History In Full Color: Blog https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog en-us (C) History In Full Color [email protected] (History In Full Color) Mon, 16 Mar 2020 06:52:00 GMT Mon, 16 Mar 2020 06:52:00 GMT https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/img/s/v-12/u831707171-o946681944-50.jpg History In Full Color: Blog https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog 120 90 Gen Sheridan - Battle of Cedar Creek https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/gen-sheridan---battle-of-cedar-creek We are remembering the 150th Anniversary of the Battle of Cedar Creek, Virginia, on October 19, 1864. As future US President, Colonel Rutherford B. Hayes looked to the south, he saw an appalling sight. Out of the fog, driving a disorganized throng of half dressed Union stragglers before it - came a solid gray line of Confederates. These were General Gordon' s men advancing.


It was a strange retreat. The men were not frantic, remembered Captain S.E. Howard of the XIX Corps, "only stolidly, doggedly, determined to go the rear." A few units here and there paused to shoot back, but US General Crook's command had come completely undone. "The broad plain was a scene of rout," one of Crook's staff officers recalled, "wagons, ambulances, artillery, soldiers without commanders, commanders without soldiers, every fellow for himself, moving backwards in sullen discouragement in the faces of the yelling victors".

21009 - Major General Philip Sheridan; 'Little Phil' [LC-DIG-cwpbh-01009]21009 - Major General Philip Sheridan; 'Little Phil' [LC-DIG-cwpbh-01009]On October 19, 1864, General Phillip Sheridan's journey from Winchester to the Battle of Cedar Creek, Virginia is one of the most famous rides in military history and contributed to the re-election of President Lincoln.


Returning to his Cedar Creek headquarters, "Just as we made the crest of the rise above the stream," Sheridan recalled, "there burst upon our view the appalling spectacle of a panic stricken army - hundreds of slightly wounded men, throngs of others unhurt but thoroughly demoralized, and baggage wagons by the score, all pressing to the rear in hopeless confusion."


Sheridan barked out some orders, selected some men to ride with him to the field. Sheridan, on his big black gelding Rienzi, took the road at a rapid clip. As he went, Sheridan waving his cap and pointing to the front yelled, "Come on back, boys! Give 'em hell, God d___ 'em! We'll make coffee out of Cedar Creek tonight! The fleeing men saw him, stopped, cheered, turned around and began to follow him toward the front.


On the field, Sheridan spent two hours organizing the men into a solid line facing the Confederates. Preparations complete, Sheridan rode down the entire two mile front, cap in hand, showing himself to every soldier on the line. "I'll get a twist on these people yet," he yelled. we'll raise them out of their boots before the day is over!"


"Cheers seemed to come from throats of brass, and caps were thrown to the tops of the scattering oaks", recalled Major Walker.


At almost 4:00 p.m. an ominous silence fell over the field. "Even the batteries were still. The suspense was terrible", recalled Col James Kidd. In the awful quiet the rival armies - 45,000 men in all - waited for the inevitable.

Then the order came - "Attention! Shoulder arms! Forward! March! And with martial tread and floating flags the line of battle is away," recalls Major Forsyth. Confederate cannon erupted, Federal guns replied and musketry began to ripple down the lines.


What began as a rout, Sheridan turned into a Union victory, driving the Confederates permanently out of the Shenandoah Valley. Sheridan's dramatic role in the victory, along with the readings of Thomas Buchanan Read's poem, "Sheridan's Ride", gave the North hope that the War could be won. Horace Greeley's influential New York Tribune called it "a magnificent lyric" and ran the seven stanzas of "Sheridan's Ride" on page one. A grateful government rewarded Sheridan with permanent promotion to the rank of major general in the Regular Army.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Gen Sheridan https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/gen-sheridan---battle-of-cedar-creek Fri, 06 Nov 2015 00:08:32 GMT
Gen Lawrence Sullivan Ross - Battle of Hatchie's Bridge https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/gen-lawrence-sullivan-ross---battle-of-hatchies-bridge We are remembering the Battle of Hatchie's Bridge, Tennessee, on October 5, 1862. "After a few irregular volleys, they broke and ran a gauntlet of death trying to renegotiate the bridge", wrote one Union soldier describing the retreat.


After the Battle of Corinth, Confederate General Dorn's army had crossed the Hatchie River with stragglers still crossing when Union General Ord's forces caught up. During the confusion some men dived in the river to escape, abandoning artillery. Others charged back over the bridge to fight off the Union troops, creating a blockage on the bridge. Acting brigade commander, 24 year old Colonel Ross, gave the retreat order. Despite the confusion and carnage Ross' order saved most of his command and the bulk of Dorn's army was able to evade capture. This action led directly to Ross’s promotion to Brigadier General.

11004 - General Lawrence Sullivan Ross11004 - General Lawrence Sullivan RossDuring his service in the war, General Lawrence Sullivan "Sul" Ross took part in 135 battles and engagements and had 5 horses shot under him. First as major and then as colonel of his regiment, Ross took part in numerous western campaigns, including those of Pea Ridge, Corinth, and Van Dorn’s Tennessee. He was promoted to Brigadier General in December 1863 and commanded the Texas Cavalry Brigade.


Ross, unlike other Civil War Generals, had not attended West Point. He graduated from Wesleyan University but spent the summer of his junior year with the United States Army fighting the Comanche. In December 1860, he took part in the Battle of Pease River, in which Cynthia Ann Parker, who had been kidnapped as a child, was recovered. This exploit won the praise of the regular army officers for his skill and courage and popularity in the state of Texas.


Ross was a consistently effective General. For example, the Battle of Nashville was fought in bitter cold on Dec. 15-16, 1864. Ross was at Murfreesboro when General George Thomas attacked Hood’s Army of Tennessee. Ross’s Texans captured a Federal supply train, took 150 prisoners, then set the boxcars on fire after removing much needed sugar, coffee, hardtack, clothing plus other badly needed supplies. Hood was soundly defeated and retreated. Ross provided the retreating Army of Tennessee with a rear guard.


After the war Ross took up farming, was elected Governor twice and served as the President of Texas A&M. Within weeks of Ross's death in 1898, former cadets at Texas AMC began gathering funds for a statue.


In more recent years, students began the tradition of placing pennies at the feet of statue before exams for good luck. School legend states that Ross would often tutor students, and as payment would accept only a penny for their thoughts. At exam time, his statue, located in Academic Plaza, is often covered in pennies.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Gen Lawrence Ross https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/gen-lawrence-sullivan-ross---battle-of-hatchies-bridge Fri, 06 Nov 2015 00:02:37 GMT
Rose O'Neal Greenhow - Confederate Spy, with daughter "Little Rose" at Old Capitol Prison https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/rose-oneal-greenhow---confederate-spy-with-daughter-little-rose-at-old-capitol-prison We are remembering the October 1, 1864 drowning death of Confederate spy and unofficial diplomat, Rose Greenhow. When asked about this unusual appointment, civil war historian James McPherson replied, "Not only would Davis not have worried about sending a woman to Europe on a diplomatic mission, Davis would have been convinced that this particular woman was the best person for the job because her imprisonment in a Union 'Bastille' had evoked indignation and sympathy abroad, especially among the upper classes in Britain and France , where it was seen as an example of Yankee oppression and vulgarity. Sending Greenhow was a stroke of genius by Davis."

Rose O'Neal Greenhow - Confederate Spy, with Daughter 'Little Rose', at the Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D.C., 1862 -04849Rose O'Neal Greenhow - Confederate Spy, with Daughter 'Little Rose', at the Old Capitol Prison, Washington, D.C., 1862 -04849Rose O'Neale Greenhow - leader of Washington Society, passionate secessionist and renowned Confederate spy. Her secret messages to General Beauregard was the basis of his victory at the 1st Battle of Bull Run. Beauregard used the information to send for General Joseph E. Johnston's army guarding the Shenandoah Valley sixty miles away. Johnston loaded his army onto trains, marking the first use of trains to rush troops to a battlefield during the Civil War, to support Beauregard. As the result, General McDowell had two armies to face at Manassas and lost.


