After many years of threatening to trace the route of Grierson's Raid from LaGrange, Tennessee to Baton Rouge, Louisiana we have finally taken the first step. Today, Sunday, June 22, Dr. Watson Arnold and I drove to Memphis, Tennessee. It is a fairly easy drive on I30 and I40 (from Little Rock to Memphis). Total driving time was about 7 1/2 hours.
Along the way we had the pleasure of visiting the Clinton Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. We arrived at the library about 12 noon and were told that the museum did not open on Sunday until 1 pm but the restaurant was open for brunch. Since we had been on the road for 5 hours and were thinking about lunch anyway, brunch sounded like a pretty good idea. (and it was) Cafe 42 is on the lower level overlooking the River. The brunch was good with a chef to prepare omelettes and waffles and a broad selection of luncheon choices. Prices were reasonable ($15.95 per person). This is the type of place you could enjoy every week if you lived close to Little Rock.
The Museum itself is very extensive with an orientation film, a reconstruction of the Oval Office as it was during Clinton's time in office, the Cabinet Room, biographical materials of Clinton's early years, a timeline of the years in office and specialty alcoves covering different topics of his administration (such as foreign policy, health care, trade, etc.).
While the Museum is professionally and impressively done I was somewhat surprised that it has very little historical balance. But this is not a Museum to present the Clinton years in office, this is the Clinton Library and it designed to tell the story as the President wants it told.
One somewhat distracting thing is that so many of the presentations are accompanied by audio that it is hard to listen to any individual piece. The competing sounds seem to drown each other out.
In one section of the Museum there are daily Presidential schedules for each day during the Clinton years. It is fascinating to see the timeline of the day with events planned to the minute.
Well worth the stop and time spent.
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A fascinating little place just a few blocks from Beale Street. This was the studio of the legendary Sam Phillips - the man who "discovered" Elvis. Well he also recorded and "discovered" such greats as Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and many others. The studio that is now a National Historical Site is tiny. It consists of a restaurant/gift shop, the Museum upstairs and the actual recording studio. The studio is about the size of a two car garage and even though it was unused for over 25 years at one point it remains relatively untouched. To soundproof the studio Sam installed acoustical tile on the ceiling and walls. He also rebuilt the ceiling with two large "wedges" so that the sound waves would not bounce back to the recording devices.
Young, energetic and musically talented tour guides provide a 30 to 40 minute tour. Lots of good stories and musical clips. Amy did a great job for us.
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Anyone who visits a National Park has to be impressed with the young people who work there as "seasonal" employees. I have always found them to be knowledgeable, energetic, friendly and interested in helping people. It is a great job for a young person. What better way is there to learn history and service?
Our bright eyed, smiling and helpful NPS "seasonal" at Corinth was at her "post" at 8:45 AM despite a 2 1/2 hour drive from her home in Tennessee. Thank you, Heather.
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An early morning start from Collierville (just outside of Memphis) meant we were the first visitors to the Civil War Interpretive Center in Corinth at 8:45. This is a very impressive, brand-new facility that is part of the Shiloh National Military Park. The presentations are superbly done with excellent graphics and narrative. Two movies are shown on a continuous basis - one on the battle of Shiloh and the second on the Battle of Corinth. The Center stands just to the rear of Battery Robinette - a key position in the Battle of Corinth.
We were at the Center for just over an hour. (Really, we should have allowed at least two.) Some of the presentations on the background of the War were a bit redundant for us. However, this would be a good stop for a family interested in giving their children some of the history of the why, who, what and where of the Civil War.
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This is my fourth visit to the Battlefield at Shiloh. Two of my trips have included extensive hiking of the site. The last two have followed the driving tour with the help of the CD available in the bookstore.
The CD is very well done with appropriate quotes from "participants" in the battle. Despite some bad "accents" the narrative is an accurate and entertaining background for the tour. It is very helpful when you have more than one person. By listening to the CD everyone is on the "same page" so to speak.
