COMMANDER'S COMMENTS

The "dog days of summer" are  beginning  to  wind  down  for  us  all  -
although  you  might  think  it  already has what with the damp and cool
weather we have been experiencing lately.  It sort of reminds me of  the
many  letters  and correspondents that I (and I'm sure many of you) have
read over the years of the Confederate  soldiers  that  fought  here  in
Virginia  during  this  time  of  year  -  how  a  lot of them had never
experienced the oppressive heat, humidity and sometimes  sudden  weather
changes  that is a Virginia summer, and didn't know how to deal with it.
Yet, these brave and hardy men fought to the very  end  to  protect  and
defend their homes and their families.                                  

One  such  soldier  was  Sgt.  John D.  Clopton, Co.  E 19th Mississippi
Infantry.  His story has been recently passed around the Longstreet Camp
by  our  very own Lewis Mills.  Lewis has worked tirelessly on trying to
find and properly mark Sgt.  Clopton's grave at Hollywood  Cemetery.   I
know  that the Clopton family has been very appreciative of Lewis's hard
work - and in that spirit the General  James  Longstreet  Camp  will  be
hosting  a  grave-site  dedication service of Sgt.  Clopton at Hollywood
Cemetery, Sunday September 20th at 3pm.  I am asking that ALL LONGSTREET
CAMP  MEMBERS  ATTEND  THIS  SERVICE!  Sgt.  Clopton's family will be in
attendance, and I think it only fitting that each and  every  member  of
the  Longstreet  Camp - and any of the family and friends/neighbors that
wish to attend do so.  I know it would mean a lot to them.              

The State Fair of Virginia is just around the corner (by  the  time  you
will  receive  this), and once again Commander Rob Milikin has asked for
volunteers to help man the SCV's booth at this year's Fair.  I  had  the
chance  to  participate  again last year and definitely found it to be a
very rewarding experience, and if my work schedule will allow for it - I
hope  to  be able to lend my support to it again this year.  I encourage
any/all Longstreet Camp members to  volunteer  some  of  their  time  to
assist Commander Milikin with this venture.  I think you will find it as
rewarding as I did.                                                     

Don't forget to turn in your annual  dues  statement  to  Walter  -  you
should  have  received  a statement in the mail already.  If you did not
receive a statement and are in good standing with  the  Longstreet  Camp
and  the  Virginia  Division-SCV,  then  please contact Walter Tucker or
myself so we can get a payment form to you.  If you know of  anyone  who
was  a  Longstreet  Camp  member  in  the  past,  but may have let their
membership expire - please let Walter or myself  know  so  that  we  may
contact  them  to see if they would be interested in re-joining (I would
also encourage you to do the same).                                     

I will not be at our next scheduled camp meeting as I  have  a  previous
engagement  to  attend that night, but have asked Taylor Cowardin, Harry
Boyd, and Tom Vance to help fill in and lead the meeting.  I  know  they
will do an outstanding job as it promises to be an excellent meeting.   

Remember - "Longstreet is the Camp boys - Longstreet is the Camp!"     

Deo Vindice!                                                            
					Mike                     

ADJUTANT'S REPORT

We have received from Headquarters the membership  certificate  of  Cody
Oliver and plan to induct him at our 15 September meeting.  His ancestor
Isom B.  Osborn served in the 23rd Battalion Virginia Infantry.         

Gene Lyon has had several surgeries.  Please continue to  pray  for  him
and his family as he recovers.                                          

Pat  Hoggard had hip replacement surgery.  With previous replacements of
his other hip and both knees, Sarah refers to him as her  Titanium  Man.
Pat  and  Sarah  worked  diligently  on  the Pat's Thomas Jefferson High
School Class of 1949 60th anniversary reunion, which was held in June.  

Speaking of work, Gary Cowardin, Peyton Roden, and Bobby Williams devote
their  efforts  to  Field Days of the Past, a delightful fair to be held
September 18-20 on Route 623 (Ashland Road) north of West Broad  Street.
More  information,  including  directions,  is available on the web site
http://www.fielddayof the past.net.  Last year a couple of SCV camps had
booths at this enjoyable event.                                         

Congratulations  and  best wishes to Past Camp Commander Taylor Cowardin
and Jodi Arnold, who were married 7 August.   The  wedding  writeup  and
picture  were  in the Celebrations section of the 6 September edition of
the Richmond Times-Dispatch.                                            

Congratulations also to Barton and  Madge  Campbell  as  they  celebrate
their 45th wedding anniversary this month.                              

Time  marches on.  We remember with pleasure the enthusiasm of the young
J.  E.  B.  Stuart VI when he began attending our camp meetings  several
years ago.  He's grown up and is now a freshman at Virginia Tech.       

The response of our members in paying renewal dues has been outstanding.
As of Saturday 5 September, 81.25% of our members have paid.  Thanks  to
all who have paid and to those who made contributions to the Camp and to
Virginia  Division  special  funds.   International   Headquarters   and
Virginia  Division  have  received  their shares of dues on all who have
renewed through 4 September.  We have received a current roster from IHQ
reflecting  all  payments  received there as of 31 August.  The Virginia
Division  made  a  gigantic  improvement  to  this  year's  process   by
permitting camps to send International dues directly to Headquarters.   

