Category Archives: Southern Society

“the worst blow the confederacy has yet had”

Posted on April 15, 2015 by SUMPTER

From a Seneca County, New York newspaper in 1865: WASHINGTON, April 15 – 11 A.M. At 20 minutes past 7 o’clock the President breathed his last, closing his eyes as if falling asleep, and his countenance assuming an expression of … Continue reading →

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no rest for the winner

Posted on April 11, 2015 by SUMPTER

After the April 9th surrender of General Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, President Lincoln sure wasn’t looking for any triumphal celebrations or even resting on his laurels. He told a crowd on April 10th he would deliver a speech the … Continue reading →

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puppet show?

Posted on April 10, 2015 by SUMPTER

From a Seneca County, New York newspaper in 1865 (in same column as the April 9, 1865 written communication between Generals Lee and Grant regarding surrender): JAMES REDPATH, the abolition leader, now the Charleston correspondent of the New York Tribune, … Continue reading →

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“a dream of maniacs”

Posted on April 1, 2015 by SUMPTER

From the Richmond Daily Dispatch April 1, 1865: Saturday Morning…april 1, 1865. The occasional execution of a Confederate officer (alleged to be a spy) in the Northern cities affords the masses at home an opportunity of seeing the death-struggles of … Continue reading →

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“There has been great privation here — we need not deny it”

Posted on March 31, 2015 by SUMPTER

A fellow Richmond editor has died. The Dispatch has evidence from occupied Charleston to contradict President Lincoln’s second inaugural address: victorious Yankees would really act with malice toward all white Southerners. The paper also found evidence from General Sheridan’s recent … Continue reading →

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“Happily, events are now approaching a crisis”

Posted on March 30, 2015 by SUMPTER

If the North wins the war, subjugates the South, and replaces the utopian slave labor system, the country will become “a howling wilderness.” Despite a reported prediction by General Grant, there is no evidence that Richmond is about to be … Continue reading →

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“the whole country is ignorant of the impending calamity”

Posted on March 27, 2015 by SUMPTER

Another plucky Monday morning editorial from the Richmond Daily Dispatch on March 27, 1865: Monday morning…March 27, 1865. Our sincere condolences are respectfully proffered to Sir Frederick Bruce, the new British Minister to Washington. His predecessor, Lord Lyons, has been … Continue reading →

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wheels of fortune

Posted on March 26, 2015 by SUMPTER

150 years ago this month the Confederacy had enacted a law to enlist slaves in Southern armies and was beginning the law’s implementation. The draft in the North to implement President Lincoln’s call for 300,000 more troops was plodding along. … Continue reading →

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information please

Posted on March 24, 2015 by SUMPTER

papers closed and mail disrupted The success of the Union armies is putting a big crimp in the newspaper business. Even though everything was reported quiet at Petersburg (although “consolidation” was imminent), the Southern mail wasn’t able to leave Richmond … Continue reading →

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“pride & patriotism”

Posted on March 23, 2015 by SUMPTER

The South needed patriotic and heroic farmers to cultivate the land despite Yankee plunder and destruction. Refugees crowded into Richmond ought to move back to the country. Even as more and more cities were evacuated to the Union armies, the … Continue reading →

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