Match Each General With the Site of His Death or Mortal Wounding-- Part 2: Robert E. Rhodes

These extra hard questions (I only got two matched and some of these men I'd never heard of before) were submitted to America's Civil War by Stewart  Douglas, a reader of them magazine in the United Kingdom.

Five More of which I only got Zollicoffer right and that was kind of an educated guess.

1.  Joseph Mansfield

2.  Lloyd Tilgham

3.  Robert E. Rhodes

4.  Daniel Chaplin

5.  Felix Zollicoffer

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A.  Obequon

B.  Antietam

C.  Mill Springs

D.  Deep Bottom

E.  Champion Hill

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ANSWERS

1.  B

2.  E

3.  A

4.  D

5.  C

Bring Back America's Civil War and Civil War Times.  --Old Secesh

Match Each General with the Site of His Death or Mortal Wound-- Part 1

From the July 2021 America's Civil War.  (I sure miss this magazine).

1.  J.E.B. Stuart

2.  George Duncan Wells

3.  Philip Kearny

4.  Samuel Zook

5.  Edward Don Tracy

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a.  Cedar Creek

b.  Chantilly

c.  Port Gibson

d.  Gettysburg

e.  Yellow Tavern

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Answers

1 e

2 d

3 b

4 d 

5 j

I only got Stuart right and had never heard of Wells, Zook or Tracy.  Shows what I don't know.

--Old Secesh Don't Know Much.

Six Confederate Generals Born in Kershaw County, South Carolina

From carolana.com.

Major General Joseph B.  Kershaw

Brigadiers

James Cantey

James Chesnut Jr.  Wife was Mary Chesnut who wrote the famous diary.

Zachariah C. Deas

John Doby Kennedy 

John Bordenave Villepigue

Old Secesh

The Galena Nine

Nope, not a baseball team.

For most communities, having one person reaching the rank of general during wartime is something to be proud of.  However, a city in the northwestern corner of Illinois, Galena, had not just one (and, he was then biggest of all generals) but nine.

Here is a list of the nine in case you were wondering who they might be from the last post:

Augustus Louis Chetlain

John Oliver Duer

Ulysses Simpson Grant

Jasper  Adalmorn Maltby

Ely Samuel  Parker

John Aaron Rawlins 

William Rueben Rowley

John Corson  Smith

John Eugene Smith

Grant?  Who?  --Old Secesh

MCCWRT Sept. 2022 Meeting-- Part 1: 'Gen. John E. Smith: Galena's Forgotten General'

The McHenry County (Illinois) Civil War Round Table September 2022 meeting was held at the Woodstock Library.

The presentation was on a Union general I had never heard of, John E. Smith, described as one of the most important people of the Civil War that you've never heard of.  He was from Galena, now sometimes called the City That Time Forgot, but in the early 1800s it was a very important town and busy port.  

From 1827 to 1850, some 85% of lead mined in the U.S. came from the Galena area.  Galena was the largest river port north of St. Louis.

And, when the Civil War came, Galena supplied nine generals to the Union cause, the best-known being one U.S. Grant.   As a matter of fact, the U.S. Highway that runs through Galena, US-20, is called the U.S. Grant Highway.

--Old Secesh

The Good, the Bad & Ugly of Civil War Generals

From the December 26, 2022, Collector  "Six famous generals of the Civil War:  The Good & the Badad" by Curt Smothers.

How he rated them:

Good and Bad was relative to their military skill.  Ugly refers to generals lacking in military skill and undeserving of their rank.

Here they are:

THE GOOD

U.S. Grant & Robert E. Lee

THE BAD

George McClellan & Braxton Bragg

THE UGLY

Benjamin Butler and  John B. Floyd

Read the article to see wht he ranked them like that.

--Old Secesh

Kentucky Campaign, 1862, Part 3: Future WW II Generals

8.  Two officers who fought at the Battle of Perryville were fathers of significant World War II generals.  Simon Buckner commanded a third of the Confederate Army and the 24th Wisconsin Infantry had Arthur McArthur.

Simon B. Buckner, Jr. was killed in WW II and the Wisconsin regiment had the father of Douglas MacArthur.  They were the only two father/son duos to ever receive the Medal of Honor.

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9.  Perryville Battlefield has maybe the first monument dedicated to Confederate dead paid for by the U.S. government.

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10.  Perryville State Battlefield Site was established on October 8, 1954, 92 years after the battle.  By 1952, the battle site had deteriorated badly and the Perryville Lions Club rehabilitated the small Confederate cemetery and surrounding area.

They got the Kentucky State Conservation Commission to create a state park that opened on October 8, 1952.

--Old Secesh

RoadTrippin'-- Part 13: Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio

One aspect of RoadTrippin' Thru History is that you see how many other things you can attach to your main story.  Quite often, I find out where someone I'm writing about is buried and see if anyone else of interest is buried there.

Francis E. Warren's second wife, Clara Morgan Warren, remarried after his death.  She married Albert Russel.  Both she and he are buried at Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio, where quite a few people of note are buried.

