldier.

DAY OF INFAMY--  December 7, 2011,   70th anniversary--  Pacific Theater, World War II

"DON'T GIVE UP THE SHIP"-- 2012--   War of  1812 Bicentennial

LETTERS FROM HOME-- November 11, 2013--  Army infantryman, European Theater World War II

HOT L-Z--  Vietnam War--  Life-size bronze fuselage of Huey helicopter dropping off soldiers.

A Great Way to Honor Our Heroes.  --Old Secesh

Civil War Memorial Planned for College Station, Texas: "A Mysterious Fraternity"

From the November 10, 2014, College Station (Texas) Eagle "Civil War memorial planned for College Station Veterans Park" by Jordan Overtuff.

Stephen Crane in his "The Red Badge of Courage" described the combat soldier as "a mysterious fraternity born of the smoke and danger of death."

"Veterans Day in the U.S. is a two-fold expression.  On one side, those who milled through the toils of war, on the other, those who have benefitted from the sacrifices of men and women in the military."

There is no memorial for the Civil War in Veterans Park yet.  This one is 90% funded, with about $72,000 raised so far.

The statue is by artist J. Paynelara and is titled "Going Home" with a target date for dedication in April, the 150th anniversary of Lee's surrender at Appomattox.

This Veterans Day, 133 new names have been added to the Wall of Honor, bringing the total to more than 5,000 names.

--Old Secesh

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Fort Macon-- Part 3: No Choice But to Surrender

Colonel White had no choice but to surrender, which he did at 4:30 p.m. on 25 April.  Arrangements for surrender were completed the following morning, and Union forces formally occupied the battered fort.  The Confederates lost 7 killed and 18 wounded; Union losses were one killed and 3 wounded.  The Confederates were paroled and released.

Union forces repaired the damage to Fort Macon and used it for the rest of the Civil War.  During Reconstruction the U.S. Army occupied the fort continuously until 1877, using it as a prison.

In 1898, the fort was regarrisoned for the Spanish-American War, and in 1903 it was again abandoned with the belief that it would never again be needed.

For the rest of the history of Fort Macon, go to my World War II blog, Tattooed On Your Soul for May 5, 2016.

--Old Secesh

Monday, May 9, 2016

Fort Macon-- Part 2

In 1862, Union forces led by Major General Ambrose E. Burnside launched a campaign against the North Carolina coast, intending to capture Fort Macon and Beaufort Harbor.  They took possession of Morehead City on 23 March and captured Beaufort three days later.

Five artillery companies of North Carolina troops were garrisoned at Fort Macon under Col.Moses J. White.  Altogether they amounted to 450 men and 54 heavy guns.  The Union forces demanded he surrender.  He refused.

On 28 March Brig. Gen. John G. Parke established siege positions within a half mile of the fort.  He made a final demand for surrender .  Early the next morning, Parke's batteries opened fire on the fort in a bombardment that lasted 11 hours.

The Union rifled cannons carried the day.  This was only the second time in history that rifled cannons had bombarded a masonry fort and this one demonstrated the growing obsolescence of forts as a means of defense.  It took only a few hours for the cannons to crack Fort Macon's walls and threaten a magazine.

--Old Secesh

Sunday, May 8, 2016

Fort Macon-- Part 1: Named After Nathaniel Macon

From the Encyclopedia of North Carolina "Fort Macon" by Paul Branch.

On May 5th, I wrote about Fort Macon during World War II in my World War II blog, Tattooed On Your Soul.

After the War of 1812, the U.S, military constructed a chain of permanent fortifications to defend the coast of the country.  Fort Macon replaced an earlier fort on the eastern point of Bogue Banks to guard Old Topsail Inlet (Beaufort Inlet), the entrance to Beaufort Harbor.  It was named for Nathaniel Macon (1758-1837), a U.S. congressman, senator and leading Republican statesman of North Carolina.

