WISCONSIN STORIES IS A PARTNERSHIP
OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF WISCONSIN
AND WISCONSIN PUBLIC TELEVISION.
FIRE !
( gunshots )
Tracy Will: THE CIVIL WAR.
BUT THIS TIME, FOUGHT ON WISCONSIN SOIL.
TONIGHT, A LOOK AT THE NORTHERN HOME FRONT
SOME REAL...
AND UNREAL CIVIL WAR STORIES
ON "WISCONSIN STORIES."
MAJOR FUNDING FOR WISCONSIN STORIES
IS PROVIDED BY THE MEAD WITTER FOUNDATION, INC.
WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WISCONSIN.
ADDITIONAL FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY
THE HALBERT AND ALICE KADISH FOUNDATION
PHILIP J. AND ELIZABETH B. HENDRICKSON
AND AN ADVISED FUND OF THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF SOUTHERN WISCONSIN.
Debbie Kmetz: IT'S FOOTBALL SEASON.
PEOPLE ARE HERE AT CAMP RANDALL TO SEE A GAME.
THIS HAS ALWAYS BEEN A GATHERING PLACE OF SORTS.
IT'S HISTORY MAY SURPRISE YOU.
( playing "Battle Hymn Republic" )
I'M TRACY WILL, HERE AT CAMP RANDALL.
I'M WITH DEBBIE KMETZ, OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
FOR A FEW YEARS AFTER STATEHOOD, IN 1848
THIS WAS THE STATE FAIR GROUNDS.
IT WAS MORE A PLACE FOR SHOWING PRIZE-WINNING ANIMALS
THAN IT WAS FOR WATCHING FOOTBALL.
IT WAS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR
THAT THIS PLACE BECAME KNOWN AS "CAMP RANDALL."
THAT'S BECAUSE SHORTLY AFTER THE SOUTH'S REBELLION IN 1861
THIS BECAME A TRAINING CAMP FOR SOLDIERS.
IT WAS NAMED AFTER ALEXANDER RANDALL
THE GOVERNOR AT THE TIME
WHO SUDDENLY FOUND HIMSELF IN CHARGE
OF THE STATE'S WARTIME ACTIVITIES.
MANY OF WHICH CENTERED AROUND CAMP RANDALL.
IN FACT, THE MEN WHO TRAINED HERE
BECAME AN IMPORTANT PART OF WISCONSIN'S CONTRIBUTION
TO HELP THE NORTH WIN THE CIVIL WAR.
EVEN THOUGH NO BATTLES WERE FOUGHT ON WISCONSIN LAND--
AND FOR THAT, WE'RE FORTUNATE--
THE MEN AND SUPPLIES
THAT WISCONSIN PROVIDED TO THE CIVIL WAR EFFORT
PLAYED A VALUABLE, AND SOMETIMES A SURPRISING ROLE
IN THE PRESERVATION OF THE UNION.
READY, AIM...
FIRE !
Will: HERE'S A TASTE OF WHAT CIVIL WAR BATTLE FIELD TRAINING WAS LIKE
ESPECIALLY, FOR RECRUITS NOT ACCUSTOMED TO SOLDIERING.
( cannons firing )
THIS IS A REENACTMENT, THE ANNUAL CIVIL WAR REENACTMENT
AT THE WADE HOUSE, A WISCONSIN HISTORICAL SITE
NEAR FOND DU LAC.
WHERE PARTICIPANTS MIX ENTHUSIASM WITH HISTORY.
( yelling and cheering )
COMPANY FORWARD !
( cannon fires )
THE WEAPONS USED ARE CIVIL WAR STYLE RIFLES AND CANNONS.
THE SOLDIERS WEAR HEAVY, ALL-WOOL UNIFORMS
AND THE PROPER INSIGNIA.
EVEN IN THE BATTLEFIELD CAMPS
REENACTORS LIVE IN SMALL MILITARY TENTS
THEN CALLED "DOG TENTS"
SLEEP ON STRAW
AND EAT THEIR FOOD COOKED OVER AN OPEN FIRE.
...IT'S JUST MY LITTLE CONTRIBUTION
TO THINKING THAT I'M DOING THINGS RIGHT.
Will: THE THINKING IS TO PUT YOURSELF INTO A ROLE
PERHAPS, SOMEONE SPECIFICALLY FROM THE PAST
OR JUST SOMEONE FROM THE TIMES.
I CAME HERE LAST NIGHT, I FOUND OUT
I'M IN CHARGE OF THE DISMOUNTED CALVARY
SO I PUT THIS PARTICULAR COAT ON.
I WAS A CAPTAIN.
RATHER THAN-- I MIGHT HAVE HAD A LIEUTENANT'S
OR A SERGEANT'S.
SOME OF THESE PEOPLE HAVE GRAY UNIFORMS.
