Meet Me in St. Louis! (at the St. Louis Civil War Round Table!)

Meet Me in St. Louis!

I'll have the great privilege and pleasure of giving a presentation about my book, Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory (The History Press, 2010), to the Civil War Round Table of St. Louis (MO) on Wednesday evening, October 26, 2011.

Come and join us!

You can learn more about the "who, what, when, where, etc." at their terrific website (here).

Meeting Fr. Corby's Family - Stories and Letters and Relatives

There are a great number of joys in being a writer, especially one who writes about history (and I can assure that the money, what little of it there is, is not one of them!).

Two of my favorites are: 1) what you might call "cross-pollination": learning and sharing information with others interested in the same subject, often in ways you'd never thought of; and 2) my favorite favorite: interactions with readers.

As you'll learn below, both of these joys were fulfilled this week and at the same time when I received a kind note from a reader, made all the more special because he has a very special connection to people I have been researcing and writing about for years now. They were also kind enough to share a letter - from 1892 - that is posted below.

Some background first:

Anyone who has read my book, Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory (The History Press, 2010), or is at all familiar with the school's role in the Civil War, knows that Fr. William Corby plays a large part in that story. He has been the subject of several posts on this blog (for example, here).

Just as interesting as Fr. Corby's own story is that of other members of his family, which are also closely connected with the University of Notre Dame, St. Mary's Academy, and the Congregation of the Holy Cross:

Fr. Corby was the son of Daniel Corby (1798-1875). A native of Ireland, Daniel arrived in North America at the age of 24. He first landed in Quebec and proceeded to Montreal where he met and married Miss Elizabeth Stapleton. Two years later he moved his young family to Detroit, where he became very successful in the real estate business. He was very notable in Catholic circles of Michigan and Detroit where he supported the construction of hospitals and churches.

A memorial article in The Michigan Catholic in 1886 declared that "there was not a charitable work commenced in his lifetime that he did not aid generously and continuously."

The Michigan Catholic article also noted some details of his family life:

"His life was not without affliction and trials. Five of his children were carried to the tomb in early years; his wife who shared his early struggles and who bore him a large family died in 1842. He remarried in 1844 Margaret, widow of John Walters, sister of General John McManman, now deceased. Of his children, two are in the religious state. His eldest daughter is Sister Mary Ambrose of the Convent of St. Mary's Academy, Notre Dame, Ind. His eldest son is a distinguished ecclesiastic, Rev. W. Corby, C.S.C., of Notre Dame University, of which institution he is an ex-President...Michael T. Corby, A.M., resident of Chicago; John and Thomas, his remaining sons, reside at Connor's Creek. His daughters, Teresa, wife of Cornelius Corbett, Supt. of the W. U. Telegraph Co., and Miss Minnie Corby, are residents of Detroit."

Daniel Corby was especially associated with two churches in Detroit: St. Mary's and St. Joseph's (a "daughter" church of St. Mary's). Indeed, Daniel was referred to in the Michigan catholic article as "the fiscal agent of St. Joseph, for he cashed the many drafts of this saint, so frequently appealed to, with a liberality unparalleled."

St. Joseph's parish in Detroit has a wonderful website (here), with an equally wonderful and interesting section (here), where I learned in the parish's "History Corner" that "Some of [Daniel Corby's] 12 children became parishioners then and some of his descendants are still members of St. Joseph Church today."

You can imagine how excited and honored I was that Mr. Patrick Degens - one of the descendants of Daniel Corby and author of the "History Corner" - sent me the following e-mail in the past few days:

"I had to buy your book when I saw the frontice page on "McNamara's Blog" (note; you can see Patrick McNamara's kind review of my book here) . My great grand uncle was Father William Corby."

WOW! Patrick goes on to relate some wonderful family stories and history related to Fr. Corby and his extended family:

"My father was the youngest of 16 children, He was born in 1895. One of his older sisters lived with us when I was growing up and she remembered Father Corby when he came to Detroit to visit the family when she was a very small girl. She said he asked her if she knew who he was and she answered that she did. When he said, 'Who am I?' She told me she said; 'God.' She added that she was very small."

