Presented by Dr. Brooks Simpson, Professor, Arizona State University
Location: TCU Campus, Palko Hall, Room 130
Program begins at 7:00 PM
Once again the Fort Worth Civil War Round Table has the pleasure of cooperating with the TCU History Department for a joint presentation from a top notch historian. This year we are fortunate to have Brooks Simpson - the foremost authority on U. S. Grant speaking on how the first two years of the War were Grant's classroom for military command.
When Ulysses S. Grant reentered military service in 1861, he believed
he was qualified to exercise the responsibilities of a colonel,
although he had left the service in 1854 as a captain. During the
next three years he found out that he had much to learn about the
responsibilities of command, both on the battlefield and in the
headquarters tent. What exactly did he learn? What mistakes did he
make? Did he learn from those mistakes? In short, what do we know
about what he learned as he made his way up to top command in the
western theater and became the obvious choice to take over as
general-in-chief in 1864?
Brooks D. Simpson received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Virginia and his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin. He is currently University Foundation Professor of History at Arizona State University. He is the author, co-author, or editor of thirteen books and thirty-seven articles about the Civil War, Reconstruction, and nineteenth-century America. Among his books are six selections of the History Book Club, two of them main selections, and one selection of the Book-of-the-Month Club. During his career he has received numerous awards including fellowships from the Huntington and Newberry libraries, grants from the American Philosophical Society, the Dirksen Congressional Research Center, and the National Endowment for the Humanities, as well as a Fulbright Scholarship to Leiden University in the Netherlands. He is one of the nation’s leading scholars on the Civil War and Reconstruction and its foremost authority on the life and career of Ulysses S. Grant.
For more information, send email to Jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Program: Award Presentation and talk by Rick McCaslin on 'Rip' Ford
Location: Ol' South Pancake House
Dinner: 6:00 PM
Program: 7:00 PM
Richard B. McCaslin is the 2011 A. M. Pate, Jr. Award winner for his book "Fighting Stock: John S. 'Rip' Ford of Texas." The Pate Award is presented each year by the Fort Worth Civil War Round Table for what is judged to be the best new book on Civil War history in the Trans-Mississippi theater. A committee of members of the Round Table serve as judges. The objective of the award is to promote original scholarship and research in this area.
"Fighting Stock" is a carefully researched, well-written biography of the "larger than life" 19th Century Texan - "Rip" Ford. It not only covers Ford's identity as a Texas Ranger, participant in the Mexican War and Civil War hero but the book also gives a good account of Ford's other personnas as physician, lawyer, newspaperman and politician.
Here is what others say about the book:
"McCaslin's biography of Ford ranks among the best manuscripts I have reviewed in many years. The research is extraordinarily broad, the writing clear, the organization solid and the identification of key themes in Ford's life well-chosen. Perhaps more important, the author portrays his subject sympathetically, without drifting into hagiography. . . . A legendary Texan, Ford now has the biography he deserves."
- Robert Wooster, Regents Professor of History, Texas A & M University - Corpus Christi
". . . in telling Ford's story, McCaslin takes the reader through many of the most important events in the history of Texas during its formative period, and thus satisfies two key criteria for a successful and satisfying biography: a clear sense of the subject and a rich picture of the age in which he lived."
- Andrew R. Graybill, Associate Professor of History, University of Nebraska
"Richard McCaslin's Fighting Stock is a superb addition to TCU Press's The Texas Biography Series, admirably fulfilling the series dictate of examining a subject's life in full. So much of Civil War biography sandwiches the war years with weak bookends, but McCaslin's look at Ford, while acknowledging the paramount importance of that time, recognizes that the 1861-65 period comprises a brief interlude in a long and eventful life. Both Civil War specialists and those with a much broader interest in Texas history will find much to admire in this volume. "
- Andrew Wagenhofer, Editor, Civil War Books and Authors
Richard McCaslin is a professor of History at the University of North Texas. He is also the author of "Tainted Breeze: The Great Hanging at Gainesville, Texas, October 1862" which won the Tullis Prize. He has also written "Lee in the Shadow of Washington'" which was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and won the Slatten Award and the Laney Prize.
After the Award Presentation Rick will talk on the subject of his book - Rip Ford. Since we have already heard about Ford's Civil War exploits, Rick will focus his remarks on the Post-War experiences of this "larger-than-life" Texan. During Reconstruction Rip returned from exile in Mexico to serve on the Texas Constitutional Convention and in the Texas Senate, and in the process got himself shot by the Republican Yankee sheriff in Brownsville. Rick will also cover some of Ford's work as a Texas historian.
Copies of Rick's book will be available for purchase and signing. Please join me in honoring him for his outstanding work and for another chapter of the Rip Ford story. See you on the 10th!
For more information, send email to Jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by: Ross Massey, Historian, Battle of Nashville Preservation Society
Location: Ol' South Pancake House
Dinner: 6:00PM
Program: 7:00 PM
At the Battle of Nashville in December of 1864 Brig. Gen. James R. Chalmers, a veteran infantry and cavalry officer, commanded one of the divisions of Nathan Bedford Forrest’s Cavalry Corps. Chalmers had fought with distinction in numerous battles during the War including Shiloh and Stone's River. Before the War he had practiced law, was a District Attorney and was a member of the Mississippi state secession convention. His relationship with Forrest was tenuous at best but he was loved by his men and was able to produce results. His finest hour was probably at the Battle of Franklin. For him the Battle began around 2:00 AM on December 15th when a courier arrived at his headquarters with news of the impending attack by the Union army of George Thomas. With Biffle’s Brigade detached on the far right, Chalmers only had Rucker’s Brigade in hand to fight off the Union cavalry and the U.S. Navy on the Cumberland River. He battled both to a stalemate that day. On December 16th, Chalmers, totally cut off from the infantry line, pulled off a perfect withdrawal and covered Hood’s retreat from the city. His stand on Granny White Pike prevented the Union cavalry from cutting off General John Bell Hood’s retreat as it moved down the Franklin Pike thus saving Hood’s army from being trapped. As later reports indicated, he played "a brilliant part" in what could have easily been a worse disaster for the Army of Tennessee.
