The Fort Brooke Record

February 1999

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An Exciting February

This month we are privileged to have coming our way from the state of Louisiana, the author of The South Was Right!, Mr. Donald Kennedy. Actually Mr. Kennedy is coming to our area to be a speaker at the Florida League of the South Conference (see the ad sheet for details) which will be held here in Tampa on the Saturday immediately before our February Monday meeting. But there is just no way that we could pass up on an opportunity like this-we had to invite him to speak to our camp. Don Kennedy is a "must hear" for those of us who believe in the Southern Cause. And you will be able to see and hear him at the February meeting at Buddy Freddys.

Donald, in conjunction with twin brother Ronald, have authored several books. The first in 1991 was The South Was Right! and that was followed in 1995 by Why Not Freedom! Just recently, the latest book by this committed duo of Southern brothers was published and that book; Was Jefferson Davis Right?

The first book was reviewed in 1994 by Tampa Tribune news editor David Hardin. His concluding sentence in that powerful review was "A respite from Yankee history is offered by The South Was Right! whose exclamation point, in some typefaces, is rather like a cannon being fired." The entire review should be required reading for every journalist and media type. Without a doubt this book has become the

bible of the Southern Heritage Renaissance and reawakening movement. It spells out clearly and without apology the heart and soul of the Southern rationale for the War. And to really get the readers attention, the authors spend much time graphically noting, from well bibliographed sources, the appalling Yankee conduct of the War against the South. The end effect of reading this book upon the aware Southerner is to elevate his internal temperature several degrees. The lukewarm become warm, the warm become hot, and the hot go off of the scale.

"...the authors present their case, as Davis defenders, that their client was innocent of all of the heinous allegations made against him...Was the president of the Confederacy a traitor or a patriot? Was he guilty or innocent? Was Jefferson Davis right?..."

Donald Kennedy is today an active member of the SCV and is a past commander of the Louisiana Division of the Sons of Confederate Veterans. He was until very recently on the Executive Council of the International Sons of Confederate Veterans. The fact that he is a successful author is secondary to the passion he feels for the South. If there were no passion, no doubt, he would not be a prolific writer. A Nurse Anesthesiologist by vocation Donald still finds time to have done 700 radio shows across the nation.

Also, Donald is on the Board of Directors of the League of the South. This is the forum where he finds an application for the truths of Southern history and heritage. Some believe that the Southern Cause found its grave in the tears of Appomattox. Donald finds that the Southern Cause is just as alive and vibrant today as it was in 1861.

So you have two opportunities to meet and to hear Mr. Donald Kennedy. At the Tampa League of the South Conference on the 20th of February (see ad sheet) and at the Lesley Camp meeting on the 22nd at Buddy Freddys. Both ought to be good!

Why Not Freedom! was written as a Southron should look at and interpret the current events of the day. A contemporary conservative without a knowledge of the import of Southern history will see the world of politics, big government and the influences of those forces a little differently. The Kennedy brothers do a wonderful job of planting our intellectual feet into the period of 1861-1865. No doubt, that period is the "dividing line" between small national government of the long ago past and the BIG BIG government of today.

Was Jefferson Davis Right? is the latest literary work by the Kennedys. Again they have taken the time to write in an easy and palatable format a book which strikes at the heart of the Yankee ( and modern) assertion that Davis was a traitor. Nothing can be more basic! If President Jefferson Davis was a traitor to his nation then we as the sons and daughters of Confederate veterans are duped and deserve to be pitied by those who know better. If he was not a traitor then the millions of his countrymen during that time and the Cause for which they fought is vindicated and so are we today.

After the War was over and Davis was captured he was imprisoned as a common criminal while he waited his day in court. The United States government had charged him with, among other things, "treason against the United States Government." But he was never tried. The U.S. authorities rather than risk in court what they had won on the battlefield elected to simply let the first and last president of the Confederate States of America go a free man. Free but not vindicated.

Special: Book Review

Title: Recollections of 92 Years 1824-1916

Author: Elizabeth Avery Meriweather       Published 1958 by the Tennessee Historical Commission

From her life experiences spanning a period of profound changes within Southern society Mrs. Elizabeth Avery Meriweather penned her recollections. From ante-bellum innocence, through the awful inhumanity of four years of War, to an aftermath of social chaos this book captures the essence of a world turned upside down.