Beginning  this  month,  we shall publish one list of donors to Camp and
Division funds, rather than separate lists for each of  the  four.   The
adjutant/treasurer   continues   to  maintain  a  record  of  individual
donations to the different categories.                                  

Thankfully, the proposed amendment to require 15 members to start a  new
camp was defeated at the SCV national convention.                       

My wife Jackie, our 12 year old grandson Bryan, and I visited Monticello
2 September.  The Visitor Center, opened last year, is a great  addition
and   made  this  by  far  the  best  visit  we've  ever  made  to  this
international treasure.  Our excellent  docent  had  no  answer  to  the
question,  "Why does President Thomas Jefferson's founding of the U.  S.
Military Academy (USMA) receive so  little  attention?"  Prominent  USMA
1947 graduate General Alexander M.  Haig, Jr., President Ronald Reagan's
Secretary of State, asserted that famed USMA Superintendent Sylvanus  M.
Thayer, Jr.  was the founder of that illustrious institution.  Wikipedia
the Internet encyclopedia refers  to  Thayer  as  the  "Father  of  West
Point."  That's  absurd,  since  Thayer was appointed to West Point as a
cadet by President Thomas Jefferson.  Thayer 's impact on West Point was
enormous,  but  to  refer  to him as either the founder or the father is
preposterous.  Lo and behold, the Monticello Museum Shop  had  for  sale
Thomas  Jefferson's  Military  Academy:  Founding  West Point, edited by
Robert M.  S.  McDonald, Associate Professor of History at USMA when the
book  was  published  in 2004.  This book sets the matter straight.  The
Henrico County Public Library's circulating copy of  this  book  is  due
back  2  October.  My guess about Jefferson's founding of USMA receiving
so little attention is that he did not request that it  be  put  on  his
tombstone  and  that it was obscured by the many other great things that
he did.                                                                 

Please attend our Camp's grave marker ceremony Sunday 20 September  3:00
PM at Hollywood Cemetery.  The soldier to be honored is Sergeant John D.
Clopton, Company E 19th Mississippi Infantry, who died of wounds in  the
spring  of 1862.  Our own Lewis Mills, a descendant of Sergeant Clopton,
did the research, ordered the marker, and is primarily  responsible  for
bringing  this  ceremony about.  A number of Clopton descendants will be
coming from out of  town  for  this  event.   Lewis  several  years  ago
spearheaded  the  dedication  of  a  grave marker ceremony at the church
cemetery of Mt.  Olivet Baptist Church, Beaverdam.  We salute Lewis  for
his outstanding work.                                                   

I look forward to seeing you at our next meeting Tuesday 15 September.


					Walter                   

GENERAL JAMES LONGSTREET CAMP #1247

NEXT MEETING - TUESDAY, September 15, 2009

ROMA'S RESTAURANT
8330 STAPLES MILL RD.
LOCATED IN "THE SHOPS AT STAPLES MILL"
TURN LEFT AT FIRST STOPLIGHT NORTH OF
THE WISTAR SHOPPING CENTER

DINNER - SOCIAL 6:00 PM
MEETING STARTS AT 7:00 PM

SEPTEMBER SPEAKER

Our speaker will be Mr.  John J.  Fox, III.  He is is a member and  past
commander  of  Turner  Ashby  Camp  #1567, Sons of Confederate Veterans,
owner of Angle Valley Press and an award winning author.  His book,  Red
Clay to Richmond  has received considerable critical acclaim from fellow
historians and book reviewers and recently won  two  book  awards.   His
articles  have appeared in Civil War Times magazine, America's Civil War
magazine and numerous newspapers.  He will speak to  us  about  his  his
newest  book,  The  Confederate  Alamo:  Bloodbath  at Petersburg's Fort
Gregg.                                                                  
                                                 Taylor

JULY PROGRAM

Our own Walter Tucker presented a slide show he has  put  together  over
the years of Fort Monroe giving this history and information:           

British  invaders  sailed by Old Point Comfort light house in the War of
1812.  The British burning  of  Hampton  and  Washington  were  national
humiliations.   Coastal states clamored for an effective coastal defense
system.  Work started on Fort Monroe in 1819 and was completed in  1834.
It  was the largest moat encircled fort and mounted 412 guns.  Brigadier
General Abraham Eustis established the Artillery School of  Practice  at
Fort Monroe. Many famous Americans served there:                        

On 15 December 1828 U.  S.  Army soldier Edgar Allan Poe was assigned to
Fort  Monroe  as  an  artificer.   He  was  promoted to Sergeant Major 1
January 1829.                                                           

President Andrew Jackson came to the Hygeia for 10 days in  August  1829
to escape from the ruckus in Washington over the Eaton Affair.          

Army Lieutenant Robert E.  Lee reported for duty to Fort  Monroe  7  May
1831.  Several  years  later  after their marriage, Mary Custis moved to
Fort Monroe to join him.  Their first child,  George  Washington  Custis
Lee was born at Fort Monroe 16 September 1832.                          

