This Week in Blogs is composed by News Editor Laurie Chambliss every week based on blog content as of that morning.

 A NOTE: As blogs have been added and removed the number of sites reviewed on Wednesday and Thursday have gotten out of balance. Civil Warriors and Civil War Women will henceforth be reviewed on Wednesdays.

  Action at the  "Army of Tennessee" continues to be enjoyable. A link is provided to a speech given by Dr. McWhiney to a round table which offers a defense, or at least a "correction of basic misunderstandings" about site mascot Gen. Bragg. Little Newt writes another letter home, describing his experiences in Tennessee and requesting that he be sent some butter, a pound cake or two and a Negro, as he is tired of doing his own washing and cooking.

48th Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry

Ranger Hoptak has an update on the project to raise funds to restore the sword to the statue at Antietam honoring the 48th PA. With publicity money has started to come in, and with the matching funds from the Western Maryland Interpretive Association they already have a quarter of what is needed. A major project is then launched, to detail the activities of the 48th through the "Overland Campaign," the 1864 push which began with the Battle of the Wilderness. Unlike other campaigns into Virginia, this one simply never stopped or turned back. Famous names are not much seen here. Generals can say "I will fight it out on this line if it takes all summer," but these are the stories of the ones who actually did the fighting.

Abraham Lincoln Blog

 Geoff brings us a story from Ohio of one of the more unusual "reenactments" of a Civil War related event. This one was a recreation of the portion of the funeral ritual for Abraham Lincoln that took place in Columbus as his casket was placed on view in the state Capitol for the public to pay their respects. A precise replica of the coffin was made and local reenactors stood guard in period uniforms to provide the historical accuracy. News reports say that some 50,000 people attended the reenactment, a pretty impressive turnout for an action devoid of gunfire or horses.

Battlefield Wanderings

Nick has a couple of posts interspersed among the continuing series on the monuments at Shiloh. One recounts his adventures last week visiting the traveling exhibit from the Lincoln Presidential Museum which came to Denver. The turnout was excellent and the exhibit was good, although perhaps a bit basic for those with preexisting knowledge of Lincoln and the war. For once it is the lack of a gift shop setup that is lamented, as Nick notes they could have made a great deal of money selling trinkets, bottled water and hats for those who had forgotten theirs. One of the Shiloh Monument posts covers the unveiling of one of the newer ones, devoted to the soldiers of Tennessee.

behind AotW (Antietam on the Web)

Brian has a post this week whose title sounds like the name of a British comedy troupe. "Horatio Gibson and the Flying Artillery" was an actual Civil War unit though, and the origins of the name make perfect sense once explained. The post centers around a remarkable and little-reproduced photograph of the entire group of horse artillery as they participated in the Peninsula campaign of 1862. A photographer from Matthew Brady's Washington studio, James Gibson (apparently no relation to Horatio) traveled with the artillery and took a number of photographs under what must have been exceedingly trying conditions. This is another post where clicking the "read more" button is mandatory.

Blood, Tears and Glory

James takes a long and interesting look this week at one of the earliest-built Union prisons, this one intended to hold Confederate officers. Construction on the facility on Johnson's Island in Lake Erie off the Ohio coast began in November of 1861 and the first prisoners were brought in on a special train in April of 1862. Prisoners praised the high quality of the facilities and behavior of their captors, and aside from the inability to check out it does sound like a rather idyllic life. Conditions would deteriorate as reports of ill-treatment of Union prisoners in Confederate hands were received. Meanwhile in Tennessee Gen. Halleck is finally moving on Gen. Beauregard in Corinth, but appears more interested in keeping Gen. Grant under his thumb while not being quite hard enough on him to drive him out of the army. This would have been his preference but Lincoln forbade it.

Bull Runnings

Harry has one last post in the saga of Judson Kilpatrick and his intricate and extensive genealogy, including his links to the coke business. (No, this is neither the white-powdery nor the fizzy-sugarwater sort of coke, but the steelmaking kind.) Other posts focus largely on books either released, about to be released, or received and examined but not yet read. Items covered include Gary Ecelbarger’s (see here) Three Days in the Shenandoah: Stonewall Jackson at Front Royal and Winchester, General Lee’s Army: From Victory to Collapse from Joseph Glatthaar, and Black Horse Cavalry: Defend Our Beloved Country by Lewis Marshall Helm. The latter is noted as being a limited edition printing and those interested are suggested to go to the author's website where copies are still available at list price.

