The artifacts were all attached to a standing display or arranged on a picnic table. Guns, knifes, tools, belt buckles, musket balls, cannon balls, shells and a fragment of what was known as a “canister” that once contained lead balls were all there for people who wanted to look more than 150 years in the past. They are the artifacts harking back to the most devastating conflict ever fought in North America, that long struggle called the Civil War.
Re-enactors with the Sons of Confederate Veterans, West Virginia Division, Southern Brigade Camp No. 1694 - Flat Top Copperheads erected a camp last Saturday at the West Virginia Tourist Information Center so Labor Day travelers could get a glimpse of the past. Re-enactors wore Confederate uniforms to help visitors step back in time for just a moment.
Naturally, I was attracted to the artifacts. Many of them had been buried for years until they were found by chance or by a relic hunter searching with a metal detector. Their owner, Blaine Hypes of Princeton, said the artifacts on display represented about 32 years of collecting.
Each bit of the collection could tell a story if it could speak, he said. I think he’s right. Somebody used those items more than 150 years ago, so you can’t help wondering who had handled those tools or used that belt buckle or knife. They were people who had stories to tell, and you can’t help but wonder about their fate.
For instance, I have a few Minie balls, conical bullets that were fired from Civil War muskets. I bought them years ago during a Civil War event at PikeView High School. The sutler, or traveling merchant like the ones who followed Civil War armies to cater to soldiers’ needs, let me dig through a box of bullets that had been collected from various battle and camp sites. And each one of them could tell a story.
For instance, one has a small hole at its tip. I’m told that hole was caused by a hook that was used to dig bullets out of musket barrels when there was a misfire. Another has even more dramatic damage; it’s nose cone has literally been smashed into its body.
I still remember the sutler looking at the particular Minie ball, smiling and saying: “The fellow must have been frantic.” Apparently the solider had shoved his ramrod, a metal rod used to tap the combination of black powder, wadding and bullet into his musket, so hard down the barrel that he smashed the lead bullet.
Another bullet I selected had been whittled; you can still see the knife marks on it. Sometimes bored soldiers would carve the soft lead bullets with their knives and make a variety of little sculptures. Even chess pieces have been found.
My favorite bullet is also the most ominous. It’s a half mushroom shape, the result of the bullet striking something. The sutler was quick to say that he couldn’t be sure if it had hit a human being, but I thought it was still a good example of what happened on impact. That expanding bullet would have caused a horrible wound.
One re-enactor, Bobby Tabor of Narrows, Va., brought his Model 1841 Field Howitzer cannon to the camp. He reminded me that in this age of automatic weapons, jet fighters and smart bombs, we can forget just how lethal Civil War weapons could be on the battlefield. A “canister” fired by a cannon contained enough lead bullets to kill or injure 75 people; essentially, it was a big shotgun shell.
The re-enactor’s goal was to help educate the public about life during the Civil War. While I was talking to Tabor, another re-enactor was letting a boy hold a reproduction Civil War gun.
It’s important to tell the younger generations about our country’s history because it’s not a topic they automatically soak up. For instance, I was once on a website about World War II when I saw a post from a teen-age boy. He didn’t know anything about World War II and wanted to know when it happened, who fought in it and who won! I quickly posted a reply that I hope set him straight and got him started on his own research.
Events such as the Civil War camp help awaken an interest in history and lets young people know that events that happened more than five minutes ago are worth knowing. As it’s been said, those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.
Greg Jordan is a reporter for the Daily Telegraph. Contact him at gjordan@bdtonline.com.
Columns
September 9, 2010
Stories from the past: Historical relics spur trip back in time
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