The Commander s Corner Thomas J. Key Camp Commander, Jim Thornton

Transcription

1 The Telegraph Key / / THE OFFICIAL DISPATCH FOR THE MAJOR THOMAS J. KEY CAMP #1920 KANSAS DIVISION, SCV JOHNSON COUNTY, KANSAS VOL. 16, NO. 5 MAY 2015 Major Thomas J. Key Camp Officers The Commander s Corner Thomas J. Key Camp Commander, Jim Thornton Commander James D. Thornton 1st Lt. Commander John Weir 2nd Lt. Commander James L. Speicher Adjutant Steven Crawford Communications Officer Steven Crawford Historian and Scrapbook Dan Peterson Web Master John Weir Newsletter Editor John Kirchmeyer, Jr. Media Coordinator Lane Smith Cadet Member Coordinator Lee Crutchfield The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the word ERASE as: to remove from existence or memory; to nullify the effect or force of. The dictionary also gives the following synonyms or alternate words: abolish, black out, blot out, cancel, eradicate, annihilate, expunge, exterminate, obliterate, rub out, snuff out, stamp out, sweep away, wipeout. I don t know about you, but lately I feel that our Confederate and Southern heritage and history is being erased. We ve all noticed over the last several years especially last five (hmmm, the Sesquicentennial) the disappearance of numerous Confederate monuments, memorials, parks, namesakes, etc. Just within the last two weeks, we ve witnessed the battle over the Confederate Memorial in St. Louis and the demands that the statue of Jefferson Davis be removed from The University of Texas campus in Austin. Good golly these are Confederate States! What is going on? On top of the physical, brick and mortar symbols of our heritage being taken down and destroyed, we re now being erased from the history books and school curriculum. Last fall, several school districts in Colorado decided to no longer cover the War of Northern Aggression in their American History classes. This quote is taken directly from an interview with the Jefferson County Colorado School Board: Materials should promote citizenship, patriotism, essentials, and benefits of the free enterprise system, respect for authority and respect for individual rights. Materials should not encourage or condone civil disorder, social strife, or disregard of the law. Instructional materials should present positive aspects of the United States and its heritage. In order to comply with this, the school board directed teachers to avoid the topics of the war as it was deemed the Confederacy disregarded the law and was Continued on Page 2

2 The Commander s Corner Continued from Page 1 Next Camp Meeting: June 4, 2015 The Key Camp will meet on Thursday, June 4, at Zarda s Barbecue on the southwest corner of 87th and Quivira in Lenexa, Kansas at 6 p.m. for dinner and conversation with the official meeting at 7 p.m. Our guest speaker for the evening is Ms. Diane Rogers. Her presentation will be about General Order #11 which led to what has come to be known as the Burnt District along the Kansas-Missouri border. Ms. Rogers is a local author whose writing attempts to enlighten people on the history that is never (or no longer) taught. Her books will be available for sale, including her latest Elizabeth s War: Missouri 1863, which chronicles the hardships faced by the residents of a 300 square mile area south of Kansas City following the issuance of General Order # 11. As always, your wife or significant other is welcome. Don t forget to bring a prospective recruit! an instigator of civil disorder and disobedience. I fear in another generation or two, the Confederacy will no longer have any physical proof. We ll only have the oral history to pass on to our children and grandchildren. History textbooks and classes in school will only briefly mention a rebellion in the early 1860s. The names of Davis, Lee, Jackson, Stuart, Longstreet, and Forrest will not be found. Why? I ve always had a passion for history. My high school history teacher, Jim Mendenhall, had a poster on his classroom wall with this proverb: If you do not know where you come from or your history or your past, then you don t know who you are. That meant a great deal to me and still does. It s that quote that fuels my interest in genealogy and Confederate heritage. I have nine documented ancestors who fought for the Confederacy. That tells me something about the beliefs of my forefathers and probably has a lot to do with my own personal beliefs and character traits. But now, how will our children and their children know who they are if their history is erased? How will they know where they came from if the South and the Confederacy is abolished from their textbooks and all physical symbolism is obliterated? Can a people exist without a history? I am starting to feel like the chalk on an old blackboard: I fear that big eraser is coming to get me. Cleanup at Mine Creek Camp Work Day at Battlefield Site a Success Saturday, May 2, dawned gloomy and overcast. It looked like another Key Camp activity would be rained out and cancelled by Mother Nature, but the rain held off. In fact, 65 miles south of here, it was partly cloudy with periods of sunshine. Seven compatriots from the Major Thomas J. Key Camp #1920 traveled south on US-69 Highway and put in several hours of work at the Mine Creek Battlefield Site. Paul Allen, Carl Linck, Jim Tucker, John Weir, Jim Thornton, John Coney, and Jack Poynter, who was joined by Betsy Owens, cleaned up around the Confederate Memorial site and tackled several projects for the battlefield site administrator, Tami Neal. While waiting on others to arrive, John Weir, Carl Link, and Jim Thornton went out to the highway and repaired a billboard sign for Tami, Continued on Page 3 2

