A New (to me) Blog Worth Checking Out

Thanks to Hampton Newsome, who shared a recent review of his book, I have discovered the Random Thoughts on History blog. Admittedly, I do not follow nearly as many blogs as I used to, mainly due to the increased use of social media platforms. Random Thoughts on History will be added to my blogroll on the right side of the page, but here's a link for quick reference. Enjoy!
http://randomthoughtsonhistory.blogspot.com/

What I'm Currently Reading

I came across a review on another blog today of the book I'm currently reading. I'm stepping out of my usual area of interest to read Eric Hobsbawm's Age of Revolution. I purchased all four books in Hobsbawm's series (Revolution, Capital, Empire, and Extremes) while I was in college and grad school, back when I was seriously thinking about focusing on 20th century European history (a very fleeting moment, for sure). However, I've always thought that one day I'd return to the series and read all four books. I started reading Age of Revolution last month and have been reading a chapter here, a chapter there as time allows. Seeing this review this morning was very interesting and sort of spurs me to speed things up a bit and get moving on this book and the series.

If you haven't checked out the blog, The Junto, you really should do so, especially if you are interested in early American history. It is most definitely an academic blog, but there's a whole lot to like about the stuff they are posting. It's well worth monitoring for little nuggets like today's book review.

And Speaking of Books......

Thanks to Andrew Wagenhoffer over at Civil War Books and Authors for posting an informative review of a new book dealing with Civil War naval history. While this book obviously has it's limitations, it sounds like a worthwhile read for folks who are truly interested in the subject matter.

Checking in After a Long Month

I was hoping to get the chance to blog all of the March events separately, but the time simply did not materialize. I've probably been spending way too much of what little free time I have on Facebook and not paying attention to other things (like this blog and huge backlog of magazines I've yet to peruse/read). At any rate, here I am to recap the past three weekends of being on the road.

March 9-11 found me in Newport News, VA with my friends Chris and Jim for the 150th anniversary of the Battle of Hampton Roads (you know, the famous battle between the USS Monitor and the CSS Virginia, nee Merrimack). We participated in the living history program at the Mariner's Museum and also presented a panel discussion on the topic of North Carolina-built ironclads as part of their Civil War Navy Conference. The weekend was really a lot of fun and we got to catch up with lots of old friends and make some new ones. It was really great to meet all of my fellow bloggers from the Civil War Navy Sesquicentennial Blog. It was a long weekend, but well worth the trip.

March 17-18 I found myself at Bentonville Battlefield for their 147th anniversary program. I served as gunner/interpreter for the artillery demonstrations both days and had the pleasure of working with the cannon crew from Fort Fisher.

March 21-22 I traveled with two friends to Lexington, VA and the beautiful campus of VMI for the Virginia Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War Signature Conference. The conference was good, but all of the ancillary activities made the trip even more enjoyable. Of course we visited the graves of Stonewall Jackson and Robert E. Lee (and more importantly to me, John Mercer Brooke). We took in all the scenery around the campuses of VMI and Washington & Lee University. We even got to see the cadets practicing for a ceremony that was being held the following day; this rehearsal included the firing of four 105mm howitzers, which for me was really cool. As I mentioned previously, the conference was good. My favorite speakers were probably Carol Reardon, James I. Robertson, and Gary Gallagher. Mark Neely was pretty good as well.

Finally, March 23-24 I was with my messmates of the Carolina Living History Guild and our friends from the Fort Fisher cannon crew (aka Braddy's Battery) and Adams Battery artillery for the 150th anniversary of the occupation of Beaufort, NC. This program was co-sponsored by the NC Maritime Museum and the Beaufort Historical Association. We really had the prime real estate for this program, being set up for living history and for "camping" inside the Watercraft Center (boat building shop) of the Maritime Museum. The building is really a great facility and it provided both shelter from the two rain showers that rolled through as well as cool breezes off the water. We spent our evenings on the dock enjoying the scenery and a few cigars. The program was well-attended and we participated in a nighttime artillery demonstration at Fort Macon State Park designed to promote their 150th anniversary reenactment coming up next month. All in all, good times were had with good friends and that's what really matters.