Active garrisons occupied Fort Macon 1834-36, 1842-44 and 1848-49.  During 1841-1846 engineers made structural improvements to the fort's defenses.

On 14 April 1861, at the beginning of the Civil War, local militia forces from Morehead City and Beaufort, commanded by Captain John Pender, occupied Fort Macon in the name of the state without bloodshed.  Throughout the rest of the year Confederates strengthened it in preparation for an expected Union attack.

--Old Secesh


Friday, May 6, 2016

A Roster of North Carolina Troops in the War Between the States-- Part 4

The Civil War Roster Project had published 15 volumes by 2006.  Volumes 1 and 2 cover artillery and cavalry units, respectively; volumes 3-15 contain rosters and histories of infantry units.  Volume 16 will present additional Confederate infantry units and volume 17 will contain rosters of  miscellaneous Confederate units such as junior and senior reserves, militia, Home Guard, navy and Marines.

It will also include North Carolina Federal troops (four regiments of blacks and four of whites) and many North Carolinians who served in units from other states.

--Old Secesh

A Roster of North Carolina Troops in the War Between the States-- Part 3: A Whole Lot of Information

Louis H. Manarin headed the Civil War Roster Project from 1961 to February 1970 when Weymouth T. Jordan Jr. took over the editorship.  Rosters are arranged alphabetically by company.  A field and staff sections precedes the company roster of each regiment.

Within each company roster, officers and enlisted men, excluding captains, appear alphabetically in separate sections.  Captains and field and staff personnel are listed by date of rank.  Each name is followed by a service record of approximately 100 words that includes, if known, the soldier's county of birth and residence, his age and occupation at time of enlistment, his promotion record, whether he was wounded, captured  or killed, and whether he deserted or died of disease.

--Old Secesh


Thursday, May 5, 2016

A Roster of North Carolina Troops in the War Between the States-- Part 2

The North Carolina Civil War Roster Project began  in 1961 (the Civil War Centennial) under the auspices of the North Carolina Confederate Centennial Commission and in 1965 was transferred to the State department of Archives and History, now the Division of Archives and History of the Department of Cultural Resources.

Its purpose is to publish histories of all North Carolina units raised during the war, as well as rosters containing the names and service records of members.  When completed, the series, entitled "North Carolina Troops, 1861-1865: A Roster", will comprise 17 individually indexed volumes, each providing histories and rosters of at least four regiments and service records of approximately 7,500 men.

An eighteenth volume, a master index, will give the names of approximately 130,000 North Carolina military personnel listed in "North Carolina Troops" and the volumes and pages on which their service records appear.

Listing 'Em All.  --Old Secesh


A Roster of North Carolina Troops in the War Between the States-- Part 1

From the Encyclopedia of North Carolina "Civil War Rosters" by Weymouth T. Jordan Jr. and Wiley J. Williams.

A must for anyone researching their North Carolina Civil War Confederate ancestors.

These books were written by Confederate veteran John Wheeler Moore and was an undertaking by North Carolina in 1881 to publish a list of its Confederate veterans.  The four volumes of  "Moore's Roster" as it became known, included the names of 106,498 soldiers, about 70% of the state's Confederate soldiers--  and are arranged by military units.

The last volume, after identifying the regiments and separate battalions, lists generals and staff officers or North Carolinians in the Confederate Navy and elsewhere.

For each individual recorded, the roster generally gives rank, date and county of enlistment.  Remarks about promotions, desertions, injuries, capture and death in battle are sometimes noted.

--Old Secesh

The Gettysburg Cyclorama: An Early Virtual Reality Experience-- Part 2: What Gen. Gibbon Had to Say

Union General John Gibbon, who led a division at the Battle of Gettysburg related after seeing it:  "I never before had an idea that the eye could be so deceived  by  paint and canvas.  It was difficult to disabuse my mind of the impression that I was actually on the ground."