Will: REENACTORS ARE PART ACTORS
AND PART AMATEUR HISTORIANS.
SOME COME TO IT FROM HAVING A FAMILY ANCESTOR IN THE WAR
OTHERS FROM HISTORICAL INTEREST, AND SOME FOR A WEEKEND THRILL
LIVING IN SOMEONE ELSE'S SHOES.
Man: IF WE ARE RECREATING A PARTICULAR BATTLE
WE FEEL IT IS OUR OBLIGATION TO THE PUBLIC
TO RECREATE THE BATTLE AS ACCURATELY AS POSSIBLE.
AIM... ! FIRE !
( gunshots )
IT'S A HOBBY. IT'S ALL VOLUNTARY.
IT'S NOT ONLY A REENACTMENT, IT BECOMES A LIVING HISTORY.
BUT THOSE OF US IN THE HOBBY
DON'T CONSIDER IT A HOBBY.
IT'S MORE OF A DISEASE, FOR WHICH THERE IS NO CURE.
AND THE WORSE YOU GET IT, THE BETTER YOU LIKE IT.
I LIKE TO READ ABOUT HISTORY, I LIKE TO EXPERIENCE IT.
EVEN THOUGH YOU KNOW IT'S PROBABLY ONLY A TENTH
OF WHAT THEY ACTUALLY WENT THROUGH.
THE EMOTION, THE FEELING STILL IS THERE.
AND I CAN TELL YOU FOR A FACT
THAT HIDING BEHIND THE WALL--
EVEN THOUGH IT'S A REENACTMENT--
WE KNOW THAT EVERYBODY IS FIRING BLANKS.
WHEN THEY TELL US, "RISE UP AND FIRE THREE ROUNDS
BEFORE YOU WITHDRAW."
WHEN YOU SEE 5,000 GRAY UNIFORMS COMING AT YOU
YOU ASK YOURSELF, "DO I HAVE TO FIRE
ALL THREE ROUNDS BEFORE I LEAVE ?"
( yelling and cheering )
IT REALLY MAKES THE HAIR STAND UP
ON THE BACK OF YOUR NECK
AND GIVES YOU JUST A LITTLE BITTY INKLING
OF WHAT IT WAS ACTUALLY LIKE.
Will: IT'S NOT REAL, OF COURSE
BUT IT IS AN INTERESTING FORM OF COMMUNITY THEATER.
HOW ARE YOU, YOUNG MAN ? GOOD.
ARE YOU REPUBLICAN ?
Will: WHERE YOU CAN CHAT WITH ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
I'M WONDERING IF I CAN GET YOUR AUTOGRAPH.
Will: OR WATCH FIELD SURGERY WITHOUT FLINCHING.
I HOPE WE CAN SAVE THIS WRIST.
( yells out in pain )
Announcer: During the battle, watch the flag.
Will: REAL WAR DOESN'T HAVE A PLAY-BY-PLAY ANNOUNCER...
There's a rider coming back down...
AND IT WASN'T OVER IN A MERE HOUR OR TWO.
BUT THE BIG DIFFERENCE
IS THAT THOSE WHO FALL IN BATTLE HERE
WILL GET UP AGAIN TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY.
OR, MAYBE, ON THE NEXT WEEKEND.
FINE JOB OUT THERE ON THE FIELD TODAY.
FINE JOB.
GOOD WORK MEN. GOOD WORK.
Will: BUT THE PEOPLE WHO ARE HERE
MAKE GET AN INKLING ENOUGH
TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE REAL THING
TO READ A BOOK
OR TO TALK WITH SOMEONE WHO HAS WRITTEN ONE
LIKE WE DID.
I'M HERE AT THE ARGUS BAR, IN MADISON
THE ORIGINAL HOME OF MADISON'S DEMOCRATIC NEWSPAPER
THE ARGUS.
I'M WITH BRETT BARKER, WHO IS WRITING A BOOK
ON THE ROLE OF THE NORTHERN HOME FRONT DURING THE CIVIL WAR.
TELL ME ABOUT THE ROLE OF CAMP RANDALL IN TRAINING TROOPS.
IN FACT, CAMP RANDALL WAS THE PLACE
WHERE MOST WISCONSIN MEN
ENTERED ARMY LIFE.
DURING THE WAR
OVER 75,000 OF WISCONSIN'S TROOPS
FIRST ENTERED THE ARMY AT CAMP RANDALL.
WERE TROOPS HAPPY TO BE STATIONED IN THESE BUILDINGS ?
MANY OF THEM DID ENJOY THE EXCITEMENT
OF BEING AROUND NEW PEOPLE
AND A NEW ENVIRONMENT.
AT THE SAME TIME, ESPECIALLY EARLY
CONDITIONS WERE RATHER PRIMITIVE.
IN FACT, EARLY ON, BEFORE REGULAR BARRACKS WERE BUILT
THEY WERE HOUSED IN BUILDINGS
THAT HAD BEEN ANIMAL PENS BEFORE THE WAR.
