Pickett's Charge

A clip from the movie "Gettysburg," depicting Pickett's famous charge.

Pennsylvania 147 Years Ago

This evening as I sit at my lap top listening to "Appalachian Spring" by Aaron Copland, I can't help but remember what our nation has been through. One hundred and forty-seven years ago our country men were fighting for preservation and state rights. At this specific time of year, I not only think of our up-coming Independence Day (which began over 230 years ago), but I also think of the turning point of the Civil War: Gettysburg.

Everyone learns about Gettysburg in their history classes, but the significance of the actual battle never seems to take weight as the teacher lectures to the students. I did not realize the significance until the fruition of my own research and writing of my manuscript. While I write I am transported to another time and become connected to the past. However, I am not writing this entry to talk about my manuscript, but to talk about what was occurring in 1863 at this time in June, leading into the July 1st commencement of the Battle of Gettysburg...and make it real to the readers.

York, Pennsylvania was a small town in 1863, full of farmers and German immigrants. There was something different about York from any other Northern town. This town was not full of Lincoln Republicans, despite the fact that there were several households that were part of the Underground Railroad. Many disagreed with the war and did not vote for Lincoln in the second election. However, as the Confederates moved northward, house wives frantically buried their silver and gentlemen transfered their stores farther north. They'd be damned if the Rebels got ahold of their belongings!

On June 28th, 1863 (yesterday 147 years ago), the York citizens were in their Sunday finery, departing church and going calling, when Confederate General William F. Smith's brigade marched into town. General Smith turned to his aide and told him to tell the brigade band to play "Yankee Doodle" as they marched into town. As the band played, General Smith led his brigade on horseback, bowing and saluting to every pretty girl on the street. At first the York citizens were shocked and beside themselves. They didn't know what to do. But then taken up by the pageantry of their arrival, they begin to cheer enthusiastically and follow them to the town square. The general took the town square and made a humorous speech which left the citizens and his brigade applauding. He finished his speech saying:

"What we all need on both sides is to mingle more with each other, so that we shall learn to know and appreciate each other. Now here's my brigade—I wish you knew them as I do. They are such a hospitable, wholehearted, fascinating lot of gentlemen. Why, just think of it—this part of Pennsylvania is ours today; we can do what we please with it. Yet we sincerely and heartily invite you to stay! Are we not a fine set of fellows?"

Meanwhile, down the line on the Columbia-Wrightsville Railway, Union troops are hurriedly burning and exploding bridges and rails to keep the Rebels from progressing. Two days from now, Rebels and Yanks run into each other in the "sleepy" town of Gettysburg while buying shoes. It is during the next two days that our future is forever changed. Union casualties estimate 23,000 out of 88,000 troops and Confederate casualties reach 20,000 out of 75,000. A definitive moment in the battle, the famous Pickett's Charge, becomes a definitive moment in the Civil War. From this point on all is changed.



The following posts contain a video of Pickett's Charge from the movie, "Gettysburg," and archival footage of the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of Gettysburg.

Journey Back in History: The Columbia River Gorge

It's been awhile since I last wrote, so I have to make up for lost time. Last month my dad and I took a trip through the Columbia River Gorge to relish in our local history and drive through one of the world's greatest geological features. We left by nine that morning and drove straight to The Dalles for lunch at the Baldwin Saloon, circa 1876. Now, this most definitely isn't the oldest saloon in Oregon (saloons came to the West with the land speculators even before civilization came to the West), but it is one of the oldest saloons still in use today, which encompasses all of its authentic charm.The saloon was established by James and John Baldwin with the boom of the railroad (which is literally across the street from the saloon). Following the proprietorship of the Baldwin brothers, Dr. Charlie Allen (affectionately titled "doctor" by himself, for he was a seller and adjuster of eye glasses) purchased the saloon and married the Madam of the brothel next door. To ensure his costumers of his reputation as a "doctor," he included caduceus on the facade of the building framing the windows (as seen in the picture below).Since then the building has been a restaurant, warehouse, steamboat navigation office, coffin storage, state employment office, and saddle shop. In 1991 the saloon was refurbished to its original use and was reopened as Baldwin Saloon, including many original pieces from its early days (including a big brass cash register, floor safe, and scale).

Following our lunch of delicious sea food stew and grilled cheese turkey sandwiches, Dad and I traveled down Celilo-Wasco Highway and turned down Fulton Canyon Road to the small township of Locust Grove (if you can call it a township). From the road, Locust Grove consists of two or three homes, an old barn, and an abandoned church. Surrounded by hay fields, Locust Grove isn't even on Google maps. However, the church was enough to make my dad and I stop and get out of our car.
As we approached the weathered church surrounded by naked trees and overgrown weeds, I couldn't help but notice the peaceful serenity of the place. The wooden building was black and gray from sun exposure and weather, yet what remained of the tin roof gleamed. We could not enter the building due to a "No trespassing" sign and probably to decaying floor boards, but as we looked into the building the quiet sanctuary was not so quiet. The song of birds, which now inhabit the rafters filled the air. It reminded me of a quote from St. Francis of Assisi:

My sister birds, you owe much to God, and you must always and in everyplace give praise to Him; for He has given you freedom to wing through the sky and He has clothed you...you neither sow nor reap, and God feeds you and gives you rivers and fountains for your thirst, and mountains and valleys for shelter, and tall trees for your nests. And although you neither know how to spin or weave, God dresses you and your children, for the Creator loves you greatly and He blesses you abundantly.

