From my travels, August 6, 2021.

For our last full day in the Boston area, we decided to have a special breakfast in a town that has some special significance for the boys’ family. We drove into Waltham, and had a lovely breakfast at Wilson’s Diner.

As we walked back to the car, we passed by several historical markers in the town square – none of which had yet been added to the HMDB. I took a ton of photos so that I could add them later. It’s always a nice feeling to be able to contribute in that way unexpectedly.

Waltham is where “Nene’s” father grew up. Her grandfather, Arthur A. Hansen, was a decorated WWI hero, and later Mayor of Waltham. “Nene” took us around town to the site of various houses that she knew had been in the family at one point or another. Eventually, we made our way to Mount Feake Cemetery where Mayor Hansen is buried. We visited his gravesite and enjoyed the view of the Charles River and the old watch factory on the far side.

It was soon time for more Revolutionary War history, and we drove over to Lexington where we visited the small museum and the famous green itself where the Battles of Lexington and Concord began. This was another event that the boys had learned about in school, so it was nice to make it more “real” for them.

For the Concord portion of the fighting, we made our way over to Minute Man National Historical Park. We were able to see their museum, and pick up Junior Ranger books at a table out front. One of the volunteers there was nice enough to give me the badges and “deputize” me to award them once the books were complete so we wouldn’t have to double-back. That was a very nice thing.

We drove the tour route, stopping at the Hartwell Tavern so the boys could do the activites there and see some of what the Battle Road was like. Two of the rangers there were very nice and engaged with the boys. Eventually, we made it all the way to Concord, and the boys and I strolled down the trail to the Old North Bridge, admiring the monuments and hearing stories from one of the volunteers who was stationed there.

That evening, the boys finished their Junior Ranger activities back at the hotel before we drove a short distance to New Hampshire – passing through the town of Chelmsford where “Nene” had grown up – to have dinner with her brother Artie and several other family members. It was a sweet reunion for them, and a nice introduction for my boys.

From my travels, May 27, 2019.

I arrived in Chattanooga by mid-morning, and met up with my nephew and brother-in-law. They joined me for the rest of the day of battlefield exploration.

Battle of Davis’ Crossroads – Civil War Battlefield #107

Our first stop was the farthest outside of town – well into northwest Georgia, in fact: the Battle of Davis’ Crossroads. It took quite a while to drive out to that fairly rural area from Chattanooga.

The fighting here was a prelude to Chickamauga, with the Confederates attempting to bottle up the Union forces in the mountain cove to the south. The Federals avoided the trap, and held off the Confederates, with neither side gaining a clear victory.

At the crossroads itself these days, there isn’t much more than a small restaurant – the Pigeon Mountain Grill. We back-tracked a bit to a small pull-off about a mile east of the crossroads where there were a few wayside markers from the American Battlefield Trust. They were in ROUGH shape and almost unreadable during our visit.

My nephew brought along his drone and put it up a few times to get an aerial perspective of the field – something that I’d never attempted before. Sadly, his GoPro was not cooperating and we didn’t get any usable footage.

Battle of Wauhatchie – Civil War Battlefield #108

We packed up the equipment and made our way back toward town. Our next stop at the site of the Battle of Wauhatchie is one I’d been looking forward to seeing for quite a long time. The Federal troops who fought here were from the XI and XII Corps and had been part of the Army of the Potomac just a few months before. George Sears Greene, hero of Culp’s Hill at Gettysburg was still commanding his brigade here. Finally, some familiar faces!

This was a surprise night attack against the Confederate defenses of Lookout Mountain that succeeded in driving the rebels away and clearing a path for resupplying the encircled Union forces in the city of Chattanooga. The establishment of this “cracker line” meant that the Confederate hopes of re-taking the city were over.

Our first stop was the parking lot behind the nearby Walmart. I had read that this spot had the best view of the whole field, and boy was that true. The entire valley below was the battlefield, with Greene’s men holding a position at center-right.

After taking in the spectacular views of Lookout Mountain from this side, we drove over toward the mountain, behind the McDonald’s and Hardee’s, and took the quick hike up to where the XI Corps New York Monument was – there were plenty of familiar names on that one, from Carl Schurz to Wlodzimierz Krzyzanowski. That was a really cool experience actually – checking out a monument that almost no one goes to just steps from I-24.

