I was pleased to open the March 2022 issue of Civil War News to see a review by Joe Truglio of our ECW 10th Anniversary book The Summer of ’63: Vicksburg and Tullahoma. “I found this book full of valuable information on the battle and also valued the opinions of authors I admire and respect,” Joe said.

We admire and respect Joe, as it happens. As member of the Robert E. Lee Civil War Roundtable and former president of the Phil Kearney Civil War Roundtable—both in New Jersey—Joe has been a stalwart friend to ECW since our very earliest days. When I did a talk for the Colonel Henry Ryerson Civil War Round Table in northern New Jersey, Joe made the trek up to see me. He had commented so frequently on our blog posts that, when he introduced himself, I recognized his name immediately.

That encounter made Joe the first ECW reader I ever met in person—a distinction I still look back on with great fondness and nostalgia—and I’m pleased to call him my friend to this day. In fact, the symposium wouldn’t be the symposium without Joe (and his pals Hank and Chris) bunking up in the Civil War House and spending the weekend with us.

A few days before I saw Joe’s kind review in the paper, I got word from the Civil War Roundtable Congress about another friend, Wally Rueckel. The Congress established a pair of awards, one of which honors a CWRT that exhibits innovation: The Wally Rueckel Innovation Award. Wally is a founding member of the Congress and a founder of the Brunswick CWRT in Southport, North Carolina—the largest CWRT in the world with more than 1,300 members. “Talk about innovation, and Wally and his namesake award should quickly come to mind,” said Congress President Mike Movius, himself a good friend of ECW’s. (The Congress also established the Dr. John Bamberl Phoenix Award for re-invigorating a “dark” CWRT. John’s another absolutely swell guy.)

Wally’s another guy I’ve known a long time. He has worked hard to network the CWRTs of North Carolina, and his energy has been matched only by his friendliness.

When Joe referenced “authors I admire and respect,” we would be remiss if we didn’t say the feeling was mutual. ECW enjoys the success it enjoys today because of the many warm and wonderful personal relationships so many of us have developed over the years with folks like Joe and Wally (and John and Mike and Hank and Chris)—and YOU. We are deeply grateful for your support and friendship. Please know that we admire and respect you.

In gratitude,

— Chris Mackowski, Ph.D.

Editor-in-Chief

What if ECW had a symposium inspired by its forthcoming book, Great “What Ifs” of the American Civil War? And what if that symposium included keynote speak Garry Adelman talking about the great “what ifs” of Gettysburg? And what if other Civil War rock stars like Gordon Rhea and Brian Matthew Jordan were on the docket—not to mention ten other ECW all-stars?

Find out the answers to these and other compelling Civil War What-Ifs August 5-7, 2022, at the Eighth Annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge, held in Spotsylvania, Virginia. Tickets are $225 each, available here.

Sarah Kay Bierle recently made a short trip to the Carolinas! She enjoyed hiking at Bentonville Battlefield.

Stephen Davis, ECW’s book review editor, has returned to Jack Melton's Civil War News as a contributing columnist. His monthly "Critic's Corner" in the CWN March issue will spotlight Thomas Cooper DeLeon's Four Years in Rebel Capitals (1890).

Bert Dunkerly spent a few days touring sites in Charleston, Savannah, and the low country. He did not see alligators but did find beer.

Dwight Hughes received another great review for his new ECW Series book Unlike Anything That Ever Floated: The Monitor and Virginia and the Battle of Hampton Roads, March 8-9, 1862, in the Winter issue of Civil War Navy magazine: “Unlike Anything That Ever Floated is an excellent read. There is something for everyone here and even if well acquainted with the battle you will find something new. It is highly recommended.”

Chris Kolakowski has joined the Consortium of Indo-Pacific Researchers as a lead for their military history efforts. The Consortium is a volunteer think-tank affiliated with the Air Force Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs. For more information, visit https://indo-pacificresearchers.org/. 

Chris Mackowski spoke on “Abraham Lincoln as a Writer” to the Fredericksburg, VA, chapter of the Sons of Union Veterans on Lincoln’s birthday, February 12.

On Saturday, February 20, three folks with ECW ties spoke at the Chambersburg Civil War Seminar’s one-day online “Leaders and Leadership” conference, organized by ECW alum Eric Wittenberg:

·     Chris Mackowski on “Stonewall Jackson’s Arresting Leadership Style”

·     Dave Powell on “William S. Rosecrans and the Spirit of Innovation in 1863”

·     Dr. Zachery Fry: “Martinets and McClellanites: Regulars, Volunteers, and Leadership Challenges in the Union Army”

(And here’s a shout-out to our friend Gordon Rhea, who spoke about Jeb Stuart.)

Emerging Civil War had our annual retreat over Presidents Day weekend. This year, we converged on Gettysburg for a couple days of workshops, battlefielding, beers, and camaraderie. Fourteen of us gathered in person for the full weekend, with several others Zooming in for the day on Saturday. We thought we’d share pictures of some of the fun.

We started off the weekend on Friday afternoon with a trip to the Rock Top Bok Shop in Cashtown. Chris Mackowski (in background) was hoping to surreptitiously sneak his book purchases into his house when he got home until Terry Rensel busted him on camera for Chris’s wife to see.

