The Outpost THE NEWSLETTER OF THE SALT CREEK CIVIL WAR ROUND TABLE VOLUME XLIV No. 7 March 2007 399th Regular Meeting DATE: 2nd March 2007 PLACE: Fairview Village, 200 Village Dr., Downers Grove, Il. TIME: 8:00 P.M. SPEAKER: Mary Carol Farber TOPIC: “Women’s Movement During the Civil War” For many reasons, including the times, women’s rights, abolition, temperance, and the American Civil War were often inextricably intertwined. The early mothers of the women’s movement were wives and mothers who cherished the role that they played in the lives of their families and communities. Their great sadness was in the inequalities they suffered in the country, in which, they lived and played taxes. They were not afforded the most basic of legal rights, such as custody of their children, or even control of their own property, much less the right to vote. Countless courageous women made it their life’s work to make the world a better place for their daughters. Nevertheless, as long and hard as that struggle was, it was nearly abandoned as the issue of slavery consumed the nation. Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth C. Stanton, Lucy Stone, Mary P. Hallowell, Mary R. Livermore and other less well-known women persistently worked to bring about equal rights before, during, and after the Civil War. Mary Carol Farber has been a member of the SCCWRT for 14 years. Mary Carol received her B.A. in History from Elmhurst College and is the founder of Elmhurst College Global Historians. She is the author of “We Belong to History” and recently coauthored an article on Theodore Roosevelt. Farber was awarded the Albert and Rosalind Lepawsky Graduate Fellowship at Roosevelt University. She is active in several women’s organizations including The International Women’s Writing Guild. The SCCWRT welcomes this member and distinguished scholar to its’ podium. 1 FEBRUARY MEETING BY CINDY INTRAVARTOLO On February 2, Norman Stevens, Civil War historian and author, spoke on Stonewall Jackson and the Valley Campaign before 55 members and guests at the 398th regular meeting of the Salt Creek Civil War Roundtable. Stevens, himself a VMI graduate, began with a discussion of Jackson’s life at the institute. Jackson had been an instructor at Virginia Military Institute since 1851, and even during the Civil War considered himself its professor and would often make suggestions on course material during his absence. Had he survived the war, Stevens was certain that Jackson would have returned to VMI and resumed his teaching position. Stevens noted that cadets were used several times during the Civil War such as the Battle of New Market, but the first time they were engaged was in May of 1862 at McDowell, VA. Although Jackson held them in reserve, he ordered them to bury the dead of both sides after the battle and when asked by another officer how he could do that said that he was still their professor. Steven’s declared that Jackson’s fame, however, rests on the Valley Campaign. He commanded a brigade, the Stonewall Brigade, consisting of the 2nd, 4th, 5th, 27th, and 33rd Virginia Infantries. The brigade earned that title at the Battle of First Manassas in 1861 and Stevens noted that Jackson did not like to be called Stonewall because he felt it was a title the men earned and rightfully deserved. When Jackson was ordered to Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley, his orders were to keep the Yankees occupied, deny the Valley to them, and hopefully conduct a strategic diversion to force the Federals to spend an inordinate amount of resources to keep Jackson occupied. Stevens felt that Jackson accomplished his task extremely well. The major battles of the campaign included: McDowell, Front Royal, Kernstown, Cross Keys and Port Republic. What mattered during all of these battles is that Jackson managed to keep more Federal troops in the valley watching him than he had men employed against them. It meant that for every Federal soldier watching Jackson there was one less soldier with the Army of the Potomac marching to Richmond. Stevens stated that the Confederate infantry with Jackson at the time of the Valley Campaign was far superior to that of its Federal counterparts, he said its success was due to outstanding leadership and the previous military experience and higher education of most of the commanders and field officers. The SCCWRT wishes to thank Norman Stevens for sharing with us his passion and enthusiasm for Jackson and the Confederacy. 2 PRESERVATION REPORT BY LEN OVERCASH SR. VA.