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Meeting: December 8, 2009
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Daniel Carroll Toomey is a native Marylander
whose family ties go back to the late 1700s when Daniel Henry Toomey left
Ireland and came to this country to teach school on the estate of Charles
Carroll of Carollton in Howard County. Since the earliest days of his
childhood, he has been interested in history in general and the Civil War in
particular.
Mr. Toomey is a graduate of the University of Maryland, School of Business. He holds an I.C.C. Practitioner's license and is a past-president of Delta Nu Alpha Transportation Fraternity in Baltimore. His expertise is in the field of international logistics. Among his published books are The Civil War in Maryland and Marylanders at Gettysburg. At the outbreak of the Civil War, John R. Kenly was commissioned colonel of the First Maryland Infantry Regiment and assigned to General Bank's army. In May 1862, Kenly and his men fought Stonewall Jackson's army for almost an entire day before most of the unit was captured at the battle of Front Royal. Kenly's actions that day won him promotion to Brigadier General and a vote of thanks from the Maryland legislature. Author Dan Toomey tells the gallant tale of one of Maryland's highest ranking but least well-known soldiers. |
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Meeting: November 10, 2009
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"
Jubal's in the Valley: The Long, Hot Summer of 1864" -- Why was Phil
Sheridan in the Shenandoah Valley in the fall of 1864 instead of helping
Grant defeat Lee at Petersburg? Why was Jubal Early and the famed Second
Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia in the Valley? What was Lee's plan
for Early? Did Early accomplish his mission? These questions and many others
associated with the seldom-discussed prelude to Sheridan vs. Early in the
fall of 1864 will be the focus of this talk by Gail
Stephens. We'll see how close Jubal Early came to success and what Grant
was forced to do to suppress his audacious campaign.
Gail Stephens has a Bachelor's Degree in International Politics from George Washington University in Washington DC, and has done graduate work at Johns Hopkins and Harvard Universities. She worked for the Department of Defense for 26 years, retiring in 1994 as a member of the Department's Senior Executive Service. Upon retirement, she began to study the American Civil War. She volunteers at Monocacy National Battlefield near Frederick, lectures on the Civil War, teaches courses at area colleges and gives battlefield tours. In 2002, she won the National Park Service's E.W. Peterkin award for her contributions to public understanding of Civil War history. Currently, she is writing a biography of Major General Lew Wallace's Civil War career, to be published by the Indiana Historical Society Press. |
 General Jubal Early – Library of Congress photo |
Meeting: October 13, 2009
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Our speaker will be Dr. B. Franklin
Cooling. Dr Cooling is a well-known national security historian
who has authored or edited numerous publications in military, naval and air
history. He has worked extensively on aspects of Civil War history. Among his publications are studies of the Civil War in Tennessee and Kentucky and defending Washington, the nation’s capital (Symbol, Sword and Shield; Mr. Lincoln’s Forts – co-authored with Walton Owen; Jubal Early’s Raid on Washington, 1864; and Monocacy, The Battle that Saved Washington). He has received various awards from the Sons of Confederate Veterans, Society for Military History, Friends of Fort Ward and various round tables for his contributions. A native of Washington D.C., he holds a B.A. from Rutgers University and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in history from the University of Pennsylvania. He has taught at the University of Pennsylvania, Weidner University, the U.S. Army War College and George Washington University. He is a veteran of various government history programs and served as Chair of the Department of Grand Strategy and Mobilization, and Associate Dean of Academic Programs at the Industrial College of the Armed Forces of the National Defense University before returning to the faculty as Professor of National Security Studies. Dr. Cooling will discuss the fortifications defending Washington, DC during the war. |
 Officers and men
of Company F, 3rd Massachusetts Heavy Artillery at Fort
Stevens |
Meeting: September 8, 2009
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Our speaker will be Wayne E. Motts. Born and raised in central Ohio, Wayne graduated from The Ohio State University with a B.A. in history in 1989. Moving to Gettysburg in 1990, Wayne earned a Masters Degree in American History from the Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania in 1994. He was one of the youngest persons ever to complete the licensing process to be a Licensed Battlefield Guide at Gettysburg National Military Park. He is considered the leading authority in the nation on Southern General Lewis Addison Armistead of Pickett’s Charge fame and has published the only biography of the general entitled, Trust in God and Fear Nothing: Lewis A. Armistead, CSA In 2002, he accepted the position of curator at the Cumberland County Historical Society where he managed a collection of 8,000 artifacts. In 2004, he assumed duties as the collections manager of the Adams County Historical Society in Gettysburg. In 2005, Wayne was named executive director of the Society where he oversees a staff of five and 60 volunteers. Wayne’s topic will be: Gettysburg’s Schmucker Hall in Peace and War “Built in 1832, Schmucker Hall on the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg witnessed the terrible fighting right outside its doors on 1 July 1863 between elements of the First Union Army Corps and the Southern Forces under the command of General A.P. Hill. The structure was used as an observation post by Union Cavalry General John Buford and later served as the largest field hospital in Gettysburg. Placed on the national register of historic places in 1973, Schmucker Hall is today the home of the Adams County Historical Society www.achs-pa.org.” |