Not often do we find archived a record so well written as that we find in this book. Mrs. Meriweather is a superb descriptive writer. The visual images she creates leave little to imagine. During one episode in the bitter winter of 1862-63 we find her near giving birth and with her two toddlers in a mule drawn carriage fleeing before a Yankee advance with General Prices Missouri troops in northern Mississippi. To read the description of these Confederate troops on the march in the dead of winter and to be, by her pen, a witness to their courage and resolve under the hardest and most miserable of conditions is to be impressed that surely Valley Forge could not have been this bad.

A lady of some station, Mrs. Meriweather met some prominent men of her day. Having interacted with General Grant in Memphis she describes him as being even likable. Of General Sherman she reserves the strongest criticism. Sherman evicted her from her Memphis home on a 24 hour notice in retaliation for his gunboats being fired upon by "rebels." This began her three year sojourn through Dixie. After the War she met President Andrew Johnson, Secretary of War Stanton, General Ben "Beast" Butler and other high ranking Federals. Her descriptions of all these men are priceless.

During the course of the "Monster War" she sat on a porch and talked with President Jefferson Davis brother Joseph and after the War she lived very near to and was intimate with the Jefferson Davis family in Memphis.

Of great interest is the attitude of the Meriweather family in regard to the institution of slavery. They were abolitionist in philosophy. Having freed their sizable slave holdings in 1854 nevertheless, by 1861 they had reacquired several slaves because of circumstances and humanitarian concerns. Throughout the four years of his Confederate military service, Mrs. Meriweathers husband, Col. Meriweather, was tended by a loyal freed manservant named Henry.

After the War the liberal and abolitionist minded Col. Meriweather was involved in an effort to stymie and hinder the corrupt and despicable carpetbagger and scalawag rule in Tennessee. That effort was the original and distant Ku Klux Klan. When seen through the first person eyes of Mrs. Meriweather in the ash heap and ruins setting of the post War South it is instructive.

Unfortunately, this book is out of print and can only be found in rare book collections. If you find a copy, cherish it.

Shown is long time Lesley Camp member William Miller of Hudson, Florida. William is shown holding an exact copy of the 1862 replica Springfield musket he was awarded as the winner of the Fall rifle raffle. An ardent Confederate, Mr. Miller hopes to have a monument/flagpole placed in Pasco County near his area in Hudson, Florida.

Of special note, at the January meeting after objecting to the Treasurers tally as reported by the adjutant, Mr. Miller donated $1,000.00 in cash as a free will gift to the camp treasury.

Mr. Miller,

Thank You!

CAMP BUSINESS REPORTS

March Parades A-Coming

March begins with a flurry of parades. March 1, a Monday, is the date for the much heralded Strawberry Festival Parade. This is an important event for the Camp and we do want a FULL compliment in the Colour Guard. The more flags and the sharper looking the guardsmen the better it will be. Those involved with the Colour Guard keep in contact with Mike Herring. Also the brass band will be on the parade float along with all the ladies in period attire we can muster.

The next parade to follow will be the Zephyrhills Founders Day Parade on Saturday the 6th of March. In that parade will be the Colour Guard and the antique vehicles.

The final parade for March will be the St. Patricks Night Parade on Saturday the 13th. This will be a major and full effort by the camp. For further information on any of these parades please contact a camp officer.

Memorial Work Day Scheduled

-Quartermaster Jake English

On February 27, our Camp will hold a work day covering over a dozen cemeteries in Hillsborough County. We will organize teams and contact persons for different cemeteries throughout the area. This means that you will probably not have to drive very far to get to a cemetery, as we will encompass nearly all of the county.   The primary goal is to clean and if need be repair the graves of our Confederate soldiers. 

If you attended the Camp meeting this past fall and signed up for assisting in the Memorial Project, I'll be giving you a call shortly.  If you are interested in helping on this day, please call me at 971-8153.  The scheduled date is Saturday, Feb. 27. The work will start at 8:00 AM and should continue till noon.  We will then meet at Commander Jim Hayward's home where a delicious meal will be waiting.   This will be a time that we can share some of our experiences from the morning. 

Special:

Band Rehearsals Continue

The 8th Florida Regimental Brass Band.

The primary needs of the band continue to be for lower brass players. Needed are trombone, tuba, and baritone. Also, a snare drum player would be a tremendous asset.

Rehearsals are currently being held at Cmdr. Haywards on Saturday mornings at 10 AM. The band will get its debut at the Strawberry Festival Parade where the band will be riding on the parade float.