What a wonderful story, and it undoubtedly warmed the heart of Fr. Corby, known widely for his geniality and humor.

Mr. Degens continued:

"My grandmother attended St. Marys Academy at South Bend when Father Corby's sister was the head mistress there, Mother Ambrose. I have a letter that she wrote to my grandmother that came with a large box of muslin she had sent to my grandmother for making sheets. She asked for prayers from all the children for herself. It was a very touching letter. My grandmother was invited to Notre Dame for the dedication of the statue there of Father Corby. She went by train and attended the ceremonies. I never knew any of my grandparents as they had all passed before I was born."

In a later e-mail, Patrick kindly shared the content of that letter from Sr. Mary Ambrose, with the following notes on his family:

"My grandmother was the daughter of Thomas McManman and Elizabeth Corby McManman (1826-1874). Elizabeth was the first born child of Daniel Corby (1798-1875) and Elizabeth Stapleton Corby (1808-1842), also Father William (1833-1897) Corby's parents. Their sister, Mary Agnes (b.1829) became a Holy Cross nun taking the name of Sister Mary Ambrose. The following is a letter she wrote to my grandmother Elizabeth McManman Degens (1854-1934). Note that in the letter below, Winnie was a half sister to Father William and Sister Ambrose"

And now for the letter:

St. Joseph Academy
South Bend - Ind
June 5, 1892

My Dear Libbie,

I have been promising myself the pleasure of answering Your letter - written after your visit - and will devote My free time this after noon in discharging this pleasant duty. Your visit was a real treat. Only too short. If I had you and Winnie back after you had gone I would not let you go until after Easter. I felt very lonely after you left. I was glad that you enjoyed your trip to Chicago and that yourself and Michael had the pleasure of meeting. Michael enjoyed the visit very much and so did Father.

I received your postal. Was sorry to hear that you had been ill, but hope that you are better. Were the things I sent of any use to you did you make the sheets and pillow covers? How is Winnie, did she leave the Wayace - I would like to know her address as I wish to write her. You Detroit people are not very generous about letters we have to be satisfied with one in a year in some cases three and five years.

The school year is fast drawing to a close, in less than three weeks we will be free and be assured that I am very glad. We will close the house and all go to St. Marys for the vacation. Our retreat will take place the 2d of July and the Priests retreat on the 9th. We will depend on your good prayers for us during that time. I have great faith in the prayers of Children. Have your little Children say a Hail Mary every day from the 2d to the 14th of July. What consolation our holy Religion gives us. We can ever be united in God by means of prayer and obtaining from each other the countless blessings. The month of Our Blessed Mother is over. The Devotion was observed in all the churches. The May processions were very fine.

I was at St. Mary's for the Dedication of St. Angela's Hall and the Closing of the Month of May. There were eight Priests from Notre Dame. Father Corby preached, the procession was grand Two hundred Pupils and about two hundred and fifty Sisters.

Has there been any rain in Michigan. There has been constant rain here for five weeks. It is clear today and be assured we enjoy the sunshine. I am anxious to hear from you and to know how Winnie is. Love also to the Children from me.

Remember in your prayers
Your Affectionate
Sister M Ambrose

Thank you, Mr. Degens; it was an honor and a privilege to hear from you!

As if that wasn't enough: in another twist, Patrick also shared:

"My cousin John Carey, also a Corby descendant, writes the History Column for the Washington Times and he also represents Father Corby at the annual gathering at Gettysburg. He is retired from a career in the Navy. His grandfather was Father Corby's brother, Tom. Actually his half brother. Another kindred spirit in the world of history."

Kindred spirits, indeed!

As it turns out, not knowing that Patrick and John were related, John Carey had corresponded with me earlier this spring and summer. John is graduate of Notre Dame (1976) and a Commander, United States Navy (Ret.). You can find some of his past Washington Times history pieces as well as other writing at his "Civil War Stories of Inspiration" blog here.

Is it any wonder that this is my FAVORITE part of writing?

Notre Dame Chaplain Profiles #5 and #6 - Frs. Bourget and Leveque

I'm pleased to add another installment introducing the Holy Cross priests from the University of Notre Dame who served as chaplains in the Civil War.