How did Greenhow become a dedicated fighter for the South? As a child, a family slave was hanged for causing Greenhow's father's death. A few years later, the teenager and her sister moved to Washington D.C. to live at the home of her aunt, the proprietor of the Hill's Boarding House. The residence was favored by Southern Supreme Court Justices, power brokers and Congressmen, including John C. Calhoun. Greenhow considered Calhoun a second father and became an astute political strategist due to his tutelage. She demonstrated her skill by encouraging her friend, James Buchanan, to run for President and formulated the strategy that enabled him to win the office. Years later, Greenhow spent weeks nursing Calhoun on his deathbed at the Boarding House.


Greenhow used her political connections not only to acquire information for the Confederacy, put to petition Secretary of State Seward for promotions for her son-in-law in the Union Army. When it became clear that Greenhow was a spy, the Union hoped to quietly arrest her and capture any possible conspirators who visited her home. The plan was foiled when "Little Rose" climbed a backyard tree to yell to the neighbors, "Mother has been arrested. Mother has been arrested."


Under house arrest, Greenhow's home became a tourist attraction. While raising a fuss over being under constant guard, Rose still managed to send information to the Confederates. Lincoln, himself, ordered her moved to her former home, Hill's Boarding House, which had been turned into the Old Capitol Prison.


On arrival, eight year old "Little Rose" told the prison superintendent, "You have one of the hardest little rebels her you ever saw. But if you get along with me as well as Lieutenant Sheldon (commander of the Greenhow house guard), you will have no trouble."


After months imprisoned, Greenhow was exiled to the Confederate States. In Richmond, Jefferson Davis asked Greenhow to travel to Europe to woo the elite to recognize the Confederacy. There, Greenhow published her memoir, My imprisonment and the First Year of Abolition Rule at Washington, which became a best seller. She was granted an audience with Napoleon III and met with highest British and French government officials.


After a year abroad, Greenhow boarded the Condor, a British blockade runner to return home. It was run aground by a US gunboat. Greenhow, fearing a return to prison, fled in a rowboat which capsized. She was drowned by the weight of gold from the royalties for her book. To honor her, the Confederacy gave her a military funeral in Wilmington, North Carolina. The Ladies Memorial Association, in 1888, marked her grave with a cross that read "Mrs. Rose O'Neal Greenhow. A Bearer of Dispatches to the Confederate Government."

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Confederate Spy Old Capitol Prison Rose Greenhow https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/rose-oneal-greenhow---confederate-spy-with-daughter-little-rose-at-old-capitol-prison Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:58:26 GMT
Capt. George Custer and Gen Affred Pleasonton on horseback https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/capt-george-custer-and-gen-affred-pleasonton-on-horseback It used to be that only the wealthy could afford to have a portrait of themselves or their family made. By 1862, Oliver Wendell Holmes noted photography has become, "the social currency, the green-backs of civilization". The affordability of photographs resulted in soldiers taking pictures wearing their uniforms, with their loved ones, and in the case of cavalry officers - with their horses.

04041 - Capt. George A. Custer and Gen. Alfred Pleasonton on horseback04041 - Capt. George A. Custer and Gen. Alfred Pleasonton on horseback"Custer was a splendid horseman - fearless, graceful, and dashing." Gen Alfred Pleasonton

During an August 17, 1880 interview for "The New York Times", Pleasonton was asked, "How was Custer?"

"He was a splendid leader, and when he was upon my staff he did some wonderfully brilliant things. The trouble with Custer was that he would not see that his whole force was available. He would rush in and lead a regiment in a charge and let a whole brigade look at him."

"What was he on your staff?"

"He was Captain A.D.C., but I had him promoted to Brigadier-General. He would have licked the Indians on the Little Big Horn if he had kept his command together."

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Capt. George Custer and Gen Affred Pleasonton on horseback on horseback Civil war color photo Custer Gen Pleasonton George Custer https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/capt-george-custer-and-gen-affred-pleasonton-on-horseback Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:47:32 GMT
Sgt. Johnny Clem - "Drummerboy of Chickamauga" https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/sgt-johnny-clem---drummerboy-of-chickamauga We are remembering the Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19 -20 1863. Johnny Clem, the "Drummer Boy of Chickamauga", was 12 years old. Chickamauga is the Indian word meaning blood river. "The Chickamauga lived up to its name that day", said Colonel Thomas Berry, one of General Nathan Forrest's cavalry officers. "It ran red with blood."

Sgt. Johnny Clem - 34511Sgt. Johnny Clem - 34511It being Sunday, May 24, 1861, and the great rebellion in progress, Johnnie said at the dinner-table: “Father, I’d like mighty well to be a drummer boy. Can’t I go into the Union army?” “Tut, what nonsense, boy!” replied father, “you are not ten years old.” Yet when he had disappeared it is strange we had no thoughts that he had gone into the service recalled his sister Lizzie.


The family feared that Johnnie had drowned in a nearby canal and mourned for him for two years. Instead Clem had joined the 22nd Michigan as a drummer boy. He was in many battles and was captured in Chattanooga, Tennessee.


Clem said that the rebels stole about all that he had, including his pocket book, which contained only twenty-five cents. “But I would not have cared for the rest,” he added, “if they hadn’t stole my hat, which had three bullet holes in it, received at Chickamauga.”


Clem became famous in both the North and the South as the "Drummer Boy of Chickamauga". The Confederate newspapers used his age and celebrity status to claim, "what sore straits the Yankees are driven, when they have to send their babies out to fight us."


A daughter of Chief Justice Salmon Chase presented him with a silver medal inscribed, “Sergeant Johnnie Clem, Twenty-second Michigan Volunteer Infantry, from N. M. C.,” which he wore in at least one of the many pictures taken by photographers hoping to profit from the young boy’s newfound celebrity.


When he was exchanged as a prisoner he came home for a week. He was wasted to a skeleton. He had been starved almost to death. He seemed like as if he was done up in a mass of rags. There were no soldier clothes small enough to fit him, and he was so small and wan and not much larger than a babe, about thirty inches high, and couldn’t have weighed over sixty pounds according to his sister.


For his heroic conduct, Clem was made a sergeant by General Rosecrans, who placed him upon the Roll of Honor, and attached him to the headquarters of the Army of the Cumberland. At the age of 13, Clem became the youngest non-commissioned officer in the U.S. Army ever. He rose to the rank of Colonel and became the last soldier of the Civil War to retire from active duty in 1916. Upon his retirement he was promoted to Brigadier General. He died in 1937 and is buried at Arlington.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) - Civil war color photo Drummerboy of Chickamauga Johnny Clem https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/sgt-johnny-clem---drummerboy-of-chickamauga Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:41:35 GMT
Bridge on the Boonsboro Pike; Middle Bridge - Antietam, MD https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/bridge-on-the-boonsboro-pike-middle-bridge---antietam-md We are remembering the Battle of Antietam, on September 17th, 1862. Whereas, studies show that commuters using the 5 Freeway in California have the worst commute to work, it can be argued that General Ambrose Burnside had it worse. His orders were to cross the river and fight Lee's men. Burnside led his men to what is today known as "Burnsides' Bridge". On the opposite side of the river the Confederates waited on a bluff 100 feet high overlooking the bridge. The road leading to the bridge was parallel to the river and allowed the Confederates to begin targeting the Union troops.


