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Next Meeting: Tuesday, March 12, 2019
Subject: Letters from the Front
Presenters: Debbie Weinkamer and Dan McGill, member
Dan McGill has portrayed James Garfield for a number of years. As we all know, our own Debbie Weinkamer does an excellent job of portraying Lucretia Garfield. It is only natural that they would create a presentation based on the correspondence between their two characters, and present the Garfields in their own words.
They’ve done this with the letters sent during the two-plus years that James was in the Civil War. Nothing is more interesting than the first person observations of someone who was actually there — in the war or at home doing the job of both parents.
This presentation should tell us more about the Garfields, what they saw, what they felt, and what they experienced, than any history book. I look forward to this presentation and hope you will join us.
- Canteen at 6:00 PM — Dinner at 6:45 PM
- Pine Ridge Country Club, 30601 Ridge Road (Ohio 84), Wickliffe, OH (1/2 mile west of Ohio 91)
- Cost $25.00 for an excellent family-style dinner and speaker. Cash bar.
- Reservations are required. Email President David Lintern at davelintern@rwsidley.com
Last Meeting:
Subject: Kate Chase, Civil War Belle of the North and Gilded Age Woman of Scandal
Presenter: Norton London, Founder
Kate Chase, the daughter of Salmon P. Chase, was indeed the belle of Washington, DC while her father was Secretary of the Treasury under Lincoln. Her beauty, charm, and intelligence were matched only by her ambition for her father. She employed all three as hostess for her thrice-widowed father during his tenure as Secretary of the Treasury.
She married the wealthy governor of Rhode Island, William Sprague, who gave her a necklace valued at $50,000 as a wedding gift. Their marriage, however was troubled. Sprague drank and became involved with other women. Kate was also unfaithful and, in later years, was often seen in public with her lover.
Eventually, the extravagances of her earlier life gave way to povery and she raised chickens and grew vegetables that she sold door to door in order to subsist.
As Norty said, the women of the Civil War era are generally much more interesting than the generals and politicians. This was a very interesting presentation about a very interesting woman.
Schedule of Programs
Please note the variance in February and October’s programs from the printed schedule.
- January 9
- Civil War and Current Events Challenge
- Past-presidents John Sandy and Franco Sperrazzo
- February 12
- Kate Chase, Civil War Belle of the North and Gilded Age Woman of Scandal
- Norton London, founder
- March 12
- Letters from the Front
- Debbie Weinkamer and Dan McGill, member
- April 9
- The Battle of the Crater, a Perfect Hell of Blood
- Speaker: A. Wilson Greene
- May 14
- Organized Crime
- Allan May, Author
- September 10
- Stonewall Jackson at Second Manassas
- Henry P. Elliot, National Park Ranger
- October 8
- The Andrews Raid
- Tom Horvath, Jr. & Sr., members
- November 12
- Deconstructing the Gettysbur Address
- Todd Arrington, Ph.D., Site Manager of James A. Garfield National Historic Site
- December 10
- Civil War Music
- Steve and Lisa Ball
Lunchtime Series: Leaders and Legacies of the Civil War
This series of talks has been so successful that the Mentor Public Library and James A. Garfield National Historic Site have decided to continue them. Rather than relying on battles, the emphasis has been switched and the title of the series changed to Leaders and Legacies of the Civil War.
The March talk will be on the 13th and the topic will be Cleveland’s Civil War Soldiers and Sailors Monument. Public Square in downtown Cleveland was the site of President James A. Garfield’s funeral in 1881, and since 1894 it has also been the location of the Soldiers and Sailors Monument. Made of polished black Quincy stone with six foliated bronze bands listing the 30 battles in which soldiers from Cuyahoga County fought, the monument is a must-see when visiting downtown Cleveland.
These talks normally take place on the second Wednesday of the month, at noon in the James A. Garfield Community Room of the Mentor Public Library. Talks are scheduled to last about one hour. Attendees are invited to bring their bag lunches.