See these posts for previous profiles:

#1 = Fr. Paul E. Gillen, CSC (here)
#2 = Fr. Peter P. Cooney, CSC (here)
#3 = Fr. Joseph C. Carrier, CSC (here)
#4 = Fr. James M. Dillon (here)

Recall that Fr. James Dillon died shortly after the Civil War, in no small part from the privations of serving as a chaplain...Below is an excerpt from my book, Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory (The History Press, 2010) describing some of the life and ministry of Fr. Zepherin Joseph Leveque and Fr. Julian Prosper Bourget, as a chaplain in the Union army. Unfortunately, we do not know as much as Frs. Leveque and Bourget as the other chaplains, but they still deserve to be remembered.

Unlike the other Notre Dame priests who served as chaplains, Frs. Leveque and Bourget were assigned to hospital duty and not to a particular regiment...sadly, both men died during the Civil War while serving as chaplains. May they rest in peace.


In 1861, Father Sorin kept good his promise to send another priest to minister to the Catholic troops; that priest was Father Zepherin Joseph Lévêque, a Canadian by birth. While as zealous as the other Holy Cross priests from Notre Dame, Father Lévêque was also sickly and did not serve for long. On February 13, 1862—just a few months after arriving—he fell ill and died while visiting a fellow priest in New Jersey. Father Lévêque did not seem to have a commission with a particular regiment, although an obituary in the New York Herald stated that “the members of Company K, Twelfth Regiment, New York State Militia” were invited to attend the funeral. (1)

Another priest, Father Julian Prosper Bourget, had come to Notre Dame from the Holy Cross Mother House in France in early 1862. At Father Sorin’s suggestion, Father Bourget left for the military hospital at Mound City, Illinois, where he cared for many wounded and dying soldiers. Unfortunately, his stay—like Father Lévêque’s—was not long. Father Bourget contracted malaria and died at the hospital on June 12, 1862.

Note:

(1) “Obituary of Rev. J.M.Z. Leveque,” New York Herald clipping, February14, 1862, Lévêque File, Indiana Province Archives Center, Congregation of the HolyCross, Notre Dame, Indiana (IPAC)

College Life in the 1860s - Part II

One of the challenges of being a Civil War "enthusiast" is that, well...there's a lot about which to be "enthused" because the subject crosses so many areas of interest.

In doing background research for my most recent book, Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory (The History Press, 2010), I did some background reading on the history of other colleges in the Civil War and it has become an abiding interest.

One of my favorite books during that research was Willis Rudy's The Campus and a Nation in Crisis: From the American Revolution to Vietnam (Madison, NJ: Farleigh Dickinson University Press, 1996).

I've also posted on a few other colleges that are taking advantage of the Civil War Sesquicentennial to commemorate their contributions during the Civil War:

Hobart College (Geneva, NY) (here)
University of Pennsylvania (here)

Of course there are many more...if you are aware of other good websites describing the experiences of institutions of higher education during the Civil War, let me know, and I'll happily post about them here!

Adding to that body of knowledge is a terrific new (April 2011) softcover (unillustrated) re-issue of a 2004 hardcover (illustrated) by Robert F. Pace, Ph.D.:

HALLS OF HONOR: COLLEGE MEN IN THE OLD SOUTH

I want to thank the kind folks at the Louisiana State University Press for sending me a review copy!

I recently finished the book and I can give it an unabashed A+!

From the publisher's website:

A powerful confluence of youthful energies and entrenched codes of honor enlivens Robert F. Pace's look at the world of male student college life in the antebellum South. Through extensive research into records, letters, and diaries of students and faculty from more than twenty institutions, Pace creates a vivid portrait of adolescent rebelliousness struggling with the ethic to cultivate a public face of industry, respect, and honesty. These future leaders confronted authority figures, made friends, studied, courted, frolicked, drank, gambled, cheated, and dueled–all within the established traditions of their southern culture.

