Superfest International Disability Film Festival is the longest running disability film festival in the world. It started in 1970 and is pretty much THE disability film festival.

Perhaps more than any of the other film festivals so far, being accepted here has excited me the most. This will be the first time that The Invalid Corps will screen before a majority disabled audience. Considering the film was made by a majority disabled crew and is voiced by majority disabled voice talent and was funded by majority disabled supporters, it feels right to screen here.

I should have so much more to say but perhaps the best thing would be to simply include the most meaningful picture to us: The theatre full of people, many with disabilities, watching The Invalid Corps.

We were very excited to attend the Over-The-Rhine Film Festival in Cincinnati, Ohio in early October. The Over-The-Rhine Film Festival is the new name and expanded vision for the successful Cincinnati ReelAbilities Film Festival. Their new mission, since 2013, is to celebrate difference, diversity, and honor our shared humanity-a world where film and media reflect and value all.

We screened at the Art Academy of Cincinnati which is a fantastic building. But what really had us excited was seeing this outside the building. Our very own sandwich board clearly showing off the screening.

And of course we had to get a photo of the “big screen” with the names of all the nominees for the Grand Jury Documentary Short award. 🙂 Does one of those names look familiar?

We lost out to Life Lakota from Ryan Knapper but we have the photo to prove we were in the running!

Contributions of the Invalid Corps to the Battle of Fort Stevens – One of the issues that has come up over and over when it comes to telling the events of the Battle of Fort Stevens has been the story of the Sixth Corps’ rescue of the city. 

History has said that they arrived just in time or that Early arrived just a little too late. But I think they’re missing part of the story. I keep finding snippets here and there of actions and engagements of various Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps regiments. Either on their own or as part of larger units. And exactly how MUCH they contributed to the defense of the city.

Colonel Gile had command of the First Brigade, US Veteran Reserve Corps (4 Regiments) and their activities tell a different tale than what is most often discussed around Early’s raid on Washington.

Major-General McCook, who commanded the defenses, complimented the Veteran Reserves in his official report stating:

To Colonel Gile and the officers and men of the First Brigade, Veteran Reserve Corps, I am largely indebted for the success of my efforts in keeping the enemy from our line until the arrival of the Sixth Corps.

I found that pretty telling. And of course, because I wanted to learn even more detail, I went looking to find out exactly WHAT Colonel George Gile and the First Brigade actually did in the defense of Washington.

Below is the actual text from his report. Please forgive the odd sizing but I was trying to get images of all of the text clearly. If you don’t want to read the imaged text, a transcription is at the bottom.

TRANSCRIPTION:

Report of Col. George W. Gile, Commanding First Brigade,
U. S. Veteran Reserve Corps, of the defense of Washington.
Hdqrs. First Brigade, Veteran Reserve Corps, Washington, D. C.,
July 22, 1864.

Colonel : I have the honor to make the following report of the operations of the First Brigade, Veteran Reserve Corps, during the late rebel invasion:

Pursuant to orders received from headquarters Military District, dated July 10, 1864, the Ninth Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps, Lieut. Col. R. E. Johnston commanding, left Camp Fry, D. C., at 4 p. m. and reported to Major-General McCook, commanding at Crystal Spring, Md., at 8 p. m., and bivouacked for the night, the rest of the brigade remaining in camp (with orders to be ready to move at short notice) until 6 p. m., when I received orders to report without delay to you. I immediately ordered the regiments of the brigade to rendezvous at Camp Fry, and at 9.15 p. m. the brigade took up the line of march, arriving at Tennallytown at 11.15 p. m., when, in accordance with your instructions, the following disposition was made of the command : The Twenty-second Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps, Lieut. Col. A. Rutherford commanding, was placed in the rifle-pits in front of Fort Sumner ; the Sixth Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps, Lieut. Col. F. S. Palmer commanding, in rifle-pits on the left of Fort Reno and directly in front of Tennallytown, its right resting on the Rockville pike ; the First Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps, Lieutenant-Colonel Trotter commanding, on the right of Fort Reno in the rifle-pits ; the Nineteenth and Twenty-fourth Regiments, commanded respectively by Col. O. y. Dayton and Maj. J. W. H. Stickney, massed in column of division directly in rear of Fort Reno.

The brigade bivouacked for the night, and at la. m. July 11th the Ninth Regiment formed line of battle and remained in that –position until 7 a.m., when they were ordered to occupy the rifle-pits on the left of Fort Stevens. The Twenty fourth Regiment was then moved to Fort Mansfield, the remainder of the brigade remaining in the same position, excepting one company of the Nineteenth Regiment, which was thrown out oil’ the Rockville pike as pickets, and shortly after taking its position was attacked by the enemy, but held its position until relieved, with a loss of 2 men wounded.

At 2.30 p. m. orders were received making the following changes in the line: The First Regiment was sent from Fort Reno to rifle-pits on the left of Battery Sinead ; the Sixth and Nineteenth Regiments to Fort De Russy, the former occupying the rifle-pits on the right of the fort and reaching to Rock Creek, the latter in the rifle-pits connecting Battery Smead and Fort De Russy. The Twenty-second Regiment moved from Fort Sumner to Fort Kearny and took possession of the rifle-pits in front of the fort. At 4 p. m. the Ninth Regiment was ordered to advance as skirmishers and relieve the Twenty-fifth New York Cavalry (dismounted). After a brisk engagement, in which the regiment lost 1 killed and 11 wounded, they succeeded in relieving the cavalry and advancing the line some distance to the front, and remained on the skirmish line until the advance of the Sixth Corps, Army of the Potomac, which relieved seven companies, three companies remaining on the line. After 5 p. m. three companies of the Nineteenth Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps, one company of the Sixth and one company of the First Regiments were deployed as skirmishers in the front and on the flanks of Fort De Russy and Battery Smead, and succeeded in advancing the line some 1,500 yards to the front. The same hour the Twenty-fourth Regiment was ordered from Fort Mansfield to Fort De Russy, and shortly after arriving at that point was sent back to Fort Reno, occupying the rifle-pits on the right of the fort. At 7.30 p. m. the enemy was seen re-cnforcing his lines. I accordingly sent the Sixth Regiment to strengthen the skirmish line on the right and center, and six companies of the Twenty-second Regiment on the left of the line. Our skirmish line now extended from the Rockville pike on the left to about 2,000 yards beyond Rock Creek on the right.

