The Cause Vol. XII, No 7 ....... 36th Regiment of Virginia Volunteers, Company A ...... July 1999 Contents August schedule features living history Craig-Patton information Other notes The great Hastings event and hollering contest August schedule features living history Gentlemen, It's been a while since I have written anything for "The Cause," but here I am. Not much has been happening, but it looks like things are about to warm up. (No pun about the weather intended.) Carnifex work day There will be a work day at Carnifex Ferry on either Aug. 21 or Aug. 28. Sorry to those who had planned to being there on the 7th. (I'm usually a big disappointment to my family, too.) Try to let me know which day is best for you. The more of us there, the less work to do for those of us who are there. We can also use it for some of event planning. Is there any interest in taking our uniforms and skirmishing while there? Craik-Patton House The following weekend, Aug. 14-15, will find many of us in Charleston at the Craik-Patton House. We will be doing a living history based on the fall of 1862 liberation of the Kanawha Valley by Gen. Loring. Try to be there and please let me know if you can make it so that I can tell Terry Lowry (the gentleman putting all this together) how many will be there to feed. This will be the last time any of us will be together before Carnifex, thus it, too, will serve as an important planning meeting. Carnifex Ferry This may be rather small this year, due to Chickamauga coming along so close on its heels. However, we have still been getting lots of inquiries from eastern units, so who knows? In any event, we need to plan for it as if it would have 500. Chickamauga This weekend promises to be the event-to-not-miss of 1999. There will be battles on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. The Battalion will be there in force, and as is typical, campaign camping is the order. It is amusing to read newsletters of non-battalion units and see them devote so much space to what their men need to do to prepare for this type of camping. Our men have a long head start on them. We've been doing it since ... oh, let's see ... around 1987 or so! I will be sending in the final registration list very soon. If you haven't registered yet, it is $10 now but will go up to $15 after Sept. 1 and at the site. It would be a good idea if you have already registered with me, to double check to make sure I have you down. So far I have about 15 of us registered. Other news Coming back from Hastings, Mich. (see the report elsewhere) Dan, Scott, Bobby, Ernie and I were brainstorming about some things that could be done to spark some new life in the 36th. One of the things we came up with was having at least one event per month. That is, in the months when there is no reenactment or living history to go to, have something locally just for ourselves, even if it is just a one-day drill. Personally, I like the idea.  Back in the old days of the 36th we did that. In the spring and fall we would have a unit campout and drill. We'd meet up at Gene's farm and drill, then skirmish. That evening we'd camp out there on his farm and have a good time with no one else around to distract us. Maybe we can't bring back those days, but we can create some new days for the unit. Now, on to what could be, perhaps, our first such gathering. At the present we have nothing for the month of October. What I am about to propose is something that has been in the back of my mind for about 15 years if not longer. I have run it by some of the guys and they seem to approve at this time. On my Mother's property, the farm that I grew up on, are the graves of 20 to 25 Confederate soldiers. They are marked only by the rough rocks their comrades placed there when they died in 1861. I'd like to clean the brush off this site and get new markers for those boys. We can get government markers through the SCV, so there will be little if any expense for us. There will be some work involved, though. My thoughts at this time are to go up to Huntersville, Pocahontas County (about 2 and a half hours from Charleston) in October and clean off the plot and find the graves. We can order the markers over the winter and sometime next summer, go back up and place the markers and have a ceremony for those buried there. We can camp put on my Mom's property both times. Also, the local paper and radio station up there will cover this big time. It would give the unit lots of attention and possibly some recruits. What do you think? Well, I hope to see you folks either at Carnifex one of the two times or at Charleston to discuss Chickamauga and the C.S. cemetery. Until then, take care and stay cool. Your obedient servant, Capt. Wm. E. Fife (Mike Sheets) Craik-Patton information The house is located in Daniel Boone Park, Charleston. Reenactors will set up camp on the grounds and are permitted to make use of the Ruffner log house. Overnight camping is permitted on the grounds or in the log house. Bathrooms are available, but there are no shower facilities. A meal is scheduled. Event scenario The 36th Virginia was encamped at Union, Monroe County during the months of July and August 1862. Gen. William W. Loring, who had replaced Gen. John Floyd, received orders from Lee to invade the Kanawha Valley. The salt supply at Charleston was a deciding factor in this operation. The 36th left Union on Aug. 29 and met Gen. Loring at Red Sulphur Springs. They joined the brigade of Gen. John S. Williams, then Loring's force of 4,000 moved to Fayetteville. Union forces there put up some resistance, then retreated to the defense of Charleston. On Sept. 13, the first units of Loring's army reached Charleston and the Federal soldiers quickly retreated. The 36th began to serve outpost duty. Co. E moved to Ripley, and Co. F and G moved to Redhouse Shoal. A small skirmish occurred just outside Buffalo. Many of the men passed time playing in the river. Because of Union troops gathering at Point Pleasant, the 36th moved back to the Elk River and camped a few days. On Oct. 8, Loring began to move his men out of Charleston because of The retreat cost Loring his command. Schedule Saturday, Aug. 14 8 a.m. - Doors open to reenactors and guests for unloading and setting up. