One of the more colorful characters of the Civil War action in the Chattanooga area is the Russian-born John Basil Turchin. Made infamous to many by his allowing his men in May, 1862, to sack the town of Athens, Alabama, Turchin had also notable roles in the Battle of Chickamauga and the Battle of Missionary Ridge, later writing one of the more important treatments of the former battle. Another aspect that adds color to this foreign-born brigadier general is that his wife, Nadine Lvova Turchin, accompanied her husband in the field for some important periods in the war, including during the Campaign for Chattanooga. And, Nadine Turchin recorded her biased thoughts for us in a diary.

Nadine Turchin, like her husband, was born in Russia, the daughter of a Russian officer. She and John immigrated to the United States in 1856 and located in Chicago. Always a strong supporter of her husband, she was not afraid to take the field with him during the war. During the operations leading up to Chickamauga, she was right with her husband daily, and gives us some important insights about the movement of the Army of the Cumberland at the time. During the Battle of Chickamauga itself, she staid with the brigade and division wagons which were parked just on the western edge of the Chickamauga Battlefield and she climbed up on to the eastern hills of Missionary Ridge to observe events.

Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Park Ranger Lee White will speak on this unique individual and her unrestrained views of her husband’s fellow officers and what she saw and experienced of the Battle of Chickamauga.

There are four items this month for the Speaker’s Fund. The first is a copy of The Court Martial of Colonel John B. Turchin: The Sack of Athens, Alabama, May 2, 1862 a transcription of the record of the court martial by Robert Parham. The second item is a copy of Life in Dixie During the War by Mary A. H. Gay, an interesting memoir of the war which includes a description of the widow of Chattanoogan Col. James A. Whitesides and her family living as refugees out of a railroad car parked on the Georgia Railroad in Atlanta in the spring of 1864. Some of you all will remember that one of the Hunter Art Museum’s most important pieces is a larger Whiteside family portrait by James Cameron that was painted from a perspective on Lookout Mountain with Chattanooga in the background. I wonder if she traveled with that painting? The third item is a a set of the Civil War and 1890s drawings of Chattanooga scenes by the artist Theodore R. Davis, the set being courtesy of the Chattanooga History Center, the new name of the Chattanooga Regional History Museum. The fourth item is a copy of the Spring, 1998, issue of the Civil War publication Columbiad. It contains some interesting articles including one on John Bell Hood and the Battle of Decatur, one on the Battle of the Wilderness, and one on Jefferson Davis. All four of the items this month were donated to the Round Table to support the Speaker’s Fund. To those donors go our thanks. Proceeds from the Speaker’s Fund go toward bringing speakers in from outside the area. Your support of the Speaker’s Fund is appreciated.

There were a couple of good WBTS related programs in the last month. Did anyone go hear Dr. Hughes speak on Constance Cary at the Chattanooga Area Historical Association Annual Luncheon at the Choo Choo on February 16? I really wanted to hear Dr. Bradley’s “Home Fires in the Line of Fire” talk at the N. B. Forrest Camp’s meeting on the 26th but my schedule didn’t allow it. Hopefully Terry, one of the other N. B. Forrest Camp members, or someone who did get to attend can make a report at the meeting. How about the Forrest Symposium at Kennesaw State University on March 1 or Ed Bearss speaking to the Knoxville Civil War Round Table on the 11th on Parker’s Crossroads? Did anyone get to attend either of those? If you were able to attend any of these events or another one of note since our last meeting and you’re at our March meeting, give us a report. Good intelligence is one of the keys to military success!

The Civil War Preservation Trust’s first 2008 battlefield preservation campaign is in Tennessee at the scene of the December 31, 1862 Battle of Park’s Cross Roads. This engagement is perhaps most widely recognized because of N. B. Forrest’s statement “Charge ‘em both ways!” when he was informed that a Federal force had appeared in his rear while he was engaged with another one. CWPT’s campaign is specifically for an 88 acre parcel of the battlefield. If, no, lets say when, the campaign is successful a significant portion of the battlefield will be protected, 75% by the estimate of CWPT’s president. One of the good things about this campaign is that there is a lot of “match” money available for the effort too. Most contributions will result in an impressive 8-to-1 leverage factor. A $25 contribution could eventually ensure $200 for the effort. For more information on the effort or to contribute, visit www.civilwar.org; look under “News” for the information on Parker’s Cross Roads. There’s also a nice color map of the battle and preservation efforts at www.civilwar.org/news/append/2008ParkersCrossroadsAppealMap.pdf

In June, 2007, the Tennessee General Assembly approved a special Tennessee license plate to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the War Between the States. Proceeds from the sale of the plate will go to support Civil War preservation activities in Tennessee through the Tennessee Civil War Preservation Association. Actually implementing the plate’s use requires 1,000 pre-orders by June, 2008. For more information, see the Tennessee Civil War Preservation Association website, www.tcwpa.org or email tcwpacontact@aol.com.

