Transcript Extra!!! - Issaquah Connect

Extra!!! Extra!!!
Dispatches from the War Office
Dispatch #1: Rebels Shell Fort
Sumter; war is on! April 12th, 1861
Lincoln’s attempt to provision Fort Sumter, a federal fort on an
island in South Carolina’s Charleston Harbor (now enemy
territory!), was seen as an act of aggression by the Confederacy.
 At 4:30 a.m. on April 12, 1861, Confederate cannons opened
fire on 68 men inside the fort commanded by Major Robert
Anderson (Anderson was given until 4am to surrender the fort)
 The bombardment lasted 34 hours, until Anderson surrendered
to CSA General P.G.T. Beauregard (Anderson was Beauregard’s
teacher at West Point!!).
 There were no casualties (but a Confederate horse…and one
Union soldier during the flag-retiring ceremony)
Result: “The curtain has fallen upon the first act of the great tragedy
of our age” – A Northern newspaper
THE WAR IS ON!!!
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Civil War Letter #1
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Date: April 26th, 1861 (two weeks after Sumter)
Write a letter from your field identity to your home
identity about the events of Fort Sumter and your
new life as a soldier now that you’ve enlisted. You
must include the actual date of Sumter (April 12,
1861) as one of your facts. Detail Sumter, then
include your impressions of camp life and your
feelings now that the war has begun. Your entry will
include eight facts and five new vocab words.
Underline facts and vocab!! Remember to sign and
date your journal (put your real name in top, righthand corner!).
Civil War Vocab Set #1:
(Sumter/Camp Life)
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Secede: to withdraw from the Union, as 11 Southern states did between
1860-1
Border State: Slave-owning states that did not secede from the Union,
including Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, and Missouri
Casualty: A person killed, wounded, or missing during the war
Confederacy: The alliance of 11 Southern states (to form CSA)
Union: The alliance of 23 Northern states (USA) that fought CSA
Recruit: A soldier who has just signed up with no experience
Drill: the process of instructing new recruits how to march and practice
the military arts as a unit
Picket: One or more soldiers responsible for guard duty, always watchful
for the enemy approach
War Dispatch #2: Confederates feast on Union civilian
lunches after victory at Bull Run. July 21st, 1861.
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The Confederate and Union troops fought the Civil War’s first major battle and
it produced a Rebel victory.
37,000 ill-prepared Union troops, marching to the cry, “On to Richmond,”
seemed no match for a spirited but small (22,000) Confederate force.
The South’s Beauregard knew the N. was coming thanks to the Confederate spy
Rose O’Neil Greenhow. The Rebs formed an 8 mile line and waited for the
Yankees…
Fought only 25 miles from WA D.C. (and thus accessible to picnicking
spectators), Bull Run – or Manassas Junction – was highlighted by “Stonewall”
Jackson and his men.
4,500 casualties total, N and S
Result: The South has won the war’s first battle and feels confident (The
North?...not so much…). Lincoln calls for the enlistment of 100,000 additional
troops to serve for 3 years instead of 3 months! He also puts a new man in
charge of the Union forces in Washington DC: George McClellan.
Civil War Letter #2
Date: July 21, 1861
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Write a letter from your field identity to your home identity
about today’s battle: Bull Run. At this point, you may also
begin to elaborate on the realities of war; you have now seen
it in person. What was it like to “see the elephant?” Who
won the battle? How? Include and underline eight facts and
five new vocab words.
Enclosure: include a sketch of a battlefront or camp life scene
so your home identity can “see” what you are experiencing.
Include a brief explanation of what’s happening in the picture
Civil War Vocab Set #2: (1st Bull
Run or Battle of Manassas)
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Hardtack: A ¼” to ½” thick cracker eaten by soldiers—a
main staple!
Haversack: Cloth bag used by soldiers to carry rations
Artillery: Large, powerful weapons such as cannon and
mortars
Cartridge Box: A leather box used by soldiers to carry
ammunition (Minnie balls)
Minnie Ball: Standard rifle bullet used in The Civil
War—it led to staggering casualties!