It took repeated assaults for Burnside’s men to capture the bridge. The Union troops suffered more than 500 casualties compared to less than 160 Confederates. The Confederates were so well fortified that they were only driven off by running out of ammunition. Once the bridge was captured it presented its own set of problems. At only 12 feet wide it was a bottleneck for thousands of troops trying to cross and greatly slowed the army. Afterwards, Burnside had to replenish his ammunition before getting to his job site - the battlefield.

00271 - Bridge on the Boonsboro Pike; Middle Bridge - Antietam, MD, 1862 (LC-DIG-cwpb-00271)00271 - Bridge on the Boonsboro Pike; Middle Bridge - Antietam, MD, 1862 (LC-DIG-cwpb-00271)"Remember, General, I command the last reserve of the last Army of the Republic." General Fitz John Porter of V Corp.


On September 17, 1862, during the Battle of Antietam, a misunderstanding of orders resulted in the Confederate line being overrun at the Sunken Road. "In this road lay so many dead rebels that they formed a line which one might have walked upon as far as I could see," a New Hampshire soldier wrote.


General McClellan witnessed the Sunken Road fighting. He was less than a mile away at the headquarters of Fitz John Porter's V Corps, which were being held in reserve, close to Middle Bridge. Instead of seeing an opportunity to attack and destroy Lee's army, McClellan decides to consolidate his forces against an enemy he believes has a considerable numeric advantage.


In this image, Alexander Gardner captures the Newcomer Farm and Mill along with the Middle Bridge. As a result of the Battle of Antietam:


· Newcomer was unable to financially recover from the damage to his property, which he sold.

· McClellan lost his job commanding the Army of the Potomac.


· The Union lost the best opportunity to defeat General Lee until Appomattox.

· General Lee lost the offensive into the North.


· Over 22,000 Americans lost their lives, were wounded or missing after the bloodiest single-day battle in American history.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Antietam Bridge on the Boonsboro Pike Civil war color photo Middle Bridge https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/bridge-on-the-boonsboro-pike-middle-bridge---antietam-md Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:37:57 GMT
Judah Benjamin, Sec of War, C.S.A. https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/judah-benjamin-sec-of-war-c-s-a We are remembering Judah P. Benjamin, the first Jewish cabinet member in North America and the first Senator to acknowledge being Jewish in the US Senate. Ruth Bader Ginsburg said of Benjamin, "He rose to the top of the legal profession twice in one lifetime, on two continents, beginning his first ascent as a raw youth and his second as a fugitive minister of a vanquished power."

Judah Benjamin, Jefferson Davis's Secretary of War - 05642Judah Benjamin, Jefferson Davis's Secretary of War - 05642At the end of the War, Judah P. Benjamin was hunted by every Yankee wanting the big pay day of $40,000 the Federal Government was offering. Between his Jewish religion and having sent John Surratt (son of hanged Lincoln assassination conspirator Mary Surratt) on a covert mission to Canada, Benjamin believed he may not survive Federal capture.


Benjamin served as the first Jewish cabinet member in North America and the first Senator to acknowledge being Jewish in the US Senate. He has been referred to as "the brains of the Confederacy". Benjamin served as the Confederate Attorney General, Secretary of War & State. As Secretary of State, he arranged for the Erlanger "Cotton Loan" to buy military supplies, which were delivered by blockade runners. It is only appropriate that Benjamin's image appears on the Confederate two dollar bill.


Benjamin's harrowing escape sounds like an adventure tale. He parts from Confederate President Davis and Cabinet members in Abbeville, South Carolina on May 2nd. He begins his escape disguised as a Frenchman seeking to make a land purchase. He speaks broken English like a Frenchmen as he made his way to Sarasota Bay, Florida. Benjamin travels by open boat the 600 miles to the Bahamas surviving squalls. After that he boards a sloop carrying sponges. When the boat leaks, the sponges expand and the sloop explodes. He and the crew are fortunately rescued by a British warship. He then takes a steamer to England which catches on fire after five hours and has to return to port to have the fire extinguished. Two days later, Benjamin sets out again and finally reaches England on August 30, 1865.


A man who two US Presidents nominates (and he declines) to be a Supreme Court Justice, restarts his career by reading law for three years before building a very successful law career in London. This enables him to support several friends in the former Confederacy during the Reconstruction era with sizeable financial gifts. Per his doctor's advice, Benjamin retires in 1883 and moves to Paris, where his family lives. On May 6, 1884, Benjamin dies in Paris. His Catholic wife has the last rites administered to him and buries Benjamin in a Catholic cemetery. His grave did not bear his name until 1938, when a plaque was placed by the Paris chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Judah Benjamin Sec of War, C.S.A. https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/judah-benjamin-sec-of-war-c-s-a Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:34:56 GMT
Gen Edmund Kirby Smith, C.S.A. https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/gen-edmund-kirby-smith-c-s-a We are remembering the Battle of Richmond, Kentucky on August 29 - 30, 1862. It was one of the most decisive and complete Confederate victories of the war. Kirby Smith accomplished a tactical victory by picking the ideal battle location against a larger, inexperienced army.


Both sides were aware that over 2,000 raw recruits had joined the Union army in Lexington a few days earlier. Out of town, General "Bull" Nelson ordered an immediate retreat when informed of the approaching Confederate forces. Despite being 2:30 AM, Nelson jumped out of bed to rush to the field. He rallied the troops but was unable to prevent the rout. Nelson was barely able to escape with some of his men.


The victory opened the way north towards Lexington and Frankfort for the Confederates.

06080 - Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith; Trans-Mississippi Department, C.S.A. [LC-DIG-cwpb-06080]06080 - Gen. Edmund Kirby Smith; Trans-Mississippi Department, C.S.A. [LC-DIG-cwpb-06080]"Surrender" wasn't in Edmund Kirby Smith's vocabulary. He is the only officer to both refuse to surrender to the Confederates while serving as a Union officer and refuse to surrender to the Union while serving as a Confederate officer.


As a Major, Edmund Kirby Smith refused to surrender the 2nd US Cavalry at Camp Colorado, Texas to secessionist forces at the start of the war. It wasn't until his home state, Florida seceded, did Smith resign to join the Confederacy.


In 1863, Smith took command of the Trans-Mississippi Department. With the capture of Vicksburg & Port Hudson by US forces, the Confederacy was split in two. Smith became, in effect, governor of the western Confederacy. Despite lacking manpower & supplies, he successfully defended “Kirby-Smithdom” from several Union attacks.


The surrender of Confederate forces under Robert E. Lee and Joseph Johnston in the spring of 1865 didn't impact Smith's actions. He continued to resist with his small army in Texas. Smith insisted that Lee and Johnston were prisoners of war and decried Confederate deserters.


On May 26, 1865, General Simon Buckner, acting for Smith, met with Union officers in New Orleans to arrange the surrender of Smith's force under terms similar to Lee's surrender at Appomattox, Virginia. Smith reluctantly agreed, and officially laid down his arms at Galveston on June 2, 1865. His Confederate troops were some of the last in the field.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Gen Edmund Kirby Smith https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/gen-edmund-kirby-smith-c-s-a Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:31:25 GMT
US Gen Winfield Hancock - Second Battle of Ream's Station's https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-winfield-hancock---second-battle-of-reams-station-s We are remembering the August 25, 1864, Second Battle of Ream's Station, fought as part of the Siege of Petersburg. "I do not care to die, but I pray God I may never leave the field." Winfield Scott Hancock, during the Battle of Reams's Station, the "blackest of all days" in the history of II Corps.


Facing disaster at Reams's Station, Hancock ignored personal safety. "Hancock had his bridle-rein cut by a bullet," wrote a soldier, "but was continuing galloping along the front urging the stragglers to resume their places in the lines and do their duty."


Suddenly his horse dropped under him. Hancock left the animal for dead, but a few minutes later it clambered to its feet, unharmed by a glancing blow to the spine that had temporarily paralyzed it. Hancock remounted and continued the fight. "We can beat them yet" he bellowed. "Don't leave me, for God's sake!"


