Author: Brian D. Kowell – The Cleveland Civil War Roundtable

The Sound and the Fury: William Faulkner’s Great-Grandfather

By Brian D. Kowell
The Cleveland Civil War Roundtable
Copyright © 2021, All Rights Reserved

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Charger in December 2021.

“I want to be a writer like my great-granddaddy.”

–William Faulkner

William Clark Falkner was a lawyer, farmer, businessman, politician, soldier, poet, and great-grandfather to one of the greatest writers in American literary history. Born September 25, 1897 in New Albany, Mississippi, the writer William Faulkner never knew his great-grandfather. The young Faulkner spent his boyhood listening to stories told by his elders about the Civil War, slavery, the Ku Klux Klan, and the Falkner family. Faulkner’s grandfather also told him about the exploits of William’s great-grandfather, William Clark Falkner – or as the family referred to him – the “Old Colonel.”

Was “Prince John” Only Acting?

By Brian D. Kowell
The Cleveland Civil War Roundtable
Copyright © 2021, All Rights Reserved

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Charger in October/November 2021.

“He’s the hero for the times,
The furious fighting Johnny B. Magruder”

– Civil War Ballad

Though a small engagement, the Battle of Big Bethel on June 10, 1861, made General John Bankhead Magruder a celebrity. Pompous, egotistical, and given to theatrical behavior, he thrived on the recognition. Nicknamed “Prince John” because of his penchant for lavish entertainment, courtliness toward ladies, and fashionably ornate military dress, he also was fond of strong drink.

A Footnote in Civil War History

By Brian D. Kowell
The Cleveland Civil War Roundtable
Copyright © 2022, All Rights Reserved

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Charger in February 2022.

There are 18 outdoor Civil War statues spread throughout much of central and northwest Washington, D.C. There are 11 statutes of Union generals, two of Union admirals, and one (which was recently removed) of Confederate General Albert Pike, who was depicted as a Mason and not as a general. The other Civil War statues in Washington, D.C. are a G.A.R. Memorial, Peace Monument, Emancipation Memorial, and, the newest, an African American Civil War Memorial.

In addition to the statuary, there are a number of historical plaques to the Civil War at various sites. One of the strangest sites is located on the grounds of the Washington Naval Yard. The plaque there reads:

“Within this wall is deposited the leg of Col. Ulric Dahlgren U S V
wounded July 6th 1863 while skirmishing in the streets of Hagerstown
with the rebels after the Battle of Gettysburgh”

The Highest Ranking Black Officer in the Civil War

By Brian D. Kowell
The Cleveland Civil War Roundtable
Copyright © 2022, All Rights Reserved

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Charger in May 2022.

Although regiments of the United States Colored Troops (USCT) were staffed mostly by white officers, 120 African Americans were commissioned in the Union army during the Civil War. The highest ranking of those Black officers was Alexander Thomas Augusta, who left the U.S. Army in 1866 with the rank of brevet lieutenant colonel.

David vs. Goliath at Hampton Roads: The CSS Squib vs. the USS Minnesota

By Brian D. Kowell
The Cleveland Civil War Roundtable
Copyright © 2021, All Rights Reserved

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in The Charger in October/November 2021.

On March 8, 1862, the CSS Virginia (formerly the USS Merrimack) sank two Federal warships in Hampton Roads, Virginia. A third ship to be targeted was the USS Minnesota, which had run aground while steaming toward the enemy. After unsuccessfully bombarding the Minnesota, the ebbing tide and falling darkness forced the Virginia to return to her dock in the Elizabeth River. On the 9th, when she steamed out to finish off the Minnesota, the Virginia was confronted by the USS Monitor, and in their epic battle of ironclads, the Minnesota was saved.