For the sons of southern gentry, college life presented a variety of challenges, including engaging with northern professors and adjusting to living away from home and family. The young men extended the usual view of higher education as a bridge between childhood and adulthood, innovatively creating their own world of honor that prepared them for living in the larger southern society. Failure to obtain a good education was a grievous breach of honor for them, and Pace skillfully weaves together stories of student antics, trials, and triumphs within the broader male ethos of the Old South. When the Civil War erupted, many students left campus to become soldiers, defend their families, and preserve a way of life. By war's end, the code of honor had waned, changing the culture of southern colleges and universities forever.

Halls of Honor represents a significant update of E. Merton Coulter's 1928 classic work, College Life in the Old South, which focused on the University of Georgia. Pace's lively study will widen the discussion of antebellum southern college life for decades to come.

There is a LOT to recommend this book to readers:

1) It's relatively short (117 pages of main text; 27 pages of Notes/Bibliography; index) and that's a good thing! As one of my favorite historians and writers, Jason Emerson, has declared: "the publication of short books and monographs has lessened extensively in recent years...the page count of a work should have no impact on its overall historical, literary, or pedagogical value." Indeed! Dr. Pace packs a lot of information into this short book and yet is supported by an impressive amount of scholarship. (You can learn more about Mr. Emerson in another post, here).

2) Dr. Pace mined nearly a hundred collections of letters, papers, and diaries at several institutions...readers will be impressed - and perhaps surprised - at how much extant primary material there is representing first-hand accounts of antebellum college life in the South...graduates of the following institutions will be especially gratified at how much attention they get in the book, among more than twenty colleges that are mentioned throughout: University of North Carolina, University of Virginia, University of Alabama, and Hampden-Sidney College.

3) In the first chapter, Dr. Pace discusses academic life at the institutions, including faculty, curriculum, cheating, and commencement. This included the choice of whether or not to even attend college: it wasn't necessary for most professions, but Dr. Pace argues that for Southern adolescents and families it was a matter of honor...this honor and distinction also applied to what college the young man attended, so that attending a "second-rate" school could bring shame on a family. One of the more interesting discussions in the book is on cheating...as it turns out, it was more important to cheat and pass and graduate, than to skip cheating but fail.

4) In the second chapter, the author describes campus life, including accommodations, noise, clothing, fire, pests, heating, illness, and dining. One of the most interesting discussions in this chapter was a description of the institution of slavery on college campuses in the antebellum South, including the use of servants as part of tuition as well as brutality against the slaves.

5) In the third chapter - easily the most entertaining - Dr. Pace describes "Sowing Oats and Growing Up" including amusements, entertainment and relationships. Dr. Pace describes the prevalence of drinking alcohol among the young men - or "getting tight" as it was called back in the day. Social fraternities - especially literary societies - were also very popular and intense rivalries grew amongst competing societies on several campuses. The most interesting part of this chapter was Dr. Pace's description of the pursuit and courting of females by male college students in the Old South.

6) In the fourth chapter, Dr. Pace discusses "Honor and Violence" including rules, pranks, riots, guns, and duels. Dr. Pace describes how college administrators struggled with student conduct, some of it whimsical and some of it deadly, either purposefully or accidentally.

7) In the fifth and final chapter, Dr. Pace discusses "College Life and the Civil War." This includes secessionist and (most interesting!) Unionist sentiment among students and faculty, on-campus militia units, enlistments among the student body, financial challenges faced by the colleges during the war and - finally - how the war changed Southern college life forever.

8) The MOST IMPRESSIVE aspect of this book is the extensive use of first-hand accounts of students throughout, based on his use of period letters and diaries.

If I have any criticisms, they are few:

A) Some academic works can be flawed in that an sometimes artificial "meme" is forced on the book...in this case, Dr. Pace sometimes spends words in "forcing" a theme of a Southern "Code of Honor" to describe the students' behaviors and expectations. Rarely did the students' own words bear this out, though.

B) Somewhat related: I've done enough reading of college life in the North during this same era to wonder whether Dr. Pace was successfully able to describe a distinctly Southern "way" of college life as there are just so many similarities.

These are minor quibbles, however, and they do not detract from this EXCELLENT book!

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

Thank You, LSU Press!

