2014 • meeting schedule • 2014 - Civil War Round Table of New York

The Civil War Round Table of New York, Inc.
Volume 63, No. 8
579th Meeting
• Guest: James McPherson
The rewards of risk-taking:
two Civil War admirals
• Cost:
Members: $40
Non-Members: $50
• Date:
Wednesday,
April 9th
You must call
718-341-9811 by
April 2nd, if you
plan to attend the
April meeting.
We need to know how
many people to order
food for.
• Place: The Three West Club,
3 West 51st Street,
• Time: Dinner at 6:00 pm,
Doors open 5:30 pm, Cash Bar 5:30 – 7 pm
April 2014
James McPherson
The Rewards of Risk-taking:
Two Civil War Admirals
Our April guest is the dean
of contemporary Civil War
writers. Born in North Dakota,
he received his BA from
Gustavus Adolphus College
(St. Peter, Minn.) in 1958 and
his PhD from Johns Hopkins
University in 1963. His most
famous work is the one volume
study of the Civil War, Battle
Cry of Freedom, which won
the Pulitzer Prize in 1989.
Dr. McPherson is the George
Henry Davis ’86 Professor
Emeritus of United States History at Princeton.
Some of his other books include: For Cause and
Comrades, Crossroads of Freedom: Antietam 1862,
and This Mighty Scourge.
The Minié Rifle Musket
But by 1863, there was nothing novel about the improvements in accuracy and range produced by rifling. The Minié
rifle musket system (the brainchild of French weapons
innovator Claude-Etienne Minié) had actually made its debut
in the Crimea in 1854 in the form of both the Minié rifle and
its British-made counterpart, the Pattern 1853 Enfield rifle
musket...
Two brigade commanders at Gettysburg, Cadmus Wilcox
and George Lamb Willard, had actually written pretty
lucidly on the uses of the rifle musket before the war, and
the practical lessons which Wilcox, Willard, and many
others took out of the rifle’s debut in the 1850s were about
its limitations as much as its advantages.
Rifling bestowed greater range and accuracy on a musket,
but it did so at the price of forming a trajectory for the bullet
which “dropped” rather than went straight to a target. To
hit a target thus required exact knowledge of the speed and
distance of a target, something which in battle was rarely
available. “A very good marksman, by placing his piece
in the more careful manner, generally at a dead rest...And
firing usually not more than once in five minutes” might
very well be able to “strike a half-dollar tolerably often,”
wrote the future Confederate general Raleigh Colston in
1858. But how often did such conditions prevail in battle?
And if those targets got close enough that the rifleman had
no time to reload, then the target’s bayonets, not the rifle
musket, would be what decided the encounter. Despite the
oft-touted ability of the soldier to load and fire three aimed
shots in a minute, in practice the rate of fire produced by
muzzleloading rifle muskets by regiments in line of battle
was actually closer to one every four and a half minutes.
Allen C Guelzo
The Last Invasion, page 36.
2014 • MEETING SCHEDULE • 2014
• May 14th •
Fletcher Pratt Award
Allen C. Guelzo
• June 11th •
The Cavalry at Gettysburg
Jim Hessler
• September 10th •
TBA
2
President’s Message
Imagine you’ve been promoted to the highest command in the Federal Army. No one since
George Washington has held that position, and not even Washington ever commanded a
fraction of the men and arms that you are responsible for. Yet here you are in a strange
city, Washington D.C., on your own, where in the month of April you must devise the grand
design that all 600,000 men under your command will follow. Since you are now at the
center of politics, how will these extraordinary new forces shape the strategy and tactics
you will pursue to ensure the re-election of Lincoln, create new confidence in the North,
and ultimately achieve final victory?
On April 8—150 years ago—the Senate of the United States passed the 13th Amendment
abolishing slavery. What a great moment in our history! But think of the events surrounding the passage of this bill: the uncertain outcome of the war, the continuing death of
hundreds of thousands of young men, the on-going destruction of hundreds of millions of
dollars of property, the fear and anxiety of the public going forward into the future! And
yet, the political will was strong enough to demand a “new birth of freedom.” How lucky
are we to be here to celebrate this Sesquicentennial.