As folks came into town, we did some battlefielding on our own or in small groups. We had originally intended to shoot some videos for the ECW YouTube page, but the wind was too strong (and thus noisy). Several of us took some time to tour around Culp’s Hill (seen here in the distance) before we all checked into the hotel and then met up for dinner at the Garyowen Irish Pub.

On Saturday morning, the American Battlefield Trust was kind enough to open Lee’s Headquarters for us. Kris White, Jon-Erik Gilot, Terry Rensel, Chris Heisey, and Sarah Kay Bierle all tried talking Gen. Lee into going around the Federal left, to no avail.

From Lee’s Headquarters, the group went over to the Seminary Ridge Museum, where historian Codie Easch was kind enough to open the cupola for us. Codie in the cupola beats John Buford, any day.

Channel your inner John Buford and take a look from the cupola toward Herbst Woods in the distance.

It was time to get down to work, just in time for lunch. We had a top-floor room in the hotel for a work space, with a pleasant view up toward the National Cemetery (across the field where the old visitor center once stood). It’s hard to see in this photo, but a picture of George Pickett hung in the room, overlooking our countertop of food, which essentially gave us our own General Pickett’s buffet. (No baked shad on the menu, but lots of Tommy’s pizza.)

Among our workshops, Chris Heisey gave us photography tips. “Does anyone have lens envy?” he asked.

We had a Tim Smith sighting at the Farnsworth House. In the background, a random woman photobombed us. “Isn’t that Garry Adelman?” she wondered, looking at Tim. Or Kris. Or any of us.

Cheers! Rob Orrison, Jon-Erik Gilot (who came from West Virginia), Jon Tracey, Sarah Kay Bierle, Neil Chatelain (who came all the way from Texas), Caroline Davis (who came all the way from southern Indiana), Terry Rensel, Dwight Hughes, Dan Welch (who came from Ohio), Kevin Pawlak, and Phill Greenwalt. Kris White was cropped out of this photo because his big head has been in the foreground of several of these images already. Chris Mackowski was airbrushed out for generally being ahistorical.

On Sunday morning, after a hearty breakfast at the world-famous Lincoln Diner, Kris decided to test our hardiness and dedication to the cause. He led the group to the remains of the Bliss farm and made us stand on a windswept plain while he shared not only Civil War history but WWI history, too. Jon Tracey chimed in with some additional info about the impact of the Spanish Influenza pandemic on Gettysburg and some WWII history.

Caroline Davis and guest author Carson Ford talk with Kris White in the shadow of the First Minnesotans. Oh, geez.

Trekking across the field from Cemetery Ridge to the Codori Thicket, we wrapped up the day with a visit to the Willard Monument. Willard, leading the 125th New York, was decapitated on the spot by a Confederate artillery shell. We fared much better. Kris prides himself on his "Gettysburg: Off the Beaten Path" spots, and he certainly delivered.

February saw the birth of the man whose name is most connected with the American Revolution and the quest for American independence: George Washington. Born along the Potomac River in Westmoreland County, Virginia, on February 11, 1732 (os)—the “os” is for “old style,” which relates to the calendar that was currently being used in the English world in the mid-18th century. Today, we know the date as  February 22.

To celebrate the birth of Washington, the Emerging Revolutionary War's popular Sunday night “Rev War Revelry” was dedicated to all things Washington on February 20. To check it out, head over to Emerging Revolutionary War's Facebook or YouTube pages. A full schedule is on the Facebook page under the “events” tab, as well. 

Start planning for two ERW events this coming autumn. The first is in Historic Alexandria on September 24 as ERW partners again with Historic Alexandria to bring a full-day symposium dedicated to the international ramifications of the American Revolution. 

Then, on November 11-13, 2022, the second annual ERW bus tour heads to Monmouth and Valley Forge to follow the "Rise of the American Army." 

Check out www.emergingrevolutionarywar.org to secure your tickets for both of these events.

You Can Help Support ECW

Emerging Civil War is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit organization. If you’re interested in supporting “emerging voices” by making a tax-deductible donation, you can do so by you can do so by visiting our website: www.emergingcivilwar.com.

March

8th: Dwight Hughes, “Unlike Anything That Ever Floated: The USS Monitor and the Battle of Hampton Roads,” First Defenders Civil War Round Table, Reading, Pa.

9th: Derek and Jess Maxfield, “Grant on the Eve of Victory,” (one-act play), Cleveland Civil War Round Table, Holiday Inn Cleveland-S Independence

15th: Neil Chatelain, “Defending the Arteries of Rebellion: Confederate Naval Operations in the Mississippi River Valley,” Lincoln-Davis Civil War Round Table, Alsip, IL.

17th: Neil Chatelain, “Defending the Arteries of Rebellion: Confederate Naval Operations in the Mississippi River Valley,” Baton Rouge Civil War Round Table, Baton Rouge, LA.

April

9th: Kristopher White, Chris Mackowski, Paige Gibbons Backus, Dan Welch, and Drew Gruber – Carnegie, PA Civil War Symposium

16th: Jon-Erik Gilot, “John Brown’s Raid,” Ohio Valley Civil War Roundtable

21st: Chris Mackowski, “Grant’s Last Battle,” Hampton Roads Civil War Roundtable

26th: Chris Mackowski, “Strike Them a Blow: Battle Along the North Anna River,” Hagerstown (MD) Civil War Roundtable.