My American Civil War Top 5

Im often questioned as I navigate my way to some type of historical maturation, what are some of my all time favorite civil war books. Ask, and ye shall receive! That’s not the name of a book, so much as a frivolous attempt by me to wax poetic. If your from the Marvel crowd, wrong civil war, wrong blog entirely for that matter. The American Civil War is one of the most documented events in our nations history to be sure. According to The Library of Congress there have been over 70,000 books published on the subject. Narrowing it down to what I think are the best 5 is no small task, but I’m willing to try. Anytime I pick up a new civil war book I’m looking for a couple of things. First and foremost is new information. I love to read about the things I’ve never seen, or heard of before. The next one is a fresh look at old things from new perspectives. Taking these two main factors into account here are my favorite 5.

#5

Raising The Hunley by Brian Hicks and Schuyler Krope. Who can resist a good treasure hunt! Especially when no one is completely positive what your looking for ever existed. After a short fight with a Union battleship the worlds first successful battle submarine disappeared without a trace. This book takes you through the history, discovery, recovery, excavation, and investigation of the disappearance of H.L. Hunley.

#4

Not Wat But Murder by Earnest Furgurson. An incredible writer brings light to a somewhat obscure battle at Cold Harbor. Late in the war Grant became frustrated, and throws his forces head on into Lees entrenched Confederates. The grizzly result was over 10,000 dead Union soldiers. Furgursons unique writing style makes you feel like your in the heat of balttle, and analyzes Grants motives for launching such a foolish assault.

#3

The Real Lincoln by Thomas DiLorenzo. This book is amazing from beginning to end. DiLorenzo looks at Abraham Lincoln as one of the worst presidents in U.S. history, and he brings detailed research to prove it. DiLorenzo portrays the 16th president as a driven politician who will pay any price for a bigger government with him at the head as a dictator. The amount of information on  the 1860 economy, personal letters, and inside information can be overwhelming at times, but well worth a read.

#2

Wolf of the Deep by Stephen Fox. Full disclosure, this pick is self serving. Raphael Semmes is by far my favorite civil war character. Not only did he encompass everything a leader should endeavor to be, he is from my home state, and captained its namesake Css Alabama. Fox gives a perfect balance of historical accuracy, and insight into Semmes himself. I was in the edge of my seat the whole book learning about the most feared confederate raider terrorizing Union ships and sailors around the globe. In my defense it’s common knowledge that at some point every man wants to hoist a black flag and go pirating. Just saying.

#1

The Fremantle Diary by Liet. Col. James Fremantle introduced by Walter Lord. This was not a hard choice for me. If you want a look at Americas Civil War from an unbiased source this is your book. Fremantle toured both the Confederate and Union armies for three months in 1863. He was a British Army officer, witnesses the battle of Gettysburg first hand, and arrived in New York to see the draft riots. He kept a detailed journal of his observations, and paid specific attention to the story of the poor, war torn southern states, and their struggle that was not being correctly portrayed in world papers. Fremantle saw that the Union was waging their war on southern civilians, not the rebel army. Talk about giving a different perspective, this is an absolute must read for any civil war enthusiasts. The introduction from Walter Lord is the perfect touch that makes it great.  I hope you will check out some, or all of these books and get as much enjoyment as I did.

Alabama’s Ice Man

As a small boy Thomas “Pete” Ray watched the airplanes landing, and leaving the runways of the Air National Guard base in Birmingham Alabama. Those early images sparked something deep inside Ray’s restless, warrior-like soul. Before he had even graduated high school Ray signed up for the Air Force by lying about his age. By the time 1950 rolled around Ray was right where he had always wanted to be. Flying the same airplanes he had watched take off as a boy in Birmingham. There’s no way Thomas Ray could have known he was on a collision course with a CIA cover up, a ruthless dictator, and one of America’s strangest military mysteries.

Thomas “Pete” Ray

Once back in Alabama Ray married his High School sweetheart. They had two children named Thomas, and Janet. By 1960 Ray had transitioned to flying helicopters. Ray’s impeccable piloting skills drew the attention of the Central Intelligence Agency. Ray was approached by the CIA, who asked him to train exiled Cuban pilots for a top secret invasion of Cuba. This training would take place at black-site bases in Guatemala, and Nicaragua. Before things were all said and done; Ray would be far more involved than simply just training.

