Civil War Blog

Posted By Brian Tomlin on September 12, 2012

It shouldn’t be a surprise to look at a newspaper from 150 years ago and see that it looks and sounds different from what we are used to today. The type is smaller, the paper is bigger, there is more type on each page, and the ads are interspersed throughout the stories. In fact, advertisements make up a pretty big chunk of newspapers of the period. We have already looked at some of the advertisements typical of the 1860s.

Sunbury American, Sunbury, PA. Top half of front page from edition of March 22, 1862

The news articles themselves are markedly different. In the absence of television, radio and the telephone, papers were the major source of news for most people, espcially news that was not of an extremely local nature. You will see texts of speeches by the President, generals, and other politicians. Articles were set as they were written, it seems, because a aserious news article will be followed by a political editorial and then follwoed by an ad for leather goods, then a crime report and then a farm report and then another advertisement, all in the same column. Below is an article formt eh Sunbury American , the same day as the above photo, March 22, 1862.

The Iron Battery Naugatuck. The Government is soon to be placed in possession of a small but staunch iron gunboat, the gift of Mr. Stevens, contractor for the famous floating battery at Hoboken. This craft was originally a canal boat, and has been fitted up with a screw propeller, water-tight partitions, and all the contrivances for sinking her to a fighting depth which have been introduced in the great battery. She is, in fact, designed to illustrate, on a small scale, the principal novelties and merits of the mammoth concern; and, at a preliminary test to which she was subjected some months ago, in the presence of a large number of army and navy officers and scientific gentlemen, she was found to work admirably. She could be entirely submerged, with the exception of her gunwale, in a few minutes, and could be quickly turned about, like a tetotum, in her own length. Since those satisfactory experiments, Mr. Stevens has still further strengthened her and improved her sailing and fighting qualities, and is now prepared to turn her over to the Government, free of expense, for active service  Her name is the the Naugatuck.

Note the wordiness and rambling sentence structure. Formal terms are mixed with a much more conversational tone than is expected in a similar contemporary news article. Also interesting that specialized terms such as “gunwale,” and “tetotum” were assumed to be understood by the reader to need no other explanation.

Below is an editorial from The Jeffersonian of Stroudsburg, PA of July 25, 1861. The name of the paper tells us this is a Democratic leaning paper, having been named after the founder of the Democratic Party. Thomas Jefferson. And yet, the peculiar nature of the time period (nation divided and at war with itself) creates strange political alliances.

 Congress Presents a Sublime Spectacle. It is a true type of the loyal feelings of the country. Thre are no party lines. The Douglas Democarcy of the free States stand steadily by the government; leaving the sahme of a factious opposition to the very few who, having been bold enough to go for disunion in 1860, now reappear to advocate it in 1861. The governement party in the House is about forty to one, and in the Senate about four to one. If the intolerance that characterizes the secessionists were repeated here, not a voice would be raised against our flag, and those now so ready to embarrass the President and his Cabinet, would be arrested and punished as dangerous traitors.

The above editorial, though not indicated as such, appears in the middle of a column on the page. It is not presented as opinion, and so the reader had to be able to understand form all the messages on a page in the newspaper what was fact, opinion, and what was something trying to sell the reader something. Notice the complexity of the punctuation, and the frequent use of inverted sentence structure. Journalism writing is much more sparse, clean and structurally simplistic. The author (assumed to be the editor) ameks no effort to back up his claims.

Our final example comes form The Evening Telegraph of Philadelphia on December 24, 1864. It contains a summary of news from Baltimore.

From Baltimore To-Day. Release of Prisoners. Mrs. Sarah Hutchins, of the Gilmour-sword memory, will arrive home today, when the Secessionists will giver her a grand ovation. Colonel Fish, our former Provost Marshal, has also been pardoned from Albany Penitentiary. It is said President Lincoln proposes giving a New Year’s gift of pardon to many State prisoners.

Counterfeit Notes. Large numbers of counterfeit one dollar notes on the Merchants’ Bank of Baltimore are circulating here. They are well calculated to deceive.

Christmas in Baltimore. Our streets are literally packed with persons out buying Christmas presents of the most costly character.

Arrival of the “Africa.” Boston, December 24. The Africa has arrived at this port. Her mails will be due in Philadelphia on Sunday morning.

This list of short items shows how much people relied on newspapers for all kinds of information.

