Paula presents our newest member, Miss Ruth Young with her certificate.

Jubal Early Chapter #553Newsletter

Rocky Mount, Virginia Volume 11 - Number 3 www.jubalearlyudc.org March 2009

April MeetingSat., April 11, 2009 - 11:00 a.m

Franklin County LibrarySee you there!

Chapter News

The March meeting of the Jubal Early Chapter was canceled so that members could participate with the Fincastle Rifles Camp of the SCV in the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Roanoke. However, due to inclement weather Chapter members were unable to participate.

Our April chapter meeting will take place on Saturday, April 11th at 11:00 a.m. at the Franklin County Library in the 2nd floor Community Room. In place of a program immediately following the meeting, members wishing to participate should plan to attend a special promotion of the Windows of Time at the Franklin County Historical Society. Period dress in encouraged, but not mandatory.

A Proclamation Signing will be held on May 12th at 1:30 pm. at the Franklin County Court House. Members are encouraged to attend in period attire. For more information, contact Linda Stanley.

The Veterans Memorial Day Service will be held at the Franklin County Court House on Saturday, May 23rd at 9:30 a.m. Members are encouraged to attend in period dress if possible. As members of the First Brethern Church, Chapter Members Martha Hubbard and Shirley Dent would like to extend an invitation to all veterans and participants of the ceremonies to attend a free luncheon at the First Church of the Brethren located on Tanyard Rd. (across from the Armory).

Our Chapter yard sale will take place on Saturday, June 6th from 8:00 a.m. until noon at the 220 Auto Sales lot on Rt. 220, north of Rocky Mount. Call Paula if you have items to donate but are unable to attend.

Paula and Linda N. presented our newest member, Mrs. Ruth Young with her certificate on March 24th. Ruth joined the UDC under her grandfather, Lewis Christopher Young who was a Private in Co. C, 2nd Va. Cavalry. Ruth will celebrate her 91st birthday on April 3rd.

Eight members attended the First District Conference, hosted by the Joseph W. Anderson Chapter, in Troutville on March 28th. (See photos on page four). The Jubal Early Chapter will host the Conference in Rocky Mount in 2010.

Upcoming EventsApril 8 - 12th 144th Anniversary of the Surrender Appomattox Court HouseApril 11, 12:30 - 2:30 Windows of Time Event Franklin Co. Historical SocietyMay 12, 1:30 p.m. Proclamation Signing Franklin County Court HouseMay 23, 9:30 a.m. Veterans Memorial Day Ceremony Franklin County Court HouseJune 6, 8:00 a.m. Chapter Yard Sale 220 Auto Sales, Rocky Mount

Other News

The Appomattox Court House National Park will be hosting a ‘Special Events’ for the 144th Anniversary of the Surrender from April 8 - April 12. There will be programs/discussions on many subjects including “The Future of the Museum of the Confedera-cy in Appomattox,” and numerous Living History Programs. The event will begin at 10:20 a.m. on April 8th, and conclude at 3:50 p.m. on Sunday, April 12, 2009. The cost will be the regular park fee of $3.00 per person or $5.00 per car.

Confederate Ancestor of the MonthEach month the Jubal Early Chapter of the UDC features a Confederate Ancestor. The “Ancestor of the Month” for March 2009 is Harvey P. Calvert, The Jubal Early Chapter is proud to present his story.

Harvey Prater Calvert

Born in Bedford County on 29 Decem-ber 1829, Harvey (or Henry) was the son of Wi l l i am and E l i zabe th (He lm) Ca lve r t . He is listed in the 1860 Bedford County census as being a 33 year old shoe maker living in the home of A.R. Smith. On 7 March 1861 he married Mary Frances Mitchell in Franklin County. She was the daughter of Jabez and Nelly (?) Mitchell.

Harvey enlisted on 22 April 1862 in Gordonsville as a Private in Co. H, 13th Virginia Infantry. He was listed as being absent sick on 6 July 1862 but returned on 3 August. He was on detail on 15 November and listed as being on the rolls on 28 February 1865.

The 13th Virginia Co. H was organized at Harpers Ferry on 19 April 1861, in response to the United States government’s attack on Fort Sumter and President Lincoln’s subsequent call for an army of troops to invade the South. The Commanding Officer was Captain F.V. Winston.

Co. H was based out of Winchester and was located in Frederick County, Virginia. The unit was known by two nicknames: The Fort Loudoun Guards and the Winchester Boomerangs. Co. H was then mustered into service with other compa-nies to form the 13th Virginia Volunteer Infantry. Leaders of Company H included: Captain Samuel D. Buck, Captain William H. Harrison, Captain Lewis N. Huck, and Captain William H. Sherer.

