It's All Fun and Games Until Somebody Gets Hurt

Not woman soldier related.  Sgt. Henry Howell, 11th Illinois Cavalry, "sporting" around.  From Corinth National Cemetery:  click on pictures to enlarge.  I wonder what the story behind this is.

Source:  U.S. Burial Registers, National Cemeteries, and Military Posts, 1862-1960

My Talk for the Poplarville Historical Preservation Society, 2/12/15

The crowd had just started filtering in as I was in the final stages of getting all of my gadgets plugged in.  An elderly gentleman walked in, turned to look at my title slide projected on a wall, and said, "I didn't know women fought in the Civil War."  It is something I hear a lot.  And it strengthens my desire to continue giving these presentations for the purposes of education and preservation of the memory of these extraordinary women.

Presentation for the Poplarville Historical Society

If you're in the area, stop by! It's this Thursday, 2/12 at the Poplarville Methodist Church at 5:30. It is free and open to the public. Click below for directions and address.

Post by Shelby Harriel - "Forbidden, Hidden, and Forgotten".

Scared To Death

This isn't about women soldiers, so please forgive me for veering off topic.  I wanted to share an unusual bit of information I stumbled upon when scouring the pages of U.S. Burial Registers, Military Posts and National Cemeteries, 1862-1960 last week.  Lots of interesting information can be gleaned from its pages, some of it a bit morbid but interesting nevertheless.  You'll find where soldiers were originally buried before being reinterred, if there was an epithet left by their pards carved on a headboard or neighboring tree, their name/age/rank/unit/date of death if known, what they were wearing, the color of their hair, if they were buried with any personal effects such as rings or photographs, any visible injuries, and where they currently lie.  Some were killed by bushwhakers.  I even saw some who were drowned either by accident or at the hands of others.  I came across soldiers who were buried in blankets and coffins.  Some were holding pictures of a wife and/or children.  Some had bushy beards while others were whiskerless. Some had gold teeth.  Some were missing legs just past the knee or arms above the elbow.  Some were missing jaws.  Some had bullet holes in their head while others had the entire skull smashed in.   It was obvious how these poor souls met their demise.  And then there was this guy who is buried in Chattanooga National Cemetery: (click the photos to enlarge them)

"said to have been scared to death"

 

"A Campaign Incident"

(Library of Congress)

Henry Clinton "Clint" Parkhurst was born December 9th, 1844, in LeClaire, Iowa, which, incidentally, was Buffalo Bill Cody's hometown.  He began writing poetry at a young age and,  before the war, worked as a printer.  Once hostilities broke out, Parkhurst heeded Iowa's call and on February 12th, 1862, enlisted in Company C of the 16th Iowa Infantry.  He was 17 years old, 5'6" with blue eyes and blonde hair.

Parkhurst saw action in Tennessee, Mississippi, and Georgia with the 16th.  During the Atlanta campaign, he was taken prisoner and sent to Andersonville, Millen, and Florence.  Parkhurst survived the horrors of prison camp life  and was discharged on June 8th, 1865.

(Post war photo; Library of Congress)

 He returned to Iowa where he became a reporter for various newspapers.  He also worked on his memoirs, and published Songs of a Man Who Failed, a collection of his poems, in 1921.

 Parkhurst died on November 16th, 1933, at the Soldier's Home in Marshalltown, Iowa.