Clark H. Lewis, President         Art & Carol Bergeron, Editors
P. O. Box 1122                    3901 Paces Ferry Road      
Richmond, VA 23218                 Chester, VA 23831-1239   

January 2002 PROGRAM

John C. Waugh

"The Class of 1846: The Civil War's Band of Brothers"

8:00 p.m., Tuesday, January 8, 2002, at the
Boulevard United Methodist Church, 321 N. Boulevard,
Richmond, VA (corner of Boulevard and Stuart Ave.)

John C.  Waugh is the author of the prize-winning  book  The
Class  of  1846:  From  West Point to Appomattox - Stonewall
Jackson,  George  McClellan  and  Their   Brothers   (1994);
Reelecting  Lincoln:  The  Battle  for  the  1864 Presidency
(1997); and Sam  Bell  Maxey  and  the  Confederate  Indians
(1995).   His  latest  book, Last Stand at Mobile is due out
this month.  Waugh's writings have appeared in the New  York
Times,  the  Los  Angeles  Times, the Boston Globe, American
Heritage, and Civil War  Times  Illustrated.   A  native  of
Clarksburg,   West  Virginia,  he  began  his  career  as  a
freelance  writer  in  that  state.   Waugh  is  the  former
newspaper  correspondent  and  bureau chief of the Christian
Science Monitor.  He was also an aide to Nelson Rockefeller.
Now retired, he lives in Arlington, Texas.                  

Waugh  will speak on The Class of 1846 and the characters in
it.  The book details the famous  West  Point  graduates  of
that  year.   The  class  included  some  of the most famous
military leaders in American history,  including  George  B.
McClellan,  Thomas  J.   "Stonewall"  Jackson, and George E.
Pickett.  These men went  from  the  parade  ground  at  the
United  States  Military  Academy to the battlefields of the
Mexican War.  All of them gained practical combat experience
for the war that would erupt in 1861.                       

The  leading generals of the Civil War personally knew their
opponents on many of  the  battlefields  where  they  fought
against each other.  Some of the latter, like Antietam, were
what one  person  has  described  as  "practically  a  class
reunion."  Waugh  will  not  only  cover the more well known
officers but will also look at some of the less celebrated. 


Review of the December Program


Dr.  John M.  Coski  gave  an  interesting  and  informative
presentation  on  "The  Battle  Flag:  A  Brief  History  of
America's  Most  Controversial  Symbol."  Coski   has   been
studying Confederate flags in an objective way to understand
them, their meanings, and their  uses.   What  we  call  the
Battle  Flag  has  become  "the"  symbol of the Confederacy.
Coski talked about it in all of its shapes.  There were many
battle  flags  during the Civil War, but the one bearing the
St.  Andrew's cross has become the most recognizable  symbol
of  the  Confederacy.   It is the only Confederate flag that
most people know.                                           

The Battle Flag was born as a rejection  of  the  Stars  and
Bars,  or  the  First  National  Flag.   General  P.  G.  T.
Beauregard of Louisiana sought a new banner for  the  troops
to  carry.   William  Porcher Miles assisted Beauregard with
the design and suggested the St.   Andrew's  cross  pattern.
Although the "Beauregard" flag was square, General Joseph E.
Johnston favored a rectangular shape and  had  such  banners
made  for  both  the  army  in  Virginia  and  the  Army  of
Tennessee.   In  1863,  the  Second  National  Flag,   which
incorporated  the  Battle Flag, was adopted.  This change in
the national banner began the transition of the Battle  Flag
becoming  "the"  Confederate flag.  The Battle Flag was thus
becoming the symbol of the  Confederacy  shortly  after  May
1863.                                                       

Coski  pointed  out that, from 1865 to 1914, the Battle Flag
had restricted use.  It was seen primarily  at  parades  and
reunions  and  was  flown  only  to  commemorate Confederate
soldiers.  In 1904, the United Confederate Veterans formed a
committee  to  study  the  history  of  the flag.  The UCV's
report in 1907 stated that "the" Confederate  flag  was  the
square  Battle  Flag.  Both the UCV and the United Daughters
of the Confederacy experienced trouble  after  1907  getting
companies to produce square banners.  Manufacturers insisted
that  most  people  wanted  rectangular  flags,  which  were
parallel with the Stars and Stripes.                        

