This month we will be welcoming back, by request Mr. Larry Tagg author of the very popular book The Unpopular Mr. Lincoln. Last year Mr. Tagg spoke to us about Abraham Lincoln being a beloved American icon, widely considered to be our best president. This was not always so. The Unpopular Mr. Lincoln is the first study of its kind to concentrate on what Lincoln’s contemporaries actually thought of him during his lifetime. Be forewarned: your preconceived notions are about to be shattered. Torn by civil war, the era in which our sixteenth president lived and governed was the most rough-and-tumble in the history of American politics. The violence of the criticism aimed at Lincoln by the great men of his time on both sides of the Mason-Dixon Line is simply startling. Indeed, the breadth and depth of the spectacular prejudice against him is often shocking for its cruelty, intensity, and unrelenting vigor. The plain truth is that Mr. Lincoln was deeply reviled by many who knew him personally, and by hundreds of thousands who only knew of him.

    For those who were with us at that meeting you will remember what an outstanding program it was and for those who missed it, don’t miss this evening. You will be sorry if you do.

    Also for this night only we will be doing something new. Our meeting tonight will be held in the open air Amphitheater overlooking Mission Valley behind the Church. The meeting will start at 7:00 pm and be over as the sun goes down. The theater is easy to get to with parking, for this night only, close at hand. Also for those who find steps a challenge there is a Wheelchair access ramp. If by chance the sun goes down before we are done all paths are well lit. Also you might want to bring a light wrap for when the sun starts to descend slowly into the valley.

Palisades Church Amphitheater

    For tonight only you may park close to the Amphitheater. As you face the meeting hall drive to your left, then right around the buildings and follow the road to the parking lot by the Amphitheater.

On June 16, 2010, the SDCWRT was honored to have guest speaker, Mary Townsend present: “The Unknown General: Major General Peter Joseph Osterhaus” based on her book about her great-great grandfather entitled: “Yankee Warhorse: A Biography of Major General Peter Osterhaus”. Mrs. Townsend has spent the last several years researching her ancestor. Since he was a general, one would assume there would be a generous amount of information, but this was not the case and in fact, Mrs. Townsend only had some family documents and various other sources which were often contradictory. She sorted through the information to create her biography. She has discovered that he was amongst the best German immigrant soldiers of the war and had several key roles in the Western Theatre, but remains largely forgotten.

Mrs. Townsend and Major General Osterhaus

Major General Osterhaus was born in Koblenz in the Rhineland on January 4, 1823. After the Napoleonic Wars of the previous decade, the Rhineland had been incorporated into Prussia which would largely shape the future general’s life. Osterhaus had wanted to become a history professor, but the new Prussian laws mandated that he attend a military academy and he thus attended the Berlin Military Academy where he became a Prussian. Osterhaus was not fond of the Prussians and took part in the 1848 Revolution against Prussian rule. It was there he gained his military experience while fighting the Prussians, but when the Revolution failed, he was forced to flee to the United States in 1849 where he later became a citizen. He became a businessman in Illinois and joined the Republican Party. He once met Abraham Lincoln at a dinner in 1856. In 1860, he moved his wife and five young children to St. Louis.

In April of 1861, after Fort Sumter, Osterhaus joined the 2nd Missouri Volunteer Infantry and was so popular amongst his men that in the course of two weeks he was elected to captain and then major. On the last day of July he was appointed acting colonel of 12th Missouri Volunteer Infantry by Frémont. His deep voice, sense of humor, and great stature (6 feet 2 inches), likely contributed to his great popularity. He was helped by the fact that he was bilingual in a regiment composed of German immigrants. His first action was in the Missouri Campaign under Brigadier General Nathaniel B. Lyon where he fought at Camp Jackson on May 10, Booneville on June 17, and Wilson’s Creek on August 10. He did well in these battles and by the end of the year, he was appointed colonel.