Civil War Books & Authors

Drew posts the same book cover we saw last week, of Guide to Missouri Confederate Units, 1861-1865 by James E. McGhee , but this time it's for a full review of the book rather than a notice that it had been received. He liked it. He liked it a lot, calling it a combination of professional-standard research and a book readable cover to cover. A post on "Various Things" makes brief note of items ranging from a discussion of the difficulties of getting paid for magazine contributions to an upcoming guest on Civil War Talk Radio. A look through the blog stats reveals a somewhat unlikely winner of the Page Most Often Found Through Keyword Search.

Charge! Civil War Wargaming & News

Scott has a post which departs somewhat from the usual topic of wargaming, as well as the Civil War. He reports on a news story involving a man who purchased a property which included an old family graveyard, which happened to hold a grave of a veteran of the War of 1812. Now he wants to move the graves, as they inconsiderately sit where he wants to build his house. The matter is a conflict between rights of property owners versus historic preservation, making the outcome of relevance to Civil War preservationists as well. Other posts look at a temporary exhibit at the newly opened Visitor Center at Gettysburg from the Guilder-Lerman Institute, with attention drawn to the other historical materials available in that institute's archives.

Chronicles of the American Civil War

Mike presents Navy Secretary Gideon Welles' account of the turmoil which has followed the massacre of black Union troops at Fort Pillow. Popular demand is that Rebel officers, if captured, be held as criminals rather than prisoners of war. There are even calls for retaliatory execution of Confederate prisoners, a step Welles calls "an inhuman scheme of retaliation." Rebel War Clerk Jones is getting in the first reports of fighting as Union forces cross the Rapidan River and meet Gen. Lee. The defense is fierce and initially successful, so Jones is heartened. The opening of what would be called the Battle of the Wilderness is underway.

Civil War Bookshelf

Dmitri uses the news of the ascendancy of another academic best known as a "Civil War historian," Edward Ayres, to the presidency of  the University of Richmond to explore what this suggests for trends in Civil War scholarship generally. He notes that at a symposium celebrating Ayres new post there were speakers on Reconstruction, social and cultural matters, but no military historian to speak. A long look is taken at Joseph Glatthaar's new book on the Army of Northern Virginia, and where it stands on the spectrum ranging from data collection on historical events to synthesis and even metasynthesis. A cute traffic sign featuring a tourist exiting left pursued by a moose looks at how the new Gettysburg Visitor Center is geared to the reluctant and probably one-time-only visitor as opposed to the repeat customer, a term with which he feels they are unfamiliar or at least taking entirely for granted.

CivilWarCavalry.com

Eric gives us installments 4-7 of his "Things I Wish I Knew Then But Know Now" series celebrating the 10th anniversary of the publication of his first book. The topic, needless to say, is book production, and the different posts cover everything from the costs associated with doing it right (visiting archives or paying researchers, visiting the scenes of events, paying mapmakers and indexers, et extensive cetera) to the need to set ego aside when working with early readers and editors. A further installment wrapping up and summarizing the material covered is promised. Co-author JD chimes in at several points in comments, and this, including all attached comments, is well worth reading by anyone who has ever contemplated writing a book.

Civil War History

Daniel has just one post this week and while not lengthy it is likely to be though provoking. What does music contribute to a Civil War movie? The famous Pickett's Charge theme in "Gettysburg"is a prime example, as is the music which accompanies the men of the 54th Massachusetts on their charge into Fort Wagner in "Glory." While both films are acclaimed for their cinematography, would they be as impressive with the same photography but different music, or no music at all? It's an interesting question and comments, along with other examples both good and bad, are solicited.

