In the fall of 1861, 22-year-old John Williamson was spending his first Thanksgiving away from home, hundreds of miles from his new wife and unborn baby. He’d joined the Union Army and had left his home in Eckley, a coal mining town in northeastern Pennsylvania to be part of the Defenses of Washington. He wrote … More Thanksgiving during the Civil War and Lincoln’s resonating message
…and a couple of examples about how the more things change, the more they stay the same. Or change. While we’re dealing with our arctic blast, I’ve been wondering what the weather was like in the winter of 1861-1862, the first winter of the Civil War. Why? Because of the letters of a 23-year-old soldier … More Winter soldiering during the Civil War: extracts from a soldier’s letter home in January 1862
I’m fascinated with the idea of witness trees, which are trees that have witnessed significant historic events. I’d argue that there are also witness buildings and other features of our landscape (large boulders, hills and mountains, rivers and streams, old roads and rail lines) that have also witnessed history and are still around. Fredericksburg, established … More Witness Tree, Witness House: Brompton on Marye’s Heights in Fredericksburg, Virginia
Sometimes you do get a second chance. A couple of years ago, I discovered the existence of letters in family records written by a young Civil War soldier who was killed on the battlefield in Virginia. John Williamson lived and worked in Eckley, a coal mining town in northeastern Pennsylvania, and he wrote dozens of … More The tale of a bridge, the father of Pocahontas and second chances
He died on June 30, 1862 in a field near Charles City Crossroads, a rural area of fields and woods 13 miles southeast of downtown Richmond, Virginia. His remains are still there, buried where he fell or reburied at the national cemetery a mile away. There is no way to know. Sergeant John Williamson is … More “I will remember them”
ChessieWriter 