At 3 a. m. July 12 the whole command was under arms. At 6 a.m. I ordered Col. F. S. Palmer, commanding the right of the skirmish line, to advance his line and take possession of a hill about a quarter of a mile in advance, then occupied by rebel sharpshooters, who were annoying our line very much. This was accomplished after considerable resistance from the enemy, with the loss of 1 man wounded. The left and center of the line, which was composed of three companies of the Nineteenth Regiment and six companies of the Twenty-second Regiment, also moved forward until the left of the line was nearly two miles in advance of the defenses. At 7 o’clock the Twenty-fourth Regiment moved from Port Sumner to Fort Kearny. At 1 p.m. I relieved the Sixth Regiment, which was on the skirmish line, by the First Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps.

At 2 p. m. I received orders to send one regiment to Fort Reno. My command at that time was in such a position that I was compelled to send the Sixth Regiment, which had just been relieved from picket. This regiment on arriving at Fort Reno was ordered to occupy the rifle-pits extending from Fort Reno to the left of the Rockville pike. In addition to this it furnished three commissioned officers and eighty-two enlisted men for picket. At 5 p. m. the First Regiment was relieved by the Twenty-fifth Regiment New York Cavalry (dismounted) and occupied the rifle-pits vacated by the Sixth Regiment. Having received information that the enemy were planting some artillery on the right of a building in front of our lines, at 5 p. m. I ordered Captain Clark, Company H, Sixth Regiment, to advance his company and ascertain if such was the fact, and if so, to burn the building occupied by the rebel sharpshooters.

He obeyed the order promptly and drove the rebel skirmishers beyond the building, but was here confronted by a reserve of about 200 ; maintaining his position he made a personal observation and found the report to be incorrect, when in obedience to instructions from me he withdrew his force in a manner highly creditable to himself and men. Captain Clark and four of his men were wounded in this reconnaissance. At 7.30 p. m. the enemy sent forward a force to strengthen their line on our right. A sharp skirmish ensued in which the enemy was compelled to withdraw.

At 12 p. m. I received orders to have the command up and under arms at once, which order I complied with and remained in that position until 5 a. m. July 13, when I sent out one commissioned officer and ten privates to reconnoiter and ascertain the whereabouts of the enemy. They advanced several miles and found that they had withdrawn their picket-line and retreated during the night.

This fact I immediately reported to headquarters. At 7.30 a. m. six companies of the Sixth Regiment were ordered to proceed about six miles on the Rockville pike, to support a section of artillery and Colonel Lowell’s cavalry, then engaging the enemy. At 12.30 p. m. all troops of the brigade then on the skirmish line, except the Ninth Regiment, were relieved and took their former positions in the rifle-pits. At 2 p. m. the Sixth Regiment returned to Fort Reno. At 8.40 p. m. I received your order to report with my command without delay to General De Russy at Arlington. This order was obeyed as promptly as possible, and at 2 p. m. July 14 I reported with all my command, except the Ninth Regiment, to General De Russy.

Our loss during the skirmish in the defenses north of the city was :*

The conduct of officers and men of the various regiments of the brigade was unexceptionable. I should deem it unjust to particularize those whom opportunity made conspicuous, satisfied that all fully appreciated the great responsibility resting upon them, knew their duty, and performed it. Regimental reports herewith enclosed rehearse in detail the several duties performed by them during our brief campaign.

All of which is very respectfully submitted by very respectfully, your obedient servant,

GEO. W. GILE,
Colonel, Comdg. First Brigade, Veteran Reserve Corps.

Colonel Warner,
Comdg. Defenses of Washington near Tennallytown.

*Nominal list (omitted) shows 1 man killed and 1 officer and 20 men wounded

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (https://archive.org/details/warofrebellion371unit/page/346?q=Veteran+Reserve+Corps+Col.+Gile)

Yes, you read that right. In 1863, because of the increased need for more manpower, and because of the lack of ready volunteers, states were offering substantial bounties to encourage men to join the Union army. Cornelius “Con” Garvin, 18, a young man described in the newspaper articles of the time an “idiot boy” or “lunatic” was sold to the Union Army by the superintendent of the Almhouse where he was living. The descriptions are what would have been appropriate for the time as describing a person with an intellectual disability.

The precise nature of Cornelius (or Con’s) disorder is not known, but whatever it was, one of the way’s in which it appears to have impacted him was that he was easily led, and was quick to do what others told him.

I cannot praise enough the detailed article about this story written in the Irish American Civil War. It took an immense amount of research to discover all of the threads of the tale. And it is amazing. You can read the full article with details and citations here: http://irishamericancivilwar.com/2015/01/11/in-search-of-con-the-remarkable-story-of-the-hunt-for-the-idiot-boy-sold-into-service/

But to give you a short summary, Con’s mother, Catharine, having a difficult time caring for him placed him temporarily in the Rensselaer County Almhouse. The head of the Almhouse, likely working with others “sold” Con to the army as a substitute for the large bounty. This was the beginning of Catharine’s multi-year quest to find her son. 

For the next two years she haunted the Union army searching for the familiar face of her son. She petitioned military officers and politicians and basically begged anyone who could with help in finding her son.  The media picked up on the story; Secretary of War, Edwin Stanton, learned of the story; even President Lincoln himself wanted to see it come to resolution.

Lafayette C. Baker, commander of the Union’s Intelligence Service, was assigned the task. Unfortunately, this story doesn’t have a happy ending. Baker, in his book, the History of the United States Secret Service, (https://archive.org/details/histsecretservice00bakerich/page/n9) uncovers, not only was Con sold by the head of the Almhouse, but also that Captain Degner of the 52nd New York Volunteers, who commanded Con’s company (Co. F or possibly I), ‘attempted to intimidate, by threats of punishment, those privates of his company who were disposed to assist Mrs. Garvin and others engaged in the investigation.’ Referred to as ‘Watches’ or ‘Watchless’, Con Garvin was killed in battle in Spotsylvania, VA., in May, 1864.

References:

Catharine Garvin Collection at the Allen County Public Library: http://www.acpl.lib.in.us/LincolnCollection/shared/docs/Catharine%20Garvin%20Collection.pdf

In Search of Con: The Remarkable Story of the Hunt for the ‘Idiot’ Boy Sold into Service from the Irish American Civil War:  http://irishamericancivilwar.com/2015/01/11/in-search-of-con-the-remarkable-story-of-the-hunt-for-the-idiot-boy-sold-into-service/

History of the United States Secret Service by L.C. Baker: https://archive.org/details/histsecretservice00bakerich/page/n9

Running a little behind on my posting to the website. The Invalid Corps film has just received its very first festival acceptance! On February 10, 2019, I received the following letter from Jamie Bond, Film Festival Coordinator for the Ogeechee International History Film Festival in Statesboro, Georgia.

