R.Danny Witt, President         Art & Carol Bergeron, Editors
5500 Ashton Park Way             3901 Paces Ferry Road     
Glen Allen, VA 23059                Chester, VA 23831-1239    

September 2000 PROGRAM

William J. Miller

"Making Stonewall:
Federal Intentions in the Valley in 1862"

8:00 p.m., Tuesday, September 12, 2000
Boulevard United Methodist Church, 321 N. Boulevard,
Richmond, VA (corner of Boulevard and Stuart Ave.)
Enter basement door from Boulevard side.

Was Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign really the brilliant
operation  writers  have  made  it  out  to  be?  Was it the
masterwork of a military genius or a  "no  brainer  against"
third-rate  opponents?  William J.  Miller will seek answers
through  an  analysis  of  the  campaign  from   a   Federal
perspective,  discussing  John  C.   Fremont,  Nathaniel  P.
Banks, Abraham Lincoln, Edwin Stanton, George B.  McClellan,
James  Shields, and William S.  Rosecrans and what they were
attempting to do in western Virginia in the spring of 1862.

Miller  received  his  bachelor's  degree  in  English  from
Villanova University and his master's degree in English from
the University of Delaware.  He is the author or  editor  of
six   volumes   on   Civil   War   history,   including  the
award-winning Mapping for Stonewall: The Civil  War  Service
of  Jed  Hotchkiss  (1993);  The  Training  of an Army: Camp
Curtin and the North's Civil War (1990); and The Men of Fort
Ward  (1990).   Miller  has  had  articles  and book reviews
published  in  various  periodicals,  including  Civil   War
Regiments and America's Civil War.  A former editor of Civil
War Magazine, he is the recipient  of  the  Jefferson  Davis
Medal   presented  for  historical  writing  by  the  United
Daughters of the Confederacy.   Miller  has  published  more
than 90 articles on Civil War history and is now editing the
papers of Jed Hotchkiss for publication by the University of
North  Carolina  Press  in  2001.   He is active in historic
preservation as a member of the advisory boards  of  Protect
Historic America and the Kernstown Battlefield Association.





James L. Conrad
"The Confederate Naval Academy"

Review of the August Program

Colonel James Lee Conrad presented an extremely  informative
talk on the history of the Confederate States Naval Academy.
Conrad pointed out that Jefferson Davis and the  Confederacy
never  developed a military academy because of the number of
military schools that existed in the South.  However,  naval
training  required  some  technical skills like mathematics,
navigation, and naval gunnery that made it necessary to have
a  school  to train the new country's future naval officers.
Thus, in April 1862, the Confederate Congress began  filling
appointments  to  a naval academy in Richmond.  Secretary of
the Navy Stephen  R.   Mallory  and  Commander  John  Mercer
Brooke  were instrumental in getting the school started, and
it came under the superintendency of Lieutenant  William  H.
Parker.                                                     

The C.  S.  S.  Patrick Henry became the school ship and was
stationed at  Drewry's  Bluff  on  the  James  River.   When
classes  began  in  October 1863, many of the midshipmen, or
"reefers," who reported had already seen some action.   Some
106  young  men received appointments, but the Patrick Henry
could not accommodate all of them.  She had room for only 52
midshipmen and the 20 officers, professors, and crewmembers.
The academy's curriculum resembled that of the United States
Naval  Academy  but also provided some first-hand experience
in practical seamanship.  Rules  aboard  the  Patrick  Henry
were  very  strict, and midshipmen were expected to "abstain
from  all  vicious  and  amoral  conduct."   The   academy's
proximity  to  Richmond  and  fairly  liberal  leave  policy
sometimes made this difficult for the young reefers.        

