The Cause
Vol.XI, No, 11 36th Regiment of Virginia Volunteers, Company A Nov./Dec, 1998
In this issue (Click on topic)
Drums are sounding "assembly" for 36th Va.
Howdy,
We hope this issue of The Cause finds everyone doing well after having enjoying the holidays and ready to start another year of reenacting with renewed enthusiasm.
Annual drill & business meeting
Our annual company drill and business meeting will occur on Feb. 6 at the Cabell County 4-H camp near Barboursville. This is our most important planning meeting of the year and the one event we expect everyone to show up for all of our members and anybody who may be interested in joining us in the upcoming year. If the weather isn't favorable for drilling outdoors, we will work on some maneuvers inside. We have some loaner equipment available for a few of the new recruits, but if anyone has anything they don't mind loaning out they should bring it with them.
Bring plenty of cartridges with you. We may be doing quite a bit of firing, and any recruits that show up will need ammo, so plan on having 40 to 60 rounds.
For lunch, in the past, we have sent one person with our money to some place like McDonalds, then have taken a break around 1 p.rn. when they return. You could just throw a sandwich or something else to eat in your haversack and avoid taking a chance on someone (like Ratchiff) fleeing the state with your money. Just kidding, Bob.
We will have the camp from 10 a.m. Saturday until 10 a.m. Sunday. Drill for the soldiers will commence around 10:30 and continue off and on throughout the day until about 4 p.m. We can do some skirmishing after the drill, so bring Federal uniforms along if you have them. I am not aware of any scheduled activities for the ladies during the day, but that should not stop any from getting together and planning their own projects if they like. I intend to bring my cartridge rolling equipment to demonstrate the procedure if anyone expresses an interest.
Dinner will be served around 6 p.m. Everybody needs to bring their favorite covered dish. This can be a meat, a vegetable or a dessert. We will need lots of drinks too, but no alcohol, please.
Immediately after dinner we will hold our business meeting - electing officers and maximum effort events for 1999, and vote on sub-organizations. Be thinking of any events that you would like the 36th to attend this year.
Candidates for office are as follows, based on those who have informed us of their desire to run:
Captain |
Mike Sheets |
1st Lieutenant |
Dan Bishop |
1st Sergeant |
Scott Williamson |
2nd Sergeant |
Bobby Frampton |
Corporals |
Kevin Frampton Rob Stoler Ed Walker |
After the meeting is concluded you are on your own. If you wish to stay at the camp, there are plenty of heated cabins with beds. You will need to bring blankets or sleeping bags. Showers are available. On Sunday morning, those that have stayed in the past have usually take off and go somewhere together for breakfast. Wargaming will take place and our miniature armies should be bigger than ever this year.
Remember; the use of the 4-H camp costs us money and it will run about $125. What is not collected from donations toward the lodging will have to come out of the money collected for dues. However, we usually have over 50 people in attendance, so we should be able to collect enough donations for the use of the facility.
At the Battalion meeting in November; election results were announced and the following would serve as the Battalion staff for the next two years:
Col. Nick Medich
Lt. Col. Charles S. Humphrey
Maj. William Blackstone
1st Lt. Tom Williams
Sgt. Maj. Tom Jessen
Q.M. Sgt. Jeff Clagg
Sgt. Carl Jenkins
It was decided that to be an affiliated company during the 1999 campaign, we will need to submit a $20 affiliation fee and provide a roster of officers and NCOs to the Battalion. The fee is needed to cover expenses of operating the Battalion. Maximum effort events tor the Battalion in 1999 are:
Spring drill at Marysville, Ohio ............................................ April 10-11
A tactical being tentatively planned in Solon, Ohio ................June 26-27?
Chickamauga ......................................................................Sept. 17-19
Also included in this newsletter are most of the proposed regulations the Battalion hopes to ratify by members attending spring drill. Companies have until March 1, 1999 to review and offer any suggestions for improvement.
I was able to get everything except the articles on affiliations with other units, amendments and ratification or the regulations basically, some of the political stuff. A copy of the proposal will be available at our meeting for tose who wish to see it in its entirety.
I would urge everyone to especially read articles VlII and Xl through XIV. These are the sections that affect the men in the ranks and describes what the Battalion expects of its members.