The following year would see Osterhaus in the Arkansas Campaign under Major General Samuel R. Curtis. In January, he was made acting brigadier general. On March 7 and 8, he fought at Pea Ridge, Arkansas where he arguably saved Missouri from being taken by the Confederacy. Here, Osterhaus succeeded in disorganizing 8,000 Confederate soldiers (about half of their force) with 600 Federal soldiers by catching them during their attempted encirclement of the main Federal force. He did this by accident when he stumbled upon them and decided to ambush them by firing upon them from the nearby woods. The Confederate leadership in this detachment was killed and the soldiers fell in to disarray. With the majority of Confederate forces out of action, Federal forces won the battle and Missouri was saved.

In the middle of the year, Osterhaus went with General Samuel Curtis on his cross-country march which gave him valuable experience for his future involvement in Sherman’s March to the Sea. On this march, however, he contracted malaria and was not able to rejoin the fight until December. By then, he had been appointed brigadier general. In 1863, he was involved in the Vicksburg Campaign under General Grant. He fought at Arkansas Post on January 11, the Battle of Port Gibson on May 1, the Battle of Champion Hill on May 16, the Battle of Big Black River on May 17, the two assaults on Vicksburg on May 19 and 22, and the siege of Jackson on July 9-16. Later in the year, he was involved in the Chattanooga Campaign fighting at the Cane Creek Skirmishes on October 20 and 21, and the Tuscumbia Skirmishes on October 26 and 27.

Not long after this, Osterhaus received word that his wife was near death and he rushed home in time for her funeral. He then made arrangements for the care of his children and returned to the war in time to fight at the Battle of Lookout Mountain on November 24, the Battle of Missionary Ridge on November 25, and the Battle of Ringgold Gap on November 27. In this campaign, he served under General Sherman who came to like Osterhaus.

In the following year, Osterhaus would be involved in the Atlanta Campaign under General Sherman which involved his famous March to the Sea. Before that, however, Osterhaus again had malaria. In Sherman’s campaign, Osterhaus fought in the Battle of Resaca on May 14, the Battle of Dallas on May 28, the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain on June 27, and the Battle of Jonesboro on August 31. In July, President Lincoln appointed Osterhaus major general against the desire of Sherman who did not want any promotions until after the capture of Atlanta. Lincoln did this because he wanted the German vote in the coming presidential election of 1864. When Sherman reacted, Lincoln noted that he only made the former temporary rank permanent. From that point on, however, Sherman no longer liked Osterhaus.

In the final year of the war, Osterhaus was transferred to the Mobile Bay Campaign in March and April of 1865 as the chief of staff for General Edward Canby where his experience in artillery was invaluable to the far less experienced general. With the war over, Osterhaus was made military governor of Mississippi in May. He was mustered out of the army on January 16, 1866.

In June of 1866, Osterhaus became the American Consul to Lyon, France and was there during the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Here he found himself in a curious position when as a representative of his adopted nation which remained neutral, he witnessed a conflict between his former home and one of her enemies. In 1877, he left Lyon and returned to the recently unified Germany where he became a businessman. Later, he was the American Vice Consul in Manheim from 1899 to 1901.

He remained in Germany for the remainder of his life except for a short trip to the United States at the turn of the 1900s. One of his sons, Hugo, remained in the United States where he became an admiral and commanded the Atlantic Fleet under President Taft and was active in the Great War. Some of his other sons and daughters followed their father to Europe where a few of his sons had success in the German Army. With the Great War, Osterhaus would have seen his family on opposing sides of the conflict. Major General Peter Osterhaus died in Duisburg on January 2, 1917 at the age of 93 and was buried in Koblenz.

Mrs. Townsend went on to explain why Osterhaus has not been remembered and she noted that unlike his contemporaries, Osterhaus did not promote himself or write a memoir. He wrote a very short paper, but this hardly compares to others. He also did not have many political connections unlike his contemporaries. Due to these reason, Osterhaus’ great accomplishments were only recovered through the diligent work of his great-great granddaughter.