Flanks: The sides of an army’s line in battle. A flanking
movement is attacking the sides
Skedaddle: Slang term for retreat
Civil War Letter #3
Date: July 1-3,1863 (write as if it’s the 4th)
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News has just broken out over the wire about the Battle of
Gettysburg. Write a letter from your field identity to your
home identity about your “Gettysburg experience.” Who
won? How? How did you feel being there? Letter must
include a detailed account of Day 3: Pickett’s Charge. As
always, include and underline eight facts and five new vocab
words.
Enclosure: send a keepsake home with your letter-- a
photograph, a tear-stained poem etc. Staple your keepsake to
your letter, and explain the significance of the keepsake
Set #3: Gettysburg
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Conscription: The selection of citizens for mandatory military
service (draft)
Salt Pork: The most common meal ration during the war—salted
pork (like pork-jerky)
Desertion: To leave one’s military post, or to run away from
battle (Often punishable by death)
Deploy: To spread out armies to create a battle line
Battery: A unit of 4 or 6 cannons or a fortified position on which
they are placed
Bayonet: knife-like weapon attached to the front end of a musket
or rifle
Dysentery: An often-fatal disease of the human intestines caused
by unsanitary conditions (resulted in the “screamers”)
Scurvy: A disease caused by the lack of Vitamin C—often a
result of no fruits/veggies (bleeding gums etc.)
Civil War Letter #4
Date: July 18,1863
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Write a diary/journal entry as an African American union soldier
enlisted in the 54th Massachusetts Regiment. Use information
from the reading “Determined Soldiers,” and from the movie
Glory. Detail your experiences as a black soldier. What
hardships have you faced? What are you fighting for? Include
facts about today’s battle at Fort Wagner in your entry. As
always, include and underline eight facts and five new vocab
words.
Enclosure: write a haiku (a haiku is a 3 line Japanese verse form
where the 1st and 3rd lines have 5 syllables, and the second line
contains 7 syllables) about your experiences as a member of the
54th Massachusetts. Your poem should convey your emotions
and/or hardships to the folks back home. Staple poem to letter.
Set #4: 54th Massachusetts, Glory
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Cavalry: Soldiers mounted on horseback. The “eyes”
of the army.
Carnage: Extensive slaughter
Rations: Military term for food
Maggots: fly eggs…Civil War soldiers discovered these
helped to cure infection
Contraband: Goods illegally traded during wartime.
Slaves were sometimes called contraband during the
war.
Sawbones: Slang term for a surgeon
Hornets: Slang term for bullets
Civil War Letter #5
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Date: April 9, 1865
The War Between the States is finally over! General
Lee has surrendered to General Grant at Appomattox.
Write a letter to reflect the details of this event. What
were the terms of surrender? What was the general
feeling at the surrender? What will surrender mean to
the nation as a whole? How should the nation go
about bringing both sides back together? Write from
your field identity to your home identity, and include
and underline eight facts and five new vocab words.
Set #5: Appomattox Courthouse
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Dixie: Slang term for confederacy/Also the name
of a favorite song on both sides
Scabbard: A sheath for a sword, bayonet, or
dagger
Treason: To betray one’s country
Greenhorn/Skunk/Bugger: Slang term for a
military officer
Blowhard: Slang term for a braggart (a person
who brags)
Civil War Letter #6
Date: April 15th, 1865 (or you can write from 4/26 when
Booth was caught & shot as long as you include the
date of Lincoln’s death)
 President Lincoln has been assassinated, and the
nation is in mourning. In a full-page diary entry and
as anyone, explain the details surrounding his death.
As always…8 and 5 underlined!!
 Enclosure: You are a thief! You’ve stolen an item
relating to Lincoln's assassination and have decided to
enclose it in your letter. Recreate the item, explain
what it is to your home identity, and staple it to your
letter.
Set #6: Lincoln’s Assassination
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Assassination: to murder for political reasons
Mourn: to express or feel sorrow (for or over)
Forfeit: to sacrifice something highly valued for
the sake of someone or something considered
having greater value or claim.
Solemn: deeply earnest, gloomy, or somber
Telegraph: a means of communication by which
electric impulses are sent over a wire
Tyrant: a ruthless ruler or one who betrays their
country