Inside this Issue

Call to

arms

October 2012 Volume III, Issue 8

The President’s The President’s The President’s The President’s CornerCornerCornerCorner

Wally RueckelWally RueckelWally RueckelWally Rueckel

WWWWell, our new pro-

gram year is off and run-ning in high gear. Tom O’Donnell and, I along with your Officers and Directors, want to thank you for showing your support for our Round Table and being part of a tremendous success story. In just over two years we have grown to over 440 members and one of the largest, if not the largest, Round Table in the coun-try. Our September speaker, Robert E L Krick's talk was about the last days of General JEB Stuart. It was that and more. Without notes or slides, and an audience of 239, he cov-ered the battle that took JEB’s life, but along the way Bobby also chroni-cled the birth of a new powerful role for the cav-alry personified by

JEB. Bobby also intro-duced us to the emergence the Union’s cavalry leader and JEB Stuart’s nemesis, General Phil Sheridan. The program really was about the dramatic changes that had taken place in how battles were fought using the cavalry as a proactive force and the to key officers respon-sible for these changes. At our October meeting we will take a look at an-other side of the war, the daring exploits and criti-cal support women played both as soldiers and spies for both the Union and the Co n fede r a t e cau se . Charen Fink, our speaker, is a director and newslet-ter co-editor for our Round Table and a fre-quent speaker at many historical societies and Civil War Round Tables. You should read the arti-

cle in this newsletter for a more complete discussion of her background and experience. You will be impressed. With our large member-ship we are always look-ing for volunteers to han-dle the numerous support roles from officers/directors, committee chairs, set/clean up before and after the meeting, and numerous other roles. Our current hot button need is someone to take over the planning and organizing of our semi-annual trips. Mike Powell has done a wonderful job over the last two years but would like to focus his energies in other Round Table roles. If you are interested in taking over our trip planning please see Mike, Norm, or my-self.

The Newsletter of the Brunswick Civil War Round Table

Charen Fink Jim McKee Mike Powell

President’s Message

1

Charen Fink 2

Special Notice 2

150 Years Ago

3

Member-ship/Renewal Form

3

Last Meeting Synopsis

4

Ladies’ Dept. 5

National Flags

6

Open For Discussion

7-8

Co-Editors

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO THE MEMBERSHIP After two years in establishing the Brunswick Civil War Round Table, the officers and Board (9 members), and the advisors (3 members) have recently evaluated this organization. The membership should be made aware that cer-tain changes have been decided on as follows:

1. Basic membership fees for individuals and couples will remain at $25.00 and will not change prior to January 1, 2013, if then;

2. Students will be welcomed free of charge effective immediately; 3. A $5.00 admission fee will be charged all guests, effective September 4, 2012. 4. Subsequently it may be necessary to charge guests a higher fee when there is an especially renowned speaker

or when travel arrangements become more expensive.

The RT has the following stated objectives: 1. To promote knowledge and understanding of the complex Civil War Era through programs, travel, and the

Newsletter; 2. To support the development and preservation of Civil War sites. (This group has adopted Fort Anderson as it

primary site.)

Pursued in various ways, some obvious and some less so, these efforts vary as to the monthly cost of speakers, venues, programs, and publicity. With this in mind, we propose to establish two categories of elective, tax-free giving which would secure our finances in light of unknown future changes. The proposed categories reflect our purposes. One category will be for programs and the other for Historic Site preservation.

The membership may be assured that due diligence is given to all RT finances and other affairs.

OCTOBER 2012 PAGE 2

Brunswick Civil War Round Table is especially pleased to an-nounce that its special returning speaker on October 2nd will be our own Charen Fink. Her topic is “Civil War Women at War.” The importance of women in the Civil War is often underesti-mated. From the daring adventures and the critical support roles they played to support their armies, to those who actually became spies for both the North and the South, women were big players during that historic time. The men may have fought the battles and made the headlines, but women made vital contributions affecting the events and eventual outcome of the war. Attend the October 2nd meet-ing and learn of their significance and even unconventional and be-hind-the-scenes influence.