On occasion, some of the midshipmen would leave the  academy
to   participate   in   active  operations.   Some  of  them
participated in an expedition near Savannah, Georgia,  which
captured  the  Union vessel Water Witch.  Under Captain John
Taylor Wood, other reefers joined the attack on the  Federal
garrison  at  New  Berne,  North Carolina, in February 1864.
This expedition failed, but the naval  detachment  succeeded
in capturing and destroying the gunboat Underwriter.  Conrad
gave a vivid description of  the  reception  of  the  heroic
reefers  by  the  young  ladies  along  their  route back to
Richmond.  When Major General Benjamin F.  Butler's Army  of
the  James  threatened  Richmond  during the Bermuda Hundred
Campaign of May  1864,  a  number  of  midshipmen  left  the
academy  to  either  serve  on  warships  of the James River
Squadron or in the batteries at Drewry's Bluff and along the
Howlett Line.                                               

Lieutenant  Parker  realized  by  early  1865  the desperate
situation of the Confederate capital, so he asked  Secretary
Mallory  for  instructions  on  where to move the academy if
Richmond should be evacuated.  When that event  occurred  on
the  night  of  April  2, 1865, Parker and 50 of his reefers
were given responsibility for escorting Jefferson Davis  and
the Confederacy's gold reserves southward.  From Manchester,
the treasure train moved to Danville, where it remained  for
six  days.   The  midshipmen  continued  the  escort through
Greensboro and Charlotte and finally detrained at Abbeville,
South  Carolina.   There  they  moved the gold to wagons and
eventually put  it  in  bank  vaults  in  Augusta,  Georgia.
Returning  to  Abbeville,  Parker  disbanded  the  corps  of
midshipmen on May 2, 1865.                                  

Conrad pointed to two positive legacies of  the  Confederate
Naval  Academy.  First, it provided well-trained officers to
the Confederate navy.  Unfortunately, the new  nation  could
have  used the reefers to better advantage by elevating them
more quickly.  Second, the academy gave young men  a  chance
at  a  good  education,  one  that would benefit them in the
post-war years.                                             


Announcements


Fall Field Trip.  The Richmond Civil War Round Table's  Fall
Field Trip will be on Saturday, November 4, 2000.  The group
will tour the North Anna and Cold Harbor battlefields.   Our
guide  will  be Mr.  Eric Mink of the National Park Service.
We will depart from the parking lot of the James  River  Bus
Lines  at 915 North Allen Street.  Folks need to be there by
7:45 a.  m.  so that we can depart by 8:00 a.  m.   We  will
return by 5:30 p.  m.  The cost is $18.00 per person.  Those
interested in attending should  bring  a  bag  lunch  and  a
drink.  Make checks out to the Richmond Civil War Roundtable
and sent them  to  Clark  Lewis  at  4217  Kingsrest  Pkwy.,
Richmond,   VA  23221.   Direct  any  questions  to  him  at
697-1474.


Trip to Staunton River Bridge State Park.   This  tour  will
depart  at  9:00  a.  m., September 30.  Those interested in
attending should meet in the parking lot of  Ukrops  (Harbor
Pointe)  at  13700  Hull  Street Road, near Clover Hill High
School.  Everyone will car pool up  to  the  Park  (about  2
hours),  tour  there, and then return.  Be sure to ring your
own lunch and drink.  More details will be available at  the
September meeting or by calling Danny Witt at 364-5589.     


J.  E.  B.  Stuart SCV Camp Fall Field Trip.  This trip will
be held on November 11, 2000.  The group will depart at 6:30
a.  m.  from the Lowe's  parking  lot  at  Parham  Road  and
Brooke  Road  and  will  return by 6:00 p.  m.  The cost per
person is $20.00.  Please bring a  lunch  and  drink.   This
tour will visit sites of Stonewall Jackson's 1862 Shenandoah
Valley Campaign, including First Winchester, Port  Republic,
Cross  Keys,  Turner Ashby's wounding site, and Banks' Fort.
Guides will be Rich Kleese and John Heatwole.   To  register
or   for   more   information,   contact  Bragg  Bowling  at
804-359-0382 or email him at bragdonb@erols.com             