The presence of God is still evident despite its human abandonment. Bails of hay still act as makeshift pews, yet the congregation has long since departed. On a metal sign beside the doorway tells the only history of this forlorn church.The sign left me wondering, what happened to the town and the church? Who was M.A. Van Gilder? Using all the databases available through my affiliated university and through Oregon Historical Society. Again and again my searches returned empty. Finally I decided to simply Google M.A. Van Gilder and I was able to find a biographical sketch about him and his family written in 1905. Milon A. Van Gilder was born in New York in November 1854 and married Miss Jennie Porter in 1864. As a farmer and carpenter, Van Gilder moved him and his family to Sherman County, Oregon in 1889, purchasing four hundred acres of land. By 1897 he built a two-story home and large barn. I am not certain if Van Gilder built the Locust Grove church on his own property or not, but by the time he built his home and barn, the church was erected. By 1904, Van Gilder's property increased to six hundred acres. Still the mystery of what happened to the town and Van Gilder remains...

Dad and I continued our journey to the Washington side of the Columbia Gorge and to our main destination: Maryhill Winery and Museum. Sam Hill (1857-1931), an entrepreneur of the Pacific Northwest, who helped construct the Historic Columbia River Highway, purchased 5,000 acres to establish ranchlands under the name of Maryhill (named after his daughter) for a Quaker community (his family had Quaker roots). However, the Quaker community did not spring up as he had hoped, and began building the mansion in 1914 and turned the ranchlands into vineyards. Still, the Hill family did not take up residence in the rustic Columbia Gorge, and by the persuasion of Hill's dear friend Queen Marie of Romania (1875-1938) the mansion was dedicated as an art museum in 1926. Through the combined efforts of other famous faces, the museum was open to the public in 1940.The museum houses artifacts from the Romanian royal family, gifted by Queen Marie, as well as sculptures, paintings, and other pieces of art from turn-of-the-century artists. A whole gallery is dedicated to the French sculpture Auguste Rodin. Another exhibit displays Native American artifacts.

As we returned to the Oregon side of the Gorge, we decided to stop for a chocolate dip cone at Wendy's and drive the Historic Highway up to Rowena Plateau. In the photograph below, the road beneath the plateau is part of the Historic Columbia River Highway. It was such a wonderful way to end our mini-road trip, for the whole plateau was abloom with wild flowers.If anyone gets a chance to travel to the Pacific Northwest, the Columbia Gorge is a must see! The fingerprints of God are everywhere.

Song of the Rebel Irish

A deleted scene from one of my favorite films, "Gods and Generals."

St. Albans Raid: Confederate Raiders Turn Criminal

On October 19^th, 1864, the town of St. Albans, Vermont was quiet as usual. It was the day after Market Day, business was slow, and most of the citizens were either in Montpelier for the meeting of the state legislature or in Burlington for the session of the Vermont Supreme Court.The locals referred to their home as “Rail City,” but in actuality St. Albans held the characteristics of a trade-post and farm residence; to the Confederate lieutenant, Bennett H. Young, St. Albans was an ideal location. With a railroad running through town, St. Albans was the largest town near the Canadian border with three prominent banks within a block of each other, and a convenient escape route into Canada. On that rainy Wednesday afternoon, the Confederate raiders exited their accommodations and placed the town under the possession of the Confederate States of America. They then commenced to arrest citizens and put them under guard on the town green, rob three banks, shoot at the stubborn Vermonters (critically injuring one man and killing another), steal horses, attempt to burn down the town with homemade Greek Fire, and manage to burn a farmer’s hay wagon as they were chased out of town. The raiders escaped into Canada, but were soon arrested as suspects in the St. Albans Raid. Tried under pretense of violating the neutrality laws of Canada and to conclude whether they should be extradited to the United States of America, Lieutenant Young and his fellow raiders argued they were commissioned officers performing their ordered duty in a time of war. The raiders had been commissioned by the Confederate Government and ordered to raid St. Albans, but they were not ordered to rob the banks, making the act a crime rather than an act of war.

During the trial in Montreal, Canada, the witnesses of the defense produced official Confederate Government papers, displaying the commission of Bennett H. Young (the leader of the raid). However, four commission letters from James A. Seddon, Confederate Secretary of War, were all signed and dated June 16, 1864. Bernard Devlin, representative of the United States, pointed out the contradicting and vague orders of three of the four letters, which James Seddon signed on the same day.

