READING LIST OF BOOKS ON CONFEDERATE HISTORY
We all could do more learning about the war and its aftermath. Download this FREE complete attached book.
Recently, the current SC Division Newsletter was sent out on our email messenger service, which on page 6 suggests, and I hardheartedly agree, reading the FREE 1906- published book: "Dixie After the War- An Exposition of Social Conditions Existing in the South, During the Twelve years Succeeding the Fall of Richmond" by Myrta Lockett Avary, who also penned "A Virginia Girl in the Civil War" in 1903.
It was fairly easy to download, just download it from here to a memory stick and read it on that. It is 11.5 MB, so emails easily; you scroll down to read the pages. THIS ONE NEEDS TO BE READ.
This is the work of a professional woman, ( Virginia born who lived near the border with North Carolina), a journalist, the daughter of a journalist, representative of the war period's next curious generation, who in 1905 accidentily discovered and presented "A Diary From Dixie" by Mrs. James Chestnut, a quite long and famous eyewitness book of life in Richmond during the war, an exciting read for another day, still in publication.
This second book is Myrta L. Avary's collection of TRUE stories told directly to her by relatives and friends in Petersburg, Richmond, Atlanta, and the Carolinas and interviewed people all over the South.
The introduction says " all readers may not accept the author's conclusions, but will be impressed with her spirit of fairness and her painstaking effort to present a truthful picture of an extraordinary social and political period in our national life. "
Check the Table of Contents, about seven pages from the title, for chapter names to interest you if you are not reading every word.
Chapter 1 "The Falling Cross" Follows the fate of Columbia, SC where Sherman's rabble, his "bummers" ruined the town. Chapter 2 is the loss of Richmond, personal reecounts of a terrifying time.
Chapter 31 is titled "Crime Against Womanhood", pages 377-387, is great writing, but also quite detailed, you might want to skip it and chapter 32 "Race Prejudice" (interesting for a 1906 point of view, but not today) to the next. In the footnotes at the end Myrta , advocate of reconciliation, suggests reading:
*See Council, Penn, and Spencer, "Voice of Missions " (H. B.
Parks, Ed.), Sept., Nov., Dec., 1905. See Booker T. Washington's
"Up from Slavery," " Character Building" "Future of the American
Negro".
The last chapter 33 deals with the founding of " Memorial Day and Decoration Day" pages 405-419. Imagine on the first Memorial Day-Richmond May 31,1866-walking all the way up the steep hill at Hollywood Cemetery among people carrying tribute red and white roses, but (pg 408) "In freedom to honour the Confederate dead by public parade, Virginia was more fortunate than North Carolina.
In Raleigh, the people were not allowed to march in procession to the cemetery for five long years. Yet, even so, the old North State (NC) faithfully observed the custom of decorating her graves at fixed seasons, the people going out to the cemetery by twos and threes.
Indeed, the claim has been made that Dixie's first Memorial Day was observed in Raleigh rather than in
Richmond, and the story of it is too sad for telling.
March 12, 1866, Mrs. Mary Williams wrote the
" Columbus Times," of Georgia, a letter, from which I quote: " The ladies are engaged in ornamenting and
improving that portion of the city cemetery sacred to the memory of our gallant Confederate dead. "
The chapter continues to discuss organizations: the Ladies memorial Associations developing out of the war relief societies, and the UDC growing out of Memorial Associationa and Ladies' Auxiliaries to the United Confederate Veterans, like Shreveport chapter did. The camps mission was "to see that new generations shall not look upon Southern forefathers as "traitors", but as good men and true who fought valiantly for conscience's sake, even as did the good men and true of the North.
(pg 411) While the Daughters of the American Revolution, a larger
and richer body, are worthily engaged in rescuing Revolutionary history from oblivion, it is the no less patriotic
care of the Confederate orders, whose members are active in Revolutionary work also, to preserve to the future landmarks and truths about the War of Secession." The founders of the DAR were all from Virginia; the first Regent of the New York City Chapter was a Virginian, as were the first seven chapters-southerners all. The first war museums were in the South--upon these must American historians rely for records of facts and for object lessons in relics that would have been lost but for the patient and faithful endeavors of these orders".
"Visitors used to love to see General Lee at the Finals of Washington College in his full suit of Confederate gray; it became him to wear it in the midst of the draped flags and stacked arms,
for while he was teaching our young men to love our united country and to reverence the Stars and Stripes, he
did not want them to fail in reverence to the past. None
can want us so to fail." (pg 413).
Read the last few pages 413 to 419 about Winnie, Daughter of Jefferson Davis- and the words of Theodore Roosevelt about the sons of the south. Jefferson Davis never told Winnie growing up that he was imprisoned after the war so that she would grow up to love her reunited country.