AS A MATTER OF FACT, ONE REGIMENT
TO MAKE FUN OF THIS
BUT TO ALSO SHOW THAT THEY WERE ENJOYING THE EXPERIENCE
WENT TO BED AT NIGHT MAKING ANIMAL NOISES.
Will: MANY RECRUITS WERE FARM BOYS, IMMIGRANT BOYS.
MANY VOLUNTEERS WERE, IN FACT, FROM OTHER COUNTRIES--
GERMANS, SWEDES, IRISH--
GROUPED TOGETHER TO ACCOMMODATE DIFFERENT LANGUAGES
AND TO KEEP ETHNIC FIGHTING TO A MINIMUM.
SOME NORWEGIANS
LIKE THOSE OF THE FAMOUS 15th WISCONSIN INFANTRY
JOINED JUST TO SERVE UNDER ONE OF THEIR OWN
COLONEL HANS CHRISTIAN HEG.
SOME CONSIDERED IT
AN ACT OF PATRIOTISM
TO SHOW THEMSELVES WILLING TO FIGHT
AND PERHAPS DIE FOR THEIR NEW COUNTRY.
MANY OF THEM ALSO CONSIDER ARMY SERVICE
A TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCE.
FOR INSTANCE, ONE WISCONSIN SOLDIER
LARS DOKKEN, WHO LAY WOUNDED ON THE BATTLE OF STONE'S RIVER--
WAS LEFT THERE AFTER THE BATTLE.
AND CONFEDERATES WERE WALKING AROUND LOOKING.
AND ONE LOOKED OVER AND SAID
"THERE'S ANOTHER DAMNED YANKEE."
FOR LARS, THIS WAS A TRANSFORMATIVE EXPERIENCE
BECAUSE IT WAS THE FIRST TIME IN HIS LIFE
HE HAD BEEN CALLED A "YANKEE"
IN EFFECT, AN AMERICAN, NOT A NORWEGIAN.
AND FOR HIM, THAT WAS A MOMENT
WHEN HE TRULY BECAME AN AMERICAN CITIZEN.
Will: NOT EVERYONE WAS INCLINED TO FIGHT.
AFTER THE WAR DRAGGED ON FOR OVER A YEAR
THE GOVERNMENT SET UP THE FIRST MILITARY DRAFT.
RIOTS ERUPTED
HIGHLIGHTING CONTINUING DISAGREEMENTS OVER THE WAR.
DURING THE YEARS OF WISCONSIN'S DRAFT
OVER 13,000 DRAFTEES FAILED TO SHOW UP.
SOME IMMIGRANTS ESPECIALLY RESENTED CONSCRIPTION
HOPING FORCED MILITARY SERVICE
WAS SOMETHING THEY LEFT BEHIND THEM IN EUROPE.
IN THE TOWN OF PORT WASHINGTON
150 PROTESTORS WERE ARRESTED FOR ATTACKING THE DRAFT OFFICE.
AND THEY ENDED UP AT CAMP RANDALL
IN PRISON.
PEOPLE FOLLOWED BATTLES
AND POLITICAL DISAGREEMENTS CLOSELY IN THE PRESS.
WITH THE BELIEF, OR PERHAPS, THE HOPE
THAT DESPITE THE COST, THE WAR SERVED A PURPOSE.
TO THESE PEOPLE, WHO HAD A PROVIDENTIAL VIEW OF HISTORY
WHO BELIEVED THAT THERE WAS A MEANING BEHIND ALL THINGS
THAT THERE COULD NOT BE SENSELESS BLOOD BATHS
THERE HAD TO BE A LARGER MEANING.
AND TO THEM, IT SEEMED THAT THIS WAS A TEST
OF NORTHERN SOCIETY.
AND IT WAS ALSO THE ONLY THING
THAT COULD JUSTIFY THE SACRIFICE--
WOULD BE EVENTUAL UNION VICTORY.
Will: EACH MAN WHO FOUGHT, DID SO FOR A REASON.
TO PREVENT THE COUNTRY'S DIVISION
FOR THE MONEY IT BROUGHT TO THEM OR THEIR FAMILIES
OR FOR THE PRESIDENT'S CAUSE, TO ABOLISH SLAVERY.
"Abraham Lincoln": SO, I HOPE THOSE WITH WHOM I'M HERE SURROUNDED
HAVE PRINCIPLE ENOUGH
TO NERVE THEMSELVES FOR THE TASK
THAT LIES AHEAD
AND LEAVE NOTHING UNDONE, TO BRING ABOUT A TRIUMPH
OF THE RIGHT.
HIP, HIP, HURRAH !
Kmetz: WHO VOLUNTEERED ?
THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY'S ARCHIVES
HOLDS LETTERS
DIARIES, AND OTHER DONATED PERSONAL PAPERS
WHICH REVEAL INSIGHTS
NOT ONLY INTO THE BATTLE FRONT, BUT THE HOME FRONT, AS WELL.
ONE MAN WE FOUND CONNECTED BOTH.
BORN IN THE EAST, DR. CHAPMAN WAS A YANKEE
A DEEPLY RELIGIOUS MAN AND AN ABOLITIONIST.
SOMEONE WHO FOUND SLAVERY ABHORRENT.
A PHYSICIAN LIVING IN MADISON
CHAPMAN WAS ONE OF THE FIRST TO VOLUNTEER.
AT THE AGE OF 46, AND NOT IN GOOD HEALTH
HE WROTE THIS TO GOVERNOR RANDALL
ON APRIL 27, 1861.
"DEAR SIR, I TAKE THIS OPPORTUNITY
TO TENDER TO YOU MY SERVICES IN THE MILITARY ESTABLISHMENT
IN ANY POSITION THAT MAY BE PROPER FOR ME TO OCCUPY
REGARDING MY PARTIAL PHYSICAL IMPARITY."
THESE WORDS ARE REVEALING
BECAUSE WE DON'T KNOW CHAPMAN'S AILMENT
BUT WE KNOW HE WAS WILLING TO MATCH IT
AGAINST HIS CONVICTIONS.
WE SEE THIS THROUGH HIS MANY LETTERS
THAT HE WROTE TO HIS WIFE, EUGENIA
HIS DAUGHTER, GENIE, AND HIS SON, CHANDLER, JR.
CHAPMAN'S SERVICE LASTED FOR THREE LONG YEARS.
AND IT ALL STARTED WITH HIS FIRST ASSIGNMENT
AS REGIMENTAL SURGEON TO THE 6th WISCONSIN.
IT WAS A PART OF THE IRON BRIGADE
WHICH LATER WON A REPUTATION
FOR BEING ONE OF THE TOUGHEST FIGHTING UNITS IN THE CIVIL WAR.
"MY DEAR WIFE AND DAUGHTER
"OUR REGIMENT SEEMS VERY MUCH LIKE OUR FAMILY.
"THE MOST GRATIFYING GOOD WILL
"SEEMS TO PREVAIL ALMOST EVERYWHERE IN OUR MIDST.
"BUT WE ARE HERE FOR A PURPOSE
WHICH I HOPE THE GOOD BEING WILL SOON REMOVE."
HISTORIC LETTERS REVEAL NOT ONLY THE EVENTS OF THE TIMES
BUT ALSO, THE FEELINGS OF THE WRITER.
IN CHAPMAN'S LETTERS, THOSE FEELINGS REVEAL HIS STRUGGLE
BETWEEN HIS HEALTH AND HIS BELIEFS.
"MY CONSCIENCE APPROVES OF MY BEING WHERE I AM--
"AND HOWEVER MUCH DOMESTIC COMFORT AND PERSONAL EASE
"AND THE TIES WHICH BIND ME TO OTHER PURSUITS
"MIGHT INFLUENCE ONE TO LEAVE
MY CONSCIENCE WOULD NOT APPROVE."
CHAPMAN'S HEALTH WAS NOT EQUAL TO HIS CONVICTIONS
AND THREE MONTHS LATER
ON MARCH 24, 1862, DR. CHAPMAN RESIGNED.
THE WAR CONTINUED, SEVERAL MONTHS PASSED
AND THE UNION ARMY STILL NEEDED MEN.
CHAPMAN BELIEVED HIS HEALTH HAD IMPROVED
SO HE REENLISTED IN JUNE OF 1862.
JUST FOUR MONTHS LATER, DETACHED FROM HIS REGIMENT
CHAPMAN TAKES CHARGE OF A CONVALESCENT CAMP
IN SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI.
AMONG HIS DUTIES
CHAPMAN TOOK CHARGE OF DECEASED SOLDIERS' EFFECTS.
HERE, WITH LETTERS TO HIM
WE GET AN IDEA OF THE IMPACT OF THE WAR
FROM THE WISCONSIN HOME FRONT.
"HAVING RECEIVED A LETTER
"ANNOUNCING THE DEATH OF MY HUSBAND
AND ALSO STATING THAT YOU WERE THE SURGEON..."
"SIR, I'VE TAKEN THE LIBERTY OF WRITING TO YOU
"ROBERT C. TAYLOR WAS IN YOUR COMPANY.
"ABOUT HIM, I WOULD MAKE SOME INQUIRIES.
"HE WAS A NEAR AND DEAR BROTHER
AND HE WAS LOVED BY ALL THAT KNEW HIM..."
"...MY HUSBAND DIED.
"I TAKE THE PRIVILEGE TO ADDRESS YOU WITH A FEW LINES
"TO SEE IF YOU WOULD BE SO KIND
AND SEND MY HUSBAND'S CLOTHES TO ME..."