Che Guevara (left) and Fidel Castro by Alberto Korda 1961

After training The Cuban exile army, also known as brigade 2506, Ray agreed to fly a B-26 bomber in support of the ground assault. The plan was to land brigade 2506 on the southwest coast of Cuba supported heavily by United States Military Aircraft. The main focus of the attack would be an area known as Playa Giron, in the Bay of Pigs. Ray’s B-26 was painted to look identical to those belonging to the Cuban air forces, and he was not allowed to wear his United States military uniform. Officially the U.S. was not involved in the attack. In reality the Central Intelligence Agency was running the operation.

Douglas A26C Invader in fake Cuban Air Force colors for the Bay or Pigs Invasion

The invasion of Cuba commenced on April 17th 1961. The CIA battle plans quickly deteriorated, mainly due to Fidel Castro being given advanced warnings of the invasion by the Russian KGB. The American government was suddenly the target of international outrage, and accusations of being behind the attack. President John F. Kennedy quickly disavowed any involvement in the plot by United States Military personnel. Kennedy also canceled most of the planned covert air support, ensuring the invasions ultimate failure, and guaranteeing a blood bath for brigade 2506. Ray, and four other Alabama Air National Guardsman made the decision to fly anyway when the option was given to them by the CIA. An incredibly brave decision given the deadly circumstances Ray was faced with.

Cuban Soldiers attacking with a T-34 tank near Playa Giron 1961

On the second day of fighting Ray’s B-26 was shot down by a Cuban T-33 fighter after a bombing run near Castro’s headquarters. Ray survived the crash landing, and emerged from the plane wreckage defiantly firing his handgun at the enemy fighters according to witnesses. Ray was struck in the chest by Cuban gunfire, but survived the superficial wounds. While Cuban medics were attending to Ray’s injuries a Castro official reportedly walked up, and shot Ray in the head at the order of Castro himself. This cowardly act would cost Cuba in the long run, but first the United States government had some cowardly acts of their own to perform.

An American fighter downed by Cuban anti-aircraft 1961

With the complete failure of the invasion the United States government, along with President Kennedy, continued to disavow any participation in the Bay of Pigs attack. The CIA insisted that if any Americans were involved they were “no more than common mercenaries”. At the same time several CIA agents visited the Ray home in Birmingham, and informed the family that Thomas “Pete” Ray had disappeared during a training flight. Ray’s family was told by the CIA that he was presumed dead somewhere in the Caribbean Sea. The family was provided no further information, and were essentially told not to hold their breath to ever hear anything more specific about his fate. Ray’s daughter Janet was six years old at the time, and had no idea what could have happened to her father. Ray’s wife did know her husband was fighting in Cuba for the CIA. This was a fact Ray had shared with her three weeks earlier while home on leave. It was to no avail. The United States would continue to deny any responsibility in Ray’s disappearance despite pleas from the family for details.

Members of Brigade 2506 after capture in Cuba 1961

Meanwhile in Cuba Fidel Castro was incensed with the U.S. denial of involvement, and ordered Ray’s body to be taken to a mortuary near Havana. Ray’s remains were frozen solid in one of the mortuaries freezers. Castro kept Ray’s body on ice for the next 18 years. The dictator would show Ray’s body off periodically to other visiting communist leaders, and even occasionally have it sat out so Cubans could kick and spit on it. As the years passed on Ray’s daughter Janet would not give up on her father. She needed closure, and like her father she was a warrior. Janet sent over 200 letters to Castro asking for details about her father. Those corespondents went unanswered. Janet then engaged American political figures, and stirred up interest in the media.

Robert Kennedy statement on Cuba April 20th, 1961 National Archives

Janet’s tenacity paid off 18 years later when she received an envelope from a man who was writing a book about the Bay of Pigs invasion. The envelope contained a picture of two dead American pilots. One of them was Thomas “Pete” Ray. Slowly the story of Castro having Ray’s remains frozen came to light, and it was Janet who was now incensed. She demanded action, and in 1979 the Cuban government finally agreed to send Ray’s remains back to Alabama. In that year Janet stood on the runway at the Birmingham airport waiting for her fathers remains to land on the same tarmac he took off from years earlier. Thomas Ray was buried with full military honors December 8th, 1979 in the Forrest Hill Cemetery. Castro had the audacity to bill the Ray family over $30,000 for refrigeration cost, but in the end it would be Castro who paid a much higher price.

