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Volume XXXVII, Issue 1 January, 2017
Camp Officers:
Commander: David Rawls
1st Lt. Commander: David Fisher
2nd Lt. Commander: Hank
Arnold
Adjutant/ Treasurer: Pat Acton
Chaplain: Jeff Young
Color Sergeant: Bill Haas
Quartermaster: Tristan Dunn
Sergeant At Arms: Sam Nelson
Camp Surgeon: Dr. Rick Price
Dispatch Editor: Jim Darden
Commander Emeritus: Dr. Ira
West
Chaplain Emeritus: Dr. Charles
Baker
Fighting Joe Wheeler Camp 1372,
Inc. C/O Adjutant
P.O. Box 43362
Vestavia Hills, AL 35243
Please send articles or other
information for inclusion in
“The Dispatch” to
Jim Darden – Editor
645 South Sanders Road
Hoover, Alabama 35226
Or e-mail [email protected]
Alabama: We Dare Defend Our Rights “The principal for which we contended is bound to reassert itself, though it may be at another time and in another form.” - Jefferson Davis, May 1865
The Next Camp Meeting will be at 7:00 pm, Tuesday January 10 at
The New Merkle House 3278 Cahaba Heights Rd, Birmingham, Ala.
SCV CALENDAR
January 10 CSA Medical Department Dr. Rick Price
January 21 Lee/Jackson Banquet Dr. John Killian
February 11 AGCA Gun Show – recruiting table with Forrest Camp
February 14 Scouts, Skirmishers and Sharpshooters Bob Sorrel
March 14 The Jack Hinson Story Ronnie Slack
April 11 UDC Sandra Pennington
May 9 Nullification Crisis David Rawls
June 10 AGCA Gun Show –recruiting table with Forrest Camp
October 14 AGCA Gun Show – recruiting table with Forrest Camp
http://www.fightingjoewheeler.org
SCV Fighting Joe Wheeler Camp 1372
Page 2
Commander’s Report January 2017
Compatriots:
When I was younger I used to scoff when my parents would complain how much
more quickly time flies as you get older. Now I simply shake my head and admit that I was not as
smart as I thought I was. Anyway, it is the beginning of a new year and I hope that everyone has
much happiness and success in all of your future endeavors.
While there is hope on the horizon, we must still be vigilant. Political hacks
unfortunately do not give up and slither away when they lose elections; they simply hide in the brush
and await their opportunities to strike. For example, in the recent VA funding bill, Democrats tried to
add a rider stating that “Confederate Flags” (I.e., the 1864 Battle Flag) would not be allowed to fly on
any Government property, including national cemeteries. Despite the fact that the Republicans
removed this language from the bill, bureaucrats at the VA arbitrarily put into force a rule that such
flags would no longer be on anything but graves and even then only for short specific periods of time
as they deign to allow. Speaking as a lawyer, there are two major problems with this move: 1) such a
rule is in violation of Free Speech; and 2) bureaucrats do NOT have the authority to create rules; it is
their job to enforce rules promulgated by the elected politicians. It is garbage like this that makes me
cringe at our future if we choose to ignore dictatorial grabs of power by unelected, unaccountable
people such as these.
Now to get off my soapbox and deal with other matters. First, I would like to
announce that all of the elected officers from last year have been re-elected. I personally would like
to thank David, Hank and Pat for the wonderful job they did over the past year and hopefully we can
keep up the good work as well as improve. Without them, nothing could get done. We do, however,
have a number of appointed slots available and if anyone would like to serve in these positions,
please let us know; we would love to have all the help we can get.
Second, there is quite an agenda of events at the Divisional level for this quarter in
which we can participate and enjoy: 1) the Robert E. Lee Day event in Montgomery on January 21;
2) the Executive Committee Meeting in Montgomery on February 18; 3) please remember Flag Day
on March 4; 4) the Alabama Education Conference in Prattville on March 25; and 5) remember to
observe Confederate Memorial Day on April 26. These events are not only educational and help us
remember what and why our ancestors sacrificed so much for us and our children, but also are
enjoyable in that we get to meet so many fellow brethren and sisters with whom we share this noble
tradition and heritage.
Third, I would like to note that our very own 1st Lieutenant Commander, David
Fisher, has been inducted into the Honorable Order of the Kentucky Colonels. In my opinion this is a
well deserved honor for a noteworthy individual in our camp. Congratulations indeed!