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Meeting: August 11, 2009
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Our speaker will be Marion V. Armstrong
(Vince). Vince will address the more critical aspects of his book,
Unfurl Those Colors, to include a consider of the generalship of both
McClellan and Sumner at Antietam, Sumner’s decision to commit Sedgwick’s
division to an attack into the West Woods, and why he believes that General
French had positive orders to attack toward the Sunken Road. Dr. Marion V. Armstrong is a native of Maryland with a life long interest in military and Civil War history. He is a 1969 graduate of the University of Scranton, holds masters degrees from The University of Southern California and Old Dominion University, and a Doctor of Arts degree in History from Middle Tennessee State University. From 1969 to 1975 he was on active duty with the United States Army as an infantry officer, completing tours of duty in Viet Nam and Korea. As an Army civilian employee from 1976 to 1995, he served at various posts throughout the U.S. and in Germany, and was active as a reserve officer. Dr. Armstrong moved to Nashville in 1995 to pursue a second career as an historian. He teaches American and military history for various colleges in the Nashville area, and regularly lectures on military topics and conducts battlefield tours. He is the author of Disaster in the West Woods, General Edwin V. Sumner and the II Corps at Antietam, and Unfurl Those Colors; McClellan, Sumner, and the Second Army Corps in the Maryland Campaign of September 1862. |
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Meeting: July 14, 2009
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Our speaker will be
Gloria Swift. Her
program is entitled “Secrets Revealed! Museum Objects Tell All!” This
program takes a look at special items from the Ford’s Theatre museum
collection. The focus of the program is on various museum objects -
what kind of “life” they led immediately after the assassination, what
happened to them, and finally, how they eventually “made their way back” to
Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site to become part of the museum. After
this fun program, you’ll never see a museum object the same way again!
Gloria Swift was born in Washington, D.C. and graduated from Northern Arizona University with a degree in American History. Specializing in military history, Gloria has been an interpretive park ranger and curator with the National Park Service, working at such sites as Gettysburg National Military Park, Harper's Ferry National Historical Park, and Monocacy National Battlefield. Her current duty station is Ford’s Theatre National Historic Site where she serves as curator. |
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Meeting: June 9, 2009
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Our speaker will be Dr. Richard McMurry. Dr. McMurry is
a native of Atlanta, Georgia. He has worked in various places as a history
professor and writer, such as in Virginia and North Carolina, although he
has recently moved back to his beloved native state. Richard is considered
among current historians to be the foremost supporter of the importance of
the Western Theater to the outcome of the Civil War. He has published well
over a hundred articles on Civil War topics, and he has written numerous
books, including The Road Past Kennesaw: The Atlanta Campaign of 1864
(2005), Atlanta 1864: Last Chance for the Confederacy (2000),
TheFourth Battle of Winchester: Toward a New Civil War Paradigm (2002),
John Bell Hood and the War for Southern Independence (1982), and
Two Great Rebel Armies: An Essay in Confederate Military History (1989).
Civil War Magazine listed the latter two works among the 100 best modern
Civil War books ever published. Richard has appeared in Civil War history
programs on television stations such as The History Channel. He is
also active in the Civil War Preservation Trust and the Blue and Gray
Education Society.
Richard is currently working on a book about Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston. His talk before the BCWRT is entitled "The General in the Jar: Joseph E. Johnston in the Defense of Atlanta". |
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Meeting: May 12, 2009
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Our speaker will be Jeff Goodson.
At the outset of the Civil War, Brigadier General Benjamin Franklin Butler led a force of Massachusetts troops south to reopen vital communications between the Northern states and Washington. Jeff Goodson, Adjunct History Professor at the Community College of Baltimore County, follows Butler’s route to and through Maryland during the tumultuous months of April-May 1861 and discusses whether Butler’s seizure and occupation of strategic locations contributed to keeping the state of Maryland from seceding. Born in Baltimore, Jeff Goodson attended Archbishop Curley and Patapsco Senior High schools. He received a BA in History from the University of Maryland, a MS in International Relations from Troy University and is currently a Phd candidate in Political Science from King’s College. |
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Meeting: April 14, 2009
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Our speaker will be John Michael
Priest. The author and editor of 13 Civil War related books, Mike Priest
teaches U.S. Civil War History in Washington County, Maryland. He graduated
from Loyola, Baltimore in 1972 and received his masters from Hood College.
