Medical Department #24 - Historic Churches (and Hospitals) of Fredericksburg

About a dozen years ago, I had the great pleasure of visiting Fredericksburg and the battlefields and sites associated with the Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park (Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, The Wilderness, Spotsylvania, the Jackson Shrine, etc.) with my lifelong - and best - friend, Curtis Fears. While we spent most of our time on the battlefields, we did take time to walk the streets of "Old Town" Fredericksburg.

One of the prominent features of Fredericksburg - as you can see from the period photo - are the city's churches, which dominated the city's wartime skyline. As someone very interested in Civil War medicine, it's especially interesting to know that all of the period churches were used as hospitals after the major battles of 1862, 1863, and 1864.

Fortunately, there is a great new book that describes in detail the role that some of these churches played before, durin, and after the Civil War, and how - in turn - the war affected the churches. That book is Historic Churches of Fredericksburg, and I had the great pleasure of interviewing the author, Michael Aubrecht, for my most recent (May 2009) "Medical Department" column in The Civil War News, which is reprinted below with hyperlinks galore. Enjoy!

IF THESE WALLS COULD TALK
By James M. Schmidt
The Civil War News – “Medical Department” – May 2009

“At an early hour Dr. Cutter called on fourteen men…to go with him to the city, to establish hospitals there…in a short time we had four ready for occupancy, we were then ordered to clear the Baptist church…the armies had met and the wounded were rapidly brought in…Then in the outer rooms of the church the surgeons began to cut and slash…” - Diary of John Bailey, Ninth New Hampshire

In his recent book, Historic Churches of Fredericksburg: Houses of the Holy (The History Press, 2008, 128 pp., $19.99), Michael Aubrecht provides a look at disunion, war, and reconstruction (literally and figuratively) as experienced by Secessionists, Unionists, and African Americans in Fredericksburg, Virginia’s landmark churches during the Civil War era.

Readers of this column will especially enjoy the book due to Michael’s significant attention to the use of the churches as hospitals – indeed the town itself was referred to as “one vast hospital” - and the subsequent damage due to that use.

To document the history of five Fredericksburg churches during the war, Michael drew on an impressive array of sources, including archival material from the individual churches; sources at the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park; soldier and civilian journals, letters, and memoirs; and – most interesting – postwar “Court of Claims” documents. The book is handsome and is amptly illustrated with more than eighty photographs and engravings. The narrative is lively, especially when Michael incorporates first-hand accounts.

Each chapter begins with a brief sketch of the church’s origin, a lengthy section on the wartime experience of the church (for the building and parishioners), how the church and community were rebuilt postwar, and the state of the church today. Though the book lacks annotation or an Index, the author’s attribution of material in the book is clear enough that readers will not have difficulty identifying sources from the Bibliography.

Michael Aubrecht lives in Fredericksburg, Virginia, near the historic Massaponax Church and just a few miles from the “Stonewall” Jackson Shrine. He is a professional (and award-winning) art director and designer with historical interests in both the Civil War and baseball. Michael is the author of three previous books as well as hundreds of articles as a contributing writer for Baseball-Almanac.com. Frequently the two subjects coincide in both articles and in consulting for reenactments of period games. You can visit him on the web here. He was kind enough to answer my questions about Historic Churches of Fredericksburg.

In choosing the churches for the book, Michael selected what he “believed to be the more noteworthy congregations for the book in terms of their experiences during the Civil War,” adding, “I also wanted to strictly cover landmark churches that are still standing today.” That said, he did acknowledge that other denominations and faiths had active communities in Fredericksburg. “There were Catholics who attended St. Mary’s, although they were in the minority at the time. There were also Jewish settlers in Virginia although there were no synagogues in the area,” he told me.

While most Civil War enthusiasts are familiar with the beating that Fredericksburg homes, businesses, and churches took from artillery bombardments (by both sides, Michael points out) during the war, they are probably less familiar with the tremendous scarring of the inside of these houses of worship. “I’m sure anyone who has ever seen photographs of the town would agree that Fredericksburg looked like hell during the Civil War,” Michael told me. “Of course, the interiors of the churches were absolutely devastated from hospital use and some were even commandeered for stables. Most were completely unusable until after the war in 1865.”

