Today Robert Smalls, a hero of the war, is discharged from military service. Smalls is a former slave who during the war daringly escaped from slavery in Charleston by capturing a Confederate steamer, the Planter. His heroics were celebrated throughout the North, where he conducted speaking tours. In addition, he was made captain of the…
The month of March is approaching. His army weakened by the harsh winter, insufficient food supplies and ongoing desertions, Confederate General Robert E. Lee is worried. Charged with preventing the Federals from reaching the Confederate capital of Richmond, he recently denied the request of Texas Governor Pendelton Murrah to allow the “Texas Brigade” a leave…
Northern-born Southerner Jacob Eliot (1803-1870) of Corsicana, Texas is a successful attorney, a slaveholder, and the church clerk of the Corsicana Baptist Church. Born in New York in 1803 and raised in Kentucky, Eliot at the age of 46 had moved to Navarro County, Texas, with his wife, children, and grandchildren. Purchasing 3,605 acres, Eliot…