Charen Fink, R.N., M.Ed., and living history interpreter will be making her presentation in period dress. She is an avid Civil War historian and presenter for over 20 years; a volunteer for the National Park Service; writer for several Civil War Round Table newslet-ters, including the BCWRT; has an impressive list of organization af-filiations; and, we must add, she is a Master Gardener! The Tuesday, October 2nd Round Table meeting will be held at Trinity United Methodist Church, 209 E. Nash St., South-port, across from the Post Office. Registration begins at 6:30pm. Everyone is welcome. The admis-sion fee for guests is $5 which can be applied toward the $25 annual membership fee for adults and cou-ples. There is no fee for students.

Charen Fink TO SPEAK Charen Fink TO SPEAK Charen Fink TO SPEAK Charen Fink TO SPEAK ABOUT CIVIL WAR WOMENABOUT CIVIL WAR WOMENABOUT CIVIL WAR WOMENABOUT CIVIL WAR WOMEN

Next Speaker

As a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organi-zation, most of the dues and fees collected go toward inviting the most renowned and knowledgeable historians covering a variety of subjects relating to the Civil War period to both educate and enter-tain near capacity audiences every month.

• October 2– Lincoln visits McClellan at his headquarters near Sharpsburg, MD

• October 3-4– Battle of Corinth, MS

• October 8– Battle of Perryville (Chaplin Hills), KY

• October 9-12– JEB Stuart raids into Pennsylvania

• October 11– USS Maratanza damaged by Confederate battery near Cape Fear River (Oak Island?)

• October 23– Bragg’s army escapes from Buell’s Federal army in Kentucky.

• October 24– Gen. William Rosecrans replaces Gen. Don Carlos Buell as commander in KY & TN.

• October 29– Landing Party from USS Ellis (Lt. William Barker Cushing) destroyed large salt works at New Topsail Inlet.

• October 30– Rear Adm. Samuel Du Pont issued a general order which provided that, on capture of foreign vessels attempting to run the blockade, “the flag of the country to which they belong must be worn until their cases are adjudicated. The American flag will be carried at the fore to indicate that they are, for the time, under charge of United States officers.

150 YEARS AGO –October 1862

OCTOBER 2012 PAGE 3 News of Note

The Brunswick Civil War Round Table usually meets on the first Tuesday of each

month, except during July and August. Most meetings will be held in the Southport

area. Specific locations will be announced in advance, either at meetings, in the news-

letter, via email, or on our web site. (brunswickcivilwarroundtable.com)

Annual dues are $25.00 for individuals and couples, students are free of charge. Non-

members pay $5.00 per visit, which can be applied to membership. Please make

checks payable to: B. C. W. R. T. Payments for renewal memberships should be made

on the anniversary of your initial membership. Forms and checks for membership

or renewal can be given to those at the registration desk, at the meetings, or send to:

BCWRT, P. O. Box 10161, Southport, NC. 28461

NAME(S):________________________________________________________________

ADDRESS:_______________________________________________________________

CITY/STATE/ZIP:________________________________________________________

PHONE:_______________________CELL:____________________________________

EMAIL:__________________________________________________________________

If you would like to make a donation to help BCWRT in its historical preservation

work or to assure that we continue to get the best speakers possible please complete

boxes below.

Speakers and programs: Amount $________

Battlefield preservation: Amount $________

Recognition may be acknowledged in our communications should you wish.

BRUNSWICK CIVIL

WAR ROUND TABLE

Membership Application and Renewal

OCTOBER 2012 PAGE 4

J.E.B. Stuart’s Last Ride Bobby Krick you are not only the voice for all things Civil War in the Richmond area but also an accomplished wordsmith. Using nothing but a two-sided map to guide us, we, your audience, were “fascinated” by both your knowledge base and smooth delivery detailing JEB’s last ride. Readers, if you were there you heard this fascinating fact: On the hurried trip to Yellow Tavern, he stopped to see his wife and two children. Without dis-mounting, a very hungry JEB ate a vegetable offer-ing. He then leaned down and kissed Flora both hello and goodbye ---for the very last time. He was a master of reconnaissance and “invented” cavalry raids. Ironically, he was mortally wounded by a Union private frantically retreating from an unsuc-cessful Northern raid. The man simply aimed at a very large, very determined red-bearded mounted Confed-erate officer about 10-30 yards away. Stuart’s wound was mortal and he died the next day. Lee considered JEB. to be almost a son and trusted in both his eyes and ears. (History softens criticism re-garding has absence at Gettys-burg). Don’t think for one min-ute, Bobby admonishes us, the South had no will to fight! He likens a tangle with Stuart’s