    Our speaker this month is Mary Townsend whose new book: “Yankee Warhorse: The Unknown General”, is a biography of Peter Joseph Osterhaus. This book is dedicated to preserving the German immigrant’s remarkable story of service to his adopted country. In spite of his solid contributions to the Union successes in the West throughout the Civil War, Major General Osterhaus remains virtually unknown to most people studying the war today. During this program you will learn some of the fascinating details of his long life in both of his countries. His life and military career will be followed by a presentation of one of his battles.

On May 19, 2010, Mike Schooling presented “Heritage Defense: Sons of Confederate Veterans”. Mr. Schooling is a member of both the Sons of Confederate Veterans and the Sons of Union Veterans. He is involved with the Southern Legal Resource Center (SLRC), which is the legal arm of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. The purpose of the SLRC is to protect southern heritage.

Mr. Schooling

The majority of the SLRC advocacy presented by Mr. Schooling involved the public display of the Confederate battle flag on clothing and personal articles. One case was that of Timothy Castorina of Kentucky who was disciplined by his high school principal for refusing to turn his T-shirt, which had a Confederate flag, inside-out. The SLRC represented Castorina in court. In another case, Jacqueline Duty of Kentucky was prevented from going to her senior prom because her gown had a Confederate battle flag pattern. The SLRC represented her in court and won. Another case was of the DuPont Seven who were seven workers at the DuPont factory in Virginia who were disciplined by management for wearing Confederate symbols to work. The issue went to court and lost and the Supreme Court declined to hear the case.

In addition to the SLRC, Mr. Schooling presented on his trip to H.M.S “Warrior” in Portsmouth, England. The “Warrior” was the first iron-hulled warship in the world and was commissioned in 1861. She was built in response to the iron-plated (but wooden-hulled) French “La Gloire” of 1860 as there was a fear of a French invasion.

She is 420 feet long and displaces 9,200 long tons. She was powered by a horizontal trunk engine rated at 1,250 H.P. turning a single screw and had all of the machinery below the waterline for protection against enemy fire. There were ten boilers. She was among the fastest ships at that time with a top speed of 14.5 knots under steam alone and 17.5 knots with steam and sail. She was armed with 42 guns—26 muzzle-loading 68-pounder guns, 10 rifled breech loading (RBL) 110-pounder guns, 4 RBL 40-pounder guns, and 2 RBL 20-pounder guns. She also carried various arms for the crew. Her iron hull was protected in certain areas by an iron belt 4 ½ inches thick and backed by 18 inches of teak. Upon her completion, she was the most powerful and advanced warship the world had yet seen. Her total coast was £357,291 in 1861, the equivalent of about $1,750,000. By comparison, the Union ironclad “Monitor” of 1862 cost $275,000.

H.M.S. "Warrior"

During the American Civil War, she occasionally served as a deterrent to American and Confederate naval forces who might have taken the fight to British waters. Within a few years of her commissioning, however, the “Warrior” was made obsolete by rapidly advancing technology. She was removed from front-line service in the 1870s having never fired a shot in anger, and was then used as a storage hulk and depot ship among other roles before being neglected until the 1970s. By then she was Britain’s only surviving ironclad and beginning in 1979, the ship was restored to her original appearance by 1987. Today, the “Warrior” is open to tourists.

The “Warrior” is an excellent example of mid-nineteenth century naval engineering. Despite being much larger and vastly more powerful than anything produced in the United States during the Civil War-era, the “Warrior”, nonetheless, provides an example of what it may have been like aboard similar American ironclads such as the “Monitor” and “New Ironsides”.

On April 21, 2010, Gene Armistead presented “Charles Stewart”. It is a common belief that before the Civil War, there were no admirals. Many considerer the famous David G. Farragut to be the first admiral in the United States Navy, but Charles Stewart, a remarkable man in his own day, was actually the first American admiral. Today, Stewart has been largely forgotten, but if one were to ask a Civil War admiral who was the best officer, however, they would state it was Stewart.