These digitized newspapers from 150 years ago were accessed on a Library of Congress website called Chronicling America, where a large and ever-growing collection of digitized newspapers from across the country have been collectd and can be searched, downloaded and read. The collection currently hs papers from 1836 to 1922 online and free to use. The site also maintains a list of even more american newspapers form 1690 to the present and where they can be accessed, as physical copies or microfilms. This iste is worth browsing no matter what form or period of historical research you are interested in.

Category: Culture | Comments Off on Newspaper Writing Style 1862
Tags:

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 11, 2012

The history of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry explains why replacement companies had to be recruited in 1864 and 1865.  From the Lykens Valley area around Gratz, Company G of the 103rd Pensylvania  Infantry was formed in March of 1865 and sent south to Roanoke Island, North Carolina.  Their experiences there were unlike other companies that had gone to war earlier.  The war was ending. Refugees were heading to the coast.  Prisoners of war were being released.

History of the 103d Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry [103rd Pennsylvania Infantry], by Luther S. Dickey, was published in 1910 by L. S. Dickey in Chicago.  Dickey was a Corporal in the regiment and Sgt. Samuel M. Evans served as collaborator for the work.

The book has been digitized by Google and is available as a free download.  Click here and then follow the instructions in the red box  (EBOOK-FREE) at the left side of the page.  The book is available to download in several formats.

The story of the 2nd Company G, and other replacement companies, is told by Dickey, and continues from the blog post that appeared here two days ago:

Only four men were left from the regiment and they had either been on furlough or in the hospital at the time of the battle loss and capture of the regiment.  These men formed the core of the detachment that awaited new recruits to bring the regiment up to strength.  It took a while for the recruits to arrive and in the meantime, African Americans who were refuges were given weapons and asked to help to defend the island.

During the course of the next year, officers and men who had been prisoners of war and released or paroled, began arriving at Roanoke Island creating a party-like atmosphere with little discipline.  Word spread that the end of the war was near and the men “were having one continual holiday, and dances… were arranged.”  Locally made wine flowed but was sold at more than a fair profit and the soldiers imbibed continuously.

Into this scene came the 2nd Company G from the Lykens Valley.  They were ordered to patrol the island day and night.  On one such occasion, the following occurred:

At a dance one night, the house where it was held was surrounded, and 25 to 30 men were captured by one of the new companies.  The prisoners were marched to headquarters and put in the guard house.  It was a log house with a ground floor, with only one door which was locked on the outside with a pad-lock, and adjoining it, was a room for the guard-quarters…. When the men were incarcerated, [the Colonel] was notified, and he gave orders to have them securely guarded.  Shortly after dawn the next day, the Colonel made his appearance and asked the sergeant in charge to unlock the door, all the time expressing condemnation of the imprisoned men and threatening them with punishment….. The door was opened and the prison was found vacant.  A tunnel had been dug and the prisoners had worked so stealthily that the guards had no suspicion of an attempt being made to escape.  The Colonel was in a rage.  It was not yet time for reveille, but he went immediately to the quarters , and had the men called out in line.  He first informed the men he knew who the culprits were, and he wanted them to step to the front.  Not a man stirred.  Then he threatened to punish all, but the men remained stolid and calm, and acted as though his threats and denunciations went on deaf ears.  Orders were issued that day for the entire detachment to get ready to move to Coin Jock on the Dismal Swamp Canal.  The Colonel had determined to isolate them again from civilization as punishment, but this made the innocent suffer as well as the guilty, and would force the commissioned officers, who had been prisoners of war, into exile also.  They protested most vigorously, but the Colonel remained obdurate.  By good fortune this punishment was interrupted by orders from department headquarters, however with no intent to thwart the Colonel in his purpose.  The war was at an end and the regiment was ordered to New Bern, North Carolina, to be mustered out of the service of the United States.  This was delayed for some reason, probably for lack of transportation, until 25 June 1865.  This muster out did not give the men free rein to do as they pleased; they were still subject to the orders of the officers, and remained so until after they receive the final payment due them, which was given simultaneously with their discharge, at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, 13 July 1865.  Subsequent to the war no one laughed more heartily over the Island tunnel escape than did [the Colonel], when meeting the men who were participants in it.

——————————-

The following is a list of the men who served in the 2nd Company G of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry, many of whom were from the Lykens Valley area.  Click on any name to see prior posts on this blog which may include additional information about the men.

