Williamsburg Civil War Roundtable

The purpose of this organization shall be to promote discussion and study of the Civil War and to further stimulate interest in all aspects and phases of the Civil War period.

Current Newsletter and Archives

Williamsburg Civil War

Roundtable

 

  Meeting Place:

WILLIAMSBURG

Williamsburg Regional Library Theatre

Volume LIV Number 7              March  26, 2024

MONTHLY MEETING NOTICE
March 26, 2024 at 6:30 PM

Dr. Jonathan S. Jones
“Opium Slavery: Drug Dependency Among Civil War Veterans ”

Join us on Tuesday, March 26th, for the meeting of the Williamsburg Civil War Roundtable, commencing at 6:30 PM in the Williamsburg Regional Library Theatre. The library is located at 515 Scotland Street in Williamsburg.
 
The program will also be presented online via a Zoom link for our members and friends near and far. The details for the Zoom link will be provided by a follow-up announcement several days prior to meeting date

On Tuesday, March 26, 2024, Jonathan Jones will present “Opium Slavery: Drug Dependency Among Civil War Veterans”.
 
In the wake of the Civil War, many veterans struggled with lingering pain and disabling illnesses. To cope, former soldiers often turned to opioids. Tens of thousands became addicted to the drugs. Jonathan Jones, Assistant Professor of History at James Madison University, will discuss how the opioid addiction crisis sparked by the Civil War affected veterans’ lives and what this crisis can teach us about the Civil War’s traumatic aftershocks in the postwar decades.

Jonathan S. Jones is an assistant professor of history at James Madison University. His first book, Opium Slavery: The Civil War, Veterans, and America’s First Opioid Crisis, is forthcoming from UNC Press. Jones’s research has also appeared in The Journal of the Civil War Era, the Washington Post, Vice, NPR, and other outlets. Jones received his PhD from Binghamton University in 2020. In 2020-21, he was a Postdoctoral Scholar at Penn State’s George and Ann Richards Civil War Era Center and from 2021-23 he was an assistant professor of history at Virginia Military Institute.”

Last Month
On February 27th, Scott Mingus presented “Confederate Calamity: JEB Stuart’s Cavalry Ride Through York County PA”.

Many people erroneously believe that Jeb Stuart was on a glory ride around the Army of the Potomac while the battle of Gettysburg raged, deliberately depriving Robert E. Lee of "the eyes and ears of the army." Author Scott Mingus, making extensive use of post-war civilian border claims and old maps, discusses Stuart's route north, the obstacles that caused him to miss his planned connection with Lee's army near the Susquehanna River, and the wearisome, exhausting ride up and down the hills of York County, PA. on June 30 to July 2, 1863, concurrent with the first two days of the battle of Gettysburg.

Multiple award-winning author Scott Mingus is a retired scientist and executive in the global specialty paper industry. The Ohio native graduated from Miami University. He was part of the research team that developed the first commercially successful self-adhesive U.S. postage stamps, and he was a pioneer in the early development of bar code labels. He has written more than 30 Civil War and Underground Railroad books and numerous articles for Gettysburg Magazine and other historical journals. He has appeared on C-SPAN, C-SPAN3, PBS, PCN, and several other TV networks. Mingus writes a blog on the Civil War history of York County, PA, where he and his wife Debi live. He also has written six scenario books for miniature wargaming. He received lifetime achievement awards from the York County History Center and the Camp Curtin Historical Society for his many contributions to local Civil War history. The Gettysburg Civil War Round Table recently presented Mingus and co-author Eric Wittenberg with the 2023 Bachelder-Coddington Award for the best new book on the Gettysburg Campaign, If We Are Striking for Pennsylvania.

Offcers of WCWRT
President: Bill Miller               Vice-President: Lee Underwood
Secretary                               Treasurer: 

The Executive Committee consists of the elected officers, the immediate past president and other members appointed by the incoming president. Those members include Debbie Bedosti, Tom Lamb, and Terri Teopke.

Upcoming Meetings and Speakers

  • April 23, 2024:  Rob Orrison:  “Twice Baptized: Misconceptions & Unique Stories from the Manassas Battlefields
  • May 28, 2024:  Patrick Schroeder:  “Forgotten Friday: The April 7, 1865 Actions in Cumberland County, VA”

Special Events

  • April 7, 2024 - NAU Center special conference "Second Manassas, Campaign, Battle, and Aftermath" details
  • April 20, 2024 - Petersburg Project "Hidden in Plain Sight" caravan driving tour details
  • April 21, 2024 - Thomas Jefferson Performed by Clay Jenkinson details
  • May 4, 2024 - Army Historical Foundation, and CVBT, Presents the 2024 Spring Battle Ride details
  • June 7-12, 2024 - Gettysburg summer civil war conference details

Other Notes:  

Support our Book Raffle:  This is an important secondary source of revenue to support our programming. It’s a wonderful way to supplement your Civil War library with great books at bargain basement prices.

Help our effort increase our membership:  The best method of recruitment is by word of mouth. Help our effort to grow your Roundtable by inviting your friends and neighbors to accompany you to our meeting.

Visit the Williamsburg Battlefield Association
(http://www.williamsburgbattlefieldassociation.org/) (https://www.facebook.com/WilliamsburgBattlefieldAssociation)
 
WEBSITE: Be sure to frequently visit the site for newsletter info, announcements, future and past speakers, and an up to date calendar of events in the Civil War world.  It’s available anytime you need the info. http://www.wcwrt.org.

The purpose of this organization shall be to promote discussion and study of the Civil War and to further stimulate interest in all aspects and phases of the Civil War period.

To access the newsletter archives, 2009 / 2010 / 2011 / 2012 / 2013 / 2014 / 2015 / 2016 / 2017 / 2018 / 2019 / 2020 / 2021 /2022 / 2023 / 2024