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. - Grounds open to the public. House open for tours. 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. - Special candle-lit tours of the Craik Patton House. Sunday, Aug. 15 8 a.m. - Doors open to reenactors and guests for unloading and setting up. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. - Grounds open to the public. Craik-Patton House open for tours. Other notes: Parade news Swana Frampton reports that although she hasn't gotten many commitments to the Charleston Regatta Parade, she went ahead a secured a place in it for the unit. Anyone wishing to participate should contact her at 984-2954 for details. The parade is Aug. 28 and begins at 10 a.m. Logan rebellion Information was received in the mail for the reenactment at Chief Logan State Park, Sept. 24-26. The only news is that the Confederate camps are slated to be down near the log cabin. There was no mention of registration fees. We can see if anyone is interested at one of our upcoming events. The great Hastings event and hollering contest By Mike Sheets (or Penick Underwood when not Wm. E. Fife) Medich's Confederate Battalion cheered as it surged forward toward the crest of the hill. A few men took a final shot at the Federals as the blue line disappeared down the reverse slope. The Battalion was halted in a road that traveled along the crest. Before them was another low ridge, now manned by the same Federals they had just dislodged. The fire between the two lines became furious. Suddenly, a Yankee ball found its mark -- the left kneecap of Pvt. Penick Underwood. Underwood dropped his rifle and fell to the ground crying out in pain as he clutched in vain at his shattered knee. As he lay there, stretched out in the road (with the foot of his wounded leg just behind where Pvt. Mann Page was firing as fast as he could) Underwood noticed that Pvt. Scott Williamson had suffered the exact same fate. Williamson was holding his knee and screaming out pretty much the same things that Underwood was. Then another Northern minié struck. Page dropped his rifle, grabbed at his crotch, began yelling out things too obscene to print here (describing the nature of his wound) and fell backward. Immediately, Underwood's cries changed from, "Oh, my knee! They shot my knee off!" to a slightly higher pitched, "OH! MY FOOT! ERNIE! YOU FELL ON MY FOOT!" Between very descriptive cries as to the nature of his wound, Page apologized for his choice of ground and rolled off the crushed foot. Behind the line Lt. Sam Sterrett offered encouragement to those still standing. Then WHUMP! His shoulder was struck, knocking Sterrett to the ground. Sterrett literally rolled all over the ground crying out, "Oh! My shoulder! Oh! My shoulder!" Between cries for his knee and his foot, Underwood pointed out to Sterrett that he seemed to be taking a bath in poison ivy. Sterrett's cries suddenly changed from "Oh! My shoulder!" to "OH! MY SKIN!" However, before he could regain his feet Colonel Medich spotted Sterrett on the ground and ordered him to get up and continue the fight. Sterrett tried to explain his condition. Accusing him of cowardice, Medich stuck his finger in Sterrett's wound and said "Where did you get shot? Was it right there? You are a coward. I've seen men with their faces blown off keep going. Get on your feet!" Well, needless to say we had FUN! The above narrative actually described the most boring of the weekend's events -- the scripted battle -- and it was far from boring. Bobby Frampton, Scott Williamson, Dan Bishop (Lt. Sterrett), and Mike Sheets (Underwood) loaded into Ernie (Mann) Page's vehicle and traveled 10 hours to Hastings, Mich. It wouldn't have taken us that long but for two situations. We learned not to play travel games while traveling through Columbus -- you just might miss your turnoff, and The state of Michigan hasn't figured out that they are supposed to mark their "numbered" highways with "numbered" signs. In any event we had a blast going, coming, and at the event. We were joined at Hastings by Eugene Bell, Jeff Clagg and his cousin, and the rest of the battalion. Those of us with Ernie didn't find the others until after we woke up Saturday morning. But we joined them in good time and went into the first tactical at 8 a.m. serving with Capt. Mark Heraldson's 4th Virginia. It was grand. Our battalion, under the flag of the 36th Virginia, drove the Federals and kept driving them. Eventually the enemy drove our wing from its position, but we continued to contest the ground. Finally, just before 10 a.m. and the end of the tactical, Lt. Bishop led us in a charge that left a Federal cannon in our hands and, in coordination with another company, drove the Feds from the hill. We were elated and pooped! The afternoon witnessed the battle mentioned above at the beginning of this article. A dusk battle was skipped by the five of us, as we were worn down by then. Sunday morning found us still worn out and some of us were about to call it quits for the weekend. Just them Lt. Bishop returned from the officers' meeting an informed us that the colonel was going to forget the judges' objectives. Our objective was to be defeat Col. Shackleford -- the Federal commander and long time rival(?) of Medich's -- as best we could. New life was pumped into us. Another great time was had during this tactical with the highlight coming when our company swept all of the Federal Artillery from their flank and took them our for the remaining hour and a half of the battle. It was good to hear the gunners cuss Shackleford for his blunders. The remainder of that fight was good, too, but it will have to wait for its telling around the fires. The point! The trip took a long time, longer than any other battalion event up north, but was well worth the trip and the effort. It was good to be back with the battalion and our friends. It was good to visit with Gene Bell and accuse him of all the wrongs inflicted upon us by his rangers. But, the action was simply superb! By the way, Ernie! You didn't hurt my foot that much!