Richard R. Schaus on “Lee Is Trapped, and Must Be Taken: Eleven Fateful Days After Gettysburg, July 4–14, 1863”

Lee is Trapped, by Thomas J. Ryan and Richard R. Schaus, was the winner of the 2017 Edwin C. Bearss Scholarly Research Award, and the 2019 Hugh G. Earnhart Civil War Scholarship Award from the Mahoning Valley Civil War Round Table. The book focuses on the immediate aftermath of the battle of Gettysburg and addresses how Maj. Gen. George G. Meade organized and motivated his Army of the Potomac in response to President Abraham Lincoln’s mandate to bring about the “literal or substantial destruction” of Gen. Robert E. Lee’s retreating Army of Northern Virginia. As far as the president was concerned, if Meade aggressively pursued and confronted Lee before he could escape across the flooded Potomac River, “the rebellion would be over.”

Richard R. Schaus, Sergeant Major, US Army (Ret.), served on active duty for more than 30 years in a variety of army and joint military intelligence assignments both at home and abroad. Rick is a lifelong student of the Civil War and American military history, and the Gettysburg Campaign in particular.

Bobby Jorgensen on “The Federal Bridging Operation at Fredericksburg”

December 1862 found Union Major General Ambrose Burnside’s winter campaign in Virginia stalled and at risk. Expanding upon a campaign plan he had originally proposed to his predecessor, Burnside had set off on a campaign to outmaneuver the Army of Northern Virginia en route to Richmond. Key to this advance was securing the city of Fredericksburg. Initially Burnside had stolen a march on his adversary and arrived on the outskirts of the city unopposed. However, as November turned to December, logistical delays combined with unfavorable topographic and meteorological conditions to delay Burnside’s army on the northeastern bank of the Rappahannock River while the Army of Northern Virginia began concentrating on the opposite bank and around the city. With the elements of speed and surprise no longer on his side, Burnside began modifying his campaign plan to include a deliberate river crossing onto an enemy held shore where he had previously expected to cross unopposed.

Bobby Jorgensen works in the financial services industry in New York City. Prior to joining the banking world he served as a combat engineer officer in the United States Marine Corps, where he participated in a number of gap crossing operations. He still serves today as a Major in the Marine Corps Reserve.

June 2020 Newsletter

John Quarstein discusses his book “Big Bethel: The First Battle”.

On June 10, 1861, one of the first military engagements of the American Civil War took place at Big Bethel, Virginia. Confederate troops occupied the area around Big Bethel and Little Bethel Churches from which they would reconnoiter the Union positions around Hampton and Old Point. The Union Army, tired of the incursions, determined to put a stop to them.

John V. Quarstein is an award-winning author, historian and preservationist. He served for 30 years as director of the Virginia War Museum, and is the director emeritus of the USS Monitor Center at The Mariners’ Museum and Park in Newport News, Virginia. Quarstein is the author of 15 books and six PBS documentaries. His books include the Big Bethel: The First Battle (2011) and the Henry Adams prize winning The Monitor Boys: The Crew of the Union’s First Ironclad (2010).

Drew Gruber on “The Battle of Williamsburg, Forgotten Now and Then”

The Battle of Williamsburg took place on May 5, 1862, in York County, James City County, and Williamsburg, Virginia. It was the first pitched battle of the Peninsula Campaign, in which nearly 41,000 Federals and 32,000 Confederates were engaged, fighting an inconclusive battle that ended with the Confederates continuing their withdrawal. Drew’s presentation describes the battle with specific focus on personal stories and the New Jersey brigade, as well as key factors as to why the battlefield has been largely developed and forgotten.

Drew A. Gruber is the Executive Director of Civil War Trails which connects visitors to over 1200 sites across six states. He is also the acting Director for the Williamsburg Battlefield Association and served a three year term on the Board of Historic Resources for the Commonwealth of Virginia. A native of Ocean County New Jersey, he lives today in Williamsburg, Virginia with his wife Kate.

May 2020 Newsletter

Ron Kirkwood on “Women at the George Spangler Farm XI Corps Hospital – Battle of Gettysburg”

The United States government wasn’t prepared for the human carnage when two giant armies left behind 20,000 wounded, suffering, maimed and dying Union and Confederate men after the Battle of Gettysburg. As a result, men were dying because of a lack of medical care, food and other essential supplies. And then civilians stepped in, especially women. Learn how women volunteered and played a major role in saving the day and lives at one farm with the online PowerPoint presentation “Women at the George Spangler Farm XI Corps Hospital – Battle of Gettysburg” by author Ron Kirkwood.