A 1911 Letter Referencing Samuel Peters As Part Of Confederate History Week On April 30, 2014

It is April 30, 2014 and we are at episode number five in Confederate History Week.  I am also continuing the 150th Anniversary of the American Civil War.

On this day in the year 1911, the letter presented in this video was written.  The man who wrote the letter was a Union Veteran named Matthew Peters.  In the letter, he describes his experiences in the conflict and at the tail end, he mentions his brother, Samuel Peters, who fought for the Confederacy.  This is an example of two brothers who fought on opposite sides of the War.  In this video, I specifically discuss Samuel Peters.



Here are two very handsome images ...




There is very little information about Samuel M. Peters on the internet.  Here are two links that make brief references to him:
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~ilicgs/bio/page1.htm
http://m.daily-journal.com/news/local/watseka-museum-puts-spotlight-on-civil-war/article_f47c2c43-d9b2-5e57-a488-be2d0cf88811.html

Confederate Bond Interest Receipts As Part Of Confederate History Week On April 29, 2014

Hello everyone.  This is Michael once again.  It is April 29, 2014 and this is day number four in Confederate History Week here at the Michael The Researcher channel.  Today I am going to discuss Confederate Bond Interest Receipts.

The Confederate States Of America needed to fund the War somehow and they came up with a bond program.  In the following video I briefly describe these Bond Interest Receipts.

These receipts were under the bond and they could be cut off.  You can see that some of these are irregularly cut.  The amounts are $4, $20, $3 and $30.  They were issued on August 19, 1861 and February 17, 1864.  They were redeemable in the late 1860s, 1870s and 1880s.  As all of you know, the War was long over by those dates and I assume the holders of these receipts did not get to cash them in.  You will note some signatures on these receipts.  A number of clerks were hired to take on the role of Register Of The Treasury for signing purposes.  Some receipts feature printed signatures of Robert Tyler who was the son of former President John Tyler.



Would you buy a used Confederate Bond from this man??

Confederate Canister Shots As Part Of Confederate History Week On April 28, 2014

It is April 28, 2014.  This is the third episode in the Confederate History Week Series.  I am also continuing the Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War.  Today I have for you a couple of canister shots - one small and one large.  These shots are an example of ammunition.  They are similar to the Naval grape shots that were used during the Conflict.  A number of these shots were placed inside of a canister and fired.

These are specifically of Confederate manufacture, and are poorly cast.  They are certainly of a lesser quality compared to Union examples.  The Confederate States Of America simply did not have enough funds and resources and did the best with what they had.

Here is a video showing the canister shots:

The url for the above video in case it does not embed properly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvEkLEn1FJo

Photographs ...

A Visit To The Mass Confederate Burial At Finn's Point National Cemetery In Pennsville, NJ For Confederate History Week

It is April 27, 2014 and this is the second episode in Michael The Researcher's Confederate History Week Series.  This video was also filmed in conjunction with the 150th Anniversary of the American Civil War.  For this episode, I traveled to Finn's Point National Cemetery in Pennsville, New Jersey.

Some of you will recall a video that I posted five years ago.  It was filmed at the Nassau Cemetery in Princeton, New Jersey.  There I stumbled upon the grave of a Confederate General.  I was shocked to see a Confederate Veteran's grave in a New Jersey cemetery.  Today I went to another New Jersey cemetery and this one includes 2,436 Confederate Veterans' graves.  In this video I will take you inside of the Finn's Point National Cemetery to view the premises and the Confederate Memorial/Monument.

There are no tombstones for any of the Confederate Soldiers who are buried here.  The Confederates were Prisoners Of War at Fort Delaware and were taken to Finn's Point after they had passed away.

Video footage of the day:


Photographs ...




I did not bother to film this information sign since it is so nasty ... a picture is bad enough:


The Confederate Memorial/Monument ...





Open areas where burial spots are likely ...




Here are views of all four sides of the Memorial/Monument featuring plaques that name all 2,436 Confederate Veterans ...






This was by the road on the way out of the Cemetery.  I thought it looked nice so I decided to take some photographs ...




On the way home, I stopped into a store that was on South Road in Pennsville ... very fitting given the day, where I had just been and the overall Confederate History Week:

Confederate Memorial Day With The Bonnie Blue Flag By Polk Miller And His Old South Quartette Blue Amberol Cylinder Record

It is April 26, 2014 and April 26 is Confederate Memorial Day.  This video begins Confederate History Week here at the Michael The Researcher blogspot page.  This first episode is very, very special because you get to hear the voice of an actual Confederate Veteran.  I have for you a Thomas Edison Company Blue Amberol Cylinder Record.  It features "The Bonnie Blue Flag" by Polk Miller And His Old South Quartette.  This song is very incredible for a number of reasons.  Polk Miller, the lead vocalist, was a Confederate Artilleryman in the American Civil War and The Old South Quartette was comprised of four Black males.  Some of them may have been born in slavery or some of them may have had parents who were born in slavery.  In addition, this song may be the very first recording of an integrated band in a studio.  Yes, the song in this video may be the very first example of a White and Black integrated recording session.

