Despite my hectic schedule, I am continuing to move along on my book about Confederate encampments in the Spotsylvania region. This piece is requiring a lot of prep-work, but I am enjoying it tremendously as it will be a different kind of publication from what I usually do. The end goal is to create a valuable collection of insights that can appeal to both the casual reader and the enthusiast. Each chapter opens with a 500-600 word narrative by me presenting a detailed overview w/ supporting letters and accounts to follow. Here are the current topics (in no particular order) based upon the quality and quantity of transcripts I have to support each section:

• Religious Services (Camp chaplains and prayer meetings)
• Camp Dining (Food types, distribution and messes)
• Crime and Punishment (Execution of deserters, court-martials, humiliations)
• Disease and Dysentery (Death, sickness and poor conditions)
• Slaves and Servants (Black cooks, body servants and teamsters)
• Baseball Games (Recreation during down times, game recollections)
• Winter Quarters (Cabin construction, snowball fights and weather issues)
• Love Letters Home (Sweethearts, wives and last communications)
• Civilian Memoirs (Security, soldier assistance and local ‘friendly’ troops)
• Monuments (VA Roadside Markers in area marking major camp locations)

If anyone can think of any other topic that might fit this work, please feel free to let me know. As this is a title for The History Press' American Chronicles Series I have a word count, but would like to add some more topics that I may be missing. Remember, this covers ONLY Confederate camp experiences in the Fredericksburg/Spotsylvania area and adjacent counties. Thanks in advance for any ideas.

Sometimes the most rewarding aspects of being a writer aren’t found in the things you publish, but in the things that you can help others produce. Most people that are familiar with my work know that I got my first big-break as a baseball historian for Baseball-Almanac. (Some may even think I should have stuck with that instead.) Over the years I wrote hundreds of studies for BA on our national pastime, as well as an e-Book on the history of the Yankees in the World Series. Civil War Historian magazine asked me to write a feature on the subject a couple years ago and that opened the door for other CW/baseball related pieces.

Most notably Eric Wittenberg and I have a large baseball book coming out in the not-so-distant future (publishing details to come) and I always seem to find myself with “one foot firmly planted on the pitcher’s mound” so to speak. Whether it’s organizing a period-baseball tourney for an 1859-themed county fair, or doing a radio show on the game during the war years, baseball always remains close to me no matter how much the Civil War dominates my focus.

A month ago I was contacted by a gentleman from MIT, who is also a member of SABR, the Society for American Baseball Research. He was interested in obtaining some new primary and secondary source material on baseball during the Civil War. As I have become somewhat known as an authority on this subject, the folks at SABR felt I could assist them in expanding their library. I was able to provide them with close to 40 additional primary sources, which they gladly accepted and are using to produce an updated, definitive study on the spread of the game during the war years from 1861-1865.

Until now, it appears that much of their reference material was taken from already published sources including George Kirsch’s excellent book Baseball in the Blue and Gray and Patricia Millen’s From Pastime to Passion. They also cited some of my previous work. I was able to help them more than double their CW collection with copies of my own unpublished transcripts that I have accumulated over the years from various archives and historical societies. SABR is in a much better position than I am to produce something that is truly definitive on a large-scale and I can’t wait to see what comes of it. I am scheduled to have a phone call with them this afternoon to discuss their vision in detail. Stay tuned.

On a side-note, I have a conference call this week with the film producers from our documentary project, which is slated to be partially shot on location here in July. I have also been asked to contribute to a new magazine put out by the former editor of Civil War Historian called Patriots of the American Revolution. Of course I am still plugging away at the Confederate camp book, working with the museum foundation, and I will be shooting Episode 8 of The Naked Historian this week (if the weather permits). This is on top of a full-time job, 4 kids, church, and a home improvement to-do list. There simply are not enough hours in the day to accomplish what I need to do. I either need to get an assistant, or the ability to say ‘no.’

Some folks in Orange County just don’t get it.

Lately I am becoming more and more irritated (and frankly alarmed) at how utterly ignorant many of the residents of Orange County are. I’m speaking specifically of those outspoken citizens that are rallying in the local press against preservationist groups who are trying to curb the construction of a Wal-Mart near The Wilderness Battlefield.

They write letters to the paper and accuse the CWPT and historians of spreading false information. They smugly turn their noses up at those from the quote: outside, who are attempting to save an important part of their county and refer to them as "carpetbaggers." Unfortunately their witty humor is totally overshadowed by their lack of understanding and respect for their own backyard. The bottom line is they don’t deserve to live near such hallowed ground.

If I had my way I would grab every one of these “activists” and lead them back to May of 1864 when Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's Army of the Potomac went head-to-head against Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in some of the most horrific and savage fighting of the entire Civil War. Close to 10,000 men died at The Wilderness and over 12,000 were wounded. Most were scarred by the terror they experienced firsthand. Many wounded men burned to death as the trees caught fire around them. We can’t even begin to imagine the nightmarish scenes they witnessed. Maybe if these pro-Wal-Mart people realized the tragic cost of human life that this battle claimed and had a better sense of the gallons of blood that was spilled on their soil, they would finally get a clue.

The truth is ‘Orange County Wal-Mart supporters’, we “carpetbaggers” don’t care about your shopping convenience. We care about a priceless piece of the American landscape that is far more important than you, or me, or any of our children, or their children. This land was hallowed long before we were here and it will be here long after we are all dead and gone. Frankly, your (and our) quality of life is second to the conservation of our nation’s legacy. We that live in the adjacent counties know the price of urban sprawl firsthand as we allowed our own battlefields to fall victim to progress. Spotsylvania and Fredericksburg are examples of what NOT to do.

Message to Orange County: DON’T MAKE THE SAME MISTAKES WE DID. We’ve set the bar for ignorant when it comes to preservation and are still dealing with the error of our ways. The bottom line is that the individual’s wants and needs do not matter here. That battlefield is what matters and everything else that threatens the sanctity of it is a moot point. Stop thinking about yourself and start thinking about the thousands of men who fell on the land you want to pave near.

Their memory matters more than any of us.

Michael Aubrecht
Historian/CWPT member

This morning I recorded a short radio interview for Fredericksburg AM 1230 on The Naked Historian. I’ll post an audio file when it runs. This little side project has taken on a life of its own and I will be shooting a full-length “professional” episode courtesy of the movie production company that I am consulting for. That show will be shot in July right here in Fredericksburg. (Location TBD). Pre-production planning is also underway for a local TV spot showcasing colonial history in Stafford County with me as host. As I am so heavily involved in my latest book project it is nice to get away from the keyboard. Without these videos I’d never get any exercise or fresh air.

I see the video bug has bitten some other CW bloggers and I’m very glad to see this technology spreading. It’s an opportunity for people to get to know the real ‘us’ – as living and breathing people - rather than just a bunch of words on the screen. I'm looking forward to watching their contributions. Just remember fellas, I got dibs on the 'naked' thing. (Of course that still leaves The Partially-Clothed Historian available.)

PS. I would be remiss if I didn’t recognize the anniversaries of the passing of Gen. Thomas J. Jackson (May 10, 1863) and Gen. JEB Stuart (May 12, 1864) this week.