2800 men to be not unlike “poking at a copperhead.” Sheridan’s 12,000 infantry allow him to boastfully say: “If headquarters would stay out of it, I can whip Stuart out of his boots any day I choose!” Mead relays this to Grant who calls Sheridan’s bluff. He said: “So let him start right out and do it.” More fascinating facts ap-

pear. Stuart frantically asks Braxton Bragg to send help from Richmond. He answers”: “He would rather not.” Why are we not surprised? Stuart’s mass aggressiveness causes his final battlefield words to be: “Go back, go back, do your duty, I’d rather die than be whipped!” Sheridan DOES carry this day but knows he can’t capture and hold Rich-mond so he heads for a flooded Chickahominy Creek and en-

counters for the first time in Civil War history –primitive but effective land mines. A swashbuckling George Custer has his cavalry there – they are mistaken for a bunch of “Turtles.” History does not record his response. May 12, 1864 ends this fas-cinating 15 day raid finally proving the North has a real cavalry. JEB’s final whispered

words are: “God’s will be done.” Bobby ends with this famous Robert E. Lee quote: “I can hardly think of him with-out weeping openly.” On that day, Lee lost his greatest Cav-alry Officer. He is buried in Hollywood Cemetery –Just 31 years old. A huge statue, in his honor, is placed on Monu-ment Avenue in Richmond. (By the way, if you were there, you can identify that veggie.)

Speaker Synopsis

By Dan Fink

OCTOBER 2012 PAGE 5

Women Hairdressers For the more ornate styles seen for evening and formal occasions required the skills of a hair-dresser. The 1860’s was the “decade of the chignon”. Most styles used false hair and focused on the back of the head. False hair pieces came in many shapes and sizes and required a professional to apply them. Some terminology associated with these hairpieces is: Rats—long frizetts of curled hair for the side rolls Mice—are the small ones above the rats Cat—is for the roll laid over the top of the head Cataract—is for the chignon at the back of the head Men were most often associated with this profession those ladies, even without formal training, used their talents to become profes-sional hairdressers. Chamber-maids in hotels earned extra money working on hotel guests. Hours were from 8am to dark. One man advertised his having studied diseases of the hair and has all the curative remedies available in his possession. This same person even offered to ser-vice the ladies at their residences. Another gentleman advertised himself as a Wig Maker. Some had a Hair-Dressing Saloon for the ladies, and a Shampooing and Hair-Cutting Saloon for Children attached to the store. It only took two weeks of practice for a good hairdresser to be considered an expert. They had to learn compli-cated style, weaving, and mount-ing which may take two years to perfect. Stylists may go daily to the homes of steady customers for a charge of $1 to $1.50. In the saloon the cost was $.50 to $1.50,

$.75 to shampoo with a simple style. Shampooing was usually done in the summer for 50 cents. (Continued next month)

What is Not Proper at a

Reenactment?

IIII Zippers and Velcro closures

on ladies’ dresses

IIII Inappropriate undergar-

ments (underpinnings) and no support for the garment

IIII Modern shoes & stocking,

or striped stockings

IIII Hat instead of a bonnet or

bonnets from another time period

IIII Umbrella instead of a para-

sol which usually are smaller

IIII Plastics and anything mod-

ern

IIII Women smoking cigarettes

IIII Women who are loud and

boisterous

Trivia Facts

IIII When U.S. Grant asked

Julia Dent’s father permis-sion for her hand in marriage, her father offered her younger sister, Ellen, instead. Ulysses and Julia were mar-ried anyway on August, 22 1848.

IIII Many amputated arms and

legs from the Civil War were sent to medical colleges for teaching purposes.

IIII The Average Union soldier

carried about 50 pounds of equipment and clothing, which cost the federal gov-ernment roughly $42 per per-son in 1861.

