June 2012
Civil War Lecture Series an Enriching Experience By Heather Tomasetti
We hope everyone who attended our Civil War lecture series found it enlightening and entertaining. In April we heard from Mr. Richard Meyer on the early causes of the Civil War. In his lecture he explained how some of the underlying conflicts were established when the country was still an English colony. The economies of the southern vs. northern colonies strongly influenced the establishment of the new government as well as how new states were admitted to the Union. As each state joined, Mr. Meyer presented maps to show how the balance between north vs. south was carefully weighted out each time. And he led us through the various compromises and cases that helped us better understand the final events that sparked the breakout of war. As an added feature, Mr. Meyer also brought along from his collection a Civil War-era rifle for all to see. The Society would like to thank Mr. Meyer for kicking off our series with his wonderfully presented program. The May Lecture, “Words of Granby’s Civil War Soldiers and Families,” drew a standing-room-only crowd. We heard letters written home from Col. Holcomb; and we learned of his daughter Mary’s determined efforts to have her father’s war service properly recognized and honored. We become part of the day-to-day life, as we alternated between hearing letters written home from Henry and Lewis to Addie, and Addie’s diary entries ranging from simple recounts of chores accomplished to her strong political opinions and always indicating the day one of those letters from Henry or Lewis arrived. And last, we came face to face with life in Andersonville Prison from Leland’s diary which seems to be one of the few things that was able to survive such dreadful conditions. It included accounts of prisoners selling their clothes for money; descriptions of a day’s meal which might consist of just an onion; and how one avoided being sent to the “hospital” as that was a sure sign of death. (Story continued on page 6)
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