Soldiers are like Fisherman

From: Early History Wilkesville and Salem Centre
pub 1874

When I first read J. G. Miller's claim that he spent 19 months in Andersonville, I admit, my first response was horror. Then, I shook my head and went, "What? No way."

You see, there's a wee problem with his statement - no one was taken directly to Andersonville! It didn't exist. There was no Andersonville prison. The Battle of Chickamauga was Sept. 18 - 21, 1863. Andersonville didn't begin construction until early 1864, and didn't accept the first inmates until Feb. 27, 1864. That's a little over 5 months after Chickamauga. Plus, Andersonville only operated for 14 months, not 19. Thus! Miller, like a fisherman, lied.

There was a lot of that back then. Several weeks back, I contacted my old high school history teacher, who is our local historian. Yes, he's still alive. lol He said that after the war, folks were claiming to have been involved in the underground railroad - they weren't, but they wanted to look good. 

Soldiers were no different. 

Anyway, I called the Chickamauga National Military Park to get the low down on this stuff. The truth of the matter is, Miller, along with all the other POW's were split up and taken to various smaller camps. Once Andersonville was built, some were taken there.

Now, is it possible he wasn't even at Andersonville? Yes. But I don't know for sure. So, I sent an email to Andersonville National Cemetery to see if he had ever been there. I'm waiting to hear back. :) I also asked if any soldier actually survived all 14 months at Andersonville. Because, yes, there is the possibility that he was a prisoner in a small camp for 5 months and then spent 14 months in Andersonville. Personally, I have my doubts, but when ANC gets back to me, I'll know for sure.  :) 

Anyway, this is why solid research when writing anything historical is so important. Just because it's written in a history book doesn't make it fact. You need to check out as many other books, articles, newspapers, etc, to have a more accurate account. I've made a few mistakes of my own while researching this book. And I've learned a lot from those mistakes.

Oh, what the heck. I'll give you another example of why checking multiple sources is important. The house down the road from me (no longer exists) was a genuine safe house in the underground. One person I interviewed said there was a pump organ in the house. Two more people said it was a player piano. A couple people said there were multiple tunnels. Two said there was only one that lead straight up the hill. 

Reality - it was a player piano, not a pump organ. Second reality - there was only one tunnel.

So, research your heart out folks!  :) And never accept the first answer as being the truth.

I'll let you know whether Miller was ever at Andersonville!

 

The Rising Costs of Food During the Civil War

 If you've never read, "Everyday Life During the Civil War," by Michael J Varhola, give it a read. There's all kinds of cool stuff in it. Like how prices in food went up astronomically during the war. Check this out:

1861

bacon: 12.5 cents/pound

butter: 20 cents/pound

flour: $6/barrel

1862

bacon: 75 cents/pound

butter: 75 cents to $2.00/pound

flour: $16 - $40/barrel

1863

bacon: $1.25 - $6.00/pound

butter: $2.00 - $4.00/pound

flour: $30 - $75/barrel

1864

bacon: $8.00 - $9.00/pound

butter: $15 - $25/pound

flour: $125 - $500/barrel

It gets worse!

1865

bacon: $11 - $13/pound

butter: $15 - $20/pound

flour: $325 - $1,000/barrel

(pages 87 - 89)

Look back over those prices. Imagine living in the city, where basically everyone relied on farmers for just about everything. A lot of people went hungry - in both the North, and the South, although the South suffered more. 

One of the great things about learning history is that it gives you perspective. When the prices of everything are going up around you - you don't freak, because you know it's a cycle that has always been. It will always be. The past encourages you to go with the flow, like those before you, and ride out the storm. 

Our ancestors did it, and so can we.  

Research Means Connecting with Old Friends and Strangers

 

Snipped from mapsquest

One thing I never expected in doing all this research, was that I'd be connecting with the neighbourhood kids I grew up.

Yesterday, I shared memories with Paul. He used to play in the house next door that was used in the underground railroad. I learned the house was also a place for bands to come and the locals would dance. He's pretty certain his grandfather played his banjo there. 

Paul said there was a player piano. He could never get it to work. He also found an old black drumstick. He searched for its mate, but never found it. There were places you avoided in the house because of copperheads.

This morning, I called his sister, Rosemary. She and I shared memories and laughed. From her, I learned she knew how to make the piano work, and at one point - stole some of the music. LOL

Her mother had told her that a picket fence ran along the road before you get to the dip. The abolitionists who owned the house next door, would hang quilts on it. It was a signal to the runaways that this was a safe house.

