MCCWRT Prisons Discussion-- Part 5: Horrible Conditions and Diseases

**  The conditions at Illinois' Rock Island Prison were horrible and om top of that they had a small pox outbreak.

**  At one time, early on in the camp's history, prisoners were even able to leave prison quarters abd go to town at Camp Douglas in Chicago and also in Rock Island.

**  An Iowa regiment dubbed the "Graybeards" because of their advanced age once guarded the Rock Island Prison Camp.  Also the 108th USCT.

**  I forgot which Union prison camp this was, but it might have been Point Lookout in Maryland, but there were 64 barracks there, each with 95 prisoners.

**  At Camp Douglas, an average of 18 prisoners died each day

**  Prisoners died from typhoid fever, pneumonia, measles, mumps and chronic diarrhea (called the Soldiers' Disease).

--Old Secesh

76 Iowans Joined the Confederacy

From the Oct. 28,2019, Iowa Public Radio  "New Research shoes that at least 76 Iowans joined the Confederacy during the Civil War" by Ben Kieffer, Rick Brewer and Julia Digiacomo.

Despite Iowa's status as a Union state during the war, at least 76 Iowans threw in their lot with the Confederacy.  This number is the result of research done by David Connon who has just written the book "Iowa Confederates in the Civil War."

He delves into the reasons why these men did what they did.  According to Cannon, they became active in all branches of the Confederate military, even the Confederate Navy.  Some even achieved honors for their service.

David Connon was on the Iowa NPR show "River to River" with a 44-minute talk on his book where he gives their stories and also delves into the political and historical trends in Iowa during this time.  The 1840 Iowa Territorial Census showed 17 slaves listed with their owners.

The only people to say they had slaves in Iowa in that census were from Dubuque County.

The article was accompanied by a photograph of one of the Iowa Confederates named Albert H. Newall who was captured and died at the Fort Delaware prison camp.  The town fathers of Danville, Iowa, didn't want him buried in the local cemetery.

--Old Secesh

McHenry County Civil War Round Table (MCCWRT): The State of Our Speakers

It seems like quite a long time ago in March that we had our last meeting thanks to the virus.  That was in March 10, right before all this broke.

We meet every second Tuesday of the month March to November at the Woodstock Public Library in Woodstock, Illinois.  Needless to say, every meeting since March has been cancelled, including the upcoming September one.  I sure miss everybody and all those interesting talks.

In July we we were to hear Steve Acker speak on "Petersburg."

In August we had "The Fisher Family" by Dave Oberg.

This September we were to have "Fort Sumter and Other Civil War Forts" by Scott Larimer.

Hopefully, we can have the October meeting "Confederates from Iowa" by Dave Cannon.

Then, the season finale, as it were, in October, Don Hatch will speak on "Road Trippin' Thru History:  The Great Wyoming and 'Howling Wilderness--  The Rest of the Story."

I sure miss my monthly doses of the Civil War.

Here's Hoping We Get At Least the Last Two Talks In.  --Old Secesh

First Nebraska Militia

From Wikipedia.

A temporary military force organized by Territorial Governor Alvin Saunders in August 1864 during the Indian Uprising of that year which threatened travelers on the Overland Trail and settlers on the frontier.  The First Nebraska Militia reinforced the 7th Iowa Cavalry, which previously had been deployed and had constructed Fort McPherson near present-day North Platte, Nebraska and the 1st Nebraska Veteran Volunteer Cavalry.

There were two brigades in the group with four companies who served anywhere from two months to six months.  Also a company of artillery with 13 men under a captain.

Companies B and C First Nebraska Mounted were present at the January 1865 attack on Camp Rankin and Julesburg and, under the command of General Robert B. Mitchell, were part of  the force that engaged in the fruitless pursuit of marauding Indians after the battle.

--Old Secesh

The Civil War's "Greybeards"

From the August 10, 2014, Listverse "10 Oldtimers Who Kicked Ass in Wartime."

