Are These Women Soldiers? Part 2!

Last year, I posted some images from the Library of Congress that I thought were interesting.  Click (HERE) to see it.

Mr. Frank Vattelana sent me the following photographs and gave me permission to share them.  The inscriptions are his labels.   What do you think?  Female soldiers?

II Corps, 2nd Division, AOP

114th New York

Benton Barracks, St. Louis

I'll post another batch another time.

Until next formation....rest.

Review of "Inventing Loreta Velazquez" by William C. Davis

Published by Southern Illinois University Press in October 2016, William C. "Jack" Davis' book, Inventing Loreta Velazquez:  Confederate Soldier Impersonator, Media Celebrity, & Con Artist, discusses the controversial woman who claimed service in the Confederate army.

Searching for Sophronia: Sophronia Smith Hunt, 29th Iowa Infantry

Satronia is how her name appeared in her obituary that was carried by newspapers from across the country.  Though she died in August 1928, she just received a headstone on Veterans Day, 2016.  She had lain in an unmarked grave for over 80 years.   Click (HERE) to read more.

Sophrona's marker with her husband's in the background

Casting Their Lots

The women's suffrage movement began in 1848 when the initial women's rights convention was held at Seneca Falls, New York.  The right to vote was still a long time coming.  But that didn't deter some women.  In 1852, one appeared at the polls in New York disguised as a man.  However, her smooth face betrayed her and her ruse was discovered.

New Orleans Times Picayune, November 13th, 1852

My Talk at Beauvoir, 10-15-16

Well, my enjoyment of a flawless presentation experience appears to have been relegated to a singular event.  Unlike at the Pascagoula Public Library, the haints possessed my equipment once again for my talk at the Jefferson Davis Presidential Library located on the grounds of Beauvoir.

Talk at the Pascagoula Public Library-10/4/16

Here's a bit of trivia.  Ninty-five percent of Pascagoula was under water after Katrina.  Almost all of my friends and family who live there lost everything.  I'm very glad to say that they have all rebuilt and doing extremely well today.

Another bit of trivia.  Pascagoula was also the location where a squirrel went berserk per the Ray Stevens song.

Well, I can't believe it finally happened.  I can honestly report that nothing crazy happened at my presentation last night at the Pascagoula Public Library.

My Talk at the Manship House, 9/24/16

My talks are always an adventure.  Whether it's challenges that arise in getting to the site or dealing with haunted equipment, you can pretty much bank on something crazy happening. 

Rising Tides and Fallen Heroines at Alton

What was to become the military prison at Alton, Illinois began as a state penitentiary in 1833.  However, Dorthea Dix declared the facility unfit to house inmates due to its dirt floors and unsanitary conditions.  It closed in 1860, and the prisoners were then transferred to a new facility located in Joliet outside Chicago. It reopened two years later as a military prison with the first Confederate prisoners arriving by steamer from the overcrowded Gratiot Street Military Prison in St. Louis, a little over 20 miles south of Alton.

http://madison.illinoisgenweb.org/prison.html

Women Civil War Soldiers: Digging up the Evidence

Fellow blogger, Ann Marie Ackermann, recently asked me to compose a guest post for her.  Since her writings center around historical true crime, I thought I'd write about the detective work behind researching women soldiers. 

Click (HERE) for the post.  

Please check out other content on her blog.  She's got some interesting information! 

I am eagerly awaiting the release of her book, Death of an Assassin:  The True Story of the German Murderer Who Died Defending Robert E. Lee to be released in 2017!  Sounds fascinating!  You can read a little more about her project by clicking (HERE).  You can also sign up to receive updates.

Until next formation....rest.

Dora

 No, not the explorer.

Dora of the Cumberland; although, she did some exploring  as a Union spy, sometimes in male clothing, sometimes in female garb.  Her prowess led some to compare her to Pauline Cushman.  And, like Cushman, Dora was born a Southerner.  While the former woman was born in New Orleans, the latter was born in Tennessee, east Tennessee to be precise. And, like many in that area, harbored Union sympathies.