Frederick County Civil War Round Table

I forgot to take my traditional selfie. Thanks to my son for taking up the slack.

This past Thursday, April 21, I delivered my presentation on McDowell’s Plan to about 25 folks of the Frederick County Civil War Round Table, at the National Museum of Civil War Medicine smack dab in Frederick, Md. They were a good group, stayed awake, and asked some really good questions afterwards. It was nice to see old friends Jim Rosebrock, Brian Downey, and Tracey McIntyre, too. Thanks to Matt Borders for inviting me down. If you get the chance to speak there, or attend a meeting on the third Thursday each month, be sure to take advantage.

Funny Stuff, and an Update

I made some updates to my speaking schedule. Between October 2021 and April 2022 I’ll be presenting in West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. Two McDowell’s Plan shows, and one on the 69th NYSM at Bull Run. The Plan programs will be brand new versions, stripped down, which should be more impactful. The 69th talk will be the Saturday preceding St. Patrick’s day, which here in Pittsburgh – where I’ll be speaking – is a pretty big day. That should be interesting. You can see the schedule here.

I’m working my way through South Carolina newspapers for the two months following the battle, and am finding good stuff, even if I’m going blind in the process. Very interesting the tone of the state’s newspapers versus Virginia’s and North Carolina’s. Think the freshmen football players who never get in the game, who taunt their opponents from the sidelines under the expectation of not having to face them on the field. (I’m talking about geography, here.) Check out this column, in the Charleston Mercury, criticizing Virginia for its soft treatment of Union prisoners captured at Bull Run. I may transcribe it later.