Some of them are:

Alan Freed, one of the early Rock and Roll deejays.  Known as the "Father of Rock and Roll."

James Garfield, the 20th President of the United States.

Coburn Haskell, inventor of the modern golf ball.

John Hay, private secretary to Abraham Lincoln.  Also U.S. Secretary of State.

Eliot Ness, the FBI agent who brought Al Capone to justice.

John D. Rockefeller, considered one of the wealthiest Americans of all time.  Oil refining.

Carl B. Stokes, the first black mayor of Cleveland and the first black mayor of a major U.S. city.

Nate Thurmond, noted NBA player.

John White William, a founder of the chewing gum industry.

Alexander Winton, automotive pioneer.  Winton cars.

Quite a few Union generals as well.

Over 100,000 burials are at this cemetery.

--Old Secesh

Roadtrippin' Thru History-- Part 4: Some More Itinerary

Some more places or people we'll be visiting:

Three generals:  one killed in battle, one you probably know and one you'll have to make up your mind about.

The Battle of Opequon  (Virginia)

The Battle of Barboursville (Virginia)

A long-serving U.S. Senator (the last U.S. Senator to serve in the Civil War)

A fort renaming, not once but twice

The Battle and Siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana

Two marriages with Benefits

Several things that will make you go "HHhummmmm."

--Old Secesh

Civil War Officers-- Part 7

Colonels, majors and captains were elected by their men.

The soldiers had no choice but to put up with who they elected after that.

Then, there was Ben Butler, a whole story onto himself.

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The Northern Illinois Civil War Round Table will be having a trip to the Battle of Shiloh.  Members will go by bus for two days at a cost of $175 a person.  Dates are October 22 and 23, 2021.

--Old Secesh

Civil War Generals-- Part 6: How They Stood

IRVIN McDOWELL had been a major and a staff officer and had never commanded any men.  At First Bull Run, he was leading 35,000 troops.

P.G.T. BEAUREGARD was an engineer and had never command more than about fifty men which he did during the Mexican War.

JOHN C. FREMONT, known as the Pathfinder, was an explorer and complete failure as an army commander.

WILLIAM T. SHERMAN got his chance at command because of his brother John who was a powerful Ohio politician.  He had essentially failed at everything he had done before the war.

U.S. GRANT was a failure and a civilian when the war came.  Each Congressman had the power to nominate a general.  Elihu Washburne, from Galena, Illinois, where Grant was living pushed for him.

ALBERT  SIDNEY JOHNSTON had commanded a regiment during the Mexican War and had the best pre-war credentials to command an army.

--Old Seecsh

Oh Those Civil War Generals-- Part 5: Prewar Professions

First number Union, second one Confederate.

LAWYER/JURISTS (Many of whom were also politicians):  126 (22%)  //  129   (30%)

PROFESSIONAL SOLDIERS:  197  (34%)  //  128 (30%)

BUSINESSMEN:  116 (20%)  //  55  (13%)

FARMERS/PLANTERS:  23  (4%)  //  42  (10%)

FULL-TIME POLITICIAMS:  47  (8%)  //  24  (6%)

EDUCATORS:  16  (3%)  //  15  (3%)

CIVIL ENGINEERS:  26  (4%)  //  13  (3%)

OTHERS:  32  (5%)  //  19  (4%)

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TOTAL:  583  //  425

Them's the Figures.  --Old Secesh

Oh, Those Civil War Generals-- Part 5: About All Those 'Brevets'

Notes on Bruce Allardice's figures already printed:

**  More modern research shows that Ezra Warner in his book "Generals in Gray" missed the prewar state militia service and military school attendance of a number of Southern generals.

**  An additional 1,400 Union officers were made "brevet" generals.  Under law, a "brevet" rank entitled an officer to command as a general, without the substantive rank of general.  In practice, most of the promotions to "brevet" general were made after the war (some as late as 1869), to honor and reward their wartime service at a lesser rank.

I found this especially true when going through a list of Union veterans who were buried in a Chicago cemetery and found a whole lot of colonels who had been brevetted to brigadier general.

**  Warner also excludes many officers promoted to general in one fashion or another, but for whom proof of appointment is/was lacking.

--Old Secesh

Poltroons, Patriots & Buffoons: Oh Those Generals-- Part 4: Military Experience and Civilian Inexperience

Continuing with Bruce Allardice's statistical look at Civil War generals:

Again, the first number is Union, second Confederate.

Officers in Foreign Armies:  20  //  3

Mexican War/Other War Experience;  62  //  58

TOTAL WITH EXPERINCE 

395  (66%)  //  272  (64%)*

INEXPERIENCED CIVILIANS

188  //  153

TOTAL   

583  //  425

*  Modern research shows that Warner missed the prewar state militia service and military school attendance of a number of Southern generals.

--Old Secesh

McHenry County CWRT June 8-- Part 3: Poltroons, Patriots & Politicians

Our speaker was Bruce Allardice and his topic was "Poltroons, Patriots & Politicians:  Civil War Generals.  Well, I had to look up "Poltroons" to see what it meant.  In case you also don't know, it means an utter coward.