If you are interested in being a part of this band do call Compatriot Ken Murphy here in Tampa at 689-0527. Remember that a person does not have to be a member of the camp to be a part of this.

January Senior Citizens Parade

The John T. Lesley Camp participated in the Senior Citizens Parade in Zephyrhills on the 23rd of January. We have been in this parade for several years running and the folks in Zephyrhills love us. We will be there again soon in the Founders Day Parade in March.

In this parade we had the Colour Guard with Greg Chappel, Mike Bethune, Wayne Sweat, Mark Salter, and Ross Lamoureaux filling in as the officer. Commander Hayward with wife Rosa drove their 1926 Ford Pickup while Compatriot Richard Robison with wife Donna were in their 1921 Model T. Ford Touring Car. Cmdr. Wayne Tice of the Sons of Union Veterans drove a 1927 Model T Ford Touring Car.

The parade was well attended along 5th Ave in Zephyrhills despite the threat of bad weather. Our flags were prominent and of course the vehicles had the SCV logo on the doors of the antique vehicles.

No doubt, there was nearly a hundred souls at the January meeting to witness an impassioned speech by the Reverend Alan Farley. We had to meet in the larger room adjacent to the regular meeting room. There is no way we would have fit in that regular facility.

Have you ever been to a revival and not seen an alter call? This was the time. This was a Southern Heritage revival. Reverend Farley blended his talent and energy as a preacher with his knowledge of our glorious Southern heritage and then sprinkled on good dose of Christian truth to bring all of those present to their feet. Even those in the restaurant not a part of our meeting were deathly quite as the booming voice of this man of God and of the South reverberated from kitchen to the front door.

No doubt we will certainly invite this remarkable speaker back next January.

Soldier Honoured

On Saturday January 30, 1999, the Lesley Camp, the Mary Custis Lee Chapter 1451, and Co. K 7th Florida Volunteer Infantry teamed up at Lake Carroll Cemetery in North Tampa to honour Corporal John Jackson who served in Co E of the 7th Florida Infantry.

Georgia Monument

A subscriber to the FBR and friend of the Lesley Camp, Georgia Division Past-Cmdr. Scott Gilbert, has asked that we announce a worthwhile project now occurring in Georgia. The Atlanta metro based Lt. Gen. William J. Hardee Chapter, MOSB, is conducting a drive to erect a monument to Lt. General William Hardee in Peachtree City, Georgia . The full-sized work depicting the general with horse assisting an exhausted Confederate soldier with flag has to date raised $3900.00 of the $10,000.00 needed for the project. This project is a joint effort of the Hardee Chapter and Mrs. Gail Hardee Broderick. To contribute, please send your check made payable to the Hardee Monument Fund, to Mrs. Gail Broderick, 403 General Hardee Square, Peachtree City, Georgia 30269. For further information call (770) 631-2630.

A Living History

On Friday, January 22, 1999, at Independent Day School (grades K-8) in north Tampa the Lesley Camp teamed up with Co K 7th Florida to put on a Living History. 400 children were attentive as they were educated about many different aspects of the War.

Subjects covered included Causes, Floridas involvement, Uniforms, Haversacks, Women, Blacks, Music, Artillery, Weapons, and Flags.

Brooksville Raid

Several men of the camp set up a camp display at the Brooksville Reenactment. This was the first time that we set up the new 24 x 12 foot overhead fly. It was very successful.

Confederate Ball Scheduled

The annual Sabre and Rose Ball is scheduled to be held April 10, 1999, in St. Petersburg at the Museum of Fine Art located at 255 Beach Drive NE. Tickets for the event are 55 dollars. Entertainment will be provided by the Rebelaires with Dancemaster Tim Key calling the dances. There will be the presentation of the 1999 Southern Belle Debutante. Also this evening there will be horse drawn carriage service available. Waltz lessons and ballroom etiquette will be given prior to the event by Ms. Kay Holley. For further information on this event please contact Mrs. Shelly Jakes (286-2575) or Mrs Pam Cosentino (920-9740). The March FBRs ad sheet will contain a full page advertisement for this event.

Courthouse Monument Grounds Beautification

The Tampa Chapter 113 has informed the Lesley Camp that they will be beautifying the landscape of the War Memorial at the Hillsborough County Courthouse. They have asked that some volunteers from the Memorial Project workforce assist them in some of the labour intensive work. Jake English is the camp liaison with the ladies of Chapter 113. The goal that has been expressed is to have the grounds in ship-shape condition in time for the Memorial Day Service to be held at the site on Sunday April 25.  Of course, the April 25 service will be a joint effort of the Tampa Chapter and the Lesley Camp. The day after this joint service the annual Honour Guard Duty will take place at the monument.

