An Old Friend Has Passed On...

unionblue

Brev. Brig. Gen'l
Member of the Year
Joined
Feb 20, 2005
Location
Ocala, FL (as of December, 2015).
To all,

A dear friend of mine, Ron Goodwin, whose logon ID was oldreb, has passed on, leaving me, and many others, much poorer for his absence.

Ron came from Mississippi to Ohio many years ago, bringing his family with him. As there were no Rebel reenacting units (at that time) Ron fell in with us of the 49th and 76th OVI, wearing the blue, but always complaining that by doing such, "it itched him mightly."

Then Ron had the idea of forming the 17th Mississippi Infantry Regiment by recruiting us Union boys to go gray at other reenactments "just for fun." We immediately voted Ron to be our Captain (at which he was utterly appalled) as he had no military experience whatsoever as an officer. But he soon fixed that shortcoming by appointing me the company first sergeant.

We had a grand time. We fell in with the Army of Northern Virginia at the 135th Gettysburg reenactment, Balls Bluff, the 135th Battle of the Horseshoe, and many others. When I was in the ranks as a Reb, Ron would tease me and call Abraham Lincoln names, but I had my revenge. Poor Ron forgot his wallet one time at home when he traveled with me to an out-of-state reenactment and was forced to ask me for a loan so he could eat that weekend. Part of the deal was he HAD to agree with everything nice I said about Lincoln for that whole time. Drove him absolutely crazy, but as a true Southern gentleman, he kept his word and endured.

Then came the time I was broke and Ron lent me eatting money for a weekend. But he could not take satisfaction from making me swear to bad mouth Lincoln, as I would eat my food cheerfully and agree with every bad thing he said about my beloved President.

I will miss him. It was he that informed me of this forum and invited me to participate here, oh so long ago. oldreb had many a running battle here about slavery, the cause, and his beloved Confederacy.

May he rest in peace.

I am going to attach a picture of the 17th Mississippi, the unit Ron formed so that all of us Ohio boys could wear the gray.

17th Mississippi.jpg

I am standing on the right of the picture and Ron is seated in a chair next to me.

Those were the days.

Goodbye, Ron, glad to have known you and I look forward to seeing again.

Sincerely,
1stSGT Taylor J. Hamilton
17th Mississippi
 

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Unionblue, thank you for sharing your memories with us. I have not had the honour to know oldreb, but he must have been a very nice man and a good friend to his friends.
May he rest in peace and may you find comfort in the thought that the two of you had such great times in each other's company. He will be remembered.

FarwayFriend,

Ron was such a gentle soul, a man who was everyone's friend and a mighty defender of his friends. His love of the South, Mississippi, and his heritage was the 'real' thing and he loved debating the Civil War and learning from others.

I remember once we were driving back from a reenactment, arguing secession and its causes while Ron was driving and I was in the passenger seat. We got so involved we drove out of Ohio and into PA, missing our turnoff to get back to Columbus!

He was so passionate and so full of love for his 'lost cause' that at no time could I be angry or upset with him for those feelings and convictions he carried. And he finally came to accept that I was just as much a 'lost cause' with Lincoln and my views on that long ago war. But we formed a friendship and an understanding of one another that went far and beyond any disagreement about history.

He was my friend, a title and a trust that I give to very few people. You would have liked him very much.

Sincerely,
Unionblue
 
UB, I am so sorry for the loss of your friend. May the void he leaves be filled with the wonderful memories of times spent together.

chellers,

Thank you for your kind words.

Yes, in the end, its all we have, isn't it? Our memories.

Thank God Ron gave me some of the best in my life.

Sincerely,
Unionblue
 
FarwayFriend,

Ron was such a gentle soul, a man who was everyone's friend and a mighty defender of his friends. His love of the South, Mississippi, and his heritage was the 'real' thing and he loved debating the Civil War and learning from others.

I remember once we were driving back from a reenactment, arguing secession and its causes while Ron was driving and I was in the passenger seat. We got so involved we drove out of Ohio and into PA, missing our turnoff to get back to Columbus!

He was so passionate and so full of love for his 'lost cause' that at no time could I be angry or upset with him for those feelings and convictions he carried. And he finally came to accept that I was just as much a 'lost cause' with Lincoln and my views on that long ago war. But we formed a friendship and an understanding of one another that went far and beyond any disagreement about history.

He was my friend, a title and a trust that I give to very few people. You would have liked him very much.

Sincerely,
Unionblue

I'm sure I would. And I can imagine how the two of you got along so very well, I think you were two of a kind.
 
Oh my, UB, you notice how you've gotten to a few of us- thank you for sharing the memories. I'm kind of glad you shared some here in PA , although sorry you missed that turnoff for one!

Maybe bump some threads, we can meet him also, unless that's too tough a prospect. This kind of enduring, endearing friendship- maybe polar opposites on the Rebellion but it does sound as if Faraway Friend is exactly correct, proverbially peas in a long-lived pod. Much condolences, UB. I'm sure he'll still be marching with you in the future, whispering outrageous Lincoln things in your ear. That's what friends do. :smile:
 
Condolences to you and his family UnionBlue. Sounds like he was a good guy.

That is a great pic you posted as well.

Take care.
 
FarwayFriend,

Ron was such a gentle soul, a man who was everyone's friend and a mighty defender of his friends. His love of the South, Mississippi, and his heritage was the 'real' thing and he loved debating the Civil War and learning from others.

I remember once we were driving back from a reenactment, arguing secession and its causes while Ron was driving and I was in the passenger seat. We got so involved we drove out of Ohio and into PA, missing our turnoff to get back to Columbus!

He was so passionate and so full of love for his 'lost cause' that at no time could I be angry or upset with him for those feelings and convictions he carried. And he finally came to accept that I was just as much a 'lost cause' with Lincoln and my views on that long ago war. But we formed a friendship and an understanding of one another that went far and beyond any disagreement about history.

He was my friend, a title and a trust that I give to very few people. You would have liked him very much.

Sincerely,
Unionblue
FarwayFriend,

Ron was such a gentle soul, a man who was everyone's friend and a mighty defender of his friends. His love of the South, Mississippi, and his heritage was the 'real' thing and he loved debating the Civil War and learning from others.

I remember once we were driving back from a reenactment, arguing secession and its causes while Ron was driving and I was in the passenger seat. We got so involved we drove out of Ohio and into PA, missing our turnoff to get back to Columbus!

He was so passionate and so full of love for his 'lost cause' that at no time could I be angry or upset with him for those feelings and convictions he carried. And he finally came to accept that I was just as much a 'lost cause' with Lincoln and my views on that long ago war. But we formed a friendship and an understanding of one another that went far and beyond any disagreement about history.

He was my friend, a title and a trust that I give to very few people. You would have liked him very much.

Sincerely,
Unionblue

Funny stories, Unionblue, and I'm sorry about you're friend.
 
I am so sorry for your loss, Union Blue. Losing an old friend is a little like losing a piece of your life. Having photos and memories helps to heal. My deepest sympathy goes to you and to his family.
Requiem aeternam dona ei , Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescant in pace.
 
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