How much did you enjoy Jake Boritt’s documentary, “The Gettysburg Story?” I don’t
think any of us in the audience will view that hallowed battleground in the same way that
we did before. But that’s all part of the package when you attend a meeting at The Civil
War Round Table of New York. Because when you attend one of our meetings, you should
expect to “expand your mind.” Your thinking has got to grow larger to contain all these
challenging new ideas! Our thanks and grateful appreciation go out to Jake Boritt for a
great evening.
Now that Spring is on our doorstep, let’s look forward to hosting one of the country’s
foremost Civil War historians, James M. McPherson, the legendary author of “Battle
Cry of Freedom.”
Not only will Professor McPherson join us for our April Meeting, we will honor him with
a very special award that has been long overdue. At our Wednesday, April 9, meeting, we
will present our prestigious BELL I. WILEY AWARD for “outstanding contributions to
the greater understanding and preservation of that which pertains to the American Civil
War.“ Although we hardly ever bestow this award, we will enjoy giving it to Pulitzer Prize
and Lincoln Prize Winner, James M. McPherson.
Please make plans now to come honor James McPherson as we hark back to December,
1957 when Bell I. Wiley (And yes, Bell was a member of The Civil War Round Table of
New York, too!) compared “Johnny Reb and Billy Yank” for members and guests just like
you! I look forward to seeing all of you very soon.
— Martin Smith
In Memoriam - Lucille Kassler
In December, the Round Table lost another longtime member - Lucille
Kassler. Newer members may not remember Lucille, who, due to health
problems, has not made meetings recently. She did, however, make it to
the 60th Anniversary meeting where, true to form, was busy helping at the
registration table. But those who remember her will recall that at meetings,
but especially on RT trips, she was a master storyteller. She originally came
as the guest of her brother-in-law, Lou Pollack, who originally came at the
behest of Steve Jaffe. She was smart, warm-hearted, and funny as can
be .Lucille will be missed greatly by many of her friends.
Founded January 24, 1951
The Dispatch is published monthly,
except July and August, by
The Civil War Round Table
of New York, Inc.,
139-33 250th Street,
Rosedale, N.Y. 11422
Telephone CWRT/NY at (718) 341-9811
During business hours.
OFFICERS
President Martin Smith
V.P. Programs Paul Weiss
V.P. Operations Michael Connors
Secretary Pat Holohan
Treasurer Bud Livingston
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Term Expiring 2014
Charles Mander
Dan McCarthy
Term Expiring 2015
Alan Florin
Cindy Hochman
Term Expiring 2016
William F. Finlayson
Judith L. Hallock
Editor E.A. (Bud) Livingston
Copy Editor/
Club Liaison Joan McDonough
P.R. Martin Smith
Merchandise Paul Weiss
Email: [email protected]
Website: http://www.cwrtnyc.org
3
1861
April during
the Civil War
13 – Lt. John Worden, after delivering orders to the Navy
to land Federal troops at Fort Pickens at Pensacola, Florida,
is arrested by Confederate authorities and becomes the
war’s first prisoner. He will gain fame next year at Hampton Roads in a revolutionary vessel called the Monitor.
14 – Newspaperman Roger A. Pryor enters the surgeon’s
office at newly surrendered Fort Sumter and hoists a glass
to celebrate. He doesn’t realize that he is drinking poison.
His stomach is pumped and he survives until 1919, the only
man then alive who witnessed the historic bombardment.
1862
11 – A Revolutionary War name appears as Union guns
force the surrender of Fort Pulaski, near Savannah, Ga.
12 – Buster Keaton and some irregulars appropriate the
General and head out of town.
1863
2 – The famous Bread Riots in Richmond. Women in the
French Quarter break into Au Bon Pain.
30 – Under the category of famous last words,
F.J.Hooker says, ”Our enemy must ingloriously fly, or
come out from behind their defenses and give battle on
our ground where certain destruction awaits him.”
Some fly. Some destruction.
SHORTHAND
William Hemstreet was a confidential stenographer for the
Illinois Central Railroad when the Civil War began. A native New Yorker, he was far from home, but he kept abreast
of the happenings in the East. When the Civil War began
he volunteered for service. Because of his clerical skills he
reported to a General Swift who brought his hand down
on his back and said, ”Shorthand, can you stand fire?”