As evidence, he quotes Major St. Clair Mulholland of the 116th Pennsylvania, who remembered one post-battle scene, writing, “In the lecture room of the Episcopal Church eight operating tables were in full blast” and “the floor was densely packed with men.” Sunday school teacher at the city’s Presbyterian Church recalled that “Federal forces occupied the building for a hospital. They tore all of the pews out…the church was completely gutted…[they] used most of the pews to mark the graves of the soldiers.” A nurse stationed at Fredericksburg’s United Methodist Church wrote, “they had the pews knocked to pieces; under the backs and seats [they] put a cleat and made little beds.”

After the war, the churches sought to recover the cost of the damages. Indeed, among the most interesting sources that Michael cites in the book are postwar "Court of Claims" inquiries and documents. “Those documents are prized pieces in my reference library,” Michael told me. Churches that were involved in the Battle of Fredericksburg - or any battle for that matter - submitted itemized claims to the court of the United States government, as a petition to recover the cost of damages.

“All of these cases took years to come to fruition and involved a tedious and detailed investigation whereby members of the congregation, as well as unbiased witnesses, testified in order to prevent the commission of insurance fraud,” Michael explained. “The required criteria for granting a claim involved several factors that had to be determined by the panel conducting each investigation.”

To be sure, the book is not all about battles, bombardments, and amputations. In describing the origins of each church, Michael describes interesting theological differences that led to splits among the denominations before the war. His discussion of the treatment of the city’s population of enslaved African-Americans and how they worshiped is very enlightening. There are also some very moving scenes in the book, such as when Union soldiers worship with civilians of the occupied city.

Even as a Fredericksburg resident, Michael found that he had more to learn about the city’s role in the war. “I was familiar with the political and military aspects of the town and its place in history. However, I didn't know the points of view from the everyday people,” he told me. “This project actually pushed me to look in places that I had never been. The conflict and division that existed prior to the war - politically, socially, and spiritually - was a real eye opener,” he added.

Michael encourages visitors and tourists to Fredericksburg not to limit their visits to the area battlefields. “The best reason to tour the churches is that there is something of interest for everyone,” he told me. “The walk itself takes you through the beautiful streets of Old Town, the classic architecture and interiors of the buildings are breathtaking, the history is literally everywhere you look, and the people who work and attend these churches are some of the nicest that you could ever hope to meet.”

Michael recommended the following highlights:

the Tiffany stained-glass windows at St. George’s Episcopal
the artifact room at Fredericksburg Baptist
the magnificent pipe-organ at Shiloh Baptist (Old Site)
the courtyard at the Presbyterian Church, and
the bell tower at Fredericksburg Methodist.

“Be sure to bring a camera, too, as there are plenty of plaques, tombstones, and markers to photograph,” he added.

Presently, Michael is in the process of completing a baseball book entitled, You Stink! Major League Baseball’s Terrible Teams and Pathetic Players, with co-author (and Civil War historian and author) Eric Wittenberg. He’ll then return to the Civil War with Campfires at the Crossroads: Confederate Encampments in Spotsylvania County, part of the new “American Chronicles” series at The History Press.

As if that wasn’t enough, Michael is active on the board of the National Civil War Life Foundation, advising documentary projects, and maintaining a steady speaking schedule. Michael concluded by stating, “I’m really blessed to live in a community that is saturated in Civil War history, as there is always something rewarding for people like us to do.”

American Medical Times - June 1, 1861 - Highlights

I have mentioned before that I really enjoy reading Civil War-era medical journals. I recently secured an original copy of the June 1, 1861, issue of the American Medical Times, and thought I'd share some of the highlights and interesting excerpts; they are all the more interesting due to its being a (very) early war issue:

1) "Contributions to Military Surgery" by Zina Pitcher, M.D. - Zina Pitcher (1797-1872) was a noted surgeon of the era and a distinguished citizen of the State of Michigan. He served 15 years in the United States Army, was president of the American Medical Association, and a two-time mayor of Detroit. In his essay, Pitcher commented on the "literary sterility" on the part of the military when it came to sharing their knowledge and experience with the medical community, especially by submitting material to medical journals. He listed several reasons for the "sterility" and admitted - not surprsingly - that his "best field for observation" was to be found in his civil and marine (small "m") hospital practice. Some of his most interesting points included how pre-war civilian surgeons might have gained experience with terrible wounds due to increasing industrialization:

"Not only in those occasions incident to a state of war, but the introduction of steam into universal use as a mechanical power, by the explosion of boilers and the collision of steamboats and locomotives, causing so many injuries, closely resembling those occasioned by the bursting of heavy pieces of ordnance and the projection of cannon balls..."

