Prattville Dragoons 1861 Departure Reenactment

Confederate Memorial Day, Monday April 25, members of the SCV Camp 1524 Prattville Dragoons conducted a memorial laying of a wreath at the monuments at Fourth and Washington Streets in Prattville; placement was made by Quartermaster Jeffrey Potts and Brigade Commander Bill Myrick. It was a well performed and well attended event with exceptional reenactment performances by SCV members including Tyrone Crowley playing the part of Daniel Pratt as well as school children from Prattville Christian Academy. Invocations and Benedictions were offered by Chaplain Tom Snowden, welcome remarks were provided by Commander Chris Booth, 1st Lt. Commander Harold Grooms, 2nd Lt. Commander Stuart Waldo and Brigade Commander Bill Myrick.  After the reenactment of Daniel Pratt's address and the presentation of the Dragoons flag, the program concluded with a rousing rendition of Dixie led by Chaplain Snowden and 1st Lt. Grooms.  The following is an excerpt from the Prattville Progress which provided coverage for the event. 

Local SCV group re-enacts 1861 Civil War sendoff

Members of Prattville Dragoons, Camp 1524 of the Alabama Division of Sons of Confederate Veterans, gathered with members of other SCV camps Monday to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the departure by the first local troops to join Confederate forces.
The sesquicentennial ceremony included a re-enactment of the presentation by ladies of the former Prattville Male and Female Academy, where Prattville Primary School now stands, of the flag the local troops carried into battle. It also included an improvised version of the speech likely made to the gray-clad soldiers by Daniel Pratt.
Monday's re-enactment and series of short speeches, which was attended by about 100 people at the site of the monuments to the CSA troops, also served as the local celebration of Confederate Memorial Day, an official state holiday.

and some photos from the event:

Tragedy in Alabama

Wednesday April 27th, 2011 will be a day long remembered in Alabama as a day of tragedy as fierce storms spawned tornadoes causing massive damage and loss of life.  Current estimates place the number of dead well over 200 in the state of Alabama and neighboring states totaled approximately 100 additional as the storm system moved thru the South.  Many citizens of Alabama were either immediately affected or had friends or relatives who either experienced this devestation or, tragically, loss of loved ones.  The following is an excerpt from the SCV Alabama Division Commander:

Gentlemen,

Yesterday and last night was harrowing for many in Alabama. Many of our brothers were in the thick of the bad weather. Please keep them and their families in your hearts and prayers.
 
I am most concerned about our members in the Pleasant Grove and Tuscaloosa areas, but these were just the worst hit. There is quite a bit of
incidental damage all across the northern half of the state. When your house or family are hurt, it does not matter to you if you were not in a large disaster area, it is still a disaster to you.

May God be with you all, and with our members in travail.

Sincerely,

Robert Reames
Alabama Division Commander
Sons of Confederate Veterans.

State Flag, National Flag

Almost a decade ago the politically correct crowd and NAACP pressured the Georgia state legislature and governor to change the state flag which had flown for fifty years.  The intolerant ignorant PC crowd and racist NAACP deemed the Confederate Battle Flag a symbol of racism and oppression and threatened boycotts.  So the state government caved and adopted an atrocious interim flag for a couple of years which was replaced in 2003 by the current flag by an overwhelming ballot referendum.  In a measure of poetic justice, Georgia's new state flag is based on the first national flag of the Confederacy (the "Stars and Bars") and consists of a field of three horizontal bars of equal width, two red separated by a white bar in the center. In the upper left corner is a square blue canton the width of two bars. In the center of the canton is a circle of 13 white stars. Identical to the Confederate national flag.  The only feature that departs from this grand historic banner is that within the circle of stars is Georgia's coat of arms (the central design on the state seal) immediately above the words "In God We Trust" -- both in gold.   Nice choice.

Old Georgia State Flag featuring the Confederate Battle Flag.

New Georgia State Flag.

The First National Flag of the Confederacy, the Stars and Bars.  This specific version had thirteen stars symbolizing the final number of member states of the CSA and was in use from Nov 1861 thru May 1863.

