FUTURE MEETINGS

The January meeting will be an informal Lee Jackson celebration at Maxwell’s Restaurant. If you have any questions about the meeting time or location, call Commander Sam Price (638-2676) or any other camp officer. Visitors lead to new members and are always welcome. Place our monthly camp meetings, first Thursday of each month, on your schedule.

Date Speaker Topic

January 6 Wayne McMaster / Eddy Cresap Lee Jackson Banquet

February Joe Gerache "Story of the Cannon."

FUTURE CEMETERY PLANS

Do not forget we have about 25 headstones on the way to set in the ground.

Past Commander McMaster has located four Confederate VA headstones at the Marble Works that need to be set. It appears they were ordered by someone, delivered and never picked up for setting.

Jeff Gambrione has found the name in an old diary of a Georgia soldier who fell in defense of Vicksburg at Chickasaw Bayou. The camp is working with Jeff to order a stone.

ARE YOUR DUES LATE? THE SOUTH NEEDS ALL ITS SONS

If you did not get your dues in before the first of November, you can still reinstate your membership. Your late dues are $42 which includes National ($20), Division ($10), Camp ($7) and a late fee of $5. Dues were due on the first of August and were late November 1. This late date is a change from the past. Please send your dues to Rev Joseph Strahan, 4350 Mount Alban, Vicksburg, Mississippi 38183.

LEE JACKSON CELEBRATION 2005

We will meet at Maxwell’s on January 6 at 6:00 PM, to celebrate the character of two great Southern gentlemen. The meeting will be an informal camp celebration. Wayne McMaster and Eddy Cresap will present the program. We will order our meal off of the menu. All are welcome.

THANKS TO BOB ARMSTRONG

On a chilly December night the John C. Pemberton Camp 1354 were the guests of Past Commander Bob Armstrong. The hospitality was very Southern as was the atmosphere of his home. Thanks to Terry Brantly and Mary Nell McMaster for organizing the event. There were a good number of guests at the event. The food that everyone brought was very delicious and enjoyed by all that attended Thanks to those who brought guests and hope that they will return. Commander Price opened the gathering with pledges and salutes. Chaplain Debney opened the meeting with a prayer and Reverend Strahan closed the celebration with a prayer.

WHAT DID THEY SAY

Taken from the diary of John A. Taylor, Haywood County, Tennessee: This Diary entry is in a Family History book in my position, “Taylor’s of Tabernacle” John Taylor wrote a diary entry at the end of each year reflecting on the previous year.

December 31, 1861: The last day of the year. In some respects it has been the most exciting and eventful year of my life, with it every day cares less lot of real enjoyment, and a greater anxiety to peer into the future and read then the great results which are to be eliminated by the Civil War in which this great nation has been and still is involved. War under any circumstance, a thing to be dreaded, how much more is its horror to be increased when its ministers of death are brothers, allied all in the relations of life. It seems as if it is the only means ordained of Heaven by which some difficulties may be settled , when law, reason, truth, and equity, fail and when there is no other alternative, the right of revolution is still left, and might and numbers does not always triumph against the right of justice. I believe in the controversy in which we have been engaged. The South has the right on her side and her actions are in accord with the purposes and designs of God himself. She did everything that could have been done to avoid this war, offered compromises after compromise, in so much that there can be no doubt that her efforts for peace went for to induce the people of the North to think that she would submit to any degradation which the great numbers of the North might lay upon her. The stubbornness which the north evidenced in refusing to yield, one inch in all demands, showed that she was more embolden by every effort which the South made to preserve peace and harmony. South Carolina then threw off her allegiance to the general government and assumed her independent sovereignty just at the close of last year. Since then other states and parts of states to the number of 13 have followed her example and tonight what was once the United States is divided and to all human appearance there is no hope that they can ever be united. In every engagement of any note up until now the South has triumphed, Sumter, Bethel, Bull Run, Manassas, Oak Hills, Lexington, Belmont, it is now thought that an engagement is near at hand at Bowling Green. By and may Heaven defend the right. What is to be the end of all this scourge and destitution? God in his wisdom only knows. My prayer is that the best results may be brought about which will be for the good of man and the glory of God, without reference to my own personal feelings or inclination. Thank Heaven for His kindness

WHAT DID ABE REALLY SAY

A lot is made of Abe Lincoln and his approach to the seceded states. How did South Carolina take this “threat” in his first inaugural address.

“The power confided to me will be used to hold, occupy, and possess the property and places belonging to the Government and to collect the duties and imposts; but beyond what may be necessary for these objects, there will be no invasion, no using of force against or among the people anywhere”

WHERE IS IT?

The following letter was sent to the mayor of Vicksburg, with the following reply from his staff. Keep the city accountable for replacement of this sign.