After such a long and hectic few weeks, I have decided to stay home this weekend and not attend the War for Empire event at Fort Dobbs. I have attended this event for two years running and it is one of the best events in the state, but I am tired and need some down time. War for Empire will wait until next year when our schedule isn't nearly so busy. I have a couple of weeks to rest up and retool for another busy month in April. More on that later.....

New Blog on the Blogroll

Check out my blogroll on the right hand side of the page if you haven't done so lately. I've added a few things, most recently Historian on the Warpath which looks like a very promising venture.

Onslow County African-Americans in the Union Navy

I received an email last week from Richard Phillips who authors a blog about African-American soldiers and sailors from Onslow County, which of course is my home county and where I currently live. He has found four brothers, the Everetts, who all joined the Union Navy. Follow this link to his blog, African American Soldiers and Sailors. There are a number of posts on the Everett brothers and a lot of great images, including numerous scanned documents. Excellent work, Mr. Phillips!

New Blog on the Roll (and yes, I am slack)

Sarah Adler has returned to the blogging world. You may remember her former blog "Ten Roads" that she authored as a high school student. She is now in college at American University in Washington, DC and has started a new blog called Dead Guys and Ships which I have gladly added to my blogroll. She is also a contributor to the Civil War Navy Sesquicentennial blog, which you can also find on my blogroll and to which I am also a contributor. So, welcome back Sarah!

I also want to apologize for being so slack on the blog lately. The busy six weeks I mentioned in my last post has been even busier than imagined and I have gotten behind on the blog. I do have a report on the CSS Neuse event and I am waiting to receive photos for that post. There's plenty going on the next two weeks as well so I assure you there are lots of posts to come. Thanks for your patience.

What's Happened the Past Five Weeks?

As I mentioned in the last post, not a whole lot. I did take a trip to Pennsylvania the second weekend in September to visit family and participate in the annual Mountain Craft Days festival at the Somerset Historical Center. As was the case two years ago, I was stationed at the maple sugar camp on Friday afternoon and all day Sunday talking to visitors about the process of making maple syrup and sugar. Somerset County is the largest maple product producer in the state of Pennsylvania and it's a big part of their heritage. Mountain Craft Days is always a lot of fun in general because there are good folks, talented artisans, good music, and great food.

Otherwise, there hasn't been much happening of any note other than the fact that I am now a contributor to the Civil War Navy Sesquicentennial blog. You can find the link in my blogroll on the right.

Another New Blog on the Roll

Drew Wagenhoffer has started a companion blog to his already popular Civil War Books and Authors. It is called Upcoming American Civil War Books and it will highlight forthcoming titles. It's on the blogroll so check it out!

New Blog on the Roll

Check out the blog of the Fort McHenry Guard. Quite an impressive headline photo. This one is going on the blogroll.

Adding a New Blog to the Roll

I received an email today from the Conservation Project Manager at the Monitor Center/Mariner's Museum. They are looking to spread the word to interested folks about what is going on with the conservation of the remnants of the USS Monitor. I'm certainly happy to oblige since this blog started out primarily as a Civil War Navies blog. The link to the Monitor conservation blog can be found here, as well as on my blogroll. Check it out!

Updates

OK, I know I've been real slack on the blog here lately, but there honestly hasn't been a whole lot happening. As I mentioned before, our living history group basically took the month of July off and the first half of the month wasn't terribly busy at work. So there's just not been a lot to write about. I've used the month to catch up with old friends, take care of stuff around the house, and generally relax. Summer session classes are winding down, so I'll soon be turning in grades as well. However, here are a few notes to update all you loyal readers.

First, I would recommend everyone go read Drew Wagenhoffer's recent book review at Civil War Books and Authors on a book about the Mississippi River ironclad USS Carondelet. His review is very good. I also reviewed this book for the Nautical Research Journal. I generally agree with Drew's assessment, but I had a couple of criticisms as well. Overall it's a great book so go read Drew's review and pick up a copy if you are so inclined.