Civil War Literature

Craig posts the winner of the National Public Radio "Poetry Out Loud" contest in which a student recites from memory a poem of their choosing. This year's winner did a poem about Frederick Douglass, the text of which is reproduced along with a link to the student's recitation. Another post looks at the dubious practice of "domain squatting" in which a commercial venture buys a URL, for instance "ambrosebierce.com" and then tries to sell it for a, shall we say inflated, price to those who own a genuine site like ambrosebierce.org. The squatted-upon names are often used for anything from trashy sales sites to porn, so the threat of confusion is real.

Civil War Medicine (& Writing)

Jim has no new posts this week, so if you missed his review of Dr. Margaret Humphreys' Intensely Human: The Health of the Black Soldier in the American Civil War this would be time to catch up.

Civil War Memory

Kevin approaches the end of another academic year and spends some time going over what his students have, and have not, learned from their studies. The topic of late has been the early to middle years of the Civil Rights movement, which could be called Late Reconstruction just as easily. The students feel frustrated over an inability to "do anything" about injustices today because they are too young to vote. The people they are studying though, often high school students of that period, couldn't vote either, except with their feet and their courage. As this period coincided with the years of the Civil War Centennial events of the time and the response of Americans both black and white to that period and their own still resonate today. A link to a comic strip called "Birth of a Notion" is provided and an amusing excerpt pictured.

Civil War Navy, et al.,

Andrew spends an enjoyable weekend at the 34th Annual Wooden Boat Show at the NC Maritime Museum and gives a nice commentary, with pictures, of the event. Some housecleaning removes links to blogs which have either gone dormant or otherwise proved uninteresting. Another entry for the online encyclopedia of North Carolina history, this one on  privateer Otway Burns, is completed. This coincides with some other mentions of piracy, including two quotes from the "Mariner's Book of Days" on the topic. A review of  Mr. Lincoln's Brown Water Navy by Gary Joiner is now posted at Civil War Book Review and links are provided to access it.

CivilWarriors.net

Brooks gives us an account of his recent trip to Washington DC to give a talk to the United States Capitol Historical Society on topic of the caning of Charles Sumner. As such behavior has become rare in the national legislature we are not sure it is an entirely good idea to be reminding anybody of it. After only a day in DC he flew out again to head for Boston, but we must await a future installment to find out what he did there. Ethan gives some more detail on last month's annual meeting of the Society of Military Historians in Ogden, Utah. He notes that very few of the presentations given had any Civil War content, although he did catch up with some colleagues in the field. A side trip to Golden Spike Historic Site led to a nice picture, although no champagne as there was not only driving but papers to be delivered later in the day.

Civil War Women

Maggie tells this week of Frances Dana Barker Gage, abolitionist and social reformer. Born in Ohio in the earliest days of white settlement there, she grew up a farmer's daughter with a mother who taught her early to hate the idea of human slavery. In her youth before the passage of the Fugitive Slave Law, an escaping slave could be returned to the South if caught but it was not overtly illegal to help them on their journey. Marrying another abolitionist, lawyer James Gage, she commenced a writing career, undaunted after being fired from her first job for condemning the Fugitive Slave Law. Much of her work was in the field of women's rights, and she both introduced Sojourner Truth at the Akron, OH convention where she gave the famous "Ain't I a Woman?" speech but  wrote down the text most commonly used today.

Note: The blogs listed above this point were reviewed on Wednesday (May 7) and those below on Thursday (May 8) 

Crossed Sabers

Don has a long post this week looking at the 6th Cavalry's first engagement of the war, known as the Skirmish at Williamsburg. The date was May 4 1862 so it is an anniversary we are celebrating here. The regiment was not operating on its own but rather as a part of a combined force under overall command of Gen. George Stoneman. In conjunction with four batteries of flying or horse artillery, four cavalry regiments (1st and 6th U.S., 3rd Pennsylvania and 8th Illinois), and Barker’s squadron of cavalry, they were sent in pursuit of a force that was already retreating as the Confederates withdrew from Yorktown. The question of the difference between a "large squadron" and a plain old regular squadron is explored and explained.  