He is currently working on the Spotsylvania Campaign and looking for a publisher for his Gettysburg Mss. The Topic of Mike’s discussion will be: Slaughter in the West Woods In an effort to turn the Confederate left flank and relieve the pressure on Mansfield's men, Sumner's II Corps was ordered at 7:20 a.m. to send two divisions into battle. Sedgwick's division of 5,400 men was the first to ford the Antietam, and they entered the East Woods with the intention of turning left and forcing the Confederates south into the assault of Ambrose Burnside's IX Corps. But the plan went awry. They became separated from William H. French's division, and at 9 a.m. Sumner, who was accompanying the division, launched the attack with an unusual battle formation—the three brigades in three long lines, men side-by-side, with only 50 to 70 yards (60 m) separating the lines. They were assaulted first by Confederate artillery and then from three sides by the divisions of Early, Walker, and McLaws. So appalling was the slaughter, nearly half of Sedgwick's 5,000 men, were struck down in less than 20 minutes. The Roundtable will sponsor a used book sale at this month’s meeting. Members are encouraged to bring in any used Civil War books they wish to sell (or trade). |
Sedgwick’s attack - NPS Photo, |
Meeting: March 10, 2009 6:00 PM Cocktails, 7:00PM Dinner
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This month is The Baltimore Civil War Roundtable Annual Dinner. Our
speaker will be Dennis Frye. Dennis is a
Civil War historian well known to re-enactors, movie fans and
preservationists. He was the President of the former Association for the Preservation of Civil War Sites from 1995-1998. He also has worked as a consultant in Civil War history and served as associate producer of the movie “Gods and Generals,” coordinated the 1997 and 2002 Antietam reenactments, wrote a general management plan for the Stonewall Jackson Headquarters house in Winchester, VA, and served as consulting historian for the Maryland Civil War Trails project on the Antietam and Gettysburg campaigns. Additionally, Dennis has served as Chief Historian at Harpers Ferry National Historical Park for10 years, and has worked as an NPS historian at Harpers Ferry for 22 years. The subject of Dennis talk is “Burnside Betrayed” about Union General Ambrose Burnside. |
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| March 10 - Baltimore CWRT will have Dennis Frye speak at our Banquet in Parkville Gardens. Click to see flyer. |
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Meeting: February 10, 2009
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Our speakers will be Bob Mullauer and Jerry Bayer.
Bob Mullauer was a high school history teacher for over a decade. He
currently teaches nighttime courses at Anne Arundel Community College as
well as speaking to a variety of groups on topics such as the American Civil
War in the Western Theater, World War II in the Pacific, and the Napoleonic
Wars. He has led United States Army officers on staff rides over the
Chickamauga and Chattanooga battlefields. Besides Civil War battlefields,
his travels include tours of World War II battlefields in the Pacific as
well as Normandy, the Bulge, Verdun, and various Napoleonic sites in Europe.
Jerry Bayer is a former Marylander now living in retirement with his wife, Marianne, in Harper’s Ferry, VA. He is a member of various historical groups, as well as a Life Member of both the SCV and SAR. A 1971 graduate of the University of Baltimore, Jerry has spent a lifetime studying American Military History and World War II. Both He and Marianne are re-enactors and appear in the movie “Gods and Generals”. Bob and Jerry will discuss the stories of several Generals who abandoned the sections of the country where they were raised to serve in the Armies of their enemies. |
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Our speaker will be Courtney B. Wilson. Mr. Wilson holds a
Masters Degree in American History. A lifelong student of military history
and memorabilia he has worked the field of history throughout most of his
career; first with the National Park Service, then as the president of a
military antiques and appraisal firm, to his current position as the
Director of the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore. He is the only 2 time
winner of the Academy Award for Tourism Professional of the Year (2004 and
2007). Finally, Mr. Wilson is a Brigadier General in the Maryland National
Guard and commands the 350 officers and enlisted men of the Maryland Defense
Force.
Mr. Wilson will be talking about the B+O Railroad Museum's Civil War collection of locomotives, cars and artifacts and the current restoration program underway in preparation for the 2011-2015 sesquicentennial of the War. |
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