Captain:  Cornelius A. Harper

1st Lieutenant:  Samuel S. Matthews

2nd Lieutenant:  Daniel Y. Lenker

Sergeant:  Benjamin F. Miller —— Edwin A. Hoffman ——- Obed J. Reigle —— Francis S. Feindt ——- John Townsend

Corporal:  Jacob B. Lehman ——- Simon Blyler ——- John Romberger ——- Henry W. Snyder ——- Cyrus F. Ferree ——- George S. Loucks ——- Benjamin R. Foster ——- Henry Ferree

Jacob Shiro, 2nd Company G, was from Gratz

Private:   George Anthony ——- Joseph Buffington ——- Ernst Buhler ——- John Bellon ——– James G. Bateman ——- Albert Dennis ——- George Deibler ——- George D. Eby —— Jeremiah Fry ——- Jared Fisher ——– Michael Fetterhoff ——- Samuel Forney ——- Leo Gladfelter ——- Adam F. Geesey —— Edwin D. Geesey ——- Franklin Geesey ——- John Greiner ——- Andrew Greiner ——- Melvin Gohn ——- Jacob Hininger ——- Jeremiah Hartman ——-Isaac Hildebrand ——- Jonathan Hoover ——- James Hunter ——- James B. Heim —— Henry H. Harman ——- John W. Hoffman ——- Banawell Hand ——- Jonas W. Hoffman ——– Levi W. Hake ——- Edwin Inness ——- Adam Kohler ——– George E. Kehres ——- Joseph Kramer ——- Isaac Koppenhaver ——- Lewis Kniley ——- Josiah Leber ——– Christian Lower ——- C. H. Laudenschlager ——- John Y. Lenker —— Marcus S. Light ——– Jacob Minnich ——– John G. Mark ——– George Minier ——– Philip McKinney ——– John C. McCallion ——- John W. Orndorf ——- Simon Richard ——– David Riddle ——– Josiah R. Riegle ——– Henry Rickert ——- Jacob Rumberger ——– Benjamin Rickert —— Harrison Riegle ——- Michael Reiley ——– Jeremiah Stump ——– Jeremiah Snyder ——– William Saul ——– Henry Shermeyer ——– Franklin P. Startzle ——– George Spangler ——– Jacob Shiro ——– Isaac Sitlinger ——- Jacob S. Snyder ——– Henry Shoop —— Gottlieb Spoerl ——– Robert A. Thompson ——- Hiram Wilt —— Edward Walters ——– Jacob Williard ——- John Williard ——- Henry Williard ——– Daniel Zimmerman ——- Jonathan H. Zimmerman

For other blog posts on the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry, click here.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on The 2nd Company G of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry
Tags: African American, Gratz Borough, Regiments

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 10, 2012

The community of Ravine can be located by heading north out of Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, on Route 125, toward Exit 104 of I-81.  On the west side of the road is a memorial dedicated primarily to those students of Ravine School District who served in World War II.  At the top of the memorial is a bald eagle, and around the base are the bronze-style flag holders with the recognized symbol to honor the veterans of each of America’s wars.

The Civil War is appropriately recognized with the G.A.R. star.

The pictures below show the World War II veterans’ names and some other views of the memorial.

Category: Memorials | Comments Off on Ravine All Wars Memorial
Tags: G.A.R., Monument

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 9, 2012

At the end of April and beginning of May 1864, the captured men of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment were marched and transported south to Andersonville Confederate Prison.  Their story was told by one of the members of that regiment, who compiled accounts of the regimental history, including the journey to Andersonville, Georgia.

Luther S. Dickey, as author in 1910

History of the 103d Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry [103rd Pennsylvania Infantry], by Luther S. Dickey, was published in 1910 by L. S. Dickey in Chicago.  Dickey was a Corporal in the regiment and Sgt. Samuel M. Evans served as collaborator for the work.

The book has been digitized by Google and is available as a free download.  Click here and then follow the instructions in the red box  (EBOOK-FREE) at the left side of the page.  The book is available to download in several formats.

The story of the journey to Andersonville is told by Dickey.

