Brag Bowling, President         Rob Monroe, Editor     
3019 Kensington Ave             2416 Edenbrook Dr.     
Richmond, VA 23221              Richmond, VA 23228-3040

September 2003 PROGRAM

Stephen Davis,
"Why John Bell Hood Has Gotten a Bum Rap
for the Fall of Atlanta"

8:00 p.m., Tuesday, September 9, 2003, at the
Boulevard United Methodist Church, 321 N. Boulevard,
Richmond, VA (corner of Boulevard and Stuart Ave.) Enter
the basement door on the right side under the front steps.

Stephen Davis of Atlanta is the Book Review Editor of Blue &
Gray  Magazine.   A  "Civil  Warrior" since the age of 9, he
attended Emory University and  studied  under  the  renowned
historian Bell I.  Wiley.  After receiving a master's degree
in American history from the University of North Carolina at
Chapel  Hill, he taught high school for a few years and then
earned his Ph.D.  at Emory, where  he  concentrated  on  the
theme  of  the  Civil  War  in  Southern  literature.  Davis
currently serves as Medical Relations Manager for MAG Mutual
Insurance  Company  in  Atlanta,  the professional liability
insurer for Georgia physicians.                             

Over the years,  Davis  has  written  more  than  a  hundred
articles  and  book  reviews  on  the Civil War and Southern
history for such scholarly and popular publications as Civil
War  Times  Illustrated  and  Civil  War History.  He is the
author of Atlanta Will Fall: Sherman, Joe Johnston  and  the
Yankee  Heavy  Battalions,  published last year by Scholarly
Resources.  Davis has  long  been  a  spirited  defender  of
General   John   Bell  Hood's  conduct  during  the  Atlanta
Campaign.                                                   

Davis is also interested  in  Civil  War  medicine  and  had
published  in  the  Journal  of  the  Medical Association of
Georgia a scholarly survey  of  medical  care  in  Atlanta's
Confederate hospitals during the conflict.                  


Review of the August Program


Clint Johnson presented a talk based upon  his  latest  book
Bull's  Eyes  and  Misfires: 50 People Whose Obscure Efforts
Shaped the American Civil War.  He covered more than a dozen
individuals  and  summarized  how  they  had had positive or
negative impacts on the conflict.   Johnson  explained  that
the  idea  for his book was to find people whose actions had
affected the course of the war but who are  largely  unknown
to people of today.  What follows are brief synopses of some
of the persons about whom Johnson.                          

Elizabeth Keckley was a former slave who became a seamstress
in  Washington, D.  C.  She made up Mary Todd Lincoln's hair
for the inauguration in 1861 and then became a friend of the
Lincolns.   After  the  war,  Keckley wrote a book about her
experiences with them during the war, but the Lincoln family
abandoned  her  because  of her revelations.  Johnson claims
that Keckley kept Mrs.   Lincoln  from  interfering  in  her
husband's political affairs.                                

William  Barry  was  an artillery officer before the war and
wrote a manual on artillery tactics.  During the  Battle  of
First  Manassas,  Barry  was  in command of the Union army's
artillery with the rank of major.  Some of the batteries got
too  far  forward,  and infantry supports were ordered up to
assist.   The   battery   commanders   saw   blue-clad   men
approaching,  thought them to be Confederates, and wanted to
open fire.  However, Barry told the officers that the troops
were  Federals  and  would not let them fire.  It turned out
that the soldiers were members of the 33rd Virginia Infantry
Regiment,  and  they  succeeded in overrunning and capturing
the guns.                                                   

John B.  Floyd and Henry A.  Wise were Virginia  politicians
who  received general's commissions in the Confederate army.
They hated each other and refused to cooperate while serving
in  western Virginia in 1861.  Even Robert E.  Lee could not
get them to work together.  This led to  Confederate  defeat
and  almost  ruined  Lee's  career.   Wise  learned from his
mistakes and improved as a commander, but Floyd continued to
perform poorly.                                             

Benjamin  Isherwood  was  the  chief  steam  engineer of the
United States navy.  Naval captains opposed  steam  engines,
but  Isherwood  was  able  to  design  and build a number of
different  engines.   They  made  the  United  States  naval
vessels  faster  than  any Confederate ships.  Isherwood was
one of the early proponents of the idea that the navy  could
dominate the high seas through steam power.                 

