From Behind Yankee Lines - November 2016

Greetings Compatriots & Friends!

It's been a while since the last update. My Camp Commander instructed me to slow down a bit on the blogging for fear that I might get burned out, but events of the last few weeks have brought forth thoughts and I feel the need to convey them here.

On Sunday, November 6th, I was so blessed with an opportunity to honor our boys in gray, particularly Confederates who suffered and died in Union prison camps, as a part of a Veterans Day Celebration at a church in the suburbs of Detroit. Aside from allowing me to display Camp 1321's battle-flag among their War Between the States artifacts, I was permitted to sing 'The Legend of the Rebel Soldier,' which tells the story of a Southern POW dying in a Northern prison, begging for assurance from the attending chaplain that his soul would be permitted to pass over his beloved Southland before entering into eternal rest. I was nervous, for aside from the fact that I hadn't sang in front of my congregation in more than a decade, I also wasn't certain how such honor for the Confederate soldier would be received so far from Dixie. I was beyond moved at the warm reception and the kind words said afterwards about the tribute given for our brave boys. I sang this song in memory of my two cousins, James & Ananias Moore. A pair of brothers, the Moore boys both served as Privates in the Confederate cause - James with the 31st Virginia Cavalry & "Nias" with the 5th Kentucky Mntd. Infantry. They were both caught and imprisoned at Rock Island, IL, where they would die just two days apart in March of 1864.

Also here in the Great Lakes State, on October 23rd, the Maj.Gen. Patrick Ronayne Cleburne Camp #2257 (Grand Rapids, MI) joined with Robert Finch Camp #14 of the Sons of Union Veterans at Oakwood Cemetery in Traverse City, MI to honor Sgt. David C. Duane of Co. F in the 53rd Virginia Infantry at his gravesite. A nice crowd that included three generations of Sgt. Duane's granddaughters came out on this gorgeous fall day to honor this Southern soldier's memory. Special thanks goes out to SUVCW Camp #14 Commander David Smith for all that he and his men did to make this ceremony happen.

On the flip side, a Traverse City police officer was recently suspended after being caught off duty, in civilian clothing, with a Confederate flag on a personal vehicle, while near a rally against the new President-elect of the United States. (He has since been compelled to resign from his job.) It is the opinion of this author that the flag of our honorable Confederate ancestors should not be used as a modern day political tool by those on either side of the political spectrum; with that said, this is not the first time in recent months that a law enforcement officer in the United States has faced professional repercussions for displaying the Confederate flag in a personal manner, which has nothing to do with the performance of his job. It's a sad state of affairs, here in what is supposed to be "the land of the free," when a person must fear consequences from his employer for what he does when not on official business or on "company time."

This was not the only act of discrimination involving Confederate symbols in the last week following the results of the recent U.S. Presidential election. Rallies protesting the election results occurred in a number of major U.S. cities, including Richmond and New Orleans where Confederate monuments to Lee (in NOLA), Davis & Maury (in Richmond) were vandalized as a result. How ironic that also in protest of the election result several states have seen movements rise up calling for their secession from the Union! While the SCV is a non-political, non-partisan organization, we sometimes find the politics of the modern day and the past intersecting, and I cannot help but recall to memory our great Southern President's prophetic words...

"The principle for which we contend is bound to reassert itself, though it may be at another time and in another form." - Jefferson Davis

Contentious elections, civil unrest drummed up by those who would see us at each others' throats, lies and relentless anti-Southern propaganda... these are all things our ancestors were all too familiar with. Hold fast in the struggle to preserve Southern heritage and honor the brave men of the Confederate armed forces, don't get weary in well doing, and remember that while the darkest hour is just before dawn, we are promised that joy comes in the morning!

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

Honor for the Confederacy at the Michigan State Capitol

If I were to ask, I'd venture to guess that very, very few could actually tell me the event of Confederate significance which occurred in Michigan during the fall of 1941. It was, however, on September 20th of that very year when the State of Michigan returned to the Southern states 13 battle flags and three swords, which were taken as spoils of war during The War Between the States more than 75 years earlier.

Taking place on the east steps of the state capitol building, it was described by Maynard Hill in the State Journal newspaper (out of Lansing, MI) as "one of the most colorful open-air ceremonies ever held here (in Michigan)." The event was broadcast nationwide on the radio, and covered by numerous print & photo journalists.

Gen. Julius F. Howell, CiC. of the United Confederate Veterans addresses, with Gov. Van Wagoner of Michigan. [This copy of the original 1941 image is in the Camp #1321 archives, but all rights belong to the photographer and original publisher and it is used under the Fair Use Doctrine.]

Michigan was one of the last of the northern states to return captured Confederate relics. It was through the initiative & efforts of local radio broadcaster Duncan Moore, his radio station (WJR) & the city of Detroit that the legislation was passed in the state congress to make this event happen. Also very influential in making the flag return possible was Mrs. John Bushnell of Detroit; Mrs. Bushnell was a past President of the Robert E. Lee Chapter of the United Daughters of the Confederacy in Detroit, and was also the mother of George Bushnell, a then-current Michigan Supreme Court Justice.

Representatives were sent from 12 of the former Confederate states to receive these southern war-artifacts on behalf of their respective states and the entire south. The representatives were:

TN - Gen. Julius F. Howell, Commander-in-Chief of the United Confederate Veterans
VA - Gov. James H. Price, Governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia
KY - Hon. Rodes K. Meyers, Lt. Governor of Kentucky
TX - Hon. Hatton W. Sumners, U.S. Congressman from Texas' 5th District
AL - Peter A. Brannon, Alabama State Military Archivist
AR - John Pipkin, Arkansas Commissioner of Public Welfare
FL  - Lt.Col. Phillip Stockton May, Florida Governor's Staff
GA - Mrs. Arthur M. Wilson Jr., President of the Atlanta Ladies Memorial Association
LA - Roland Cocreham, Executive Assistant to the Gov. of Louisiana
MS - Dr. W.E. Holcomb, Representative of the Gov. of Mississippi
NC - Dr. C.C. Crittenden, Secretary of the North Carolina Historical Commission
SC - Edward B. Houseal, Representative of the Gov. of South Carolina

Faded & frail, the flags were packaged in gift boxes trimmed with red, white and blue, and the swords were similarly wrapped. Each was presented to the respective Southern representatives by the Governor of Michigan, Murray Delos Van Wagoner. As each presentation was made, the drum and bugle corps of the Morley S. Oates post of the Veterans of Foreign Wars was on hand to punctuate it with a blare of trumpets.

As a military event, this one was particularly unique, with men, both on the speakers' platform and in the audience, wearing military uniforms that spanned more than 75 years of American military history! There were Southern veterans in Confederate gray uniforms, several Union veterans in their blue uniforms, veterans of the (first) World War in their khaki uniforms, a cream-colored uniform worn by a Georgia military aide, and the brand new gray uniform of the then newly formed Michigan state "home defense" troops.

Heading up the delegation of distinguished Southern representatives was the 95-year-old Commander-in-Chief of the United Confederate Veterans, Gen. Julius F. Howell, who was representing the state of Tennessee. Upon receiving a flag and a sword from Michigan's Governor, General Howell thanked the Governor in a clear, firm voice, saying that it was "a most gracious gesture."

The event was tightly scheduled because of time constraints on the radio broadcast, and speakers were asked to make their remarks brief, but when a military aide tried to hurry General Howell, Howell just waved him off (which caused quite a laugh from the crowd) and proceeded to tell stories from his time in the war. Thankfully the radio affiliates were understanding, and respectfully continued their coverage despite going a little over the allotted amount of broadcast time.

