The Outpost THE NEWSLETTER OF THE SALT CREEK CIVIL WAR ROUND TABLE VOLUME XLIV No. 1 September 2006 393rd Regular Meeting DATE: 1st September 2006 PLACE: Fairview Village, 200 Village Dr., Downers Grove, Il. TIME: 8:00 P.M. SPEAKER: Kurt Carlson TOPIC: “Patrick R. Cleburne” I was standing around a rather wet campfire at the 1997 Shiloh re-enactment when the subject of who was the best general for each side in the Civil War came up. While a lot of the usual suspects were mentioned, the name that came up most often on the Confederate side was that of Patrick Ronayne Cleburne. Born in Co. Cork, Ireland, on St. Patrick’s Day in 1828, he intended to follow his father into the medical profession. However, he failed the pharmacy exam and, out of shame and embarrassment, he enlisted in Her Majesty’s 41st Regiment of Foot. He served for three years and then succeeded in buying his way out and emigrating to the U.S. in 1849. He worked for a while as a pharmacist (guess the standards were not as tough here!) in Cincinnati, Ohio and then settled in Helena, Ark., where he was a partner in a drugstore. Later, at the urging of friends, he became a lawyer. In 1861, he enlisted in the Yell Co. Rifles as a private, but was swiftly elected Captain. This began a meteoric rise that resulted in a Major Generalcy by December 1862. However, he was not to advance further. The reasons why will be detailed by this months speaker Kurt Carlson is a past President of both Salt Creek and Chicago CWRT’s. He has been a featured speaker on several occasions. As was Cleburne, he is a lawyer, but lives in Wheaton, which the General did not. This is an updated version of a talk he previously delivered to the SCCWRT. 1 JUNE MEETING BY CINDY INTRAVARTOLO On June 2, Dr. Gordon E. Dammann, founder of the National Museum of Civil War Medicine presented, “Civil War Medicine-An Overview”, before 43 members and guests at the 39th Annual Dinner Banquet. Our previously scheduled speaker, Pat Brennan, had to decline because of health reasons and Dr. Dammann was kind enough to come to our rescue by agreeing to speak on very short notice. We send our best wishes to Mr. Brennan for a speedy recovery and perhaps he will be able to speak to us at a future date. Dr. Dammann commented that he couldn’t remember when he last spoke to our roundtable but it was at the 1996 dinner banquet. At the beginning of the war, Dammann commented that not only was not militarily prepared for war, but also it was not medically prepared to deal with large numbers of casualties. Doctors had no idea what to do with 1000 injured soldiers at one time. Sterilization was unknown at the time of the war. Care in large hospitals was almost non-existent. Hospitals were known as pest houses and places to avoid. The profession of nursing was brand new. Following the First Battle of Bull Run, wounded soldiers remained on the battlefield for a week or more before anyone cared for them, and then it was civilians who were the first to provide any care. Dammann noted that, during the war, anesthetic agents, such as chloroform and ether were used, but there were no antibiotics. Chloroform was preferred over ether because ether was known to be flammable and would explode if too close to lanterns or candles. There was no knowledge of bacteriology, no products for blood transfusions, no means of x-ray. There were about 87 medical schools at the time. Dr. D commented that if a person were interested in becoming a physician or surgeon they would serve a preceptorship with an established doctor before entering medical school. The school then consisted of two terms of three months and studies included: anatomy, chemistry, pharmacology, surgery, obstetrics, and diseases of women. Students would pay professors (through the purchase of tickets) for their lectures. At the end of two terms a test was given and, if the student passed, he or she then became a doctor. Disease was responsible for three of four deaths during the war largely because there were no known cures. When men came together in recruitment camps, when one got sick, it rapidly spread to the rest. The combined factors of poor housing, poor food and water, poor camp sanitation, poor clothing and shoes, poor working conditions, and lack of sleep, all contributed to the onset of disease. Doctors were powerless against these maladies. The most common were: diarrhea dysentery, typhoid fever, camp fever, malaria, typhus, smallpox, consumption, pneumonia, chicken pox, scurvy, and heat stroke. There were many medical advances during the war. Medical photography, 2 documenting battlefield wounds and reconstructive surgical procedures, began for the first time. When a wounded soldier was brought in from the field, a team of three