Stewart was born in Philadelphia on July 28, 1778. It was claimed that in his youth he was acquainted with General Washington. At the age of thirteen, he entered the merchant marine as a cabin boy. He rose quickly and by the end of the decade, he was in command of the only American merchant ship allowed in Japan. On March 9, 1798, during the Quasi-War (1798-1800), Stewart was commissioned as a lieutenant in the United States Navy. He was placed on the “United States” (one of the original six frigates) for a cruise to the West Indies. He was then given command of the 12-gun schooner “Experiment” on July 16, 1800 and captured three French ships and liberated an American ship captured by the French. Stewart also saved several Spanish civilians stranded from a wrecked ship and was later rewarded by the King of Spain.

After the Quasi-War, Stewart survived the naval reductions of President Jefferson and was given command of the “Chesapeake” in 1801 and then the “Constellation” (not the one today) in 1802. In the First Barbary War (1801-1805), Stewart was given command of the 16-gun brig “Syren” and sent to the Mediterranean. There, he took part in the destruction, on February 16, 1803, of the American frigate “Philadelphia”, which had been captured. Here, he worked closely with his old friend, Stephen Decatur. Stewart became the senior United States Navy officer afloat in 1804 and was named master commandant. He also took part in the first Marine assault outside the Western Hemisphere in Tripoli. Later, Stewart was given command of the “Essex” in 1805.

After the First Barbary War, Stewart survived further reductions to the Navy by President Jefferson, and in fact, was promoted to captain. Later, however, he was furloughed and went back to the merchant marine where he did well and became quite wealthy. With the outbreak of the War of 1812, Stewart sought a return to the Navy and with William Bainbridge advised President Madison against gathering the Navy in one port for it would have been blockaded by the British and America would have been helpless. The two were said to have saved the United States Navy from certain destruction. Stewart was given command of the “Argus”, the “Hornet”, and then the “Constellation” (not the one today). Stewart was a popular captain, because he was the only captain who did not use flog.

Since the “Constellation” was blockaded in the Chesapeake, Stewart was given command of the famous “Constitution” in Boston. He sailed on December 31, 1813 by disguising the ship as a British one. While at Boston for repairs at the end of 1814, Stewart condemned the Hartford Convention—a scheme by New England Federalists to secede from the union as they did not agree with the War of 1812. The failure of this convention led to the discrediting of the Federalist Party. Stewart commanded the “Constitution” longer than any other man. In early 1815, he had some of the greatest American naval success of the war. The Treaty of Ghent ending the War of 1812 had been signed the last week of 1814, but the United States Senate was yet to ratify the treaty and technically the state of war remained. On February 20, 1815, Stewart sighted two British ships—the H.M.S. “Cyane” and H.M.S. “Levant”. He engaged both of them and captured them, the first time since 1695 that one ship captured two Royal Navy ships at the same time. Curiously, the Treaty of Ghent had been ratified by the Senate a few days before, but as with the Battle of New Orleans, communications were slow and Stewart did not find out until April 28. He thus returned to Boston on May 15 to huge celebrations.

Stewart received a gold medal from Congress and earned the nicknames “Old Ironsides” and the “American Nelson”. Later that year, he briefly saw action in the Second Barbary War. In 1816, President Madison offered to make him the Secretary of War, but he declined for he did not wish to give up his naval career. That year, he was made Commodore (a functioning rank) of the Mediterranean squadron and served there until 1820 on the 74-gun ship-of-the-line “Franklin”. Whilst in the Mediterranean, he was engaged in some diplomacy. It was also on this cruise where he supported Uriah Phillip Levy—the first Jewish officer in the Navy. Several Civil War officers, including Confederate admiral Franklin Buchanan and Union admirals: David G. Farragut, Samuel F. Du Pont, and Louis M. Goldsborough served under Stewart.

