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News in Brief
Kentucky will be hosting thousands of Civil War visitors beginning in June
Kentucky’s Civil War history and heritage should attract a lot of visitors beginning in 2010.
First up is the Civil War Preservation Trust’s (CWPT) annual conference, scheduled June 3-6 at the Hilton Hotel and Conference Center in downtown Lexington. Some 500 members of CWPT are expected for the four-day event, which will include tours of battlefield sites at Mill Springs, Perryville and Richmond and visits to historic Civil War homes in the Bluegrass area.
The CWPT is a national organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., and dedicated to saving and preserving America’s Civil War battlefields.
Lexington will be host to the World Equestrian Games Sept. 25-Oct. 10, which is expected to attract more than 600,000 international visitors to the Commonwealth. A number of side trips to Civil War sites and other historical locales is anticipated by visitors during the 15-day event.
And, then, the Civil War Sesquicentennial kicks off 2011 and extends through 2015 with thousands of Civil War enthusiasts expected to visit Kentucky’s more than 60 period battlefields and sites.
The Bugle will be reporting on events and activities involving all three programs.
Oldest Civil War monument will move to new home
The Bloedner (32nd Indiana Infantry) Monument, the oldest Civil War monument in the United States, has suffered significant natural damage during the years and will be preserved and moved to a new permanent location.
Located at Louisville’s Cave Hill National Cemetery, the memorial was carved in February 1862 and placed on the graves of 13 Union victims of the Battle of Rowlett’s Station near Munfordville. The monument and remains of 11 soldiers were moved to Cave Hill in 1867.
The monument inscription is carved in German and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Due to decades of air pollution and other natural factors, about half of the inscription is missing.
The original monument will be placed at a site to be determined and a new monument and interpretative sign will be located at Cave Hill.
Camp Nelson attracts 1,800 for Civil War Days
Camp Nelson attracted 1,800 visitors for its Civil War Days program Sept. 12-13, a 25 percent attendance increase from last fall’s event.
Key activities included a re-enactment of John Hunt Morgan’s retreat from Cynthiana, a variety of demonstrations, first-person interpretations of Camp Nelson notables, period music and tours of the park’s restored “White House,” a former officer’s quarters.
Camp Nelson served as a Union supply depot, recruitment center and hospital facility from 1863-66 and was the nation’s third largest recruitment and training center for African American troops with 10,000 trained at the Jessamine County facility.
MOLLUS annual meeting at Fort Knox
The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS) is meeting in Fort Knox this month (Oct. 9-11) for its annual national congress. Formed on April 15, 1865 following the death of President Abraham Lincoln, MOLLUS was formed by three Union Army officers to help thwart future threats to the national government.
Modern objectives are to perpetuate the memory of those who fought to preserve the unity and indivisibility of the Republic, to honor the memory of Lincoln and to promote his ideals.
Since its inception, MOLLUS membership has included nearly 12,000 Civil War officers and Presidents U.S. Grant, Rutherford B. Hayes, Chester A. Arthur, Benjamin Harrison and William McKinley.
Smith portrayal highlights Winchester event
Kentucky Chautauqua’s Ethan Smith portrayed Johnny Green of the Commonwealth’s Orphan Brigade at the Sept. 19 Living History Event at the Civil War Fort at Boonesborough (Winchester). Green, who fought in all but one Orphan Brigade battle, is considered one of the best sources of information about the brigade.
The 12th U.S. Colored Heavy Artillery fired a cannon each hour of the 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. program, which also featured Union and Confederate encampments, medical displays and Civil War music. Some 500 visitors were in attendance.
General’s descendants on hand at Richmond
More than 2,000 spectators and visitors were on hand for the Aug. 29-30 Battle of Richmond Re-enactment Weekend, termed one of the more successful events conducted by the Madison County organization.
Guests for the eighth annual activity included descendants of Gen. Mahlon Manson, who directed Union troops during most of the 1862 battle. Approximately 300 re-enactors and living history portrayers participated in the weekend program.
Fight for Peter’s Hill featured at Perryville
Perryville attracted more than 500 re-enactors and some 3,500 spectators for its 147th anniversary re-enactment weekend Oct. 3-4. The Fight for Peter’s Hill, a pre-dawn battle that enabled Union forces to access sparse water rights during the Battle of Perryville, was the re-enactment feature during the weekend.
Other highlights included a portrayal of U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan, a Boyle County native, by Dr. Edward B. Smith, and an exhibition of cavalry maneuvers by the sixth Kentucky Confederate Cavalry.
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