Picher also made an interesting point about amputation: that the sight of the terrible wound itself - mangled leg or arm - could instill a (mentally) depressing influence on both the patient and surgeon; he wrote:

"When the limb has been removed, we at once get rid of an exhausting stillicidious hemorrhage, and of the depressing corporeal and moral influence that the concousness of its presence has upon the physical and mental strength of the patient...at the same time...[we - the surgeon] acquire a moral power by arousing the sentiment of hope to assist us, which we cannot invoke as long as the mangled extremity is in view. Another advantage is gained by an early opeartion, in the shutting off from contact with the wounded surfaces the deletirious effects of vicious atmospheric contagions."

Picher finished the article with descriptions of wounds unique to artilleryman.

2) In the lead editorial - "A Glance at the Past" - the editors of the Times went all the way back to the War of 1812, which they saw as "no means destitute of important observations in the science and art of military surgery." They identified defects from that war which had since been rectified by official policy and pointed to others that they hoped would be rectified in the present war.

3) In a letter to the American Medical Times, Dr. E. K. Sanborn, Surgeon to the 1st Regiment Vermont Volunteers, wrote from Fort Monroe, Virginia, to describe "medical matters at this station." The unit was a 3-month regiment and sent to the "front" in a hurry, so it's no surprise that Sanborn politely bemoaned the lack of judicious preparation of surgical instruments and other medical supplies, especially the medicine chests, which he described as:

"...in weight, size, and general appearance, were imposing. At the first surgeon's call in camp, about twenty sick reported, in which coughs and colds, sprains...and gonorrhea (alas!) were pretty equally distributed. I found, on examination of thos eponderous and expensive chests, that were absolutely no means of making ordinary volatile liniment...not a single expectorant...and the same was true of gonorrhea; no...mask for the transitory penalty of social indiscretion."

He added - with some - bemusement:

"The delicacy of the compliment to the Green Mountain Boys, implied in the last ommission, I profoundly appreciate and acknowledge. But I would respectfully suggest...that some of the above articles would be of more service to the regiment than the large shopware jars of bromide of potass and other useless chemicals that encumber the chest."

Every wartime issue of the American Medical Times - especially early war issues - include notes on army and naval affairs, including appointments as surgeons and assistant surgeons to the rapidly growing Union army and navy.

Persons doing research and ancestors or regiments would do well to consult wartime medical journals, especially when letters from surgeons describe the medical condition of the regiment in camp, on the march, and in battle.

Why Pittsburgh (PA) is My New Favorite City...

Well, it may not be the best of reasons, but it's as good as any: a reviewer for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review had something nice to say (scroll to bottom of link for full review) about my first book, Lincoln's Labels! On Sunday, 29 March, 2009, in his monthly "Page of Books" reviews, Adam Wallace wrote:

"Because of its business-based perspective, Lincoln's Labels...stands out among a host of new Lincoln-themed books marking 2009's 200th anniversary of the 16th president's birth. James M. Schmidt...explores producers who acted as Civil War suppliers...Readers will gain new insight into still-familiar brand names, the Civil War and its costs and difficulties."

Nice, huh?! Thanks Mr. Wallace!

Read other reviews of Lincoln's Labels here:

Andrew Wagenhoffer - Civil War Books and Authors
Michael Aubrecht - Pinstripe Press
Reader Testimonial
Advance Praise/Blurbs

Ghostly Developments! The Mumlers Channel the Lincolns

Soon, I will post some more on the great time I had at the SOCWS conference last weekend, but I wanted to write something about a most interesting book I read on the plane and in my spare time:

A couple of months ago, Brian Dirck wrote (yet another!) interesting post on his terrific A. Lincoln Blog regarding "Lincoln Hoaxes." Among the hoaxes he listed was the photograph of Mary Todd Lincoln with the "spirit" of Abraham Lincoln behind her, hands on her shoulders. Brian made the additional point that he did not find the hoax very funny. I was somewhat familiar with the photograph having read about Mumler's trial for fraud in doing other research on P.T. Barnum (who testified for the prosecution at the trial).

I wanted to learn more as the subject of "spirit photography" cut across an amazing number of topics of recent interest: Barnum, the Lincolns (especially having read Jason emerson's terrific The Madness of Mary Lincoln), Victorian mourning rituals, the Spiritualist movement, and more.