Our speaker this month is Ross Massey, historian for the Battle of Nashville Preservation Society and Nashville CWRT member. He is the author of a guide to sites of the Battle of Nashville and has appeared on Civil War TV shows as well as lectured around the country. This program will be an important addition to our understanding of this pivotal battle. See you on the 13th!
For more information, send email to Jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by Anna Holloway, Curator, Maritime and USS Monitor Museum
Location: Ol' South Pancake House, University Drive, Fort Worth
Dinner: 6:00 PM
Program starts at 7:00 PM
Although the USS Monitor may have ended her career in a gale off Cape Hatteras in December 1862, her story does not end there. Discovered in 1973, and the subject of recovery operations by NOAA since then, the "cheesebox on a raft" still has stories to tell. This lively, illustrated presentation brings the Monitor to life by combining log entries, official correspondence, personal letters from officers and crew, and evidence found in the ship itself. Monitor Center curator Anna Holloway will include up to the moment information about the ongoing conservation efforts and show never before seen images of the iconic Union ironclad.
ANNA GIBSON HOLLOWAY is the Vice President of Museum Collections and Programs at The Mariners’ Museum in Newport News, VA where she oversees the Curatorial, Collections Management, Education, Conservation and Exhibition Design functions of the Museum. From 2003 to 2007 she served first as curator of the USS Monitor Center and then Chief Curator. Before the cheesebox on a raft entered her life, she was the Director of Education and Resident Pirate at The Mariners’ Museum. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. Anna is an accomplished and highly recommended speaker whose knowledge of and enthusiasm for her subject will surely make an interesting and entertaining evening. See you on the 8th!
For additional information, click here.
For more information, send email to Jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by Dr. Steven Woodworth, Professor, TCU
Location: Ol' South Pancake House, Fort Worth (on University Drive)
Dinner: 6PM - Program begins at 7PM
In Phase Two of the Atlanta Campaign Joseph E. Johnston and William T. Sherman continued their high stakes chess game of moves with their respective Armies. Johnston was a master at finding and fortifying strong positions while Sherman was equally skilled at manuevering his Army around those positions. When Sherman decided to engage his Army of the Tennessee at Kenesaw Mountain the results were a predicatably bloody repulse. But even after Kenesaw Mountain, Sherman was able to retain the initiative and eventually drive Johnston and his Army of Tennessee across the strategically important Chattahoochee River. The result is that the Yankee army is just a few miles from the City of Atlanta and Joe Johnston is replaced by a new commander - John Bell Hood.
Dr. Steven Woodworth is the author , co-author or editor of twenty-eight books on American history, including Nothing but Victory: The Army of the Tennessee, 1861-1865. He is an outstanding speaker and presenter who combines accurate factual recall with insights into the significance of historical events. His presentation is sure to be lively and informative. You won't want to miss it. See you on the 11th!
For more information, send email to jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by Jack Waugh, Author and Historian
Location: Ol' South Pancake House (On University Drive)
Dinner: 6PM Program begins at 7 PM
George Horatio Derby of the West Point Class of 1846 is the odds-on candidate for the oddest, funniest, and most original cadet ever to graduate from the academy. Derby lived in two worlds. In one he was a serious topographical engineer in the antebellum in the West, one of its most able, doing pioneering work on the Colorado River and in the California gold fields. But in his other life he penned humorous writings under the pseudonyms of John Phoenix and Squibob, perpetrated outrageous hoaxes and pranks, and generally kept San Francisco and the rest of the country laughing. He was a legend in the Old Army. He died before the Civil War, but the great commanders of that war--his fellow West Pointers--remembered him with joy and affection. This will be an evening with George Derby. Wear your laughing shoes.
A number of years ago Jack gave this program to our CWRT. Of all of the programs I have heard over the years this is one of my top 3. Derby was an intelligent and capable man but he had an unforgettable sense of humor. Here is an example, when Jack and I were arranging his talk I made the mistake of calling him George Darby. Jack said that was OK. In fact, one time the venerable General Winfield Scott made the same mistake. Derby responed by calling him General Scatt! (Much to the delight of his fellow officers.) You will love this program. See you on the 13th!
For more information, send email to jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by Ed Bearss, Chief Historian Emeritus, National Park Service
Location:Ol' South Pancake House
Dinner: 6:00 PM
Program: 7:00 PM
For more information, send email to Jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by Peter Cozzens, Award Winning Author and Historian
Location: Ol' South Pancake House
Dinner: 6:00 PM
Program: 7:00 PM
For more information, send email to Jimrosenthal5757@aol.com.
Presented by Ray Richey, Curator, Texas Civil War Museum
Location: Texas Civil War Museum
Program: 7:00 PM
For more information, send email to Jimrosentha5757@aol.com.