Shiloh is probably my favorite Civil War Battlefield. It's only drawback is that it is so remote. Of course, that drawback is also what adds to its impact. Because it is so far removed from civilization your view of the field is not spoiled by a golf course, housing development or major highway.
The serenity of the park contrasts sharply with the events that occured there in 1862 and adds to its impact.
(Speaking of the bookstore I was surprised and disappointed that I was not able to purchase the Shiloh Battlefield Guide by Steven Woodworth and Mark Grimsley. I was told they do not carry it.)
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After the Battle of Shiloh, Grant ordered his men to bury Confederate and Union soldiers. After the War the Union soldiers were re-burried in the Federal Cemetary. Five of the Confederate mass burial sites remain. No other part of any Civil War battlefield has more impact on me than these burial trenches.
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The best Battlefield with the worst movie!
If you would like to see the movie with the worst fake beards, don't miss the production shown at the Shiloh Visitor Center. The movie that explains the battle has to be at least 40 years old. The graphics are almost childish. (It is amazing how computers have advanced this field.) The "acting" is non-existent. The beards look like squirrel tails glued on the faces of the "actors." Add in the fact that the air conditioning system has a bad case of "dirty sock syndrome" (It smells and humidity is very high.) and it makes you wonder why the Park System spent so much money on the Corinth Interpretive Center without first upgrading this "jewel" of Civil War history.
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The diversionary raid into Mississippi begins in La Grange, Tennessee on April 17, 1863. Colonel Benjamin Grierson leads 900 troopers from Iowa, Illinois and Indiana on a Raid described by one Confederate observer as: "The Bravest Thing Ever Done."
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This one of the smallest Parks in the National Park Service. The National Park is less than two acres. (Yes, that is a stop sign next to the Park Sign!) Many more acres of the battlefield have been purchased by a combination of private, non-profit organization and government funds. There is a walking tour of this additional battlefield land. However, it is administered by the City of Baldwyn and the Visitor Center was closed on the Monday we were there.
Even though Brice's Cross Roads was a stunning victory for Nathan Bedford Forrest, it's execution was simplicity itself. Whip the Northern calvary first and then attack the Union infantry after they were worn out by a combination of the Mississippi heat and a long forced march. Forrest's plan worked to perfection and many claim this was his finest hour during the War.
As one of the Park Service people said: "Wal-Mart has alot more of the Battlefield at Tupelo than we do." He was right.
The battle for Tupelo, Mississippi took place on the outskirts of the city in July of 1864. The ironic twist was that Union forces held the city and Confederate forces were trying to capture it. As was so often the case in the Civil War the defenders had the advantage and repelled the attack with a large loss of life in the Confederate ranks.
There is virtually none of the original battlefield left. The city of Tupelo simply grew around it and on it. The "Park" is about the size of large city residential lot. (But it does have a nice view of the Papa John's across the street.)
The Natchez Trace Parkway Visitor Center in Tupelo is the place to stop for information about the Trace and the Battlefields at Brices Cross Roads and Tupelo. Once again we were fortunate to meet a nice young lady serving the Park Service as a "seasonal employee." Emily was very knowledgeable and helpful. When I told her how impressed I was with all of the young people working in the Parks, she mentioned that Congress had increased the budget for seasonal employees this year. Good for them. Everybody wins in this one.
The Natchez Trace Parkway is a magnificent 450 mile long National Park stretching from Nashville, Tennessee to Natchez, Mississippi. It was originally used by Indians to travel this area of the country. Later it was used as the return route for boatmen from the Ohio River Valley who floated the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers with agricultural products. They would sell their boats for the wood and then make the long walk back.
The invention of the steamboat changed everything. This gave riverboat captains the means of moving upstream and eliminated the need for a slow, difficult and sometimes dangerous overland journey.