This is just one of the ten, the one that applied to the Civil War.

The 37th Iowa Volunteer Infantry Regiment was known as the "Greybeards."  They were made up of men who were past the age of military service but fir and healthy enough to serve.

The regiment was the brainchild of George Kincaid, a 50-year-old farmer.  By 1862, the number of Iowa's volunteers was dwindling..  Kincaid's idea was to raise a regiment of men of a certain age to show "a wonderful experience of loyalty and patriotism."  The hopes were that these "Greybeards" would shame the young into volunteering.

Many on the original roster were in the 60-70 age range and one was even 80.

Their primary task was garrison duty and guarding prisoners.  They did have deaths, but that came from disease.

One of them was Anton Busch, a German immigrant who was 52.  (Part of the Anheiser-Busch folk?)

--Old Secesh

Dubuque, Iowa in the Civil War

This most recent trip to this Mississippi River town, I learned a bit of the town's Civil War history at the Old Jail Museum.

In the presentation, I learned that Confederate prisoners were at one time held captive in the basement (dungeon) below the old jail. The person working the desk didn't know anything about them though.

Touring the attached museum, I also found that a fairly large Northern training camp was also located there called Camp Union. They also have a large flag carried by the local regiment that fought at the Battle of Wilson's Creek.

--Old Secesh

Iowa Flag Returns-- Part 2

The story goes that at Champion Hill, the color-bearer was wounded and clutched the flag to his bloody body to protect it, leaving a stain at the top right of the blue field.  Shortly after the battle, James T. Sargent, a Master Mason who organized the unit and later became a first lieutenant (Lt. Sargent) resigned and returned to Marengo and brought the flag with him.

Later, he moved to Yankton in the Dakota Territory where he flew the flag every Memorial Day parade.  After his death, his son, William F. Sargent, a Past Grand Master of South Dakota, presented the flag to the Oriental Consistory which stored it in the Masonic Temple at Yankton, SD.

In 2004, it was presented to the Grand Lodge of Iowa by Charles Kauffman, Past grand Master of SD who wanted it located closer to where it was made.

The flag has a circle of stars around 5 in the middle and others outside the circle.

The Iowa Masonic Library also has the drum used by Henry C. Thompson of Linn County and his 1917 pension certificate for $27 a month (raised to $30 a month in 1921.

The Story of a Flag Before and After War.  --Old Secesh.

Iowa Flag Returns...and a Little of Flagmaking-- Part 1

From June 8, 2011, Eastern Iowa Life.

Regiments marched off to war under battle flags, often made by groups of local women.  In 1861, the women of Marengo, Iowa, gathered and sewed a 34-star flag and presented it to Co. B 28th Iowa who carried it into battle.

Today, after a circuitous route, decades of storage, the flag is in a custom-made wooden glass case at the Iowa Masonic Library in Cedar Rapids. 

Back in 1861, there were no regulations as to star arrangement, other than 13 stripes and 34 stars.  Even though the Southern states had left the Union, Lincoln would not allow their stars to be removed. 

The 28th Iowa mustered in at Camp Pope in Iowa City, Iowa, October 1862.  Then, they went on to Davenport and Helena, Arkansas where they joined Grant's Army for the Vicksburg Campaign.  On May 16, 1863, at the Battle of Champion Hill the unit suffered 99 casualties and many bullets pierced the flag.

More to Come.  --Old Secesh

Dubuque, Iowa's Role in the War

From the April 15th Dubuque (Iowa) Telegraph Herald.

Dubuque was the home of two medal of Honor winners: Francis J. Herron who won his at the Battle of Pea Ridge and George W. Healey, who captured 7 Confederates July 29, 1864, at Newman, Georgia. He himself was later captured and imprisoned at Andersonville.


From the April 13th Dubuque Telegraph-Herald.

Dubuque had a training facility for local troops.

