Next Time, Get Off I-95 and Take the Averasboro Historic Byway in North Carolina

From the Averasboro Historic Byway brochure.

Get off in Fayetteville and drive northward mostly along US-301, 23 miles to the Civil War Battle of Averasboro site.  You'll see Colonial and Revolutionary War sites as well as a Civil War battlefield and two skirmish sites.  Then you can get back on I-95 at Exit 71.

Support in the Fayetteville, NC, area was strong for the South, but no major engagements took place there until near the end of the war, when, in March 1865, General Sherman's Army came marching and destroying through on their way with a hookup with Grant's Army.

The Left Wing of his army was engaged in a two-day delaying action by a hastily assembled ragtag army of Confederates under the command of General Hardee.  It served as a prelude to the larger Battle of Bentonville.

Worth the Side Trip.  --Old Secesh

Re-enactors at the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge-- Part 2

Tom Flood's 17-year-old son was eating a piece of that real hard hardtack as well, but his younger brother, Ian, was eating on an apple.  Much easier on the teeth.

Matt and his father play the fife, a common instrument in Civil War bands, and one not easy to learn.  They figure it will take at least five years to master.  And, this is a family that's involved.  Many re-enactor groups also contain wives and women who are either dressed as cilivilians or sometimes I've seen them as soldiers.

Dozens of men and women from across the country came to Wayne County for the weekend's re-enactment of the December 17, 1862 Battle of Goldsborough Bridge.

Robert Bernheisel was wearing a Union cavalry uniform and toting a Colt pistol and a Henry repeating rifle and said his "downfall" came back in 1963 when his family went to Gettysburg.  "That was it.  I was hooked on history."  Yep, that centennial back 1961-1965 hooked a lot of us.
For this event, he drove 1,500 miles from his home in Fremont, Nebraska.

A Special Breed.  --Old Secesh

Re-enactors At the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge-- Part 1

From the Dec. 16, 2012, Goldsboro (NC) News-Argus "Re-enactors honor history's fallen soldiers, pass down memories" by Kenneth Fine.

Some say I'm TOO much of a Civil War buff.  Besides a room full of books and these two time-consuming Civil War blogs.  But, hey, I can't get enough of it.  But, if you really want to say Civil War buff, you say re-enactor.  Now these guys (and gals) take it to the extreme.

Re-enactors Tom and Matt Flood were two of the many re-enactors who showed up to re-enact the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge last December. Both played their fifes (for the Union).  Tom, the father, crunched down on a piece of hardtack, "and after a few seconds  of chewing, manages to swallow it."  Not only does one dress  the part, one lives the part, although many have modern day accoutrement's hidden in their uniforms.  It seemed to see General Robert E. Lee at a re-enactment in Lake Villa, Illinois, talking on his cell phone.

The cracker-like snack was a staple of soldiers back then.  They were there Saturday to help commemorate the battle.  "We could go over to the hot dog stand, but we wanted to stay in period.  But really, how did they eat they eat the stuff?"

I've looked at hardtack which is usually sold by sutlers at re-enactments, but feared for my teeth (they don't call it HARDtack for nothing.

Going Back...Way Back.  --Old Secesh

Battle of Goldsborough Bridge 150th Anniversary-- Part 5: Restoring the Field

The withdrawing Union forces had no idea that two North Carolina regiments were forming to attack them.  The 51st and 52nd NC regiments came streaming out of the treeline to an open field.  As they came, they gave the famed rebel yell, alerting the Federals.

According to Randy Sauls, "They were mowed down at that point.  That's where most of the casualties of the in this battle occurred."

Sauls made his first trip to the site in the 1990s, when it was a horse farm.  The site was in bad shape, "but had been left alone.  It had not been developed, but it hadn't been lost either."  With county government approval and the group he founded, Sauls began working to restore the battlefield.  And, they have admirably succeeded.

I went out to it, but was the only one there and didn't go beyond the visitors' parking lot.  You never know who you might run into there and I mean people of a bad sort.

According to Sauls: "It is particularly interesting to be  out here by yourself--  to be in the woods walking the trail out there-- and when it's quiet, you kind of catch the moment a little bit."  he says that every once in awhile, a train even comes down the track, which really sets the scene.

"You know, the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge, it was a wonderful tactical success for the Union, but strategically, it ended up having very little value...because Fredericksburg was a disaster.."

A Little-Known Battle getting Its Due.  --Old Secesh

The Battle of Goldsborough Bridge 150th Anniversary-- Part 4

Randy Sauls continued:"There would be a lot of concussion.  It would be very, very loud.  There would be a whole lot of smoke on the battlefield and you would hear musket fire from the other side of the railroad, and where we are standing now, you would see the 17th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment just along the tree line here fighting their way up."