Gabriel Rains developed the idea of the land mine during the
Seminole Wars.  He pushed for the construction of  mines  by
the  Confederacy  when  the  war began.  Rains was forced to
place the devices at places where soldiers might  expect  to
be  killed, in keeping with the idea of honorable conduct in
battle.  He developed water mines for the  Confederacy,  and
more  than  twenty  Union vessels were sunk by the "infernal
devices."                                                   

Henry Hunt was responsible for  the  Confederate  losses  at
Malvern  Hill  and  Gettysburg because of his supervision of
Union artillery.  He had taught his men to fire  slowly  and
accurately  rather  than to indiscriminately shell advancing
enemy formations.  Hunt did not receive the  recognition  he
deserved for his actions.                                   


Upcomming Events

Sept.  13 Civil War Lantern Tours at Meadow Farm,  north  of
		     Richmond.  7:15-9 pm with tours leaving
		     every 15 minutes. Free but reservations
		     are required.  804-501-5520.           

Sept.  13-14 "Round-ball to Rim-fire - Civil  War  Firearms"
		     at Pamplin Historical Park near        
		     Petersburg.   Free with park admission.
		Information: www.pamplinpark.org or 877-PAMPLIN

Sept.  14 "Civil War Days: the Other Half of the  Story"  at
		     Meadow Farm, north of Richmond.  Noon -
		     4 pm.   Free  804-501-5520.            

Sept.  20 "Medal of  Honor"  unveiling  by  Don  Troiani  at
		     Pamplin Historical Park near Petersburg.
		     11  am unveiling followed by artist    
		     signing  and  special  tour.           
		     Free  with park admission.
		Information: www.pamplinpark.org or 877-PAMPLIN

Sept.  20-21 "A Taste of  the  Past  -  Fall  Food-ways"  at
		     Pamplin Historical Park near Petersburg.
		     Free  with park admission.             
		Information: www.pamplinpark.org or 877-PAMPLIN

Sept.  25 "An Evening with Ed  Bearss",  7:30-9  pm,  Robins
		     Pavilion at the University of Richmond.
		     Sponsored  by the Museum of the        
		     Confederacy.  $5 for  members,  $10 for
		     non-members.                           
		Information: www.moc.org or 804-649-1861

Sept.  27-28 Anniversary of the  Battle  of  Fort  Harrison.
		     Walking tours and living history at the
		     battlefield  off Route 5 in Varina.  10
		     am to 5 pm Saturday;  10  am  to  4  pm
		     Sunday.     Free.                      
		Information: www.nps.gov/rich or 804-226-1981

Conference Will Explore Leadership at Battle of Gettysburg

The Mosby Heritage Area Association  will  present  the  6th
annual  Conference  on  the Art of Command in the Civil War.
Events will take place Friday through Sunday, October  10  -
12 at the Middleburg Community Center in Loudon County. This
year's seminar will take an in-depth look at the command and
control  at  Gettysburg.                                    

Speakers scheduled for  Friday  and  Saturday  include  Eric
Wittenberg,  Robert  K.   Krick,  Jeffery  Wert, Kim Holien,
Brooks Simpson, Gary Kross, Charles Fennell and RCWRT's  own
William  Young.   On Sunday, buses will leave Middleburg for
Gettysburg  to  tour  the  site  where  Longstreet's   Corps
attacked on July 2, 1863.                                   

Registration is $300 and seating is limited to the first 100
people  to  register.   Those wishing to attend the Saturday
lectures only may purchase a ticket for $120.  To  register,
contact  the Mosby Heritage Area Association at 540-687-6681
or Program Director Childs Burden 540-687-4195.  For updates
check the association's website, www.mosbyheritagearea.org  


Group Seeks to Restore Historic House

The Friends of Wilderness Battlefield is  seeking  funds  to
begin   refurbishing  and  restoring  Ellwood,  an  historic
plantation home  that  played  a  significant  role  in  the
Wilderness and Chancellorsville battles.  In 1863, Stonewall
Jackson's amputated arm was buried in Ellwood's cemetery.  A
year  later, Gens.  Lee and Grant clashed for the first time
on  the  fields  of  this  old  plantation  and  Union  Gen.
Gouverneur  K.   Warren  set  up a makeshift headquarters in
Ellwood's parlor.                                           

The initial restoration work is estimated to cost  at  least
$100,000.   The Friends of Wilderness Battlefield is seeking
contributions for  its  Ellwood  Restoration  Project.   Tax
deductible donations may be sent to:                        

Friends of Wilderness Battlefield
P.O. Box 576                     
Locust Grove, VA 22508           

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:           

October newsletter, September 26
November newsletter, October 24 
December newsletter, November 21

Information may be emailed to rmonroe@richmond.com

RCWRT Monthly Speakers for 2003


Richmond Civil War Round Table Newsletter
Rob Monroe, Editor     
2416 Edenbrook Dr.     
Richmond, VA 23228-3040