Once we were back at the car, we headed toward the southern end of the field, where Greene’s brigade had fought. There was a small monument to them there in the front yard of a light industrial building.

Lookout Mountain and Point Park

On my first trip to Chattanooga, I never actually got up onto Lookout Mountain. I had heard that the view from Point Park in particular is the greatest of the Civil War-related views. I really wanted to get up there, and luckily the guys were enthusiastic, too.

This is where the NPS memorializes the Battle of Lookout Mountain – or the “Battle Above the Clouds”. We took in the sights near the entrance – including the wide open vista of the city of Chattanooga – and all I can say is that it was absolutely incredible. The photos I took don’t do it justice at all.

We continued down the northern slope and got to the site of the Ochs Memorial Museum, and Roper’s Rock. Everyone who visited here during the Civil War wanted to get their photo taken, and I was no exception of course.

A little farther down, my nephew indulged my nerdiness and got a photo of me near the spot where Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant also posed with his staff back in 1863. The angle isn’t quite right, but you can see some of the same rock formations.

My first trip to Lookout Mountain was absolutely incredible. Truly a bucket list kind of thing. I’m lucky to have been able to share the experience.

Chattanooga National Cemetery

Since it was Memorial Day, there was no better way to commemorate the occasion than with a stop at the Chattanooga National Cemetery. I’m happy to report that it was quite crowded there when we arrived around 4:30pm. I’m so used to seeing people use the holiday as an excuse to go to the beach, and it was somewhat uplifting to see so many others paying their respects to our departed veterans.

The main focal point of the cemetery – at least from a Civil War perspective – is the graves of several of Andrews’ Raiders. These men captured a Confederate locomotive, The General, and attempted to tear up the Western and Atlantic Railroad as they drove from Atlanta toward Chattanooga. The mission ended with many of the men being captured and executed by the rebels as spies. There was even an old Disney movie made about the event.

The next day would have the real fun start: my nephew and I would re-trace the route of the Atlanta Campaign!

A few years ago, I traveled to the Raleigh, NC area for a work conference. Of course, I wanted to check out some of the local historical sites in my downtime. There was plenty to see!

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Battle of Averasboro – Civil War Battlefield #40

I got up early on Sunday morning to start my “off” day, and was able to get on the field at the Battle of Averasboro by 8:40am. Though it’s only a mile or two west of I-95, it really feels like you’re out in the country. My guess is that not much has changed since 1865.

The field is privately owned, but definitely well cared-for, with a small museum located at the northern end. Several signs make it clear that relic hunting is forbidden and outline other things that the caretakers have in place – including video surveillance.

There are numerous markers and a few monuments, but they appear to be from different eras, and thus each has a slightly different way of explaining the action to visitors. For one thing, different markers seem to break the battle into a different number of stages, so I can see how it could be confusing to keep track of what all is going on for a novice. As it turns out, the action revolves around a pretty straight-forward defense-in-depth by the Confederates.

The visitors center was closed on the early Sunday morning that I visited, so I can’t tell you any impressions of it, other than to say that they have a fake artillery piece out front. Hey – at least it’s something. The other thing I took away as I drove through the field was the complete lack of distinct terrain features. Any elevation changes that exist are minuscule. Just about the only factor in the battle was the Cape Fear River that anchored the Confederate left.

On to the next site!

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Battle of Bentonville – Civil War Battlefield #41

This was the main event. The Battle of Bentonville was the largest battle to ever take place in North Carolina, and was the culmination of Sherman’s march through the south, and Johnston’s attempt at defense. For me personally, this was the first battlefield I had ever visited where General Sherman had been involved. Pretty crazy to think about.

The State of North Carolina owns several pieces of the battlefield (though in many cases just enough to have a pull-off with a few wayside markers at a tour route stop) and operates those as the Bentonville Battlefield State Historic Site. Most of the field is still privately held, with modern houses occupying the bulk of that area. The spots that are preserved are quite nice, though.

There are also numerous wayside markers that do a great job of explaining the battle action, and even a few monuments – including one of the standard Texas ones. I was able to pick up a copy of the driving tour brochure before I came, which was handy because this was another site where the visitors center was completely closed down on a Sunday morning. On the plus side, the driving tour comes with a phone-in audio narration component that really adds another dimension to the visit. All of these factors mean that you can get a very complete experience in only a couple of hours.