On the work front, most everyone in our office participated in some way in last week's Summer Teacher Institute sponsored by the NC Dept. of Cultural Resources. My boss was involved with the whole week's activities, while I simply attended the field trip day to Bentonville Battlefield and helped with an artillery demonstration. With the teacher institute over, we are turning our attention to our site staff and organizing a one-day workshop for historic interpreters which will be held this coming Thursday in Raleigh. We'll be talking about a lot of different topics from program planning to dealing with difficult subject matter to the new historic interpreter certification program we are beginning to develop. Should be very informative for them and for us.

Finally, I'll be doing a little side project on Monday to make a little extra cash. A documentary is being made about Fort Holmes, one of the defensive works in the Cape Fear located on Smith Island (now Bald Head Island). Me and a few other guys are going over to the island, which is now a private residential island, to do a Civil War photo shoot. We're taking every piece of Civil War clothing we have and will pose for photos at various locations and in various uniforms. We're getting paid pretty well to do it, so I think it will be worth it whether it's fun or not.

That's about all I have for now. Our next living history program isn't until August 14 so we still have a few weeks off. I'll update as warranted.

And another......

Just added another new blog to the blogroll. This one is Cape Fear Historian and is authored by the historian at the Cape Fear Museum in Wilmington, NC.

Check out this new site

Just wanting to help out a colleague and promote their site. There's a not terribly new web group dealing with the Civil War in Northeastern NC that is moderated by Bruce Long. A number of my regular readers are already members of this group (you know who you are). So, when you have a minute go check it out!

PS - I've also added it to the blog roll, even though it is more than just a blog.

New Blog on the Blogroll

I just wanted to draw your attention to a new blog on my blogroll. It is dedicated to the Civil War Navy Sesquicentennial, and oddly enough is named that. There is also a Facebook page by the same name and the two are both run by Matthew Eng. Check out both when you get a chance!

A Little Spring Cleaning on the Blogroll

I've made a few adjustments to my blogroll. I've removed Ten Roads and North Cakalacky Travelers because they have ceased publication, and I've removed the Senator John Heinz History Center blog because of a lack of timely posting and because I prefer to follow them on Facebook. Two other blogs and a website have been moved to the "Friends Blog" list further down the page. Those include Civil War North Carolina (Wade Sokolosky), Doin' the Time Warp with Mr. Will, and Albemarle Soundings. I felt that Wade and Dr. Mike both fit better with the Friends Blog list. Chris at Albemarle Soundings was moved because he hasn't posted to the blog in 9 months, but I didn't want to completely get rid of the link because he is a good friend, even if he is a "slogger" (my completely made up term meaning "slack blogger"). At this point, he's gone way past "slack" but I'll keep his page around for awhile. I think he, like many of us, have cut back on the blog posts since we've gotten on Facebook. However, I am determined to maintain my blog, Facebook or not.

New Blog on the Roll

I was contacted by this blogger recently and have decided to add his blog to my blogroll. It is an interesting blend of Age of Sail maritime history and medical history (Dr. Mike ought to LOVE this one). So here's the link, and you can find it on the blogroll as well. Enjoy!

Chupacabra in the White House - Did Abe Lincoln Have a Dark Secret?

OK, folks so this really is a joke post. You can all blame Harry Smeltzer over at Bull Runnings. This morning I posted a story from Yahoo on my Facebook page about the supposed capture of a Chupacabra (that mythical creature). Harry suggested it was the perfect time for a blog post, you know, to boost the number of hits on the site.

But really, did Lincoln ever hear the legend of the Chupacabra. Were US Troops in the old southwest prior to the Civil War really searching for the mythical creature?

Just goes to prove that I'm not above a little bit of tom foolery, especially when someone else more brilliant than myself suggests such. Let's see if Harry's theory is correct and I get an uptick in hits today.

New Civil War Blog

I've just discovered a new blog, Thoughts, Essays, and Musings on the Civil War, thanks to Elektratig (he's also on my blogroll). It appears to be a quite interesting blog, though the author is only 20 posts into it. Check it out when you get a chance.

New Blog

Now this is pretty cool. There's a new blog called North Cakalacky Travellers that is being authored by a 9-year old girl (with some help from her mom). They are travelling all over the state this summer, visiting historic sites, museums, and the like. This is also being documented in a parenting magazine. I say kudos to this young lady and am looking forward to reading about all her experiences! I've added her to my blogroll, so y'all check it out!