Anne Tidmore, Regent First White House of the Confederacy Speaks to the Prattville Dragoons

Anne Tidmore, Regent First White House of the Confederacy addressed the Prattville Dragoons during the camp meeting on September 8th.  She provided a wealth of information in her fast paced interesting speech on Jefferson Davis and the First White House of the Confederacy in Montgomery. Mrs. Tidmore attended Emory University and graduated from Huntington in Montgomery and founded Tidmore Flags and was recognized as having produced the flags still in use by the Dragoons during their camp meetings. She was a former Regent Daughters of the American Revolution and is the current Regent First White House of the Confederacy.  The following notes outline her speech:
Jefferson Davis was born in Fairview KY June 3, 1808 near Abraham Lincoln's childhood home.
Davis's home is marked by a 350 ft tall monument, the world's tallest concrete obelisk, similar in appearance to the Washington monument - http://parks.ky.gov/findparks/histparks/jd/.
Jefferson Davis was the youngest of 10 children born to Samuel and Jane Davis.
Jefferson Davis's middle name Finis is actually Latin for "finished".
The Davis family moved to Mississippi early in Jefferson's life.
He graduated from West Point and served under Zachary Taylor in the Black Hawk War.
He resigned his commission to become a planter and to marry Taylor's daughter, Sarah but she died 3 months after they wed from malaria. 
For the next 8 years he was something of a recluse, managing his plantation and expanding his slave holdings and studying history and politics.
He met Varina Howell and was engaged to her within a month, marrying on Feb 26, 1845.  He was 37 and she was 18.  That same year he won his state's seat to the US House of Representatives.
They had six children but only one, Margaret, lived to adulthood and to have children of her own.
He resigned his seat in the US House to reenlist to fight in the Mexican-American War and raised a regiment, the Mississippi Rifles and was named colonel and successfully campaigned and was wounded at the Battle of Buena Vista.
He returned home a military hero and was elected to the US Senate from Mississippi. As a Senator, he helped found the Smithsonian Institute and Museum.
He served as Secretary of War under Franklin Pierce and was credited with building up the US army which proved to be a detriment to the Confederacy.
As the Road to Secession and War built, he tried to save the Union but when Mississippi seceded, he resigned his Senate seat on Jan 21, 1861.
On Feb 9, 1861 the Provisional Congress of the newly formed Confederate States of America unanimously elected Jefferson Davis President. 
He was informed of the decision while working on his Brierfield Plantation and traveled from there to Montgomery by steamboat, train and coach for his inauguration Feb 18, 1861.
On Feb 21, while developing the new country's Constitution and forming the Army, Navy, Post Office and other offices, the Congress leased an Executive mansion from Col. Winter.  This home was built in 1835 and purchased by Col. Winter in 1855.  It was to become known as the First White House of the Confederacy.  It has an Italiante style with a Liberty Cap design element. It was located at Lee and Bibb across from the Capital building.  The location is marked today by a granite monument next to Wintzel's Oyster House in downtown Montgomery. 
On March 4th Mrs. Davis arrived and the couple lived there thru the spring of 1861.  The furnishings in the house belonged to the Davis' or were used in the house or are period pieces. 
On April 10th the shots on Fort Sumter signalled the commencement of the War for Southern Independence and when Virginia seceded, on May 20 1861 the decision was made to move the capital to Richmond and on May 29th President Davis arrived there.
The War cost the lives of 620,000 Americans and ultimately the Confederate armies were defeated by forces of superior numbers and equipment.
President Davis was incarcerated at Fort Monroe and charged with treason but never tried as the US government feared such a trial would expose that the Confederate states legally seceded.  He was freed on $100,000 bond paid by wealthy Northern financiers including Vanderbilt.  He traveled in Canada and Europe following his release but eventually settled back in Mississippi where he built his final home, Beauvoir where he wrote the great historical piece The Rise and Fall of the Confederate Government. He toured the South after the release of this work and was hailed a hero. 
Davis was a great Christian who withstood great personal and public tragedy with the loss of his first wife, all but one of his children, and the dissolution of his country and defeat of his Confederate States of America.  While incarcerated he received a crown of thorns from the Catholic Pope Pius IX who recognized the tragic burden Davis carried throughout his life. 
When travelling back to Breirfield, he fell ill and returned to New Orleans where he passed away on Dec 5th 1889.  Davis' body laid in state and was first buried in New Orleans but later moved to the Hollywood Cemetary in Richmond VA.
The First White House of the Confederacy conservancy was established in 1900 and by act of the Alabama legislature, funds were allocated for it's restoration and maintenance and it was moved to it's present site.  The First White House receives approximately 16000 visitors per year including schoolchildren and tourists from all over the country and the world. 