So, we were going to hear about Civil War generals.  This presentation could also have been called "Civil War generals:  The Good, the Bad & the Ugly."  After hearing the talk, it was amazing that these generals could have fought their way out of a paper bag, even with some help.

But, anyway, he handed out a Civil War Generals Fact Sheet and is was of interest, so I will write it down here.  These numbers taken from Ezra Warner's "generals in Blue" and "Generals in Gray" with, as he says, slight modifications.

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PREWAR MILITARY EXPERIENCE   The first number will be Union generals and the second Confederate.

West Point Graduates:    217  //  146

West Point Non-Graduates:     11  //  10

Attended Other Military Schools:      9  // 23

Regular Army/Navy Officers:    36  //  22

State Militia:    40  // 10

And More.  --Old Secesh

Civil War People Buried at Chicago's Rosehill Cemetery-- Part 1

From Find A Grave for Rosehill Cemetery and Mausoleum.  All are Union unless otherwise noted.

George Buchanan Armstrong--  Proposed sending mail over the railways for faster service.  In 1864 Postmaster General Montgomery Blair implemented this.

George S. Bangs--  Postal service, worked with George Buchanan Armstrong.  Helped raise  36th Illinois Infantry and served as colonel on staff of Governor Richard Yates.

John Lourie Beveridge--  brevet brig. gen.

George Royal Davis--  officer and later U.S. Congressman

Arthur Charles Ducat--  brevet brig. gen.

Charles Truman Hotchkiss--  brevet brig. gen.

Charles Henry Howard--  brevet brig. gen.

And, a Lot More Coming.  --Old Secesh

MCCWRT Trivia, Things I Learned-- Part 1: What Was Different About the Confederate States Naval Academy?

These were just some of the things I learned from the December 22, 2018, McHenry County Civil War Round Table Trivia discussion group meeting.

**  Frank C. ought not be allowed to e-mail in his questions.

**  We'll have to do it again next year.  Lots of discussions ensued.  We were even more on target than usual.

**  The Confederate Navy wore white uniforms during the summer months.

**  The Confederate Navy's Academy was unique in that all learning was done on a ship (the CSS Patrick Henry) and at times the ship was engaged with the enemy.

**  Four Union generals ran unsuccessfully for president over the years.  We all knew, of curse, McClelland.  But also Hancock, Fremont and Butler.

--Old SeGuess

General Adams' Flag in Bad Shape

From the July21, 2014, Daily Reporter "Battle of Franklin flag losing fight with time, donors seeking funds to save it."

FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE"  The Sons of Confederate Veterans are seeking $6500 to conserve a 2X3 foot flag last flown by Confederate General John Adams during the disasterous Battle of Franklin in Tennessee.

He, along with five other Confederate generals were killed there on November 30, 1864.

The flag was made by an unknown Mississippi woman in 1863 and served as Adams' headquarters flag, used to mark where his headquarters was located.

It was donated by Adams' widow to the Tennessee Historical Society in 1907.  It is kept today at the Tennessee State Museum.

It is made of wool and silk with its silk fringe deteriorating a lot in the last ten years.

--Old Secesh

A New Look At Confederate General John B. Hood

From the Jan. 12, 2013, Yahoo! News "Historian Reviews Southern General's Record, Revises It Via New Critical Study."

This is a review of the book "John Bell Hood: Extracting Truth From History" by Thomas J. Brown.

John Bell Hood was "a controversial and often criticized Southern general" generally held to blame by Lost Cause advocates.  Past studies have "characterized him as a rash, overaggressive and lacking in strategic imagination" man "limited logistically to the frontal assault."

He is especially skewered by his actions at the battles of Franklin and Nashville.

The book makes a case for him "as a bold, imaginative and complex leader."  He was arguably a capable if not great brigade or divisional commander, but had flaws when it came to commanding an entire army under his own direction as occurred at Atlanta and the two battles mentioned.  Then there was always the mess at Spring Hill.

Should be An Interesting Read.  --Old Secesh

New Jersey's Fort Mott Named for Civil War General-- Part 1

From the May 21, 2012, Gluchester (NJ) County Times by Kelly Roncace.

Gershom Mott was born in Lamberton, NJ, in 1822 and was a 2nd Lt. in the 10th US Infantry in the Mexican War.  In the Civil War, he was appointed Lt. Col. of the 5th New Jersey Infantry.

After the Battle of Williamsburg, he was appointed colonel and commanded the 6th New Jersey.  Commended for bravery at Battle of Seven Pines, he was severely wounded at Second Bull Run and promoted to brigadier general for bravery.

Returning to the Army after recuperation, he led his brigade at the Battle of Chancellorsville where he was wounded again and missed the Battle of Gettysburg.

It sounds like this was a leader who actually led his men into action on the battlefield.

In the fall of 1863, he led his brigade at Bristoe and in the Mine River Campaign.  Later, he was one of the few officers to be commended at the debacle of the Crater.

A Leader Who Led By Example.  --Old Secesh