(Taken from Crossfire, August 2008)
Civil War Goes Digital Through New Civil War Preservation Trust Photography Contest
This summer, the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT) is again teaming up with The History Channel and the Center for Civil War Photography to sponsor a national photography competition to promote appreciation of America's rich Civil War heritage. For the first time, all entries to this popular, long-running contest will be submitted digitally via an online interface, allowing more people to participate than ever before. The deadline for entries is August 31, 2008.
For more information on the digital photo contest, including official rules and how to enter, visit:
www.civilwar.org/photocontest
Katrina-hit Davis home reopens
The bicentennial observance of the birth of Confederate President Jefferson F. Davis will take place throughout this year, with the highlight being the reopening of Beauvoir, his final home, in Gulfport, Miss., on June 3.
The magnificent Southern shrine, which survived a pre-emptive strike by Hurricane Camille in 1969, was devastated by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The cost of the restoration is expected to exceed $4.1 million for the house alone; the total restoration will run about $20 million, and donations are still being accepted.
The reopening ceremonies featured a keynote address by Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.
Events have already happened in Alabama where, on the west portico of the Alabama Capitol, where Davis was inaugurated. Bertram Hayes-Davis, greatgreat-grandson of the Confederate president and chairman of the bicentennial committee, placed his hand on a Bible held by a descendant of Howell Cobb, president of the Confederate Congress under Davis.
Another event will took place on April 27 in Ridgefield, Clark County, Washington, with the dedication of Jefferson Davis Park, which will be home to the Vancouver Jefferson Davis highway marker. It was the final commemorative highway marker presented to the citizens of Washington state on June 18, 1939, marking the end point of the Jefferson Davis Highway. It originally sat near the Vancouver, Canada, line and was moved several times.
On the weekend of May 31 through June 1, the Davis Family Reunion was held at Rosemont Plantation in Woodville, Miss., along with a re-enactment of Davis' inauguration as president of the Confederacy.
Events will be held throughout the Southern states to mark the bicentennial of Davis' birth on June 3, 1808, in Fairview, Kentucky. He lived there the first few years of his life before his family moved to Wilkinson County in Mississippi. He returned to the Bluegrass State to attend Transylvania College in Lexington before receiving an appointment to West Point, graduating in 1828 at age 20. Kentucky's celebration took place in June at the Davis Obelisk in Fairview.
The reopening of Beauvoir will be the obvious highlight of the year's festivities. After the devastation of the hurricane, the exterior of the mansion has been rebuilt to 1852 standards, according to Mr. Hayes-Davis. It has "all of the external framing done - the windows, doors, all done to the way it was. It's a brand-new 1852 house," Mr. Hayes-Davis said recently.
Architects and conservators came into the demolished structure and scraped down walls and frames to be able to replicate the exact colours in which it had been painted.
Amazingly, most of the original shutters were intact and could be reused with some minor repairs.
The interior still will have to be redone, according to Mr. Hayes-Davis, and that is anticipated to take another two to three years. However, the restored Beauvoir is "a stronger entire house, with steel cables running from the floor and foundation up to the roof," he said. The rehabilitators used the basic floor plans of original owner James Brown to assure authenticity in the rebuilding process, and it will remain the oldest house on the Gulf Coast.
Several other buildings on the premises were destroyed and are not scheduled to be rebuilt. The presidential library, for instance, is in what is now considered the high water/flood area. An entirely new structure will be built 150 feet farther west, with 8-foot concrete piers supporting it above the ground.
Mr. Hayes-Davis said many of the furnishings and artifacts were lost in the storm's surge and winds and have yet to be replaced. Some of the furnishings were spared; with water a foot deep, they floated within the destroyed walls, and some could be salvaged.
Negotiations are under way for production of a 4?-hour documentary on Davis' life, to be released in the fall.
The nationwide events are being led by members of the United Daughters of the Confederacy and the Sons of Confederate Veterans along with local heritage organizations, which also have offered their support to the bicentennial effort.
Webwatch
This link has the names of Alabama civil war units listed down to the company level.
www.bitsofblueandgray.com/ conf alabama.htm
South Carolina Museum
Founded in 1896, the SC Confederate Relic Room and Military Museum is the oldest museum in the Columbia area. The museum focuses on South Carolina's military history from the Revolutionary War to the present War on Terror. The museum's site video can be accessed by visiting
www.crr.sc.gov/videos
or :-
www.youtube.com/SCCRRMM. New videos are added regularly.
Not the Civil War but if you want to see what the Hunley legacy led to in 1941 go here:
www.soest.hawaii.edu/HURL/midget.htmi
Soviet tanks in Spain
libraryautomation.com/nymas/ soviet tank-operations-in the-sp.htm
Lee v Pope (I wish Greg had these maps for his lecture!) Ed note - I do to!!!
libraryautomation.com/nymas/ PopevLee-files/frame.htm
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