In his address, speaking to the Southern delegation collectively, Gov. Van Wagoner said, "I speak for all of Michigan in thanking you for your graciousness in receiving them (the artifacts) in the spirit in which they are given," adding that the relics being given back "have not in a generation been looked upon as trophies. Instead, they have served as reminders of the the glory and the honor that [was] ... [Robert E.] Lee. They have served to remind us of our debt to those who bequeathed us a vast wealth of rich character, and a never-failing source of inspiration. Love and understanding have replaced all bitterness and hate. Mutual respect and fraternal fellowship have come to bless the common purpose of our national endeavor."

Much of the information on this event has been gleaned from the pages of the Winter 1942 edition of the Michigan History Magazine. At the end of the report, the following comments were included by the quarterly publication's editor, George N. Fuller, who wrote:

"We honor these flags, as we honor the brave men who marched beneath them in days that are gone. They are but flags, yet they speak to us of the thousands of boys in Gray, who with faith and hope of youth went into battle for a cause they held dear, the preservation of the ideals and traditions of the Old South. With the eye of fancy, we can see these boys as they stand in line, - as the word is given, see them charge, and form, as the air rings with the storm of battle, some of them never to return to the courageous wives and mothers who sent them away with their blessing. These flags tell of hopes, and of fears, and of prayers for these boys. And now these flags return home, and there they will speak silently to the sons and daughters of the men who bore them, of losses that can never be forgotten..."

[Image from the 1991 50th Anniversary Commemoration of Michigan returning it's Confederate relics.]

Before I close, I would be remiss if I did not mention that this event was remembered on it's 50th anniversary by the Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans with a parade & certificate of appreciation ceremony at the Michigan State Capitol.

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan M. McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

Sources:
[Hill, Maynard. "Return of the Confederate Flags." Michigan History Magazine 1942: 5-23. Print. Volume XXVI, Winter Edition]
[Taishoff, Sol, ed. "Studio Notes." Broadcasting & Broadcast Advertising 6 Oct. 1941: 47. Print.]
[SCV Camp 1321 Archives]

The Jefferson Davis Monument (Monument Ave., Richmond, VA)

[The dedication of the Jefferson Davis Monument; Richmond, VA; June 3, 1907]

 At 2 o'clock in the afternoon on June 3, 1907, before a crowd of thousands of admirers, the Jefferson Davis Monument, on Monument Avenue in Richmond, VA, was unveiled and dedicated to honor the Confederacy's only President on what would have been his 99th birthday.

The event was widely covered in periodical publications of the day, including The Confederate Veteran magazine, which described the scene as "all that could have been imagined. Such a sea of human beings was hardly ever seen in the South... it was a gala day [as] rockets were being sent high above, from which emerged many beautiful figures, conspicuous among which were balloons with magnificent Confederate flags floating, which fell in different parts of the assembly, and a fine band of music and hundreds of girls were singing about the area of the monument. Such a joyous throng of so great magnitude must have rarely ever been witnessed on the earth."

The crowd was extremely large, estimated as being "not less than 125,000" by Lt.Gen. Stephen D. Lee, Commander-in-Chief of the United Confederate Veterans, and that was just the crowd surrounding the Davis monument! Over 1,200 old Confederate veterans & sons are said to have marched down the flag-decorated streets with over 200,000 parade watchers cheering them on.

[Lt.Gen. Stephen D. Lee & others below the soon to be unveiled monument]

One old soldier, bent and weary with age after the parade, told a newspaper reporter, "I was a boy again while the march lasted, but, now that it's over, I'm an old broken man ready to die." He, like so many others, marched like boys again with strength & affection for the Southern Cause, despite the toll that age had taken since the flags were furled at Appomattox.

The speakers stand was filled with dignitaries such as Gen S.D. Lee, Rev J. William Jones, Hon. Claude Swanson - Governor of Virginia, Hon. Carlton McCarthy - Mayor of Richmond, and Maj.Gen. Samuel D. French - the oldest surviving major-general from the Confederate service. Seated on the stage along with these great men was perhaps the most notable gathering of Confederate women ever assembled at an unveiling, including Ms. Mary Custis Lee (daughter of Gen. Robert E. Lee), Mrs. Mary Anna Jackson (widow of "Stonewall" Jackson), and Mrs. Flora Stuart (widow of Gen. J.E.B. Stuart), and others equally worthy of note.

The lady who was given the most attention on this day, however, and rightfully so, was Mrs. Margaret Davis Hayes, the daughter of the late Southern President. It was she, along with two of her children, who had the honored duty of actually making the great unveiling of the Davis monument. When the signal was given, the President's heirs withdrew the veil that covered the statue of the late chieftain! Instantly the guns of the Howitzers boomed out in a Presidential salute, the bands struck up in the playing of 'Dixie,' and deafening cheers & applause erupted from the crowd! For several minutes the air was filled with thunder as fireworks were sent off, celebratory bombs exploded, children sang, and the multitudes roared in excitement as balloons carrying Confederate flags floated overhead.

[The Jefferson Davis Monument; Richmond, VA; July 12, 2016]

After the monument's unveiling, Governor Swanson gave an address to the gathered throngs. I will not reprint it here in full, but in part let me share the following portion of his remarks:

"Sirs, the brave and noble deeds of the Confederate soldiers, extending from the drummer-boy to the great commander - the God-like Lee, constitute for the South her proudest and most precious heritage. We will teach our children's children to cherish the glory, the unsullied honor and the dauntless courage of the Confederate soldier. We purpose that in every county and city of the South some day shall stand a granite or marble column to bear testimony to his heroism and glory." 

[The Jefferson Davis Monument; Richmond, VA; July 12, 2016]

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

Have You Forgotten...?

This past Sunday, our nation reflected on a dark day in it's history - September 11, 2001 - remembering the nearly 3,000 lives lost 15 years ago when Islamic terrorists hijacked airplanes and rammed them into the World Trade Center towers in New York, the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and attempted to fly a plane into another target (probably either U.S. Capitol or the White House) before being thwarted by the plane's brave passengers who rammed the plane into the earth to save other lives.

An oft heard question each year around that date is "Have You Forgotten?"

While it is safe to say that no one of a certain age who was living in this country on that dark day has intentionally forgotten what happened, one day that event will become a factoid in a history book and no one who was alive then will still yet inhabit the planet to recall it's horrific events.

Here we are in 2016, more than 150 years after the conclusion of the War Between the States, the costliest conflict in this nation's history in terms of lives lost and blood shed, but I must sadly declare that many Southerners have forgotten not only it's causes and events but also they have forgotten about the lives of their ancestors who were killed for the cause of Southern independence from federal tyranny.

(Image Courtesy of Maeve Magdalen)

Have YOU, personally, forgotten that...

... more than 4,700 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Gettysburg between July 1-3, 1863?

... more than 2,300 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Chickamauga between September 19-20, 1863?

... more than 1,700 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Shiloh in April 1862?

... more than 1,700 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864?

... more than 1,600 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Chancellorsville in April & May 1863?

... more than 1,500 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Sharpsburg on Sept. 17, 1862?

... more than 1,500 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House in May 1864?

... more than 1,400 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Gaines's Mill on June 27, 1862?

... more than 1,400 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of the Wilderness in May 1864?

... more than 1,200 Confederate soldiers were killed in the Battle of Stones River between Dec. 31, 1862 - Jan. 2, 1863?

... the tens-of-thousands more Confederate soldiers who were killed or wounded at dozens of other battlefields across the South?

... the civilian casualties of Lincoln's war on the South, which are estimated by historians to number into the tens-of-thousands, maybe as high as 50,000+, the vast majority of whom were Southerners?

While it is good and right to remember those victims of terrorism from 9/11/2001, it is despicable that we sons & daughters of Confederate veterans cannot show the same respect & honor to our ancestors, who were no less victims of invasion & terrorism, without being vilified for it! Today it's the memory of our Confederate ancestors which is under attack; in 150 years it might be the memory of you or someone you personally know & love who served in the U.S. military after that dark September day.