College Life in the 1860s - Part I

"Life started every morning at half past five during my four years [at Notre Dame], but since then I have forgotten all about the rising sun." - James McCormack, Notre Dame student, 1863-67

I recently had the pleasure of reading a terrific book - Halls of Honor: College Men in the Old South by Robert F. Pace (Louisiana State University Press, 2011 softcover reprint of the 2004 hardcover) - after receiving a review copy from the GREAT team at LSU Press.


I am going to post a review of the book here in the next day or so...in advance of that, though, I thought I'd post an excerpt from my book Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory (The History Press, 2010) that "dovetails" nicely with Dr. Pace's Halls of Honor, in that it describes college life at Notre Dame in the 1860s, away from the battlefields.




In fact, I have posted a few previous items about 1860s college life at Notre Dame, including:


Student Body at Notre Dame in the 1860s (here)
Wartime Fisticuffs on Campus at Notre Dame (here)
Early Military Training at Notre Dame (here)
School Year Holidays at Notre Dame in the 1860s (here)
Lincoln's Inauguration - A Letter from Notre Dame (here)
The reaction to the firing on Ft. Sumter (here and here)
1865 Commencement Excercises at Notre Dame (here)



Below is an excerpt from Notre Dame and the Civil War that includes some additional great first-person accounts of life as a student there in the 1860s. Enjoy!

Historians can thank James McCormack for leaving one of the best descriptions of student life at Notre Dame during the war years. “My first semester at Notre Dame all furnishings were very simple, really crude,” he recalled, adding that “the real improvements took place during the second semester. Steam heat superseded wood fires, as no coal was used in that section. All the rooms and halls had individual stoves and it took the time of one Brother to keep the fires alive.” (1)

Indeed, Father Sorin wrote that directly because of the war, “laborers became so scarce that it was hard to find men to cut fire wood” and that the school’s council found itself “face to face with the almost impossible task of obtaining the amount of wood necessary for the winter, which had already set in.” After the “most serious deliberation,” the council resolved to introduce steam heating (as had already been done at St. Mary’s). It was already November, and “there was not a day to spare,” Father Sorin continued, adding that “the work was urged forward with all possible haste, and by Christmas the college was heated satisfactorily and economically.” (2)

James McCormack also remembered improvements in the sleeping arrangements:

Cotton mattresses were introduced to take the place of ticking stuffed with straw or corn shucks. From then on the boys snored louder and longer. The students seemed happier, as they felt Notre Dame was considering their comfort as well as their education. Better living conditions brought about an increase of students each year during my time at Notre Dame so that beds had to be put in the galleries of Washington Hall to take care of the overflow. (3)

As a new soldier, Orville T. Chamberlain recalled the crowded conditions during his school days, writing in late August 1862 that his unit had “marched through [Louisville] to a house where we stayed overnight. A thousand men in one room is worse than the dormitories at Notre Dame.” (4)

Of a typical day as a student, McCormack recalled:

Wednesday was the recreation day instead of Saturday. Life started every morning at half past five during my four years, but since then I have forgotten all about the rising sun. We went to Mass on Wednesday mornings—that was the only required church attendance during the week. The real work of the day started with a study hour at six o’clock, breakfast at seven, dinner at twelve and supper at six p.m. We returned to the study hall at seven and at eight we retired after a very short day that began at five thirty a.m. So far as living was concerned, the boys never had reason to complain. The food was plain, but bountifully served. We had the usual supply of turkey and mincepie on holidays—in fact, I can still taste the delicious pies and breadmade by the good Sisters of the Holy Cross. (5)

Orville Chamberlain agreed with McCormack on the quality of the table fare, writing home before the war: “Our diet here is not luxurious, unless you think ‘luxurious’ to be derived from the Latin lux and make it partake of its original signification [“light”]; still we are in no danger of starvation, and they get up pretty good dinners.” Of church attendance, Orville grumbled that “[w]e have to attend…a great deal here” but admitted that the previous week’s sermon had “suited me exactly.” (6)

