Arts and Humanities Commons^™

"Cry Aloud And Spare Not": William G. Brownlow, The "Fighting Parson" And His Cantankerous Spirit, Melanie Storie

Bound Away: The Liberty Journal of History

Best known as the “Fighting Parson,” William G. Brownlow earned his sobriquet during his years as an early 19^th century, circuit-riding Methodist preacher in the southern Appalachians. E. Merton Coulter, renowned historian and Brownlow biographer, explained the “frontier man of God was a hard rider, a hard preacher, and a hard liver.” Thus, Brownlow learned very quickly how antagonizing his rivals served as a powerful tool in the contest of soul-winning on the frontier. This practice of verbally attacking his enemies was also used during his long public career in both journalism and politics. Consequently, for Brownlow, religion and …

“Infantry Would Not Do:” Appalachia, The Environment, And The Evolution Of Mountain Warfare During The American Civil War, Lucas Michael Wilder

Theses and Dissertations

Union General Ambrose E. Burnside launched his invasion of East Tennessee in the summer of 1863. The corps he used consisted of half-infantry and half-mounted units to utilize their speed to overcome mountain obstacles. The successful campaign and the capture of the agriculturally rich region of East Tennessee and its vital East Tennessee & Virginia Railroad deprived the Confederacy of resources, ultimately contributing to Confederate defeat. The American Civil War saw commanders plunge into the mountains of Appalachia and encounter a terrain and a people with which many were unacquainted. This dissertation argues that their tactics and strategies for dealing …

"Our Women Are Made Of The Right Stuff": Gender, Politics, And Conflict In Civil War West Virginia, Amanda Romain Shaver

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

“’Our Women Are Made of the Right Stuff:’ Gender, Politics, and Conflict in Civil War West Virginia” examines the lives and contributions of white West Virginia women and argues that they were not merely victims of the war, but dynamic participants whose opinions were influential and whose actions determined the ability of both the Union and Confederate armies to wage war in Appalachia. Striking a balance between the antebellum standards of “True Womanhood” and the emerging ideals of the women’s rights movement, West Virginia women became politically engaged in both the statehood movement and the Civil War. They transformed their …

“A Constant Reminder To All”: Remembering Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson In West Virginia, Steven Cody Straley

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

This thesis argues that Confederate heritage groups leading the Lost Cause Movement in West Virginia promoted Stonewall Jackson, through tactics such as ceremonies, publications, and monuments, to the point where his appeal expanded beyond that of former Confederates and their descendants. During the late 1800s, Confederate supporters in the state formed branches of Confederate heritage organizations and espoused a Lost Cause narrative with Stonewall Jackson as its figurehead. In doing so, they accomplished two things: to integrate the seemingly proUnion West Virginia into Confederate memory, and to gain acceptance of Confederates as full members of West Virginia society. Jackson’s advocates …

A Forgotten Shade Of Blue: Support For The Union And The Constitutional Republic In Southeastern Kentucky During The Civil War Era., Howard Muncy

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis analyzes Southeastern Kentucky’s political and military support for the Union during the Civil War era. In the decades prior to the 1860 election, Kentucky developed deep social and economic ties with all sections of the country. After the secession winter that followed Abraham Lincoln’s presidential election, the statewide population divided and pockets of significant Confederate sympathies emerged. Kentucky’s southeastern counties aligned with the Union at the outbreak of the Civil War because of a strong national identity and the absence of a large slave population. As the war unfolded, Southeastern Kentuckians played an important role in the disruption …

"They Cannot Catch Guerrillas In The Mountains Any More Than A Cow Can Catch Fleas": Guerrilla Warfare In Western Virginia, 1861-1865, Karissa Marken

Masters Theses

The American Civil War unleashed great violence and chaos in the western mountains of Virginia. The guerrilla warfare there between Unionists and secessionists remained bitter throughout the war. No historical study has considered the entirety of pre-war western Virginia during the time it underwent a unique civil war within the context of the national struggle from 1861-1865. This study supports findings from studies of other areas of Appalachia that seek to explain the prevalence of such conflict in the mountains, challenges the myth of a Union Appalachia during the war, offers the backdrop for the political wrangling on both state …

0770: Carrie Eldridge Collection, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

Carrie Eldridge is a genealogical researcher in Chesapeake, Ohio. This collection contains photocopies of many county record books of the Appalachian areas of West Virginia, Virginia, Ohio, and Kentucky, ranging from the American Revolution until the end of the Civil War. The collection also contains high quality photographs of one room school houses of Cabell County, West Virginia, an audio cassette oral history, books, and pen nibs.