We should never forget what happened to our ancestors and to our native Southland in the War of 1861-1865...

WE, THE SONS OF CONFEDERATE VETERANS, WILL NEVER, EVER FORGET!

DEO VINDICE!
Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

LAKEVIEW POLICEMAN HONORED BY MICHIGAN SCV CAMP

[Excited today to bring you this story from the Major General Patrick Ronayne Cleburne Camp #2257 out of Grand Rapids, MI. Many thanks to Cmdr. Jim Perkins (Camp #2257) for sending this in.]

LAKEVIEW POLICEMAN HONORED BY LOCAL SCV CAMP

-submitted by James D. Perkins-

     Thursday, August 18th has been designated as Law Enforcement Appreciation Day by the National Headquarters of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, a heritage group that honors the citizen soldiers who served honorably in the War for Southern Independence (i.e. Civil War) during the years 1861-1865. SCV Commander-in-Chief Thomas V. Strain has recently  issued General Order 2016-01, which is stated below:

     Hence, we the Major-General Patrick R. Cleburne, Camp 2257 of Western Michigan, would like to honor and personally recognize Lakeview Police Chief Darin Dood, for his dedicated service to his community. For the past ten years, Darin has held the position as Chief and has worked tirelessly to make the police department stronger and more efficient. "I have always had a desire to fix things, leave them better than when I found them. When I took on the role as chief of police in Lakeview, I brought that mentality to the department," replies Dood.

     In addition to surrounding himself with a "solid staff," Chief Dood has been able to secure local grants and successfully collaborate with the Village Manager to budget in ways that have allowed the department the means to acquire equipment, safety gear, and computers in police cars. Furthermore, Chief Dood emphasizes that "community involvement is a priority."

     With today's political climate being as it is, Darin states that "there are many sad things going on in our country today (not only in the law enforcement arena) and they seem to be typically blown out of proportion by the media." Chief Dood also adds that the stories presented to the public are most often based on "partial facts and then questions posed as 'what ifs', getting citizens to question everything." The ensuing uproar and chaos that results leads Dood to observe that "it seems to me that common sense is becoming less and less common," however, "despite these things, our community seems to be different."

     Since Darin has been chief, he has noticed that there is a general "out-pouring of law enforcement support," and notes that following the murder of the police officers in Dallas, Texas, "our office was brought sympathy cards and cupcakes to honor our loss." Needless to say, Chief Dood and his staff were gratified and impressed by this support, and credits this partially due to his agency's involvement with community. "Talking to people on the street, going to football games, and working in the schools makes us one with the community, and thus "breaks down the us versus them mentality," states Dood.

     It is quite obvious that Chief Dood is passionate about his job, and when one looks at his background, it is no great surprise. From an early age he "grew up wanting to be a police officer" in Jenison, Michigan where he enjoyed watching television shows such as, Chips, Hill Street Blues, and NYPD Blues. "I had a strong desire to fight crime and to help people, and these television series made it look so easy, fun, and full of action," recalls Darin. Nevertheless, following his public school and post graduate years, Dood tried his hand at other pursuits, including business management as well as a painting contractor, but eventually it was his childhood dream of being a policeman that drove him to return to Grand Rapids Community College at age 26 to pursue a career in law enforcement.

     Today Chief Dood is grateful for the support received daily from his wife, Brandy and sons, Cameron and Brennan "for always being my solid ground to come home to every day." As Dood thoughtfully points out, many interruptions and inconveniences accompany his duties as police chief on a consistent basis, and his family has been understanding and supportive in times of his absence, phone calls that come during dinner, and the frequent early morning emergencies that he must respond to. Furthermore, Darin notes that often his sons must deal with "mean spirited" social media comments, regarding peer judgment of necessary duties carried out by the police force. "My family seems to always find the strength to shield all of that drama which had nothing to do with them, which I never take for granted," replies Chief Dood.

     For the past ten years, Lakeview Village police Chief Darin Dood has devoted his life to serving the community of Lakeview, and during these ten years has continued to strive for excellence through improvement of methods for hiring police staff; collaboration with the village government in order to secure better equipment; and by improving relations with citizens and students. We as citizens of the Lakeview area are very fortunate that Chief Darin Dood works for and with us daily, and certainly can be thankful that he has "always had a desire to fix things, and leave them better than when I found them." Thank you Chief Dood and we are very much honored to honor you, Sir.  

The Sandlick Creek Cemetery (Whitesburg, Letcher Co., KY)

Greetings Confederates!
I just returned earlier this week from my second of two excursions down to the Southland. While down there, I had the pleasure of meeting & spending time with members of several camps in the Kentucky Division of the SCV. One of those occasions was at the August camp-meeting for the Col. Ben E. Caudill Camp #1629, out of Whitesburg, KY, where I was permitted to sit in on the meeting and also assist with a clean-up effort at one of the Confederate sites that camp maintains - the Confederate section of the Sandlick Creek Cemetery. 

Though I didn't get any pictures of the meeting, this was not my first visit to the cemetery, so I do have some pictures I can share with all of you from the site.

The Sandlick Creek Cemetery rests in the Appalachian foothills of southeastern Kentucky, and during the war between the states it was located near the home of John A. Caudill, Confederate sympathizer and father of Col. Benjamin E. Caudill of the 13th Kentucky Cavalry, one of the "Immortal 600." It was on his father's property where Col. Caudill would drill and train the men under his command, and also where a hospital was established for Confederates in that area. As men from the regiment died, many of them would come to be buried on this nearby hill, and it is also where Col. Caudill's parents would come to be buried.

This section of the cemetery where the Southern defenders lie at rest was neglected and forgotten over time. For many years it was covered in weeds and brambles until, through the efforts of Camp #1629, these graves were located. With the assistance of some surviving records, several of the Confederate graves were able to be completely marked, but for many there is only a stone with a Southern Cross insignia and the words "Unknown Soldier." That is because many of the records from the old Confederate hospital were burned by Union troops.

The Col. Ben E. Caudill Camp #1629 takes great care of these Confederate graves and those others located in what is known as the Big Sandy River Valley area. Since the 1980s, Camp #1629 has marked the graves of more than 1,300 Confederate soldiers & veterans, and also maintains several other monument sites which they have erected in southeastern Kentucky.

Below you will find more pictures that I took while visiting the Sandlick Creek Cemetery in July 2015. I'd like to thank all of the members of Camp #1629 for the hard work, time, money, and effort they put in towards honoring our brave boys in gray. I also want to extend a special thanks to Camp #1629's Cmdr. Manton Cornett & Chaplain Lawrence Cook for the extreme kindness and hospitality they showed me when I visited on Thursday, August 18th, 2016. It's an honor to be a part of the SCV knowing men like you are a part of it!

 

DEO VINDICE!

- Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

Greetings from the Southland!

Greetings friends and compatriots!
I'm posting this blog today from the Appalacian foothills of southeastern Kentucky, not far from the sites of the Battle of Middle Creek, Battle of Ivy Mountain, and the Battle of Pound Gap. I'm vacationing at my property that has been in the family for over 140 years, obtained originally around 1870-71 by my 3rd-great-grandfather, John Bumgardner, who served the Confederate cause in the 6th North Carolina Cavalry (65th State Troops). As I sit here in quiet reflection, I've been pondering on the special summer that I've had. Aside from visiting my Confederate ancestors' respective graves like I have for the past several years, I've also visited some really major sites in Confederate history in Richmond, VA & Lexington, VA, plus I made my first trip to Johnson's Island Confederate Stockade Cemetery back in May.

As I think about these things, I also think about how much more special these places are to me as someone who did not grow up around such history like so many of my fellow compatriots in the South do. I wouldn't dare say that visiting such places is like "old hat" to them, but how much more of a treat must these places be to visit by someone who can't just hop in the car and drive there & back home in a single afternoon?