I came across an interesting and relatively new book, The Strange Case of William Mumler, Spirit Photographer by Louis Kaplan. Dr. Kaplan is an associate professor of history and theory of photography and new media at the University of Toronto and director of the Institute of Communications and Culture at the Mississauga campus and the author of other books on the history of photography.

In the main, the book is a compilation of primary documents regarding Mumler, his "practice," and the 1869 trial. The sources include reports from the press - mostly New York newspapers, Spiritualist publications, and period photography journals - from the Civil War era as he began to publicize his "discovery" of "spirit photography."

Next are excerpts from The Personal Experiences of William H. Mumler in Spirit Photography (1875). Next are documents concerning the trial, including the prosecution's closing statement and press coverage. Also included is P. T. Barnum's expose of "spirit photography" from his autobiographical Humbugs of the World. Kaplan wrote an expert and readable essays for the Introduction and Conclusion in which he covers an array of topics.

The book was most interesting and I recommend it to anyone interested in the topics I listed above, and more.

Below is an excerpt from Mumler's description in his Personal Experiences in which he describes the visit of Mrs. Lincoln (an avid Spiritualist) to his "spirit photography" studio.

I will commence with MRS. LINCOLN widow of the late lamented President. I had just finished taking a picture for a gentleman who resides in Canada, when the door-bell rang, and a lady dressed in black, wearing a crape veil, was ushered in. The veil was so thick it was impossible to distinguish a single feature of her face.

Without raising her veil she spoke to the gentleman for whom I had just taken a picture, saying, "Have you had a picture taken, sir?" He replied in the affirmative. "Do you recognize it?" she asked. He answered, "Well, I am not much used to looking at a negative, but I think I know who it is."

Then, turning to me, she said, "What do you charge for these pictures?" I stated the price, and she decided to sit for one. I requested her to be seated; would be ready for her in a moment. I went into my dark room and coated a plate. When I came out I found her seated, with her veil still over her face. I asked if she intended to have her picture taken with the veil? She replied, "when you are ready I will remove it." I said I was ready, whereupon she removed the veil, and the picture was taken.

I then requested her name for the purpose of recording it in the engagement book. "Mrs. Lindall" was given. Mrs. L. asked when she could have the pictures; and was told, in about three days. The negative, marked "Mrs. Lindall," was sent with the others to my printers. The pictures were returned only a few moments before Mrs. Lincoln called, and laid on my desk, in envelopes, with the names on the outside that were on the negative - Mrs. Lindall's among the rest. I was away at the time, and consequently had not the slightest idea that I had a distinguished sitter.

My wife was engaged in conversation with a lady-friend when the door-bell rang, and a lady was shown in. She asked if her pictures were ready? My wife asked, "What name?" The lady replied, "Mrs. Lindall." Mrs. M. then went to my desk, and looking over the package of pictures, found one marked Mrs. Lindall, which she handed to her, and then continued the conversation with her friend, who by-the-way, being of an inquisitive turn of mind, asked Mrs. Lincoln (who was at this time examining her picture closely), if she recognized the likeness? Mrs, L. replied, hesitatingly, "Yes."

My wife was almost instatntly entarnced, and, turning to Mrs. L., said, "Mother, if you cannot recognize father, show the picture to Robert; he will recognize it."

"Yes-yes dear," Mrs. Lincoln said; "I do recognize it; but who is now speaking?" she asked. The control replied: "Thaddeus!"

A long conversation ensued. Mr. Lincoln afterwards controlled and talked to her - so the lady-friend informed me who had thus unexpectedly been a witness of this excellent test.

When my wife resummed her normal condition, she found Mrs. L. weeping tears of joy that she had again found her loved ones, and apparently anxious to learn, if possible, how long before she could join them in their spirit home. But this information of course could not be given. Mrs. Lincoln then related how she lft Springfield, Ill., for the sole purpose of visiting my studio, and having a picture taken as a test. For that express purpose she traveled in cog. When she arrived in Boston, she came directly to my house, before visiting a hotel, for fear that some one who knew her might see and recognize her, and thus defeat the object for which she had taken such a long journey.

The picture of Mr. Lincoln is an excellent one. He is seen standing behind her, with his hands resting on her shoulders, and looking down, with a pleasant smile.