3 Cleanup at Mine Creek Continued from Page 2 tacking and stapling back up some of the signage that had peeled away. After the arrival of the rest of the crew, the portrait of the Confederate Memorial was presented to Tami for display in the visitor center. Tami was pleased with the clarity and beauty of the photo and intends to display the portrait directly behind the main desk at the entrance for all to see as they sign the guest book and check in. The Confederate Memorial was first on the job list. The monument was washed down and wiped clean. The boxwood plant beds were completely redone. The stones outlining the beds were taken up and the landscaping lumber underneath removed. The stones were replaced and leveled and the beds re-mulched with fresh red mulch. John Weir then trimmed the boxwoods while Jim Tucker and Carl Linck trimmed back the trees and shrubs from the perimeter of the Memorial site. Our camp chaplain said it best when the work was completed, Gosh, it looks and feels just like a chapel in the woods. Next, the men took on the big challenge of smoothing out a section of the walking/hiking trail where several mowers had gotten stuck and eventually had to be towed out. Deep ruts had been dug into the trail and needed to be filled in and the ridges smoothed out. Shovels, hoes, iron rakes, and a lot of sweat went into this project. Although Tami had two sections of trail where this occurred, the crew could only tackle one section because the proper tools were not available for completion of the second section. The final task was the placement of resting benches along the trail two very sturdy redwood benches constructed for the battlefield museum by a Boy Scout as an Eagle Scout project. Getting the benches to their destination proved rather difficult due to electrical failure of a golf cart and a Polaris Ranger too wide for a foot bridge that needed to be crossed to get the benches to their destination. As a result, John Weir, Paul Allen, and Jim Thornton carried the first bench to its designated location. But the second bench was more of a challenge, as it was to be placed quite a distance down the trail all the way into the woods and on the bank of the creek. Fortunately, Jack Poynter brought a wheeled utility cart that John, Paul, and Jim were able to use to transport the bench to its location. Mission accomplished! After cleaning up, the work detail headed into Pleasanton for a hard earned lunch at Cookees Drive-In. Nothing like a local diner burger and fries to end a day of hard work. Left: The portrait of the Confederate Memorial was presented for display in the Mine Creek visitor center. Right: Paul Allen, Carl Linck, Jim Tucker, John Weir, John Coney, and Jack Poynter spruce up the memorial site. 3