By early afternoon, Union forces were close to their target.  By 2:00, two Union regiments were jut a few yards from the bridge.  Foster ordered his artillery up and started pounding away at the Confederates on the other side of the river.

Six or seven men run forward and set fire to the bridge.  The fighting continued for a short time and then got quiet as Foster's men started tearing up railroad tracks.  By 4:30, they were leaving the field with their goal accomplished.

But, the Battle Wasn't Yet Over.  --Old Secesh

The Battle of Goldsborough Bridge 150th Anniversary-- Part 3

The Union two-pronged attack didn't work out as planned.  Fredericksburg was a disaster for Burnside.  Foster's men, though, did not know what had transpired in Virginia (hard to believe with the telegraph).

They had already encountered enemy at Kinston and Whitehall (where they endangered the Confederate ironclad Neuse which was under construction.

Confederate commanders hastily scraped together a much smaller force to keep the Union troops from destroying the bridge: 8th, 51st, 52nd and 61st North Carolina infantry regiments.

December 17, 1862 dawned an unusually warm winter day in the South.  One hundred and fifty years later, it was about the same for the re-enactment.  Randy Sauls said the New England soldiers much have felt this day to be completely different from what they were used to back home.

From about 10-11 AM, there was a huge artillery bombardment at the bridge.  Sauls continued, "You would see shells going through the air and they have a fuse as they're burning so you would see a little streak of light."

Getting Hot Out There.  --Old Secesh

The Battle of Goldsborough Bridge 150th Anniversary-- Part 2

The Union troops had begun their march six days earlier from New Bern.  These were not the hardened veterans who later came through North Carolina under General Sherman in 1865.  For many this was their first test in the field against enemy troops.  A fair number were nine month volunteers from Massachusetts,Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey and New York.

Randy Sauls, a local historian and founder of the Goldsborough Bridge Battlefield Association (thanks Mr. Sauls), said their journey had been "grueling.  We know that every night of the march....the men's water in their canteens froze.  And we know they didn't have tents."

Sleeping outside in NC in December is not my idea of fun, especially during a cold snap.

This battle (or skirmish as it has been called, even though it would have been a huge battle during the War of 1812) was a part of the Fredericksburg Campaign, whose battle had taken place just four days earlier.  It was part of a two-pronged Union attempt to end the war.  Plans called for Foster to march from New Bern and destroy the bridge, stopping Confederate supplies coming from Wilmington on the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad (at one time the longest railroad in the United States.

While this was happening, Union General Burnside would attack Lee's Army at Fredericksburg and, with its superior numbers, win a stunning victory.  With no replacement supplies, Lee would have to abandon Richmond and the war would be over.

Sometimes, the Best Laid Plans....  --Old Secesh

The Battle of Goldsborough Bridge, 150th Anniversary-- Part 1

From the Dec. 16, 2012, Goldsboro (NC) News-Argus "A battle comes to life--150 years later" by Kenneth Fine.  And a big thanks to Mom for saving the article for me.

"On December 17, 1862, Union and Confederate troops clashed at the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge.  This weekend, re-enactors are on those same fields."

And what makes the re-enactment even more impressive, it was held on the exact land where the original one was fought.  You are not allowed to have re-enactments on federal battlefields.

Goldsborough was the original name of the town, since shortened to Goldsboro.  During the Civil War, it was referred by both ways.

"It has been 150 years since some 15,000 men fought on an 600-acre tract of farmland--along river banks and across a vast ridge, next to a strategic bridge that, by day's end, was broken and burned."

The bridge crossed the Neuse River and carried the vital Wilmington and Weldon Railroad over it.  This provided the supplies coming to lee's Army in Virginia.

I Sure Would Have Liked to Have Been There.  --Old Secesh

Monument to Union Soldiers Dedicated at Bentonville, NC

From the March 17, 2013, UPI "N.C. dedicates monument to Union soldiers."

Four Oaks, NC. site of the Battle of Bentonville.  The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War dedicated the $10,000 monument in a ceremony Saturday at the Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site.

The battle was fought at the end of the war from March 19-21, 1865, as a last ditch effort by Confederate troops to stop Union General Sherman's onslaught across the state to hook up with Grant's Army of the Potomac.

This is all good and proper that the monument be dedicated on the battlefield.  However, I have to wonder if it had been the Sons of Confederate Veterans dedicating a monument to Confederate soldiers if this would have been allowed because of the opposition of one particular group.