The first one was at Camp Union located on the bottomland adjacent to lake Peosta on the Mississippi River. It opened for instruction in August 1861. The 9th and 12th Iowa were recruited and trained there.

By September, there were some 600 soldiers there and ten barracks. It closed December 1861, but reopened again in July 1862 as Camp Franklin. The 21st, 27th, 32nd and 38th Iowa regiments trained there.

A total of 120 men in the 21st were from Dubuque.

Soldiers from Grant County later became part of the Iron Brigade and trained at Camp Randall in Madison, Wisconsin.

The Hawkeyes getting Into It. --Old B-R'er

The 8th Iowa Cavalry Regiment

Since there wasn't a lot about John A. Reiber's military service in the earlier blog today, I looked up his regiment and found this information.

The regiment was mustered into service September 30, 1863. During the course of the war 1442 men served in the unit. A total of 15 enlisted men were killed in action or died from wounds. Many more, 3 officers and 176 soldiers died of disease.

They were sent to Tennessee and had to put up with a very hostile populace. Later, they took part in the Battle of Atlanta and Battle of Nashville. In 1865, they were along for an expedition into Mississippi and then Wilson's Raid against Macon, Georgia.

They were mustered out of service in August of 1865.

Those Hawkeye Boys. --B-R'er

Civil War Veteran's Grave Gets Marked

From May 7th Central Iowa Times-Republican "After 112 years, grave of local Civil War veteran marked" by Tammy R. Lawson.

For all those years, the grave of John A. Reiber lay unmarked in Marshalltown, Iowa. But, no longer. A 200 pound granite headstone has been places after much research and effort.

John Reiber was born December 28, 1823 in Pennsylvania. He eventually moved to Marshalltown where he joined the Army in 1863 as a private in Co. I, 8th Iowa Cavalry, one of the oldest at nearly 40 years of age, definitely old for soldier service.

He died suddenly at his home at 409 Union Street January 31, 1898, of heart disease, leaving behind a wife and six children.

A ceremony was held for the new marker consisting of Co. A 49th Iowa, The Governor's Own Iowa Rifles, the SUV Department of Iowa Color Guard Unit and the Iowa 7th cavalry.

Always Great to Have a Veteran remembered. --Old B-Runner

Iowa SUVCW Tracking Down Iowa Civil War Monuments

MPC Newspapers of Iowa had an article back in December 2008 about the state's Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War camps tracking down and completing a list of all of the markers and statues of the war.

There is a 35 foot high monument in Brooklyn Memorial Cemetery in Powesiak County that was built in 1882. There is a Civil War cannon at Grinnell's Hazelwood Cemetery and a Civil War soldier statue at Chester Cemetery. In Montezuma, there is a GAR Hall, Civil War monument and a soldier at Sheridan Cemetery.

Tom Gaard, Iowa Monument Officer for the SUVCW Department of Iowa, says they are also locating the graves of Union veterans and even those who served with Confederate armies. Not only that, but they are also looking for monuments and memorials in need of cleaning or repairs.

You can view their list of markers at
http://iowacivilwarmonuments.com

The website also includes Iowa markers outside the state including one at Andersonville Prison in Georgia which was dedicated November 17, 1906. The state of Tennessee has 15 markers, including 13 at the Battle of Shiloh.

Always Great to See Civil War History Preserved. --Old B-Runner

There are still five original Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Halls still standing: the one in Montezuma, Veterans Memorial Hall in Waterloo, Redfield GAR Hall, Hampton GAR Hall and Woodbury County GAR Hall in Correctionville. Only the Montezuma Hall is no longer used.

--Old Secesh

Aunt Becky, First Union Nurse?

From the October 28th Des Moines (Iowa) Register.

Sarah Palmer was known to the soldiers she cared for as Aunt Becky and is believed to have been the first Union nurse. She was a New York native who joined because of her brothers' service and stayed with the Army for three years.

In 1867, friends urged her to write a book, and she did with "The Story of Aunt Becky's Army Life." After the war, she married David Young, and moved to Iowa where she lived until 1906 and is buried in Woodland cemetery.