To view materials from this collection that are digitized and available online, search the Carrie Eldridge Collection here.

0662: Smith Family Correspondence, 1857-1866, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of approximately fifty letters from members of the Smith family, located in Guyandotte, Virginia (or West Virginia, depending on the time), to Julia Sprague in Washington County, Ohio during the Civil War. The bulk of the letters are from Sallie P. Smith to Sprague, and many include their original envelope. Topics are focused on personal life and current affairs.

0661: Elizabeth Cometti Collection, 1861-1869, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of a microfilm copy of items selected by Elizabeth Cometti about West Virginia taken from the Southern Historical Collection at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, specifically materials taken from the W. R. Redding Papers, 1861-1865 and the William Thomas Sutherlin Papers, 1842-1892. The Redding materials are from 1861 while Redding was stationed in Virginia, to his wife, Elizabeth M. Redding, in Randolph County, Ga.. He discusses camp life, troop movements and skirmishes, and conditions at home. Sutherlin materials date from 1868 to 1869 and may include correspondence and other papers relate to the varied business …

0480: Harold C. Smith Typescript, 1955, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of a 26 page typescript titled “A Historical Survey of Lexington During the Civil War”. The paper includes no sections to assist in determining content, but there is a focus on slavery. A note on the folder states that the paper was possibly written for a class taught by Dr. Sam Clagg at the University of Kentucky.

0321: Enos Amos Oath, 1864, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection consists of an oath of allegiance for Enos Amos’ election to the office of second lieutenant, 17th Regiment, 3d Brigade, 1st Division, West Virginia Militia, Marion County, West Virginia on August 22, 1864. It is also signed by John B. Crane, recorder.

0248: James N. Potts Papers, 1861-1906, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

This collection predominately consists of a Civil War diary by James Potts. Legibility of the copy of the diary is limited given that it is a xeroxed black and white copy.

The cover of the diary says, “Romance of the War by James N. Potts [illegible] Commissary [illegible] Book Commencing Dec. 12th, 1861 Hunter’sville, Va, Pocahontas Co., Virginia”. The first thirty-one pages consist of a ledger tracking provisions for 1861-1862. In order, the contents after are as follows: recipes, ciphers or “enigmas”, journal entries from 1861 to 1867, an 1869 letter to the editor of the “Herald” from Williamsville, VA, …

0054: Aleshire Family Papers, 1862-1889, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The Aleshire Family Papers consist mainly of correspondence dating from 1863 to 1888. Many of the letters are written by various members of the family to Joseph Aleshire as he traveled the Midwest, buying wheat for the family flour mill. Most of these letters concern fluctuations of the wheat market and other business matters.

There are a number of letters from Mary Aleshire to her parents and brothers, dating from 1863 to 1878. These describe her life at college in Cincinnati, and later, upon her return to Gallipolis, her involvement with social and family matters.

The letters from Charles Aleshire …

0012: Morgan Family Papers, 1831-1935, Marshall University Special Collections

Guides to Manuscript Collections

The Morgan family papers consist of business, general and family correspondence, as well as legal and financial papers. Much of the business correspondence, dating from 1840 to 1935, is concerned with John Morgan's business ventures, first as a store keeper in Shenandoah County, Virginia, and later as a farmer in Putnam Country, Virginia, now West Virginia. The general correspondence consists of letters from friends and dates from 1843 until 1900. The family correspondence is composed of letters from members of the immediate Morgan family, and includes letters from members of three generations. It is well to note here that there …