Also, unlike so many of my SCV brothers and sisters, I did not grow up with stories of my ancestors' respective service in the war. It was not something I grew up in the shadow of like those who live in the south. Still, something deep within me led me to chase these people and their stories down, study them, absorb them, and fight for their deserved honor.

This is the case for many of us in SCV camps located up in the north. Field trips to places of southern inspiration are not usually feasable to take. We, more than most, must push ourselves to recommittment to keep the charge and stick with The Cause. Many of our efforts will often seem fruitless, but I can assure you they are not. For our brothers in the South who are dealing with these heritage violations directly, it strengthens them and encourages them to know that we are here in the far reaches of Yankee territory doing all we can to fight these cultural battles and to keep the charge. It also must be dishartening for those who seek to bulldoze our monuments and indoctrinate our future genereations with lies about this honorable heritage to see support for the Confederacy so far north of the Mason-Dixon.

No matter where we were born or where we live, we have a responsibility as living heirs of the Confederate soldiers to stand firm, push back, and assist our brothers in the Southern states however we can.

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

I Hate to Say 'I Told Ya So,' but...

Hello friends & Compatriots!

By now you've almost certainly heard about the latest flag controversy, this time over the Gadsden flag. If you're unfamiliar with the term, it's a flag that originated during the 1st War of American Independence. It's a yellow flag with a depiction of a coiled rattlesnake and the words "DON'T TREAD ON ME" written underneath.

Apparently, somebody filed a complaint in 2014 with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) about a co-worker wearing a hat with a depiction of the Gadsden flag, saying that it was racially offensive. The EEOC recently said in a statement that "whatever the historic origins and meaning of the symbol, it also has since been sometimes interpreted to convey racially-tinged messages in some contexts,” and that "in light of the ambiguity in the current meaning of this symbol, we find that Complainant’s claim must be investigated to determine the specific context in which [the coworker] displayed the symbol in the workplace."

When this blog first started one year ago we were just entering the new era of Confederaphobia. At that time so many of us warned that the war on Confederate flags & symbols would only be a first step in this war on American culture, and that it would not stop there.

In one of the earliest blogs posted on this page, I wrote that "[t]he movement now underway to remove [the Confederate] flag, dishonor the brave soldiers that served under it, and disrespect the 70-million descendants of Confederate veterans is rooted in the same demonic cesspool as the movements in this nation to slander historical figures & traditional symbols of America..."

Using the allegations of racism, and in our current culture of political correctness, it seems that anything could be construed as racist. Instead of laughing at the ridiculousness of the claim and throwing it out, as should have been done, this federal commission is giving legitimacy to the most ludicrous of claimed offenses, and thus setting a precedent for even more of this nonsense to follow.

Many folks, including some good and well intentioned people, were suckered into joining the chorus of voices calling for the public banishment of Confederate flags and symbols in the last year. Some of those people would have encouraged us to replace our "rebel flags" with those of "the original American rebellion against tyranny." Now they are finding out that we what we were saying all along is true.

I call on all Americans who love freedom and the historical symbols under which it has been defended to stand with the Sons of Confederate Veterans in the defense of Confederate flags & symbols! If the politically correct myth makers fail at changing perceptions of our symbol they'll have less of an incentive to go after yours!

A QUICK REMINDER: SCV Membership dues were up on August 1st. If you haven't paid your HQ and camp dues yet, you only have so much time before the grace period ends, so please renew your membership as soon as you can.

Also, a meeting for Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 has been scheduled for October 8th! Camp members, please save the date and watch for emails for further information about the meeting.

Before I close, I apologize for the lack of updates recently, but they'll pick up again soon. To help keep up with updates as I post them, I've added a subscription bar, which you can find over on the right side of the page. Just type in your email, submit it, and then follow the instructions to confirm your subscription.

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

Beginning the 41st Year of the SCV in the Great Lakes State!

     Today marks the installation of new officers for Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI), and is also unofficial start of our 41st year as a chartered camp in the SCV! Also, today marks the one year anniversary of this blog has being active!

     Since this day marks such special occasions, I feel that it is an appropriate time to rededicate the blog, and give a little history of Semmes Camp #1321 & the SCV in the state of Michigan. If you're not familiar with the SCV, or you are wondering why such an organization would be represented as far north as The Great Lakes State, then you have come to the right place!

     Almost 25 years after the conclusion of The War Between the States (often incorrectly referred to as "The Civil War"), the veterans of the Confederate military forces formed a fraternal veterans organization, much like today's Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) organization, called the United Confederate Veterans (UCV). Divisions & chapters of this organization popped up all over the country wherever Confederate veterans may have lived.

     From 1889-1951, the UCV was simply a fraternal organization of veterans who served on a particular side in a particular war. It's primary functions were to provide for widows & orphans of former Confederate soldiers, preserve relics & mementos from the war, care for disabled Confederate veterans, preserve the records of Confederate soldiers' service, and organize fraternal reunions & gatherings.

     In 1896, seven years after the UCV was formed, 24 delegates met in Richmond, VA for the purpose of organizing a "national organization, adopting a constitution similar in every respect to that governing the United Confederate Veterans, and permanently organized under the name United Sons of Confederate Veterans." The purpose of this new fraternal organization for descendants of Confederate veterans was stated in it's Constitution as "[t]o encourage the preservation of history, perpetuate the hallowed memories of brave men, to assist in the observance of Memorial Day, and to perpetuate the record of the services of every Southern Soldier.″ They further stated that their aim was ″not to create or foster, in any manner, any feeling against the North, but to hand down to posterity the story of the glory of the men who wore the gray.″

     By 1906, many Confederate veterans & UCV members were aged, infirmed or dying. Leadership in the UCV knew that their membership would not long have the strength to continue carrying out their goals. It was for this reason that then UCV Commander-General, Lt.Gen. Stephen D. Lee, passed the torch and gave the following charge to the members of the SCV on April 25, 1906 in New Orleans, LA...

"To you, Sons of Confederate Veterans, we will commit the vindication of the cause for which we fought. To your strength will be given the defense of the Confederate soldier's good name, the guardianship of his history, the emulation of his virtues, the perpetuation of those principles which he loved and which you love also, and those ideals which made him glorious and which you also cherish." 

     Thus, the Sons of Confederate Veterans is the direct successor of the UCV and the oldest hereditary organization for male descendants of Confederate Soldiers. It continually strives to keep that charge given by Lt.Gen. Lee through the work of it's tens-of-thousands of members worldwide! The organization has camps in two-thirds of this country's states, plus internationally in England, Scotland, and Germany! In the 150 years since the war's end, descendants of Confederate veterans have spread throughout the world, and many of us are proud of our Confederate heritage.

     It should be no surprise then, that the SCV would have a presence here in Michigan. Many Confederate veterans & their descendants would have migrated to this state, and region, in the mid-to-late-1800s to find work in the timber industry. Then, of course, came the advent of the automobile in the early-1900s, and Southerners migrated to the Detroit area in droves to get good paying, secure jobs throughout the glory days of  "the big three."

    One man of Confederate heritage, Jerry Edward Moore, a then recently-retired corporate executive, joined the SCV on May 24, 1974, and immediately began working tirelessly to start a camp based near his home in Dearborn, MI, throughout 1974-75. Already a respected member of numerous other heritage societies and a certified genealogist, his efforts were bolstered by a great deal of assistance from his friends James Edwards (SCV Commander-in-Chief, 1974-1976), Brig.Gen. William D. McCain (long-time SCV Adjutant-in-Chief), and his beloved wife, Jeannette "Jan" Hotchkiss Moore. In October of 1974, SCV CiC. Edwards announced the creation of a new 'Great Lakes Division' of the SCV, and that Jerry had been appointed this new Division's Commander, "with such power as to organize and establish in the name of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, camps within the states of Michigan, Illinois, and Ohio." Despite suffering from various health problems, this man in his late 60s worked like one in the prime of his life in organizing & founding the Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321, which officially received it's charter on August 14, 1975.

