Small Talk-Trivia

Small Talk — October 2017

By Stephen Davis · Originally published October 2017 · pp. 35–45

1. How many U.S. generals served as general-in-chief of the Union armies during the Civil War? 2. James I. (“Bud”) Robertson is a well-known Civil War historian and author. Can you name his first book? 3. Who was the Confederate cavalry leader who led 500 horsemen out of Fort Donelson, refusing to surrender them in February 1862? 4. One of McClellan’s seven infantry corps commanders at Antietam was shot and mortally wounded in the battle. Name? 5. Arguably the first “microhistory” of a Civil War battle was George Stewart’s book, published in 1959, on what famous charge? 6. Who was Lincoln’s vice president during his first term (1861-65)? 7. Name the only woman to whom the U.S. Medal of Honor was conferred for her Civil War service. 8. Southern sympathizers in the Midwest during the war were called “Copperheads,” but their alleged organization was named “Knights of the ____ _____.” 9. Where was the first Civil War battlefield monument erected? 10. What do Jefferson Davis (1808-1888) and Eric Clapton (1945- ) have in common? (Hint: “If I Saw You in Heaven”) See page 45 for answers. Steve Davis is the Civil War News Book Review Editor. He can be contacted by email at SteveATL1861@ yahoo.com

ANSWERS: 1. Four: Winfield Scott (July 5, 1841-Nov. 1, 1861); George B. McClellan (Nov. 1, 1861-Mar. 11, 1862); Henry W. Halleck (July 23, 1862-Mar. 9, 1864); and Ulysses S. Grant (Mar. 9, 1864-Mar. 4, 1869) [Source: Eicher and Eicher, Civil War High Commands, 37]. 2. The Stonewall Brigade (Louisiana State University Press, 1963). 3. Col. Nathan B. Forrest. 4. Maj. Gen. Joseph King Fenno Mansfield, commander of the XII Corps, died on September 18. Technically a brigadier at the time of his death, on March 12, 1863 Mansfield was promoted to major general to rank from July 18, 1862. 5. Pickett’s Charge: A Microhistory of the Final Attack at Gettysburg, July 3, 1863, by George R. Stewart. 6. Hannibal Hamlin (1809-91), senator from Maine. 7. Dr. Mary Edwards Walker (1832-1919). 8. Golden Circle. 9. Manassas, as pointed out in Salvatore Cilella’s article, “The Graphic War,” in our September issue. [Both First and Second Manassas got monuments at the same time.] 10. They both lost a son due to a tragic fall. Five-year-old Joe Davis fell from the balcony of the Confederate White House, Apr. 30, 1864. Four-year-old Conor Clapton fell from the 53rd floor of a New York apartment, Mar. 20, 1991.