IIII Many underage youths

slipped into military service on both sides by signing on as volunteer musicians and

then later shifting into service as soldiers.

References

Bauersmith, Anna Worden. “Enough is Enough”. The Citi-zens’ Companion, Volume XVIII-No. 5, Jan./Feb.2012, 37-39.

Topping, Elizabeth. “Hairwork: On the Head and Off”. The Citi-zens’ Companion, Volume XVIII-No. 7, August/September 2012, pgs. 15-18.

West Side Publishers, eds. Civil War, Untold Tales of the Blue and

Gray. West Side Publishers. 2008.

Ladies’ Department By By By By Charen FinkCharen FinkCharen FinkCharen Fink

The “Glorious Fourth” refers to July 4, 1863. Vicksburg surrenders that day and it is evident that the Army of the Potomac has defeated the vaunted Army of Northern Virginia at Gettys-burg. Many consider this to be the turning point of the war, but was it? In the Western Theater it was all but a given that Vicksburg would fall, but in the Eastern Theater what would have happened if Gettysburg had not occurred. So think back two months to May 2, 1863 and the wounding of Thomas J. “Stonewall” Jackson at Chancellorsville. If not for his subsequent death Lee may not have waited another month to advance north nor would he have had to reorganize his army into three Corps with two questionable commanders. Was the death of “Stonewall”

Jackson the turning point of the Civil War?

Bonus points if anyone can name the only Southern States that flew the Third Confederate National Flag, “The Blood Stained Banner.”

Open For Discussion...Open For Discussion...Open For Discussion...Open For Discussion...

OCTOBER 2012 PAGE 6 Open For Discussion

There were thirteen stripes representing the thirteen origi-nal colonies & the stars represent the states. Three stars were added to “Old Glory” during the war. 1861, Kansas, 34 1863, West Virginia, 35 1864, Nevada, 36

The first official flag of the Confederacy was adopted on March 4, 1861, the “Stars and Bars” . It appears to have not had a recorded vote. It appears in many variations with stars ranging from 7 to 15 stars.

Because of its similarity to the Stars and Stripes, the Stars and Bars were replaced with the Second National, also called the Stainless Banner on May 1, 1863.

Because it could be mistaken for a flag of truce, the Stainless Banner was modified to include a red bar on the fly on March 4, 1865. This was called the “Blood Stained Banner”.

National flags of the civil war

Call To Arms OCTOBER 2012 PAGE 7

The Brunswick Civil War Round Table's website is now up and running. The BCWRT website can be found under brunswickcivilwarroundtable.com or brunswickcivilwarround-table.org. All of the information on the website is available to everyone except for the newsletter - Call to Arms. which is available to members. Your username and password is required to view the newsletter. Be sure to check out the list of presenters already lined up for our 2012/2013 year. There is also information on current Round Table sponsored trips and write-ups on trips already taken. Be sure to check out the Links page for other organi-zations involved in the Civil War. Members should have received an email with their login information including username and password. Everyone's default password is their email address. Junk mail filters will likely impede the delivery of many of those emails. If you did not receive this e-mail please check your spam folder first. For the people who did not received the e-mail due to incor-rect or no e-mail address provided to the club, please contact Kathy O'Donnell at tom-kat450sl@yahoo.com. The website is updated frequently so please keep checking in on us.

The Brunswick Civil War Round Table is a 501 (c) (3) tax exempt organization that meets on the first Tuesday of each month, except July and August. Unless other-

wise noted, meetings will be held at:

Trinity United Methodist Church

209 E. Nash St.

Southport, NC 28461

Registration is open at 6:30 pm and the program starts at 7:00pm.

THE NEXT MEETING IS TUESDAY,

October 2, 2012

Check Us Out on the Web

2012 BCWRT Officers, Directors, Advisors Wally Rueckel: President & Director Charen Fink: Director Mike Powell: Vice President & Director Chuck Roedema: Director Marv Hamer: Vice President & Director Max Williams: Director Bob Benedict: Treasurer & Director Jim McKee: Advisor Norm Praet: Secretary & Director Jack Carpenter: Advisor Tom O’Donnell: Director & Advisor Robert Clarke: Advisor