     Two of the camp's eighteen charter members were 'Real Sons' of Confederate Veterans, and both of them had connections to Adm. Raphael Semmes.

• The first was Samuel Prewitt Semmes, grandson of the admiral, and son of Confederate Capt. Samuel S. Semmes. It was Compatriot S.P. Semmes who gave permission to Cmdr. Moore to name the camp after his grandfather. Compatriot Semmes was elected to be the camp's "Commander Emeritus" at their first meeting. Compatriot Samuel Prewitt Semmes passed away on September 5, 1981 at the age of 85.

• The second "Real Son" of the camp was Walter T. McCoy, son of Confederate Marine Pvt. Michael W. McCoy (who served aboard the C.S.S. Sumter, which Adm. Semmes commanded). Compatriot Walter T. McCoy passed away on November 11, 1979 at the age of 86.

     Jerry Moore's term as Camp Commander was scheduled to last two years, but sadly Cmdr. Moore passed away on April 18, 1976, three months before his 70th birthday. Enough cannot be said in praise of his work for the SCV in Michigan and the Great Lakes Region. He is truly missed, and we forever honor him for founding this camp and for all he did to faithfully keep 'The Charge.'

     Following Cmdr. Moore's passing, Culver E. "Mac" McCoy, son of the aforementioned "Real Son" Walter McCoy, was elected on July 18, 1976, to serve out the remaining portion of the late Commander's term. The grandson of a Confederate Marine who served aboard the C.S.S. Sumter under Adm. Semmes, the son of a U.S. Navy veteran, and a Navy veteran of World War II himself, Cmdr. McCoy worked hard to pick up the pieces and sustain membership levels with much assistance from his wife, Frances, and also from Cmdr. Moore's widow. Cmdr. McCoy presided over a slight "restructuring" of the camp, and in one of his last official acts as Commander, McCoy represented our camp in August of 1977 as a delegate to the 82nd General Convention & Reunion of the SCV in Dallas, TX.

     Even after his term ended in September of 1977, Culver continued to serve the camp in other officer-positions into the early 1980s. It is thanks to Past-Commander McCoy that hundreds of pages of camp & member records from it's first seven years & prior survived through the 1980s, and are still being used to accurately document the history of our camp today. Past-Commander McCoy departed this life on September 11, 2008, the date of his 87th birthday.

     Following Cmdr. McCoy's term, two other men served as the camp's commander, but unfortunately Camp #1321 became inactive in 1982. In early 1989, Stanley Thomas White, a Past-Commander of the B.F. Foley Camp #1448, reactivated Camp #1321, and remained it's steadfast leader for more than 25 years! During his tenure the camp was involved in many great works, including:

• The donation of $1000.00 to Elm Springs, for the purpose of establishing it as the headquarters of the SCV.
   
• The mounting a Confederate Color Guard at the Memorial Day service in the Confederate Stockade Cemetery on Johnson's Island in Ohio for many years.
   
• The donation of over fifty books to various organizations and libraries, including the Museum Of The Confederacy in Richmond, VA.
   
• Instrumental in having the statue, that stands in the Confederate Officers Cemetery on Johnson's Island Ohio, repaired by the V.A.
   
• Instrumental in initiating the renovation of the President Jefferson Davis gravesite at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, VA.
   
• The placement of headstones on the graves of 17 Confederate Veterans in the Confederate Section of Springhill Cemetery in Charleston, WV.
   
• Maintained a SCV recruitment and Confederate History tent at numerous reenactment events, including Jackson MI. & Greenfield Village, Dearborn MI.
   
• Camp members participated in numerous ceremonies and events honoring Confederate soldiers and sailors. These included: the dedication of the Confederate monument at the Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, IN; the rededication of the Confederate monument at Oakwood Cemetery in Chicago, IL; memorial services at Camp Chase Confederate Cemetery in Columbus, OH.

     On February 9, 2015, with assistance & encouragement from Cmdr. White, the 'Gen. Patrick R. Cleburne' Camp #2257 of Grand Rapids, MI was chartered under the organization & leadership of Cmdr. James D. Perkins, himself a former member of Semmes Camp #1321.

     In 2016, Cmdr. White declined renomination for election after building the camp and leading it in many great works for the SCV. In June of 2016, long time 1st Lt. Cmdr. Darron M. Williams was elected to be the 6th Commander of Camp #1321, and his term of office began on August 1st of that year.

     The members of the 'Semmes' & 'Cleburne' SCV Camps work together in the state of Michigan in keeping the charge that Lt.Gen. Stephen D. Lee gave more than a century ago. If you are a Michigan resident, and you are the male descendant of a Confederate Veteran (or think you might be), we'd love to have you join us as we spread the truth of Confederate history & insure that our ancestors are honored for their military service in the Confederate States of America!

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
2nd Lieutenant Commander / Treasurer
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

In Memory of Maj.Gen. George E. Pickett (1825-1875)

George Pickett was a Virginian and an American through and through. Though many know of the term "Pickett's Charge," few today could tell much about this man who was called by George McClellan (Pickett's former classmate, U.S. military comrade, and formidable foe during the War Between the States) "the best infantry soldier developed on either side during the Civil War."

In 1913, Pickett's widow published a number of letters written by her late husband which reveal his thoughts and give a peek into the thoughts of this great military leader. On this day, the 141st anniversary of his passing, I'll share some of them with you, the reader, and together we will hopefully learn a little something about the man behind the legend.

Prior to secession and the war, Pickett was opposed to the Southern states leaving the Union. On Sept. 17, 1861, Pickett spoke of his decision to fight for Virginia and the South, recalling from his childhood that, "those cross-stitched mottoes on the cardboard samplers which used to hang on my nursery wall, such as, 'He who provides not for his own household is worse than an infidel' and 'Charity begins at home,' made a lasting impression upon me; and while I love my neighbor, i.e., my country, I love my household, i. e., my state, more, and I could not be an infidel and lift my sword against my own kith and kin...," and said in a May 1862 letter that, "all that we ask is a separation from people of contending interests, who love us as a nation as little as we love them, the dissolution of a union which has lost it's holiness, to be let alone and permitted to sit under our own vine and fig tree and eat our figs peeled and dried or fresh or pickled, just as we choose. The enemy is our enemy because he neither knows nor understands us, and yet will not let us part in peace and be neighbors, but insists on fighting us to make us one with him, forgetting that both slavery and secession were his own institutions. The North is fighting for the Union, and we—for home and fireside."

The War Between the States found many old friends against one another on opposites sides of the battlefield; many who'd attended military academy together, or served side-by-side in the Mexican War just a few short years earlier, would be pitted directly against one another in some of the most grizzly military combat ever experienced by men. Despite being on opposing sides, Pickett still thought very highly & lovingly of some on the other side, such as the earlier mentioned George B. McClellan. One day after the Battle of Seven Pines, on June 2, 1862, Pickett wrote of the Commander of the Army of the Potomac, "I have heard that my dear old friend, McClellan, is lying ill about ten miles from here. May some loving, soothing hand minister to him. He was, he is and he will always be, even were his pistol pointed at my heart, my dear, loved friend. May God bless him and spare his life."