“There used to be a sign at the corner of Mission and Clay (as you enter the city) showing where to turn to go to Confederate Cemetery in Cedar Hill. 

After the work over the past couple of years, the sign has not been replaced. 

This area is a significant historic site in Vicksburg.  Soldiers Rest contains the earthly remains of several thousand Confederate soldiers (Some marked and some unknown)  who gave their life during the defense of Vicksburg.  

Over the past 10 years I have spent a lot of time working in Cedar Hill and all most always meet someone at the cemetery looking for a headstone marking the grave of their ancestor.

It would be a "crime" not to have signs directing tourist to this important historical location.  I would be proud to give you a tour of this area and provide some background information about the area.

Please advise the correct person in your organization who I can work with to get this sign replaced.”

“I will gladly investigate this area and do what is necessary to replace these signs. I will be contacting you again soon.”

Barry Graham/Communications Manager, City of Vicksburg/601-619-7899

Barry Graham with the City forwarded your e-mail regarding the VCVB signage to Cedar Hill Cemetery. We currently have one sign up at Mission and Clay directing to the Confederate Cemetery. (seen as you are leaving town on Clay) We have evaluated our whole signage and are working with the planning department to ensure we have all the necessary signage. Soon you will see new signs and a new artwork.

It is very difficult project that is taking a great deal of time but I want it done right the first time. My goal is to have the signs on order by the end of January. …….

COULD IT HAPPEN??

Articles in the newspaper are starting to “beat the drum” for changing our state flag again. As the legislature convenes in January, it is not abnormal for several bills to be introduced to change our flag. These bills usually die in committee. Even with the resounding victory in 2001, we need to be vigilant and insure our state senators and representatives understand how you feel about southern heritage issues. There are still plenty of Southern heritage haters, Southern apologists, transplanted Yankees, and those who would sell our heritage for a football game out there trying to change our flag. They will never give up and neither will we. No compromise no surrender.

MEETING LOCATION

We will return to the Southern Heritage complex for our February meeting. The January meeting will be at Maxwell’s. Thanks to Joe Gerache, our room at the Southern Heritage Complex has been painted with two coats of Confederate Gray. There is still some clean up, paint up work left to do. Call Commander Price to volunteer.

CAMP VETERANS

In preparation for November 2005, Could all the members of camp 1354 who are veterans please contact Eddy Cresap at 638-5973, cresap@canufly.net, or 707 Timberlane Drive, Vicksburg Ms 39180.  Please give a brief description of your service and if you have been awarded the SCV veterans medal.

KENTUCKY CONFEDERATE MONUMENT

Former Kentucky Division Commander Don Shelton reports that the federal government, after so many years, has finally given final approval for the Kentucky Confederate Monument at the Vicksburg National Military Park. The Kentucky Division had to stand firm for several years on final wording for the monument against watered-down and PC changes in the wording required by the feds. The Kentucky division has prevailed, and their wording will stand. This is a project which has spanned 5 division commander administrations in Kentucky and all 5 refused to give in to anything less than truth being on the monument. Failure to obtain the federal approvals slowed fundraising considerably with this announcement the Kentucky Division hopes to see the fundraising get kick-started again. Currently the Division has raised about $24,000. The wording controversy centered around the number of Confederate troops that served for Kentucky. The federal government insisted that the monument state as "fact" on the KY Confederate monument that Kentucky only had 25,000 Confederate troops, among other things (for a while they were even insisting we put something nice about the Yankee Kentucky troops on the Confederate monument!). The SCV had recent hard-core research showing the number to be at least 40,000 (the recently published "Kentucky Confederate Soldiers" by Steve Lynn), and weren't about to spend money on a federally mandated lie. It took the feds a long time, but when they weren't able to refute the 40,000 minimum and finally gave in.

During the dedication of the Kentucky State monument several years ago, I met Commander Shelton and his compatriots from the Kentucky Division as they dedicated the site for the Kentucky Confederate monument. I am looking forward to the dedication of this Confederate Monument in the Park

REPORT FROM CIC CHIEF SWEENEY

Gentlemen:
I greatly appreciate all the support and prayers I received while in the hospital. I was released a couple of hours ago, and plan to just rest at home for a few days.
I went to the hospital yesterday morning when I woke up with my heart beating 165 beats a minutes. The hospital ran tests for the next 36 hours and finally concluded that it was not a true heart attack, but a problem with one of the nerve endings in the heart. These bundles of nerves regulate the heart beat and if one of them gets out of sequence, it can
cause the heart to race. Sort of like a misfiring spark plug, I guess. It's a dangerous situation and usually requires follow-up treatment, but it isn't as damaging as a blocked artery.
Anyway, they gave me yet another prescription (anybody else feel like they are keeping the American drug industry alive single-handedly?) and instructions to come back for more tests next week.