Our Guiding Principles

Memorial Day Wreath Laying

In 2003, the NEOCWRT erected and, on Memorial Day, dedicated a monument inscribed with the names of all Civil War veterans buried in the Willoughby Cemetery on Sharp Street.  Each year since 2003 members of the NEOCWRT have laid a wreath at the monument as part of Willoughby’s Memorial Day activities.  This year, the parade begins at 9:30 AM and winds its way through down town to the cemetery.  There, activities conclude with some brief speeches, the laying of the wreath, and the playing of Taps. 

(The story of the extensive research, fund raising, creation, and dedication of the monument can be found on the “Legacy Project” tab on this site. )

Civil War Symposium

Our 7th annual Civil War Symposium will be Friday, July 20th at 7:00 PM.  Speakers this year will be National Park Service Rangers and historians Dan Vermilya and Matt Atkinson.  That Dan is a an excellent author and speaker, we know from personal experience.  Matt Atkinson was chosen by the park service to create a YouTube video describing the Battle of the Peach Orchard at Gettysburg.  This is an opportunity to hear two excellent speakers and historians.

The talks are given on the grounds of James A. Garfield National Historic Site and are free and open to the public.  Light refreshments are provided by NEOCWRT.

Civil War Encampment at James A. Garfield NHS

The above symposium serves to kick off the Civil War encampment weekend on July 21-22.  Our organization participates in a number of ways, from drilling young soldiers to hosting Civil War generals who speak about their war experiences in our tent.  The encampment is an entertaining weekend, with music playing, rifles firing, notable Civil War politicians and generals talking, and free tours of Lawnfield.

Bring the family and enjoy the free festivities.

Next Meeting:  Tuesday, September 11, 2018 

Subject:  Civil War Art

Presenter:  Keith Rocco, Artist

 Last Meeting:

Subject: Your Affectionate Son – Found Letters from a Civil War Soldier

Presenter: Milann Daughtery, Author

Imagine stumbling across a box of letters written by a Civil War soldier who turns out to be your great great uncle.  The letters’ author is educated and  the penmanship excellent, but some of the script includes symbols long since abandoned, words no longer in use, and creases in the paper that erase portions of words.  The urge to read and understand these first hand accounts of life as a Civil War soldier is balanced by the difficulty and time required to do so.  Milann Daughtery took the time and the effort and produced something worth publishing — which she did.

The story of her efforts was half the talk.  Excerpts from the letters was the second half.  Ms. Daughtery’s great great uncle was well educated and wrote well.  Some of the excerpts were almost poetic.  The entire collection, which she has annotated and published, must certainly make for interesting reading.  It was a pleasure to find that discoveries of this nature can be made even now.

This was an interesting and enlightening talk.

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

2018 Spring Outing

This year’s spring outing is scheduled for Saturday, June 9th.  We will visit Oberlin and tour some of the sites that were probably significant in the Underground Railroad.  After lunch at a local restaurant, we will visit the site of the 103rd OVI in Sheffield Lake.  There we will explore their museum, old barracks, and photo gallery.  Those who have not already signed up may contact Franco Sperrazzo.

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 programs are:

• June 13 — Burying the Dead: The Aftermath of a Civil War Battle
• July 11 — History of the Medal of Honor
• August 8 — Ulysses S. Grant and the Election of 1868
• September 12 — The Last Surrender: The Confederate Surrender at Bennett Place, North Carolina

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.

 Other Web Sites of Interest

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.