Draw the Sword

Jenny continues the march of the monuments. The obscure and humble get the same treatment as the famous and heavily-involved, as in the mention of the 15th New York Artillery which was assigned to the Artillery Reserve. Also noted are the monuments to the 95th Pennsylvania Infantry (aka the Gosline Zouaves, the 45th Volunteers, and the 54th Volunteers),  2nd United States Artillery Battery G  (or Thompson’s Battery, 141st Pennsylvania Infantry who were nearly on their home turf, and 134th New York Infantry. A routine set of medical tests coincided with a persistent upset stomach to cause annoying worry.

Hoofbeats and Cold Steel

JD brings news of rapid progress on a website concerning the book "One Continuous Fight," a joint production of JD, Eric Wittenberg and Mike Nugent. The site isn't quite ready to link to yet but it is suggested that the date for going live draws nigh. An article in a just-published issue of one of the paper magazines is noted, with corrections offered for some minor but aggravating errors which crept in during the editing process. Two commanders are said to have led each other's regiments, and another figure, a member of Buford's staff, is implied not to have been at Gettysburg even though he was, just attached to a different regiment on a different part of the field.

Lincoln Studies

Samuel uses the occasion of the announcement of an upcoming two-day tour of the route traveled by Lincoln during his circuit-riding days to take a long look at that period of his life. The thought of spending half the year, and not always the half which coincides with the best weather, traveling back and forth over muddy or dusty or icy roads, in a horse-drawn buggy, to handle large numbers of legal cases at every stop, would be daunting even today. And yet it seems that Lincoln enjoyed the time he spent in this work, and was both productive and successful at it. Another post looks at a letter a 28 year old Abe sent to a woman of his acquaintance in which he essentially tries to talk her out of any interest she might have in a life with him. He was, he said, poor and likely to remain so, and would be unable to provide a comfortable life for her.

Michigan Civil War Blog

Jack has several posts which revolve around a dream no doubt experienced by many reading here: If you were appointed head of the National Park Service, along with an executive order from the President giving you veto power over any action by any government agency which might have impact on a historic site, how would you use this godlike status? He would cheerfully turn into the fairy godfather of preservation, rerouting highways both proposed and currently present, and prosecuting the daylights out of any companies (citing a horrid example at Harpers Ferry) who ignored the law and violated the land anyway. As this seems to remain in the realm of fantasy given political realities, a plug is offered to the next best thing we have, the Civil War Preservation Trust.

North Carolina and the Civil War

Michael uses the occasion of Confederate Memorial Day, which is observed in North Carolina this weekend, to post photos of the gravestones of a number of Confederate soldiers, from an assortment of regiments. It is pleasant to note that most seem to be well tended in tidy cemeteries and many are marked with flags both modern and Confederate. Another post on the "Tarheel Lincoln" story notes a quote which is used by many who promote, or at least posit, the thesis that Lincoln was a bastard in the literal sense. Michael affirms that he takes no position on the matter but would like to see what DNA testing might have to say about the situation.

Of Battlefields and Bibliophiles

David says he has a lot of material to post, including an item on which he gives a tantalizing hint concerning some upcoming tours he will be coordinating. As of our visit though he had only gotten to two of them, both concerning the famous locomotive "The General." A shot of a cereal box from an era when they at least pretended to include educational matters along with shameless commercial promotion is featured. The tale is told of two visits to the town of Kennesaw, Georgia a number of years apart, with visits to a rather curious commercial establishment across the street from the facility where The General is housed. That housing has been substantially upgraded in that time, and is now known as The Southern Museum of Civil War and Locomotive History. 

 One Man's Rebellion Record

Rob has changed tactics in his battle with the head cold of last week, which in the interval has been re-diagnosed as an allergy attack. A long post looks at "Five Books You Should Have" on the topic of the Lincoln assassination. At the head of the list is Michael Kaufman's American Brutus, widely considered the modern classic on the subject. The other four are similarly discussed for their history--one was written in the 1940s--and where they stand in the ongoing evolution of the story. Some take different angles, looking at the question of Dr. Mudd's involvement or the social reaction to events. Each is available in the usual outlets in fairly modern editions, and links are provided.