Dear Day Al-Mohamed:

On behalf of the Film Festival Selection Committee, we are pleased to inform you that we have accepted your film submission. Your film The Invalid Corps will be screened on February 22 at the 3rd Annual Ogeechee International History Film Festival, located in Statesboro, Georgia.

More information will follow as we finalize the program’s details closer to the film festival’s opening. Please let us know if you will be able to attend, so that we can make proper arrangements.

We appreciate your interest and participation, and hope that you will be able to join us in person for this momentous occasion! 

Sincerely,

Jamie Bond
Film Festival Coordinator,
Ogeechee International History Film Festival

Note from Day: Yes, I realize that Part 2 is from an earlier Harpers edition than Part 1, but I wanted to close with something positive and powerful for this New Year to remind us that we must remain positive and that we have the power to demand change.

This illustration shows Thomas Nast’s Vision of the future, and the profound implications of the Emancipation Proclamation signed on this day in 1863. Nast is portraying blacks as normal people. . . not as slaves, property, or field hands. This would have been a shocking image in the day Nast created it, and is probably one of the earliest published images suggesting the possibility that a black family could be not unlike a white family.

This hopeful picture of the future is surrounded by images of the reality of the past. In the upper left image, Nast shows runaway slaves being hunted down by men and dogs. The left image shows a heartbreaking scene of a slave auction. The image shows a young man on the auction block being sold the the highest bidder. The the audience a black women, holding her children, is seen on her knees pleading with one of the buyers. Undoubtedly she has just been sold to her new owner, and she is begging the man to buy her husband as well so that the family will not be broken up. The look of indifference on the man’s face is an indicator that there is little hope of the family staying together, and the husband will soon be sold to someone else.

The lower left image shows scenes of slave torture . . . including a black woman being whipped and beaten, and a man being branded with a hot iron. On the right, we see more images of hope. We see black children attending school and we see black people receiving wages for their work.

Image and description courtesy of Son of the South – http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1863/january/emancipated-slaves.htm

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

24th Regiment

Organized at Washington, D.C., February 24, 1864, by consolidation of the 146th, 148th, 159th, 160th, 161st, 163rd, 171st, 173rd, 174th and 195th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments June 30 to November 27, 1865.

In Washington as a part of the garrison of Washington, performing its full share of duties. No statistical report.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578  

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

23rd Regiment

Organized January 12, 1864, by consolidation of the 77th, 116th, 117th, 118th, 121st, 125th, 143rd, 155th, 162nd and 191st Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 1 to December 5, 1865.

Duty in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, Kentucky, and Iowa. Company A has escorted over 500 men for the Army, losing so far as known but 5. Company B has escorted 500 rebel prisoners and over 3,000 recruits, deserters, &c., with no escapes to report. The train from Louisville to Lebanon repeatedly attacked by guerrillas; was successfully defeated by a detachment of this company. The company defeated one band of bushwhackers, killing its leader, Captain Mitchell, wounding several of his followers, and capturing 10 horses, with a loss to the company of 2 men wounded. Twenty-three men of the company routed a band of 48 guerrillas, killing and wounding 23 men and capturing 26 horses. The Indian prisoners at Davenport, Iowa, 500 in number, were guarded by Company 6. The other companies have performed their full share of labor in the ordinary duties of the corps.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578  

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

22nd Regiment

Organized at Washington, D.C., January 12, 1864, by consolidation of the 74th, 91st, 122nd, 126th, 130th, 134th, 175th, 183rd, 184th and 192nd Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 1 to November 19, 1865.

On duty by detachments, chiefly in Indiana, but also in Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin, Connecticut, and Maryland, guarding camps of rendezvous, military prisons, public stores, and escorting rebel prisoners, recruits for the Union armies, &c. Conscripts forwarded, 15,000; recruits, 13,575; deserters, 1,019; with a total loss of 28. Rebel prisoners guarded, 23,003; none reported escaped. Deserters from the draft and persons engaged in resisting it arrested in Indiana and Illinois. One squad killed a rebel recruiting officer, wounded 1 of his men, and captured 16, with a large amount of stolen goods, counterfeit money, and arms.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578  

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

21st Regiment

Organized January 12, 1865, by consolidation of the 43rd, 47th, 48th, 49th, 73rd, 84th, 150th, 158th, 176th and 230th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 7 to November 20, 1865.

Has performed duty at Trenton, Philadelphia, Pittsburg, Baltimore, Washington, Albany, and Indianapolis, in detachments of one or more companies, guarding camps of rendezvous, public property, rebel prisoners, and escorting soldiers of various classes to the front. It has had in charge 2,511 stragglers and deserters, 3,684 drafted men and substitutes, 32,122 recruits, and 6,000 rebel prisoners, being a total of 44,317 men, with 341 escapes. At camps guarded by this regiment volunteers to the number of 461 officers and 12,880 men have been mustered out of service.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578  

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

20th Regiment

Organized at Baltimore, Md., January 12, 1864, by consolidation of the 60th, 69th, 82nd, 99th, 104th, 127th, 185th, 188th, 199th and 226th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments June 15 to November 21, 1865.

Commenced the year at Point Lookout, Md., guarding the rebel prisoners there in conjunction with the Eleventh Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps and the Fifth Massachusetts Colored Cavalry. Eighty men as mounted patrols, 40 as artillerymen in a battery, 140 as provost guard, 43 on other detached service as clerks, orderlies, Ac; only 321 present with the regiment. Men on duty every other day; frequently detailed the very morning they were relieved; many detachments to escort exchanged prisoners. The sick list ran as high as fifty-two in consequence of the constant duty and the exposure to winter weather. Average number of prisoners present about 16,000; no escapee reported from guards famished by the regiment. Since the close of the war the Twentieth has been divided among various posts, performing everywhere as much duty as is ever demanded of able-bodied men.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578

Wow. It was an amazing few days in Hollywood at the IDA conference. I learned so much and met so many amazing people there. AND in addition to getting to talk about disability and media, I also got to screen 5 minutes of the Invalid Corps. 

You can find a transcript of the panel discussion “The Ramp Less Traveled” on the D-Word (https://www.d-word.com/topics/269-Getting-Real-2018?post=364395). You have to be a member, but membership is free. If you have any interest in documentary filmmaking, I highly recommend it. 

The best thing was seeing our Invalid Corps film up on the big screen in an AMPAS theatre (Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences). Yeah, the same guys who do the Oscars.

