What would they say?

[Keiri]

What do you think a ghost of the ACW (say regular soldier), would say in regards to the war?

What would they want? What advice would they have?

I have been thinking about this a lot lately. I think aside from probably trying to get themselves properly buried, I'm not sure of any of it.

 

[byron ed]

For one thing, they wouldn't understand what's up with Lost Cause.

 

[Keiri]

Certainly the union fellas wouldn't

 

[Patrick H]

A ghost of which side? I think a typical southern ghost might say something like: "You guys sure have a bunch of funny accents. Why ya'll killin' and eatin' my hogs?"

 

[GwilymT]

I think a confederate soldier would be suprised to find out that he was fighting for lower tariffs and a federal soldier would be surprised he was fighting to free slaves.

 

[Keiri]

Depending on which part of the war they died maybe gwilym... and surely depending on their feelings on race

 

[Desert Kid]

You all ever see the Patrick Swayze movie "Ghost"?

I imagine it'd be something like that. Many that were killed so fast or simply refused to move on and are still here, mulling around, probably somewhat aware of how important the fields where they died are today. Probably perplexed by us and our dress today. And likely have been around so long now they couldn't give two hoots about who or what they fought over since it's long gone and dead now.

 

[Crazy Delawares]

Well, I think one thing is for sure. I'd be curious to know how they'd react to reenacting CW battles. Other than that, I'm pretty sure the Union ghost(s) would want to know why the Sons of Confederate Veterans have around 50-60,000 members while the Sons of Union Veterans have only 6,000 members.

 

[GwilymT]

Depending on which part of the war they died maybe gwilym... and surely depending on their feelings on race

You may be right, my comment wasn't fair to USCTs or to many Union soldiers. However, the comment on the surprise of confederate soldiers to find out that they'd been fighting against tariffs stands.

 

[Potomac Pride]

I think a ghost of any side would be surprised to learn that he was supposedly fighting a war over the sole issue of slavery.

 

[Keiri]

Well, I think one thing is for sure. I'd be curious to know how they'd react to reenacting CW battles. Other than that, I'm pretty sure the Union ghost(s) would want to know why the Sons of Confederate Veterans have around 50-60,000 members while the Sons of Union Veterans have only 6,000 members.

why is that?

 

[byron ed]

Well, I think one thing is for sure. I'd be curious to know how they'd react to reenacting CW battles. Other than that, I'm pretty sure the Union ghost(s) would want to know why the Sons of Confederate Veterans have around 50-60,000 members while the Sons of Union Veterans have only 6,000 members.

I'm highly skeptical of those figures, especially the 50-60,000 figure which I suspect is grossly inflated, likely supplied by the organization itself and probably including all membership rosters since the organization's founding.

And while we're on the topic of puffery, can you believe that, in 2019, the imperative of the SCV is still "we will commit the vindication of the cause for which we fought." Outrageous really. What exactly do you suppose is meant by "vindication" in 2019? In other words what exactly is supposed to happen in satisfying "vindication." Though the "cause" to be "vindicated" is cagily left undefined, c'mon everybody knows what it is: "Slavery was right" or in SCV-speak:"The preservation of liberty and freedom."

My SCV imperative would instead be: "...we will commit to honor the sacrifice and dedication of the Confederate Soldier," but that's neither here nor there.

 

[Mike Serpa]

"I hope @donna has a recipe for Boo-berry pie!" (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

 

[MRB1863]

"I hope @donna has a recipe for Boo-berry pie!" (Sorry, couldn't resist.)

What type of "spirits" would you serve with the pie?

 

[Mike Serpa]

What type of "spirits" would you serve with the pie?

I'm sorry I started this.

 

[Waterloo50]

In all honesty, if I'd seen a ghost of a dead soldier, I wouldn't have time for questions or answers because I'd be running as fast as I could in the opposite direction.

 

[Crazy Delawares]

why is that?

Not sure, really. I have my opinions but I will keep them to myself. I just wish more folks with northern ancestors who fought with the Union would join the Sons of Union Veterans.

 

[gwh]

Not sure, really. I have my opinions but I will keep them to myself. I just wish more folks with northern ancestors who fought with the Union would join the Sons of Union Veterans.

Agreed. I found out about--and joined--my local SUVCW camp last year.

 

[Keiri]

Not sure, really. I have my opinions but I will keep them to myself. I just wish more folks with northern ancestors who fought with the Union would join the Sons of Union Veterans.

Wish I had any. Every time I get back to that generation in my tree, they turn out to have not served for one reason or another.

 

[gwh]

Wish I had any. Every time I get back to that generation in my tree, they turn out to have not served for one reason or another.

You've probably done this, but have you double-checked to make sure there weren't any (distant) cousins that might've served? I'm mentioning this because I recently unearthed some I wasn't privy to in the course of messing around with family trees on Ancestry.com (likely available at your local library if you don't have a personal subscription).