4 Profile of a Southern Soldier: Private Rufus Urban Evans, Company D, 5th Regiment, South Carolina Infantry Rufus Urban Evans was born March 2, 1833 in Goshen Hill, Union District, South Carolina; the son of Jesse and Caroline (Anderson) Evans. His grandfather, Perry Evans, had served with distinction in The Revolutionary War against the British and was part of the guerilla band of 50 patriots chosen by General Nathaniel Greene who attempted to tunnel under and blow up the British Star Fort during the Siege of 96. Rufus Urban Evans immediately volunteered for service following the surrender of Fort Sumter in April 1861 and served with Company D, 5th South Carolina Infantry Regiment of The Confederate States Army. Company D joined for duty and was enrolled in state service April 13, 1861, and was mustered into Confederate service at Orangeburgh by Barnard E. Bee, Lieut. Col. South Carolina Infantry, June 4, At the reorganization in April 1862, it remained in the 5th regiment and retained its letter therein. Company D was composed of men from Union District (County) and Spartanbug District (County). The 5th Regiment South Carolina Infantry, also known as Jenkin s Rifles, was organized about April 13, 1861, for twelve months and mustered into the service of the Confederate States on June 4, At the end of the term of service, the unit was disbanded, but a large number of the men re-enlisted in the Palmetto Regiment, South Carolina Sharpshooters, and some in the 6th Regiment South Carolina Infantry. It was reorganized for the war on April 23, 1862, composed of men who had formerly served in the twelve month military units of the 5th, 6th, and 9th Regiments South Carolina Infantry, and some new recruits. On April 9, 1865, the unit surrendered with Bratton s Brigade at Appomattox, Virginia. Rufus Evans appears on a list of wounded and casualties filed with the CSA for Bratton s Brigade of the 5th South Carolina Infantry during the Army of Northern Virginia s campaign of He is listed with a slight leg wound and a left hand wound. Headstone of Private Rufus Urban Evans While recuperating from his injuries, Rufus returned to Union District, South Carolina and wed his longtime sweetheart, Josephine Mobley. His loyalty to the Confederacy and the cause led him to return to his unit where he served until the end of the conflict. Rufus Evans also appears on the Alphabetical Listing of Soldiers Paroled at Appomattox Court House, on the National Park Service website: paroling-the-army-of-northernvirginia.htm. Following his service, Rufus returned to Goshen Hill and Union Township, South Carolina where he would reside for the rest of his life. He was a Free Mason and a Master Mason for 63 years. In an article and interview published in the Charlotte Observer on March 9, 1924 marking Rufus 92nd birthday, he was described as, a true type of the old Southern Christian gentleman, a God-like man with many good virtues that have won for him a place in the hearts of those whose good fortune it has been to know him. Rufus would die peacefully at home just four weeks later on April 3, He was buried in Rosemont Cemetery in Union District, South Carolina. His grave is appropriately marked with a Confederate headstone. The South Carolina 5th Infantry Regiment was engaged in 23 battles, including: 1st Bull Run (21 JUL 1861), 2nd Bull Run (28-30 AUG 1862), Antietam (17 SEP 1862), Fredericksburg (13 DEC 1862), The Wilderness (5-6 MAY 1864), Spotsylvania Court House (8-21 MAY 1864), and Appomattox Court House VA (9 APR 1865). Rufus Urban Evans was the 3rd great granduncle of Key Camp compatriot Jim Thornton. 4

5 A True History Lesson at Lone Jack Camp Members Present Program to Area Youth Interesting Confederate Facts Chang and Eng Bunker are best known as the original Siamese Twins. Natives of Siam (modern Thailand) and joined at the sternum, they became a popular attraction with traveling museum exhibitions. In 1839, they bought 110 acres in the Blue Ridge Mountains in North Carolina and settled down. They married sisters, built a successful farm and became naturalized citizens and devoted Confederates. In 1865, Union General George Stoneman raided North Carolina and decided to draft some of the locals, regardless of sympathies; the names of men over 18 were put into a lottery wheel. Eng s name was drawn, but he resisted the draft. Since Chang s name was not drawn, there was little General Stoneman could do; the brothers were not only joined at the sternum, their livers were fused. Neither one served in the war, but their eldest sons both enlisted and fought for the Confederacy. On Wednesday, May 13, seven compatriots of the Major Thomas J. Key Camp #1920 took part in the Missouri History Day at Lone Jack Battlefield. The camp was once again invited to present a program on the War of Northern Aggression in Missouri with a display of the weapons used during the war. Paul Allen, Steve Crawford, Carl Linck, Walt McKenzie, Mike Smith, Jim Thornton, and Jim Tucker set up and operated the station called Weapons of The Civil War in Missouri. School buses loaded with nearly 400 junior high school students descended on the battlefield museum grounds at 9 a.m. to spend time learning about the history of their state. Lone Jack Battlefield and Museum site director Alinda Miller had a wonderful setup for the event. Students in groups of 15 to 20 rotate around the battlefield every 20 minutes to different stations. Each station gives a presentation on a specific topic of Missouri History. Steve Crawford and Mike Smith have done this a few times and have quite a routine. After watching the veterans of this event, Commander Jim Thornton joined Steve and Mike in giving the presentation. If time permitted during each rotation, Carl Linck also joined in the discussion with the students explaining the Confederate viewpoint of the conflict. While Mike, Steve, Jim, and Carl were speaking to the groups of students, Paul Allen was handing out replica Confederate money. Walt McKenzie and Jim Tucker assisted in watching over the table of artifacts and keeping track of the items that were allowed to be passed around among the students. It was a great day for the Key Camp with good weather, a record number of students attending, and a wonderful forum in which to spread the real truth of the war in Missouri. The Key Camp representation at Missouri History Day at Lone Jack Battlefield had the opportunity to show area students some hands-on history. 5

