Shippen Manor News

Shippen Manor

7 days ago

#TODAYINHISTORY Lee surrenders to Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, VA in 1865

On this date in 1865, Generals Robert E. Lee of the Confederacy and Ulysses S. Grant of the Union Army agreed upon terms of surrender that would officially end the Civil War, even though scattered fighting occurred for months afterwards.

HOPE AGAINST HOPE

At sunrise on April 9, General Lee still held to the hope that the war would not end. Major General John B. Gordon’s 2nd Corps, along with Lee’s nephew, Fitzhugh and the remains of the Confederate cavalry lined up for battle just outside of the village of Appomattox Court House in Virginia. Lee hoped that there would be only a thin line of Union cavalry ahead of him. He intended to have his men break the Union line, find supplies and rations, and march south to North Carolina to continue fighting. For a week, Grant prevented Lee from moving south, getting ahead of Lee who had his headquarters in Appomattox.

While the remains of the Army of Northern Virginia retreated from the Appomattox Campaign, Gen. Philip Sheridan outran them, blocking their retreat and capturing 6000 prisoners at Sayler’s Creek. The Confederates were experiencing daily desertions and by April 8 realized that they were surrounded and unable to escape. The next day, Lee sent a message to Grant announcing his willingness to surrender. The two generals scheduled to meet in the parlor of Wilmer McLean’s home at 1pm.

LEE & GRANT

Both Lee and Grant held the highest rank in their respective armies. They had known each other for many years, as they were both in the U.S. Army and fought together in the Mexican American War twenty years prior.

TERMS OF SURRENDER

The two generals exchanged letters in the moments leading up to the actual surrender. He later asked for “a suspension of hostilities” pending the outcome of the surrender talks. Grant received Lee’s request when he was about six miles from Appomattox Court House. One of Grant’s aides brought his reply to Lee, permitting the Confederate general to choose the site of the surrender. Lee and two of his aides rode to Appomattox Court House where he sent his aides ahead to find a suitable location for the surrender. The men happened upon Wilmer McLean, who showed them an unfurnished and rundown house. When McLean was told that the house would not be acceptable for the surrender, he offered his own house.

THE SURRENDER

Lee received word that a location for the surrender was found and he arrived around 1pm with his aide-de-camp, Lt. Col. Charles Marshall and Babcock. They awaited Grant’s arrival in McLean’s parlor. Grant arrived thirty minutes later in his muddy field uniform while Lee wore his full dress uniform. As a part of the agreement, all officers and men were to be pardoned and sent home with their private property—horses, which could be used for a late spring planting. In addition, Grant permitted the Confederate officers to retain their side arms. Finally, Lee’s men (25,000 of them), who were starving after months with no food, were fed Union rations (these were Confederate rations confiscated by Gen. Philip Sheridan the day before when he seized rebel supply trains at Appomattox Station).

Instead of permitting celebration, Grant told his officers, “The war is over. The Rebels are our countrymen again.” Scattered resistance continued for nearly sixteen weeks before the war came to a complete end.

DID THE WAR REALLY END?

There was a controversy over whether or not the war ended with this surrender. This was definitely a victory for the Union and Grant’s peace agreement with Lee set the pace for how other generals would surrender. While Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia, there was still a number of Confederate forces that remained active—especially Gen. Joseph E. Johnston’s Army of Tennessee, the 2nd largest Confederate army after Lee’s.

WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? TIMELINE OF THE END OF THE WAR

April 12: Johnston and his men learned of Lee’s surrender. The next day Johnson asked Sherman to discuss terms of surrender, which occurred officially on April 26. Johnston & 90,000 Confederates surrender to terms much like the between Grant & Lee. ehistory.osu.edu/articles/johnston%E2%80%99s-surrender

May 4: Lt. Gen. Richard Taylor (son of former President, Zachary Taylor and brother-in-law of Jefferson Davis) surrendered his army of 10,000 men under similar terms in Alabama. www.mycivilwar.com/battles/650504.html A few days later, Lt. General Nathan Bedford Forrest surrendered his cavalry at Gainesville, AL. www.battlefields.org/learn/biographies/nathan-bedford-forrest