The panel included:

• Lawrence Carter-Long (moderator), Director of Communications, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund
• Jason DaSilva, filmmaker
• Cheryl Green, Media Access Specialist
• Jim LeBrecht, Co-Director, Co-Producer, Crip Camp
• Day Al-Mohamed, Filmmaker and Disability Policy Specialist

Claire Aguilar Director of Programming and Policy introduced the panel. The goal was to accommodate and educate about filmmakers with disabilities. IDA expressed the goal to create a foundation or a database to continue to assemble filmmakers with disabilities to help develop a networking community. Also to make people aware of what accommodation means. The convening is probably the first time any of us (dozens of filmmakers with disabilities) were in a room all together.

Not having much else to say, let me fill this post with lots and lots of photographs. 🙂  All images are courtesy of AMPAS unless otherwise stated.

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

19th Regiment

Organized at Washington, D.C., January 12, 1864, by consolidation of the 58th, 72nd, 79th, 85th, 108th, 115th, 194th, 196th, 197th and 198th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 13 to November 16, 1865.

Duty at Elmira, N.Y., and other points in the State, guarding public property and military prisoners, and forwarding men to the front or to camps of distribution. No statistical report.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

18th Regiment

Organized at Washington, D.C., May 5, 1864, by consolidation of the 203rd, 204th, 205th, 206th, 207th, 208th, 216th, 220th, 227th and 237th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 3 to November 21, 1865.

On duty as part of the garrison of Washington. In conjunction with other troops of the garrison, it has guarded 664 military and state prisoners in Carroll Prison, and 1,005 in Old Capitol Prison. Unaided, it has escorted 2,163 stragglers, 1,506 deserters, 4,668 recruits, 23,319 convalescents; total guarded and forwarded, 33,775; total escapes reported, 4.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578  

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

17th Regiment

Organized January 12, 1864, by consolidation of the 26th, 76th, 102nd, 119th, 123rd, 124th, 131st, 132nd, 133rd and 139th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 3 to November 14, 1865.

On duty during the year at Indianapolis, Ind., patrolling the city, guarding U.S. arsenal, State arsenal, and Government store-houses, and conducting men to the front. Forwarded 1,300 conscripts, 1,335 deserters, 3,400 recruits, 3,062 stragglers, 1,040 convalescents; total, 10,137; escapes, 56. Nineteen of the escaped men were lost by one officer, who was court-martialled by the commandant of the regiment, but permitted to send in his resignation. General duty very severe; men sometimes on guard for sixty hours. During one period of eight days the average detail for guard was one-half the regiment. Officers generally on double duty.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n578  

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

16th Regiment

Organized at Harrisburg, Pa., October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 6th, 18th, 80th, 86th, 89th, 90th, 181st, 182nd, 217th and 221st Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 15 to November 26, 1865.

This regiment, generally under command of Major Gaebel, carried on a campaign of several months in the mountains of Pennsylvania, where deputy provost-marshals and enrolling officers had been killed and wounded by disloyal persons engaged in resisting the draft. Treasonable organizations 500 or 600 strong were broken up. The expeditions were made through a wooded and mountainous country in winter, amid snow and ice, chiefly by night, and many of the men were badly frost-bitten. Hundreds of deserters and recusants were arrested; some were killed in skirmishes; one man of the regiment killed. The Sixteenth also forwarded deserters, recruits, conscripts, &c., to posts and camps of distribution. The number of persons thus arrested and guarded during the year is as follows: Deserters from regiments in the field captured and forwarded; 2,810, of whom 27 escaped; convalescents forwarded, 3,447, with 46 escapes; deserters from the draft captured and forwarded, 3,743, with 26 escapes; volunteers forwarded, 5,700. Total guarded, 15,637; total escapes, 99; number escorted up to July 1, 1865, averaged daily 150; number escorted during the remainder of the year averaged daily 63.

The following facts are interesting as exhibiting the amount of duty occasionally performed by officers of the corps. Col. Charles M. Prevost, of this regiment, has commanded draft rendezvous, Springfield, Ill., since November 19, 1864; has superintended the forwarding of about 25,000 men to the front, and the discharge and final payments of sixty-three regiments and seven batteries, and has still thirty-four regiments to muster out. Lieut. Col. Stephen Moore has been on several important details of special duty while commanding provisional brigade and draft rendezvous at Elmira, N. Y. Second Lieut. George R. Buffum tried in six months, as judge-advocate, 151 cases, covering 5,503 cap pages, and returned 41 cases to department headquarters, principally in consequence of the muster out of all the witnesses, which fact was not verified without a large correspondence.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

15th Regiment

Organized October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 21st, 24th, 25th, 68th, 70th, 75th, 94th, 105th, 107th and 120th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments June 28 to November 25, 1865.

Commenced the official year at Camp Douglas, Chicago, in conjunction with Eighth Regiment Veteran Reserve Corps and Twenty-fourth Ohio Battery. Guarded Government property and patrolled Chicago; guarded and escorted stragglers, conscripts, substitutes, and rebel prisoners. Up to the close of the war the prisoners constantly on hand averaged from 9,000 to 13,000. Only thirteen escaped from camp and none during the transportation. The regiment aided in escorting 1,000 deserters and stragglers and between 2,000 and 3,000 substitutes and conscripts, of whom only six escaped while under charge of officers of the Fifteenth. Strength of garrison varied between 500 and 700. Men on guard every third day or every other day. The regiment aided in preventing the outbreak of the Chicago conspiracy. Officers constantly and closely employed, frequently on two or three lines of duty at once.

Camp Douglas was under the command of Benjamin Sweet. You can read his story and find out a lot more about the Chicago conspiracy here – Benjamin Sweet: Hero or Monster at https://invalidcorpsfilm.nrbrown.com/2017/09/04/invalid-corps-officer-benjamin-sweet-hero-or-monster/

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

14th Regiment

Organized October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 1st, 2nd, 5th, 30th, 41st, 88th, 186th, 200th, 201st and 202nd Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 14 to November 27, 1865.

One company (K) has been stationed during the year on the Government farms. Camp Wadsworth, Va. The remainder of the regiment has done duty at Camp Distribution, at Alexandria, Va., and in Washington, D. C., as garrison. Daily number of recruits, conscripts, convalescents, and deserters at Camp Distribution waiting escort to the front varied from 2,000 to 10,000. Duty very severe, the camp being large, the posts numerous, the winter uncommonly cold, and many of the men suffering from recent wounds. Sentinels frequently relieved from post and sent to hospital by order of the surgeon. In Alexandria and Washington the regiment has guarded or aided in guarding Government corrals, large depots of public stores, Washington Street Prison (500 rebel prisoners). Old Capitol and Carroll Prisons, and the Arsenal while used as a place of confinement for the assassins of President Lincoln.

