Jefferson Davis' Early Years

A small book, Victory In Defeat, by Tucker Hill is available throught The Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond. The subtitle is Jefferson Davis and The Lost Cause. In it is a brief paragraph quoting Davis, about his early years.

Davis says: "I was born June 3, 1808 in Christian county, Ky., in that part of it which, by a subsequent division is now Todd county...My father, Sam Davis, was a native of Georgia, and served in the war of the revolution, first in the 'mounted gunman,' and afterward as captain of infantry at the siege of Savannah.

 During my infancy my father removed to Wilkinson county, Miss. After passing throught he county academy I netered Transvlvania college, Kentucky, and was advanced as far as the senior class when, at the age of 16, I was appointed to the United States Military Academy at West Point. 

I graduated in 1828, and then, in accordance with the custom of cadets, entred active service...After a successful campaign against the Indians, I resigned from the army, in 1835, being anxious to fulfill a long-existing engagement with a daughter (Sarah Knox) of Col. Zachary Taylor, whom I married...

Then I bedame a cotton planter (at Brierfield) in Warren county, Miss. it was my misfortune, early in my married life, to lose my wife, and for many years therafter I lived in great seclusion on the plantation in the swamps of the Mississippi."

In February, 1845, as we all know,  Davis married Varina Howell, the eighteen year-old daughter of an aristocratic Mississippi family.

Ten Bloodiest Civil War Battles

Are you interested in knowing which of the battles during the War Between the States resulted in the most casualties? Some may surprise you. They are as follows:
1. Gettysburg (PA) victors, Union
2. Chickamauga (GA) victors, Confederates
3. Spotsylvania (VA) victors - inconclusive
4. Wilderness (VA) victors, Confederates
5. Chancellorsville (VA) victors, Confederates
6. Shiloh (TN) victors, Union
7. Stones River (TN) victors, Union
8. Antietam (MD) victors - inconclusive, but strategic advantage to North
9. Second Battle Bull Run (VA) victors, Confederates
10. Fort Donelson (TN) victors, Union

Each battle on this list resulted in more than 19,000 casualties, including those killed or wounded. I believe if we (the Confederacy)  had only had more men and more guns and more everything, we would have won. All we had was "cotton and courage". We should have "counted the cost" ahead of time.

The 5 Bloodiest Battles In History

Every victory comes at a price. I was interested in seeing how the War Between the States battles shaped up against other famous battles. And guess what? Gettysburg is the 5th bloodiest battles in history, with 46,000 casualties, 23,000 on each side, but as you know, considered by all a Union victory.. Would you like to know what the first four are? Want to take a guess? Well, here goes.

4th - The Battle of Cannae, 216 BC - Carthage vs Rome. Casualties: Carthaginians 10,000; Romans 50,000. Total casualties - 60,000.. Winner - the Carthaginians. (wow, they cleaned their plow).

3rd - First Day of the Somme, 1916 - Britain vs Germany. Causalities: British 60,000; German 8,000. Total: 68,000. Result: Indecisive (ugly)

2nd - Battle of Leipzig, 1813 - France vs Austria, Prussia and Russia. Casualties: French 30,000; Allies 54,000. Total: 84,000. Result: Coalition victory (most decisive defeat suffered by Napoleon).

Number One - Battle of Stalingrad, 1942-1943 - Nazi Germany vs Soviet Union. Casualties: Germany 841,000; Soviets 1,130,000. Total 1,971,000. Result: Soviet Victory.

That's alot of dead people, readers. War is not for sissies.

The Relic Room at the First White House of the Confederacy

The bright yellow paint of the woodwork and the black of the baseboards and mantel have been restored as they appeared when the house was built in 1835. This room contains many of the belongings of President Davis and his family which were given us by Mrs. Davis or her eldest daughter, Margaret. 

Between the front windows hangs a colored photograph of President Davis painted in 1874 by Daniel Huntingdon which hangs in the Pentagon in Washington, D.C, along with those of other U.S. Secretaries of War. It was presented by Professor Hudson Strode, who wrote the definitive biography of Jefferson Davis.