Fifth  Annual  Elizabeth  Roller  Bottimore  Lecture.   This
year's  lecture, sponsored by the Museum of the Confederacy,
will be "'Yankee Perfidy' and the  Seven  Deadly  Sins,"  by
Thomas  P.   Lowry,  M.   D.   and will be held on Thursday,
September 21, at 7:30 p.m.  in the Perkinson  Recital  Hall,
North Court, University of Richmond.  The lecture is free to
Museum of the Confederacy Members and to the public. Seating
is  limited, so please arrive early.  Lowry is the author of
The Story the Soldiers Wouldn't Tell: Sex in the Civil  War,
Tarnished  Eagles;  Don't  Shoot  that  Boy!;  and Tarnished
Scalpels.  He will sign his  books  at  the  Museum  of  the
Confederacy  from 3:00 to 5:00 p.  m.  and at a reception in
the  North  Court  Reception  Room  immediately  after   the
lecture.                                                    


Carter House Descendants' Reunion.  The Carter  House,  site
of   the   Battle  of  Franklin,  Tennessee,  is  hosting  a
Descendants' Reunion  on  October  13-15.   Descendants  and
others  who would like to share this common bond are welcome
to  attend.   The  special  weekend  will  include   various
ceremonies,  lecture, musical performances, and tours.  Cost
for the three-day event is $100 per person, which covers all
meals  and  lectures.   Participation  is limited, so please
make reservations early.  Make out your check to the  Carter
House and mail it to 1140 Columbia Ave., Franklin, TN 37065.
Contact The Carter House by phone 615-791-1861 or e-mail  at
museum@carter-house.org for more information.               


Upcoming Symposium.  Pamplin Historical Park & The  National
Museum  of the Civil War Soldier, near Petersburg, will hold
its Fourth Annual Civil War Symposium on October 21-22.  The
theme   this  year  is  "Cavalry  Raiders  and  Guerrillas."
Speakers and their topics are:                              

    Stephen Davis, "Civil War Cavalry Raids:                  
                   Just What Did They Achieve?"               
    Edwin C. Bearss, "Wilson's Alabama Raid"                  
    Jeffry D. Wert, "Mosby's Rangers"                         
    James A. Ramage, "John Hunt Morgan"                       
    Brian Steel Wills, "Nathan Bedford Forrest"               

In addition to these fine talks, the symposium will  include
a tour of Jeb Stuart's famous "Ride Around McClellan" in the
Spring  of  1862.   For  a   registration   form   or   more
information, call Pamplin Historical Park at 861-2408.      


Richmond Civil War Round Table  in  Cyberspace.   The  Round
Table's  Web site has been available for several months.  It
includes  the   monthly   newsletter,   CW   book   reports,
photographs   of  previous  meetings,  and  a  list  of  all
forthcoming speakers.  The URL or Web address is:

https://members.tripod.com/~g-cowardin/rcwrt

(The - between g-co is an  underscore )


*Important Notice* December Meeting

The December meeting will  be  December  12,  2000,  at  the
Holiday Inn-Crossroads, 2000 Staples Mill Road.  Social hour
will begin at 6 p.m., with dinner following at 7  p.m.   The
speaker  is  Ed Bearss who will speak on "The Raising of the
Cairo," which will include information about the history  of
the Union ironclad.  The cost for this program is $25.50 per
person.  Seating is limited, so please get your reservations
in early.                                                   

Send  your  name,  address, and phone number, along with the
number of persons for whom you are  making  reservations  to
Sam Craghead.  Make your check out to the Richmond Civil War
Round Table.                                                

       Sam Craghead                                           
       4361F Lakefield Mews                                   
       Richmond, VA 23231                                     

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new address for Sam.
It has changed since the last newsletter.

If you have any questions, call Sam at 222-0503.


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