In addition to their ordinary duties, the officers have performed a vast amount of special duty and detached service, thirteen being detailed at one time. They have made sixty-seven trips in charge of convalescents, recruits, conscripts, and deserters, escorting a total of 14,793, with a total loss of 325. When it is considered that this service covered in all a period of 317 days, and that thousands of the men guarded were professional bounty jumpers or similarly desperate characters, this loss will not appear surprising.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

13th Regiment

Organized October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 7th, 9th, 11th, 27th, 32nd, 55th, 231st, 234th, 235th and 236th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 1 to December 4, 1865.

Guard duty at various posts in New England; forwarded by detachment at headquarters (Gallupe’s Island, Boston, Mass.), recruits, 7,819; conscripts, 2,106; convalescents, 926; prisoners, 21; total, 10,882; escapes, 145. Of the 12,024 men at the camp or rendezvous between November 1, 1864, and June 1, 1865, only three escaped; losses in transportation generally owing to circumstances beyond the control of the guards. This service very severe; men constantly on duty for many days and nights consecutively; large bribes offered by bounty jumpers and refused. Twenty-seven volunteer organizations, numbering 7,920 men, mustered out at this post.

At Beach Street Barracks 18,721 men have passed through and been rationed under the supervision of Companies B and C. At Readville, Mass., 3,468 volunteers have been mustered out under supervision of Company B. From Camp Gilmore Companies F and H have forwarded to the field 1,009 recruits, 817 substitutes, 2 conscripts, and 48 deserters, being a total of 1,876, with 31 escapes. In addition a patrol of sixty men per day; ordinary guard duty every other day, frequently for several days in succession. From November 1, 1864, to June 11, 1865, Company D was the only force on duty at the State draft rendezvous, guarding an unknown but very large number of recruits, substitutes, &e. The officers of the regiment have been occupied as closely as the men; they have performed their company duties and special duties at the same time; also a great deal of important detached service.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

It was just announced today. We’ve been invited to speak on a panel at the 3-day International Documentary Association (IDA) Conference! This is ridiculously exciting.

You can see the announcement here: https://deadline.com/2018/06/international-documentary-association-keynote-speakers-getting-real-conference-1202417134/

The conference will also host the first-ever convening of filmmakers with disabilities and a panel discussion with Jennifer Brea (Director, Unrest), Lawrence Carter-Long (Communications Director, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund), Day Al-Mohamed (Supervisory Analyst, U.S. Department of Labor), and James Lebrecht (Sound Designer, Minding The Gap; In Football We Trust).

Even better? They asked to screen 5 minutes of the Invalid Corps!

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

12th Regiment

Organized at Albany, N. Y, October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 4th, 29th, 37th, 39th, 42nd, 51st, 222nd, 223rd, 224th and 225th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 5 to November 25, 1865.

Commenced the year at Alexandria, Va.; guarded Government property and patrolled the streets; protected the railroad from guerrillas. One company guarded the military prison at Alexandria, with a monthly average of 400 bounty jumpers, &c., or a total of 2,900, with but three escapes. The other nine companies have been stationed chiefly in Washington; have guarded the military prison. Government store-houses, &c.; men on duty nearly every other day. The regiment has shared with other regiments of the corps the responsible service of guarding the assassins of President Lincoln.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

11th Regiment

Organized at Elmira, N.Y., October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 177th, 178th, 179th, 180th, 193rd, 213th, 214th, 215th, 218th and 219th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments June 29 to November 23, 1865.

Commenced the official year in charge of rebel prisoners at Point Lookout, Md. Duties severe; men on guard every other day, and sometimes oftener; in shelter tents during part of the winter; weather unusually cold. Every day the regiment guarded hundreds of prisoners who were kept at work on the wharves and fortifications. Three companies guarded the shores of the Potomac and its light-houses, a portion of the men being used as mounted scouts and patrols; this detachment captured 50 blockade-running boats, 50 smugglers, 2 officers, and 1 man of Mosby’s command and a large number of Federal deserters. The garrison of Point Lookout at one time numbered only 650 men to guard 22,000 rebel prisoners. Between 18,000 and 20,000 prisoners were escorted to other posts by detachments of this regiment. Since the breaking up of the prison camp the Eleventh has performed guard and patrol duty at Washington and various other points in the Eastern States.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

10th Regiment

Organized at New York City October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 12th, 13th, 14th, 15th, 19th, 57th, 228th, 229th, 232nd and 233rd Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 1 to November 28, 1865.

Duties in Washington, similar to those of the Ninth Regiment. The list of posts and routes on which this regiment has done guard duty covers nearly seven foolscap pages. One hundred and sixty-five details were furnished to escort soldiers or rebel prisoners; but it is impossible to state the number so forwarded; some squads were 500 or 600 strong.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

9th Regiment

Organized at Washington, D.C., October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 3rd, 53rd, 59th, 64th, 65th, 71st, 209th, 210th, 211th and 212th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 1 to November 16, 1865.

Duty as part of the garrison of Washington. During considerable periods men detailed every other day. In March an average of 350 men on guard out of a total of 889. April, duty still more severe; most of the small posts permanent; not men enough to relieve them. Regiment also shared in the patrol duty of the city, and up to April escorted men to the front. Number of arrests by the patrols of the garrison, 1,670 officers and 10,020 men; forwarded by the regiment, rebel prisoners, 300; state and military prisoners, 270; convalescents, 1,300; no escapes reported.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n576

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

8th Regiment

Organized at Chicago, Ill., October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 20th, 22nd, 23rd, 31st, 63rd, 78th, 81st, 83rd, 92nd and 96th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 1 to November 20, 1865.

From November 1, 1864, to June 15, 1865, guarded rebel prisoners at Camp Douglas, Chicago. Daily number of prisoners varied from 9,000 to 11,800; number escaped, 8. Between 1,000 and 2,000 prisoners forwarded for exchange. Recruits forwarded, 1,954; stragglers and deserters, 308; bounty jumpers, 10; substitutes, 4; convalescents, 5; political prisoners, 10; total, 2,291; escapes, 6. Over 100 bushwhackers from Southern Illinois, who had come to Chicago to aid the projected rising of the prisoners, were captured by this regiment and other troops of the Veteran Reserve Corps.

