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By , March 6, 2010

Our Guiding Principles

Education — studying and learning about the American Civil War
Fellowship — constituted as a private men and women’s organization
Quality — selective and limited membership
 
Motto:  “Quality, Education, and Fellowship in all our Endeavors!”

 

Next Meeting:  Tuesday, December 11, 2018 

Subject:  Christmas in Cleveland

Presenter: Members of the Western Reserve Historical Society

  • 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: Armistice Day

Presenter: John Moser, Professor of History

For me, World War I has gotten lost between my interest in the Civil War and the more recent memory of World War II.  It has been reduced somehow to trench warfare, mustard gas, the Red Baron, and Over There.  Professor  Moser’s lively and highly informative rendering of the events, players, and drama surrounding the armistice that ended World War I revealed a fascinating history worthy of much wider examination.  
 
Apparently, the only heroes of this drama were on the battlefield, not the politicians and generals who brokered the armistice.  Woodrow Wilson, often portrayed as an idealist, hardly fit that image in his handling of the Allied victory.  His own cabinet was critical; and our allies, France and Britain, only contained their criticism until the armistice was complete.  For their part, Britain and France wanted complete victory and draconian measures that would prevent Germany from ever again becoming a threat to Europe.
 
There seemed to be more personal and national politics involved in the process to end the war than there was a desire to end the carnage.  Britain and France wanted to continue fighting to complete victory.  In fact, the negotiators working out the armistice insisted on continuing the killing after an agreement had been reached and the only act that remained was formalizing it, rather than agreeing to a cease fire.  These men demonstrated a complete disregard for the lives of the fighting men.
 
For their part, Germany claimed they would have continued fighting had they realized the severity of the terms of the armistice, when, in fact, they were already beaten, their troops in disarray, and their only way to avoid total defeat and invasion was the armistice.
 
Professor Moser did an excellent job.  He was lively, extremely knowledgeable, and chose a topic new to many of us.  I am sure he stimulated interest and curiosity in many of his audience, as he did in me.

Schedule of Programs

  • January 9
    • Faces of the Civil War
    •  Jean Rhodes, Cleveland CWRT
  • February 13
    • No Money, No Beer, No Pennants
    • Scott Longert, Author & former member
  • March 13
    • Irish in the Civil War
    • Ted Karle, member
  • April 10
    • Backstage at Ford’s Theater
    • Speaker: Thomas Bogar, Author
  • May 8
    • Your Affectionate Son” : Found Letters from a Civil War Soldier
    • Milann Daugherty, Author
  • September 11
    • Civil War Art
    • Keith Rocco, Artist
  • October 9
    • Cleveland History
    • Tim Barrett, Historian
  • November 13
    • Armistice Day
    • John E. Moser, Professor of History
  • December 11
    • Christmas in Cleveland
    • Western Reserve Historical Society

 

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 next program will be held on Wednesday, December 12.  It is entitled Digging up Your Roots: Civil War Genealogy 101. There are a million ways to do research on your Civil War ancestors, including a myriad of online databases.  But where do you start?  This program will explore some of the major online resources for locating soldiers & sailors of the Civil War and provide a take-home guide to begin your own journey into Civil War genealogy!

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.

 

 Other Web Sites of Interest

Western Reserve Historical Society:  Our club has acquired a group membership in the Western Reserve Historical Society.  Located in University Circle, the Civil War archive of books and photographs has been toured and admired by many of our guest speakers.  It is one of the best collections in the country.  They also own and run Hale Farm and Village.  Their web site is:  www.wrhs.org.
 
The James A. Garfield National Historic Site (Lawnfield) is sponsoring a lunchtime series on Leaders and Legacies of the Civil War at the Mentor Public Library.  Their web site, a portion of the National Park System site, is http://www.nps.gov/jaga.

6 Responses to “Home”

  1. Max R. Terman says:
    April 20, 2011 at 4:48 PM

    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.

  2. Dave Krueger says:
    September 29, 2011 at 10:01 PM

    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

  3. George Richards says:
    June 18, 2012 at 1:54 PM

    I’m very interested in your group. May non-members attend meetings?

    Many thanks,
    George Richards

  4. admin says:
    June 18, 2012 at 3:54 PM

    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.

  5. Jonathan Hennessey says:
    July 30, 2013 at 3:40 PM

    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

  6. Scott Mingus says:
    September 3, 2013 at 8:37 AM

    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.

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