Fourth, I look forward to the Camp Meeting on January 10th. I ask that not only
everyone come and participate but invite any and all to come and enjoy. Our ancestors fought for a
just cause and they deserve far more honor and respect for what they did. Let us always honor their
memory!
Deo Vindice,
David L. Rawls
Commander
January 2017
Camp,
Welcome to the New Year! I think America should be on an upswing. I like the way the
elections turned out. Tired of the hope & change BS.
For you Bammers I hope it brings #17!
Please review your options and advise your thoughts for the date, time, and place for the
Lee - Jackson banquet. I have heard negative comments on the past years venue and the
cost of the banquet. What I'm not hearing is any plans to replace or upgrade the event.
Please give this your thoughts, it's your camp, how do you want to make it better? If you
don't have constructive ideas don't gripe!! I made that sound nice. We need men to step up
and offer ideas and actions to improve the camp. We need officers to serve in 2 positions,
Volunteers please ?
Pending events are:
Lee Jackson Banquet.
Dalton relic show.
AGCA February gun show with recruiting table.
Division Reunion in June.
Please be a part of the above events.
Again this camp is honoring your Confederate ancestors , show your hero how you will
step up and be proactive. Make them as proud of you as you are of them.
Thank you and Happy Confederate New Year!!
Hank Arnold
2ed Lt Cmdr
FJW 1372
Robert E. Lee
January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870
Do your duty in all things, like the old Puritan. You cannot do
more; you should never wish to do less. ~ R. E. Lee
Edited from : http://www.civilwar.org
Robert Edward Lee was born to Revolutionary War hero Henry "Light-Horse
Harry" Lee in Stratford Hall, Virginia. Despite financial hardship that caused his father to
depart to the West Indies, young Robert secured an appointment to the United States
Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated second in the class of 1829. Two
years later, he married Mary Anna Randolph Custis, a descendant of George Washington's
adopted son, John Parke Custis. Yet with for all his military pedigree, Lee had yet to
set foot on a battlefield. Instead, he served seventeen years as an officer in the Corps of
Engineers, supervising and inspecting the construction of the nation's coastal
defenses. Service during the 1846 war with Mexico, however, changed that. As a member
of General Winfield Scott's staff, Lee distinguished himself, earning three brevets for
gallantry, and emerging from the conflict with the rank of colonel.
From 1852 to 1855, Lee served as superintendent of West Point, and was
therefore responsible for educating many of the men who would later serve under him - and
those who would oppose him on the battlefields of the War Between The States. In 1855
he left the academy to take a position in the cavalry and in 1859 was called upon to put
down abolitionist John Brown’s raid at Harpers Ferry.
Because of his reputation as one of the finest officers in the United States
Army, Abraham Lincoln offered Lee the command of the Federal forces in April 1861. Lee
declined and tendered his resignation from the army when the state of Virginia seceded on
April 17, arguing that he could not fight against his own people. Instead, he accepted a
general’s commission in the newly formed Confederate Army. His first military
engagement of the War occurred at Cheat Mountain, Virginia (now West Virginia) on
September 11, 1861. It was a Union victory but Lee’s reputation withstood the public
criticism that followed. He served as military advisor to President Jefferson Davis until
June 1862 when he was given command of the wounded General Joseph E. Johnston's
embattled army on the Virginia peninsula.
Lee renamed his command the Army of Northern Virginia, and under his
direction it would become the most famous and successful of the Confederate armies. This
same organization also boasted some of the Confederacy's most inspiring military figures,
including James Longstreet, Stonewall Jackson and the flamboyant cavalier J.E.B.
Stuart. With these trusted subordinates, Lee commanded troops that continually
manhandled their blue-clad adversaries and embarrassed their generals no matter what the
odds.
Yet despite foiling several attempts to seize the Confederate capital, Lee
recognized that the key to ultimate success was a victory on Northern soil. In
September 1862, he launched an invasion into Maryland with the hope of shifting the war's
focus away from Virginia. But when a misplaced dispatch outlining the invasion plan was
discovered by Union commander George McClellan the element of surprise was lost, and
the two armies faced off at the battle of Antietam. Though his plans were no longer a
In all my perplexities and distresses, the Bible has
never failed to give me light and strength. ~ R. E. Lee
secret, Lee nevertheless managed to fight McClellan to a stalemate on September 17,
1862. Following the bloodiest one-day battle of the war, heavy casualties compelled Lee
to withdraw under the cover of darkness. The remainder of 1862 was spent on the
defensive, parrying Union thrusts at Fredericksburg and, in May of the following
year, Chancellorsville.