2018 Spring Outing
This year’s spring outing was on Saturday, June 9th. We visited Oberlin and toured some of the historic sites around their pleasant campus. After an excellent lunch at the Black River Cafe, we visited the 103rd OVI property in Sheffield Lake. This fascinating location was purchased by surviving members of the 103 OVI to use as a site for their annual reunions. Over time, permanent housing was created for those looking for more comfort than tents could provide. Eventually, some descendants took up year-round residence and today there are a number of houses owned by direct descendants, who are the only people allowed to own houses there. We explored their small museum, old barracks, and photo gallery. It is a unique arrangement and an interesting place to visit.
Civil War Symposium
Our 7th annual Civil War Symposium was held on Friday, July 20th. Speakers this year were National Park Service Rangers and historians Dan Vermilya and Matt Atkinson. Dan took a closer, deeper look at General George McClellan and made a good case for moderating the criticism heaped on McClellan — at least for his performance at Antietam. Matt Atkinson’s talk was triggered by excavations and research into an early Union field hospital. He used that as a springboard to talk about the advances made in medical treatment of the troops, especially in the field. Notable among the advances was the introduction of triage. Both gentlemen were well versed in their topics and provided new information and insights.
Themocracy
I came across your Civil War Round Table and thought you might be interested in a true story about an 82nd Ohio soldier told in the first person in dramatic form. The ebook is written with a discussion guide for Civil War Round Tables and you may want to check it out.
Hiram’s Honor: Reliving
Private Terman’s Civil War, ISBN 978-0615-27812-4.
Hiram’s Honor can be examined at http://www.amazon.com/Hirams-Honor-Reliving-Private-Termans/dp/0615278124/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1239221935&sr=8-1
Ebook
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/50674
The unique thing about this book is that I assume the identity of my ancestor in all of his battles and prison misery. It was quite a challenge to match every detail that actually happened (dairies, letters, first-hand accounts) with a first person dramatized and riveting story of how I would have reacted in his situation. Best wishes in your work.
Greetings from Delafield, Wisconsin, Birthplace of Lt. Alonzo Cushing. Just a quick update on the Medal of Honor. Although it was widely reported that the Secretary of the Army had approved the nomination, the process is still ongoing. The Secretary of Defense has not yet made his recommendation. Additionally, the President would still have to sign off. I would be happy to keep you updated if the situation changes.
Best Regards
Dave Krueger
Delafield, WI
I’m very interested in your group. May non-members attend meetings?
Many thanks,
George Richards
George — yes, non-members may attend. Because we take the summer off, our next meeting is not until Sepetember 11. Closer to the meeting date, make a reservation (see above) and look me, Tom Horvath, up at the meeting. I’ll be glad to introduce you to some of our members. Meanwhile, you may be interested in the symposium being held at Lawnfield on July 13, also described above.
Hello NEOCWRT. My name is Jonathan Hennessey. I am author of a new Civil War nonfiction graphic novel from HarperCollins. I would like to let members of your group know I will be doing a reading from my book at 6 pm Thursday, August 8 at the Barnes & Noble bookstore on Medina Road in Akron.
THE GETTYSBURG ADDRESS: A GRAPHIC ADAPTATION (www.graphicgettysburg.com) is a bold and innovative use of the comics medium. It uses the words from Lincoln’s iconic speech to tell the “whole story of the Civil War, 1776 – The Present.” I will be presenting a chapter of the book mostly examining the Confederacy’s legal case for secession, Lincoln’s counterargument, and how both the language of both the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence informed those two different positions. I will be projecting still and animated segments of the book on a movie screen.
Kirkus Reviews called the book, “Engaging, provocative and deftly nuanced. … This second collaboration by Hennessey and McConnell again finds them probing the implications of history through incisive analysis and compelling art.”
Library Journal hailed it as, “An excellent work. … Not a simplification but a detailed and nuanced analysis of Lincoln’s famous speech.”
Thank you for your consideration!
All best,
Jonathan Hennessey
Thanks for the invitation to speak at the CWRT again. My topic this year will be Confederate General William “Extra Billy” Smith: From Virginia’s Statehouse to Gettysburg Scapegoat.