Despite Hancock's best efforts his men deserted their entrenchments and fell back. Hancock gave the order to pull out after dark. The II Corps lost 12 battle flags, 9 guns and had 2,747 causalities.


Although the Confederates won a victory, Grant was satisfied that eight miles of Weldon Railroad track had been destroyed before the attack. The ability to get supplies to Petersburg were being weakened. Lee's lines were being stretched even thinner. The Siege of Petersburg would continue until March 25, 1865.

05828 - Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock; Hancock the Superb [LC-DIG-cwpb-05828]05828 - Maj. Gen. Winfield S. Hancock; Hancock the Superb [LC-DIG-cwpb-05828]“Hancock was superb today", General McClellan, in a telegraph sent to Washington during the Peninsula Campaign in 1862. From that point “Hancock the Superb” was born. Sadly, while Hancock may have been superb, McClellan did not take advantage of the opportunity that Hancock had given him and lost an opportunity to have a major victory early in the war.


As the Commander of II Corps, Hancock's men became known as "Hancock's Cavalry"; they stopped marching only while the staff officers got fresh horses.

At Gettysburg, on July 3rd, Hancock was on the receiving end of Pickett’s Charge. Hancock rode his horse along the line to ensure that his men knew he was there and provide moral support. When one of his officers tried to persuade him to move to the rear Hancock replied "There are times when a corps commander's life does not count." Shortly after he was wounded when a round struck his saddle and pierced his thigh. For his gallantry and bravery he was awarded the “Thanks of Congress”. While he continued to command troops, the effect of this wound affected him the rest of the war.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo US Gen Winfield Hancock https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-winfield-hancock---second-battle-of-reams-station-s Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:25:11 GMT
Horace Greeley - The Prayer of 20 Millions https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/horace-greeley---the-prayer-of-20-millions In 1862, British and French textile workers were clamoring for Southern cotton as factories became increasingly idle. Lincoln had to come up with a strategy that would deter Britain and France from aiding the Confederacy while keeping the Border States in the Union.


The opportunity to test the water came on August 19, 1862 in the New York Tribune. Influential editor Horace Greeley wrote an open letter to Lincoln urging him to free the slaves to weaken the Confederacy. The editorial called, "The Prayer of Twenty Millions", resulted in one of Abraham Lincoln's most famous letters.


Lincoln states, "My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, & is not either to save or to destroy slavery." His response was a classic statement of Lincoln's constitutional responsibilities and prepared the public for the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862.

Horace Greeley - 4190190617Horace Greeley - 4190190617Horace Greeley was one of the most interesting and eccentric figures in American history. Even in appearance Greeley sparked comment; he wore a full length coat on even the hottest days and always carried a bright umbrella.


As the founder & editor of the most influential US newspaper from the 1840's to the 1870s, the New York Tribune, he was involved in almost every political and social issue of his era, ranging from election reform to spiritualism and phrenology.


On August 19, 1862, Horace Greeley, wrote an open letter to Lincoln to free the slaves to weaken the Confederacy. The editorial called, "The Prayer of Twenty Millions", resulted in one of Abraham Lincoln's most famous letters. Lincoln states, "My paramount object in this struggle is to save the Union, and is not either to save or to destroy slavery." His response was a classic statement of Lincoln's constitutional responsibilities & prepared the public for the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Horace Greeley https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/horace-greeley---the-prayer-of-20-millions Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:21:21 GMT
US Gen Miles - Battle of Marye's Heights https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-miles---battle-of-maryes-heights We are honoring the August 8th,1839, birthday of General Nelson Miles - a man who bullets could not keep down.  An example of his courage and determination came during the December 13, 1862, Battle of Marye's Heights (part of Battle of Fredericksburg). Miles was convinced the Federal tactics were dead wrong. He suggested a bayonet charge to Brigadier General Caldwell who denied permission as, "It seemed to me a wanton loss of brave men."


While waiting Caldwell's answer, Miles received a terrible wound. A bullet caught him in the throat and came out behind his left ear. "His comrades expected him to die at any time," recalled Major General Oliver O. Howard. But Miles remained conscious and full of fight, and took his case for a bayonet charge back to Howard. As the General remembered what transpired, Miles gripped his bleeding throat, "holding together the lacerated pieces of flesh with his hands. He staggered to my headquarters, delivered his message and then fainted dead away. He was determined to either to be killed or promoted."

06150 - Maj. Gen. Nelson Miles; Age 26 - Medal of Honor - Chancellorsville 1863 [LC-DIG-cwpb-06150]06150 - Maj. Gen. Nelson Miles; Age 26 - Medal of Honor - Chancellorsville 1863 [LC-DIG-cwpb-06150]Major General Nelson Miles was one of the most colorful & famous soldiers of his time. Theodore Roosevelt referred to him as "Brave Peacock". Miles, one of the War's "Boy Generals", became a Major General at the age of 26. He participated in every major battle of the Army of Potomac except Gettysburg.


At the start of the war, Miles was a twenty-two year old store clerk in Boston without any military experience. For most, this would have meant an honorary, meager status in the enlisted ranks. Miles, however, managed to secure a commission and within six months of volunteering in September of 1861, was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel. As a Colonel, he earned the Medal of Honor during the Battle of Chancellorsville for “Distinguished gallantry while holding with his command an advanced position against repeated assaults by a strong force of the enemy; was severely wounded.”


Following Chancellorsville, in 1863, he was promoted to Brigadier General and finally Major General in 1864. At the end of the war, as commander of Fort Monroe, Virginia, he was the target of public criticism in the North for having kept Confederate President Jefferson Davis chained in his cell.


After the war, Miles became a famous Indian fighter. Like most of his contemporaries, his rank was reduced. Many of the Generals had significant reductions (Custer, also a Major General, became a Captain). Miles, who was only a few months older than Custer and without his West Point background, became a Colonel. Following Custer’s death in 1876, it was Miles that finally managed to end most of the Indian Wars. During this time Miles pioneered the use of heliograph (using Morse code mirror flashes), establishing lines over 100 miles long.


By 1880, Miles was once again a Brigadier General, this time as a permanent and not brevet rank given during the Civil War. In 1894, he oversaw the US troops that aided in putting down the Pullman Strike riots.

Ten years later he was promoted again to Major General, 26 years after first receiving the rank. While few of his contemporaries ever attained their Civil War rank following the war, Miles was not done. In 1895, he was named Commanding General of the United States, a title once held by Winfield Scott, George McClellan, Ulysses S. Grant, William T. Sherman and Phillip Sheridan (among others). Promoted to Lieutenant General, Miles once again commanded troops in the field during the Spanish American War.


Upon his retirement in 1903, the office of Commanding General was abolished, making Miles the last to hold the office. During World War I, Miles once again volunteered for duty but was declined due to age. In 1925, at the age of 85, Miles died while attending the circus with his grandchildren. At the time, Miles was one of the last surviving Civil War era Generals. Miles is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) US Gen Nelson Miles https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-miles---battle-of-maryes-heights Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:19:01 GMT
Adm Farragut - Battle of Mobile Bay https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/adm-farragut---battle-of-mobile-bay We are honoring the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Mobile Bay on August 5th & the sinking of the USS Tecumseh. A Confederate soldier remembering the sight wrote, “She careens, her bottom appears! Down, down, down she goes to the bottom of the channel, carrying 150 of her crew, confined within her ribs, to a watery grave.”


Ordered to keep the CSS Tennessee away from the US wooden vessels, ironclad USS Tecumseh steers directly towards her. Ten minutes later the Tecumseh hits a torpedo (mine) and sinks within 30 seconds. Commander Craven and the pilot, John Collins, arrived at the foot of the ladder leading to the main deck simultaneously with water up to their waists. Craven stepped back, saying "After you, pilot", but was unable to follow him to safety before the monitor capsized. Including Craven, 94 of the crew went down with the ship.