Harvey and Mary lived in the Pen Hook area of Franklin County and had at least two sons, Thomas J., born in 1863 who married Georgia A. Kirks on 7 April 1895; Robert E., was born on 21 Novem-ber 1864 and married in 1887 to Bettie Lynch.

Harvey died on 5 March 1897 from heart disease and Mary applied for and received a Widow’s Pension in 1900. She died on 26 January 1929. They are bur-ied at Northfield Church Cemetery. The above photo was made shortly after Harvey returned from the war.

Harvey Prater Calvert

Women SoldiersScott Williams

IhavethehonortoinformyouthatnoofficialrecordhasbeenfoundintheWarDepartmentshowingspecificallythatanywomanwaseverenlistedinthemilitaryserviceoftheUnitedStatesasamemberofanyorganizationoftheRegularorVolunteerArmyatanytimeduringtheperiodofthecivilwar.Itispossible,however,thattheremayhavebeenafewinstancesofwomenhavingservedassoldiersforashorttimewithouttheirsexhavingbeendetected,butnorecordofsuchcasesisknowntoexistintheofficialfiles. ThisresponsetoMs.Tarbell’srequestisuntrue.OneofthedutiesoftheAGOwasmaintenanceoftheU.S.Army’sarchives,andtheAGOtookgoodcareoftheextantrecordscreatedduringthatconflict.By1909theAGOhadalsocreatedcompiledmilitaryservicerecords(CMSR)fortheparticipantsoftheCivilWar,bothUnionandConfederate,throughpainstakingcopyingofnamesandremarksfromofficialfederaldocumentsandcapturedConfederaterecords.TwosuchCMSRsprovethepointthatthearmydidhavedocumentationoftheserviceofwomensoldiers. Itistruethatthemilitaryserviceofwomendidnotaffecttheoutcomeofcampaignsorbattles.Theirservicedidnotalterthecourseofthewar.Comparedwiththenumberofmenwhofought,thewomenarestatisticallyirrelevant.Butthewomenaresignificantbecausetheywerethereandtheywerenotsupposedtobe.Thelate nineteenth-century newspaperwriters grasped this point.TheactionsofCivilWarsoldier-womenflewin thefaceofmid-nineteenth-century society’s characterizationofwomenas frail,subordinate,passive,andnotinterestedinthepublicrealm. Simplybecausethewomansoldierdoesnotfitthetraditionalfemaleimage,sheshouldnotbeexcludedfrom,ormisinterpretedin,currentandfuturehistoricalwritings.Whilethisessaycannotdiscuss all the soldier-women, their lives andmilitary records,recent chroniclers of theCivilWar andwomen’s history havebeguntonotethegallantryofwomenintheranksduringthewar.Mostimportant,recentworksrefrainfromstereotypingthewomensoldiers as prostitutes,mentally ill, homosexual, socialmisfits,oranythingotherthanwhattheywere:soldiersfightingfortheirrespectivegovernmentsoftheirownvolition. ThewomensoldiersoftheCivilWarengagedincombat,werewoundedandtakenprisoner,andwerekilledinaction.Theywenttowarstrictlybychoice,knowingtherisksinvolved.Theirreasonsfordoingsovariedgreatly.Some...wishedtobebythesidesoftheirlovedones.Perhapsothersviewedwarasexcitementandtravel.Workingclassandpoorwomenwereprobablyenticedbythebountiesandthepromiseofaregularpaycheck.Andofcourse,patriotismwasaprimarymotive.SarahEdmondswrotein1865,“IcouldonlythankGodthatIwasfreeandcouldgoforwardandwork,andIwasnotobligedtostayathomeandweep.”Obviously,othersoldier-womendidnotwishtostayathomeweeping,either. HereinliestheimportanceofthewomencombatantsoftheCivilWar: it isnot their individualexploitsbut the fact that theyfought.Whiletheirservicecouldnotsignificantlyalterthecourseofthewar,womensoldiersdeserveremembrancebecausetheiractionsdisplaythemasuncommonandrevolutionary,withavaloratoddswithVictorianviewsofwomen’sproperrole.Quitesimply,thewomenintheranks,bothUnionandConfederate,refusedtostayintheirsociallymandatedplace,evenifitmeantresortingtosubterfugetoachievetheirgoalofbeingsoldiers.Theyfacednotonlythegunsoftheadversarybutalsothesexualprejudicesoftheirsociety.- http://americancivilwar.com/women/

~~~~~~~

