Arkansas Civil War

One hundred and fifty years ago, emotions were running high and the adrenaline of the nation was apparent in examining the events that transpired following the bombardment on Fort Sumter by the Confederate artillery in Charleston Harbor just one week ago. Events that occurred hundreds of miles from Arkansas would have a devastating impact on Arkansas’ willingness to remain a state in the union.

On April 17, 1861, the Cincinnati Daily Enquirer reported that six boxes, “…containing carriage-wheels for cannon, one brass piece of artillery, cartridges, &c., on the steamers Glendale and Ohio No. 3…” were seized by “a mob”. The article went on to say that “The excitement on the Public Landing was
intense, and a determination exhibited by the mob that nothing in the shape of munitions of war or provisions should go to the Southern States. The city authorities took possession of the above articles from the excited populace, and by them they were placed in the custody of the United States Marshal.

Two days following the seizure of Arkansas’ arms and ammunition in Ohio, according to the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion, the general air of concern was apparent: “The people of Arkansas are maddened by the seizure of their arms in Cincinnati, and I am assured by every one that these stores will be seized.” On April 21, 1861, the revolution in Arkansas was obvious, as preparations were being made to seize all U.S. Goods from all steamers on the Arkansas River as seen in following account by U.S. Officer William Burns:

“On arriving at Little Rock I found military preparations made to intercept all boas loaded with U. S. stores. The steamboat Sky Lark had just passed, after having been boarded and the U. S. stores taken from her at Pine Bluff…When I arrived at Pine Bluff I found the Silver Lake Number 2, tied up and strongly guarded. The crew had left, the stores were placed in different houses in town, and the steamboat was to transport troops to Fort Smith.”

The seizure of U.S. Supplies from steamers on the Arkansas River was enough for Arkansawyers to believe they had done their part in the developing conflict between the Northern and Southern States. Arkansas had still not seceded, but events had already been set into motion that would see Arkansas making her choice within a month.



Be sure to check out our new online bookstore hosting a variety of books that specialize on the Civil War in Arkansas!

Santa Claus Drawn by Thomas Nast

The famed American cartoonist Thomas Nast is generally credited as having invented the modern depiction of Santa Claus. Nast, who had worked as a magazine illustrator and created campaign posters for Abraham Lincoln in 1860, was hired by Harper’s Weekly in 1862. For the Christmas season he was assigned to draw the magazine’s cover, and legend has it that Lincoln himself requested a depiction of Santa Claus visiting Union troops.

The resulting cover, from the Harper’s Weekly dated January 3, 1863, was a hit. It shows Santa Claus on his sleigh, which has arrived at a U.S. Army camp festooned with a “Welcome Santa Claus” sign.

Santa’s suit features the stars and stripes of the American flag, and he’s distributing Christmas packages to the soldiers. One soldier is holding up a new pair of socks, which might be a boring present today, but would have been a highly prized item in the Army of the Potomac.

Beneath Nast’s illustration was the caption, “Santa Claus In Camp.” Appearing not long after the carnage at Antietam and Fredericksburg, the magazine cover is an apparent attempt to boost morale in a dark time.

The Santa Claus illustrations proved so popular that Thomas Nast kept drawing them every year for decades. He is also credited with creating the notion that Santa lived at the North Pole and kept a workshop manned by elves.

The tradition of the Christmas tree came from Germany, and there are accounts of German settlers, as well as Hessian mercenaries, having them in early America. But the custom wasn’t widespread outside German communities.

The Christmas tree first gained popularity in British and American society thanks to Queen Victoria’s husband, the German-born Prince Albert. He installed a decorated Christmas tree at Windsor Castle in 1841, and woodcuts of the Royal Family’s tree appeared in London magazines in 1848. Such illustrations, published in America a year later, created the fashionable impression of the Christmas tree in upper class homes.

Most people in the 1800′s lit their Christmas trees with small candles. The first electric Christmas tree lights appeared in the 1880s, thanks to an associate of Thomas Edison, but were too costly for most households.



