The April 28th meeting at Jack’s restaurant has been replaced by the following event at the Saratoga Senior Center.

High School Essay Contest

Objective: Encourage current high school students to develop an interest in the American Civil War and explore its lasting lessons that continue to shape America today.

Prizes: Monetary awards will be given to the winners.

High School Essay Contest Event

Date: Tuesday, April 28, 2026
Location: Saratoga Senior Center
Address: 9655 Allendale Ave, Saratoga, CA

Event Schedule

• 6:30 pm – 6:45 pm — Setup & Logistics
• 6:45 pm – 7:00 pm — Gathering & Refreshments
• 7:00 pm – 7:15 pm — SBCWRT Welcome and Brief Overview of the Organization
• 7:15 pm – 8:00 pm — Essay Contest Presentations, Winner Selection, Quiz, Social Gathering, and Adjournment

Mark Costin on “Battle of Cerro Gordo – Training Ground for the Civil War”

This talk explores the 1847 Battle of Cerro Gordo, where American forces under General Winfield Scott executed a brilliant flanking maneuver to defeat a much larger Mexican army commanded by General Santa Anna.

The battle proved to be an important training ground for the American Civil War. Many officers who fought at Cerro Gordo later became prominent generals on both sides of the conflict. Special attention will be given to the critical actions of a young Captain Robert E. Lee and other familiar names from the Civil War who played key roles in securing this decisive American victory.

Mark Costin is a recently retired engineer living in Sunnyvale, California. He spent his career working on functional safety for automated and autonomous vehicles. A longtime history enthusiast, Mark now has more time to devote to his hobby.

He holds a Ph.D. in Systems Engineering from Case Western Reserve University, an M.Eng. from McMaster University, and a B.Eng. from McGill University.

Join us at 6:30 PM, July 26, 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

Tonya McQuade on “Mary Brown, the Wife of John Brown”

What is a wife to do after her husband is hanged for treason?

Much has been written about the abolitionist John Brown—his role in the “Bleeding Kansas” border wars and his ill-fated raid on Harpers Ferry. His prophetic dying words foretold the bloodshed of the Civil War, and his hanging outside Charles Town, Virginia, followed by his burial in North Elba, New York, made national headlines and drew large crowds.

Far less attention has been given to John Brown’s wife, Mary, and how she and their surviving children rebuilt their lives in the years after his death. How many people know, for example, that Mary and several of her children moved to California in 1864 and eventually settled in Saratoga, on the western edge of Santa Clara County?

It was in Saratoga that Mary Brown spent the final years of her life. She now rests with sixteen other family members at Madronia Cemetery—thousands of miles from where her husband’s body “lies a-mouldering” in North Elba, New York.

Join us to learn more about Mary Brown’s later life, her California connections, and her family’s West Coast legacy.

Tonya McQuade is an author, educator, speaker, and retired high school English teacher. She is a passionate lover of history, travel, and nature. She and her husband frequently visit museums, state and national parks, and historical sites, and she enjoys reading historical texts and primary source documents.

Often, her reading of historical fiction sparks a deeper dive into the real people and events behind the stories, leading her to new discoveries and areas of interest.

After acquiring 50 family Civil War letters, Tonya began intensive research into the American Civil War in Missouri. She blogs about her writing journey and has written multiple articles for the Emerging Civil War website, including two that focus on Mary Brown and her family’s move to California.

Her book, A State Divided: The Civil War Letters of James Calaway Hale and Benjamin Petree of Andrew County, Missouri (2024), weaves together those family letters with historical commentary. It also explores John Brown’s role in the “Bleeding Kansas” border wars and his prophetic words about the coming Civil War before his execution for treason following the raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry.

Tonya is a member of the South Bay Civil War Round Table, South Bay Writers, Poetry Center San Jose, and the National League of American Pen Women. She earned B.A. degrees in English and Communication Studies, along with her Single Subject Teaching Credential in English, from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She later received her M.A. in Educational Leadership from San Jose State University.