The current Trace is a well maintained two-lane highway. It is not only a historical route, it is a beautiful nature preserve as well. Driving on the Trace made a nice change from the two lane highways of rural Mississippi. We followed this route for about 50 miles and then picked up the Grierson's Raid trail again.
After the side trip to Tupelo we are back on the Grierson's Raid Route in Houston. The town was named after Sam Houston by it's founder, Joel Pinson. Pinson was a friend of Houston's and felt this was a way to honor him for his victory over Santa Anna in Texas.
Houston has a beautiful town square with the County Courthouse. When we were there preparations were being made for the July 4th celebration.
Grierson's Raid was conceived by General Grant as a diversionary action to distract Confederate troops in Mississippi from his goal of capturing Vicksburg. The stated purpose was to break up Confederate supply lines by destroying the railroad and supplies at Newton Station. The Raid was successful on both counts. Confederate troops from all over the State were in hot pursuit of Grierson and his troopers burned warehouses, destroyed rolling stock and tore up the railroad at Newton Station.
The tracks were in such bad shape that it took quite sometime to make the repairs necessary to resume freight traffic. Ironically the tracks by the current Newton station were torn up when we visited. (I even have a railroad spike from Newton Station!)
Each time I visit Vicksburg I am reminded that was really not a battle, it was a siege and one of the first instances of trench warfare. The Texas State monument is on the 2nd Texas Lunette. Union forces dug trenches within 15 feet of the Lunette. Confederate soldiers lobbed artillery shells with lit fuses into these trenches with devastating results. Several Union attacks were also attempted and repulsed in this area of the battlefield.
We were very fortunate to be able to use the GPS Ranger Guide thanks to our friend Park Historian, Terry Winschel. This is a must to use on a driving tour. As you pass set positions in the park the Guide provides video and audio descriptions. At first, we tried to "operate" the device by stopping and starting it. After a while we realized that it "had a mind of its own." All we had to do was turn it on and drive the car!
I had forgotten how many State monuments are in the Park honoring their sons who served. Many of these monuments are truly magnificent structures (the Indiana Pantheon comes to mind). This is quite a contrast to Shiloh where there are comparatively few.
Vicksburg is one of those "must sees" for a Civil War buff. It is well worth the time to visit as often as possible.
Several years ago we had the pleasure of having Ed Bearss present the story of the raising of the Cairo for our Civil War Round Table. It is a great story and only Ed can tell it right. We were very fortunate.
It makes the story complete to see the Cairo resting safely in the Vicksburg NMP. The thing that struck me was that it was pretty small for the number of people on board. Living conditions had to be pretty tough. Even the officers did not live in comfortable quarters.
An added benefit is the extensive Cairo museum. The artifacts recovered from the ship provide a vivid impression of what it was like to be there in the 1860's.
Books by Steven Woodworth and Jack Waugh have been selected to be listed in the "Top 50 Best Civil War Books" List published by Civilwarinteractive.com. The books chosen were "Nothing But Victory: The Army of Tennessee 1861-1865" by Steven Woodworth and "The Class of 1846: From West Point to Appomattox: Stonewall Jackson, George C. McClellan and their Brothers" by Jack Waugh.
Civilwarinteractive.com is a great website loaded with good information. You will find everything from a Forum to summaries of all of the latest on Civil War blogs. The list was created on the basis of votes placed by visitors to and participants in the site.
Congratulations, Steve and Jack!
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A poignant reminder of the sacrifices of our soldiers. This picture was taken in the cemetary at Shiloh National Military Park. It reads:
"No rumor of the foes advance
Now sweeps upon the wind.
No troubled thought at midnight haunts
Of loved ones left behind."
If you have not had the opportunity to visit the Texas Civil War Museum in west Fort Worth, please take the time to do so. They have an outstanding collection of Civil War era weapons, uniforms and artifacts. The museum is well laid out with easy-to-read signage. It will take you at least a couple of hours for your self-guided tour, but you could spend all day there.