In the first instructions given, Young is ordered to proceed without delay by the route already indicated to him, and to report to C.C. Clay, Jun., for orders. In the second, the same Bennett H. Young is order to proceed without delay to the British Provinces, and there report himself to Messrs. Thompson and Clay for instruction. While in the third set of instructions he is informed, that the organization will be made under the control of the War Department.

At least one of the letters was legitimate enough to commission Bennett H. Young as Lieutenant in the Confederate army. William L. Price, a fellow prisoner of war and member of General John Hunt Morgan’s command, witnessed Young in action. Price saw Young “in the uniform used by Morgan’s command,” sharing that only commissioned officers were given uniforms, while enlistees “generally wear the clothes of citizens.” Young was also well known among Confederates in Chicago, where he and other raiders had previously escaped from Camp Douglas.

George N. Sanders, a Confederate also formerly belonging to General Morgan’s command, played a prominent role in managing the case of the Rebel raiders, claiming them all to be of “the first families of Kentucky.” Sanders tried desperately to promote the raiders to the Canadian public as honorable soldiers. He sent a letter to the editor of the Montreal Evening Telegraph, stating that the raiders “all having served in the Confederate army…and still in that service, were especially commissioned and detailed for that service, under the direct authority of, and, in fact, by direct orders from the government ofthe Confederate States.” Of course he was the one who formerly approached C.C. Clay, the Confederate Commissioner, who he convinced that attacking Northwest towns “would be legitimate acts of war in retaliation for the campaigns of” Sherman and Sheridan in the South. At this point in the American Civil War, the South was feeling the ever-tightening strain of the Federal blockade, and was losing ground. The St. Albans raid was supposed to be one of many, hoping that Federal troops would detach from the army in the South to fight off raiders on the Northern home front, while alleviating the Confederate troops from the on-going pressure of war and allow them to regain ground in the South. Clay then went ahead, sending a letter to Young, dated October 6, 1864, authorizing such raids as St. Albans.

Your report of your doings, under your instructions of 16^th June last from the Secretary of War, covering the list of twenty Confederate soldiers who are escaped prisoners, collected and enrolled by you under those instructions, is received. Your suggestions for a raid upon accessible towns in Vermont, commencing with St. Albans, is approved, and you are authorized and required to act in conformity with that suggestion.

During the trial, George N. Sanders was called to the stand, as Clay was no longer in Canada, possibly fearing he had violated the neutrality laws. Sanders informed the court of Mr. Clay’s involvement in directing the raid and said, “Mr. Clay told me about the eighth day of December last, a few days before he left that he would leave such a letter as the paper writing marked P, and which I infer had not been written up to that time.” The fact that the letter wasn’t written until after the arrest of the St. Albans raiders, causes questions of the legitimacy of other letters between Young and Clay, which only showed proof of planning outside of Canada rather than from within.

Whether, Clay was afraid he had violated the neutrality laws of Canada, or that the St. Albans Raid was criminal, he definitely was fearful. In fact, he insisted he did not order the men to rob the banks. It is evident he did not hold the same sentiment as many of the other Confederates involved that the money should go to the Confederate Treasury for retribution in the damage caused by Generals Sherman and Sheridan and other such Federal campaigns. Jacob Thompson, a fellow Confederate commission agent, said, “I found that the raiders have refused to give up their money to Mr. Clay and that he has left the place in a huff, stigmatizing them as a band of thieves.” Clay had a fellow housemate, Beverly Tucker, write a testimonial on his involvement with the raid. On one occasion, when discussing the expedition with Young, Tucker overheard Clay remark, “that the object of his enterprise was to destroy property of the enemy by burning, etc., and that robbery was not contemplated in your instructions to him; and I think your words were: ‘Burn and destroy, but don’t rob, for this will demoralize your command.’” Other evidence shows Clay’s disgruntled attitude toward the raiders after the raid, leaving proof that he was anything but pleased by their actions.

The Confederate raiders of the St. Albans Raid were indeed guilty of robbing, murder, attempted murder, and arson. Fortunately for them they were deemed commissioned officers doing their authorized duty as soldiers of the Confederate government, not in violation of Canadian neutrality laws, concluding that they would not be extradited to the United States. Commissioned officers they most likely were, given the evidence of many authorized notes on Young’s commission, witness accounts of fellow soldiers in General Morgan’s command, and Clay’s admittance to the direction of the raid (the date of the above letter is irrelevant). However, the act of robbery seems to have not been authorized by Clay, leaving him displeased in the result of the raid, which he deemed “mere selfish plunder.” The commissioned raiders, although doing their duty in the act of war, became ruthless robbers in the small town of St. Albans, Vermont. In the eyes of many, they were mere criminals.