You can learn more about Tonya on her website: tonyagrahammcquade.com, including a full listing of her Emerging Civil War articles.

Tom McMahon on “Bleeding Kansas”

Setting the stage with a short recall of the violent guerilla warfare that sets pre Civil War Kansas bleeding and on Fire,1855-9 over the issue of slavery we examine the stark contrast of the type of conflict carried out in Virginia by Lee ,a West Point model of proper military engagement as contrasted to the bushwhack raids and battles west of the Mississippi which were out of control of Jefferson Davis in his struggle with his generals. One of my main interests will be to high light the contingent of Union troops who were stationed in Alabama throughout the entire war ,cavalry that became the personal guard of General Sherman in his March to the Sea and the destruction of a 200 year economic plantation way of life for the people of the South. It looks like only a short mention of the March to the Sea can be taken up , so this might be for another time.,

Tom McMahon, San Francisco born in 1928, Roman Catholic priest for 26 years, pastor of Old 1897 historic church in New Almaden, married to Elaine (deceased 2021, two sons, five grandchildren), member of local San Jose South Bay Civil War Roundtable for 16 years, retired mental health therapist, amateur historian, founder of History Club at Almaden Senior Center, writer-researcher, and one who enjoys life and people.

Bob Burch on “California in the Civil War: Other California Units”

This is the fifth of a twelve-part series on California and the American Civil War. This presentation will explore the history of those units that served in the Eastern Theater during the American Civil War that enlisted a good portion of their recruits from California or had that state’s name in their unit designation. Nearly ten percent of Californians who volunteered during the war did so into units from other states. They did so for a variety of reasons including the desire to represent their state during the war to preserve the Union. Consequently these “other California units” represented their state continuously from the Battle of First Bull Run until General Lee’s surrender at Appomattox four years later.

Eventually Californians served in five other states’ volunteer regiments. On the West Coast these units were the 1st Washington Territory Infantry and 1st Oregon Cavalry Regiments. On the East Coast these were the 32nd New York Infantry Regiment (aka “California Regiment”), Baker’s Brigade (aka “California Brigade”) of four regiments, and the 2nd Massachusetts Cavalry Regiment’s “California Hundred” and “California Battalion”.

Along the way we will meet several forgotten Californians who served their country well. Colonel Roderick Matheson from Healdsburg who fought at First Bull Run and later died from wounds received at the Battle of Crampton’s Gap. Colonel Francis Pinto of San Francisco who commanded regiments during the Peninsula, 2nd Manassas, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville Campaigns. Major Archibald McKendry who commanded the California Battalion and eventually the 2nd Massachusetts Cavalry Regiment when only a captain. Captain James Sewell Reed of the California Hundred who died while leading his unit against Mosby’s partisans and Captain Hugh Armstrong who replaced him and led that company from Battle of Fort Stevens until Appomattox. And Captain Henry Crocker of San Francisco who participated in nine battle and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor for valor at the Battle of Cedar Creek.

Except for the “CAL 100” Cavalry, these units have disappeared from history despite the presence of the California Regiment’s monument on Cemetery Ridge at Gettysburg and mention in many original source documents from newspapers to the Official Records. This presentation will attempt to remember and honor their contribution to the Union cause.

Bob Burch is a native Californian, born and raised in Santa Clara County. He is also a lifetime student of the Civil War. He had the opportunity to visit many Civil War sites from Florida to Pennsylvania to New Mexico during his 30 year military career. Like many California CWRT members, he desires to understand his home state’s role in the war. He started collecting material for this presentation ten years ago and initiated a serious study 15 months ago. This series documents his research in great detail. Time allows only a few key points from each slide to be presented. Numerous period photographs and magazine drawings are included for visual effect with the intent of comprehending California’s role in the Civil War.

Meeting Minutes June 2017