Several years back, an SCV monument to Confederate General Johnston who led the forces was not allowed on the site because of that group and its opposition to any and all things Confederate.

Let's Be Fair.

Honey Springs Has National Significance: "The Gettysburg of the West"-- Part 2

The battle was fought along the Muskogee and McIntosh county line, pitting 3,000 Federals versus 5,700 Confederates under Gen. Douglas Cooper.  The majority of the troops on the Confederate side were Indians while the Union Army consisted mostly of Indians and blacks.

The First Kansas Colored unit played a key role at the center of the Union line.

Cooper's troops withdrew to Fort Washita, Bogey Depot and Red River, opening Indian Territory to Union control.

A Key Battle Few Have Heard Of.  --Old Secesh

Honey Springs Has National Significance: "The Gettysburg of the West"-- Part 1

From the March 16, 2013, Muskogee (Ok) Phoenix by Jonita Mullins.

This little-known engagement (I think I first heard about it in conjunction with Route 66 Civil War history) turned Indian Territory from a Confederate stronghold into a Union one.  The site was recently named a National Historic Landmark.

Honey Springs is located on Texas Road, about 25 miles south of Fort Gibson.  Confederate Fort Davis was across the river from Fort Gibson and the Confederates also set up a supply depot at Honey Springs.

When Union commander James Blunt found out his foe was building up for an attack, he decided to strike first.  His force crossed the Arkansas River by flatboats and marched south on Texas Road.  The two sides clashed July 17, 1863 in what has been called the "Gettysburg of the West."

More to Come.  --Old Secesh

Heritage Attacks: Tee Shirts-- Memphis

And they just continue.  It sure would be nice to have a truce.  Something along you commemorate your heritage and I won't interfere and you let me do the same.  But, that one group has essentially declared war on mine.

And, there is one group I definitely do now want to stand up for mine as it gets that other group madder than wasps whose nest has been stirred.


1.  TEE SHIRTS--  From the 3-25-13, Charleston (SC) Post and Courier--   The South Carolina Latta School District's decision to bar students from wearing tee shirts featuring Confederate flags has been upheld by a federal appellate court.  This is really made sadder when considered that this is a supposedly Southern school district.


3. MEMPHIS--   From the 3-20 Guardian--  The KKK is to rally in Memphis to protest the back-door changing of the names of Confederate parks.  While I appreciate support, this is one group that must not be allowed to support the flag and name.  That just makes our cause harder to defend.

Old Secesh

"Civil War Voices": The Story-- Part 2

"The combination of the compelling true stories, beautiful music, and the passion of the times delivers an emotional 'wallop' that is hard to describe unless experienced.  Typical words used by audience members to describe the show include 'goose bump raising,' 'stirring,' and 'inspirational.'

The five characters represent a cross section  of America.  Joe Harris was a cotton planter from Alabama with a conflicted conscience about the war.  The discovery of the existence of his diary inspired the play.

Elizabeth Keckley was born a slave , bought her freedom, and became Mary Todd Lincoln's closest friend and personal assistant in the White House.

Theo and Harriet were a young, married couple from Texas, who were separated by the war.  Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain was a college professor from Maine, who enlisted to fight for the Union.

The play follows the lives of five characters as the Civil War progresses.  Theo Perry's wife gives birth to a son a few months after he leaves to fight in the war.  Joshua Chamberlain changes his opinion about why the war is being fought."

The changes in the characters during the war is one striking part of the play.

Well Worth Seeing If You get the Opportunity.  --Old Secesh

"Civil War Voices": The Story

From the "Civil War Voices" site.

This play has been put on in several different towns as I found out at the site.  This should be filmed and school students should see it to afford a very fair and deep view of the war.  Using primary sources as it does is just what state standards push for these days.

"Civil War voices tells the compelling and passionate true stories of five individuals who lived through the conflict, using the actual words the characters left behind in diaries, letters, and other writings. 

All new arrangements of traditional melodies of the period by renowned composer Mark Hayes advance the narrative and sharpen the emotional impact of the stories.  As the nation prepares for the 150th anniversary of the outbreak of the Civil War in 2011, Civil War Voices is prepared to be a key entertainment component of events across America."

I had never heard of it and sure glad I had an opportunity to see it.  Quite an experience.

Old Secesh

"Civil War Voices": Captain Theophilus Perry

Company F of the 28th Texas, Perry's company, had Phil Brown as its original captain and Perry was the 1st lieutenant.  The commander of the regiment was Col. H. Randall.

Old Secesh