6 Jesse James Visits the Key Camp May Meeting Presentation Offers History Lesson Recruiting Report: 64 and Counting The Key Camp is now on the lookout for its 65th member. Who will it be? Wanted: Male Descendants of Confederate Soldiers The Key Camp is currently recruiting new members to honor and affectionately memorialize our Southern ancestors and their brave deeds. We are making progress, but we must always be thinking of recruiting. Our camp actively recruits at events in which we participate. If you know of someone who may be interested in defending his ancestor s good name and heritage, talk to him about the Sons of Confederate Veterans. During the May 7 dinner meeting of the Major Thomas J. Key Camp, #1920, a legendary figure dropped by for a visit; Jesse James of Kearney, Missouri crossed the state line into Kansas to spend some time with his Confederate brethren and break bread over dinner. Following dinner, Jesse spoke to the men of the camp and their guests. He proceeded to inform them of his life as a boy and young man growing up in Kearney. He talked about the death of his father, a Baptist minister, and how his mother kept the family together and eventually remarried to Dr. Reuben Samuel. Jesse went on to discuss the tensions of the area as the War of Northern Aggression approached and eventually exploded. He explained how growing up in this environment of violence and abuse by the Jayhawkers and northern sympathizers molded him into the man he became especially the day his family farm was raided by a Union militia company in May 1863 looking for his brother Frank, who was off with Quantrill and his company. Jesse grew solemn as he related how they tortured his step-father and strung him up from a tree. Soon, he would seek his retribution by joining his brother in the Confederate guerilla units of Fletch Taylor and Bill Anderson. Jesse spent some time discussing his life after the war and his many adventures with train and bank hold-ups. But, as he explained, times are changing. He is looking to settle down with his family and is hoping to purchase some land in Nebraska to build a home and raise his family. Jesse James did not actually visit. Instead, the Key Camp was treated to a firstperson performance by Mr. Mark Amato as Jesse James. Mr. Amato was the guest speaker for the May dinner meeting of the Key Camp and gave the a riveting in-character performance. After his presentation, Mr. Amato broke out his guitar and gave a rendition of the American folk-song The Legend of Jesse James, and led a discussion on the life of Jesse James, focusing on his later life and death. It was an outstanding program arranged for the camp by 1st Lieutenant Commander John Weir from a recommendation given by Compatriot Lane Smith. Thank you Lane and John! 6

7 Upcoming Events Saturday, May 30 at 1 p.m. Shreveport, LA» Confederate Heritage Rally Celebrating 150 years of History, Heritage and Honor For more information, visit the Confederate Heritage Rally website at or contact the organizer at scv150rally@gmail.com. The Telegraph Key The Telegraph Key is a newsletter published for the Major Thomas Key Camp #1920 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV). The SCV is a non-profit organization with a patriotic, historical, and genealogical orientation and is not affiliated with any other organization. Opinions in this newsletter reflect the views of the writers and are not necessarily a statement of the views of the SCV, the Kansas Division, the Kansas Brigades, nor any other camp. Comments and articles are solicited. comments, article ideas, and suggestions to John Kirchmeyer at kirch16@hotmail.com. Key Camp Website Resources Key Camp: SCV National: Friday, June 5 Saturday, June 6 Emporia, KS» 17th Annual Kansas Division 2015 Annual Reunion Holiday Inn Express 3007 W. 18th Ave. Emporia, KS To register, visit the Kansas Division website at or contact Edwin Ray. Registration deadline is Monday, May 31. Saturday, June 6 Higginsville, MO» Confederate Memorial Day Missouri Confederate Memorial State Historic Site 211 W. 1st St. Higginsville, MO The annual Missouri Confederate Memorial Day observance, with emphasis on the 800 souls who are buried in the Confederate Memorial State Historical Site. This year we will also be emphasizing the surrender at Appomattox. For more information, including directions to the memorial, visit Wednesday, July 15 Sunday, July 19 Richmond, VA» 2015 Sons of Confederate Veterans 120th National Reunion DoubleTree by Hilton 1021 Koger Center Blvd. Richmond, VA The 120th National SCV Reunion will be hosted by the Major General J.E.B. Stuart Camp #1343. The host hotel for the reunion and rooms is the DoubleTree by Hilton. For more information, or to register, visit SAVE THE DATE: Saturday, August 15 Shawnee, KS» Major Thomas J. Key Camp Annual Family Picnic Shawnee Mission Park 7900 Renner Rd. Shawnee, KS

8 reminder! Our next meeting will be June 4 at 7 p.m. Bring a friend or prospective member. The Telegraph Key Major Thomas J. Key Camp #1920 Sons of Confederate Veterans 7325 Oakview Street Shawnee, Kansas 66216