Category Archives: Civil War

Operating a Landline Telegraph

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441500216_10232620648842474_8600482236910331051_nThis weekend, I had the pleasure of demonstrating a landline telegraph to a group of scouts at the BSA Northern Star Council Spring Camporee at Stearns Scout Camp near South Haven, MN.  Over 500 scouts attended, and the theme of the event was American Heroes.  The event included a group of Civil War reenactors from the New Ulm Battery, complete with their cannon.  Since the telegraph shaped the Civil War, we were placed near them.  The two awnings here, about 100 feet apart, were separate telegraph stations, with the line connecting them run through the tall grass.

We showed the scouts the telegraph in action, and let them hear what it would have sounded like during the Civil War.  I don’t know the exact age of the instruments we used, but they were probably at least a hundred years old.  They were purchased on eBay by another scout leader who got them working.

Since I am not able to copy the clicks and clacks of a landline telegraph sounder, we also hooked in a beeper.  With that in place, I asked the scouts to send their name, and to their amazement, I copied it correctly.

CodeChartThe purpose of a telegraph is two-way communications, so I gave them a pencil and paper and told them I was going to send them a message.  According to conventional wisdom, you need to memorize the code before you can start receiving it.  But these scouts, and other guinea pigs I’ve experimented on in the past, prove that this is not true.  I printed up copies of the simple chart from LearnMorseCode.com shown here.  It might be gimmicky, but it works.  You place your finger or pencil at the spot marked “start.”  Moving down the chart, if you hear a dash, you go to the left.  If you hear a dot, you go to the right.  When you are done, you are pointing at the letter in question.  I encouraged the scouts to write down the dots and dashes, and then use the chart when they were done.  But many of them were able to do it in real time.  I found that people (young people, at least) can learn the code very quickly using this method, without having to memorize it first.  After hearing a letter just a few times, they get it without bothering to look at the chart.

CipherWheelThe round object shown in the top photo is a reproduction U.S. Army cipher wheel.  Not unlike a typical secret decoder ring, this replica is available on Amazon and is nicely crafted.  (If you want to download and print a similar one, you can do so here.)   You can read more about how it was used at this link.  It was apparently used mostly for messages sent by flag, but it could be used for telegraph messages as well.  Most of the letters are represented with numbers containing 1’s and 8’s.  But the 8’s are really 2’s.  Eights are  used only because they are easier to read on the circular rule.  When used on the telegraph, the “dot code” was often used, as it permitted minimally skilled operators to use the telegraph.  So if A=1221 in that day’s code, then the letter could be sent by sending one dot, two dots, two dots, and one dot.

 

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Dedication of Lincoln Memorial, 1922

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the dedication of the Lincoln Memorial, which took place on May 30, 1922, the traditional date of Memorial Day, or, as it was called then, Decoration Day.

Shown above are Chief Justice and former President William Howard Taft, President Warren G. Harding, and Robert Todd Lincoln, the late president’s son. The Chief Justice formally presented the new monument to the President, who accepted it on behalf of the American people.

The ceremony was broadcast live on stations NOF and NAA.



Virginia Capitol Disaster, 1870

Virginia Capitol Disaster.  Library of Virginia image.

Virginia Capitol Disaster. Library of Virginia image.

150 years ago today, April 27, 1970, the chamber of the Virginia Supreme Court collapsed into the House of Delegates one floor below. Postwar military rule had ended in January, and a dispute arose over the leadership of the City of Richmond. The case was to be heard by the Virginia Supreme Court, and several hundred, including the two mayoral hopefuls, crowded into the courtroom. A gallery full of spectators collapsed, which in turn caused the main courtroom floor to fall 40 feet to the floor below.

62 were killed, with 251 injured. The dead included a grandson of Patrick Henry. Despite initial calls to demolish the building, it was repaired. The building still stands, with two wings added in 1904.



Dr. W. Eberle Thompson: Abolitionist, Underground Railroad Conductor, Doctor, Radio Fan

1939MayRuralRadioShown here is Dr. William Eberle Thompson of Bethel, Ohio. The 104-year-old doctor is wearing headphones and listening to WLW radio. The photo was taken on the occasion of an interview by Ed Mason, WLW Farm Events Announcer, who wrote about the interview in the May 1939 issue of Rural Radio magazine. Mason noted that he “interviews some mighty interesting and important people. But never have I talked to anyone who could match this country doctor who voted twice for Lincoln.”