There is also a portrait of General Robert E. Lee, donated by the Lee family. Flanking the mantel are the three National Flags of the Confederacy: The Stars and Bars, the Stainless Banner and the Last National Flag which Lee surrendered at Appomattox. The Battle flag is also represented here. It was the first of many military banners.

You can see a picture of the Relic Room, along with the rest of the rooms  if you go to our website: www.firstwhitehouse.org  

Confederate Landmarks in Montgomery, Alabama

 One of the best known Confederate landmarks in Montgomery is the Alabama State Capitol,where delegates from seceding southern states convened to organize the Confederate States of America, and where Jefferson Davis was sworn in as Provisional President of the CSA.

Another of course is the First White House of the Confederacy,  his home while he was in Montgomery; also the Winter Building on Dexter Avenue, where the telegram was sent authorizing Confederate Gen. P. G. T. Beauregard to fire on Fort Sumter.

Montgomery also boasts a Confederate Military Prison (2 Tallapoosa St), in which was housed 700 Union soldiers, most captured at Shiloh. Nearly 198 died in captivity and the survivors were moved to Tuscaloosa in Dec. 1862. It was a pretty rank place from what I have read.

The Montgomery Theatre (62 Monroe St) was opened in Oct 1860. John Wiles Booth performed there and Bryant Minstrels introduced "Dixie" there.

 The Lomax House, the Murphy House and the Rice-Semple-Haardt House have all survived, not only the war but also the razing of so many fine, old homes. Fortunately, the Teague House at 468 South Perry Street also survived. From its front portico was read the order of General James Wilson, USA, placing the Capital of the Confederacy under martial law on April 12, 1865.

A House Is Never Finished, Especially When its the First White House of the Confederacy

The First White House in Montgomery, where Jefferson Davis and his family lived is 180 years old. That's right, it was built between 1832 - 1835 by William Sayre, ancestor of Zelda Sayre, wife of F. Scott Fitzgerald (by the way, "Gatsby" is coming to a motion picture near you very soon!)

The First White House has undergone four major restorations: the first in 1921 when the House was moved from the corner of Lee & Bibb Streets (where it faced east) to the corner of Washington and Union Streets (where it faces north, watching for the Yankees).

The second was in 1976 when steel beams were placed under the first and second floors, a heat pump installed, house painted inside and outside and other major improvements made.

The third was in 1994 when the hazardous lead-paint was removed, and the probable 1861 colors were uncovered by paint archaeologist, Frank Welsh. After the outside work was done, the House had to be thoroughly cleaned, inside and outside to make sure all lead paint dust had been removed.

The fourth was in 2007-2008 when the air condition and heating systems, which had not worked for four years, were removed and a new system  installed, which entailed tearing out walls, duct work, etc.

 Each of these restorations was major, with the House having to be closed for many months and the Collection moved out and stored. And guess what???? In spite of all that has been done, paint and plaster continue to fall off the ceiling and off the walls. We are indeed a "House that is Never Finished"!!! Or we might say "We are a work in progress"!

Mathew Brady's Illustrated History of The Civil War

A friend recently sent me a copy of the photo of the "home of Jefferson Davis at Montgomery, Ala" that is in Mathew Brady's Illustrated History book. My curiosity led me to order the book. The photos are very interesting, but it is most unfortunate that the book is written from the Northern viewpoint.

 Most of the photographs are of Union soldiers (unless they are dead - those are the ones of the Southerners). Someone told me that Lincoln did not want photos of dead Yankees  published, in order to keep up morale in the North.

 There are some paintings in the book by H. A. Ogden, of   battle scenes  in color and they are extraordinary,(copyright, 1912 by the War Memorial Association). The numerous photographs of war scenes in the book depict the horrors of the War...and now some women want permission to go into combat! Hello - they should look at this book and think twice.