Heading into the campaign of which Gettysburg was a part of, Pickett sensed the danger of the coming days and weeks. In mid-June of 1863, he writes, "To-day, under orders from Marse Robert, we cross the Potomac. McLaws' and Hood's Divisions and the three brigades of my division follow on after Hill. May our Heavenly Father bless us with an early and a victorious return. But even then, the price of it—the price of it, my little one—the blood of our countrymen! God in His mercy temper the wind to us! As I returned the salute of my men, many of them beardless boys, the terrible responsibility as their Commander almost overwhelmed me, and my heart was rent in prayer for guidance and help. Oh, the desolate homes—the widows and orphans and heartbroken mothers that this campaign will make! How many of them, so full of hope and cheer now, will cross that other river which lands them at the Eternal Home."

On the way through Pennsylvania, just a week away from Gettysburg, Pickett wrote of quite an amusing event he & his men experienced that day...

"As [the] band, playing 'Dixie, was passing a vine-bowered home, a young girl rushed out on the porch and waved a United States flag. Then, either fearing that it might be taken from her or finding it too large and unwieldy, she fastened it around her as an apron, and taking hold of it on each side and waving it in defiance, called out with all the strength of her girlish voice and all the courage of her brave young heart: 'Traitors—traitors—traitors, come and take this flag, the man of you who dares!' Knowing that many of my men were from a section of the country which had been within the enemy's lines, and fearing lest some might forget their manhood, I took off my hat and bowed to her, saluted her flag and then turned, facing the men who felt and saw my unspoken order. And don't you know that they were all Virginians and didn't forget it, and that almost every man lifted his cap and cheered the little maiden who, though she kept on waving her flag, ceased calling us traitors, till letting it drop in front of her she cried out: 'Oh, I wish I wish I had a rebel flag; I'd wave that, too.'"

Sash worn by Gen. Pickett on display at the Museum of the Confederacy.

Of course, such blessing for "an early and a victorious return," as he beseeched to the Lord, was not to be. His letters to his beloved, written in the days after his now famous charge, are absolutely gut-wrenching...

[July 4, 1863 - The Day After]
     "My brave boys were full of hope and confident of victory as I led them forth, forming them in column of attack, and though officers and men alike knew what was before them,—knew the odds against them,—they eagerly offered up their lives on the altar of duty, having absolute faith in their ultimate success.
     "Over on Cemetery Ridge the Federals beheld a scene never before witnessed on this continent,—a scene which has never previously been enacted and can never take place again—an army forming in line of battle in full view, under their very eyes—charging across a space nearly a mile in length over fields of waving grain and anon of stubble and then a smooth expanse—moving with the steadiness of a dress parade, the pride and glory soon to be crushed by an overwhelming heartbreak.
     "Well, it is all over now. The battle is lost, and many of us are prisoners, many are dead, many wounded, bleeding and dying. Your Soldier lives and mourns and, but for you, my darling, he would rather, a million times rather, be back there with his dead, to sleep for all time in an unknown grave."

[July 6, 1863]
     "The sacrifice of life on that blood-soaked field on the fatal third was too awful for the heralding of victory, even for our victorious foe, who I think, believe as we do, that it decided the fate of our cause. No words can picture the anguish of that roll-call — the breathless waits between the responses. The "Here" of those who, by God's mercy, had miraculously escaped the awful rain of shot and shell was a sob, a gasp, a knell for the unanswered name of his comrade. There was no tone of thankfulness for having been spared to answer to their names, but rather a toll, and an unvoiced wish that they, too, had been among the missing.
     "Even now I can hear them cheering as I gave the order, "Forward!" I can feel the thrill of their joyous voices as they called out all along the line, "We'll follow you, Marse George. We'll follow you—we'll follow you." Oh, how faithfully they kept their word—following me on—on—to their death, and I, believing in the promised support, led them on—on—on—Oh, God!"
     "The moans of my wounded boys, the sight of the dead, upturned faces, flood my soul with grief—and here am I whom they trusted, whom they followed, leaving them on that field of carnage—and guarding four thousand prisoners across the river back to Winchester. Such a duty for men who a few hours ago covered themselves with glory eternal!"

[July 12, 1863]
     "I can't think of anything but the desolate homes in Virginia and the unknown dead in Pennsylvania. ... Poor old Dick Garnett did not dismount, as did the others of us, and he was killed instantly, falling from his horse. Kemper, desperately wounded, was brought from the field and subsequently, taken prisoner. Dear old Lewis Armistead, God bless him, was mortally wounded at the head of his command after planting the flag of Virginia within the enemy's lines. Seven of my colonels were killed, and one was mortally wounded. Nine of my lieutenant colonels were wounded, and three lieutenant colonels were killed. Only one field officer of my whole command, Colonel Cabell, was unhurt, and the loss of my company officers was in proportion.
     "I wonder, my dear, if in the light of the Great Eternity we shall any of us feel this was for the best and shall have learned to say, 'Thy will be done.'"

Nearly another two years of war with the Union & writing letters to his beloved would pass before it was all finally over, and Pickett would go on serving in Lee's Army right up to the very end. Just hours before The Army of Northern Virginia was to be surrendered, Pickett wrote, "Lee's surrender is imminent. It is finished. Through the suggestion of their commanding officers, as many of the men as desire are permitted to cut through and join Johnston's army. The cloud of despair settled over all ... when the tidings came to us of the evacuation of Richmond and its partial loss by fire. The homes and families of many of my men were there, and all knew too well that with the fall of our Capital the last hope of success was over." He continues, saying, "It is finished! Ah, my beloved division! Thousands of them have gone to their eternal home, having given up their lives for the cause they knew to be just. The others, alas, heartbroken, crushed in spirit, are left to mourn its loss. Well, it is practically all over now. We have poured out our blood and suffered untold hardships and privations all in vain. ... It is finished—the suffering, the horrors, the anguish of these last hours of struggle."

After the war, Pickett's devotion to the men who gave their 'last full measure' at his command in Gettysburg never wavered. As the mortal remains of those who fell in that fateful charge were brought to Richmond for interment in Hollywood Cemetery, Pickett would meet them upon arrival and lead them again in grand processions, this time to their final resting place. "You cannot conceive of it," said Pickett in a letter to his wife. "From the old Market to the Cemetery of Hollywood the streets, sidewalks, windows and housetops were crowded. There must have been twelve thousand people at Hollywood. Such a demonstration of devotion and sympathy was, I think, never before witnessed on earth. ... So penetrating, so universal a oneness of love and respect and reverence existed that there was a stillness, an awesomeness, save for those necessary sounds—the clanking of swords, the tramp of horses and the martial tread of men keeping time with funeral marches—the solemn requiem. No cheers, no applause, only loving greetings from tear-stained faces, heads bent in reverence, clasped hands held out to us as we passed along. As I saw once more the courage-lit faces of my brave Virginians, again I heard their cry—"We'll follow you, Marse George!" From their eternal silence, those who marched heroically to death looked down upon us yesterday and were sad."

He continued in this duty to his "boys" (as he called the men who served under him), which even called him away from home as his own child lay deathly ill. His wife told him, "Even if I knew our child would die while you were gone, I would not have you neglect this call to honor your boys whom you led to their death."

George Edward Pickett died on July 30, 1875 in Norfolk, VA. The location of his burial at Hollywood Cemetery is at the top of what is called "Gettysburg Hill," the section of the cemetery where so many of Pickett's brave boys' remains had been placed, and from here Gen. Pickett still leads his men, now in eternal rest. Even the monument at the General's gravesite memorializes the men who followed him more than it does Pickett himself, and I believe that's exactly how he would have wanted it.

Grave of Gen. Pickett, Hollywood Cemetery; July 2016

Continue to rest well General, both you and your brave boys.

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
Sergeant-at-Arms, Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

News from the 121st National SCV Reunion

Hello Compatriots! I usually don't go so long without writing something here, but if the truth be told, I haven't posted in several weeks! I managed to slip through Federal lines and make it down into the Southland for a two week vacation, and had the blog set up to post some pre-written updates while I was out.