From 1820 to 1824, Stewart was given command of the Pacific squadron. Whilst in the Pacific, he bought two more ships for his squadron with his own money. He also took part in some police action with Chile and Peru and served as diplomat. His essay on blockade law earned a commendation from Chief Justice John Marshall. When he returned however, he was subjected to a court marshal, but not for his conduct per se, but that of his spendthrift wife. He had married Delia Tudor in 1813 and settled on an estate named “Old Ironsides” in New Jersey. They had a son and a daughter. While he was gone on his cruises, she had gotten herself in to debt. Thus she was with him in the Pacific, but she still spent money. To make matters worse, she hid a Peruvian on board without her husband’s knowledge and when such was revealed, there was a diplomatic situation and thus the court marshal. During the court marshal, however, Stewart had the support of President John Quincy Adams and was acquitted and even given a commendation for his actions in the Pacific.

Stewart soon divorced and became friendly with a Margaret Smith whom for he provided, in addition to her children and the son he later had with her. They never married. Under the administration of Andrew Jackson with whom Stewart was not friendly, he was not in command of any ship but was a Naval Commissioner from 1830 to 1832. After Jackson in 1838, he was given command of the Philadelphia Navy Yard, among the most important naval yards in the United States and stayed there until 1841. After, he was given command of the razee (a ship-of-the-line with a deck removed) “Independence”. In the 1840s, there was even talk of his running for president, but keeping his naval career was too important and before he eventually decided to run for president, the election of 1844 was over and James K. Polk had won. Stewart was not very distressed by his slowness to act.

In 1846, Stewart returned to the Philadelphia Navy Yard for a year. In 1851, Commodore James Barron died making Stewart the senior officer in the United States Navy. Approaching his eightieth year, Stewart returned to the Philadelphia Navy Yard in 1854 where he remained in command until 1861. On March 2, 1859, Congress made Stewart “Senior Flag Officer” as recognition for his years of distinguished service. This rank was the equivalent to rear admiral (upper half). He was active at the onset of the Civil War in 1861, but as he was in his eighty-third year, his duties were diminished. He was a consultant to President Lincoln and Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles during the endeavor to relieve Fort Sumter in April 1861. Not long after he was placed on the retired list. In May of 1862, Stewart went to Philadelphia to launch the “New Ironsides”—the first American ocean-going ironclad steam warship. This was a fitting honor to the man who had commanded “Old Ironsides” the longest.

 On July 16, 1862, he was made rear admiral the same day as Farragut, but since Stewart initially had a higher rank than Farragut, Stewart was technically the first rear admiral, albeit he was on the retired list and Farragut was active. On the funeral train for President Lincoln in 1865, Stewart served as a pallbearer in Philadelphia. Rear Admiral Charles Stewart died at his estate on November 6, 1869 at the age of 91.

Although Stewart has been largely forgotten today, his achievements in his day were unparalleled. His treatises were famous. His greatest achievement for our purposes was that many Civil War naval officers served under him as midshipmen or the like early in their careers. Three United States Navy destroyers and destroyer escorts (DD-13, DD-224, and DE-238) were named in his honor.

June 16:     Mary B. Townsend (Author) “The Unknown General.”

July 21:       Larry Tagg (Author) “The Unpopular Mr. Lincoin.” This program will be held

                        outdoors in the Amphitheater.

Aug. 18:        Barbara Hemmingsen “Chattanooga.”

Sept. 15:          Mark Shapiro

Oct. 20:        Rich Marcell “Another Look at Robert E. Lee.”

Nov. 17:       Pedro Garcia “Men Really Do Go Mad: Slavery, Secession, Seward & Sumpter.”