May 10: Union soldiers captured disgraced Confederate President Jefferson Davis near Irwinville, GA as he and his cabinet retreated from their capital of Richmond, VA. www.americanheritage.com/was-jefferson-davis-captured-dress

May 12: Col. John “Rip” Salmon Ford and his force of 350 Confederates defeated 800 Union troops led Col. Theodore H. Barrett in the Battle of Palmito Ranch (TX), which was mainly a battle of Texans vs. Texans. www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/palmito-ranch

May 26: Lt. Gen. E. Kirby Smith’s Army of the Trans-Mississippi (the last major Confederate force still fighting) began to disintegrate and surrendered at Galveston, TX. www.history.com/this-day-in-history/one-of-the-last-confederate-generals-surrenders

June 23: Brig. Gen. Stand Watie (the first Native American to serve as a Confederate General) acknowledged defeat and surrendered his unit that was comprised of Confederate Cherokee, Creek, Seminole and Osage troops near Fort Towson and was the last Confederate general to give up his command. www.history.com/news/stand-watie-cherokee-confederate-civil-war-general

August: CSS Shenandoah, a Confederate raider ship, did not surrender but instead stowed its guns and made a covert escape for Liverpool, England (where it flew its Confederate flag for the last time). www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/american-civil-war/liverpool-and-american-civil-war

2 April 1866: Pres. Andrew Johnson issued a proclamation stating that the Civil War was officially over in all of the rebelling states except for Texas (it had not created a new state government at that time). millercenter.org/the-presidency/presidential-speeches/april-2-1866-proclamation-end-confederate-i...

20 Aug 1866: Pres. Johnson formally (and finally) proclaimed an end to the insurrection after acknowledging Texas’ new state government. millercenter.org/the-presidency/presidential-speeches/august-20-1866-message-proclaiming-end-insu...

#April9th #LeeSurrenders #AppomattoxCourtHouseVA #CivilWar #USHistory #ShippenManor

RESOURCES:

“Civil War Facts.” American Battlefield Trust. www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/civil-war-facts.

“McLean House.” Appomattox Court House, National Historic Park, VA. National Park Service. www.nps.gov/apco/learn/education/mclean-house.htm.

Plante, Trevor K. “Ending the Bloodshed, the Last Surrenders of the Civil War.” Prologue Magazine, Spring 2015, Vol 47, No. 1. The National Archives. www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2015/spring/cw-surrenders.html#:~:text=Grant%20proposed%20....

Pruitt, Sarah. “Why the Civil War Actually Ended 16 Months After Lee Surrendered.” History Channel. www.history.com/news/why-the-civil-war-actually-ended-16-months-after-lee-surrendered#:~:text=On%....

“Robert E. Lee Surrenders.” History Channel. www.history.com/this-day-in-history/robert-e-lee-surrenders.

“The Surrender Meeting,” Appomattox Court House, National Historic Park, VA. National Park Service. www.nps.gov/apco/learn/historyculture/the-surrender-meeting.htm. ... See MoreSee Less

Shippen Manor

1 week ago

#TODAYINHISTORY US officially enters World War I

On this date in 1917, the US will officially enter World War I following a Senate vote of 82 to 6 to declare war against Germany, the US House of Representatives endorsed the declaration by a vote of 373 to 50.

EVENTS LEADING TO WWI

There was growing tension in Europe between the different nations. Following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (Austrian-Hungarian Empire), the fragile stability of Europe disintegrated. This war did not begin as a result of the assassination—that was the “final straw”.

The other causes include:

1. Mutual defense alliances (this is a tangled web of alliances—sometimes historical, other times cultural and ethnic—Russia & Serbia, Germany & Austria-Hungary, France & Russia, Britain & France & Belgium, and Japan & Britain).

2. Imperialism (prior to WWI, European countries were dividing the continent of Africa, creating greater competition for expansion and access to natural resources and a human labor force.)

3. Militarism (Germany entered into an unofficial arms race with Britain—greatly increasing its navy. Germany and Russia also built up their military forces, which helped push the countries into war.)

4. Nationalism (This was mostly based on the Slavic people of Bosnia & Herzegovina to separate from Austria-Hungary and be a part of Serbia, as a separate nation. Each tried to prove their dominance and power in Europe.)

5. Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand (He was the heir to the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. His assassination (killed by Gavrilo Princip, a member of the Serbian-nationalist terrorist group called the “Black Hand”) occurred when he visited Sarajevo, Bosnia and catapulted the fragile alliances into war.)

EVENTS LEADING TO US INVOLVEMENT IN WWI

Initially, the United States wanted to remain “neutral” (even though it was providing food and other supplies to the Allied forces during the war), there were specific events that brought the U.S. into the war.

1. February 1915: Germany announced unrestricted warfare against all ships, neutral or other, that entered the war zone around Great Britain. (The Germans introduced the U-boat, “Unterseeboot”.)

2. 7 May 1915: Sinking of the British-owned Lusitania, an ocean liner that was torpedoed without warning off the coast of Ireland by a German U-boat. The German government maintained that the Lusitania was carrying munitions, but the U.S. demanded reparations and an end to German attacks on unarmed passenger and merchant vessels.

3. January 1917: The Zimmermann Telegram was a coded note sent by the German Foreign Minister (Arthur Zimmermann) to the Mexican government. It asked the Mexican government to declare war on the United States (if it declared war against Germany). In return, if Germany won the war, Mexico would take back Texas, Arizona and New Mexico (some of the land from the Mexican Secession, which was the result of the Mexican American War). Fortunately, the British captured and deciphered the telegram and showed it to Pres. Woodrow Wilson in February. The telegram was then published in US newspapers on March 1. While the Lusitania still upset many Americans, the public’s reaction to this document was so strong, that it was inevitable that the U.S. would enter the war on behalf of the Allies.

ALLIANCES

When Europe erupted into war, it divided amongst former and current alliances (and former treaties, etc.).
The Central Powers (Triple Alliance) consisted of Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy (1914), and Turkey (former Ottoman Empire, 1914).

The Allied Powers (Triple/Quadruple Entente) consisted of Britain, France, Russia (until 3 March 1918), and the United States (April 1917). Russia left the war as the country was involved in its own civil war, which led to the collapse of the tsarist regime and the emergence of Soviet Communism.
#WorldWarI #WartoEndAllWars #TheGreatWar #Allies #April1917 ... See MoreSee Less

Shippen Manor

2 weeks ago

A little something interesting for #ThrowbackThursday.

The original factory of Daniel Beatty (Beethoven Piano & Organ Co.) was located on the corner of Washington Ave and Broad Street before relocating to Railroad Ave. The original building is still there. You can still see the resemblance.

The building was originally constructed in 1835 and renovated in 1999.

Daniel Fisher Beatty
b. 14 Aug 1848, Mt. Lebanon, Hunterdon Co., NJ
d. 18 Jan 1914, Harlem, NY
buried in Washington Cemetery

Beatty was born on the summit of Schooley's Mt (near Beattystown) in Lebanon Twp. He was the son of George W. and Elizabeth Fisher Beatty.

Beatty was one of the first producers of pianos & organs that utilized the mail order system to sell his instruments. Established in 1869 in Washington, he sold instruments to farms and rural areas through mass mailings and aggressive advertising campaigns.

He moved his factory from the building on W. Washington & Broad to one on Railroad Ave. Around 1892, the Needham Piano co. took over control of Beatty's business. The factory on Railroad Ave was destroyed by fire in 1916, a year after the John Sommer Co. of Newark acquired the property (they made faucets and piano backs).

Today, the area where the factory was located is empty.
#DanielFBeatty #PianoandOrganMfg #WashingtonBoroNJ #WarrenCoNJ #ShippenManor ... See MoreSee Less

Shippen Manor

2 weeks ago

#CIVILWAR Soldiers’ & Sailors’ Monument, Phillipsburg

Located in Shappell Park (formerly called Lovell Square, which was the former site of the Phillipsburg Town Hall), the Soldiers’ & Sailors’ Monument was dedicated on 10 May 1906. Present were the Governor of New Jersey, Edward C. Stokes, the GAR (Grand Army of the Republic) and the 2nd Reg’t of the New Jersey National Guard. The Easton Express newspaper stated that the citizens of Phillipsburg fundraised $4800 (out of the total cost of $5500) for this monument. There are also three 13-inch seacoast mortars located at each corner of the park. In addition, “the three mortars around the monument and the one on the soldiers’ plot in the cemetery are the property of the Tolmie Post (GAR post)” and were donated by the War Department through a special act of Congress (Cummins, 252).