While rambling through the hills of Kentucky, North Carolina, & Virginia, attending family reunions and visiting friends, I took a little side trip to the Capital City of the Confederacy - Richmond, VA. It was this ole boy's first visit to that grand old city, and I'll be posting a bit more about that in the days to come.

As I was attending some family reunions, our SCV family was holding our organization's 121st National Reunion in Dallas, TX! Online accounts suggest to me that it was a huge success! Compatriot Adam Gaines (Camp #1321 - Dearborn, MI) was able to attend and represent the Michigan Camps. While Compatriot Gaines may write a post for the blog about his recent adventures in Texas, I thought I'd share a little bit of the news coming out of the reunion that may be of immediate interest to you the reader...

• Thomas V. Strain, who has served the last two years as the SCV's Lieutenant Commander-in-Chief, was elected to serve for the next two years as the organizations 75th Commander-in-Chief.
• Paul Gramling, who has been in leadership positions at various levels over the past 25-years, was elected to serve as Lieutenant CiC.
• Larry McCluney, Commander of the Army of Tennessee (to which the Michigan Camps belong), was reelected to serve in the position which he has faithfully held for the past two-years.

Also, three SCV Compatriots from the Michigan Camps were recognized with awards for their contributions to The Cause over the past year...

• James Perkins, Commander of Major General Patrick Ronayne Cleburne Camp #2257 (Grand Rapids, MI), was the recipient of The Dixie Club Award certificate! The Dixie Club Award honors those individuals who contribute greatly to the organization by recruiting new members.
   
• Jonathan McCleese, Sergeant-at-Arms of Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI) was the recipient of the Meritorious Service Medal! The Meritorious Service Medal is presented for outstanding performance of duty to the SCV.
   
• Adam Gaines, Member of Camp #1321 & Genealogist for both Michigan Camps, was the recipient of both the Dixie Club Award & the Meritorious Service Medal! 

Congratulations to all who were elected at the Reunion, and to everyone who were bestowed with awards and/or commendations for service in the organization! 

DEO VINDICE!
- Jonathan McCleese
Sergeant-at-Arms
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

Imagine...

John Lennon had a popular hit song that shares a title with this blog entry. His song asked folks to envision his idea of global utopia that is impossible to achieve (and not entirely desirable).

This is not about that. Instead, I'd like you to imagine the following two scenarios. One is a fact based story, and the other is quickly becoming one. First...

Imagine that you're a 30 year-old poor white farmer living in the south during 1860-1861. You have a large number of family & friends who live around you, and everyone works together to farm the land and eek out an existence. You're too poor to own slaves, and, unlike the slaves, you have no one else to keep a roof over your head, food on your table, or to care for you in any other way except yourself, your 2-months-pregnant wife, and 4 kids (ranging from ages 12 to 1.5).

One day you hear of a commotion in the town, and go out to learn that the President of the United States is raising up an Army to invade the recently seceded Southern states, one of which you live within! In order to protect your family & what very little property you own, you're being asked to sign up to fight in the military defense of your state.

Then, try to conceive of what it would have been like to have been on battlefield after battlefield, see your friends bleed to death, watch people get cut in half by the shot of a cannon, and all of the gruesome & gory aspects of war in the 1860s. 

After a few years of this, you receive a letter from your little wife at home... she says that they're getting by, but it's been hard since the Union troops took over town three months ago. They come and go through the homes of private citizens as they please, taking for themselves most of the good food anybody might have stored up. The baby girl born after going off to war is now a little more than two years old, but is sick, and the Union troops "requisitioned" what little medicine they found in the house; without it, all she's got is a prayer. Your other daughter, now almost 15, was out picking berries when the Union army rolled into town, and being the first pretty girl some had seen recently, was lured by a group of the men into a sexual assault. When she came home, your wife says she knew instantly what had happened, but dared not say a word about it for fear of their home being burned down as had happened to some of their neighbors. The 4 boys were doing well, but hard to keep in line at times, and she fears one will say the wrong thing to some Union soldier and face who knows what repercussions. Despite all of this, she begs you to fight on, not to desert, and not to get killed, and do all in your power to help Gen. Lee win this terrible war.

Finally, imagine journeying back home a few days after learning that General Lee had surrendered you. Defeated in war, and broken in heart, mind, body, & soul, you drag yourself back to the town you left to protect and hope to go back to some resemblance of normal life. As you travel you see nothing but war-torn land, and war-weary people. Finally you approach your home, and see three rock tombstones in the yard where none had been before, the names of your two daughters and oldest son hand-carved into the stones. You pass out from the combination of exhaustion & shock, and awake to learn that the baby had died shortly after you got your last letter, your oldest daughter killed herself over the shame of being raped by Union soldiers, and your oldest boy, aged 15, had been shot just days ago after stabbing one of the men who claimed to have violated his dead older sister.

This is what you went to war to stop... your dead children and traumatized wife & sons are the ones you went to war to protect... and this is the result of the Northern Army's invasion into the South in their conquest to keep the tariffs (taxes) on Southern businesses and ports pouring money into the U.S. treasury.

These are the men and the families for whom old veterans of the gray & their wives, widows, sons, daughters, brothers, sisters, grandchildren, nieces & nephews, etc. raised up flags and monuments to honor. Selfishly too many have made these things about themselves or their post-war agendas, both the racists and the pseudo civil-rights groups alike, but these things have nothing to do with racism, slavery, Jim Crow, etc.  These monuments stand and flags fly in honor of honorable soldiers & their families. Only the hateful, the ignorant, and/or the intolerant people of the modern day think otherwise.

After thinking about that for a moment, then imagine the following scenario.

In 2016, a monument is erected on the courthouse lawn of Anytown, USA to honor the heroes of our nation who served in the first Gulf War.

Now imagine that 150 years later Anytown has become a predominantly Muslim community, and for 15 decades more & more people start believing that the Gulf War and Middle-East wars that followed in the early 2000s were about subjecting the Arab/Muslim world under the thumb of the U.S. simply for control of that region's oil.

How does the idea sit with you that monuments built to honor the sacrifices of men & women we currently know, love, and consider heroes for their military service might be vandalized, knocked down, or moved out of public sight because the people in Anytown, USA might consider our heroes to be evil & offensive in the year 2166?

That is exactly what is happening across the south with Confederate flags and monuments in the public square, which are essentially no different than tombstones. They were erected by people who lost loved ones... fathers, sons, husbands, uncles, nephews & cousins... many of them never making it back home.

They were paid for by donations from surviving veterans, survivors of the fallen, & friends, with some contributions being large, but most probably being very small; sometimes all folks could give were pennies at a time, and they did so while struggling to put food upon their tables.

They were erected in the most public of places to be sure that their brave loved-ones would never be forgotten.

This monument, and others like it, are incredible symbols of love, not hate.

Those who engage in, support, or contribute to the removal of such monuments are the one's filled with hate, and no better than those who would desecrate a gravesite. There is no good in such people.

These are just some thoughts I leave here for you to ponder as the media fills your mind with half-truths & total lies.

DEO VINDICE!
-Jonathan McCleese
Sergeant-at-Arms
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans

U.S. Gov't Recognition of the Confederate Veteran

So often, as I read the news articles, letters to the editors, and web comments on both, I see so many using the foulest terms to describe our Confederate ancestors. Among those terms, though certainly not the worst, are "traitor" & "criminal." This, however, was not the sentiment of most Union veterans after the war, and only most divisive politicians held that opinion.

It must be realized that no matter what charges were ever brought against any Confederate soldiers, sailors, officers or government officials, only one was ever tried & convicted of treason (Capt. Henry Wirz - the commanding officer at "Andersonville" Prison), and that was done on trumped up charges & false testimony in a "kangaroo court."

Many will say that we need to "restore the honor" for our brave Confederate heroes, but what has never been diminished needs not to be restored. Instead, we need to RECOGNIZE THE HONOR, and educate others of why the honor is worthy of recognition. 