"...WAS ANYTHING DONE WITH HIS KNAPSACK
AND ALL THAT WAS IN IT ?"
"...MY SINCERE THANKS.
MRS. MARGARET LULL, DECEMBER 19, 1862."
"...PLEASE WRITE AND LET ME KNOW IF HIS LAST DAYS
"WERE SPENT IN THE SERVICE OF HIS LORD AND MASTER.
"MARY ANN TAYLOR
"BOSCOBELLE, GRANT COUNTY, WISCONSIN.
JANUARY, 1863."
THROUGHOUT THE WAR, CHAPMAN WROTE WITH RESPECT
FOR THE ORDINARY SOLDIER.
THEIR ILLNESSES AND INJURIES WEIGHED UPON HIM.
"MY DEAR WIFE, WE BURIED ONE MAN TODAY
"THE SECOND FROM A WEEK AGO LAST MONDAY.
"THAT WAS A VERY BLUE DAY, AS I WAS SICK MYSELF.
"AND MY ASSISTANT
"WHO HAD BEEN WITH ME ABOUT A WEEK, SKEDADDLED.
"THE MAN WHO WAS BURIED TODAY WAS OF COMPANY "J".
"HIS HOME WAS NEAR MAZOMANIE
"WHERE HE LEAVES A WIFE AND TWO CHILDREN.
POOR FELLOW, HE WAS THE MOST HOMESICK MAN I EVER SAW."
DR. CHAPMAN HAD NOT SEEN MUCH DIRECT BATTLE
THROUGHOUT MOST OF THE WAR.
THIS CHANGES WHEN HE GETS TO VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI.
"MY DEAR WIFE, I HAVE NEVER WRITTEN HOME WITH MORE COMFORT
"THAN AT THIS TIME.
"AFTER A RESIDENCE OF SO MANY DAYS
"WITHIN THE REACH OF DEATH-DEALING MISSILES
"IT IS NOT SMALL COMFORT
TO RETIRE WITH A FEELING OF SECURITY ON THEIR ACCOUNT."
CHAPMAN'S STAY IN VICKSBURG, MISSISSIPPI
GIVES HIM A CHANCE
TO OBSERVE, FIRSTHAND, THE PLIGHT OF FREED SLAVES
IN ENEMY TERRITORY.
HE BEFRIENDS AN AFRICAN-AMERICAN FAMILY NAMED WEBSTER.
AND ACTING ON HIS ABOLITIONIST VIEWS, OFFERS THEM A HOME
WITH HIS OWN FAMILY, BACK IN MADISON.
"WHEN THEY COME, EXPECT TO INSTRUCT THEM IN EVERYTHING.
"I THINK GENIE WILL LIKE TO TEACH THE LITTLE GIRL.
CYRUS AND MARY ARE ANXIOUS TO LEARN TO READ WELL."
WE DON'T KNOW IF THE WEBSTER FAMILY
EVER MADE IT TO MADISON.
WE DO KNOW THE WAR CONTINUED
AND DR. CHAPMAN STAYED FOR ANOTHER YEAR.
HIS PHYSICAL INFIRMITIES INCREASED
AND HE FINALLY RESIGNED IN AUGUST OF 1864.
IN ALL, CHAPMAN SERVED ALMOST THREE YEARS IN THE WAR
TENDING TO THE SICK AND WOUNDED
AND STAYING IN CLOSE TOUCH WITH HIS FAMILY
THROUGH FREQUENT LETTERS.
HE VIEWED THE WAR AS A NECESSARY EVIL
TO END SLAVERY.
BY VIRTUE OF HIS AGE AND INFIRMITIES
HE COULD HAVE STAYED HOME.
INSTEAD, CHAPMAN CHOSE TO TAKE PART
IN A DEFINING EVENT IN OUR COUNTRY'S HISTORY.
( gunshots )
Will: AFTER THESE BATTLES
WISCONSIN REGIMENTS RECEIVED SPECIAL RECOGNITION
FOR THEIR VALOR AND SACRIFICE.
( cannon fires )
OVER 91,000 WISCONSIN SOLDIERS SERVED IN THE CIVIL WAR.
ONE OUT OF TEN PEOPLE IN THE YOUNG STATE.
DRAWN FROM THEIR COMMUNITIES
THESE MEN WERE OFTEN ORGANIZED INTO ETHNIC COMPANIES
OF AMERICAN-BORN, GERMAN, NORWEGIAN, IRISH
AFRICAN-AMERICAN AND NATIVE-AMERICAN TROOPS.
EXPOSED TO DISEASE AND WOUNDED IN BATTLE
OVER 11,000 SOLDIERS, ONE OUT OF SEVEN
NEVER RETURNED TO WISCONSIN.
UNION SOLDIERS WEREN'T THE ONLY ONES
WHO DIED AND WERE BURIED IN WISCONSIN
DURING THE CIVIL WAR.