From Plymouth to Andersonville Military Prison

(from 20 April to 2 May 1864)

At noon, the Plymouth captives were trampling over ground made familiar by many a march, under very different conditions.  On either side was a strong guard of Confederate soldiers, who, although natives of the state, but with few exceptions, were friendly disposed towards their defeated foes, and manifested no offensive exultation over their hard earned victory… A halt was made after dark, four or five miles west of [Jamesville], and a cornfield was selected by the captors as the place of bivouac…. The second day’s march… 22 April, was not so severe.  Shortly after noon a halt was made near Williamstown, a town which had felt the devastation of war more than once at the hands of many of those who were now captives in their midst.  Here, as everywhere, the entire community had turned out to gaze at the “Yankees.”  Considering the treatment that at least one expedition from Plymouth had given this town… the reception accorded the captives left no ground for complaint.  The postmaster of the town was among the visitors, and proffered his services to get letters through to northern friends.  About the middle of the afternoon the march was resumed and continued until a little before dark, when a halt was made in a North Carolina meadow…. The site of this resting place was convenient to excellent water…. Consideration was shown to the sick, and in every way that did not jeopardize the safety of those in their charge, the guards acted in a humane and Christian manner.  At times during the march there was little evidence of captor and captive…. The less than two thousand prisoners represented four states of the North:  Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York, and Pennsylvania…. When the jovial spirits among the prisoners started on that most popular Yankee marching song, “John Brown’s Body Lies Mouldering in the Grave…” no sign of protest was made.   even when that verse was reached that was most likely to arouse the passion of the Confederate soldier, “We’ll hang Jeff Davis on a sour apple tree, as we go marching on,” evoked only a smile…

Brig. Gen. Ransom, who commanded the right wing of the Confederate force, which assaulted and carried the Federal left at Plymouth, had been its colonel, and subsequent to the war, represented North Carolina for twenty-one years in the United States Senate….

An early start was made and during the forenoon [of 23 April] the town of Hamilton was reached and a rest was made until noon the next day…. A new set of “Johnny Rebs” took charge [and] their treatment of the prisoners was fair and considerate.  On Sunday the 24th, the late Plymouth garrison was regarded by the natives surrounding Hamilton as a “circus….”  About noon the prisoners were formed in a line and a careful search was made for [those] who had formerly served in the Confederate army and deserted.  A number were detected and taken away, and met the fate, no doubt, which the laws of war, of all nations award to such…. A march of twelve miles from Hamilton was made on Sunday afternoon….

On Monday, 25 April, the bank of the Tar river was reached after a ten mile march.  A place to bivouac was assigned the captives near the Tarboro Bridge where they remained until Friday morning, 20 April.  Tarboro was the most pretentious town on the Tar River and carried on considerable traffic with Washington before the Federal army too possession, the river being navigable between the two points.

During the three days stay at Tarboro, “Yank” and “Reb” carried on a heavy traffic and men were fortunate enough to have the Elizabeth City Bank money found ample opportunity to use it here with advantage.  The citizens [took] advantage of the necessities of the prisoners held everything at an extortionate price….  Tarboro being a railroad town, marching was now at an end, except to and from stations….  During the forenoon [of the 29th April] the depot was reached and the box cars were boarded, and by ten o’clock the train was moving toward Rocky Mount… A stop was made at Goldsboro, 56 miles distant from Tarboro by rail, where rations were issued, consisting of three hard crackers, and a small piece of bacon.  Wilmington was reached during the night, but the prisoners were kept locked in the closed cars until after daylight, when they alighted and marched to a ferry boat which was waiting to convey them across the Cape Fear River….  During the afternoon the captives took their departure from Wilmington for the metropolis of South Carolina, passing several train loads of Confederate soldiers en route to join the army in the direction of Petersburg and Richmond.

A surprise was given the captives on their arrival in Charleston, Sunday 1 May… to find many evidences of loyalty to the stars and stripes and numerous evidences of sympathy were in evidence…. However, the stay was limited to two or three hours, when platform cars were boarded, bound to Savannah, Georgia.  The open cars, although offering no protection from the Southern sun, presented an uninterrupted view of the surrounding country, even permitting a hazy glimpse of Fort Sumter from the bridge crossing the Ashley River.  However, before the journey on these cars came to an end [there was] a drenching rain.

At Savannah a change of cars was made, the last change of this pilgrimage, for before another day had come the journey was at an end.  Previous to reaching Macon a stop was made, rations issued, and the prisoners permitted the privilege of a good wash in running water.  Another stop of a couple of hours was made at Macon and about six o’clock the journey was resumed, and in three or four hours, between nine and ten o’clock, Andersonville station was reached, and the final railroad journey of the men who had so gallantly defended the town of Plymouth, two weeks before was forever at an end.  As the men left the cars, a careful count was made, and after a short march an open field, with inviting fired, was reached, where a halt was made for the night.

