Monthly Archives: May 2025

Meeting of June 24, 2025

Join us at 6:30 PM, June 24, at Jack’s Restaurant & Bar, located at the Northwest corner of the Westgate Shopping Mall in San Jose, near Campbell (1502 Saratoga Ave, San Jose, CA 95129) and via ZOOM. This month’s topic is

Ron Vaughan on “The Battle of Big Bethel, First Battle of the Civil War”

‘The Battle of Big Bethel’, Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper. June 22, 1861

The Battle of Big Bethel was the first battle of the Civil War. While casualties were relatively small, there were several participants whose names would become well known.

Ron Vaughan has an MA in History and a Secondary Teaching Credential. His MA thesis was entitled “A Comparison of the Military Effectiveness of the US Army and Mexico, in 1846.” He has written two published books: Viva Juarez, A Source Book for the French Intervention in Mexico, and Handbook for the Spanish Civil War, plus many magazine articles in military history related publications, most recently “Joe Shelby’s Odyssey in Mexico” in the “North & South” December 2022 issue. Ron has also been a re-enactor for periods of Roman times, American Civil War, WW I, and WW II. He is the Head Docent at the Tulare City Historical Museum and Secretary and Editor for the San Joaquin Valley Civil War Roundtable.

Quiz for June 24, 2025

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Edwin M. Stanton?

Q#1 – Edwin McMasters Stanton was born to David and Lucy Stanton on December 19, 1814. In which town was Stanton born?

Q#2 – Edwin’s early formal education included attending a private school and a seminary located behind the Stanton family’s residence. What was the name of this seminary?

Q#3 – At the age of ten, what medical condition began to afflict Stanton, sometimes causing convulsions that haunted him for life?

Q#4 – Stanton began his college studies at Kenyon College, which was affiliated with the Episcopal Church. What was the name of the society Stanton was involved in at the college?

Q#5 – What action by President Andrew Jackson in 1832 led Stanton to join the Democratic Party?

Q#6 – Stanton studied law and was admitted to practice in 1835 at a prominent law firm in Cadiz, Ohio. In what type of legal work did Stanton specialize?

Q#7 – What was the cause of death of Stanton’s wife, Mary Ann Lamson Stanton, in March 1844?

Q#8 – Why did Stanton gain national attention in a courtroom case where he successfully defended Caleb J. McNulty, a Democrat who was dismissed from his clerkship in the United States House of Representatives by unanimous vote and charged with embezzlement after thousands of dollars of the House’s funds went missing?

Q#9 – Daniel Sickles was charged with the murder of Philip Barton Key, the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia and son of Francis Scott Key, due to Key’s romantic affair with Sickles’ wife, Teresa Bagioli Sickles. Stanton, part of Sickles’ defense team, had Sickles plead temporary insanity. In his closing arguments, what did Stanton tell the jury that was instrumental in securing Sickles’ acquittal?

Q#10 – In 1860, what was Stanton’s first major political appointment?

Q#11 – Who was President Lincoln’s Secretary of War before Stanton’s appointment?

Q#12 – What action did Stanton order in January 1861 that nearly prompted the United Kingdom and France to recognize and support the Confederacy?

Q#13 – After learning that Lincoln had been shot, what four significant actions did Stanton order?

Q#14 – At the beginning of Reconstruction, as Secretary of War, what were Stanton’s main objectives for the United States military?

Q#15 – How did Stanton’s role as Secretary of War contribute to President Andrew Johnson’s impeachment in 1868?

Meeting of May 27, 2025

Kirstein Ta on “Reminiscences of Smithville in Dekalb County, Tennessee: A personal account of the Civil War through a child’s eyes”

William Thomas Foster was only three years old in the fall of 1860 when he witnessed the first signs of an impending civil war. After April 1861, he would see two of his older brothers Eratus D. Foster and Stephen M. Foster join up with Capt. Cantrell’s Company C, 23rd Regiment, Tennessee Confederate Infantry. His third brother John B. Foster would go on to join the 15th Mississippi Regiment.

In William’s personal account of his family’s experiences during the civil war he shares the hardships felt by many families during those tumultuous four years. Even more disconcerting is the stories he shares about his family’s encounters with a group of Confederate guerillas led by a young man by the name of Pomp Kersey.

Pomp Kersey and his gang spent the majority of 1863-1864 terrorizing the town of Smithville, but Pomp particularly liked harassing the Foster family due to the knowledge that William’s father was a known Union sympathizer. Pomp eventually found himself on the wrong end of a gun in July of 1864, but the wrong end of whose gun?

Kirstein Hansen-Ta is a new student of the Civil War. In July 2024 she inherited ten six-inch binders that contained her family history dating as far back as 1630 to present day. As incredible as all this history is, she found none as interesting, or as fascinating as the family’s experience in the Civil War. There were several men on both sides of her family that fought for the Confederacy. This included her second great grandfather, in addition to a number of uncles. She is happy to report that with the exception of one they all returned home.

Amid the hundreds of pages inside these binders Kirstein came across what she considers the most valuable four pages of them all. These four pages are a type-written letter from an uncle describing all three of his older brothers, and their time in the Confederate army. Additionally, he goes on to describe what life was like for the family during the Civil War, as well. What Kirstein realized after reading these stories was that the most intriguing part of the civil war wasn’t necessarily the battles, or the politics, but rather about the people who lived through it.

Wanting to learn more about the Civil War, Kirstein came across the website for the South Bay Civil War Round Table, and she officially became a member in October 2024. She looks forward to learning more about this significant time in our country’s history.

Meeting Minutes May 2025 Download

Quiz for May 27, 2025

Civil War Quiz: What Do You Know About Mexico, France, and the Confederacy?

Q#1 – What was France’s initial justification for invading Mexico in 1861?

Q#2 – What was French Emperor Napoleon III’s secondary reason for invading Mexico in 1861?

Q#3 – Who in Mexico provided support for the French invasion of the country?

Q#4 – Did France ever officially recognize the Confederate States of America?

Q#5 – What justification did the Confederate Government provide France (and other European countries) for recognizing the Confederacy and providing economic and military support?

Q#6 – Why did France and other European monarchies hope for a Confederate victory?

Q#7 – In 1863, what caused the famine du coton in France?

Q#8 – What was the economic impact on France of the famine du coton?

Q#9 – French Emperor Napolean III was eager to help the Confederacy. What prevented him from doing this?

Q#10 – What actions were taken in France to lessen the impact of the loss of cotton sales from the Confederacy?

Q#11 – For What was the position of French Newspapers regarding France’s possible support of the Confederacy?

Q#12 – How did Confederate Texas play a role in enabling France to invade Mexico in 1861?

Q#13 – In 1861, after the Confederate attack on Fort Sumpter and all 11 states had seceded from the Union and joined the Confederacy, what did France think would be the outcome of the war?

Q#14 – In 1861, what actions did France take to support the Confederate war effort.

Q#15 – At the start of the Civil War, the Confederacy sought closer relationships with Mexico to obtain supplies from France, (this was before France invaded Mexico), but Mexican President Benito Juarez turned them down. How did the Confederacy circumvent this?