Vila Wolf's Dyslexic Folklorist Ranting

The Civil War Confederate Bio-Terror Plot,

In the summer of 1864 Bermuda was experiencing a terrible yellow fever epidemic, most likely spread by passing sailors.  There to help with the epidemic was Dr. Luke Blackburn, a physician from Kentucky.  While Blackburn helped many patients during his stay in Bermuda, he had ulterior motives for his actions. Dr. Luke Blackburn was a Confederate supporter, and at the time the American Civil War was going badly for the Confederacy.  Dr. Blackburn’s goal was to spread yellow fever throughout northern cities, hopefully causing enough death and chaos to hinder the Union war effort.

Dr. Blackburn gathered the clothing of dead victims, all of which were in good enough condition to pass as brand new clothing, and gathered them up in trunks.  He then had them shipped to Halifax, where they were then to be shipped to clothing merchants in New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Norfolk, and Washington D.C.  Another trunk was also to be sent directly to Abraham Lincoln as a gift. The plot failed when authorities discovered the plot, Dr. Blackburn was arrested in Montreal, and the clothing confiscated and burned.  Nurses in Bermuda became suspicious of Dr. Blackburn and alerted the constabulary.  In addition, Blackburn’s accomplice, Edward Swan, alerted the US Consul in Toronto when Blackburn couldn’t pay him upfront to deliver the trunks of infected clothing.

Amazingly, Dr. Blackburn was only charged with violating Canadian neutrality law, but was acquitted and allowed to return to the US.  He served one term as Governor of Kentucky, passing away in 1883.

As its turns out, yellow fever cannot be spread from contaminated items, only through mosquito bites and contact with bodily fluids. So the plot would have failed anyway.

Gen. Joseph Wheeler, Spanish American War,

During the Spanish American War Gen. Joseph Wheeler was given command of American cavalry forces in Cuba.  Before his military career in the Spanish American War Wheeler served as a feared Confederate cavalry general in the Civil War.  

While Wheeler was an experienced, brilliant, and aggressive military commander, there were signs that he was not all there mentally.  Often he would become confused as to which war he was fighting in.  At the Battle of Las Guasimas in 1898 he reportedly shouted, “Lets go boys, we got them damned Yankees on the run again!"

ca. 1865, [carte de visite collage portrait of Jefferson Davis “in disguise, as he appeared at the time of his capture"]

via the International Center of Photography, “President in Petticoats! Civil War Propaganda in Photographs" Exhibit

Confederate Colt Copies of the Civil War, Griswold and Gunnison Revolver

During the American Civil War the Union, with its mighty industrial infrastructure, had a wealth of small arms and ordnance to fight the war. The Confederate south based on agriculture always suffered from shortages of weapons and almost every important war material.  Needless to say the Confederacy had to make due with what they had and obtain weapons from any source.  

It was not uncommon for many small workshops, factories, and even individual gunsmiths to produce their own copies of popular Colt, Remington, and Smith & Wesson revolvers.  Being that the south was not very industrialized most southern producers did not have the technical know how to produce their own designs, so naturally they just copied other designs from the north, especially the popular Colt revolver.  This makes sense, while Colt may hold the patents to a certain model of revolver, what are they going to do to stop Confederate producers from infringing on their patents in a time of rebellion?  Sue them? Take them to court?

Often Confederate Colt copies, while functional, were of lesser quality than real Colt revolvers.  This was due to inferior machining, lesser quality manufacturing techniques, and use of cheaper materials.  Due to lack of resources many Colt copies have a brass frame and trigger guard.  This was due to shortages of graded steel in the south during the war.  Often the metal of copy Colts was also not blued or finished to protect it from rust.

The largest Confederate producer of pistols was a firm called Griswold and Gunnison out of Griswoldville, Georgia.  The pictures above show an example of a Griswold and Gunnison copy of a Colt 1851 Navy revolver.  They also made copies of the famous Remington 1858 as well.  While the largest pistol producer in the Confederacy, their production numbers really illustrate the differences between northern and southern industry, and why the Union won the war.  During the entire Civil War Griswold and Gunnison were able to produce around 3,700 pistols.  Contrast that to Colt, the Union’s largest pistol producer, who delivered 127,000 Colt Model 1860 revolvers to the Union Army during the war. 

ca. 1861-1864, [Tintype portrait of a Confederate Private with ‘49 Colt Pistol and Sword Bayonet]

via the Nelson-Atkins Museum, Photography Collection

Private Peter H. Bird of Co. D, 2nd Virginia Cavalry Regiment, in Uniform

ca. 1861-65, [carte de visite of “The Devil” holding portraits of leading Southern figures during the American Civil War such as Jefferson Davis, Alexander H. Stephens, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson]

via Luminious Lint, Private collection, LL/38774 

Jim Limber (Jim Limber Davis), was a mulatto boy who was briefly a ward & possible adopted son of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederate States of America. Who Knew?

Under the care of the Davis family from February 1864 to May 1865. His real name may have been James Henry Brooks.  Varina Howell Davis, wife of Jefferson Davis, was returning home in Richmond, Virginia, when she saw a black boy being beaten by a guardian. Outraged, she immediately put an end to the beating and had the boy come with her in her carriage. He was cared for by Mrs. Davis and her staff. They gave him clothes belonging to the Davises’ son, Joe, since the boys were of similar age.

Davis arranged for Jim to be freed from slavery. It is unknown if Davis actually adopted him. There was no adoption law in Virginia at that time, so any adoption would be an “extralegal” affair. When the Davises were captured by Union forces in Georgia, Jim was separated from them. Some recounts of the story say this was due to a swift kidnapping of Limber by the Union Army, while other accounts say that the Davises recognized a Union general they knew well, Rufus Saxton. The Davis family never saw Jim again.

Photo Source: http://www.bardofthesouth.com/the-taking-of-jim-limber/

Cuba Libre: Union and confederate soldiers shaking hands in front of young female personification of Cuba, 1898 

LOC

ca. 1860’s, [ambrotype portrait of a black gentleman in a Confederate jacket]

via Cowan’s Auctions

ca. 1860’s, [ambrotype portrait of a Confederate soldier wearing a plaid shirt and a holstered pistol. He carries a large bedroll, a percussion rifle and a kepi with the letters “4 SLG” for the 4th Sumter Light Guards]

via Heritage Auctions

ca. 1861-65, [hand-tinted ambrotype portrait of a Confederate soldier in the uniform of the 11th Virginia regiment with knapsack and bedroll]

via the Library of Congress, Liljenquist Family Collection of Civil War Photographs

ca. 1864-65, [carte de visite of mourners at grave of Gen. T.J. (Stonewall) Jackson. Lexington, VA]

via the Missouri History Museum