While the magazine article is lacking in details, the centenarian doctor is almost certainly the same person described in the book The Underground Railroad: An Encyclopedia of People, Places, and Operations. In addition to merely voting for Lincoln, Dr. Thompson played a much greater role in ending slavery. “In his youth, the family’s two-story brick residence at 133 South Main Street was a safehouse. In adulthood, his home and office at 213 East Plane Street received refugees.” The Rural Radio article mentions that Dr. Thompson’s “hands and eyes, now weary from service to his neighbors, had brought him fame as a crack shot with his old muzzle-loading rifle.” The old muzzle loader had been put to good use, since “to secure slaves in flight from posses, Thompson shot their bloodhounds.”

According to this site, Dr. Thompson became an active member of the Bethel Underground Railroad network as a teen. He guided fugitives from Bethel to the Elklick area near Williamsburg. He practiced medicine in the community for eight decades and was active in village government and social affairs.

The headphones in the photo were a gift, as explained in the magazine article:

Long after the switch had been turned which took us off the air, we talked. I learned that he liked to listen to the radio, and especially news broadcasts, but his hearing had failed and he had not used his radio for several years.

When Phil Underwood, WLW engineer, heard this, he opened that magic box that a radio engineer always carries. He brought out headphones, special amplifiers, wires and switches. When we left, Dr. Thompson was sitting by his radio hearing distinctly for the first time in years hearing news by the magic of radio.

The Rural Radio article refers to the doctor as  “C.  Eberle Thompson.”  This is almost certainly an error, since it’s unlikely that there was another centenarian doctor in the same small town.    Dr. Thompson died in 1940, a few months shy of his 105th birthday.  He continued to practice medicine until about a month before his death.





Acquittal of Andrew Johnson, 1868

Trial of Andrew Johnson, Harper’s Weekly via Wikipedia.

On this date 150 years ago, June 16, 1868, the U.S. Senate acquitted President Andrew Johnson on all three articles of impeachment against him.

The vote on all counts was 35 guilty and 19 not guilty, a vote shy of the 36 votes, a two-thirds majority, required to convict.



Peace Light 2017

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This cartoon marking the 1st anniversary of Pearl Harbor appeared 75 years ago today in the Pittsburgh _____, Dec. 7, 1942.

This cartoon marking the 1st anniversary of Pearl Harbor appeared 75 years ago today in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Dec. 7, 1942.

Pearl Harbor Anniversary

Today marks the 76th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, December 7, 1941, marking the entry of the United States into World War II.

 

The Peace Light

As a symbol of peace, we show the flame above, which has been burning for hundreds of years.  This flame was burning throughout the Second World War, the First World War, the U.S. Civil War, and every other war in modern history.  It’s shown here in my living room, but it originates from the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, where it has been continuously tended for hundreds of years.  The exact date that some monk struck a flint to ignite it is not known, but it is believed to be about a thousand years ago.

Each year during the Advent season, it is transported from Bethlehem to Europe and North America, courtesy of Austrian Airlines.  This year, it was brought to Kennedy Airport on November 25.  From there, volunteers fan out across the country to distribute the flame.  Most of these are connected with Scouting in some way, and Scouts and Guides in Europe participate in similar activities.

As I did last year, I played a small part in the distribution.  Prior to my getting it, the flame traveled to Indianapolis, and then to Chicago.  From there, it went to Des Moines, and I met an Iowa Scouter in Albert Lea, Minnesota, to transfer it to St. Paul.  From me, it was picked up by others who took it to Wisconsin and North Dakota.  From there, it will travel to Winnipeg, and probably to other points.  Meanwhile, others are taking it to other parts of the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

You can read more about the Peace Light at the U.S. Peace Light website or the Peace Light North America Facebook group.  If you’re close to St. Paul, Minnesota, and would like to receive the Peacelight, feel free to contact me and we can make arrangements.  In other areas, you can find a local source on the Facebook page.