Also, the Colonel "hopes that everyone in the Battalion has had an enjoyable holiday season, and a winter camp that sees improvements in individual and company impressions for the ensuing campaign."
Kevin Frampton and Tracey Branham would like to extend an invitation to all in the unit who would like to be in attendance at their wedding. The big event is at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Jan.23 and will be held at the Maranatha Baptist Church. To get there, take the Tuppers Creek Exit off of lnterstate-77 and make a left, taking you back under the interstate bridge. The church is on the left.
This issue includes the e-mail addresses of 36th Va. members who have access to a "telegraph." A "telegraph" is the word Mr. Bill Christen uses for references to computers when to do so in period dress would be un-gentlemanly. If you were left off our list, I apologize. Just send me a "telegraph wire" and I'll try to get you in the next listing. If for some reason your name was listed and you want it removed, we can handle that as well.
That's all I have for this issue. Look forward to seeing all you at our company get-together.
Your humble servant,
Lt. Henry H. Hogg
(Kevin Cade)
I have told a few folks recently that it is a wonderful situation when our work, our hobby and our ministry is all combined in one thing - that being Civil War reenacting. As many of you know, Debbi and I closed our business in Parkersburg on Nov.30 and now our full time work is our Civil War sutlery - Hocking River Mercantile.
We praise the Lord that He has guided us into this over the last five years and also, that He has given us a ministry among other reenactors. The following are the results (at least outward) of our ministry in 1998:
I had the opportunity to preach and share in 13 Sunday morning church services at Civil War reenactments. Total attendance at these services was 705. We were able to pass out to our customers in our tent a total of 1,801 gospel tracts. Most of these tracts were provided to us by our local church - Tri-City Baptist Church, Parkersburg.
Praise the Lord that a few people in each service raised their hand indicating a decision that they had made during the invitation at the end of the service.
We were also able to share Christ and encourage many believers as a result of our contacts in this ministry.
We pray that the Lord will give us many more opportunities for service during 1999. We thank you for your prayers and interest in our ministry.
Ed & Debbi Nutter
The Jan.19 meeting of the Kanawha Valley Civil War Roundtable will feature the debut of the Presby Pickers newest program, A Good War Dies Hard: The Civil War Remembered Through Song and Story." The program includes more than 10 Civil War-era songs played on the mandolin, lap dulcimer, guitar and bowed psaltery. There will also be readings, including letters written by the Stonewall Brigade and excerpts from a prisoner's diary. The meeting is free to attend and will be at 7 p.m. at the South Charleston Public Ubrary. Call Beth A. White at 768-1177 for more information.
The guys from Marshall University with the recording equipment at Guyandotte sent our company a letter of thanks:
Gentlemen,
We would like to extend our thanks to you for helping so much with our documentary, 'A Glimpse of the Elephant: The Battle of Barboursville." Your company helped us greatly in the gathering of authentic sound effects, going above and beyond what could be reasonably expected. The sound effects added greatly to our production, and for that we are truly grateful.
Currently the documentary is scheduled to air on Tuesday, Feb.16 at 7 p.m.
Again, the class of JMC 334 thanks you for your help. We couldn't have done it without you.
Scientists hope to rescue one of the country's most prized hardwoods from the brink of extinction through the use of genetic engineen"ng. The procedure uses synthetic genes from the African clawed frog and transferred them into cells which produced chestnut tree shoots.
The American chestnut dominated Eastern forests early this century, with 4 billion trees. The trees grew 100 feet high and 5 feet wide and were used for telegraph poles, shingles, furniture, paneling and musical instruments. It was said that the chestnut tree took a man from the cradle to the grave - cradles and caskets being made from the wood.
The nuts were a major cash crop for many Appalachian families and were a staple for wildlife. By 1950, an imported blight had decimated the trees.
I own an adjustable powder measure which is made of brass. However; the one I use when rolling cartridges is made from a spent .410 shotgun shell. When cut to 2-1/4 inches, it will hold exactly 60 grains of black powder - the amount we should be using in our cartridges. The thing I like most about my homemade measure is the handle which allows m&to dip into a container of powder and quickly fill it without getting my hands dirty. The handle is made from a wire coat hanger and is kept from slipping by a gob of glue from a gluegun.
Kevin Cade