The character Ashley Wilkes in "Gone With the Wind" was supposedly held at Rock Island Prison. He said that three quarters of the men who were sent there never came out alive.
One of our members had just finished reading a book on the Rock Island Prison called "Rebels at Rock Island: The Story of a Civil War Prison" by Benton McAdams. He separated truth from fiction in regards to this prison that held tens of thousands of Confederate prisoners.
Rock Island was not without its problems-- mean punishments, inadequate facilities, malnutrition and a lack of basic supplies. But officers sought to maintain humane conditions as much as they could.
We have two Sons of Confederate Veteran Camps in Illinois which are named after two of the prison camps.
One is in the Chicago area and is called the Camp Douglas Camp, SCV.
The other is in Rockford and called the Rock Island Memorial Prisoner of War Camp.
--Old Secesh
No comments:
Post a Comment