Gravestone of Thomas Ray during a 2018 memorial al.com

In 2003 Janet leveled a wrongful death suit against Fidel Castro, and the Cuban government. In November 2004 the Ray family was awarded 87 million dollars for the cowardly execution of her father, and the desecration of his body. The money was frozen by the United States government due to the Cuban embargo. That was until 2006 when a federal judge ordered the government to unfreeze the money. The Cuban Government issued a statement calling the ruling “illegitimate”, and stating the award to the Ray family was “an affront to international law”. Cuba failed to mention what international law they were following when they executed Ray, and froze his body for 18 years. Janet used the money to set up charitable organizations that help the children of Fidel Castro’s many victims. Through his daughters incredible resolve, Thomas Ray, and his legacy are still fighting for Cuban Freedom today.

Bay of Pigs memorial “Little Havana” Miami Fl

One Nation Under Conch

Recently while visiting the Florida Keys we fortuitously stumbled onto a story too good not to tell. We were in the area of Key West on the usual search for something cool to swim around. While driving around I continued to notice the popularity of a blue flag with a conch shell in the middle. They were everywhere! In large font letters blazed across the top were the words “Conch Republic”. While taking in some of the late night culture of Duval Street, the locals were happy to give me an education on the Conch Republic.

Flag of The Conch Republic

Driving south on Highway 1 it becomes fairly obvious there is really only one road in, and one road out of the Florida Keys. On both sides are large concrete barriers that seem out of place, but are disregarded by travelers for the most part. These barriers played a significant part in the frustrations of Florida Key residents in 1982. Civil unrest in Cuba, coupled with a drug epidemic in the United States compelled the U.S. government to set up road blocks on Highway 1. All vehicles traveling the highway were stopped by U.S. Border patrol, then rigorously searched for narcotics, and illegal immigrants. Travel time tripled for vacationers. Each person was forced to consent to a police search of their vehicles. Needless to say this caused big problems for the Keys.

Key West Lighthouse built 1848

The Florida Keys saw a huge drop in tourism. Rather than deal with the hassle of the U.S. Border Patrol families were deciding to go elsewhere for vacations. The immediate effect was economically devastating for the island. Key West City Council members sent complaints to Washington D.C. Those complaints went unanswered. The council then filed for an injunction to remove the road blocks. The injunction was summarily defeated in court, and the roadblocks remained. Frustrated, and out of legal options, Mayor Dennis Wardlow, got creative to say the least.

Fort Taylor, Key West

Wardlow, supported by the city council, unexpectedly declared Key West as an independent nation on April 23rd 1982. Wardlow claimed that since the United States Government had set up the equivalent of a border station as if the keys were a foreign nation, they may as well become one. Key West had seceded from the United States. Pretty bold to secede from a country when you house many of its naval installations, and Coast Guard stations. As the local citizens were referred to as “conchs”, the Conch Republic was born complete with its own National flag. Wardlow wasn’t done proving his point though.

Key West Highway 1

As part of the unorthodox protest Wardlow was declared Prime Minister of the newly formed tongue and cheek republic. Wardlow’s first act as the Prime Minister of The Conch Republic was a bold one for sure. He found the closest U.S. Naval officer, and declared war on the United States. Wardlow commenced to breaking loaves of bread over the officers head. After about a minute of bombarding the naval officer with bread Wardlow surrendered. He then walked back to his office, and applied for one billion dollars in foreign aid to rebuild Key West after his one minute war. Wardlow’s actions must have been convincing. The United States removed the road block, and the border patrol agents from the highway. The incident highlighted the plight of Key West, and tourism boomed. Don’t worry. The Conch Republic would rise again.

