My nephew Daniel, a Staff Sergeant in the Army reserves, was in the Washington DC area for a few weeks while taking a course at Fort Meade. Daniel has already been to Iraq twice and to Afghanistan once and is about to leave for another tour in Afghanistan. Everyone in my sister's family in the Chicago area is in the funeral business and Daniel is also licensed as a funeral director. Through his research into the family history, he determined that his great grandfather, also named Daniel, served in the Civil War with the 20th Maine regiment, the unit made famous in the book Killer Angels for its role at Little Round Top at the Battle of Gettysburg. Daniel's namesake had joined the unit in 1865 and participated in the last battles of the war and was present at Appomattox Court House for the formal surrender ceremony of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia on April 12th, 1865. He survived the war and typhoid fever, but was later buried in a pauper’s grave in the Chicago area. Daniel was determined to give him a proper resting place and went through all the necessary paperwork to have him buried in a military cemetery next to Daniel's brother John, who had also been a Captain in the Army reserves. His quest during his visit was to see where his great grandfather had been, to walk the same battlefield, and to make the connection across the years from one soldier to another. I went with him to share the experience.
The drive to Appomattox the day after Thanksgiving was a pleasant one. The weather was beautiful - sunny and mild. Most people do not know that Appomattox Court House is the name of the town and that the courthouse (one word) is only a building in that town. They also do not realize that Lee did not surrender his army in the courthouse, but in the home of Wilmer McLean on April 9th. The McLean family had seen the Battle of Manassas (known as the Battle of Bull Run in the north) from their home and decided to move to a quiet area to avoid the war. Ironically, the war came to them.
The docent who led us on the tour was a Vietnam veteran who was knowledgeable and passionate about the sacrifices made on both sides. As we walked along the Lynchburg stage road we could feel what it was like. Lee's army, worn, but proud marched down the road led by Lieutenant General John B. Gordon. (Both Lee and Grant had already left.) The union forces for the surrender ceremony were under Brigadier General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain of Gettysburg fame. As the Confederates marched down the road to surrender their arms and colors, Chamberlain ordered his men to come to attention and "carry arms," the soldiers salute. Gordon, at the head of the column, raised his eyes at the sound and instantly understood the significance of this act or respect. Wheeling his horse gracefully, Gordon dropped the point of his sword to his boot tip, and gave a command, at which the Confederate flag following him was dipped and his units, as they reached the Union ranks, responded to the "carry." As Chamberlain recalled later, "All the while on our part not a sound of trumpet or drum, not a cheer, nor a word nor motion of man, but awful stillness as if it were the passing of the dead."
Daniel and I let it all sink in. It is hard to explain to some people why it is important to experience some things first hand, to make history come alive by walking the very ground where extraordinary events took place. For some of us there is a need to feel connected to the past, for it is part of who we are. I am grateful that Daniel wanted to include me in this very personal journey.
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