Seen here is an image of Admiral David Farragut. During this Battle, Farragut declares, "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" The strategy of having 18 ships run a gauntlet of mines may seem rash. However, all but one ship made it through the channel into the Bay. Then again, the crew of the USS Tecumseh, leading the attack may not agree.


Eventually, Fort Gaines and Fort Morgan fell into the hands of the Union Navy. The port was closed to Confederate blockade runners, but the port city of Mobile was never taken.

05210 - Rear Adm. David G. Farragut; 'Damn the torpedoes.  Full Speed ahead!' [LC-DIG-cwpb-05210]05210 - Rear Adm. David G. Farragut; 'Damn the torpedoes. Full Speed ahead!' [LC-DIG-cwpb-05210]Best remembered today for the phrase, ”Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead”, during the Battle of Mobile Bay, it is remarkable that at the time, he had been on active duty for more than 50 years! Serving from 1810 (at the age of 9) until his death in 1870, he was the first Rear Admiral, Vice Admiral and Full Admiral the U.S. Navy ever had.


Prior to the Civil War he had a remarkable career starting as a 9 year-old midshipman on the USS Essex. The Essex had sailed to South America during the War of 1812. There, Farragut captained a captured British ship into Santiago, Chile. By all accounts, he conducted himself with calm courage during his ship's defeat. After this excitement, 45 years of routine naval duty followed.


A Southern by birth, Farragut pledged his allegiance to the Union at the start of the Civil War. Ordered to open the mouth of the Mississippi by taking New Orleans, Farragut earned the title "Old Salamander", running ships under heavy fire between New Orleans' forts.


During the Battle of Mobile Bay, legend has it that Farragut was prepared to go down with his ship if it was sunk. The truth is during the battle, as the smoke from the guns clouded the air, Farragut climbed into the USS Hartford's rigging, and soon was high enough that a fall would certainly incapacitate him and could have killed him. Seeing this, Captain Drayton sent a seaman aloft with a piece of line to secure the admiral. He demurred, saying, "Never mind, I am all right", but the sailor obeyed his captain's orders, tying one end of the line to a forward shroud, then around the admiral and to the after shroud.


Later, when CSS Tennessee made her unsupported attack on the Federal fleet, Farragut climbed into the mizzen rigging. Still concerned for his safety, Captain Drayton had Flag-Lieutenant J. Crittenden Watson tie him to the rigging again. Thus, the admiral had been tied to the rigging twice in the course of the battle, starting the legend.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Adm David G. Farragut Civil war color photo https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/adm-farragut---battle-of-mobile-bay Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:11:15 GMT
Morgan's Raiders In Jail https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/morgans-raiders-in-jail July 26, 1863 - The Battle of Salineville, Ohio resulted in the surrender of Confederate General John Hunt Morgan and his Raiders. The Battle was one of the northernmost military actions involving the Confederate Army.

Morgans Raiders in JailMorgans Raiders in JailFor 46 days, between June 11–July 26, 1863, the Confederate Morgan's Raiders distracted tens of thousands of Union forces while Confederate General Bragg's troops retreated unmolested and delayed the fall of east Tennessee. The Raiders destroyed 34 bridges, disrupted the railroad at more than 60 places, seized thousands of dollars worth of supplies, food, and other items from stores, houses and farms. The South called it "The Great Raid of 1863". Some Northern newspapers referred to it as "The Calico Raid" in reference to the procuring of personal goods from stores and houses.


The Battle of Salineville, Ohio ended the Raid with the capture of General Morgan and his men. 118 of the prisoners were sent to the Western Penitentiary, near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by rail after the Battle. They were incarcerated here from August 5, 1863, to March 19, 1864, when they were transferred to another prison at Fort Delaware, New Jersey.


On November 27th, 1863, Morgan and six of his men escaped from the Ohio Penitentiary, by digging a tunnel to the inner yard and then going over the wall. It is not known how Morgan selected the men who joined him in the escape. However, the men in this picture were not among the chosen few.


left to right: Captain William E. Curry, 8th Kentucky Cavalry; Lieutenant Andrew J. Church, 8th Kentucky Cavalry; Lieutenant Leeland Hathaway, 14th Kentucky Cavalry; Lieutenant Henry D. Brown, 10th Kentucky Cavalry; Lieutenant William Hays, 20th Kentucky Cavalry.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Morgan's Raiders in Jail https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/morgans-raiders-in-jail Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:08:48 GMT
Neil Armstrong On The Moon https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/neil-armstrong-on-the-moon In honor of the 45th Anniversary of the Landing on the Moon.

Neil Armstrong On The Moon - GPN-2000-001209Neil Armstrong On The Moon - GPN-2000-001209Astronaut Neil A. Armstrong, Apollo ll mission commander, at the modular equipment storage assembly (MESA) of the Lunar Module "Eagle" on the historic first extravehicular activity (EVA) on the lunar surface.

Astronaut Edwin E. Aldrin Jr. took the photograph with a Hasselblad 70mm camera. Most photos from the Apollo 11 mission show Buzz Aldrin. This is one of only a few that show Neil Armstrong (some of these are blurry).

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Neil Armstrong lunar module moon https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/neil-armstrong-on-the-moon Thu, 05 Nov 2015 23:04:30 GMT
Sailors Relaxing on the Deck of the USS Monitor https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/sailors-relaxing-on-the-deck-of-the-uss-monitor While attached to McClellan's headquarters at Harrison's Landing, Virginia, James Gibson boarded the USS Monitor. The only photographs ever taken of the USS Monitor were shot that afternoon.

01062 - U.S.S. Monitor; Sailors relaxing on deck, July 9, 1862 [LC-DIG-cwpb-01062]01062 - U.S.S. Monitor; Sailors relaxing on deck, July 9, 1862 [LC-DIG-cwpb-01062]Few people today realize that the iconic Monitor we think of only served for eleven months before it was lost at sea during a storm. Such was the success of the ship that it inspired a whole line of Monitor class warships, both in the U.S. and around the world. The legacy of this class of ship continued in service as late as the Vietnam War.


During the Civil War, the Union Navy produced dozens of Monitor class ships. Some of these ships had two or three turrets to increase the fire power over the Monitor’s single turret. Attempts were made to improve the ocean maneuverability that proved to be the Achilles’s heel of the original. These ships were excellent river boats; with shallow drafts and large caliber weapons, they could bring devastating fire on enemy shore positions along the river. The last of the Civil War era Monitors were retired shortly before the First World War. By that time, future generations of ships inspired by the Monitor had replaced them.


Later Monitors became gun boats with large weapons and limited armor to allow it to travel into shallow river areas. Immediately following the war other countries recognized the power of these vessels and began to build their own ships inspired by the Monitor. Sweden produced its first Monitor in 1865 and ultimately produced 14. The first of these ships was named in honor of John Ericsson, who invented the Monitor and had been a Swedish native. Other navies, including Britain’s Royal Navy produced their own. The U.S. continued to build variations up to the Vietnam War that carried the abbreviation of MON (for Monitor). These served as part of the brown water Navy operating river boats during that war.


All of the U.S. Civil War era Monitor class ships were either lost or ultimately scrapped. None exists today. The oldest remaining Monitor inspired ship is Sweden’s HMS Sölve. She was built in 1875 by John Ericsson, the original Monitor inventor. Today it is part of a maritime museum in Gothenburg, Sweden.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo USS Monitor https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/sailors-relaxing-on-the-deck-of-the-uss-monitor Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:57:16 GMT
Uncle Sam - I Want You https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/uncle-sam---i-want-you Iconic World War I Poster

I Want You For U.S. Army - 3b52086I Want You For U.S. Army - 3b52086On April 6, 1917, Congress formally approved declaring War on Germany. Now, the United States needed to quickly fill the ranks of the military to fight in WWI. In a world without television, posters were the go to advertising media.