This would be the regiment and Camp under the command of Benjamin Sweet. You can read his story and find out a lot more about the evens taking place in Chicago here – Benjamin Sweet: Hero or Monster at https://invalidcorpsfilm.nrbrown.com/2017/09/04/invalid-corps-officer-benjamin-sweet-hero-or-monster/

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n574

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

7th Regiment

Organized October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 46th, 56th, 62nd, 66th, 67th, 98th, 147th, 156th, 157th and 165th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments June 30 to November 25, 1865.

Has performed continuous service as a part of the garrison of Washington. At one time guarded twenty-five posts in the city. One-third of the men and officers almost constantly on duty.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n574

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

6th Regiment

Organized at Washington, D.C., October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 61st, 87th, 93rd, 95th, 100th, 112th, 164th, 167th, 169th and 170th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out by detachments July 5 to November 25, 1865.

Nine companies guarded rebel prisoners on Johnson’s Island at the opening of the official year. Forty-five percent, of the men present for duty on guard every day. Daily average of prisoners, 2,761; number escorted to other posts, 1,144; total of these last escaped, 3. Company H patrolled disaffected counties for six months, enforcing the draft. Its operations were by night and involved much marching and exposure. It arrested over 100 deserters. Eight companies were stationed for a time at Cincinnati, guarding public property; 45 percent, of the men present constantly on guard.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies –https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n574

These posts are part of a larger series highlighting the contributions and accomplishments of the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps during the Civil War. This post only captures some of the activities of individual regiments. Clearly, this is an area ripe for additional research.

5th Regiment

Organized at Indianapolis, Ind., October 10, 1863, by consolidation of the 33rd, 35th, 36th, 40th, 44th, 45th, 109th, 149th, 152nd and 154th Companies, 1st Battalion. Mustered out July 2 to November 23, 1865, by detachments.

Duty in the West. Headquarters at Indianapolis, Ind. Has guarded Government property and the rebel prisoners at Camp Morton, the latter averaging 4,000 present. Prisoners frequently planned outbreaks; several shot in the attempt to escape. Service severe; men on guard duty every other day; at one time patrol added to the ordinary guard; a battery of mountain howitzers manned by the regiment; officers and men sleeping on their arms for two weeks. Four companies aided in breaking up the Chicago plot. Frequent details to arrest disloyal men and conduct soldiers to the front. During February, March, and April 2,000 prisoners escorted to City Point for exchange. The regiment complimented for its services in a letter written by the adjutant-general of the State.

Reference:

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n574

One of the toughest and also one of the most gratifying things about this project as been discovering the stories of some amazing men with disabilities who served this country. Often, the disability is not mentioned in one biography but may be mentioned in another. A photo may show a disability but nothing in their obituary mentions it. Disability is just not a part of the information that is preserved; and sometimes it is even purposely hidden. There is nothing quite like the thrill of discovering a piece of information in once place and then connecting it to another and finding that “disability was there.”

I was searching for images of Fort Stevens, Washington DC, and the Brightwood area and came across this image in the Library of Congress. It is listed as: Camp Brightwood. Col. Henry S. Briggs. 10th Regt. Mass. Volunteers and was put out by Sarony, Major & Knapp, 449 Broadway N.Y.

It is a lovely lithograph with a lot of things going on in it. And while I loved it, it isn’t quite right for the film. HOWEVER, in the lower left below the image it says, “John Donovan, Deaf Mute, DEL Oct 17th 1861”. Much to my frustration though, the Library of Congress didn’t have any additional information.

Here is where the digging came in. From “Rebellion Record: a Diary of American Events: Poetry and Incidents” (New York: Putnam, 1861/1862,” Volume 4):

“Tenth regiment Massachusetts volunteers, stationed at Camp Brightwood, Virginia, is a deaf mute, named John Donovan, who is regularly enlisted as a soldier and detailed as the regimental tailor … An accurate draft of Camp Brightwood, made by him, is in the hands of lithographers, and will shortly be issued. John was always spoken of in the highest terms of praise by the officers of his regiment, and, notwithstanding his infirmity, was fully equal, bodily and mentally, to the rank and file of the grand army of the Union…”

And do you what is REALLY cool? He actually drew himself into the picture. In the lower right, you can see him seated next to the wagon sketching the soldiers drilling – THIS VERY SCENE.

So no, Private John Donovan was never in the Invalid Corps, however, he was a member of Company A of the 10th Regiment of the Massachussetts Volunteers and worked, for a time, quite successfully as an enlisted soldier in the Union Army.  I say “for a time” because when I looked up the regimental history, “Ours”. Annals of 10th regiment, Massachusetts Volunteers in the Rebellion, I found this:

“John Donovan, of Lee, (a deaf mute,) was enlisted July 24, 1861, and followed the Regiment to Brightwood, where he, being a tailor by trade, repaired clothing for officers and men; was enlisted unlawfully, and appears to have been dropped from the rolls; had a fine taste for drawing, and made a good view of the camp at Brightwood, which was lithographed, and had an extensive sale. He came home to Massachusetts, where he died about 1864.”

James LeBrecht wrote an amazing article for Documentary Magazine that just came out yesterday. It’s called: A Place at the Table: Doc Filmmakers with Disabilities on Building Careers and Disproving Stereotypes  (https://www.documentary.org/feature/place-table-doc-filmmakers-disabilities-building-careers-and-disproving-stereotypes).

It is a fantastic article and really talks about some of the barriers that filmmakers with disabilities face. He interviews several filmmakers and asks some very thoughtful questions. More than just an introduction to the idea of disabled filmmakers the article is also a call to action.

Over the years, we’ve seen the emergence of filmmakers from underrepresented communities, which has brought nuance and authenticity to documentary films. However, one community is still far behind. I’m talking about my community: the disabled community.

As well as Jim himself, we get to meet Jen Brea; Victor Pineda; Emmy winner, Jason DaSilva; and yours truly.

And yes, I’m going to excerpt something I said. 🙂 Mostly because this is a point that I think is so so important and while I haven’t talked about it much here, it is very important to me.

Day Al-Mohamed, who is blind, is making a documentary about the Civil War “Invalid Corp,” a little-known Union Army unit comprised of disabled men. “The biggest roadblock to building a career, especially now, I think, is the invisibility of disability,” she observes. “There is a lot of discussion about diversity in the industry; about women in film and women directors; about #OscarsSoWhite and the need for more LGBT representation. As a woman of color who is LGBT, I couldn’t agree more. However, disability has not been a part of this discussion—not anywhere. If we are willing to acknowledge that biases exist when it comes to hiring individuals working with those identities, it is not difficult to imagine how the societal prejudices around disability would impact the opportunities available for filmmakers with disabilities. People with disabilities are not seen as legitimate professionals within the industry.”