Dec. 15:        Chraistmas Party and Round Table Social

 Our meeting this month “Charles Stewart: First Admiral and Forgotten Hero “will be presented by Gene Armistead.  Stewart, at the time of the Civil War, known by the sobriquets “the American Nelson” and “Old Ironsides” was our navy’s first admiral rather then, as commonly believed, David Glasgow Farragut. In explaining how this is the actual case, Gene will review the evolution of naval rank as well as an illustrious career that merited Stewart’s

Charles Stewart

 becoming the first admiral almost four years prior to Farragut achieving that grade. In some ways, Stewart was the Navy’s equivalent to General Winfield Scott – only more so. And, of course, this forgotten man’s contributions toward Union victory in the Civil War will be highlighted. Gene always presents an informative program, so don’t miss this evening with Gene.

            On March 17, 2010, Phil Binks presented “Long Arms of the Civil War”. Before discussing the vast collection of muskets, rifles, and carbines that were present, Mr. Binks began with a brief history of firearm development in the decades leading up to the Civil War.

            Around 1830, the percussion cap and cartridge were developed. Percussion caps replaced the flintlock ignition system in firearms. This provided a far more reliable and easier way of firing guns. The cartridge ended the necessity to load the powder and then bullet by making them in the same package. Before the advent of cartridges, muskets, which were smoothbore, were .69 caliber, but the balls they fired were .54 caliber. This, of course, did not make for an accurate weapon as the wide windage, the gap between the bullet and barrel allowed for escaped energy with the smoothbore barrel not helping in accuracy. This great windage, however, was necessary as the powder residue would accumulate in the barrel and fill in the difference. Rifles had also been around at the same time as muskets and they had better accuracy, because of the rifling which made the bullet spin.

            In the first half of the nineteenth century, France was a major center of firearm development, metallurgy, and optics. One major obstacle in the early nineteenth century was the amount of time required to load a gun. One had to put powder in the priming pan, pour the remaining powder and ball down the muzzle, use the ramrod and compact everything, aim the musket, cock the hammer, and fire. This took quite a while and was even more difficult under enemy fire. A solution to the problem was the cartridge. There were several ideas for how to make the most efficient cartridge, but most ideas failed.

Mr. Binks Illustrating the Various Bullets of the Civil War-Era

            A French officer, Claude Minié, invented the Minié ball in 1847 fallowed by the Minié rifle in 1849. Minié balls were hollow bullets with grooves. The grooves greased the barrel and greatly improved aerodynamics over regular spherical balls. These bullets, like all bullets were made in molds. At this time, experiments were also held with exploding bullets. These bullets were put into paper or cotton cartridges and later metal ones. The cartridges which were produced over the coming years took many shapes and sizes as well as powder capacities. Sniper’s sights also improved.

            In the 1850s, Secretary of War Jefferson Davis sent a commission led by Alfred Mordecai to Europe to observe these modern weapons in use. The Americans thought their arms to be superior to those of the Europeans. Despite this, during the Civil War, both the Union and Confederacy faced shortages of rifles and muskets and bought firearms for firms across Europe, from Great Britain to Austria. Muskets were still preferred by some in the Civil War as they were far cheaper than the weapons developed immediately before the war. Union general, James Ripley, who was the Federal chief of ordinance, thought that smoothbore muskets were best for the quickly growing Federal army.

            Eli Whitney had introduced the mass production of guns and regulatory gauges to the United States at the end of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. By the Civil War, guns were mass produced with men making the guns and women and children making the cartridges. When the guns were shipped, they were stacked in crates.

The Rifles and Muskets on Display

            During the Civil War, President Lincoln was very interested in Federal weaponry and took an active role in trying out new weapons. There were many kinds of weapons that were purchased by the Federal government during the war. The Federal navy also purchased many firearms, even rifles with leather around the barrel to protect it from rust. One must question, however, whether the barrel would have rusted if water got under the leather. Hundreds of companies sold weapons to the Federal Government, of which 875,000 rifles were purchased from Springfield alone. Most of the rifles cost the government between $17.50 and $20.00 each. The Federal Government also bought numerous carbines—94,000 from Spencer, 80,000 from Sharps, and 55,000 from Burnside to name a few. Colt also sold 130,000 pistols to the Federal Government. Many other accessories were also purchased, such as 131,000 cones, 2,500,000 Sharps primer, 26,000,000 pistol rounds, and 46,000,000 .58 caliber rifle cartridges.