April 15, 2008 - “To be announced"

NEW ENTRIES:
April 5, 2008—April 5 is the date for Civil War Preservation Trust’s 2008 Park Day. More than 100 battlefield and Civil War sites nationwide are participating with CWPT this year with volunteer improvement and work projects to help make those sites better and to help spread the battlefield preservation and interpretation message. A full list of those sites both locally and nationally is available at CWPT’s website, www.civilwar.org. Here locally at the National Military Park, there will be the erection of some historic fencing and some brush clearing on the Chickamauga Battlefield, the erection of two long missing but now re-cast tablets at Orchard Knob as well as some other general clean up there, and some general clean up of some of the new areas at Moccasin Bend. The work is scheduled for 9 AM to 1 PM that day. Call 706-866-9241 to sign up.
April 12, 2008—Tour of Civil War Knoxville, part of the Knoxville Civil War Round Table 25th anniversary recognition, 1 to 4 PM, $7.00; see the Knoxville CWRT website at http://www.discoveret.org/kcwrt/ for more information
April 25-26, 2008—Sultana Association Reunion tour of Franklin, Tenn., with emphasis on the Federals who were captured at Franklin who later wound up on the Sultana in the spring of 1865; for more information, call Norman Shaw at 865-693-2171 or email him at shawclan4@bellsouth.net
October 10-12, 2008—“In a Strange Country: Longstreet in Tennessee,” a seminar of the Longstreet Society, Holiday Inn Select Downtown, Knoxville, featuring Lieut. Col. Harold Knudsen, Dr. Alexander Mendoza, and Dr. William G. Piston; places to be visited include the McClung Museum, Confederate Hall, Fort Sanders site, Confederate Cemetery, National Cemetery, Campbell Station. For more information, call 770-539-9005 or visit www.longstreet.org.

PREVIOUS ENTRIES:
March 14-16, 2008—UPDATED Chickamauga Study Group 2008 “Seminar in the Woods;” two days of half day walking tours of individual phases of the Battle of Chickamauga with a possible optional half day tour on the final morning; specific phases to be studied in the 2008 Seminar will be the role of Wilder’s Brigade (in two parts—Wilder’s role September 10-17 covered by the tour of the morning of March 14 and Wilder’s role on September 18-20 during the tour on the afternoon of the 14th), Brannan’s Division’s fighting withdrawal from the Poe Field line, and Archibald Gracie’s The Truth About Chickamauga’s Snodgrass Hill. For more information, contact David Powell, Dpowell334@aol.com. [See Study Group 2007 for last year's event.]
March 20, 2008—“The 19th Tennessee: Chattanooga Area Confederates,” by Dr. John Fowler of Kennesaw State University, author of the recent regimental history of the 19th Tennessee, 7 PM, Rock Point Books, the southwest corner of Broad and 4th Street in downtown, Chattanooga.
March 23-24, 2008—Civil War Naval Living History Weekend, Port Columbus Civil War Naval Museum, 1002 Victory Drive, Columbus, Georgia 31901, 706-327-9798, www.portcolumbus.org
March 25, 2008—Mr. Doug Carson presents a slide show on Civil War music to the N. B. Forrest Camp No. 3 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, 6:30 PM, East Ridge Community Center, East Ridge; for more information, www.scv-nbforrest3.com or email Camp Commander Terry Siler at Tenncoastie@aol.com
March 28-30, 2008—2008 Liberty University Civil War Seminar, Lynchburg, Virginia, “Reaping the Whirlwind: The Battle of Gettysburg,” featuring Kent Masterson Brown, author of Retreat From Gettysburg: Lee, Logistics and the Pennsylvania Campaign, Gettysburg National Military Park Ranger Troy Harmon and author of Lee’s Real Plan at Gettysburg, U. S. Army Command and General Staff College professor and A Single Grand Victory: The First Campaign and the Battle of Manassas author Dr. Ethan Rafuse, Dr. Steven Woodworth of Texas Christian University and author of many volumes, and others; for more information see www.liberty.edu/civilwar or call 434-592-4366 or email klburdeaux@liberty.edu.
April 24-27, 2008—PNJW Collections Civil War Era Civilian Clothing Exhibition, a FIRST RATE display of original Civil War era civilian clothing items that is interpreted by two extremely knowledgeable material culture experts, Rippavilla Plantation, 5700 Main Street, Spring Hill, Tennessee, 931-486-9037.
May 27, 2008—Dr. Richard McMurray speaks to the N. B. Forrest Camp No. 3 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans, 6:30 PM, East Ridge Community Center, East Ridge; for more information, see www.scv-nbforrest3.com or email Camp Commander Terry Siler at Tenncoastie@aol.com
July 3-5, 2008-- PNJW Collections Civil War Era Civilian Clothing Exhibition, a FIRST RATE display of original Civil War era civilian clothing items that is interpreted by two extremely knowledgeable material culture experts, Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, Kennesaw, Georgia, 770-427-4686.
September 17-18, 2008—Andrew Johnson Bicentennial Symposium, Tusculum College, Tusculum, Tennessee, featured historians include Dr. Paul Bergeron, University of Tennessee (ret.), long time editor of The Papers of Andrew Johnson, and Dr. Eric Foner, Columbia University; more details later at www.tusculum.edu
November 8-9, 2008—Civil War Naval History Symposium, Port Columbus Civil War Naval Museum, 1002 Victory Drive, Columbus, Georgia 31901, 706-327-9798, www.portcolumbus.org
November 13-15, 2008—16th Annual Symposium on the 19th Century Press, the Civil War, and Free Expression, sponsored by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga’s Department of Communications.

[Note from the webmaster: a chart with the appropriate dues can be found at: Membership Dues. An application can be found at: application]