An  explosion  of  use  of  Battle Flags occurred during the
1940s.  This happened in several contexts.   The  flag  came
into vogue in the United States army during World War II and
the Korean War.  Men associated it with home and the  spirit
of Robert E.  Lee and Stonewall Jackson.  Because the United
States flag was not used in Korea, many soldiers substituted
the  Confederate Battle Flag for it.  Young delegates at the
States Rights, or Dixiecrat, Party convention in  1948  used
the  Battle Flag as a symbol of political rebellion.  Use of
the  banner  at  colleges,  however,  was  the  key  to  its
proliferation.   It  appeared  at  football  games and other
activities as  a  symbol  of  school  spirit.   This  helped
disassociate the flag from commemorative uses.              

In  the  1950s, a large-scale flag fad began and soon spread
across the nation.  The Battle Flag  appeared  on  T-shirts,
license  plates,  diapers,  belt  buckles,  hats,  and other
items.  It had now become devoid of  ideology.   The  Battle
Flag  had  become  a logo for Dixie and things Southern.  At
the same time, the Ku Klux Klan began using  the  banner  to
oppose desegregation.  With the civil rights movement of the
1960s and  1970s,  opposition  to  the  Battle  Flag  became
widespread and more vocal.                                  

Will  there  be  a  solution to the flag controversy?  Coski
said that people must recognize that there  are  differences
in  what  it  means  to  various people and that we must not
ascribe negative motives to others simply because  the  flag
means  something different to us.  We should make allowances
for the flag's historical use but must also  recognize  that
it should not be used in a sovereignty context.             



 Announcements 

Round  Table Raffle

The January raffle item is a nicely bound 2-volume  set  of
The Long Arm of Lee by Jennings C. Wise.                    


New Officers

The following slate of officers was elected at the  December
meeting-Clark  Lewis,  President;  Brag  Bowling, First Vice
President; and Art Bergeron, Second  Vice  President.   Jack
Ackerly,  Bob  Krick,  and  Scott  Mauger  were named to the
Executive Board.                                            


Membership Renewal

A separate mailing will be made in 2002 so that  people  can
renew  their  membership  in  the  Richmond  Civil War Round
Table.  You should expect to find the renewal notice in your
mailbox in the near future.                                 


Newsletter Deadlines

To facilitate the printing and timely  distribution  of  the
monthly  newsletter,  information for it should be submitted
to the editors no later than the following dates: January 18
for  February;  February  22  for March; March 22 for April;
April 19 for May; May 24 for June; June 21 for July; July 19
for  August;  August  23  for  September;  September  20 for
October; October  18  for  November;  and  November  22  for
December.                                                   


Richmond Civil War Round Table Speakers for 2002

January - John C. Waugh           
February - John Quarstein         
March - William J. Cooper, Jr.    
April - Edward Smith              
May - Frank O'Reilly              
June - Gordon Rhea                
July - Cramer Gallimore           
August - not determined           
September - not determined        
October - Gabor Boritt            
November - Jay Winick             
December - William C. "Jack" Davis


Museum of the Confederacy Programs

Civil War Encounters.  These are living  history  encounters
at the Museum where costumed historians portray eyewitnesses
to significant Civil War events and will occur one  Saturday
each  month.   The  first will be held on January 26 at 2:00
p.m.  In "The Battle of Trent's  Reach,"  a  quarter  gunner
describes the Confederate attack on the last remaining Union
ironclad during the battle of Trent's Reach,  January  1865.
Free with Museum admission.                                 

Lee-Jackson Day.  On Friday, January 18, from 10:00 a.m.  to
5:00 p.m., the Museum  will  remember  Robert  E.   Lee  and
Thomas   J.   "Stonewall"  Jackson  on  the  official  state
holiday.  Admission is free to the Museum all day.          

Children's Activity Day.   On  Saturday,  January  19,  from
1:00-4:00  p.m.,  bring your family to enjoy crafts, special
demonstrations and living history for an exciting  afternoon
of Civil War history.  Free with Museum admission.          

Find  Your Civil War Ancestors Workshops I & II.  On Sunday,
January 20, and Monday, January 21, from 2:00-4:00 p.m. both
days,  join  Museum  library  staff  for  an introduction of
sources and techniques to identify  and  locate  Confederate
ancestors  and  trace  their  wartime experiences.  Space is
limited;  call  today.   $15/free  to  members.    RSVP   to
649-1861, ext.  28.                                         


Richmond Civil War Round Table Newsletter
Art & Carol Bergeron, Editors
3901 Paces Ferry Road
Chester, VA 23831-1239