IN 1862, A CONFEDERATE REGIMENT DESPERATELY TRIED
TO STOP UNION SOLDIERS AND SUPPLIES
FROM MOVING DOWN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER
DURING THE PIVOTAL BATTLE FOR ISLAND No. 10
NEAR TENNESSEE.
LOCAL HISTORIAN, MARGE LIPERT
RESEARCHED ACCOUNTS OF THE REBEL SOLDIERS
AND THEIR ORDEALS.
Marge Lipert: THESE SOLDIERS FROM ALABAMA, ARKANSAS
TENNESSEE, AND LOUISIANA, I THINK.
WERE STATIONED ON ISLAND NUMBER TEN
IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
THE WATER WAS VERY COLD.
AND ACCOUNTS SAY
THAT THEY HAD TO STAND WAIST DEEP, SOMETIMES
IN THIS COLD MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
AND SO, IT WAS VERY DIFFICULT FOR THEM.
Will: OVER 1,000 CAPTURED REBEL SOLDIERS
WERE SENT TO PRISON IN MADISON, AT CAMP RANDALL.
CURIOSITY BROUGHT MANY MADISONIANS
TO SEE THE ENEMY TROOPS ARRIVE.
Lipert: THEY WERE REALLY TATTERED AND HAD VERY LIGHT CLOTHING ON
AND WERE OBVIOUSLY VERY COLD AND MALNOURISHED AND THIN.
THEY WERE REALLY IN BAD CONDITION.
Will: MADISON FAMILIES SAW THAT THE REBELS WERE LIKE
THE FATHERS, BROTHERS AND MANY YOUNG SONS
THEY, THEMSELVES, SENT OFF TO WAR.
BUT THESE RAGGED, REBEL SOLDIERS
WERE WOUNDED, SICK AND STARVING.
Lipert: THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF MADISON
REALLY TOOK AN INTEREST IN THESE SOLDIERS
AND BROUGHT FOOD AND CLOTHING, AND THINGS FOR THEM TO READ.
THEY WERE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THEM.
THE ANIMOSITY THEY MIGHT HAVE FELT FOR THESE SOLDIERS
KIND OF DISAPPEARED
WHEN THEY SAW THE BAD CONDITION THAT THEY WERE IN.
A FEW DAYS AFTER THEY ARRIVED IN MADISON
THEY STARTED DYING.
AND THAT CONTINUED FOR SEVERAL WEEKS.
Will: WITHIN A FEW WEEKS, 140 CONFEDERATE PRISONERS DIED.
THEY WERE BURIED IN A NEW MADISON CEMETERY
IN UNMARKED GRAVES.
THE BURIAL SITE WAS THEN VIRTUALLY FORGOTTEN
UNTIL AFTER THE END OF THE CIVIL WAR.
Lipert: THREE YEARS AFTER THE CIVIL WAR WAS OVER
ALICE WHITING WATERMAN ARRIVED IN MADISON.
SHE WAS BORN IN LOUISIANA
AND STILL HAD STRONG FEELINGS FOR SOUTHERNERS.
AND SHE OBVIOUSLY CAME OUT HERE
AND WAS PROBABLY VERY HORRIFIED AT THE CONDITION
BECAUSE IT WAS OVERRUN WITH WEEDS
AND THERE WAS DEBRIS.
SO, SHE TOOK IT UPON HERSELF
TO MAKE THIS A WONDERFUL RESTING PLACE FOR HER BOYS.
THIS PLACE WAS SO MUCH A PART OF HER LIFE.
SHE OFTEN EXPRESSED HER LOVE FOR HER BOYS.
AND SHE HAD REQUESTED, BEFORE SHE DIED
TO BE BURIED WITH HER BOYS.
AND SO, THAT REQUEST WAS GRANTED.
Kmetz: AT JUST ABOUT THE SAME TIME THAT THE FIRST GROUP
OF CONFEDERATE SOLDIERS CAME TO MADISON.
WISCONSIN'S NEW GOVERNOR, LOUIS HARVEY
WAS DOWN SOUTH, IN TENNESSEE.
WE'RE UP THE HILL FROM CONFEDERATE REST
AND THIS IS LOUIS HARVEY'S GRAVE.
HARVEY HAD GONE DOWN TO TENNESSEE
TO VISIT WISCONSIN SOLDIERS
THAT WERE WOUNDED IN THE BATTLE OF SHILOH.
AND THE MISSION WAS SUCCESSFUL.
HE TOOK MEDICAL SUPPLIES AND DOCTORS.
BUT IT HAD A REAL TRAGIC ENDING.
HE WAS GOING BETWEEN TWO BOATS
AND HE SLIPPED AND FELL INTO THE RIVER.
THE RIVER CURRENT WAS STRONG, AND HE WAS WASHED AWAY.