The Texas Civil War Museum is a partnership between The Texas Division United Daughters of the Confederacy, and private collectors Ray and Judy Richey. The result is a non-profit educational museum and the largest Civil War museum west of the Mississippi River.
The exhibit is housed in a 15,500-square-foot building. Also on display are flags from the largest collection in the state of Texas. The facility also contains a 75-seat theater that shows a specially commissioned, award winning movie entitled ".Our Homes – Our Rights, Texas in the Civil War". The movie is shown every half-hour and features many of the artifacts in the museum. Special programming can be arranged for adult groups and student field trips. The Magnolia Mercantile Gift Shop is open during museum hours and offers an array of Victorian Era and museum related merchandise.
From a more personal point of view the Director of Education is Fort Worth Civil War Round Table member Cynthia Harriman. She has been involved with the Texas Division of the United Daughters of the Confederacy for many years and was instrumental in preserving many of the flags in the collection.
When Ed Bearss was in Fort Worth he visited the Museum with Stan Wright and myself. His comment in the guestbook says it all: "outstanding collection."
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One of our Round Table members, John C. Waugh, author of The Class of 1846, has a new book out, published late last fall by Harcourt. It is his ninth since starting to write books on the Civil War era in 1989, and his second on Abraham Lincoln.
The title is One Man Great Enough: Abraham Lincoln’s Road to Civil War and it is available at all major bookstores and Amazon. Waugh tells us that the book rather complements his earlier work on Lincoln’s reelection campaign, Reelecting Lincoln: The Battle for the 1864 Presidency, published in 1997. This new one tracks Lincoln’s quarter-century of involvement in the slavery issue, from the first time he said anything publicly about it in the Illinois legislature in 1837 to his election to the presidency. The book is rooted in Waugh’s longtime fascination with the twenty-five year rivalry in Illinois between Lincoln and Stephen A. Douglas, the two dominating figures of Civil War era politics.
Waugh says he wanted in One Man Great Enough, to tell the story of that great rivalry, which culminated in the great debates between the two men in 1858 and their run against one another for the presidency in 1860. But he also wanted to show how Lincoln dealt with the slavery issue, the most explosive in all of American history, in these formative, critical years of his political career.
The book, a narrative history, is written in Waugh’s story-telling style. He says he tries to write what is meticulously documented history, yet make it read like fiction “History,” Waugh says, “is a great story and there is no story from it more interesting than that dramatically riveting combination of the Civil War and Abraham Lincoln. Put Douglas in that picture and it raises the dramatic bar to yet another level. I hope my book does the story justice."
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This just in from Andrew Wagenhofer - creator of the Civil War Books and Authors Blog. Drew helped the Fort Worth CWRT by providing nominations and input for the final selection of our 2007 A. M. Pate, Jr. Award recipient. His blog is first-rate and well worth your visit.
"Civil War Books and Authors was largely born out of my frustration in finding so little print and online information about the type of Civil War books I have the greatest interest in, namely small press publications dealing with the war's Trans-Mississippi and Western theaters. By small presses I mean anything from private publishers and university presses to museums, foundations, round tables and historical societies.
Local history is a special affinity of mine. Unfortunately, these publishers and authors have very few resources for marketing and promotion, and, consequently, can be extremely difficult to find (even with the help of the internet). In my own small way (through reviews, announcements, and interviews), I try to facilitate these books reaching their audience.
It's my belief that the state of Civil War publishing is as vibrant as it's ever been. Good or bad, prospective authors have more options than ever before, including improving print-on-demand technologies. While this certainly leaves us with no assurance that the future will give us better books, we can be certain of finding worthwhile works of interest if we are willing to search for them.
The members of the Fort Worth Civil War Round Table are to be deeply commended for their sponsorship of the A. M. Pate, Jr. Award in Civil War History. The reward and encouragement given to further scholarly inquiry into the Trans-Mississippi theater should be appreciated by everyone interested in this fascinating, yet comparatively neglected, region."
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