Prattville Dragoons September Camp Meeting

The Prattville Dragoons SCV Camp 1524 held their monthly meeting for September at the Shoneys on Cobbs Ford Road in Prattville, second Thursday of September at 7pm as regularly scheduled.  Commander Chris Booth convened the meeting and after an opening prayer by Chaplain Snowden and pledges to the US, State and Confederate flags led by Compatriot Spears, Commander Booth made the following announcements:
Mr.Whittington was welcomed as a prospective member with application entered.
The Alabama Division made available copies of the latest reprint of the Guide to Confederate Issues, Heroes and Sites of Alabama which were distributed at the camp meeting.
Annual dues are due by the end of October - $30 national, $10 Alabama and $5 camp totalling $45; don't forget the SCV is a 501.c.3. and donations such as these are generally tax deductible but consult your accountant or tax preparer.
The October Prattville Dragoons camp meeting will be held October 26th and will include a speech about the CSS H.L.Hunley, the Confederate Navy submarine recently recovered,  restored and on display in Charleston SC.
The Battles for the Armory, the annual reenactment event in Tallassee will be held Nov 10-13th which will include school day on Thursday, Sutler's Village for shopping and of course Battle reenactments on Saturday and Sunday - http://www.tallasseearmoryguards.org/reenactment/index.html.
The Dragoons will set up a table for recruitment at the upcoming gun show at the Shriner's temple in Montgomery Sept 17th and 18th, Quartermaster Jeff Potts coordinating the camp's effort.
The Prattville Dragoons annual camp Christmas party will again be held at beautiful Buena Vista and will be the night of December 9th featuring a delicious meal catered by Red's Little School House and General Lee's egg nog.
The two member's wives in attendance were Carol Crowley and Sue Spears and our ladies were joined by Anne Tidmore, Regent of the First White House of the Confederacy who was the guest speaker for the night.  Notes from Mrs.Tidmore's most interesting speech on the life of President Jefferson Davis and the First White House of the Confederacy in Montgomery will be the subject of the next Dragoons blog.

Open Letter to SC Gov. Nikki Haley

Gov. Haley,

I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you for your support for the appropriate flying of the Confederate flag on the grounds of the SC State Capital.  I read with interest the article on FoxNews.com "South Carolina Governor Rejects NAACP Push to Remove Confederate Flag".  As you rightly observed, this issue was resolved some years ago when the flag was lowered from the top of the Capital building and moved to an appropriate spot with a Confederate memorial monument.  I had wanted to get one of the flags which flew atop the State Capital building but was too late as this move or “compromise” was enacted before I had the opportunity.  But, as the NAACP pressured the citizens of SC and the state legislature to cow down to their demands then, we knew it would never stop there and won't stop unless we take a stand for recognizing the history of our state and the honor that many of our ancestors exhibited in defending their homes against what they perceived as an invading aggressive force during that War Between the States.  I recently joined the Sons of Confederate Veterans and have learned much about the true causes of that terrible conflict and have grown to appreciate and revere the service my ancestors made in fighting and dying for the Confederacy.  Neither of my great great grandfathers who I have traced back as veterans were slave owners and these ignorant NAACP blow hards choose to ignore what should be more apparent every day to anyone who is observing the ramifications of the over reaching, over spending and intrusion of federal government in current events.  States rights are very evident and relevant today.  Just as the NAACP members consider themselves African Americans in remembering from where they descended and their culture from the African continent, I am proud of my ancestry and those that helped found this country from the 17th century thru the Revolutionary War as well as those who helped defend the Confederacy and their homeland.  Thank you for your support and respect for the Confederate Battle Flag as it flies over the hallowed grounds of the South Carolina capital and the Confederate memorial there.  I have encouraged my fellow SCV members to show their support for your position and to spend some of their vacation dollars in the state of South Carolina to endorse your leadership. 

Sincerely,

Stuart Waldo

Forrest Cavalry Breakfast at the SCV Convention

The Forrest Cavalry Breakfast was held the morning of the first full day of the Sons of Confederate Veterans annual convention in Montgomery AL at 8am on Thursday July 14, 2011.  Joseph Wyatt Willis, Commander of the Forrest Cavalry and Jim Barr, Adjutant made opening remarks and introduced the guest speaker, Lee Millar of Memphis TN.  Lee is a veteran having served as a Captain in the US Army in Vietnam and is employed with the Shelby County TN Sherriff’s office in systems and holds two post-graduate degrees.  He served as past Commander of the N. B. Forrest Camp 215, Lt Cmdr of Tennessee Division, SCV and three terms as Chief of Protocol for National SCV.  Lee’s speech presented a little known fact that Forrest had a hand in saving or creating four universities during and after the War Between the States.  The Memphis Teachers College was the first.  In Oxford Mississippi his troops captured a telegraph office and impersonated Union troops sending wires to the Federal army leading them to withdraw before they burned the University of Mississippi there.  In April 1865 as Union troops occupied Tuscaloosa they received orders to leave to pursue Forrest down in Selma before they had entirely destroyed the town and the University of Alabama. Following the War Between the States, the Morrill Act established Land Grant Colleges and partly because of the damage to the University of Alabama, the small East Alabama Male Institute was funded thru the Morrill Act as a Land Grant College to teach agriculture, science and engineering. This school became Alabama A&M, then Alabama Polytechnic and finally Auburn University which it is today.