HIS BODY WASN'T FOUND FOR EIGHT DAYS.
INSTEAD OF RETIRING TO PRIVATE LIFE
HARVEY'S WIFE, CORDELIA, TOOK UP HIS CAUSE.
SHE WAS APPOINTED SANITARY AGENT BY WISCONSIN'S NEW GOVERNOR
AND INSPECTED ARMY HOSPITALS ALONG THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
THERE, SHE SAW SOLDIERS DYING OF TYPHOID, PNEUMONIA
DIARRHEA AND SCARLET FEVER.
IN THE FALL OF 1862, SHE WROTE:
"A SURGEON SAID, 'STAY AWAY.
"'THE AIR IS FULL OF CONTAGION.
AND CONTAGION AND SYMPATHY DO NOT GO WELL TOGETHER.'"
CORDELIA HARVEY WAS CONVINCED
THAT WISCONSIN SOLDIERS' BEST CHANCE FOR RECOVERY WAS AT HOME
IN THE CLEAN, NORTHERN AIR.
IN 1862, HOWEVER, THERE WERE NO ARMY HOSPITALS IN THE NORTH.
THE LINCOLN ADMINISTRATION FEARED THAT SOLDIERS
RECOVERING CLOSE TO HOME WOULD NOT RETURN TO FIGHT.
HARVEY WENT TO SPEAK DIRECTLY WITH PRESIDENT LINCOLN.
AFTER THREE DAYS, HE RELENTED
AND GRANTED HER WISH FOR A NORTHERN ARMY HOSPITAL.
IT WOULD BE LOCATED IN MADISON
AND NAMED "HARVEY HOSPITAL," IN HONOR OF HER HUSBAND.
THIS STONE, AT THE CORNER OF SPAIGHT STREET
AND BREARLY STREET, ON MADISON'S NEAR EAST SIDE
MARKS THE SITE OF HARVEY HOSPITAL GROUNDS.
DURING THE CIVIL WAR
HARVEY HOSPITAL STOOD ABOUT THE MIDDLE OF THIS BLOCK.
BUT THE ENTIRE BLOCK, ALL THE WAY DOWN THIS STREET
AND ALL THE WAY DOWN THIS STREET
BELONGED TO THE HOSPITAL.
THE FOLLOWING YEAR
TWO OTHER ARMY HOSPITALS WERE ESTABLISHED
IN PRAIRIE DU CHIEN AND MILWAUKEE.
WISCONSIN CITIZENS
PROVIDED ARMY HOSPITALS WITH A VARIETY OF SUPPLIES
EVERYTHING FROM HOSPITAL BEDDING TO HOMEMADE FOOD.
MANY WERE MEMBERS OF LOCAL HOME FRONT ORGANIZATIONS
VOLUNTEER SOCIETIES MADE UP MOSTLY OF WOMEN.
WOMEN PLAYED A ROLE ON THE HOME FRONT
IN ANOTHER IMPORTANT AREA, THE FARM.
WITH THEIR HELP, WISCONSIN WAS ABLE TO CRANK UP PRODUCTION
OF FOOD CROPS AND WOOL FOR CLOTHING
WHICH HELPED PROVISION THE UNION TROOPS.
THERE WERE MORE WOMEN IN THE FIELDS AT THAT TIME
THAN ANY TIME BEFORE THAT, AND PROBABLY ANY TIME SINCE.
Kmetz: IN 1860, WISCONSIN WAS THE SECOND HIGHEST
WHEAT PRODUCING STATE IN THE NATION.
WE ALSO HAD THE MEANS
TO GET THE WHEAT TO MARKET.
Tom Woods: IT WAS NECESSARY, FIRST OF ALL
TO HAVE A TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IN PLACE
FOR WHEAT TO BE SO POPULAR.
AND THAT WAS TAKEN CARE OF
BECAUSE WISCONSIN HAD 900 MILES OF RAILWAY LAID
AT THE START OF THE CIVIL WAR.
THAT WAS CRITICAL FOR WISCONSIN TO BECOME A LEADER
IN SUPPLYING THE TROOPS WITH GRAIN DURING THE WAR.
Kmetz: WHEAT WAS KING IN WISCONSIN FOR ANOTHER IMPORTANT REASON.
OUR STATE HAD ONLY RECENTLY BEEN SETTLED
SO FARMING HADN'T DEPLETED THE SOIL.
FARMERS FACED ANOTHER CHANGE IN THEIR FIELDS AT THIS TIME
THE EVOLUTION FROM HAND LABOR TO MACHINE LABOR.
TWO OF THE INVENTORS LIVED IN WISCONSIN.
GEORGE ESTERLY MADE A REAPER.
AND J.I. CASE OFFERED THRESHING MACHINES.
BECAUSE OF THIS CHANGE
THE FACE OF FIELD ANIMALS HAD TO CHANGE, TOO.
