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The Crisis Pulls No Punches

Not sure how I feel about the cover of the most recent issue of The Crisis, but it sure does grab your attention. Justice Scalia on the Voting Rights Act And this last enactment, not a single vote in the Senate against it. And the House is pretty much the same….I think it is attributable, [...]

The future of Civil War history… yet another angle

Harry’s doing some interesting stuff over in his blog. If you haven’t seen it already, there are two polls… here, and here. Chime-in if you haven’t already done so. Now, that said… I’ve had something on my mind for several weeks. I keep meaning to write something about it, but I’m not quite sure how [...]

The Mysterious Prisoner of Ephraim Flint

To follow up yesterday’s deposition from Pvt. John Bateman of His Majesty’s 52nd Regiment of Foot, here’s another guest-blogger essay from Richard C. Wiggin.Ephraim Flint “shouldered his musket” on April 19, 1775, “and as one of theShow More Summary

Pvt. John Bateman Testifies and Declares

I’m going to break away from “King Hancock” for a while to highlight a document dated 23 Apr 1775.In the aftermath of the Battle of Lexington and Concord, the Massachusetts Provincial Congress set out to collect testimony about who fired first in that fight, and about any other arguable examples of British army misbehavior. Show More Summary

A Study in Irony

The founder of the Virginia Flaggers holds up the flag of a failed rebellion against the United States as she chats with a gentleman at a political event for prospective candidates in Wakefield, Virginia next to a poster accusing Lincoln of treason. It doesn’t get any better than this, folks.

A Quick Note On One Reason Why FDR Was Effective In Ways Obama Is Not

73rd Congress: Senate: 59 Ds, 36 Rs House: 311 Ds, 117 Rs 74th Congress: Senate: 70 Ds, 23 Rs. House: 322 Ds, 103 Rs. 75th Congress: Senate: 75 Ds, 16 Rs. House: 334 Ds, 88 Rs. 76th Congress: Senate: 70 Ds, 22 Rs House: 256 Ds, 173 Rs. Show More Summary

A rare treat

I had quite a rare treat today. Sharon McCardle, who is an officer of the Rockton, IL Historical Society, stopped by my office to visit. Sharon and her husband Karl had been in Gettysburg at the conference of the Company of Military Historians, where she set up a prize-winning exhibit on Brig. Show More Summary

“King Hancock” in 1770

The term “King Hancock” predates the Battle of Lexington and Concord in 1775, when Lt. Frederick Mackenzie of the British army reported hearing Massachusetts farmers shout it. The challenge is interpreting what people meant and understood...Show More Summary

Our Confederate Dead

This weekend I was in Petersburg, where I gave a talk to a group of educators as part of teachers conference sponsored by the Civil War Trust.  I had a great time. It’s always nice to be able to catch up with my good friend, Garry Adelman, and meet new teachers.  Yesterday morning I had [...]

Remembering United States Colored Troops on C-SPAN

I finally had a chance to watch the panel on USCTs that I moderated at Gettysburg College last month.  C-SPAN aired it this weekend.  I think the discussion went better than what I remembered, though I still get the sense of a subtle or perhaps no so subtle divide among the panelists between a detached [...]

“Calling out, ‘King Hancock forever’!”

According to Lt. Frederick Mackenzie of His Majesty’s 23rd Regiment of Foot, as the British column made its way back to Boston on 19 Apr 1775:During the whole of the march from Lexington the Rebels kept an incessant irregular fire from...Show More Summary

New blog link added

Regular reader Lee Hutch has started a new blog that looks like an eclectic mix of Western Theater Civil War history. Check it out here. I have also added a link to it. Welcome to the blogosphere, Lee. Scridb filter…

“Missing” Southern Unionists

Pardon my absence, folks, but in the wake of neck surgery, on Monday, I’ve been recuperating… trying to feel well enough to “get back in the game” in the blog. Despite the time spent recovering, I did take a few ventures (between naps) into online Southern Unionist claims. As such, I’ve discovered… “missing” Southern Unionists. [...]

The Young British Fifer

Besides Luther Blanchard, there’s another story of a wounded fifer on 19 Apr 1775, this one on the British side. But I’ve been unsuccessful in nailing down the details.Abram English Brown wrote Beneath Old Roof Trees in 1896 based on historical accounts, family traditions, and some fictionalization—but it’s hard to know how much of each. Show More Summary

Luxury Vacation Option

Today In “We’re Americans, We Don’t Have To Know Geography!”

The Ambassador of the Czech Republic is forced to issue statement clarifying that, no, his country is nowhere near Chechnya: As more information on the origin of the alleged perpetrators is coming to light, I am concerned to note in the social media a most unfortunate misunderstanding in this respect. Show More Summary

The Death of Luther Blanchard

As I described yesterday, Luther Blanchard was an eighteen-year-old fifer when the Revolutionary War broke out. He was wounded in the fighting at the North Bridge in Concord—but not badly enough to keep him from continuing to march with...Show More Summary

What Can Holocaust Memory Teach Us About Civil War Memory?

Next year I will be teaching a course that explores the Holocaust and historical memory as well as how our own Civil War has been remembered.  I am excited and horrified given what little I know about the Holocaust and WWII.  Perhaps I would feel this way about any historical subject next to my knowledge [...]

Always The Woman’s Fault

Because, of course, Mark Sanford was simply the hapless soldier, stuck in a minefield (on the Appalachian Trail, probably): Indeed, while Jenny has never come out and publicly opposed Mark’s congressional candidacy — choosing to remain officially neutral — she’s waged a brutally effective passive-aggressive campaign against it. Show More Summary

Luther Blanchard, Fifer

Yesterday I wrote about the Acton Minutemen marching toward Concord’s North Bridge, reportedly to the tune later codified as “The White Cockade.” The fifer in that unit was Luther Blanchard, son of Simon and Sarah Blanchard, born 4 June 1756 and therefore eighteen years old. Show More Summary