I recommend this book.
Jackie Nichols
Recently, the current SC Division Newsletter was sent out on our email messenger service, which on page 6 suggests, and I hardheartedly agree, reading the FREE 1906- published book: "Dixie After the War- An Exposition of Social Conditions Existing in the South, During the Twelve years Succeeding the Fall of Richmond" by Myrta Lockett Avary, who also penned "A Virginia Girl in the Civil War" in 1903.
It was fairly easy to download, just download it from here to a memory stick and read it on that. It is 11.5 MB, so emails easily; you scroll down to read the pages. THIS ONE NEEDS TO BE READ.
This is the work of a professional woman, ( Virginia born who lived near the border with North Carolina), a journalist, the daughter of a journalist, representative of the war period's next curious generation, who in 1905 accidentily discovered and presented "A Diary From Dixie" by Mrs. James Chestnut, a quite long and famous eyewitness book of life in Richmond during the war, an exciting read for another day, still in publication.
This second book is Myrta L. Avary's collection of TRUE stories told directly to her by relatives and friends in Petersburg, Richmond, Atlanta, and the Carolinas and interviewed people all over the South.
The introduction says " all readers may not accept the author's conclusions, but will be impressed with her spirit of fairness and her painstaking effort to present a truthful picture of an extraordinary social and political period in our national life. "
Check the Table of Contents, about seven pages from the title, for chapter names to interest you if you are not reading every word.
Chapter 1 "The Falling Cross" Follows the fate of Columbia, SC where Sherman's rabble, his "bummers" ruined the town. Chapter 2 is the loss of Richmond, personal reecounts of a terrifying time.
Chapter 31 is titled "Crime Against Womanhood", pages 377-387, is great writing, but also quite detailed, you might want to skip it and chapter 32 "Race Prejudice" (interesting for a 1906 point of view, but not today) to the next. In the footnotes at the end Myrta , advocate of reconciliation, suggests reading:
*See Council, Penn, and Spencer, "Voice of Missions " (H. B.
Parks, Ed.), Sept., Nov., Dec., 1905. See Booker T. Washington's
"Up from Slavery," " Character Building" "Future of the American
Negro".
The last chapter 33 deals with the founding of " Memorial Day and Decoration Day" pages 405-419. Imagine on the first Memorial Day-Richmond May 31,1866-walking all the way up the steep hill at Hollywood Cemetery among people carrying tribute red and white roses, but (pg 408) "In freedom to honour the Confederate dead by public parade, Virginia was more fortunate than North Carolina.
In Raleigh, the people were not allowed to march in procession to the cemetery for five long years. Yet, even so, the old North State (NC) faithfully observed the custom of decorating her graves at fixed seasons, the people going out to the cemetery by twos and threes.
Indeed, the claim has been made that Dixie's first Memorial Day was observed in Raleigh rather than in
Richmond, and the story of it is too sad for telling.
March 12, 1866, Mrs. Mary Williams wrote the
" Columbus Times," of Georgia, a letter, from which I quote: " The ladies are engaged in ornamenting and
improving that portion of the city cemetery sacred to the memory of our gallant Confederate dead. "
The chapter continues to discuss organizations: the Ladies memorial Associations developing out of the war relief societies, and the UDC growing out of Memorial Associationa and Ladies' Auxiliaries to the United Confederate Veterans, like Shreveport chapter did. The camps mission was "to see that new generations shall not look upon Southern forefathers as "traitors", but as good men and true who fought valiantly for conscience's sake, even as did the good men and true of the North.
(pg 411) While the Daughters of the American Revolution, a larger
and richer body, are worthily engaged in rescuing Revolutionary history from oblivion, it is the no less patriotic
care of the Confederate orders, whose members are active in Revolutionary work also, to preserve to the future landmarks and truths about the War of Secession." The founders of the DAR were all from Virginia; the first Regent of the New York City Chapter was a Virginian, as were the first seven chapters-southerners all. The first war museums were in the South--upon these must American historians rely for records of facts and for object lessons in relics that would have been lost but for the patient and faithful endeavors of these orders".
"Visitors used to love to see General Lee at the Finals of Washington College in his full suit of Confederate gray; it became him to wear it in the midst of the draped flags and stacked arms,
for while he was teaching our young men to love our united country and to reverence the Stars and Stripes, he
did not want them to fail in reverence to the past. None
can want us so to fail." (pg 413).
Read the last few pages 413 to 419 about Winnie, Daughter of Jefferson Davis- and the words of Theodore Roosevelt about the sons of the south. Jefferson Davis never told Winnie growing up that he was imprisoned after the war so that she would grow up to love her reunited country.
I recommend this book.
Jackie Nichols