It is one of the reasons I am so proud that more than 90% of the people working on the Invalid Corps film have disabilities. We should have, as Jim puts it, a place at the table.

Introduction

One of the smaller things I wanted to do with this project was to increase the visibility of at least some of the activities of the Invalid Corps (Veteran Reserve Corps). One of the most common questions or comments from people is that they mention an ancestor in one regiment or another and ask about what may have been their duties. That, coupled with a desire to understand more fully the contributions of the Invalid Corps to the Civil War (beyond the Battle of Fort Stevens) resulted in this series.

Thankfully, The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies, includes a “final report” to Brigadier General James Fry, Provost Marshal General from J.W. De Forest, Captain, Veteran Reserve Corps and Acting Assistant Adjutant-General on November 30, 1865. In it, he breaks down some of the services performed by the various Invalid Corps (Veteran Reserve Corps) regiments. Specifically, the 1st Battalion. By this point in time, the 1st Battalion soldiers were under the authority of the Provost Marshal’s Office and the 2nd Battalion soldiers (those with more significant injuries and illnesses) were under the authority of the Surgeon General of the Army. While it doesn’t encompass everything, I thought the records provided some great details. I’ll be following up with individual posts about each of the 24 regiments. 

Captain De Forest begins with a general discussion about the Invalid Corps/Veteran Reserve Corps:

The services performed by the Veteran Reserve Corps have been so varied in nature that it is impossible to state them in a compendious exhibit. Where one regiment has escorted thousands of prisoners, convalescents, recruits, and conscripts, whose numbers can be given with accuracy, another has simply guarded important posts and vast stores of public property, thus performing duty which cannot be expressed statistically.

After examining the voluminous reports of the regiments for the year, I find it impossible to present their information intelligibly otherwise than by detached summaries. These epitomes will be brief; they will indeed be little more than the barest memoranda, necessarily unjust to certain organizations, but this error cannot be avoided without a fullness of detail which would render the report too voluminous. It should be observed that the services of the Second Battalion are not stated here for the reason that its records are not under the control of the Bureau.

He also highlights several of the corps’ general activities:

No statistics of the ordinary duty performed by the corps during this official year have been collected, except the fact that 21,345 recruits, deserters, &c., were guarded by the Tenth Regiment, with a loss of only thirty-five. At this distance of time it would be difficult to obtain data for an accurate or even approximative report on the subject.

It is known, however, that the services rendered by the Veteran Reserves were very arduous, and it is believed that more duty would not have been demanded of a similar number of able-bodied soldiers.

They furnished guards for the rebel prison camps at Rock Island and Chicago, Ill. ; Indianapolis, Ind. ; Johnson’s Island, Ohio; Elmira, N.Y.; Point Lookout, Md.; for the recruiting depots and camps of distribution at Portland, Concord, Boston, New Haven, New York City, Trenton, Pittsburg, Fort Snelling, and Alexandria; they supplied provost-marshals of districts with details to enforce the draft; they conducted the conscripts to rendezvous; they escorted large numbers of substitutes, recruits, and rebel prisoners to and from the front; guarded the railroad between Baltimore and Washington, and performed the patrol and guard duty of the capital; manned a portion of the defenses of Washington during the raid of Early, and for four months before and after guarded many general hospitals, and supplied them with ward-masters, nurses, and clerks; furnished clerks, also, to various military departments and superintendents of recruiting.

The War of the Rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate Armies – https://archive.org/details/warrebellionaco17offigoog/page/n574

The news has been one of our best sources for information and images for this film. When it comes to news, some of the most important articles and illustrations during the Civil War came from weekly magazines, many of whom had reporters and artists at the front. Throughout the war, Harper’s Weekly was the most widely read journal in the United States, with Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper (Leslie’s Weekly) right behind it, both boasting tens of thousands of readers. They focused on newsworthy events with illustrations and stories printed within days of its occurrence, unlike previous conflicts where news might take weeks before the public was aware.

I thought I might share a few of the most striking images:

From the opening days of the Civil War at the attack on Fort Sumter

Emancipation

General Robert E. Lee’s surrender on Palm Sunday

And of course, in celebration of the season, I have to include one of my favorite Thomas Nast holiday illustrations from the Civil War

We’re currently in the midst of negotiating the licensing for several images and assembling what we have. One of the photographers is in the UK and so it has been talking to him, then his UK agent, then his American agent, then the staffer who can coordinate the sale; and then there is a slightly better version of the same image done by a Baltimore journalist and do we want that one instead….it goes on and on.

But, rather than fill your page with text, it seemed beetter to show you an example of what we’re doing with the images. Below is a 30-second test run. It isn’t the final music and we’re still smoothing out the effects, not to mention it is still me narrating (which will not be the case in the final cut) but I thought it’d give you a taste of what our film will look like.

As you know, we’ve been learning so much about amazing Civil War soldiers with disabilities and the various roles they took on during the war –  doing patrols, guarding supply depots, escorting prisoners and chasing down deserters, among other things. However, much as we all like our heroes, not everyone can be heroic. One of the stories we came across was that of Colonel Benjamin Sweet who commanded Camp Douglas in Chicago, a Civil War prisoner of war camp. Although not a good fit for our documentary which focuses more on the Invalid Corps and the Battle of Fort Stevens, his, is a fascinating tale.

The Man

Benjamin Jeffrey Sweet was born in New York in 1832. He enrolled in Appleton College in Wisconsin at 17. A year later he returned home to teach school at neighboring Brothertown and study law. He married Lovisa L. Denslow and practiced law. In 1859, a Republican and abolitionist, Sweet was elected to the Wisconsin State Senate.

When war broke out, he promptly enlisted and joined the Twenty-first Wisconsin Regiment. His first and last battle was in Perryville, Kentucky on October 8, 1862. “A minnie ball from a sharp-shooter’s rifle came crashing into his right elbow, crushing the bones, tearing up the arm, and lodging in his chest.”* He survived, but his right arm was permanently paralyzed. Refusing to leave the army, Sweet joined the 8^th Regiment of the Invalid Corps.