Indian leader and warrior Black Hawk spent  some  time  at  Fort  Monroe
leaving on 4 June 1833.                                                 

President John Tyler sought the seclusion of Old Point Comfort upon  the
death of his first wife Letitia Christian Tyler September 1842.         

President Millard Fillmore Visited Fort Monroe 21 June 1851.            

Confederates  were  unable  to capture Fort Monroe, which was a valuable
base from which several Union amphibious operations were launched.      

Benjamin F.  Butler assumed command of the Union Department of  Virginia
headquartered at Fort Monroe 18 May 1861.                               

Confederate  officer John B.  Cary entered the Fort to ask for return of
fugitive slaves.  Butler refused, declaring them  "contraband  of  war."
Cary  became Richmond superintendent of Schools in the 1880s and tripled
the budget for the education of blacks.                                 

The famous battle of the ironclads between CSS Virginia and USS  Monitor
took place within sight of Fort Monroe 9 March 1862.                    

President Abraham Lincoln came to Fort Monroe 6 May 1862.               

Having  been  given  command  of all Union armies 15 March 1864, General
Ulysses S.  Grant arrived at Fort Monroe 1 April  to  discuss  a  spring
offensive with General Ben Butler.                                      

On  3  February  1865 aboard USS Delta Queen at Fort Monroe, Lincoln and
Secretary of State William H.  Seward met with Confederate commissioners
Vice  President  Alexander  H.   Stephens,  Confederate Senate presiding
officer Robert M.  T.  Hunter, and Assistant SECWAR John  A.   Campbell.
Stephens and Hunter had been U.  S.  congressmen; Campbell had been a U.
S.  Supreme Court justice.                                              

President Jefferson Davis was brought to Fort Monroe  22  May  1865  and
kept  in  a  cell shackled with ankle irons.  Word got out, and northern
indignation caused removal of the shackles 28 May.  After 4 « months, he
was  moved  to Carroll House.  In May 1866 his wife Varina was permitted
to stay near him.  Later she was allowed to move in with him.  New  York
lawyer  Charles  O'Conor  defended Davis at no charge.  The Yankees were
unwilling to risk a trial because they feared he would be acquitted.    

Colonel Emory Upton served as an instructor (and briefly temporarily  as
CO) in the Artillery School at Fort Monroe from March 1877 until January
1880.  He had been a great Union hero in the 1864 Spotsylvania Campaign.

Matthew B.  Ridgway (later General) a famed outstanding soldier of World
War  Two  and  the Korean War, who served as U.  S.  Army Chief of Staff
October 1953-June 1955, was born at  Fort  Monroe  3  March  1895.   His
father Thomas Ridgway was an artillery officer stationed at the Fort.   

President Woodrow Wilson during World War One would come by boat to Fort
Monroe and would worship in the Chapel of the Centurion, which had  been
built in 1858.                                                          

General (later President) Dwight D.  Eisenhower and Mamie's son John was
married in the Chapel of the Centurion in 1947.                         

Our Camp member Clint Cowardin was stationed at Fort  Monroe  for  three
years in the 1970's.  Hugh Williams spent six weeks there in the 1940's,
firing 12 inch recoiling guns and other artillery.                      
Threat to Fort Monroe today
The Army is scheduled to leave in  2011.   What  happens  then  will  be
largely   influenced   by  the  Fort  Monroe  Federal  Area  Development
Authority, an organization of 18 members, seven of  whom  are  from  the
City  of  Hampton,  some  of  whom  favor real estate development.  This
dominance by one political subdivision is unfair to all  Americans,  who
are the owners of this priceless historic treasure.                     

2007-2009 CAMP OFFICERS
LONGSTREET CAMP #1247
Commander: Michael Kidd	                     270-9651
1st. Lt. Cmdr.: Taylor Cowardin              359-9277
2nd Lt. Cmdr.: Thomas G. Vance	             282-6278
Adjutant/Treasurer: Walter Tucker            360-7247
Judge Advocate: Harry Boyd                   741-2060
Quartermaster: R. Preston Nuttall            276-8977
Chaplain: Henry V. Langford                  474-1978

PUBLICATIONS
War Horse editor and                                 
Webmaster: Gary F. Cowardin                  262-0534

Website: longstreetscv.org                           

LONGSTREET'S FIRST CORPS

The following is a  listing  of  Longstreet  Camp  Donors  for  Virginia
Division  Special  Funds, Hurtt Scholarship Fund, Camp General Fund, and
the upkeep of "The Old War Horse" for July  and  August  2009.   As  you
know,  our  cumulative listing starts in July of each year and we do not
meet in August.

Walt Beam       Lloyd Brooks    Brian Cowardin        Taylor Cowardin
Lee Crenshaw    Dale Harlow     Michael Hendrick      Crawley Joyner 
Jack Kane       Peter Knowles, II       Lewis Mills   Bob Moore	     
Joe Moschetti   Joseph Sterling Price   Waite Rawls   Cary Shelton   
Chris Trinite   Walter Tucker           David Ware    Harold Whitmore

Legend:                                    
* - Multiple contributions                 

 Another New Member Joins Our Ranks


New member James N. Pitts