Prattville Dragoons Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 Meeting for June 2026 - The Defense Works of Atlanta

SCV Camp 1524 held their June meeting at the Smokehouse Pit BBQ, in Millbrook and it was very enjoyable with great service from the staff, a nice room to hold our meeting and delicious BBQ and drinks. Of course, fellowship with compatriots was best including Brother Schwartz who kept everyone entertained prior to the start of the meeting with traditional songs on his trusty guitar. Chaplain Johnson opened the meeting with a benediction after which Color Sgt Leverette led everyone in the pledge to the US falg and salutes to the Alabama state and Confederate flags. Commander Waldo then read the SCV Charge to those gathered. 1st Lt Grooms presented Bill Myrick with an appreciation award for his many years of faithful service as the camp Quartermaster stating that brother Myrick had been the camp quartermaster since Appomattox!

Next Commander Waldo awarded Camp Treasurer John Dennis the Alabama Division Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest award for his outstanding service of going above and beyond his camp duties as Color Sgt, Treasurer, participation in all the camp activities and leading the care of Indian Hill cemetery. Commander Waldo discussed camp business and upcoming events and then turned the floor over to our guest speaker, Dr. Lawrence Krumenaker. Dr. Krumenaker holds a Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Georgia and attended Michigan State and Case Western. He is a professional astronomer, science educator, and writer. He gave a compelling presentation on the defense of Atlanta and the specific battle lines including the Outer Lines, the Inner ring defenses designed by Lenuel Grant and anchored by triangular forts called shoupades which were assembled to withstand the advance of Sherman's armies in 1864 to protect the city and citizens in and surrounding Atlanta. His presentation also showed remanants of these lines and forts and oftentimes the modern buildings and roadways constructed atop these obscuring any resemblance to those historic fortifications. It was a good comprehensive overview presentation of the defense of this key Confederate rail hub and city of Atlanta. Commander Waldo closed the meeting with the SCV Closing and Chaplain Johnson saw everyone off with an Invocation. Another enjoyable gathering of Camp 1524.

Prattville Dragoons Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 Members at the 103rd Alabama Division Children of the Confederacy Convention

Members of the Prattville Dragoons Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 Members attended the 103rd Alabama Division Children of the Confederacy Convention held at the Confederate Memorial Park in Marbury AL on Saturday June 13th.  Camp 1524 Adjutant Butler was on the reenactment color guard led by Brigade Commander Jeremy Boothe and they posted colors to open the Comvention.  Additionally, from Camp 1524, Commander Waldo, compatriot Crowley and his wife and compatriot Schwartz were also in attendance.  Following posting of the colors, the CofC Creed was recited and pledges and salutes made to the Christian, Alabama State, and Confederate flags.  A welcome to guests including UDC officers was made by President Waldo presiding over the Convention.  She also provided a President's report for activities completed in her chapter furthering the Cause undertaken during her tenure.  The Tuscaloosa chapter also provided a report for activities of that chapter from the last year.  Elections were then held and Camp 1524 Commander Waldo's son was announced as the new President for the coming year.  A wreath was laid at the cemetery there at Confederate Memorial Park and two volley salutes were provided by the reenactors as part of an honor guard for that ceremony.  Following, a luncheon was served with chicken nuggets, chili sauced meatballs, pasta salad, chips, brownies, cookies, fruit and a celebratory cake along with beverages for everyone in attendance.  The UDC Division President then presented a General Robert E Lee award to Ms. Bearden for her tremendous work with the UDC and the CofC and also presented the two graduating CofC members aging out with checks for their college checking accounts. It was a great 103rd annual Children of the Confederacy convention.  

Prattville Dragoons Camp 1524 Attend Alabama Division Sons of Confederate Veterans Reunion