These were all active mortars used during the Civil War.

1. Two were at the Siege of Vicksburg (MS) during engagements in 1862 and 1863.--a

2. One was captured and recaptured at least three times at Island No. 10.--b

3. One was at the front at the Battle of Fredericksburg, VA (Cummins, 252). --c

4. The 4th mortar was removed from the cemetery under suspicious circumstances.

Dr. George Wyckoff Cummins, in his book, The History of Warren County, NJ (1911), stated that “on July 4, 1870, General Theodore Runyon dedicated a Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Monument in the Phillipsburg Cemetery, which was afterwards removed under very peculiar conditions which constituted the highest grade of vandalism ever permitted by the local citizens of an enlightened community” (page 252).

Mortar info:

a. The Siege of Vicksburg (MS) was a series of engagements and during the Siege, General U.S. Grant cut the town off from their supply line and is a classic example of “siege warfare”. (see: www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/vicksburg and www.historynet.com/battle-of-vicksburg)

b. ”Battle of Island No. 10” was an engagement at New Madrid (Missouri) or Kentucky Bend on the Mississippi River during the Civil War from 28 Feb to 8 April 1862. The fall of Island No. 10 was a significant blow to the Confederate defensive lines in the west that ran along the Kentucky-Tennessee border and reached the Mississippi River at Columbus. Following the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson by Gen. Grant in Feb 1862, the line was abandoned and a new one was set in Tennessee. (see: www.new-madrid.mo.us/152/Civil-War-in-New-Madrid and wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Article/CS2560 and www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_island_10.html)

c. The Battle of Fredericksburg, VA was where Major General Ambrose E. Burnside took command of the Army of the Potomac (the larger of the Union Armies) and made plans to move on Richmond, VA (capital of the Confederacy). He crossed the Rappahannock River before Gen. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia could block their route. (see: www.battlefields.org/learn/civil-war/battles/fredericksburg and www.nps.gov/frsp/learn/historyculture/fburghist.htm)

#SoldiersandSailorsMonument #ShappelPark #PhillipsburgNJ #CivilWar #13InchSeaCoastMortars #Vicksburg #IslandNo10 #FredericksburgVA #GeorgeWCummins #WarrenCoNJ #ShippenManor ... See MoreSee Less

Shippen Manor

2 weeks ago

#WomensHistoryMonth Molly Pitchers of the American Revolution

Most have heard of “Molly Pitcher” but what they may not realize is that she was not a single woman bearing that name. It was actually a nickname for women who fought during the American Revolution—Molly (an Irish nickname for woman or girl) and Pitcher (a woman who fetches water for the artillery).

The most famous Molly was Mary Ludwig Hays McCauley (13 Oct 1754 near Trenton, NJ to 22 Jan 1832 in Carlisle, PA), a daughter of a NJ dairy farmer who married William Hays, a gunner in the 4th PA Artillery and served in the Continental Army. Although she earned the title of “Sergeant”, women were not permitted to serve as soldiers in the war. Therefore, it was a title given to her out of respect, but was not a paid position. When William was wounded during the Battle of Monmouth, she took his place at the artillery piece. Soldier & diarist, Joseph Plumb Martin witnessed her valor and wrote how “a cannon shot from the enemy passed directly between her legs without doing any other damage than carrying away the lower part of her petticoat. Looking at it with apparent unconcern, she observed that it was lucky it did not pass a little higher, for in that case it might have been carried away something else, and continued her occupation.” Following the battle, Gen. Washington wanted to meet the brave woman working with the artillery crew and promoted her to a non-commissioned officer (“Sergeant”). She did not serve in another battle, but enjoyed her nickname for the entirety of her life.

William Hays died after the war (1786) and left Mary a good deal of land. She married her second husband John McCauley in 1792. He foolishly spent her inheritance, leaving her poor and destitute. He disappeared after 1807, leaving Mary to spend the remainder of her days in poverty. In 1822, PA awarded her a veteran’s pension of $40/year in an act titled, “For the relief of Molly McKolly [McCauley] for her services during the Revolutionary War”. She lived with her son, John and his wife and seven children. She died on 22 January 1832 at age 79 and was interred in the Carlisle Old Graveyard (PA), where a cannon and statue are positioned above her burial site. There is also a monument in Monmouth, New Jersey.