Marker at southernmost point of the continental United States, Key West, FL

On September 20th, 1995 a local report broke that the 478th Civil Affairs Battalion of the U.S. Army would conduct a training exercise simulating an invasion of a foreign island. The plan was to land in Key West, and conduct affairs as if the islanders were foreign. Unfortunately no one from the army notified Key West about the plan. Wardlow seeing another opportunity for publicity acted quickly. Wardlow mobilized the island for a full scale invasion, and went on the offensive. Wardlow ordered the schooner “Western Union” out to attack an incoming Coast Guard ship. The Conch Republic’s weapons of choice were water balloons, conch fritters, and loaves of stale Cuban bread. The battle quickly ended when the Coast Guard responded with their own volley from a high pressure fire hose. Complaints were made to the Department of Defense. Ultimately the 478th issued an apology stating that they “in no way meant to challenge, or impugn the sovereignty of The Conch Republic”. They graciously participated in a surrender ceremony on September 22nd.

Reenactment of the Conch Republics impromptu naval battle with a U.S. Coast Guard ship

The Florida Keys are a beautiful destination for fishing, boating, and scuba diving. Local conchs are friendly, welcoming, and always happy to share their piece of paradise. The culture is a unique mixture that collides in an oddly perfect way. The people who call it home are proud of its rich history, beauty, and independent resolve during times of hardship. The drinks, customs, and cuisine reflect the very soul of the keys. No trip would be complete without a sampling of the ruckus party atmosphere of Duval Street. While your there raise a glass, light a cigar, and pay homage to the motto of the Conch Republic. “We Secede Where Others Failed”.

A Savage Sister

Ellen Savage was born on October 17th 1912 the third daughter of Henry and Sarah Savage of New South Wales. Ellen was an otherwise average teenager with one notable exception that would later prove vital. The exception, Savage enjoyed surfing at Newcastle and was notably an excellent swimmer.

Sister Ellen Savage

After attending Catholic school Savage studied the field of medicine and by 1936 had passed her midwifery. Savages life would probably have passed fairly uneventful had World War II not intervened. Savage joined the Australian Army Nursing Service (AANS) in 1941 determined to help those who had sacrificed for her native Australia. She was promoted to Sister, and commissioned as a Lieutenant in 1942.

World War II recruiting poster for AAMWS.

On May 14th 1942 Sister Savage found herself as one of twelve nurses aboard AHS Centaur operating off the coast of Queensland. The Centaur was under full steam and was well illuminated while heading to Port Moresby to pick up wounded soldiers. The captain of the Centaur was unconcerned with Japanese military operations in the area for one simple reason. As a hospital ship the Centaur was off limits according to the terms of the Genova Convention. An attack on his ship would have constituted a war crime. There was no mistaking the Centaur for a warship. Her 315 foot beam was painted white with three distinguished red crosses painted across both sides, and the Japanese Navy had been advised of her medical designation. Regardless of all these facts the Centaur would soon be at the bottom of the ocean.

AHS Centaur 1943

For reasons still unknown the Japanese submarine I-77 came in close to Centaur riding on the surface, and callously fired a single torpedo at the ship. The torpedo struck the port side fuel tank seven feet below the water line at 4:30 am. This turned the ship into an inferno causing her to sink in less than 3 minutes. The initial impact killed most of those onboard. But it didn’t kill Sister Savage.

Japanese I-177

Realizing the ship was doomed sister savage quickly grabbed her rosary and went top side. As the ship was sinking Savage jumped into the water, but she was too late. As Centaur plunged to the bottom of the sea its Vortex sucked Sister Savage down with the ship, entangling her feet in deck ropes. During her attempt to work free of the already plummeting ship Sister Savage suffered a broken jaw, fractured ribs, a broken nose, and her eardrums burst from the water pressure of how deep the Centaur had dragged her down. Despite the odds the strong swimming Savage made it back to the surface.

Depiction of AHS Centaur being torpedoed 1943 (unknown source)

The sinking took place so quickly and violently there was no time to deploy the Centaur’s life boats. Fortunately for the handful of survivors two lifeboats had been ripped away from the doomed ship by the force of the upwelling ocean. Of the 332 people aboard Centaur only 64 had managed to escape the sinking ship. Sister Savage was disheartened to discover she was the only survivor of the nursing staff. Not only that, but only one other medical staff member had survived along with her. Savage concealed the seriousness of her injuries for fear it would hurt the moral of survivors. Savage knew moral would be important as the Centaur had not had time to signal for help. No one even knew the ship had sank. Their ordeal had only just began.