Oaklawn Ramble

The involvement of Company K and the Lesley Camp in the Tampa Historical Societys annual Oaklawn Ramble this April will be minimum. For whatever reason, we have been informed by a reliable source that this year there will be no program but instead, there will be a "social hour" from 2 until 4 on the afternoon of Sunday, April 18. What a shame!

Recently, my family and I had the opportunity to visit the Patrick R. Cleburne Confederate Cemetery in the city of Jonesboro, Georgia. This cemetery contains 712 headstones.

From August 31 to September 1, 1864, Confederate and Union soldiers engaged in the bloody Battle of Jonesboro, one of the most decisive battles of the Atlanta campaign. Following the battles, the Union soldiers were buried in what is today the Marietta National Cemetery. The Confederate soldiers, most from Hardees and S.D. Lees Corps were buried as unknown soldiers in common graves where they fell. In 1872, the General Assembly of Georgia appropriated $1,000 to the Ladies Memorial Association to enable them to bury the fallen soldiers on a common site. Most of the graves were originally marked by a small tin marker, but by the 1930s, all were gone.

While there are 712 headstones, it is believed that between 600 and 1,000 Confederate soldiers are buried in the Patrick R. Cleburne Cemetery with only three marked headstones.

In 1934, the Ladies Memorial Association erected a stone archway bearing the inscription, "Love Makes Memory Eternal" followed later in the year with the dedication of the granite monument to unknown soldiers killed in the Battle of Jones boro. In early years, school children marched from the schoolhouse to the cemetery with flowers to place on the graves of the fallen soldiers.

I found myself very intrigued by this cemetery. As a minister, I had been in many cemeteries in the past. However, this one was very different. The cemetery is laid out like our Confederate flag, with the crossbars acting as the walkways and the space in between filled by the neatly lined stone markers. In the center, where the crossbars meet, stands a beautiful monument.

I sat quietly upon a stone bench, one that had been stained dark and gray over the years. My eyes fell upon the hundreds of stone markers, all but three blank, revealing their weather beaten condition as well. And yet, I could not help but notice how each marker seemed to stand erect, giving a proud and loyal appearance of duty. To that unknown soldier boy sleeping within that hollow place. It was as if each maker was calling for my attention, beckoning me to not forget about those precious dead and why they fought and died in that battle. Then, for a moment, the wind mysteriously picked up and I looked across the grounds, and at the far end of the cemetery I could hear and see our precious flag waving in the wind. I felt as if it too were calling to me and saying , "Do not forget, Do not forget!"

Why am I a proud member of the Captain John T. Lesley Camp No 1282, Sons of Confederate Veterans? It is certainly not because I dislike people of other races and cultural backgrounds. Jesus tells me that I am to, "Love your neighbor as you love yourself," and I expect there are very few, if any of us who dislikes himself. Jesus also tells me that I am to, "treat others the way I want to be treated." I want to be treated with respect and dignity. It is not because I dislike "Yankees." A "Yankee" is not always a person who was born up North. A "Yankee" is really a state of mind, the way a person might think in a derogatory fashion about the South and our Southern Heritage. I am a member of the Sons of Confederates not because I do not believe in the saluting of our present day American flag. I do not see a conflict between saluting our Confederate flag and our United States flag. I had family members, including my father, who served in our military forces during WWII to preserve our nations freedom. I do not hate anyone, no matter what their race or background may be. Nor, do I dislike someone just because they were born up north, and I do believe in saluting our present day nations flag.

I am a member of the SCV because I feel very strongly about preserving the memory of our Confederate soldiers, and helping people to understand why the men in grey felt compelled to fight that War- to protect their homes, their families and their way of life. I was reminded of this when I sat among those grave of our Confederate dead in the Patrick R. Cleburne Confederate Cemetery in Jonesboro. And, whenever our camp is involved in a memorial service, I am renewed again in that truth.

I am proud to be a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans for all the right reasons, and the most important one is to never forget the sacrifice the Confederate soldier made.

Camp Store

The inventory of the camp store continues to change. Please pay close attention to what is available. If you desire an item that is not apparent, Mike Herring will be the man to contact in order to procure those things and items that have a Southern Heritage flavour. Contact him at home (681-6922) or just come to the meetings and you will have an opportunity to see displayed what is available.