The Gettysburg Cyclorama wasn't the first of its kind.  In the late 1800s there was a bit of a craze for cycloramas which represented a step forward from panoramas.

--Old Secesh

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

The Gettysburg Cyclorama: An Early Virtual Reality Experience-- Part 1

From the April 18, 2016, Time Magazine "Technology: What VR's rocky past reveals about its future" by Lev Grossman.

"The first version of the Gettysburg Cyclorama was created in 1883 by a French artist named Paul Dominique Philippoteaux.  It was an enormous circular painting, depicting the Battle of Gettysburg at the moment of Pickett's Charge, that wrapped around the viewer completely: you stood inside it.  It was 22 feet high and had a circumference of 279 feet."

"The effect was enhance by actual earthworks and broken trees and fences set up in the front of it, in the foreground, which also hid the bottom edge of the canvas.  Audiences were enthralled.  Veterans of the battle wept.  It may have been the most immersive media experience of its day.

Circle Me In.  --Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 246: About Those State Flags in D.C.

From the April 21, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  House GOP unveils Confederate Flag display compromise.  (Washington, D.C.)  (Draw)  Until last year, an underground tunnel connected the Capitol building with the Rayburn Office Building.  All along it were the flags of all the states.  Of course, one of them is the Mississippi flag with the you-know-what.

These flags were removed because of construction.  They will not be replaced.  Now there will be large reproductions of the state quarters that were out awhile back.

Opponents of the Mississippi state flag are calling this a win.

--Old Secesh

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 245: Removal of Confederate Monuments in Charlottesville, Virginia

From the April 18,2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  City Council to Discuss Confederate Monuments, Protests Planned.  (Charlottesville, Va.) (Win)  A rally is planned by the Virginia Flaggers'  Five Confederate monuments are in Charlottesville.  Two are at the University of Virginia, one on West Main Street, another in the middle of Court Square and the most controversial one in the middle of Lee park.  There is a drive to remove the Robert E. Lee statue and rename the park.

**  Two Confederate-era monuments defaced in New Orleans.  (Loss)  They are of the Battle of Liberty Place and the one to Abram Joseph Ryan.

--Old Secesh

Monday, May 2, 2016

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 244: Va. Governor Vetoes Confederate Monuments Bill

From the April 20, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Pastor wants SBC to repudiate Confederate Flag.  (Loss)  A black pastor is asking the Southern Baptist Convention to do this.

**  Virginia Senate fails to overturn veto of Confederate monuments bill.  (Loss)  Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe cast a veto to stop a bill to prevent local governments from attacking Confederate monuments.  The Senate was unable to get a 2/3 majority to override.  The House did get a 2/3 majority.

--Old Secesh

The Confederacy Under Attack-- Part 243: Most People in Louisiana Want to New Orleans Statues to Remain Where They Are According to a Poll

From the April 20, 2016, Google Alerts for Confederate.

**  Majority of Louisianans oppose the removal of Confederate statues.  (Win)  According to an LSU poll.  Some breakdown:  73% of respondents wanted them left where they were, 88% of whites, 47% of blacks, 92% of republicans and 54% of Democrats.  Like I said, let's put it to a vote.

**  City renames Confederate cemetery.  (LaGrange, Georgia)  (Loss)  On West Mulberry Street and renamed Mulberry Street by the city council.  It now has two sites: the Confederate Cemetery and the second part is named to honor Horace King. a 19th-century bridge builder who was born a slave.

--Old Secesh

Wilmington North Carolina's Bellevue Cemetery

From Markeruni.com.

Bellevue Cemetery was surveyed in 1876 by Brown & James and covers 15 and a half acres.  During the Civil War it was known as Green's Battery.  The land was purchased in 1876 to establish a private cemetery for people of moderate means.

An Act of the North Carolina General Assembly incorporated the Bellevue Cemetery Company as a capital stock company in January 1877.

Bellevue now contains 30 acres.

Marker erected by the Historic Wilmington Foundation.

--Old secesh