Another chapter closes on the Civil War this day with the capture of former Confederate president Jefferson Davis. Fleeing southward, Davis is overtaken by Union cavalrymen in south Georgia near the community of Irwinville. His capture takes place without incident. While significant, the event is somewhat anticlimactic. A traitor to his true country while having…
Founded on May 29, 1842, the First Baptist Church of Selma, Alabama is more fortunate than many Baptist congregations of the South. Having remained open during the war, the church now moves into the post-war era, one month following the Battle of Selma in which Union forces invaded and destroyed the town’s army arsenal and…
Jefferson Davis and his entourage, seeking to evade capture by federal forces, are fleeing southward. Today they arrive at Wilkes County, Georgia. Accompanying Davis is Confederate soldier Benjamin Chandler and his slave, Silas, a trained carpenter. Earlier in the war Silas had been the body servant of Sergeant Andrew M. Chandler. When Chandler was injured…