The masterful victory at Chancellorsville gave Lee great confidence in his
army, and the Rebel chief was inspired once again to take the fight to enemy soil. In late
June of 1863, he began another invasion of the North, meeting the Union host at the
crossroads town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. For three days Lee assailed the Federal
army under George G. Meade in what would become the most famous battle of the entire
war. The Confederate war effort reached its high water mark on July 3, 1863 when Lee
ordered a massive frontal assault against Meade's center, spear-headed by Virginians
under Maj. Gen. George E. Pickett. The attack known as Pickett's charge was a failure
and Lee, recognizing that the battle was lost, ordered his army to retreat. Taking full
responsibility for the defeat, he wrote Jefferson Davis offering his resignation, which
Davis refused to accept.
After the simultaneous Union victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg,
Mississippi, Ulysses S. Grant assumed command of the Federal armies. Rather
than making Richmond the aim of his campaign, Grant chose to focus the myriad
resources at his disposal on destroying Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. In a relentless
and bloody campaign, the Federal juggernaut bludgeoned the under-supplied Rebel
band. In spite of his ability to make Grant pay in blood for his aggressive tactics, Lee had
been forced to yield the initiative to his adversary, and he recognized that the end of the
Confederacy was only a matter of time. By the summer of 1864, the Confederates had
been forced into waging trench warfare outside of Petersburg. Though President Davis
named the Virginian General-in-Chief of all Confederate forces in February 1865, only
two months later, on April 9, 1865, Lee was forced to surrender his weary and depleted
army to Grant at Appomattox Court House, effectively ending the War.
Lee returned home on parole and eventually became the president of
Washington College in Virginia (now known as Washington and Lee University). He
remained in this position until his death on October 12, 1870 in Lexington, Virginia.
Edited from : http://www.civilwar.org
Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson was born in Clarksburg, Virginia. He
graduated from West Point in 1846 and began his official military career with the US Army as
a brevet second lieutenant in the Mexican-American War from 1846-1848, where he first
met Robert E. Lee. After many successful shows of leadership in the war, he was promoted
to rank of major.
In 1851, Jackson resigned his military commission and accepted a teaching
position at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington, Virginia. His style as a professor was
controversial, but nonetheless invaluable, as VMI continues to use many of his philosophies
today.
At the war’s outbreak, Jackson accepted orders as a Colonel of Virginia militia
and commanded at Harper’s Ferry. Jackson then took on the title of Brigadier general and led
troops in the epic battle of First Manassas, where he and his brigade earned him the title
“Stonewall.” In November of 1861 he was promoted to major general and dispatched to the
Shenandoah Valley to defend the South from Federal troops headed towards Richmond.
Jackson organized extremely successful military maneuvers at Front Royal,
Winchester, Cross Keys, and Port Republic in the spring of 1862. These led up to the Seven
Days Battle around Richmond, where Jackson’s nonplussed performance on the outset
gradually gained momentum. He made more epic showings at Second Manassas and then
again in Sharpsburg at the Battle of Antietam. Following these events the Army of Northern
Virginia was reorganized and Jackson was designated lieutenant general.
In December of 1862, Jackson commanded a victory at Fredericksburg, and
then the famous flank march at Chancellorsville in May. The same night as that victory, May
2, 1863, Jackson was wounded by friendly fire while making a reconnaissance with a member
of his staff. He died eight days later on May 10 from pneumonia, a complication of having
his left arm amputated from the incident. Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was with his wife and
only surviving daughter when he died, and is buried in Lexington, Virginia.
Thomas Jonathan “Stonewall” Jackson
January 21, 1824 – May 10, 1863 You may be whatever you resolve to be. ~ Stonewall Jackson
Captain, my religious belief teaches me to feel as safe in battle as in bed. God
has fixed the time for my death. I do not concern myself about that, but to be
always ready, no matter when it may overtake me. Captain, that is the way all
men should live, and then all would be equally brave. ~ Stonewall Jackson