Three members of the Prattville Dragoons attended the Alabama Division SCV convention in Athens AL on Saturday June 6th.  Commander Waldo was joined by compatriots Larry Spears and Tyrone Crowley as delegates for Camp 1524.  The Reunion started with greetings from representatives of the United Daughters of the Confederacy, Order of Confederate Rose, Order of the Stars and Bars, and Children of the Confederacy. Commander Waldo's daughter brought those greetings from the CofC and was later named one of the three recipients of the Gen Joseph Wheeler scholarship.  After that, the Mechanized Cavalry rode up on their Harleys carrying the flags which were then posted in the hall.  Pledges and salutes to the flags was followed by a reading of the SCV Charge and a Benediction offered by the Division Chaplain.  Adjutant Hattabaugh welcomed everyone to the Reunion as his was the local host camp.  This was an election year so business consisted of a couple of amendments to AL Division consitutions which went unchallenged and then elections were held for the positions of Division Commander, 1st Lt Commandr and 2nd Lt Commander. Commander Hill ran unopposed for Commander as did 1st Lt Martin and 2nd Lt Jewellson also.  Following reports from the Adjutant and Treasurer and updates on Division projects including conservation of artifacts at the State Archives, the morning session concluded and we all enjoyed a lunch of fried catfish, fried chicken, ham, sweet potato casserole, green beans and corn with banana pudding and peach cobbler with sweet tea.  Awards were given out during the lunch hour.  Following lunch, Brigade meetings were held including elections of Brigade commanders. This was followed by a Last Roll Call for members who had passed away in the year since the last Reunion.  Then everyone sang Dixie and a closing Invocation brought the Reunion to a close. 

Prattville Dragoons SCV Camp 1524 Commander’s Column for June 2026 - Gerrymandering

     In the headlines recently are efforts to redraw congressional maps in multiple states across the country from California to the Carolinas.  The April 2026 Supreme Court decision reversed decades of racially motivated gerrymandering following the Voting Rights Act passage in 1965.  The SCOTUS ruling prohibited “unconstitutional racial gerrymandering, any use of race in legislative districting, only being justified to remedy specific, identified instances of past discrimination—and not simply to balance out partisan or racial demographics.”  (https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/the-supreme-courts-callais-decision-sets-new-framework-for-racial-gerrymandering)

The term gerrymandering entered American lexicon around 1812 following efforts in Massachusetts by the Jeffersonian Republicans “brazenly contorting districts into odd shapes to maximize (their) party’s gain. Even though the Jeffersonian Republicans received (a minority) 49 percent of the vote, they won 29 of the 40 seats in the state Senate.” (https://www.history.com/articles/gerrymandering-origins-voting)   Once the opposition Federalist party was in power, the districts were redrawn.  During Reconstruction, former Confederates were unable to vote for approximately a decade and only until they swore allegiance to the Union, so black Republican candidates were installed by carpetbaggers and dominated elections for this period.  Following this disenfranchisement and restoration of the Confederate veterans’ voting rights and gaining political power again, “Southern Democrats redrew districts to maximize their electoral advantage including “long stringy districts” to concentrate as many Black voters as possible into one district so that the rest of the districts would have a white majority.”  In 1874 South Carolina even had “introduced the first non-contiguous voting district”.  “Modern forms of gerrymandering continues and in some ways it’s politicians picking their voters as opposed to voters picking their politicians.”  This strategy is further illustrated by the New England states which are 100% Democrat in federal congressional seats but actually have up to 46% Republican voters in some of these states.

This period after “Reconstruction, from 1878 through 1896 saw the most aggressive use of gerrymandering, a period in which Democrats and Republicans were in close competition for national power and partisan loyalties were firm.”  Gerrymandering became more “effective, because with voting loyalties largely fixed, it was easier for mapmakers to draw districts to maximize their side’s representation and, more essential, because, with so few undecided or swing voters, the only way for parties to win national elections was to maximize the impact of their side’s votes, by shifting boundaries to distribute them efficiently.  In many ways, this late 19th-century era resembles today’s politics—closely fought national elections, intense partisan loyalties, and aggressive constitutional hardball tactics.”  (https://www.newamerica.org/insights/what-we-know-about-redistricting-and-redistricting-reform/where-we-have-been-the-history-of-gerrymandering-in-america/)  The late 1990s saw Republicans assume federal political power after decades as the minority conservative party.  “As the century waned, the two parties became more culturally and geographically sorted, congressional elections were increasingly nationalized, and the share of naturally competitive congressional districts declined steadily. Much of this was not because of gerrymandering, but rather due to Democrats abandoning rural America, and Republicans abandoning urban America.” 

Interesting to see the evolution of the political landscape and the transformations of the Republican and Democrat parties over the past 160 years.  The conservatism and gravitation toward the rural constituency of the antebellum South is no longer represented by the antebellum Democrat party and that of the Confederates and, the chasm has widened over the past few decades and election cycles.  The repercussions from these latest restrictions on gerrymandering will be interesting to see as to whether a shift in national political power and culture will result.