Like Averasboro, the terrain here was VERY flat – only a few small ravines and creek beds provided some cover for battlelines – and you can see that the lines seemed to form along them. Ground that is not composed of sand is swamp. It must have been miserable to fight here. I recall one of the waysides mentioning that there was significant difficulty in burying the dead – whenever they dug more than a foot or two down, the hole would fill with water.

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North Carolina State Capitol

After checking in for my conference, I decided to walk around downtown Raleigh a little. The grounds of the North Carolina State Capitol had a few interesting monuments, and some real artillery in the form of Cyrus Alger and Co. siege mortars.

One of my favorites was a monument to US Presidents from North Carolina which included Andrew Johnson (for a Civil War connection), James K. Polk, and the debatable Andrew Jackson (who may have actually been born in South Carolina). There was also a “Lost Cause” era monument “To Our Confederate Dead” – perhaps not long for this world.

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Oakwood Cemetery

One place in downtown Raleigh that I knew I wanted to see was the Oakwood Cemetery – final resting place of Colonel Henry King Burgwyn, who was killed at Gettysburg leading the 26th NC Infantry in their famous attack against the 24th MI. Known as “The Boy Colonel”, Burgwyn was only 21 years old at the time of his death.

Like other prominent southern cemeteries, Oakwood has a large mass grave of Gettysburg dead, removed to what was assumed to be their home State from where they had fallen on the battlefield – probably in the 1870s. The design of the marker for this section of the cemetery mirrors the North Carolina monument present at Gettysburg today.

Though I only spent a few hours poking around the Raleigh area (and beyond), they were thoroughly satisfying. Hopefully I’ll be able to make a return trip some day.

This is a continuation of my series on famous burials in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, VA. Other posts in the series can be viewed here. The information was researched and produced in the summer of 2011 for The Gettysburg Daily.

The thing that initially attracted me to Hollywood Cemetery was the fact that two U.S. Presidents are buried there. Once I actually got on the grounds to look for their graves, I noticed a bunch of names that are familiar to a Civil War nerd and the idea for this series was born.

The first really notable burial in the cemetery was President James Monroe.

Originally buried in New York City (since he died there while living with his daughter) Monroe’s body was moved back to Virginia in 1858. Apparently the Virginia legislature could not tolerate the idea of one of their Presidents resting in a northern city.

 

His tomb is incredibly ornate, and easily stands out within the cemetery.

I talk a little bit about President Monroe’s life in this brief video:

The second U.S. President buried at Hollywood is a man who is not necessarily a household name, but a very interesting figure nonetheless: John Tyler.

Tyler’s grave is found just a few yards from Monroe’s in the aptly-named “Presidents Circle” section of Hollywood Cemetery.

His monument is quite large, and features a bust on one side.

In this video I give a bit of information on Tyler, who was an exceptionally interesting 19th century political figure. When the Civil War broke out, he sided with the Confederacy – even going so far as to be elected to the Confederate Congress – but he died before he could assume that office. As a result of his rebel status, he remains the only U.S. President to not be officially mourned following his death.

Speaking of Confederates, there is one more President buried in Hollywood Cemetery: Jefferson Davis, the only President of the Confederate States of America.

He is buried in the far southwestern corner of the cemetery, near several other notable Confederate political figures.

The monument that rests at his burial site includes a statue of Davis, as well as a few plaques with biographical information.

I provide some more information about Davis in this brief video.

All videos in this post were shot by George Skillman.

Near the grave of William Goldsborough, lies a junior officer from the 1st MD battalion who was killed on the eastern slopes of Culp’s Hill on July 3, 1863 – Capt. William H. Murray.

Murray was a well-respected man among the Confederate Marylanders. An original member of the old 1st MD Infantry regiment, he stuck around in Virginia when that unit disbanded – unable either for fear of being caught, or out of a sense of duty to the Confederacy, to return home to Maryland. It was Capt. Murray who got together enough men to form the first company of what was to become a brand new Maryland regiment, but only ended up as the 1st MD battalion (as they couldn’t get together enough men to form a full regiment). His company became Company A in the new battalion, and he was elected Captain of it. This also made him the senior Captain in the battalion, and every account I’ve read talks about what a fine soldier he was – William Goldsborough writes glowingly about him in his book.