In May of 1864, Sweet took command of Camp Douglas, in Chicago. Camp Douglas has been described as the “Andersonville” of the North. It was the largest Union prisoner-of-war camp. There were already 5,000 Confederate prisoners in the camp when Sweet took command, and 7,500 more would be sent to it over the next few months. Two regiments, the Eight and the Fifteenth of the Invalid Corps, a total of about 1,000 men, were all the troops Sweet had to guard his prisoners.

The Monster of Camp Douglas

In some histories and documentaries, Benjamin Sweet is portrayed as a vengeful monster, inflicting terrible cruelties upon the prisoners in his care. His tenure was marked by a variety of punishments bordering on torture, harsh treatment, and corruption. One of the more common punishments was to have the prisoner “ride the wooden horse.” This was a sawhorse-type structure with a thin, almost sharp cross-piece that the prisoner (and in one case a guard) were forced to straddle.

There were some of our poor boys, for little infraction of the prison rules, riding what they called Morgan’s mule every day…He was about fifteen feet high; the legs were nailed to the scantling so one of the sharp edges was turned up, which made it very painful and uncomfortable to the poor fellow especially when he had to be ridden bareback, sometimes with heavy weights fastened to his feet and sometimes with a large beef bone in each hand. This performance was carried on under the eyes of a guard with a loaded gun, and was kept up for several days; each ride lasting two hours each day unless the fellow fainted and fell off from pain and exhaustion. Very few were able to walk after this hellish Yankee torture but had to be supported to their barracks.

— Milton Asbury Ryan, Company G, 8th Mississippi Regiment

When Secretary of War Edwin Stanton decreed a ration reduction to be enforced throughout the entire prison system, Sweet also enforced the rationing with a heavy hand, even when it was clear the food was insufficient to meet the needs of the prisoners.

The Hero of Chicago

Other reports describe Sweet as a “reliable officer.” He made improvements to the camp:  the grounds were thoroughly drained and policed, streets were graded, the barracks in the prisoner area were re-arranged into streets with alleys between the ends, and the barracks were white washed inside and out and raised off the ground on blocks. He even petitioned for additional barracks with enclosed kitchens, but was told no.

In the summer and fall of 1864, wild rumors of Confederate sympathizers proliferated throughout Chicago. It had begun with the Democratic Convention in August, and as the city geared up for the November elections (it was a much closer race than history books usually tell us), it seemed there was an even greater undercurrent of fear.

The city is filling up with suspicious characters, some of whom we know to be escaped prisoners, and others who were here from Canada during the Chicago convention, plotting to release the prisoners of war at Camp Douglas.

– Benjamin Sweet to General John Cook, commander of the Military District of Illinois

Colonel Sweet had already invested in spies and detectives to inform both on prisoners at Camp Douglas and Southern sympathizers in Chicago. On the night of November 6th, he decided to strike first. His Invalid Corps troops marched into the city and raided the homes of several individuals, arresting Confederate officers, known Copperheads, and others suspected of supporting the insurrection. The seven ringleaders were brought to trial in Ohio a year later. All were found guilty.

After Sweet mustered out of service, he bought a small farm and opened a law office. In 1869 he was appointed a United States Pension Agent. A year later he joined the Internal Revenue service and in 1872 he became First Deputy Commissioner of Internal Revenue. He died 2 years later at age 41.

So, was Benjamin Sweet a hero or a monster? The truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Like the rest of the military, the Invalid Corps was made up of men, some good and some not-so-good, and in the end, all were simply human.

Resources:

Stephen E. Towne, Quelling Camp Douglas Conspiracies – https://scholarworks.iupui.edu/handle/1805/7991

Dennis Kelly, A History of Camp Douglas, Illinois, Union Prison, 1861-1865 – https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/ande/douglas.pdf

David L. Keller, The Story of Camp Douglas: Chicago’s Forgotten Civil War Prison

*Biographical Sketch of the late General B.J. Sweet – History of Camp Douglas: A Paper Read before the Chicago Historical Society (June 18, 1878) by William Bross, A.M., Lieutenant Governor of Illinois 1865-9 – http://www.idaillinois.org/cdm/ref/collection/isl7/id/2436.

Ada Celeste Sweet: Strength In Extraordinary Circumstances – http://evansfamilytreeclimb.blogspot.com/

Images from Camp Douglas Restoration Foundation – http://www.campdouglas.org

And various General Orders.

A very quick, short, yet important, Update:

We did it!

Thank you everyone for your help, support, donations, and social media savvy to spread the word about the Invalid Corps documentary.

It seems fitting that on the eve of ‪#‎VeteransDay‬, that we get the news that we are fully funded and will now be able to make our short film about Civil War disabled veterans who never got the chance to have their story told and their sacrifice fully recognized.

The Kickstarter still has 7 days and we have some amazing stretch goals to make the project even better. As such, our team will be working hard right up to the very end to give you the best possible film.

But for now, let’s take a moment to celebrate. You made this happen. Thank you.

A quick picture collage from Julia and my research trip to the African American Civil War Museum to learn more about Washington DC during the summer of 1864 and about Fort Stevens in particular. We followed it up with a quick trip to the Washingtoniana room in the Martin Luther King Library looking for even more details.

The original name for the “Corps of Honor” that would be created by General Order No. 105 and populated by men injured or taken ill in the line of duty, was the “Invalid Corps”. However, from what I’ve been reading, the name was not looked upon favorably. From Captain J.W. DeForest’s final report on the corps before its dissolution in 1865 he wrote: “The bitter prejudice of field troops a garrison organization had found scope in a multitude of and jeers which made the title of Invalid Corps a burden frequently begged to be sent back to their old regiments in the rather than remain in garrison at the price of being called invalids.”

Invalid Corps or I.C. also meant “Inspected Condemned” a term used by meat inspectors who would “label, mark, stamp, or tag as “Inspected and condemned” all carcasses and parts thereof of animals found to be.” And that specific language can still be found in some USDA regulations today. Really. I checked. 🙂

I imagine that men who were continuing to serve their country by protecting railroads and supplies, guarding prisoners, and serving garrison duty (in addition to nursing in hospitals and operating helping to keep the peace under the Provost Marshal) would not take kindly to being referred to as invalids. Less than a year later, General Order No. 111, dated March 18, 1864 change the name to the “Veteran Reserve Corps.”

By the time of the summer of 1864, all of the soldiers would have been in what was termed the “Veteran Reserve Corps.” However, I find that the use of the original term is more in keeping with how they were viewed and in some way, how many viewed themselves. They were the Invalid Corps, the Infidel Corps, the Cripple Brigade and many other similar terms. As such, our documentary, and the term I plan to use throughout this process and the film will be: Invalid Corps.