Presented by Dr. Richard McCaslin, Professor, University of North Texas
Location: UNT Health Science Center, MET Building, Room 124, 1000 Montgomery
Dinner: 6 PM (Box Dinner – Lasagne – Italian Sausage and Beef, Caesar Salad, Bread Sticks, Dessert. $15 – RSVP to this email or call or text 817-307-9263)
Program: 7 PM
In November 2017, the central Texas community of Sutherland Springs suffered a horrible loss when a lone gunman killed 26 people in a local church. Such a terrific blow can cripple a small town, and it can take decades to recover, if at all. But this is not the first time Sutherland Springs experienced such a loss. The Civil War had a terrible effect on the community, as dozens of young men were killed or crippled, and local businesses and institutions closed. Soldiers from Sutherland Springs served in several Confederate units, with most joining the Mustang Grays, which became Company F of the Fourth Texas Infantry in the Texas Brigade of the Army of Northern Virginia. Many Civil War scholars and buffs are familiar with this unit through the writing of Joseph B. Polley, who wrote A Soldier’s Letters to Charming Nellie, but few understand the full impact of the war on Polley’s hometown as well as his comrades.
Richard B. McCaslin, TSHA Endowed Professor of Texas History at the University of North Texas, has written or edited nineteen books, six of which won awards. He has also published one dozen articles in academic journals and thirteen book chapters. A Fellow of the Texas State Historical Association and Admiral in the Texas Navy, he has commendations from the Civil War Round Tables in Dallas, Fort Worth, and Shreveport for his academic works and service.
Dr. McCaslin is an outstanding speaker and a perceptive interpreter of Texas History. One hears and reads about the battles and leaders, but we miss the real story of the soldiers and their communities. This talk will help fill that gap. Don’t miss it. See you there!