At Gettysburg, he is still the commander of Co. A, but on the morning of July 3, he has been elevated to second-in-command after Lt. Col. Herbert’s wounding the night before. When asked to lead his men in a very ill-advised assault up Culp’s Hill, he goes along the line, shaking hands with every man saying “Goodbye, it is not likely that we shall meet again.” Even General Steuart thought the attack was a suicide mission, but Capt. Murray followed his orders and did his duty. He was soon shot down, mortally wounded near the Union breastworks. Before noon that day, the 24-year old Captain would lie dead on the field.

His grave is located in the Confederate Hill section of Loudon Park Cemetery, very prominently marked by a tall obelisk:

 

Late last week, I ended up taking a trip over to the Eastern Shore of Maryland with my boss (whom we affectionately call “The Dude”) and in the process, we got the chance to visit Cambridge Cemetery in Cambridge, MD together. There’s some really cool Civil War history in that cemetery that matches up well with the research that I’ve been doing recently.

The grave that I went there to find is that of Col. James Wallace, the commander of the 1st MD Eastern Shore. This regiment was raised by Col. Wallace as a home guard unit, but ended up being pressed into service at Gettysburg since the Confederates had invaded the north. Not all the men in the 1st MD:ES saw it that way though, and at least one company resigned over that issue before they left the State of Maryland.

The bulk of the unit made it to Gettysburg where it was attached to Brig. Gen. Henry Lockwood’s independent brigade. Col. Wallace led the men in the counter-attack at Culp’s Hill on July 3, and it was these men who fired on the 1st MD (later 2nd MD) battalion CSA – a unit that contained many of their friends and neighbors, and in at least one instance, relatives. These Union men got the better of their Confederate counterparts; taking only 25 casualties out of the 532 men present for duty.

Col. Wallace was an interesting character himself. He grew up as a member of a prominent family in Dorchester county, going on to study law at Dickinson College. He got involved in State politics as a member of the American party (better known as the “Know-Nothings” – a mainly anti-immigrant political movement). Wallace was opposed to secession, but was also pro-slavery – mainly because he was a slave-owner himself. In fact, he would resign from the army in December of 1863 over the issue of black men being armed for the war effort.

His grave is located near the entrance to the cemetery on the appropriately-named Cemetery Ave. My boss located it immediately:

Nearby, there’s another grave of historical significance in the context of the Civil War: that of Maryland Governor Thomas Holliday Hicks.

Like Col. Wallace, Gov. Hicks was born in Dorchester county, and became involved with the Know-Nothing Party. Serving as Governor from 1858-1862, he was in office for the start of the Civil War. While it may seem like a contradictory position to us, Gov. Hicks was both pro-slavery and anti-secession. He felt that if there was to be a Civil War, Maryland as a border state may become the main theater of battle, and he wanted to avoid bringing that conflict to his native State. This led him to attempt to forge a neutral path for Maryland.

He avoided calling the legislature into session for several months, and in that time many of the pro-secession members were jailed. When he finally did begin the session, he did so in the pro-union town of Frederick, MD, far from it’s normal place in the pro-southern capital of Annapolis.

After his term was up, Gov. Hicks was appointed to fill the vacant seat in the U.S. Senate left by the death of James Pearce, and went on to become a strong ally of President Lincoln – even going so far as to endorse his re-election in 1864.

His gravesite is located just to the east of Col. Wallace’s, and is marked by a large statue of him placed there by the State of Maryland in 1868. It’s very hard to miss:

I can’t help but think that these two men were at least close associates, if not friends; though I haven’t found any evidence of a relationship. Colonel Wallace was from a prominent family with political connections. Both men grew up in the same area, and with similar political beliefs. The Colonel’s commission that Wallace received was given by Governor Hicks, too – and those were generally not given out based on military merit so much as on who you knew in the State capital.

Even if they weren’t close friends, these two men worked together to try and keep Maryland out of trouble and in a peaceful state in the opening days of the Civil War. Misguided as their politics may have been, they deserve to be remembered for their place in our history.

Returning to Loudon Park Cemetery, today we look at the grave of the man who took over command of the 1st MD Battalion (which later became the 2nd MD) when Lt. Col. James Herbert was wounded on July 2 at Gettysburg: Maj. William Goldsborough.

Born in Frederick county, he worked for a time as a printer in Baltimore before heading south to join up with the Confederacy when the war started. His brother Charles made the opposite decision, serving with the 5th MD as an Assistant Surgeon. They would meet a few times during the war, but not at Gettysburg.

