About That John Brown-- Part 3: 'I Consecrate My Life to the Destruction of Slavery'

John Brown had a slow arc to his militaristic hatred of slavery.  He further careened with the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and then the Kansas-Nebraska Act really pushed him over the line.  This really energized supporters and opponents of slavery and expansion.

Then came the Sacking of Lawrence, Kansas, May 21, 1856.

He had a son living in Kansas and John Brown gathered guns and went to Kansas. He established a militia group he called the Liberty Guards (which was mostly John Brown and his sons).  His group came upon five pro-slavery men in Kansas and hacked them to death in what became known as Potawatomie Massacre on May 24, 1856.

At this time, John Brown was becoming a national figure.

He spend the next three years traveling throughout the North gathering support, men and guns with an idea of of an attack on the armory at Harpers Ferry, Virginia.

--Old Secesh

Pres. Lincoln Speaks at Hainesville

I stayed for the next speaker who was Kevin Wood, portraying President Abraham Lincoln.  He sure looked the part, as did Wayne Issleb who portrayed General and President U.S. Grant.  Both were great speakers and really brought their persons across.  Both audiences were standing room only.

The lucky folks were seated on hay bales.  How's that for historical?

According to President Lincoln, what really brought about the Civil War was Stephen Douglas' Kansas-Nebraska Act.  This meant that slavery could not be contained in the state s where it already existed, but could spread to the incoming states.

Lincoln did not like slavery but could live with it as long as it stayed put where it was.

His Emancipation Proclamation only freed slaves in Confederate states where the Union had no control.  But he figured  that slaves were aiding the Confederates in their efforts, so if he could cause them to stop and head for Union lines that this would help the effort.

In my opinion, Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was one of the greatest political moves ever made by a politician.  Lincoln truly was the politician's politician.  The only slaves freed were those outside of Union control, but that would cause them to runaway every chance they got and their labors could not help the Confederacy.

Since the ones in the divided border states weren't freed, it kept those states on the Union side.  And, most importantly, by making the war one of freeing the slaves, this would keep Britain and France from allying themselves with the Confederacy.

--Old Secesh

Nebraska in the Civil War-- Part 1: Anti-Slavery

From Wikipedia.

Nebraska was a territory during the Civil War and did not achieve statehood until March 1, 1867 (157 years ago this month).  Even so, Nebraska did contribute to the war.

Nebraska Territory was largely rural and unsettled, at the edge of the American Frontier.  The Kansas-Nebraska Act of 1854 has established the 40th parallel as the dividing line between Kansas and Nebraska.  It had also repealed the Missouri Compromise which had allowed  settlers in those territories to determine if they wanted slavery or not.

Anti-Secession feelings  ran high in the Nebraska Territory.  Seward County was originally named Greene County, but after Colton Greene pitched his lot in with the Confederacy, the county was renamed after Lincoln's Secretary of State, William H. Seward.

--Old Secesh

Congressional Cemetery on Capitol Hill-- Part 1

From the Washington Times American Civil War Blog by Steve Hammond.

This cemetery opened in 1807 and today the 35+ acres has over 55,000 burials.

Some interesting folks permanently residing there are as follows:

ELBRIDGE GERRY-- signer of Declaration of Independence, vice president and the person for whom the term gerrymander was named.
JOHN PHILIP SOUSA-- the march master

J. EDGAR HOOVER
DAVID HEROLD-- Lincoln assassination conspirator
ARCHIBALD HENDERSON-- longest-serving Marine Corps Commandant
700 Civil War veterans: 600 Union, 100 Confederate

There are also 185 cenotaphs which are empty tombs built to honor members of Congress.

One belongs to Senator Andrew Butler of South Carolina who co-authored the Kansas-Nebraska Act in 1854. In 1856, Sen. Charles Sumner of Massachusetts gave a speech severely derogatory toward Butler. Two days later, his nephew, Representative Preston Brooks of SC, caned Sumner.. His cenotaph is 100 feet away.

More to Come. --Old B-Runner