BoththeUnionandConfederatearmiesforbadetheenlistmentofwomen.Womensoldiersof theCivilWarthereforeassumedmasculinenames,disguisedthemselvesasmen,andhidthefacttheywerefemale.Becausetheypassedasmen,itisimpossibletoknowwithanycertaintyhowmanywomensoldiersservedintheCivilWar.Estimatesplaceasmanyas250womenintheranksoftheConfederatearmy.Writingin1888,MaryLivermoreoftheU.S.SanitaryCommissionrememberedthat: Someonehasstatedthenumberofwomensoldiersknowntotheserviceaslittlelessthanfourhundred.Icannotvouchforthecorrectnessofthisestimate,butIamconvincedthatalargernumber of women disguised themselves and enlisted in theservice,foronecauseorother,thanwasdreamedof.Entrenchedinsecrecy,andregardedasmen,theyweresometimesrevealedaswomen, byaccident or casualty.Somestartlinghistoriesofthesemilitarywomenwerecurrentinthegossipofarmylife. LivermoreandthesoldiersintheUnionarmywerenottheonlyoneswhoknewofsoldier-women.Ordinarycitizensheardofthem,too.MaryOwens,discoveredtobeawomanaftershewaswoundedinthearm,returnedtoherPennsylvaniahometoawarmreceptionandpresscoverage.ShehadservedforeighteenmonthsunderthealiasJohnEvans. In the post - CivilWar era, the topic of women soldierscontinuedtoariseinbothliteratureandthepress.FrankMoore’sWomenoftheWar,publishedin1866,devotedanentirechaptertothemilitaryheroinesoftheNorth.Ayearlater,L.P.BrockettandMaryVaughanmentionedladies“whofromwhatevercause. . .donned themaleattireandconcealed their sex . . . [who]didnotseek tobeknownaswomen,butpreferred topass formen.”LoretaVelazquezpublishedhermemoirsin1876.SheservedtheConfederacyasLt.HarryBuford,aself-financedsoldiernotofficiallyattachedtoanyregiment. Theexistenceofsoldier-womenwasnosecretduringoraftertheCivilWar.Thereadingpublic,at least,waswellaware thatthesewomenrejectedVictoriansocialconstraintsconfiningthemtothedomesticsphere.Theirmotiveswereopentospeculation,perhaps,butnot theiractions,asnumerousnewspaperstoriesandobituariesofwomensoldierstestified. Most of the articles provided few specific details aboutthe individualwoman’sarmycareer.Forexample, theobituaryofSatroniaSmithHuntmerely stated she enlisted in an Iowaregimentwithherfirsthusband.Hediedofbattlewounds,butsheapparentlyemergedfromthewarunscathed.An1896storyaboutMaryStevensJenkins,whodiedin1881,tellsanequallybrieftale.SheenlistedinaPennsylvaniaregimentwhenstillaschoolgirl,remainedinthearmytwoyears,receivedseveralwounds,andwasdischargedwithoutanyoneever realizingshewas female.Thepressseemedunconcernedaboutthewomen’sactualmilitaryexploits.Rather,thefascinationlayinthesimplefactthattheyhadbeeninthearmy. Thearmyitself,however,heldnoregardforwomensoldiers,UnionorConfederate.Indeed,despiterecordedevidencetothecontrary,theU.S.Armytriedtodenythatwomenplayedamilitaryrole,howeversmall, intheCivilWar.OnOctober21,1909,IdaTarbellofTheAmericanMagazinewrotetoGen.F.C.Ainsworth,theadjutantgeneral:“IamanxioustoknowwhetheryourdepartmenthasanyrecordofthenumberofwomenwhoenlistedandservedintheCivilWar,orhasitanyrecordofanywomenwhowereintheservice?”ShereceivedswiftreplyfromtheRecordsandPensionOffice,adivisionoftheAdjutantGeneral’sOffice(AGO),underAinsworth’ssignature.Theresponsereadinpart:

1st District ConferenceTroutville, Virginia

March 28, 2009

From left: Ruby Pugh, Betty Jean Giragosian & Linda Nezbeth. Renewing old acquaintances.

Shirley Dent & Linda Stanley at Sales Table. Paula gives the Chapter Report.

Lisa Bradford & Lois Brown chat before the meeting.

From left: Lois Brown, Linda Stanley, Ditty Speed, Linda Nezbeth, Paula Meador, Shirley Dent, Lisa Bradford and Martha Hubbard.

L o v e , L iv e , P r a y , T h in k , D a r e

Editor Linda NezbethMarch 2009 1449 Carroll Rd., Goodview, VA 24095

Birthdays in March

March 17, 1828 - Gen. Patrick CleburneMarch 28, 1818 - Gen. Wade Hampton

Jubal Early Chapter #553Newsletter

Rocky Mount, Virginia