-The Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation announced that, through the donation of a conservation easement, the Powers family of Winchester has protected an additional 33 acres on the Cedar Creek battlefield. The parcel lies along the North Fork of the Shenandoah River in Warren County, just downstream from the confluence of the river and Cedar Creek. VA.-This week, the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation released its annual report for fiscal year 2006, which ran from September 2005 through October 2006. The report highlights successful battlefield preservation projects at seven of the Valley’s battlefields as well as progress made in interpretive and promotional programs in the National Historic District: • Second and Third Winchester -48 acres • Cedar Creek – 137 acres • Fisher’s Hill – 15 acres • Tom’s Brook – 109 acres • New Market – 69 acres • Port Republic – 220 acres • McDowell – 4 acres TN-A plan that locates a Battle of Franklin Interpretive Center on Carnton Plantation property won a 2-1 initial backing from city aldermen. But the center’s cost and the price of building a connector road from Lewisburg Pike through the city’s future Civil War battlefield park property have yet to be unveiled. Source for the above items is: Civil War Interactive (www.civilwarinteractive.com) “The Daily Newspaper of the Civil War” From our friend Terry Winschel at Vicksburg: “On behalf of Superintendent Monika Mayr and the staff at Vicksburg National Military Park, please accept our condolences on the passing of Ron Kumnick. Truly, Ron was a supporter of battlefield preservation and a friend of the National Park Service who will be missed by all of us in the Civil war community. May the example he provided in life continue to inspire those of us who knew Ron and for years to come serve as a guiding light for the noble work of the Salt Creek Civil War Roundtable.” “We are also grateful for the generous donation made in Ron’s name for restoration and maintenance of the Illinois Monument at Vicksburg National Military Park. It is only through the generosity of individuals such as Ron and organizations such as the Salt Creek Civil War Roundtable that we are able to properly maintain the resources entrusted to our care. Your generous donation will help insure that this magnificent monument, dedicated more than one hundred years ago, will serve to remind future generations of the selfless devotion to duty of the gallant soldiers and sailors from Illinois who served in the Vicksburg Campaign. Thank You.” (More to Come-Ed.) 3 THE VACANT CHAIR The Salt Creek Civil War Roundtable extends its’ sincerest and most heartfelt condolences to longtime secretary and newsletter staff member Jan Rasmussen on the passing of her mother, Beverly. We will keep Jan and all her family members in our thoughts and prayers ALL FOR THE UNION The 16th Annual Kankakee Valley Civil War Roundtable Symposium takes place on Saturday, March 31, 2007 at Bon Vivant Country Club, Bourbonnais, Illinois. Speakers include: John F. Marszalek, Marshall D. Krolick, Gordon C. Rhea, and Kurt Carlson. Register by 3/23/07 through mail or phone to: KVCWRT C/o Art Schumacher 655 S. Harrison Ave. Kankakee, IL. 60901 815-939-1041 FAX: 708-758-6092 E-mail: mhess@yahoo.com $50 adults, $25 students, $55 at door The SCCWRT has been offered participation in a two-day excursion to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum and Springfield from Fancy Free Holidays. Departure would be 6/7/07. Interested? Contact Mary Lord at 200 Village Dr. Apt. 341, Downers Grove 60516 Phone: 630-769-6182. EDITOR’S NOTES The next board meeting will be held at the home of Mary Lord, 200 Village Dr., Apt. 341, Downers Grove, Illinois at 7:30 P.M., 2/27/07. Phone No. 630-769-6182. CALENDAR OF EVENTS March 30-Gordon Ramsey-Hot Air Balloons and the First Air Force -400th Meeting!-Cake and Certificates! May 4-What are you Reading? General Book Discussion. June 1-Annual Banquet at Lisle Hilton- Patrick Brennan on the Battle of Nashville September 7-Marshall Krolick-Council of War, July 2, 1863 October 5-Paula Walker-Major General Gouverneur Kemble Warren and the Battle of Five Forks November 2-Annual Battlefield Preservation Auction at the DuPage Co. Historical Society. Dec. 7-Roger E. Bohn-Anecdotes and Adventures of the Civil War Blockade. The Salt Creek Civil War Roundtable www.saltcreekcwrt.org. President: Rick Zarr Vice-President: Gil Mitchell Treasurer: Brenda Grazis Secretary: Jan Rasmussen Historian: Cindy Intravartolo Meeting Liaison: Mary Lord Newsletter Editor: Dan McCarthy, 4358 Lawn Ave., Western Springs, IL,60558. 708-246-7873, macarthaig@aol.com Newsletter Staff: Cindy Intravartolo, Len Overcash Sr., Jan Rasmussen 4