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On the Contact Us page of the website, you will see a section that says “Enter your email address to subscribe to the Arkansas Toothpick” with a button below it that says “Subscribe”. Simply enter your email address, and you will see a box pop up with a code to verify you want to subscribe. Enter the code, then check your email box for the confirmation email. Once you confirm your email, you are all set, and will get updates anytime the website is updated.

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What is the Arkansas Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission? The ACWSC is a newly formed organization following the mandate of the Federal Government encouraging all states to organize and plan activities to honor the 150th anniversary of the Civil War. What does that mean to us in Arkansas? Specifically, these are the focuses of the commission.

1. To sanction events around the state that are appropriate observances of the Sesquicentennial.

2. To promote historic sites around the state that are connected to the Civil War through educational efforts (brochures, websites, etc)

3. To promote publications and archival collections connected to the Civil War in Arkansas and advocating donations of materials to appropriate repositories.

4. To promote local observances that tell the local story.

5. To support the efforts to teach and research Arkansas Civil War history in the state’s schools and universities.

6. To support efforts to preserve and interpret the state’s Civil War sites and documentary heritage and artifacts.

7. To develop a plan and procedure to secure funding and appropriations, and to secure, accept, and spend donations, and develop a legislative package for the 2009 Arkansas General Assembly.

8. To explore ways to ensure that the ACWSC celebrations are inclusive of all Arkansans, including women, children, African-Americans, Native-Americans, and all other minority groups.

What we have in the planning is an interactive website that will become a “go-to” resource for any and all events, activities and accomplishments regarding the aforementioned focuses. We have met with AETN for possible television programming choices. We are developing an attractive and concise logo to be used for all correspondences and promotional materials. With this accomplished, we will then be able to put our “stamp of approval” on sanctioned events across the state of Arkansas. A press release has been issued asking the general public to submit activities and events that are currently scheduled, as well as any sites that should be considered for sanctioning. A discussion has ensued to set up a program of identifying and marking Civil War sites across the state, as well as making repairs to existing markers. With the development of a donations and funding acquisition plan, we hope to be able to offer grants and/or scholarship opportunities for more research into Arkansas Civil War history.

I hope this makes it a little clearer as to what the ACWSC is and what it means to you. If you’d like any input, feel free to contact me.

Respectfully submitted,
Miss Ellie

P.S. I am well and thank all of you for your kind wishes and prayers. Hope to be out and about soon!

Ladies and Gentlemen of the 1st Ark, Greetings. I just you have been enjoying your month off after a very busy January. I know I haven’t!!! If I have not been in some kind of meeting, I have had the crud. But I am ready to get back into the field. And looking at March, April, and May, we will be in the field quite often.

Our first event will be the Camden Artillery festival on March 7-8. Although this will primarily an artillery event, I would like to work in some infantry drill. After reading Corporal Lewis’ article last month, I realized that I too have been negligent in my duties as your company commander. I had become complacent with where we were, and that was wrong. We need to constantly strive to improve, and I promise you that we will do that this year. We will drill at every opportunity, we will recruit at every opportunity, and we will show that the 1st Arkansas Infantry and Light Artillery (and Civilian Corps) is the best in the state!!! March is busy, and it is important that we have a good turnout at each event. I know that not everyone can make every event, but please make the effort. Those that do attend most events notice when others only come when it is convenient. We begin with Camden on the 7-8, then we have the Cleburne Service in Helena on the 15th. We will meet at the Jefferson County Courthouse at 8:00am and rendezvous at the West Helena McDonald’s around 10:00am to journey to the cemetery. The following Saturday in Confederate Flag day at the State Capitol. We will converge on the Capitol Grounds at 10:00am, and then journey to Vino’s for lunch afterwards. On Saturday March 29 we will be having Park Clean up day at White Sulphur Springs. I would like to also have a short drill on this day to get us ready for Pleasant Hill, which will be the following weekend. So get ready!!!

Finally, a quick note on Gettysburg registration for the 1st Ark. We have 1 officer, 12 rifles, a drummer, and 3 civilians registered. There are others from other units that may still fall in with us. If you want to go, I need to know by Camden at the latest!!! The deadline for registration is March 15th. The event will not accept registrations after that date and there will be no walk-ons. See you all on the field very soon.

Capt K