More Rifles and Muskets on Display

In addition to the presentation, there were also a dozen and a half original firearms from the Civil War-era on display. These were brought by Mr. Binks and others. The oldest was an 1817 flintlock common rifle manufactured in Connecticut around 1829. This rifle was called “common” because it was a plain .54 caliber muzzle loading rifle. The next gun was an 1822 Whitney musket that was cut down and used by Indians on horseback. The musket was cut down as it was easier to carry by a rider. Another was an 1842 musket. There was also a .58 caliber Belgian rifle-musket with a bayonet which could also be used as a pike against cavalry. There was also an Austrian gun with a hexagonal breech and was similar to a French .54 caliber. There was an 1855 musket with a Maynard tape primer, which used a strip of paper with primer instead of conventional copper percussion caps. This system proved unreliable for the paper was not as durable as its inventor had hoped. There was an 1861 Colt Special rifle from New Jersey. There was also an 1863 Type 2 Colt Special with a simplified sight. A Norwich contract musket, which was used by civilians, was also present. Another 1861 Colt Special was also there.

The Carbines and Accessories on Display

            Amongst the carbines, there was a Burnside carbine with a snap hook for a leather strap to be worn by cavalrymen. This was an intricate weapon made with exotic metals. Some accessories were an original Burnside cartridge box, cleaning brush, and screwdrivers. A Sharps carbine, the most purchased of the war, was also in the group as was a Gallagher carbine and another Burnside. There was also a Spencer carbine owned by Mr. Haun. This was amongst the first repeating weapons as seven rounds were placed in a tube and then loaded into butt of the carbine. There were no caps involved. This method of loading may have been ideal in calm conditions, but in the field it was different and if the carbine were hit in the stock, the rounds would explode. The same would be true if it were dropped. In addition, loading the tubes would have been difficult when under fire. These were phased out in the decade after the Civil War with the advent of trap door carbines.

            There were also some unusual guns such as a Nelson Delaney target rifle used by sharpshooters and made in Redding, Pennsylvania in the 1860s. The stock was tiger stripe maple. There was also a heavy bench rifle, which as the name implies was fired from a bench as it was too heavy to carry as it weighed close to twenty pounds. They were used by sharpshooters and were carried in wagons and not by the soldiers. This particular one was made in New York by Lowell in about 1854-1855. There was a false muzzle which allowed for cleaning and loading without wearing down the barrel. It fired a .45 caliber picket ball. Another bench rifle was present and was made in New York in the 1860s.

            Here was a fantastic array of long arms at this presentation in a fantastic illustration of all the different weapons of this type used in the Civil War.

Jun 16       Mary B. Townsend (Author)  ”The Unknown General.”

July 21      Larry Tagg (Author) “The Unpopular Mr. Lincoin.”        

Aug 18      Barbara Hemmingsen. “Chattanooga.”

Sept 15       ROUND TABLE SOCIAL.

Oct 20       Rich Marcell. “Another Look at Robert E. Lee.”

Nov 17       Pedro Garcia. “Men Really Do Go Mad: Slavery, Secession, Seward & Sumpter.”

Dec 15         OPEN

Our meeting this month “Civil War Weapons Pt. 1,” will be presented by Phil Binks. Phil will be speaking on the many types of long arms used in the Civil War. Phil will be bringing a dozen long arms from his own collection. These will include rifles, muskets and carbines.

Phil being the clubs expert on weapons of the Civil War is encouraging anyone having any questions about a rifle, musket or carbine, they might have, to bring it to the meeting. Phil will most likely be able to answer their queries. This should be a very interesting demonstration of what the Troops on both sides used during “The Great Unpleasantness.”