Through a process that took a century, give or take, our reunited country took action to recognize & properly honor the Confederate veterans as American veterans worthy of honor. Below is a timeline that I have put together that shows the process. Pay close attention to the words of U.S. President Carter at the end...

[April 1865]
The close of major military action in the War Between the States

[May 29, 1865]
PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION 134: U.S. President Andrew Johnson grants amnesty to most regular Confederate soldiers.

[July 4, 1868]
PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION 170: Pres. Johnson grants pardon to all persons participating in the "late rebellion," with the exception to those under indictment for treason or other felonies.

[July 9, 1868]
14th AMENDMENT TO THE U.S. CONSTITUTION: Section 3 of the Amendment prohibits the election or appointment to any federal or state office of any person who had held any of certain offices and then were accused of engaging in insurrection, rebellion, or treason; this is the only punishment ever given to the select few Confederate officials not pardoned through Pres. Andrew Johnson's earlier proclamations.

[December 25, 1868]
PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION 179: President Johnson grants full pardon & amnesty for the offense of treason against the United States during the War Between the States. This does not, however, nullify Section 3 of the 14th Amendment.

[April - August 1898]
THE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR: Thousands of Americans of Confederate heritage come together with their Northern brethren to serve their reunited country in military action. Among the thousands of Southerners who served in the United States military during that conflict were the following four Confederate officers...

- Matthew C. Butler
(A Colonel in the Confederate Army; a Major General for the U.S. Volunteer Troops in the Span-Am War.)

- Fitzhugh Lee
(Maj.Gen. in the Confederate Army; Maj.Gen. for the U.S. Volunteer Troops in the Span-Am War. Also, a nephew of Gen. Robert E Lee.)

- Thomas L. Rosser
(Maj.Gen. in the Confederate Army; Maj.Gen. for the U.S. Volunteer Troops in the Span-Am War. Also, a nephew of Gen. Robert E Lee.)

- Joe Wheeler
(Lt.Gen. in the Confederate Army; Maj.Gen. for the U.S. Volunteer Troops in the Span-Am War.)

[December 1898]
In a speech, President Wm. McKinley urges complete reconciliation between Northern & Southern U.S. citizens. Pres. McKinley said, in part, that "every soldier's grave made during our unfortunate civil war is a tribute to American valor... and now the time has come... when, in the spirit of fraternity, we should share in the care of the graves of the Confederate soldiers... The cordial feeling now happily existing between the North and South prompts this gracious act, and if it need further justification, it is found in the gallant loyalty to the Union and the flag so conspicuously shown in the year just passed by the sons and grandsons of those heroic dead."

[June 6, 1900]
CONGRESSIONAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT, FISCAL YEAR 1901: Congress magnanimously passes the bill, which appropriates $2,500 to enable the Secretary of War "to have reburied in some suitable spot in the national cemetery at Arlington, Virginia, and to place proper headstones at the their graves the bodies of about 128 Confederate soldiers now buried in the National Soldiers Home near Washington, D.C., and the bodies of about 136 Confederate soldiers now buried in the national cemetery at Arlington, Virginia."

[March 9, 1906]
CONGRESSIONAL ACT - P.L. 38, 59TH CONGRESS, CHAP. 631-34, STAT. 56: Congress authorizes the furnishing of headstones for the graves of Confederate veterans, particularly those who died in Union prison camps and were buried in federal cemeteries.

[January 21, 1907]
The U.S. War Department establishes the Civil War Campaign Medal. Authorization for it's creation was given by Congress in 1905, and it was intended for veterans of both the Union and Confederate armies. A corresponding naval award, the Navy Civil War Medal, was established on June 27, 1908, by the U.S. Navy Department.

[February 26, 1929]
U.S. PUBLIC LAW 810: Approved by Congress, this law expanded upon what began in the aforementioned 1906 legislation, authorizing the Secretary of War "to erect headstones over the graves of soldiers who served in the Confederate Army, and to direct him to preserve in the records of the War Department the names and places of burial of all soldiers for whom such headstones have been erected." This legislation broadened the scope of recognition for Confederate veterans, allowing for them to receive burial benefits equivalent to those granted for Union Army veterans, providing the use of government (public) funds for the marking and recording of Confederate graves. This law is still on the books as 38 U.S. Code, Sec. 2306, which reads, in part: "The Secretary shall furnish, when requested, appropriate Government headstones or markers at the expense of the United States for the unmarked graves of... Soldiers of the Union and Confederate Armies of the Civil War."

[May 27, 1958]
U.S. PUBLIC LAW 85-425: SEC. 410: Passed by Congress, the law states: "The Administrator shall pay to each person who served in the military or naval forces of the Confederate States of America during the Civil War a monthly pension in the same amounts and subject to the same conditions as would have been applicable to such person under the laws in effect on December 31, 1957, if his service in such forces had been service in the military or naval service of the United States." This act, combined with all of those previously stated, effectively placed the Confederate veteran on equal legal footing with those who served in the Union Army. Because of this, there have been children of Confederate veterans collecting pension benefits right up to our current decade, earned through their respective fathers' service in the Confederate military, equal to those collected by the surviving children of Union veterans.

Aside from these, there are two other notable, noble acts of the United States government that should also be remembered.

[August 5, 1975]
Pres. Gerald R. Ford signs into law a joint congressional resolution (passed June 13, 1975) restoring full citizenship to Gen. Robert E. Lee, after the 1970 discovery of documents in the archives proving that he had filed all of the necessary paperwork for it. The resolution declared that "the legal disabilities placed upon General Lee as a result of his service as General of the Army of Northern Virginia are removed, and that General R. E. Lee is posthumously restored to the full rights of citizenship." At the signing of the resolution, Pres. Ford stated, "[a]s a soldier, General Lee left his mark on military strategy. As a man, he stood as the symbol of valor and of duty. As an educator, he appealed to reason and learning to achieve understanding and to build a stronger nation... General Lee's character has been an example to succeeding generations, making the restoration of his citizenship an event in which every American can take pride."

[October 17, 1978]
Pres. James E. Carter signs into law a joint congressional resolution (passed October 3, 1978) restoring full citizenship to Confederate President Jefferson Davis. Davis never sought or received pardon for the crimes of which he was accused, as he was never convicted of any during his lifetime. Because he did not seek such a pardon or take an oath of amnesty or allegiance to the United States after the war, he died a man without a country. At the signing of this act, Pres. Carter said, "[i]n posthumously restoring the full rights of citizenship to Jefferson Davis, the Congress officially completes the long process of reconciliation that has reunited our people following the tragic conflict between the States. ... He had served the United States long and honorably as a soldier, Member of the U.S. House and Senate, and as Secretary of War. General Robert E. Lee's citizenship was restored in 1976. It is fitting that Jefferson Davis should no longer be singled out for punishment." "Our Nation needs to clear away the guilts and enmities and recriminations of the past, to finally set at rest the divisions that threatened to destroy our Nation and to discredit the principles on which it was founded. Our people need to turn their attention to the important tasks that still lie before us in establishing those principles for all people."

There are currently efforts underway to undo all of the progress & healing that the above efforts achieved, by those who seek to rip open 150 year-old scars for the purpose of agitating & dividing we, the people, for their own personal gain. WE MUST NOT PERMIT THAT TO HAPPEN. The veterans themselves are gone, and it is our duty to keep fighting the fight in the war of ideas to make sure that the recognition of honor that our ancestors rightfully attained in devoted service to their country is NEVER taken from them.

DEO VINDICE!
-Jonathan McCleese
Sergeant-at-Arms
Admiral Raphael Semmes Camp #1321 (Dearborn, MI)
Army of Tennessee, Sons of Confederate Veterans