The recording of the song "The Bonnie Blue Flag" took place in November of 1909.  The first pressing, in wax, was released in 1910 and the second pressing, in celluloid, was released in 1914.  This video features the 1914 celluloid record.  Both pressings are of the 1909 session.

Despite the great popularity that Polk Miller and The Old South Quartette enjoyed, they faced discrimination in both the South and the North.  At one point, Polk had hired police protection for The Old South Quartette and eventually called it quits.  Polk Miller toured with more than 20 Black males in different versions of The Old South Quartette.  Out of the 20-plus, we only know two names: Randall Graves, the tenor vocalist, and James L. Stamper, the bass vocalist.  As far as I know, both are in this recording and Stamper's bass vocals are featured prominently.  He shines in this song.

Polk Miller eventually passed away in October of 1913.  He lives on through the Sergeant's pet care company. Polk was also a pharmacist and chemist.  He began a pet care named after his favorite hunting dog, Sergeant.  I show two old brochures from the company Polk started in this video.

Since it is the subject of the song, I show a Bonnie Blue Flag replica in this video and I describe the history of it.

The video:


Photographs ...





Here are two Sergeant's brochures from 1927 and 1937 (both make reference to Polk and he can be seen with Sergeant in the 1927 brochure) ...





This final jpeg is a screenshot from youtube's page informing me of a copyright violation:


My response to that nonsense is in this video:


Public Domain information: https://www.pdinfo.com/PD-Song-List/PD-Song-List-Best-B.php
 
I have to give a world of credit to Vimeo for allowing a clear host of this video.  Much thanks.

Full Title: "Confederate Memorial Day With The Bonnie Blue Flag By Polk Miller And His Old South Quartette Blue Amberol Cylinder Record (Catalog Number 2175)"

William Shakespeare's 450th Birth Anniversary And A Fragment Of His Fourth Folio Edition From 1685

It is April 23, 2014. On this day 450 years ago, it is believed that England's own William Shakespeare was born. In honor of Shakespeare's 450th Birth Anniversary, I pulled out a fragment of his Fourth Folio Edition: The Tragedy Of Locrine. The entire title is Mr. William Shakespeare’s Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies. Published according to the true Original Copies. Unto which is added, Seven Plays, Never before Printed in Folio … The Fourth Edition. This work was published in London by Bentley, Brewster, Chiswell and Herringman in the year 1685. A miniature bust of the playwright looks on. Someone years ago reinforced the leaves with additional paper. You will note the linen used in the paper. It is also known as rag fiber. Printers used to collect old clothing to boil and flatten into paper in those days.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vYJLxU2Os4






Here you can see the clothing or rag fibers in the linen paper:


If you wish to read along with these leaves, I found a copy of the same text on a Shakespeare website: http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Library/facsimile/overview/book/F4.html (The Tragedy Of Locrine is the last entry in the menu and after you arrive at the viewer, you would click thirteen times to get to page 299)

The New York Herald Newspaper From April 16, 1864 Featuring American Civil War News ... Published Exactly 150 Years Ago Today!

The American Civil War Sesquicentennial continues! Today I am bringing you news of the conflict as it was reported 150 years ago. This blog entry features a newspaper from 1864. It is a copy of The New York Herald Newspaper that was published on April 16, 1864 ... exactly 150 years ago today. It contains American Civil War news. You will note the horrific details of the War as well as advertisements, stock exchange quotes and more.

This video is blurry in parts (I did my best with it) and I accidentally skipped two pages (I took photographs of those pages):


The url for the video above: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-zbhNDUoLk

Here is the front page:


This issue cost three cents:


Here you can read the horrifying details of what took place during the War:


Here are two visuals pertaining to Fort Pillow ...





Railroad shares:


Fascinating Wall Street news:


Stock Exchange, sales and marriages:


Sales and deaths:


Deaths and help wanted:


Real estate, "The Turf", horses, carriages and personals:


Instruction, rewards and legal notices:


Dentistry, hotels and insurance:


More news:


The House Of Representatives and a new Internal Revenue bill:


More news War and otherwise ...





More advertisements:


Houses, rooms , boarding and lodging:


Auction sales, other sales and religious notices:


More news War and otherwise ...




"The Bounty Broker Business":


The last page:


There you have it ... a newspaper with first-hand accounts of the American War Between The States from the very day it was printed and published ... literally a century and a half ago!