At Gettysburg, Maj. Goldsborough was second-in-command of the 2nd MD during the attack on Culp’s Hill. When Lt. Col. Herbert went down with his serious wounds, Maj. Goldsborough took over and led the unit in the fighting on July 3 until he too was wounded – shot through his left lung. When the Confederates were pushed back, Maj. Goldsborough became a prisoner, as well.

After recovering from his wound, he was held in the prisons at Ft. McHenry and Ft. Delaware. In late 1864, he was transferred to Morris Island where he became one of the Immortal 600. He would remain in Union prisons for the rest of the war.

After the war, he wrote a book about the wartime service of the Maryland Line. As you might imagine, the 2nd MD at Gettysburg gets some coverage there.

His grave is located in the Confederate Hill section, just about in the middle along the southwest border of the section:

Continuing in Loudon Park National Cemetery, we come to the grave of our first Civil War artillerist: Capt. James H. Rigby.

Capt. Rigby commanded Battery A of the 1st MD Light Artillery. At Gettysburg, Rigby’s battery was part of the Fourth Volunteer Brigade in the Artillery Reserve, and his six 3-inch Ordnance Rifles were posted on Powers’ Hill, firing in support of the Union operations on nearby Culp’s Hill on July 2 and 3.

This was not exactly a front-line posting, and the unit’s casualty figures reflect that. The battery brought 106 men to Gettysburg, and did not report any losses in the action.

Over the last few years, Powers’ Hill has been cleared to return the ground to the look it had in 1863, and some new property has been acquired in that area by the park, but I still don’t think most visitors are aware of the monuments up there. The hill is not included on the auto tour route – not even as a drive-by – so for now, the contributions of these men will go largely unknown by the general public.

Capt. Rigby’s grave is located in the southern part of the cemetery, under a large, old tree. It’s easily recognizable from a distance:

I want to make sure that I’m clear on this: we’re leaving Loudon Park Cemetery temporarily and going next door to Loudon Park National Cemetery to find another veteran of the Battle of Gettysburg – and a Union man this time: Col. Joseph M. Sudsburg.

A Bavarian by birth, Col. Sudsburg had emigrated to America after taking part in the failed revolution in Poland in 1846. He ended up settling in Baltimore, and his previous military experience (even though he was on the losing side) led to a Colonel’s commission and the command of the 3rd MD Infantry when the Civil War broke out. His leadership of the unit also helped to attract many other European immigrants to service in the 3rd MD.

At Gettysburg, he was still in command of the 3rd MD, attached to McDougall’s brigade of the 12th Corps. The unit participated in the combat at Culp’s Hill on the morning of July 3, but spent most of that day in a reserve position. Their casualty figures tell the story pretty well: of the 290 men present for duty, they lost only 8 – and only 1 of those was a fatality.

Col. Sudsburg’s monument is located in the Officer’s section, near the eastern fence in Loudon Park National Cemetery:

In the next installment, we’ll see the grave of a Union artillerist who was present at Gettysburg.

Another of the Confederate burials in Loudon Park Cemetery with a connection to Gettysburg is Col. James R. Herbert, the commander of the 1st MD Battalion (later renumbered to the 2nd MD).

As a Lt. Col. at Gettysburg, Herbert led his unit – part of Brig. Gen. George Hume “Maryland” Steuart’s brigade – in the assault on the Union right at Culp’s Hill. From the night of July 2 to the morning of July 3, Herbert’s men were almost constantly fighting – at one point even going up against other men from Maryland who had sided with the Union.

It was a tough fight. The 1st MD Battalion lost 189 of the 400 men present (47.3%) – the highest losses by number and percentage for a Maryland unit at Gettysburg. Among the wounded was Lt. Col. Herbert himself. Hit three times in the confused crossfire, he fell just after the sun went down on the evening of July 2.

Herbert survived his wounds and the war and went on to become the commander of the Maryland National Guard in the post-war years. He also served as the Baltimore City Police Commissioner until his death in 1884.

His gravesite is located across the street from Confederate Hill, and is marked by a large, distinctive monument with crossed flags on the front:

In the next post, we’ll see the gravesite of the man who took over command of the 1st MD Battalion after Lt. Col. Herbert’s wounding at Gettysburg.