Prattville Dragoons Annual Dixie Butt Fundraiser

On Saturday August 6th from 7-9am, at Fatmans BBQ on the corner of Hwy 31 and Main Street in Prattville, the Sons of Confederate Veterans Camp 1524 Prattville Dragoons will be selling smoked "Dixie" butts as part of their annual fundraiser.  Most of these butts are presold but some are also available for folks who just drive up that morning and want to enjoy a delicious smoked butt from Fatman's BBQ and to support the local Prattville Dragoons SCV Camp.  The Dixie Butt Sale is the primary fundraising activity for the Dragoons.  The SCV is a non-profit organization dedicated to the preservation of the true history of the Southern Cause which led to the founding of the Confederate States of America and the War Between the States and honoring our Confederate ancestors thru memorial preservation work, marking gravesites, historical reenactments, scholarly publications, state and national conventions and symposiums as well as sponsoring undergraduate and ROTC scholarships and medical research grants.  A donation through the purchase of a smoked butt on Saturday helps the local Prattville Dragoons SCV chapter which is involved with flag preservation at the Alabama state archives, volunteer work at the Confederate Memorial Park library and museum, marking graves at the Memorial Park and Prattville’s Oak Hill and Old Kingston cemetaries, an annual commemoration of the Dragoons departure from Prattville in 1861, a camp website and blog, monthly meetings/lectures and newsletters, and various other community activities including participation in holiday parades.  

Prattville Dragoons in the City of Prattville 4th of July Parade

The 4^th of July parade in downtown Prattville honored World War II veterans and was enjoyed by all those octogenarians in attendance.  The Prattville Dragoons were included in the dignitaries portion of the parade because of the participation of two WW II vets in our entry,  Prattville Dragoon James Spears and Donald Wheeler, stepfather of 2^nd Lt. Commander Stuart Waldo.  The community turned out in large numbers to cheer as the parade progressed from the courthouse up Main Street to Northington and Pratt Park.  The candy tossed to the children spectating ran out midway thru the parade.  The Dragoons entry included a 4-seat golf cart which allowed James and Donald to ride along with Stuart’s son and mother who had never been in a parade before in her 86 years so it was truly a once in a lifetime event for some in attendance.  This cart can be used for future parades and events and hopefully will encourage participation by some of the camp’s older members.   Wayne Sutherland and Stuart carried the camp banner and Larry Spears carried a Secession Flag and took some great photographs of the event. 

Sesquicentennial Sons of Confederate Veterans Convention First Day

The Prattville Dragoons hosted the kick-of event of the Sesquicentennial Sons of Confederate Veterans convention on Wednesday July 13th.  A tour of the historic Prattville downtown area as well as the Prattaugan Museum was conducted starting at 10am.  A walking tour down Main Street highlighted the historic 20th century as well as antebellum structures including the old Prattville Mercantile Building and the Pratt Gin Works.  These were the center of Prattville life in the decades before the War for Southern Independence.  The Gin Works is still in business manufacturing cotton gins as the Engineering and Administrative offices for Continental Eagle.  This was once the largest and for some time the oldest continuous manufacturing site for cotton gins in the world.  Overlooking Heritage Park, Tyrone Crowley provided an historical perspective on Daniel Pratt (1799-1873) and his importance as an industrialist and benefactor of the Southern Cause.  Pratt was born in New Hampshire but he adopted the South and specifically this corner of Autauga County Alabama and envisioned a New England style village with a diverse industrial and craftsmen base.  He was not originally in favor of secession and believed the infrastructure of the South needed to be developed but when it became inevitable and his home state seceded, he threw his firm support and fortune behind Southern rights and the Confederate army, contributing approximately $200,000 in 1860s dollars.  He actually helped arm and supply with uniforms and horses the Prattville Dragoons who were the first of the units from Autauga county to be formed and enter the War.  He was always a philanthropist and following the War he continued to provide employment, counsel, and charity to feed and clothe the needy including the freed blacks in the community during the horrible Reconstruction period.  Following the walking tour, a few remained for a tour of the Prattaugan Museum which provides some amazing historical artifacts and records about Daniel Pratt and his village including period photographs, ledgers, letters and other documents, clothing, and even an old cotton gin.  A number of Confederate artifacts from the War including bonds, bullets and shot, and even an old sword and revolver are also displayed; a corner contains some information about the Prattville Dragoons including a reproduction swallow tail First Flag, some period documents and an excerpt from a historical account of the Dragoons by the last Captain of the unit. Hours could be spent perusing the rooms of displays and enjoying the cool air conditioning following a hot summer stroll down Main Street in Prattville.  Following the Prattville tour, the GEC held it's first meeting of the convention at the host hotel, the Embassy Suites in Montgomery and a welcome BBQ dinner was held at the RSA in downtown Montgomery.