Today, when we think of the image of “Uncle Sam”, we are thinking of the iconic poster James Montgomery Flagg created depicting Uncle Sam pointing directly at the viewer proclaiming: “I Want You for U.S. Army.”

“That pose was from a sketch of Lord Kitchener, who was the British Secretary of War, who did a similar thing,” says David D. Miller III, Smithsonian curator in the division of armed forces history. “The famous UK 1914 poster shows Kitchener pointing his finger, says ‘Britons Want You: Join Your Country’s Army.’”

According to Miller, Flagg was his own model. He “added the beard and white hair and Uncle Sam costume to it.”
“So the image most of us have of Uncle Sam is that of the illustrator Flagg, imagining himself an older man in white hair in beard. He was a much younger man at the time, but as he grew older, he came to very much resemble that ‘I Want You’ poster,” Miller reveals.


This image has been restored of damage and the colors have been balanced to appear as they would have when the image was new.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Uncle Sam https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/uncle-sam---i-want-you Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:54:46 GMT
US Gen Joshua Chamberlain https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-joshua-chamberlain "We have to go in places no body would ever think of going into were it not for the necessities of war." 
Joshua Chamberlain, the "Lion of Round Top"

05799- Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain05799- Joshua Lawrence ChamberlainHis commanding officer, Colonel Strong Vincent of the 3rd Brigade was dead. Vincent had ordered that the Union's ground was to be held at all costs and not to retreat. Confederate John Bell Hood's brigades were advancing up Little Round Top during the Battle of Gettysburg. Lt. Colonel Joshua Chamberlain had to make a decision - fast. Learning that his men's ammunition was essentially gone, Chamberlain yelled, "Bayonet", and lead the charge down the hill. The Union's position was saved while capturing 101 of the Confederate soldiers.


Years later, Chamberlain, the "Lion of Round Top" was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor "for extraordinary heroism on 2 July 1863, while serving with 20th Maine Infantry, in action at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, for daring heroism and great tenacity in holding his position on the Little Round Top against repeated assaults, and carrying the advance position on the Great Round Top."


In all, college professor and future Governor of Maine, Joshua Chamberlain, served in 20 battles and numerous skirmishes, was cited for bravery four times, had six horses shot from under him, and was wounded six times.


On April 9, 1865, Chamberlain was approached by Confederate General Gordon to arrange for General Lee to hear from General Grant as to the proposed surrender. The next day, Chamberlain was selected to preside over the parade of the Confederate infantry as part of their formal surrender at Appomattox Court House on April 12.


Thus Chamberlain was responsible for one of the most poignant scenes of the American Civil War. As the Confederate soldiers marched down the road to surrender their arms and colors, Chamberlain, on his own initiative, ordered his men to come to attention and "carry arms" as a show of respect. Chamberlain described in his memoirs, The Passing of the Armies, what happened next:


Gordon, at the head of the marching column, outdoes us in courtesy. He was riding with downcast eyes and more than pensive look; but at this clatter of arms he raises his eyes and instantly catching the significance, wheels his horse with that superb grace of which he is master, drops the point of his sword to his stirrup, gives a command, at which the great Confederate ensign following him is dipped and his decimated brigades, as they reach our right, respond to the 'carry.' All the while on our part not a sound of trumpet or drum, not a cheer, nor a word nor motion of man, but awful stillness as if it were the passing of the dead.


Many years later, Gordon, in his own memoirs, called Chamberlain "one of the knightliest soldiers of the Federal Army." Gordon never mentioned the anecdote until after he read Chamberlain's account, more than 40 years later.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Gen Chamberlain Joshua Chamberlain https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-joshua-chamberlain Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:53:05 GMT
CS Gen Lee's Gettysburg Headquarters https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/cs-gen-lees-gettysburg-headquarters This is the home General Robert E. Lee used during the Battle of Gettysburg as his headquarters. However, Lee slept in his tent pitched outside.

01652 - Headquarters of Robert E. Lee; Gettysburg, PA July 1863 (LC-DIG-cwpb-01652)01652 - Headquarters of Robert E. Lee; Gettysburg, PA July 1863 (LC-DIG-cwpb-01652)“[It was] running the gauntlet in the strict sense of the word. The bullets were flying from each side in a perfect shower. The air seemed so filled that it seemed almost impossible to breathe without inhaling them. Some one fell beside me almost every step,” - Lt. Wilbur Judd, 97th NY

In 1863, the building known today as “General Lee's Headquarters” at Gettysburg, Pa. shot to fame after Matthew Brady’s photograph of it appeared in Harper’s Weekly. The stone home of 69-year-old (Widow) Mary Thompson was located between four key landmarks of the first day of fighting; Seminary Ridge, Oak Ridge, the Chambersburg Pike and the unfinished railroad the locals used as an alternate roadway to avoid paying the toll. If the walls could tell tales, the bloody fighting in the vicinity could be the photo caption, not the gathering place of Confederate generals.

On July 1st, at 7:30 a.m., the Battle of Gettysburg began. By 3:30 p.m., the entire Union position began to crumble. To support the infantry, artillery was placed on the ridge. “Just a few yards west of the Widow Thompson's house were the six Napoleons of Battery B, 4th United States Artillery under the direction of Lt. James Stewart. Three of the guns, under the command of Lt. James Davison, were positioned between the Chambersburg Pike and the railroad cut. The other three were positioned north of the cut in front of the Railroad Woods, and were commanded by Lt. Stewart himself. Just south of these and across the pike from the stone house were the two three-inch rifles of Lt. Benjamin W. Wilber's section of Battery L, 1st NY Light Artillery. South of these guns were the six Napoleons of Cpt. Greenlief T. Stevens' 5th ME Battery, and three three-inch rifles of Cpt. James Cooper' s Battery B, 1st PA Light Artillery.”

As the U.S. Army retreated towards the protection of the artillery, the Confederates followed, “yelling like demons, in a mad charge for our guns. … Almost at the same moment, as if every lanyard was pulled by the same hand, this line of artillery opened, and Seminary Ridge blazed with a solid sheet of flame, and the missiles of death that swept its western slopes no human beings could endure…. After we had ceased firing and the smoke of battle had lifted, we looked again, but the charging Confederates were not there. Only the dead and dying remained on the bloody slopes of Seminary Ridge,” wrote Corporal Robert Beecham of the 2nd WI.
Still, the rebel line continued to move forward. Ordered to retreat, Lt. Col. Rufus Dawes of the 6th WI realized that, “If we had desired to attack [C.S. Gen. Richard] Ewell's twenty thousand men with our two hundred, we could not have moved more directly toward them. We knew nothing about a Cemetery Hill. We could see only that the on-coming lines of the enemy were encircling us in a horseshoe.”

The men fought to move the artillery. Stewart relates how the pintle hook broke on a third piece. “As this happened, a party of rebels came running out of the timber adjoining, shouting: ‘Halt that piece!’ We were all completely surprised, but one of the men was fully equal to the occasion, and shouted back: ‘Don't you see that the piece is halted?’ … During all this time the enemy were firing upon us at not more than one hundred yards; and just as we got the gun out of the [railroad] cut, the enemy made a dash, this time getting within fifty or sixty yards, killing one driver and seriously wounding the wheel driver and two horses, which again caused delay. Seeing his predicament, the 88th PA "made a determined stand to save Stewart's Battery.”