Some items currently available are as follows:

HERITAGE REPORT
by Walt Wingfield, Lesley Camp Heritage Chair

THE GOOD NEWS AND THE BAD NEWS

The bad news this month is mixed, first with the absence of Heritage news and, second with the liberal press that wants to change Southern Heritage simply because it's there.   The good news is that the fight for our Heritage continues over much opposition.   Let's look at what we have this month.

FLORIDA

In Palm Beach, the newspaper "The Palm Beach Post" has a so-called writer named, Randy Schultz, who has taken it upon himself to change the name of one of their middle schools.  The following is an article written by Schultz:

Of the county's 137 public schools, I count 21 named for people.  There is a school named for an architect named Addison Mizner; for Christa McCauliffee, the teacher who died in the Challenger explosion; and for a Senate president and banker, Jerry Thomas.   There are schools named for business and civic leaders, Alex Dreyfoos and William Ewyer and for educators such as U. B. Kinsey and H. L. Johnson.  There are also schools named after the American presidents Washington, Lincoln, Eisenhower, and Kennedy.  

And, there is Jefferson Davis Middle School, named for the man who led the eleven breakaway states during what still is the bloodiest conflict in American history.   "I never thought about it," said school board chairwoman, Sandi Richmond.   "Actually, I'm embarrassed that I hadn't thought about it." The school is less than a mile from district headquarters on Forest Hill Blvd west of Palm Beach.

The board may not think about it because, over time, the school has become known simply "Jeff Davis."  Blacks who held a grudge might have figured that it was one more slight they had to endure.

And those who worried that fewer Americans know history might suggest that people don't think about it because not many people know who Jefferson Davis was  a successful farmer who married well, a congressman and senator who served with distinction in the Mexican War and believed whites had the right to own blacks.  The name change for the school is being discussed for change after the students complete the new Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. Schultz further added that we should forget all the tired arguments about what the South supposedly stood for during the Civil War or the War Between the States or the War of Northern Aggression.  Palm Beach County in 1999 would not consider naming a school for Jefferson Davis.....  In an alleged phone call with Dr. Richmond of the school board, Richmond allegedly says he would be appalled if anyone suggested naming a new school after Jefferson Davis.

Richmond further allegedly stated Palm Beach County still works to provide an equal education for minority students, removing Jefferson Davis' name would acknowledge a past mistake and score some symbolic points in the larger struggle.  Dr. Richmond further allegedly stated she was going to suggest naming the school after the late Lawton Chiles.

HERE ARE SOME ADDRESSES AND PHONE NUMBERS

(Do not waste your time writing to Mr. Schultz. He is a lost cause!)

School District of Palm Beach County
3300 Forest Hill Blvd.
West Palm Beach, FL 33406

Superintendent of Schools Joan Kowal (561)434-8000

Jefferson Davis Middle School
c/o Principal Sandra Jinks
1560 Kirk Rd.
West Palm Beach, FL 33406

FLORIDA

"Awaken Industries" in Titusville, Florida prints a button catalog which one button in the catalog contains a Confederate Battle Flag.  The text on the button reads, "Your Heritage IS Hate!  Let it Burn!"

Perhaps we can display our displeasure with Awaken Industries.  We can contact them as follows:

Awaken Industries
600 Mimosa Avenue
Titusville, FL  32796
(407) 267-0093 or
E-mail them at [email protected]

From the Adjutants Desk

We are pleased to welcome as members to the John T. Lesley Camp 1282 the following four new Compatriots

Mr. John Wright McDowell, III,
Mr. John Pierce Harwell,
Mr. Alvin Livingston Jr.
Mr. Harold Eugene Skipper.

Also it is our pleasure to announce that  Mr. Thomas A. West and Mr. Stephan G. Anastassion have joined our ranks in the Confederate Legion. That occurring at the Lesley Booth at the Brooksville raid.

The camp roster stands at  199 Current Members with 174 members having paid their 1999 dues. A total of 25 men need to renew their SCV camp dues. Thanking those members who have already sent in their dues.

The balance of 1999 Membership Cards will be mailed out about the same time as this newsletter has been delivered.

Confederate Veteran magazine subscriptions for Legionnaires are in the works.

Adjutant Dwight Tetrick
19126 Amelia Circle
Lutz, FL 33549
(813) 949-4746

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