We live about 100 miles from Andersonville lucky. It's such a wonderful, yet solemn place. I have a good book "somewhere" written by one of the prisoners. Of course, I can't find it. Sorry. But, go to their web site, I think you can order books from there. I bought my book at the camp. It'll tear you up. That was a horrific place. Try their site and I'll keep trying to find the book.
Lucky.. you'll get getter discussion in the history forum.. Ron and Ron are pretty sharp on the secession war. Lemmi know if you want to move the thread.
yeah i was hoping they would find their way in here..................... if you think thats best, that would be great if you could move it.
Between yourself, Mole and GA (And a few others in here) what an incredible wealth of knowledge of SouthEast American history we have. This place ROCKS!!!!!! Now then, if we could only talley that against the Saints this next weekend somehow
Oh lord, Andersonville. I can only say the things we have done to eachother. I'll get a list together for you and post it later today. I have to say this about the camps on both sides though. When Lincoln, at the request, from Grant to stop the exchange of POW's who saw it as another way to shorten the war did so the results are what then happened. With the South itself starving and out of medical supplies it was bound to effect the POWs and the North hearing of their plight, in some cases, treated their POWs the same. Anyway I promise to be back with a good list for you. Hope you have a strong stomach as some of what went on even within the stockade itself was inhuman.
Lucky you got my interest up and I couldn't stop myself. I hope this will help you in your quest. First a link I think you will enjoy. There are some photo's too. http://www.sinclair.edu/sec/his102/mcknight/bm06.htm The Books: Andersonville: The Last Depot (Civil War America) by William Marvel Camp Douglas: Chicago's Civil War Prison by Kelly Pucci Elmira: Death Camp of the North by John Tonello The True Story of Andersonville Prison: A Defense of Major Henry Wirz by James Madison The last book was written by a Northern Officer who was sent to Andersonville. His account is far different than the popular held belief that Wirz was a cruel and inhuman man. A small side note: My Uncle told me of a stockade in Macon that held about 1000 Northern POWs in 1865 and of the starving conditions there. I've since checked this out and found it to be very accurate. Not that I would think my Uncle would lie but I was a very small boy when told of this and wanted to make sure my facts were right. It seems that Sherman was informed of the prison's plight but knowing Grant's orders did nothing to help those POWs and the town split the last cow it had with those POWs. It seems that about 150 or so of those men died before they could be released. They are buried in RoseHill with some Southern Solders as I understand. This is the same Cemetary my family is buried as I will be some day. Again I hope this all helps and if I can assist you in any way please feel free to ask. Ron
Have you ever visited the site? The new museum they have is wonderful. I haven't been in several years. but each time I've gone, it's so solemn and painful when you look at the space of the stockade and realize just how many men were stacked in there. The cementery is enough to tear you up, let alone the where the stockade itself is. The raiders markers are there, of course and are separated from the rest. I love and hate going there, if that makes sense. the little town of Andersonville is right up from the stockade and cementery, with another museum etc. I would encourage anyone to go visit if it's at all possible.
Deb my Uncle took me there when I was young, sad to say I've not been there since. I do remember at one point he was crying and I ask what was wrong and he said "Just something in my eyes." I didn't understand then but surely do now. As you say there are no words. Having two grandparents who were born just before/after the end of the war and living thru the Reconstruction period I've gotten a full dose of the Southern view. Its funny but its only been in the last 8 - 10 years that my interest has been revived again. As you say I really should go again. I also want to see the Confederate Navy display in Columbus one day.
If you ever come to Columbus, only about 30 miles from me, It would be great to meet you. My whole family is Navy. I loves me some sailors. My son was in right after high school. He was a radio man on The Blueridge.
I remember the 1996 movie Andersonville. This was a made for TV mini-series and couldn't possibly have captured what really went on there, but it was STILL one of the most depressing things I've ever seen on film. As Ron said, "the things we have done to each other."
The one here in Delaware on pea patch island was pretty horrific. I have read a book on it and they describ how the drinking water was dreged up from a freash water finger of the delaware bay. Here are some links for it. http://www.destateparks.com/park/fort-delaware/ http://www.wtv-zone.com/civilwar/delaware.html http://www.wvculture.org/hiSTory/journal_wvh/wvh2-1.html
Another Confederate POW camp is Point Lookout in Maryland. Be foewarned this site is very pro Southern in its prospective but the history of what went on there is undeniable. Out of 52,000 POWs there were 14,000 dead and it is one of the better sites for information that I've found. http://www.plpow.com/index.htm
Found this site, it looks to have a fair amount of info on all the POW camps. http://www.censusdiggins.com/civil_war_prisons.html Of the 12,122 soldiers imprisoned at Elmira, 2,963 died of sickness, exposure and associated causes. The camp was officially closed on July 5, 1865. All that remains today of Elmira Prison is a well kept Cemetery along the banks of the Chemung River. on Ft. Delaware According to Dr. S. Weir Mitchell, July 1863: "The prisoners were afflicted with smallpox, measles, diarrhea, dysentery and scurvy as well as the ever-present louse. A thousand ill; twelve thousand on an island which should hold four; astronomical numbers of deaths a day of dysentry and the living having more life on them than in them. Lack of food and water and thus a Christian nation treats the captives of its sword!" Walt Whitman's question when he saw prisoners returning from Belle Isle can give us some insight into the human suffering endured there. He said; "Can those be men?" "Those little livid brown, ash streaked, monkey-looking dwarves? - are they not really mummified, dwindled corpses?" Inmate Isaac B. Campbell of the 4th NY Cavalry stated he arrived at Danville Prison in September 1864 weighing 173 pounds and when he was released he weighed just 78 pounds. In his words he had "the scurvy and was about starved. I was in bad shape. I had no coat or shoes and no blanket to lie under. From this exposure I was quite deaf". While in prison, he had one shirt that he was never able to wash. He would take it off and pick the lice from it When you read some of these accounts it is truly horrifying how we treated our own. But from some accounts I have read the boys still in the fighting had it better but not you would call by a wide margin. But they were few and far between, not rampid on both sides as this seems to be.