IN 1860, OXEN WERE THE MOST COMMON FORM
OF DRAFT POWER IN THE STATE.
BUT WITH REAPERS AND MOWERS
OXEN JUST CAN'T PULL THOSE EFFECTIVELY.
SO, THEY BEGAN SWITCHING VERY RAPIDLY FROM OXEN TO HORSES
DURING THE CIVIL WAR PERIOD.
IT WAS AN ABSOLUTELY ESSENTIAL CHANGE.
WITHOUT THAT CHANGE, THEY REALLY COULD NOT HAVE PRODUCED
THE AMOUNT OF GRAIN THAT THEY NEEDED
IN THE CIVIL WAR EFFORT.
Kmetz: ANOTHER ANIMAL GREW IN IMPORTANCE
IN WISCONSIN DURING THE CIVIL WAR
SHEEP.
BECAUSE COTTON WAS NO LONGER COMING FROM THE SOUTH
THE PRICE OF WOOL--
OFTEN USED FOR SOLDIERS' UNIFORMS--
WENT UP.
AS A RESULT, THE NUMBER OF SHEEP QUADRUPLED TO 1.25 MILLION.
THE FAVORITE BREED WAS MERINOS.
THAT'S PARTLY BECAUSE OF THE WAY MERINOS WERE BRED
WITH THESE INCREDIBLE FOLDS
DOUBLE CHINS, TRIPLE CHINS, QUADRUPLE CHINS.
IT HAD A LARGER SURFACE AREA TO GROW WOOL ON.
AND BECAUSE OF THAT
THEY COULD GET MORE POUNDS OF WOOL OFF OF A SHEEP.
Kmetz: THE UNION ARMY WAS BETTER PROVISIONED
THAN THE SOLDIERS IN THE SOUTH
IN PART, DUE TO WISCONSIN'S AGRICULTURAL CONTRIBUTIONS.
THIS SAD COMPARISON WAS NOTED
BY A NORTHERN SOLDIER IN A LETTER HOME.
"THE PRISONERS PASSED BY HERE, SO I SAW 'EM.
"I HAD MADE UP MY MIND
THAT WE WAS SEEING PRETTY HARD TIMES.
"BUT WHEN I SAW THEM
"I HAVEN'T A WORD TO SAY AGAINST OUR FARE.
"THEY WAS DIRTY AS A HOG AND RAGGED.
"THAT WASN'T A NAME FOR IT.
"BUT MOST OF THEM WAS NEARLY NAKED.
"MOST OF THEM WAS BAREFOOTED.
IT IS ASTONISHING TO SEE HOW THEY HOLD OUT SO."
JACKSON THOMPSON, TO HIS FRIEND, SARAH THRONE.
Will: WE'RE BACK HERE AT CAMP RANDALL.
Kmetz: OF COURSE.
THIS PLACE MUST HAVE BEEN A HUB OF ACTIVITY
DURING THE CIVIL WAR.
THINK OF THE IMMIGRANT GROUPS THAT CAME HERE
AND THE MEN MEETING EACH OTHER FOR THE FIRST TIME.
NOT ONLY WERE THEY NORWEGIAN OR IRISH
BUT THROUGH THE WAR
THEY BECAME WISCONSINITES AND AMERICANS.
YOU KNOW, SOMETIMES WE FORGET
THAT AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CIVIL WAR
AS A STATE, WISCONSIN WAS ONLY 12 YEARS OLD.
BY THE END OF THE CIVIL WAR, THE STATE HAD LOST 11,000 MEN.
THOSE THAT RETURNED, WERE CHANGED FOREVER.
THE STATE OF WISCONSIN CHANGED, AS WELL.
FOR YEARS AFTERWARD, IF YOU WEREN'T A VETERAN
IT WAS TOUGH TO GET ELECTED TO PUBLIC OFFICE IN WISCONSIN.
AND THE INDUSTRIES THAT WERE BUILT FOR THE WAR--
THEY LAID A FOUNDATION
FOR LATER GROWTH IN MANUFACTURING.
LOTS OF PLACES IN WISCONSIN HAVE CIVIL WAR MEMORIES.
LIKE IF YOU GO TO A FOOTBALL GAME...
HOLD THAT THOUGHT--
UNTIL NEXT TIME, WHEN WE BRING YOU MORE WISCONSIN STORIES.
LET'S GO GET SOMETHING TO EAT.
MAJOR FUNDING FOR WISCONSIN STORIES
IS PROVIDED BY THE MEAD WITTER FOUNDATION, INC.
WISCONSIN RAPIDS, WISCONSIN.
ADDITIONAL FUNDING IS PROVIDED BY
THE HALBERT AND ALICE KADISH FOUNDATION
PHILIP J. AND ELIZABETH B. HENDRICKSON
AND AN ADVISED FUND OF THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF SOUTHERN WISCONSIN.