McCormack might be forgiven for his dubious recollection that “the boys never saw South Bend except on arriving and departing from Notre Dame.” To be sure, Father Sorin did everything possible to keep his students from town; if they had to go for a purchase or other business, they were required to be in the company of a prefect. Still, unauthorized forays did happen, especially to imbibe at South Bend taverns. One school history notes: “There is hardly a page of the disciplinary record on which it is not written…‘this student, arrested for intoxication and lodged in the South Bend jail, was sent home.’” Father Sorin placed notices in the local papers asking the citizens to report any serious misbehavior. (7)

NOTES:

(1) James M. McCormack, typewritten essay of Notre Dame life during the Civil War and after, 1863–67, Notre Dame Student Collection (CNDS), 7/15, Archives of the University of Notre Dame (UNDA).
(2) Edward Sorin, CSC, The Chronicles of Notre Dame du Lac, trans. William Toohey, ed. James T. Connelly (Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press, 1992), 285–86.
(3) McCormack, typewritten essay
(4) Letter, Orville Chamberlain to Joseph Chamberlain, August 23,1862, Chamberlain Papers, Box 1, Folder 8, Indiana Historical Society (IHS)
(5) McCormack, typewritten essay.
(6) Letter, Orville Chamberlain to “Friends,” March 4, 1861,Chamberlain Papers, Box 1, Folder 8, IHS.
(7) McCormack, typewritten essay; Arthur J. Hope, Notre Dame: One Hundred Years (Notre Dame, IN:University Press, 1948), 103.

Radio Interview About "Notre Dame and the Civil War"

I had the great privilege and pleasure of speaking with Mrs. Madeline Johnson about Notre Dame and the Civil War: Marching Onward to Victory (The History Press, 2010) and other interesting topics on her radio program, "Life to the Full," sponsored by the Radio Ministry of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston (TX).

The program aired on Sunday, 19 June 2011, and Mrs. Johmson kindly extended permission for me to share the audio (15 minutes), embedded in the YouTube video below (note that this is an audio clip only, with an image of the book's cover as a video "placeholder.")

Enjoy and Thank You for listening! (and special thanks to the incomparable Madeline Johnson!)

Swaddled in History! (The Multi-Generation Story of My Baptismal Clothes)

I've had the great privilege of being interviewed by bloggers Donald Thompson (here and here) and Robert Redd (here) in which I was able to explain from whence my interest in history, generally, and Civil War history, especially, come.

I was pondering lately, though, why I would have more than an interest it, and rather a passion.

Perhaps it's because I was literally "swaddled in history" almost from birth as witnessed in the clipping below from the June 16, 1964 edition of the Hays (KS) Daily News:

Off and On Main Street

By L. M.

It is too bad this baby was unaware of the distinction which surrounded his baptism but he will doubtless be reminded of it many times when he reaches the age of understanding for it is a set of most unusual circumstances which will be of interest to readers in this area.

James Michael Schmidt, son of Mr. and Mrs. Terrance C. Schmidt was baptized at Most Pure Heart of Mary Catholic Church in Topeka on May 31. Grandparents of the baby are Mr. and Mrs. Alvin M.Weigel of Pratt and Mr. and Mrs. Elmer C. Schmidt of Hays.

For his baptism James wore a hand crocheted cap which had been worn by four generations and a hand sewn dress which had been worn by three generations of his family. The cap was first worn by James F. Giebler of Severin, 72 years ago at his baptism on July 10. The dress was made by Mrs. James F. Giebler and will be 49 years old in August. It was first worn by their eldest daughter. The cap and dress have been worn a tbaptisms by twelve children, 39 grandchildren and one great-grandchild of Mr. and Mrs. Giebler and it has been worn in Texas, Nebraska, Colorado, Florida and many parts of Kansas.

The four generations wearing the cap are: James F. Giebler, maternal great grandfather, Mrs. Alvin Weigel of Pratt, maternal grandmother ,Mrs. Terrance C. Schmidt of Topeka, mother, and James Michael, son of Mrs. Schmidt.

So, there you go! Maybe that's where I get my passion for history!
Do some quick math and you'll see that the cap is now 119 years old and the gown is now 96 years old!

The cap and gown are still in our family...my daughter was the fifth generation to wear it, in 1986!