Prattville Dragoons Departure 1861

Monday April 26 at 6pm at the Prattville Primary School, SCV Camp 1524 will celebrate a Sesquicentennial event of local historical importance, the departure of the Prattville Dragoons in April of 1861.  The following is an excerpt from original member Capt. WF Mims' History of the Dragoons.  An announcement has been placed in the local Prattville Progress newspaper inviting all to attend this meaningful event.

Early in April, 1861, when our community was astir as to the important question of enlisting in some branch of military service in defense of our dear Southland, there appeared in our midst one Samuel D. Oliver, from Robinson Springs, a neighboring town, urging the necessity of organizing a company of cavalry. His endeavors were richly rewarded by a ready response of the best citizens of town and vicinity.

The work of a few days sufficed to secure a sufficient number to form the organization. Naturally there was much excitement. Many not being able to furnish their mounts were greatly discouraged. That great and good man, Daniel Pratt, so well known for deeds of charity and generosity supplied the deficiency at a cost of many hundred dollars.

Our noble women both old and young encouraged the cause by providing articles of comfort in the way of clothing, blankets, etc., their words of encouragement and general interest greatly modified the serious side of the situation. One of their first acts was to make a beautiful silk flag, which was presented to the company by Miss Abbie Holt. This scene occurred at the Academy April, 1861. After these exercises the company took up their march to the Montgomery Fair Grounds where they went into camp.

Prattville Dragoons Annual Picnic

The Prattville Dragoons annual camp picnic was held at the Confederate Memorial Park in Mountain Creek AL on Saturday, April 16.  It was a cool breezy morning after a fierce storm had moved thru the area the night before.  But it was a wonderful day commenced by the planting of hundreds of Confederate battle flags on each of the veterans graves at the park.   At 11am the program began when outgoing Commander Harold Grooms thanked all for their support, then passed the sword of command on to incoming Commander Prentiss Christopher Booth.  Commander Booth then swore in the rest of the new slate of officers, and assisted by Chaplain Tom Snowden, inducted new member Bruce Casey.  Following words from incoming 2nd Lt Commander Stuart Waldo, some fine singing by Tom Snowden and the blessing by Chaplain Snowden, the eager crowd lined up for some great food offered by those who attended, and enjoyed by all. The fellowship, the children running and playing, the feast of delicious Southern food including BBQ, camp stew, salads, mac and cheese, beans, and desserts like cobblers, banana pudding, pecan pies and cakes made it feel like a family reunion.  And it was a reunion of over fifty compatriots new and veteran there to celebrate the Confederacy and to memorialize the great brave soldiers who fought and died to defend their homeland. 

Confederate Heritage and History Day in Wetumpka

Attended the 10th annual Confederate Heritage and History Day celebration in Wetumpka which was held Saturday April 2nd.  After a parade across the bridge into downtown Wetumpka, the celebration continued in Gold Star Park.  A number of period Confederate flags lined the road fronting the park including a Third National Flag, a Bonnie Blue and many Battle Flags.  A band with members from the SCV Tallassee Armory Guards camp played for the crowd which included a number of reenactors.  Prattville Dragoons Bill Myrick and Stuart Waldo with families were in attendance.  Vendors tables were set-up with Confederate flags, license plates, belt buckles and T-shirts along with hot dogs off the grill and soda pop. 

Rebels Then and Now

The current US policy in the Middle East and particularly in Libya is interesting when compared to the historical context of the War Between the States.  The current US policy was stated by Obama to endorse freedom and self-determination for the rebels in Libya.  Qaddafi’s rule while a dictatorship was a stable recognized government.  The US implemented a no-fly zone to protect the rebels from attacks and “massacre” by Qaddafi’s military, condemning the violence of the government against it’s own people.  Compare this to the US troops attacking the Confederate States of America who simply exercised their right of secession to pursue freedom from tyrannical rule under a federal government’s overreaching agenda penal to their very way of life.  One is left to wonder if NATO would have enacted a no-fly zone over the states south of the Mason Dixon line to protect the peoples of the CSA as part of a “humanitarian” intervention.  Apparently the US then and now favors nation building as long as it is not from a portion of it’s own.