Padon Turner was 71 years old in 1910 when he made his statement on behalf of Anderson Shields’ widow, Kate. In doing so, Padon [apparently pronounced like “Peyton”] provided information about his own background. He had been born in Hinds more »
Andrew Shields, later known as Anderson Shields, served in the 49th U.S. Colored Infantry – a regiment that began its service as the 11th Louisiana Infantry, African Descent. Just prior to the war, he had married Kate Street, a woman more »
Defining Moments: African American Commemoration and Political Culture in the South, 1863-1913 explores the efforts and insistence of African Americans to place emancipation and the end of slavery at the center of Civil War commemorative activities over the course of more »
A summary of the session on “invisible history” at the National Council on Public History’s annual meeting is now available online, with links to supplementary information from the other presenters. Glenn W. Gentry spoke about ghost tours; Christine Kreyling explored more »
Benjamin Marshall Mills joined the 49th U.S. Colored Infantry as a lieutenant in the spring of 1864. He routinely wrote his father, abolitionist and Indiana educator Caleb Mills. On June 7, 1864, Lt. Mills commented on the significance of the more »