surgeons would perform the examination and, if it were decided that amputation was needed, all three surgeons would have to agree to its performance. Despite the number of amputations that were performed, many resection procedures were also done. The use of prosthetic devices began during the war, as well as, reconstructive plastic surgery. Advances in hospital care were so remarkable that Europeans modified their hospital techniques in response. The nursing profession also advanced. The first women to be used as nurses were Catholic sisters of the various religious orders. Dammann noted that the surgeons liked the sisters better than civilian women because the sisters didn’t want anything. They would make due with less material than other women would. When Dorothea Dix was placed in charge of all government hospitals she set very strict standards for her nurses. They had to be over thirty and very plain looking. Dresses had to be brown or black with no frills. The doctor commented that we owe a great debt of gratitude to the women who served both Union and Confederate armies. Battlefield medicine made great strides as a result of the war. Jonathan Letterman, known as, “The Father of Battlefield Medicine”, developed an effective evacuation and ambulance system to remove soldiers from the field to the hospital. He also used railroads and boats to get them to northern hospitals. His aim was to get the soldiers closer to home where family could visit and participate in their care. He also developed an efficient supply system. The procedures he developed in the 1860’s are still used by the army today. In sum, Dammann said that given the medical conditions of the time, the departments of North and South accomplished much. They fought for improved sanitation in camps, provided medical textbooks for army doctors, and organized medical societies to meet, write, and share knowledge. They organized an effective ambulance system and a system of field dressing stations and hospitals. They kept records to be compiled for future reference. Surgeons who had special talents were credited with trying new techniques of orthopedics and plastic surgery. The profession of nursing was developed and promoted. Once again, the SCCWRT is grateful to Dr. Gordon Dammann for answering the call and coming to us in our time of need. PRESERVATION REPORT BY LEN OVERCASH, SR RICHMOND, VA. -For the first time in its 110-year history, the Museum and White House of the Confederacy will cut its operating hours. The museum will close on Wednesdays, from Labor Day to Memorial Day. In addition, the White House will be closed for public tours in January and February. The move comes a few months after approval of the state budget that awarded the museum just $50,000 of a $700,000 grant the downtown institution 3 had requested for fiscal 2006-2008. The money would have been used to reverse the museum’s deficit, expected to reach $700,000 this year. (Richmond VA Times-Dispatch) Source: Civil War Interactive (www.civilwarinteractive.com) “The Daily Newspaper of the Civil War” ALL FOR THE UNION Coming Soon! September 16 to be exact, is the annual Civil War Book and Memorabilia show. This year returning to the DuPage Co. Fairgrounds. Take the opportunity to stock up and secure years of fun and knowledge! THE VACANT CHAIR As this newsletter goes to press, comes word of the passing of long-time member and past –president (1977-1979) Bill Thomas. The SCCWRT extends its profound sympathies and condolences to his family and many friends. Services are Monday 8/28 at Knox Presbyterian Church in Naperville. Visitation is at 10 AM with funeral services following at 11. Phone-630-355-8181 EDITOR’S NOTES The next board meeting is Tuesday 8/29 at Fairview Village, 7:30 P.M. Call Rick Zarr 708-597-2780 for details. We Need Speakers! Open dates for 2007 are: Feb. 2, March 30, May 4 and Nov. 2. PLEASE step up and give us the benefit of your expertise. It is both easy and fun and, you get a nice plaque! In about 3 mos. it is election time again! To put it bluntly, there are several members who have been doing the leadership thing an inordinate amount of time and feel they would like to step down. We need new blood, both on the board and in officer positions. Don’t get caught in the draft! Volunteer! CALENDAR OF EVENTS October 6-Bill Hupp-Virtual Battlefield Tour-Wilson’s Creek November 17 (Note Date)-Annual Auction for Battlefield Preservation. December 1-Ron Carlson-Gen. Alpheus Starkey Williams The Salt Creek Civil War Roundtable www.saltcreekcwrt.org. President: Rick Zarr Vice-President: Gil Mitchell Treasurer: Bill Hupp Secretary: Jan Rasmussen Historian: Cindy Intravartolo Sgt. At Arms: Ron Kumnick 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