Pinstripe Press Blog

Michael gets a thank-you note from author Jeff Toalson for the review he (Michael) wrote for his (Jeff's) book, which gives us an excuse to quote again:  "No Soap, No Pay, Diarrhea, Dysentery & Desertion". A booksigning Toalson held went so well that the store's stock of the work was sold out and had to be supplemented by author's copies out of the back of his car. A plug is given to the upcoming "Gathering of Eagles" event set for June 6-8 in Winchester, VA. This unique "reenactment" features first-person portrayals of Civil War figures both military and political, and topics are discussed from the perspective of the time. Some slowdown on blogging is indicated as Michael works to finish a talk on Richard Kirkland to be delivered to the local roundtable at the end of the month.

The Old Virginia Blog

Richard notes, as have a number of other bloggers, the upcoming anniversary of the wounding of Gen. T. J. "Stonewall" Jackson which led to his death. The coincidence of this anniversary with the observance of Confederate Memorial Day in some states is not likely a coincidence. A letter of thanks for a recent tour given to a church men's group is reported upon, with the added benefit that the writer of same is a teacher of history. Those wishing to contract with Richard for the conduct of similar tours for their own groups are provided with a convenient link for doing so.

Throwing Down the Gauntlet

Mike has had no new posts since April 27, so those who missed his discussion of the Lincoln assassination and conspiracies surrounding same should use this chance to catch up.

My Year of Living Rangerously

Mannie has gotten all fired up over the course of the last week, not that he's exactly lethargic in the normal course of events. The receipt of a Red Chinese paratrooper helmet inspired him to reactivate his blog on the topic of military helmets from assorted times and places. The approach of the end of the school year finds him much happier with his off-season work as a substitute teacher than he expected to be, even with the burdens inherent in working at a place he calls RhinoVirus Elementary. Some fun is had with photographs, one of which appears to show that the ghost of Milton Berle inhabits the Sherrick House and another which finds a creative method of removing unwanted buildings from military battlefield parks.

Teaching the Civil War With Technology

Jim has no new posts this week, so if you are looking for lesson plans check out his item of April 27.

 TOCWOC

Brett draws attention to a new book by fellow blogger Dale Cox called The Battle of Massard Prairie: The 1864 Confederate Attacks on Fort Smith, Arkansas. It has been ordered and received and is in the process of being read, and is said to be an excellent and well documented study of a small fight. Fred Ray has a couple of long and detailed posts on rifle musket topics, which will delight the heart of gun geeks and should be read in any event by those who wish to understand the most basic instrument of military affairs of the time. An Odds 'n' Ends column is compiled, and the winner of the March 2008 After Action Report contest is announced.

 Touch the Elbow

Donald uses the occasion of the approaching closure of the present Yankee Stadium to find a Civil War link to the old ballpark: a strangely designed right field wall which was instantly dubbed "The Bloody Angle" thanks to the havoc it wreaked on ballplayers and balls alike. It only lasted for one year, being eliminated before the start of the 1924 season. No credence is given to the theory that John Wilkes Booth sang the National Anthem on the opening opening day. Too much time in checkout lines inspires a post comparing women famous for beauty in Civil War times with those of today, and a Boston Globe article from 1888 covers a reunion of the veterans of the 18th Mass at the United States Hotel in that city.

Wig-Wags

Rene's  class in US Military History has progressed through the early 1800s and is now firmly into the Civil War era, huzzah hurrah. Some new subsidiary pages are composed on assorted topics and links are provided. Here on the main page a list of statistics is compiled which brings up some items we seldom see linked together. Inflation of Confederate currency is often mentioned, but here in this list we find the quantities of paper money printed by both governments. As always the books being used for this portion of the curriculum are pictured and links provided for those who wish to acquire them and follow along.

With Sword and Pen

Paul brings news of an upcoming major sale of Civil War related items by Heritage Auction Services including some notable books. In the latter category is a copy of Personal Memoirs of D. S. Stanley, a less than famous figure but one who was present at a number of significant actions of the war. The book is rare enough that Paul was unable to find a copy presently available on either ABE.com or bookfinder.