Stewart rode back to check on Davison’s guns. The enemy, spotting him “shouted, ‘Surrender!’ but as I had not gone there for that purpose, I wheeled my horse and started him off as fast as he could go. … I started across the field, when the first thing I observed in front of me was a high fence, and as I could not go either to the right or left without being made a prisoner, I headed my horse for it, and he took the leap in splendid style. As he was making the jump I was struck on the thigh with a piece of shell. The shock was terrible, and I thought at first my leg was broken, but after feeling it I found the bone all right.”

Others were not as fortunate. Noticing that the fleeing Union Army was using the railroad cut as an escape route, C.S. Gen. Stephen Ramseur ordered a battery to throw shells into the cut. The fleeing men had to choose between surrender or “running the gauntlet”.

As his men chased the Federals through the town, C.S. Gen. Robert E. Lee arrived at the Thompson house on his “well-bred iron gray, Traveler”. Selected as Lee’s Headquarters, four guards were placed around the house and “half dozen tents” were set up near the house. The stone building, now within his lines, offered an elevated position with a view of the enemy that could be seen with a field glass. Lee may not have realized it, but at the end of the First Day of the Battle of Gettysburg, his Army may have captured as many as 5,000 men.

Inside the house during the battle, the Widow Thompson with her daughter-in law Mary, huddled in the basement as the roar of combat engulfed her home. Previously, on June 30th, Mary gave birth to her second child, Jane Meade Thompson. Furthermore, the wounded who could, made their way to any building seeking help. Her neighbor, Catherine Foster recounts:

“[Thompson’s] house and lot were filled with wounded and dying during the first day; she remained to care for them, and had a daughter [Hannah] living at the foot of the hill, who baked up a barrel of flour into bread, which she carried up the hill to the wounded, and refused to cease doing so during the three days...until her clothes were perforated with bullets and yet she would not be dissuaded, said, ‘In God is my trust.’ All her clothes and bedding except those on her person were used in dressing the wounded and her carpets in wrapping the dead for burial. An empty stone house and fenceless yard were all that was left the widow of seventy years.”

Throughout the next few days, the house was a beehive of activity as incoming messages came for Lee and his generals and artillery was moved into position nearby. Worse, the firing of the guns before Pickett’s Charge sounded, "it seemed as if the heavens and earth were crashing together."

After the Battle, Lee’s Army crossed back over the Potomac River and the Union Army followed. Negative rumors of Lee’s personal conduct began to swirl. To get to the truth, Dr. Junkin of the Sunday School Times went to interview Thompson. The interview appeared in the Lutheran and Missionary, a Philadelphia newspaper on September 24, 1863. Thompson stated that, “she never heard any profane or improper language from him [Lee]. General [J.E.B.] Stuart was with him part of the time. The impression which she had of him was not favorable, Stuart wanted to enter Gettysburg, and burn and make an indiscriminate plunder of all property, but to this Gen. Lee would not consent. She thought Stuart was a bad man: but Lee expressed himself and acted like a humane man showing much feeling on account of the sufferings and the horrors of War.”

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war color photo Lee's Gettysburg Headquarters https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/cs-gen-lees-gettysburg-headquarters Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:49:38 GMT
Lutheran Theological Seminary https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/lutheran-theological-seminary July 1, 1863 - During the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg, the fighting moved to Seminary Ridge. The Lutheran Theological Seminary building played a role in the Battle and its aftermath. General Buford climbed a 20' ladder to observe the field from the Seminary's cupola. Afterwards, Buford spoke with General Reynolds 30 minutes before Reynolds death in Battle. 01649 - Lutheran Theological Seminary; Gettysburg, PA; July 1863 [LC-DIG-cwpb-01649]01649 - Lutheran Theological Seminary; Gettysburg, PA; July 1863 [LC-DIG-cwpb-01649]Lutheran Theological Seminary, was built in 1832, as the home of the oldest continuous Lutheran Seminary in North America. A leading anti-slavery advocate, Reverand Schmucker founded the seminary in 1826 and became its first professor.


Today, it is remembered as the namesake for Seminary Ridge, where some of the most intense fighting occurred on the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg. As the battle erupted in the West, Union General John Buford climbed a 20' ladder to reach the building’s cupola to observe the field. He was able to see the arrival of Major General John Reynolds from the south. Their last meeting was recorded by Buford's signal officer, Lt. Aaron B. Jerome.


Reynolds called out, "What goes, John?" Buford characteristically replied, "The Devil's to pay!" and pointed out the advancing Confederate infantry. Reynolds then asked whether Buford could hold, to which the cavalryman responded, "I reckon so." In less than 30 minutes, Reynolds will be killed during the Battle.


For several weeks, the Lutheran Theological Seminary, as well as the nearby homes of the professors, became field hospitals. Over 600 wounded soldiers from both sides were cared for in the building.


About two weeks after the Battle, this image was taken by Mathew Brady's personnel. The man on the fence is thought to be one of Brady’s assistants.


In 1914, the “Peace Portico” was added to the building’s west side as a memorial to the many wounded soldiers cared for in the Seminary. The building was saved from demolition during the 1950's. On July 1, 2013, The Gettysburg Seminary Ridge Museum opened in the building, 150 years after the Battle.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Lutheran Theological Seminary Seminary Ridge civil war color photo https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/lutheran-theological-seminary Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:35:26 GMT
Fredrick Douglas https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/fredrick-douglas July 1, 1889 - President Benjamin Harrison appointed Fredrick Douglas to be the U. S. Minister to Haiti. The ability to read, was the catalyst for Douglas' journey as a runaway slave, famous abolitionist and adviser to Presidents.

05089 - Frederick Douglass; African American Abolitionist [LC-DIG-cwpbh-05089]05089 - Frederick Douglass; African American Abolitionist [LC-DIG-cwpbh-05089]Frederick Douglass, born in 1818, was a slave for the first 20 years of his life. When he was about 12 he was taught to read by the wife of his owner. When it was discovered, the lessons were stopped, but he had learned enough that he was able to continue teaching himself. The slave owners, realizing that if slaves could read, that they could begin to understand the struggle against slavery and the abolitionists that opposed it. Douglass felt that being able to read would be important, later noting “knowledge is the pathway from slavery to freedom.”

Douglass began teaching others to read during church services. Soon, as many as 40 slaves at a time were taking lessons from him. For six months the lessons continued without incident until it was discovered and stopped. In 1833 he was sent to work on a farm for a man known to be hard on slaves as punishment. After several failed attempts to escape, he boarded a train in Maryland on September 3, 1838, disguised as a sailor. He was carrying papers that identified him as a free black seaman and was able to continue to New York.

Settling in New Bedford, Maryland, he lived quietly for a few years, becoming a member of several abolitionist groups. At one of these meeting when he was 23, he was asked to speak of his time as a slave. Unprepared and unsure of himself, he spoke of his personal experience and greatly moved several in attendance. Encouraged to begin lecturing, he reluctantly did so a few days later. Within two years he was touring the country providing oratory against slavery.

In 1845 he decided to write his autobiography which became a best seller not only in the U.S. but in Europe. To avoid the possibility of being recaptured as a slave, he spent two years touring England and Ireland. During this trip British supporters raised the necessary money and officially purchased his freedom from his owner. After his return to the United States, he continued writing on slavery and even expanded to women’s rights.

During the Civil War, Douglass argued that blacks should be allowed to take up arms in the fight for against slavery. He met with Lincoln to convince him. When the idea was accepted, he worked as a recruiter for the 54th Massachusetts regiment.


Following the war, he continued to support African-American causes including early attempts against the Ku Klux Klan. During this time he was appointed chargé d'affaires to the Dominican Republic for two years. In 1872, he became the first African-American nominated for Vice President on the Equal Rights Party ticket. During the 1888 campaign he even received a vote for President at the Republican National Convention. The following year he was appointed minister to Haiti.