In the kitchen, under the table, was a trap door to the cellar. That's where the runaways were kept till it was time to move on. A question that has plagued me is about the tunnel. She's pretty good idea where it comes out on the hill. There are two choices: 1. To the right of where the current residents have built a pond. 2. The mine. From there, she said they could see what was going on and know what to do.

She called me a short bit later with more info. She had contacted her son and told him what I was up to. He wants me to write a book, when I'm done, about his grandfather, Harold. I'm looking forward to seeing what info he has.

Rosemary gave me excellent referrals who should know a good bit about the area. I'm looking forward to making more calls come Monday.

Oh! And another surprise happened at Walmart today. I finally came across Anita. Anita is a descendent of Jane Lee. Sadly, she had no stories to relay about Jane. But! I did learn that a book had been written that contained Meigs history and stories of the underground. And sadly, it burned in a fire. Perhaps somewhere out there is a copy of that book!

Meanwhile, I'm looking forward to a day off from research tomorrow. It really helps taking a full day away. When you go back to look at notes, some things become clear and more questions come to light.

Questions, Questions, and More Questions

 This afternoon, I took a walk up the road to where Dorothy used to live. The other day I posted an aerial shot. Here's a ground shot of the previous post. The block wall is rectangular in shape and I have no idea what part of the house it belonged to. But, somewhere under there is a number of tunnels that I still have questions about.

Anyway, I stared a long time at the hillside wondering where the tunnels came out at. Is there still access? Can you see where they once were? What did it feel like to run up those tunnels fleeing from bounty hunters or slave owners?

Were there houses on either side? Did any of the tunnels lead to them? Did they flood during the harsh rains? Did the tunnels lead to the barn or some other out-building making it easy for an escape regardless of where you may be?

Long shot of where the safe house was.

The woods lead to even more questions. The hillsides are thick with vegetation during the summer. The runaways, or freedom seekers, had to deal with every non-human hazard you can imagine! There were copperheads, Timber Rattlesnakes, poison ivy, mosquitoes, coyote, and wolves, to name a few.

If they were barefoot, they had to contend with all the briars and stickers, which abound in these woods. What was it like? How often did they just want to give up and go back? From what my research has lead me to, quite often some did want to return to slavery, or at least had second thoughts.

As close to the rectangular wall as I could zoom to. 

As I walked back to the farm, I focused on my surroundings. As the freedom seekers left in a false bottom wagon, bouncing down a dirt road, with food shoved in their pockets for the journey, were their any other houses on this section of New Lima? Was that safe house the only one for several miles? 

Were their trees that lined the dirt road? Or, had the fields been cleared for planting? When the wagon went past someone's home, did their dog(s) start barking? If they did, I'm sure that sent fear through everyone. 

This adventure in uncovering the unsung heroes keeps my head filled with questions. My biggest at the moment? Does Dorothy have a picture of the old house?  hmmm....

Tunnels and Hidden Passageways

Thanks to Marlene and her brother, Bob, I learned today where the house was located that Dorothy lived in as a child. It was in the empty spot just below the top house in the pic. Yesterday, Dorothy told me that her father said the basement of their house had false walls with rooms behind them to hold runaway slaves. 

Today, I learned from Marlene that when the house was still standing, Bob and his friends used to play in the tunnels. He said they went everywhere including up the hill. Talk about a super home as a safe house! The runaways could move around in the basement, and then when the signal was given they could slip behind the fake wall and be safe. If all else failed, they could escape up the tunnels to the hill and no one would be the wiser and catch them.

It's amazing the effort this family went to to ensure the runaways safety. Imagine the amount of time it took to dig these tunnels! They didn't have machinery that would do the digging for them. This was all done by hand with a shovel. 

Then, there's engineering the false walls that would fool bounty hunters, slave owners, and the local constable! That as well took time and skill. I'd love to know who all was involved in making this the safe house it was.

I hope to talk to Bob myself. I have a lot of questions about what the tunnels were like. I've tried to find the phone number for Paul R., another kid who played in the tunnels. He's unlisted. So, I'll have to try where he works.

Thursday, when the museum is open, I'm heading in to work my way through the census records from 1940 or '50, back to 1850. I want to know everyone who lived there during the time of the underground railroad, and see if I can learn their story.

Every abolitionists story is important. They risked everything to help runaway slaves, and their story should be told. Hopefully, I'll be able to do that for as many as I can.