At a recent service, she was honored by the Sons of Union veterans of the Civil War.

I see that her book is available at Amazon for $14,

Quite a Woman. Great Story. --Old B-Runner

"Big Red" Found?

October 2nd Charleston (SC) Post and Courier.

The Citadel University in Charleston believes it has located the original "Big Red", its Civil War flag that flew over its cadets on Morris Island when they fired upon the Star of the West which many consider as the actual opening shots of the Civil War, not the April 12, 1861 firing on Fort Sumter.

It was found in an Iowa museum to which it was donated by Willard Baker, a Union veteran in 1919. It has been in a storage closet ever since. The State Historical Society of Iowa owns it and now discussion are under way for its return.

Baker said he had gotten it in Mobile, Alabama, at the end of the war, but never gave the actual story. He had been in a unit involved in the capture of Fort Blakely near Alabama.

Captain James Culpepper, an 1854 Citadel graduate, and his battery were at Blakely. He was a student of Major Peter F. Stevens, who had been the Citadel's superintendent during the Star of the West incident.

In 1861, Hugh Vincent's family had designed the 10 by 7 foot flag and presented it to Stevens between January 1st and 4th, 1861 to be used by the Citadel cadets. It is likely that Culpepper had it at Fort Blakely.

Its location became known when a woman posted information about it on the internet in 2004 and a Citadel alumnus saw it.

Hope They Get It Back. --B-R'er

Iowa Flag Follow Up

In yesterday's Running the Blockade, I mentioned about the flag of the 15th Iowa being returned to the Iowa State capitol rotunda after preservation.

Here's some more information about it.

The Nov. 15th Des Moines Register described the 56 inch by 100 inch flag as being damaged by sunlight, temperature and humidity changes, tobacco smoke, and general wear and tear during the 100-plus years it was on display.

It is among 390 flags from the Civil War, Spanish-American War, and World War I. The state museum is preserving all of them.

The 15th Iowa flag is missing a star and was made in 1861 by women in Polk County. The 15th was formed in 1861 and became part of the Iowa Brigade participating at the battles of Shiloh, Vicksburg, Jackson, and the Atlanta Campaign in 1864.

The Valiant 15th. --Old B-Runner

Running the Blockade: Michigan Graves-- Iowa Flag-- 3rd Battle of Winchester Preserved

Some New News About an Old War.

1. MICHIGAN GRAVES-- The Nov. 18th Battle Creek (Mi) Enquirer reports that in Kentwood, a suburb of Battle Creek, historian Eloise Haven has identified 16 more Civil War veterans buried at Pine Hill Cemetery. She and her group of volunteers have been locating veterans in eight area cemeteries. Their efforts last year have raised the number of Civil war veterans buried at Oakhill Cemetery in Grand Rapids to more than 720.

They will not confirm a veteran until they have at least one piece of paperwork. Most of the ones buried at Pine Hill are from out-of-state, mostly New York. They are putting up GAR flag holders at the graves.

2. IOWA FLAG-- On Nov. 13th, WOI TV in Des Moines, Iowa, reported that a newly-preserved Iowa Civil War flag is being returned to display in the state capitol rotunda where it was from 1894 to 2004. There will be a ceremony for the 34-star US flag carried by the 15th Iowa.

3. 3RD BATTLE OF WINCHESTER PRESERVED-- The Nov. 13th Washington Times reports that a 209 acre section called the Middle Field of the 3rd Battle of Winchester, Virginia, will be preserved after $3.35 million was spent by the Shenandoah Valley battlefields Foundation, Civil War Preservation Trust, State of Virginia, and private individuals. This brings the total acres preserved to 575.

On September 19, 1864, the Union 19th Corps lost 40% of its men and every regimental commander was killed or wounded. A total of 54,000 fought here on both sides.

Now, You Know. --Old B-Runner