For the rest of his life he continued to write and speak on behalf of black and women’s rights. He wrote two more versions of his autobiography and updated them periodically before his death in 1895 of a heart attack.

 

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Fredrick Douglas https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/fredrick-douglas Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:19:44 GMT
US Congressman Thaddeus Stevens https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-congressman-thaddeus-stevens US Congressman Thaddeus Stevens fought hard to create laws to chip away at slavery. When the war came to his home state of Pennsylvania, the Confederate General Jubal Early made a point to burn down Stevens' iron foundry. General Lee issued General Order No 72 prohibiting the destruction of private property in response to Early's action. Lee may not have been aware that his Gettysburg headquarters was in Stevens' Gettysburg home.

Thaddeus Stevens - 00460Thaddeus Stevens - 00460He is "the Evil Genius of the Republican Party." New York Times

Powerful congressman Thaddeus Stevens was loved or loathed in his time. His sharp tongue and rapier wit hid his idealism. He spent his career fighting to give everyone, of any race, the opportunity to flourish.

When a Louisiana senator proclaimed that slaves were "the gayest, happiest, the most contented, and the best-fed people in the world," Stevens rose on the House floor with a sarcastic proposal: "If this be so, let us give all a chance to enjoy this blessing. Let the slaves who choose, go free; and the free who choose, become slaves."

His barbs often found their mark during spontaneous repartee, rather than in letters. One day, as he was following a narrow path in Lancaster, he encountered one of his enemies, who was coming from the other direction and refused to give way. The man shouted, “I never get out of the way for a skunk.” Stevens stood aside and replied, “I always do.”

Years later, when Lincoln discussed cabinet positions with Stevens, the president inquired about Simon Cameron from Pennsylvania. Stevens implied that Cameron could be less than scrupulous in financial matters. “You don’t mean that Cameron would steal?” asked Lincoln. “No,” came Stevens’ near-instant reply, “I don’t think he would steal a red hot stove.”

It could be argued that Stevens, father of the Pennsylvania public school system, is best remembered as portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones in Steven Spielberg's Lincoln. Jones's performance was not over the top but true to life. Stevens was born with a club foot and later lost his hair due to a disease, resulting in the wearing of ill-fitting wigs. Stevens instructed his personal physician to send him the bill for any "deformed or disabled" boys he treated.

A successful attorney in Pennsylvania, Stevens invested in real estate. In 1863, as the war approached Gettysburg, Confederate General Jubal Early targeted the destruction of the Caledonia Ironworks, due to owner Stevens, "vindictiveness towards the South". The moment a messenger brought the news of the Confederates burning his mill to the ground, Stevens joking inquired, "Did they burn the debts too?"

Stevens had rented his home in Gettysburg to the Widow Thompson after moving to Lancaster. During the Battle of Gettysburg, his home became General Lee's Headquarters. The Widow Thompson reported that Lee was a gentleman but was unable to say the same for the soldiers that were with him.

In 2002, a hiding place for runaway slaves was discovered in Stevens' Lancaster, PA home. More recently, a 52 page account of O.C. Gilbert's flight from slavery was found, specifically mentioning Stevens. Early in his law career, Stevens won a case that resulted in a runaway slave being returned to bondage. Ashamed, he became committed to equal rights for African Americans.

But it was upon passage in the House of the bill authorizing the Thirteenth Amendment that Stevens uttered the words he’s best remembered for: “I will be satisfied if my epitaph shall be written thus, ‘Here lies one who never rose to any eminence, and who only courted the low ambition to have it said that he had striven to ameliorate the condition of the poor, the lowly, the downtrodden of every race and language and color.’”
 

 

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Thaddeus Stevens US Congressman Thaddeus Stevens https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-congressman-thaddeus-stevens Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:17:56 GMT
US Gen Judson Kilpatrick https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-judson-kilpatrick June 28, 1863 - Kilpatrick is appointed commander of the 3d Division of Cavalry Corps, Army of the Potomac. During Gettysburg, General Pleasanton ordered a cavalry charge near Little Round Top. General Farnsworth protested the order saying it was futile. But Kilpatrick dared him and said, "Then, by God, if you are afraid to go I will lead the charge myself." Farnsworth then complied and was shot five times in the chest. 00107 - Gen. Judson Kilpatrick; 3d Div, Cavalry Corps; Culpeper, Va;  Sep 1863 [LC-DIG-cwpb-00107]00107 - Gen. Judson Kilpatrick; 3d Div, Cavalry Corps; Culpeper, Va; Sep 1863 [LC-DIG-cwpb-00107]Hugh Judson Kilpatrick was born in 1836. He graduated from West Point in 1861 as a Second Lieutenant, three days later he was a Captain. On June 10th, he became the first U.S. officer to be wounded when he was hit in the thigh by canister fire during the battle of Big Bethel. He was promoted again, this time to Lieutenant Colonel on September 25th 1861.

As a cavalry commander he gained the infamous nickname of “Kill Cavalry” due to his reckless use of his troops. During the 2nd Battle of Bull Run (2nd Manassas) he lost an entire squadron of troops during a reckless evening cavalry charge. He was jailed on charges of corruption and selling Confederate goods for personal gain. Later he was jailed for accepting bribes during a drunken spree in Washington.

Surviving those episodes, he took his cavalry in pursuit of Lee in February of 1863. He gained a degree of fame by managing to outflank Lee and get within a few miles of Richmond. During Gettysburg, General Pleasanton ordered a cavalry charge near Little Round Top. General Farnsworth protested the order saying it was futile. But Kilpatrick dared him and said, "Then, by God, if you are afraid to go I will lead the charge myself." Farnsworth then complied and and was shot five times in the chest.

During his most infamous engagement, he was sent to rescue Union prisoners held near Richmond. When opposition proved too strong, he took his troops down the Virginia peninsula to join General Butler. Colonel Dahlgren (son of Admiral Dahlgren), who was also involved in the raid, got trapped across the river. He returned to the rendezvous location but found that Kilpatrick had left. While attempting to rejoin the main Union forces, Dahlgren and more than 300 cavalrymen were killed and another thousand captured.

Promoted to Major General at the end of the war, President Johnson appointed him Minister to Chile. He was recalled by President Grant in 1870 and ran unsuccessfully for governor of New Jersey. Appointed again as Minister to Chile in 1881, he died at the age of 45 shortly after his arrival. Both Gloria Vanderbilt and Anderson Cooper (of CNN) are descended from him.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil war US Gen Kilpatrick https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/us-gen-judson-kilpatrick Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:13:33 GMT
Picket soldiers at Ft Damnation, Petersburg, VA https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/picket-soldiers-ft-damnation-petersburg-va We are kicking off this blog by honoring all soldiers on the the front lines with this image from Petersburg, VA. Union pickets in front of the Rebels' Fort Mahone ("Fort Damnation") on the Petersburg Siege Line, April 1865 - 02585Union pickets in front of the Rebels' Fort Mahone ("Fort Damnation") on the Petersburg Siege Line, April 1865 - 02585Union pickets are standing behind “gabions”, which are wicker baskets filled with dirt, sand or any other debris that could be salvage. The advance guard for a large force are known as pickets. By its nature, picket duty is the most hazardous work of infantrymen in the field. Therefore, by regulation, picket duty is rotated regularly in a regiment.


Here the pickets are keeping both eyes on Fort Mahone, a Confederate three-sided work that was somewhat in advance of the main lines at Petersburg. The Fort was considered one of the strongest points of the Confederate line. After previous attacks ended in high casualty rates, US troops referred to it as "Fort Damnation”.

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[email protected] (History In Full Color) Civil War Petersburg Fort Damnation https://images.historyinfullcolor.com/blog/2015/11/picket-soldiers-ft-damnation-petersburg-va Thu, 05 Nov 2015 22:06:24 GMT