Margaret Cochran Corbin (12 Nov 1751 in Franklin Co., PA to 16 Jan 1800 in Westchester Co., NY) was the first woman to fight in the American Revolution. She and husband John Corbin, both from Philadelphia, PA, joined 600 American soldiers in defending Fort Washington, in northern Manhattan, NY on 16 Nov 1776. This was the only American stronghold left on the island as the British were more than capable in battle and were pushing the Continental Army out of New York City (soon to New Jersey).

During the battle, John Corbin and most of his artillery team were killed when the Hessians moved up the hill towards the fort. Margaret took position at her husband’s cannon and continued to fire on the enemy instead of moving to a safer location. She stopped the Hessians (German mercenaries hired by the British to supplement their forces). When the Hessians focused on stopped Margaret, she sustained debilitating injuries when three musket balls and some grapeshot (small-caliber rounds packed in grape clusters) hit her. Her left arm was nearly severed from her body and she had wounds to her jaw and chest. When the British took New York City, they found Margaret in critical condition by her cannon. British doctors were able to save her life, but her left arm was so damaged that it was paralyzed. When she was well enough to travel, Margaret was paroled with other wounded prisoners and joined the Invalid Regiment at West Point, helping care for other wounded soldiers.

Due to her injuries, she was unable to support herself. On 6 July 1779, Congress awarded her a lifetime pension in recognition of her service, which was about $3.30 per month. It was the first time that the new government would officially recognize the military service of a woman. However, she only received half of the pension amount a man would receive. A few years later, officers who knew her plight (including Paul Revere) urged Congress to award her an additional clothing and rum allowance. Gen. Henry Knox (who was with Gen. Washington at the Delaware Crossing), commander of the Continental Army’s artillery, personally supplied her with a servant to help her to bathe and eat. She died in 1800 at the age of 49. Unlike Mary Ludwig, Margaret Corbin did not receive full military honors when she died. It was not until 1926 when the NY State Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution verified her record that her remains were reinterred with full military honors at the West Point Cemetery. She is only one of two Revolutionary War soldiers buried there. In addition, near the site of the battle, in Fort Tryon Park (NYC), a bronze plaque commemorates her as “the first American woman to take a soldier’s part in the War for Liberty.”

Both women followed their husbands into war—as camp followers who helped with the cooking and laundry to women who accompanied them onto the battlefield. It was not common or socially acceptable for women to be on the battlefield, but a few were.

#MollyPitchers #MaryLudwigHays #MargaretCochranCorbin #BattleofFortWashington #BattleofMonmouth #AmericanRevolution #WomeninHistory #WomensHistoryMonth #NJHistory #PAHistory #WestPoint #ShippenManor

RESOURCES

Alexander, Kerri Lee. “Mary Ludwig Hays (1754-1832). National Women’s History Museum. Alexandria, Virginia. 2018-19. www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/mary-ludwig-hays.

Good, Cassandra. “Molly Pitcher, the Most Famous American Hero Who Never Existed.” Smithsonian Magazine Online. 17 March 2021. www.smithsonianmag.com/history/molly-pitcher-most-famous-american-hero-who-never-existed-180977229/.

“Life Story: Margaret Corbin (1751-1800).” Women & the American Story. NY State History. wams.nyhistory.org/settler-colonialism-and-revolution/the-american-revolution/margaret-corbin/.

Schenawolf, Harry. “Margaret Corbin: Before Molly Pitcher, Captain Molly Fired her Husband’s Cannon When He Fell in Battle.” Revolutionary War Journal. 1 Aug 2019. www.revolutionarywarjournal.com/margaret-corbin-two-years-before-molly-pitcher-captain-molly-was-....

Teipe, Emily J. “Will the Real Molly Pitcher Please Stand Up?” Prologue Magazine. National Archives. Summer 1999, Vol. 31, No. 2. www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/1999/summer/pitcher.html ... See MoreSee Less