After replying, “I’ll go where you go, general,”
Hemstreet followed Swift to Cairo, Illinois, where he
served under Benjamin M. Prentiss. As the only
stenographer in the entire region, Hemstreet was
indispensable to both his commanders.
Hemstreet also acted as provost marshal and judge advocate
on Major General William T. Sherman’s march through
Georgia. Southerners accused Sherman of brutality, but
Hermstreet later wrote, ”I never saw an act of vandalism,
heard an improper word or affront to man, woman, or child,
nor knew an occupied house to be fired.”
After the battle of Bentonville, North Carolina, he received
a 30-day leave and returned home to Brooklyn. As a result
he missed the Grand Review of the Armies on May 18 in
Washington, D.C. but returned in time to hear Sherman’s
farewell to his troops. He mustered out as a lieutenant colonel.
Excerpted from The Civil War Times October, 1997,
submitted by Barry Colman
1864
12 – The Fort Pillow Massacre. Rebel troops run into
two despised classes defending this fort on the Mississippi
River: black soldiers and Tennesseans fighting for the
Yankees. A race riot takes place.
28 – Fighting occurs at Princeton, Ark., Yale, Mo., and
Harvard, S.C. Discontent is high in Brooklyn, Ct.
1865
2 – President J. Davis receives a telegram from R.E.Lee,
in Petersburg –“I think it is absolutely necessary that we
should abandon our position tonight.” The end is near.
9 – Robert E. Lee surrenders his Army of Northern
Virginia to U.S. Grant at Appomattox. Phil Sheridan,
whom everyone thinks is in the McLean house, is sleeping
under a tree.
NEW Recruits
Dr. Addison Barman, a retired surgeon, who is a
friend of Jerry Lieberman.
Joseph Donnelly, a librarian, who is interested in
Leaders and Battles.
SADDLE UP FOR GETTYSBURG
57TH ANNUAL BATTLEFIELD TRIP
September 12th, 13th + 14th, 2014
It’s boots and saddles as this will be an all-cavalry tour on the
battlefield of Gettysburg and beyond. See where J.E.B. Stuart,
G.A. Custer, John Buford and Wade Hampton clashed saber to
saber. On one day, you will become real horse soldiers as you
ride on horseback (or if you prefer, a horse-drawn carriage) over
the battlefield. We will ride to the sound of the guns with our
tour guide Jim Hessler (author of Sickles at Gettysburg, and the
upcoming Custer at Gettysburg).
So if you want to have a good time, jine the cavalry with a
$100 deposit to reserve your mount as we ride into history.
Send your check to CWRTNY Tour 139-33 250th Street,
Rosedale, NY 11422
A Dandy Photographer
He accompanied the Union Army to its first battle, at Bull
Run. And the experience scared him to death. He’d apparently shown up wearing a white linen duster, a straw hat and
a gold watch fob. “Did he have any idea what war was like?”
Mr. Wilson [Robert] asks, “If so, why did he dress for it like a
French landscape painter?”
Brady lost his Bull Run images in the tumult and rarely went
near a battlefield again. He sent teams of photographers to the
war’s fronts instead. He ran something like an early version of
the Magnum agency.
Review by Dwight Garner of “Mathew Brady”
by Robert Wilson
NY Times August 8, 2013
General A.P. Hill argues
with Audie Custer
The Civil War News of December featured a picture
of Pat Falci, the alter ego of A.P. Hill, along with
Steve Alexander, as George Armstrong Custer,
during “An Afternoon of Spirited Conversation
With Generals of the North and South,” at the
Monroe County, (Michigan) Historical Society in
Custer’s home town. Tempers flared and sabers
were drawn. Hill taunted, “I’m used to being
outnumbered and winning.”
An Interesting Relative
Carl Schurz “briskly” hurried through the town with his division, its two big brigades under Alexander Schimmelpfennig,
a liberal Prussian Army captain from Posen who had fled
Germany with Schurz after the failure of the 1848 Revolution,
and the sinister-faced Wladimir Krzyzanowski, a cousin of
Frederick Chopin’s, and yet another refugee from the ‘48 who
had signed up to crush the “terrible trade in human flesh.”
From “The Last Invasion” by Allen C. Guelzo, page 165.