 

Lanterns

One common question is how the Peace Light travels on two international flights from Israel to Austria, and then to North America.  The flame is transported safely in an antique blastproof miner’s lamp.  On the ground, it is walked through customs by airline employees to the airport chapel.

1916JunBL

 

On the ground, the most common way to transport the light is with a lantern such as the one at the top of the page.  These are rarely used these days, since mantle type lanterns provide considerably more light.  But in the 19th century, the cold-draft kerosene lantern was something of a revolution in lighting, since it provides a fairly bright flame and is also relatively safe, since it will self-extinguish if tipped over.

 

A good history of the lantern can be found at this site.  Prior to such lanterns, the best available option for camp lighting was the candle lantern.  As the name implies, it was just a ventilated enclosure in which a candle was inserted.

 

The ad at the left, from the June 1916 issue of Boys’ Life, shows both types of lamps.  The candle lantern here is known as a “Stonebridge” lantern, since it was manufactured by a company of that name, and replicas have been made over the years.  Interestingly,  in addition to providing more light, the kerosene lantern is actually less expensive.  Candle lanterns start at $1.50, but the cold-blast lantern is only 75 cents.

 

Both types of lanterns are readily available today.  The cold-blast kerosene lantern can be found at Amazon at any of the following links:

 

You can also obtain the lantern at WalMart with this link or this link.  The fuel is available at this link.  You can order the lanterns and fuel online with these links, and then pick them up the same day at the store.

And for those who want to be even more retro in their camp lighting, these candle lanterns are also available at Amazon:

The replica Stonebridge lantern shown below is very similar, or possibly identical, to the 1916 candle lantern shown in the ad:

How to Transport the Peace Light

If you need to transport the flame only a short distance, one good option is to use a votive candle at the bottom of a coffee can. For longer distances, I place the lanterns at the top of the page inside a 5 gallon bucket similar to the one shown at the left, wtih sand or cat litter at the bottom.

Carrying it in this manner is very stable, and I have never experienced it tipping.  If it does tip, the entire lantern is safely contained, and the lantern will self-extinguish.

It should be noted that because there is an open flame, you should not refuel the vehicle with the Peace Light in the car.  Fill up your gas tank before picking up the light.  If you need to buy gas before you reach your destination, it will be necessary to leave the lantern at a safe location before driving to the pumps.  And while the combustion of these lanterns is very complete, it is a good idea to keep a window of the car open slightly.

Plans for a more a elaborate carrier are also available at the Peacelight.org site.

 

 



14th Amendment 150th Anniversary

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Today marks the sesquicentennial of the passage by Congress of the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on June 13, 1866, which was ratified on July 9, 1868.  Section 1 provides:

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

 

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Memorial Day Sesquicentennial

free-vector-poppy-remembrance-day-clip-art_106032_Poppy_Remembrance_Day_clip_art_smallWhile there are competing claims for the exact date and place, today marks the 150th anniversary of the first (or certainly one of the first) official observances of Memorial Day.

On May 5, 1866, a ceremony was held in Waterloo, N.Y., to honor local veterans of the Civil War. Flags flew at half staff, and local businesses closed in observance. In 1966, the U.S. Congress declared this to be the “birthplace” of Memorial Day.

It was first recognized as a federal holiday in 1971, when it was placed on the last Monday in May.

References

Memorial Day History at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

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13th Amendment Ratified, 1865

13thAm

Today marks the 150th anniversary of the Thirteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, forever ending slavery in the United States.  On December 6, the reconstruction Georgia legislature ratified the amendment, marking the 27th, meaning that two thirds of the states had done so.  On December 18, 1865, Secretary of State William H. Seward proclaimed that the amendment had been adopted.

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Execution of Henry Wirz, 1865

150 years ago today, November 10, 1865, Confederate Army Captain Henry Wirz was executed by hanging.  He had served as commander of the Andersonville Prison Camp, where 13,000 of the 45,000 prisoners died.

It appears that Wirz was well aware of the appalling conditions in his camp, sought supplies from the Confederate government, and even released prisoners to carry a message to the Union seeking a prisoner exchange.  Nonetheless, he was convicted of murder and executed.

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