Early in the morning, Capt. Henry Wirz made his appearance, who with bluster and profanity, intermingled with sinister imprecations, introduced himself to the Plymouth captives by supervising their formation into detachments of 270 – subdivided into messes of 90, each detachment and subdivision being under the supervision of a sergeant captive, whose duty is was to draw and issue rations and call the roll, the latter being done under the supervision of Confederate guards.  Early in the forenoon, 3 May (Tuesday), the enlisted men of the Regiment, approximating 400 in numbers, entered the Andersonville stockade.

While all this was transpiring, the Union officers back at Roanoke Island began to take count of the missing men of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry.  Muster rolls were consulted and every man who did not answer at muster call was marked as “captured at Plymouth, North Carolina, 20 April 1864.”  Only four men were left from the regiment and they had either been on furlough or in the hospital at the time of the battle loss and capture of the regiment.  These men formed the core of the detachment that awaited new recruits to bring the regiment up to strength.  It took a while for the recruits to arrive and in the meantime, African Americans who were refugees were given weapons and asked to help to defend the island.

In the post yesterday, a brief review was given of Luther S. Dickey‘s book, History of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry.

On Tuesday, the story of the replacement troops at the garrison on Roanoke Island will be told and the post will conclude with a list of the men who served in the 2nd Company G of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry, most of whom were from the Lykens Valley area.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | 5 Comments »
Tags: African American

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 8, 2012

History of the 103d Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry [103rd Pennsylvania Infantry], by Luther S. Dickey, was published in 1910 by L. S. Dickey in Chicago.  Dickey was a Corporal in the regiment and Sgt. Samuel M. Evans served as collaborator for the work.

The book has been digitized by Google and is available as a free download.  Click here and then follow the instructions in the red box  (EBOOK-FREE) at the left side of the page.  The book is available to download in several formats.

At the end of the Civil War, men from the Lykens Valley area were recruited to serve in this regiment and were assigned to replacement companies.  Their experiences were quite different than those men who served in the regiment from its inception and organization, which took place from August 1861, to February 1862.  The book mainly tells the history of the regiment from the Battle of Williamsburg, Virginia, 4 May 1862 to 7 May 1862 through the eventual loss at the Battle of Plymouth, North Carolina, 17 April 1864 to 20 April 1864 and the subsequent capture and imprisonment of nearly all the men, most sent as far away as Andersonville, Georgia.

Corp. Luther S. Dickey, Company C

The book is filled with photographs of many of the men who served in the regiment, although most of these pictures are only of fair quality.  There are personal reminiscences (called “sketches”), stories of a prison escape, and detailed descriptions of two battles (the Battle of Seven Pines and the Battle of Plymouth).  For the battle descriptions, Dickey relies heavily on first-hand military reports as well as some non-official reminiscences.  There are also two  diaries, one of which is by an author unknown, and the other by Major Mackey, which records his 10 months of life in Confederate prisons.  All-in-all, the book is rich in primary source material and as a regimental history, is very comprehensive.  One of the concluding chapters describes the 31st Annual Reunion of the regiment.

For the men of the new companies of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry who were sent to North Carolina in March 1865, there is little that would be recognized in this volume, but their service is not neglected in the history.  It is important to recognize that this regiment, to which the new men were assigned, had a very difficult time following its capture at Plymouth, and the tremendous losses in life and to the health of the men as a result of their imprisonment played heavily on the survivors as they filtered back to North Carolina to re-join the regiment as they were released from Andersonville.  Thus, the conditions at Roanoke Island (where the remnants of the regiment were stationed), until discharge of the 103rd in June 1865, were affected by this curious mix of recently-released survivors of more than three years of battle (including nearly a year of imprisonment) and new recruits who were charged with keeping military discipline among those who wished to celebrate their freedom and return to their homes as quickly as possible.

To his credit, Dickey does not ignore this last period in the history of the regiment.  The men who served in the replacement companies are included in the rosters that appear at the end of the book.

After the Battle of Plymouth, the entire captured regiment was moved to Confederate prisons.  In the post tomorrow, Dickey’s description of the journey to Andersonville, Georgia, will be presented.  In the post on Tuesday, Dickey’s comments on the final days of the regiment will be given along with the roster of the 2nd Company G of the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry, the replacement company consisting mostly of men from the Lykens Valley area.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | 1 Comment »
Tags: Regiments