AHS Centaur 1943

Savage immediately became the group’s leader and savior despite the agonizing pain from her injuries. Savage rationed food and water, became the survivors spiritual guide, coordinated flair signals to passing air plains and ships, and rallied everyone with prayer and song when attempts to call for help failed. Savage led services for the ones who died aboard the life rafts due to burns and shrapnel wounds, never indicating she herself was physically broken to pieces. For over 36 hours Sister Savage nursed, encouraged, guided, and directed the survivors. Savage assisted others in fending off opportunistic shark attacks. Eventually through her efforts the remaining wreck survivors were able to to get the attention of an RAF squadron out on submarine patrol. Finally the survivors ordeal was over.

Life raft from AHS Centaur

After the rescue an investigation into the cause of the sinking was launched. During interviews of the survivors it became apparent that the only reason anyone made it from the AHS Centaur sinking was because of the unwavering leadership and tenacity of Sister Ellen Savage. Most of the survivors had no idea that Savage herself was bedridden due to the serious extent of her injuries. One survivor was amazed that against all odds, Savages resolve to care for those injured in body and spirit never wavered. Only when Sister Savage stepped foot onto the rescue ship did she finally break down.

Destroyer USS Mumford rescuing Centaur survivors 1943

Despite the humble nature of Sister Savage she quickly became an international hero. She was awarded the George Medal for her actions after the sinking becoming one of only two women to ever achieve that honor. After the war Sister Savage continued to raise awareness about the far reaching consequences and effect to families who were victims of the Centaur sinking. A depiction of Savage laying hospitalized became the symbol, and a call for justice to hold the Japanese government accountable for their unconscionable sinking of a hospital ship.

Sister Ellen Savage doing an interview while recovering from a hospital bed 1943

After the war Sister Savage continued to demonstrate the strict military discipline, strong spirit, and unconquerable valor that served she, and her comrades, so well after the Centaur sinking. Savage died in April of 1985 at the age of 72. Her incredible sacrifice was memorialized in 1993 when her image was used on an Australian postage stamp. The AHS Centaur sinking remained cloaked in mystery and open wound for Australia after World War II. The location of the wreck itself remained a mystery until the ship was discovered in December of 2009. Early ROV images sent back to the surface showed the still and ominous Red Cross markings still clearly painted on the side of the wreck laying in 7,000 feet of water. The symbol that I-177 must have seen as it lined up its torpedoes. A symbol that in war no ship at sea is safe from attack. The only hope is that there is at least one Sister Savage on board.

Bow of the Wreck of the Centaur 2009. Note the Red Cross still discernible.

Digging Up Bones

We all know the official story. On April 14th, 1865 the actor John Wilkes Booth sneaks up behind Abraham Lincoln and assassinates the 16th President of the United States sparking the country’s single largest manhunt. According to the court historians 12 days later Booth barricaded himself into a tobacco barn on The Garrett Farm where he was shot and killed by Union Soldiers. That’s where this particular conspiracy theory begins.

Known photo of John Wilkes Booth.

On April 27th 1865 the body of the man killed on The Garrett farm was taken to Washington DC and placed aboard the USS Montauk. An autopsy was ordered by Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton. The reason for the autopsy was simple. Several of the soldiers on the scene where Booth was killed remarked the corpse looked nothing like John Wilkes Booth. Booths co-conspirator, David Herold, initially claimed the man was not Booth. Herold only later changed his testimony and claimed the man killed by Union soldiers was Booth. Herold was hanged for his trouble taking the truth to his grave. Rumors were rampant even this early that the man killed on the Garrett farm was not Booth. Stantons task of identifying Booth wouldn’t get any easier.

Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton.

Stanton badly needed John Wilkes Booth dead. So much so that it’s entirely possible he buried someone other than Booth to make the mess go away. Stanton was no saint, and was notorious for violating people’s constitutional rights to get what he wanted. Stanton supported Lincoln’s imprisonments of reporters, or anyone else critical of the government at the time. Hundreds were jailed under Stanton’s watch without being formally charged with a crime, or having a trial. A man like Stanton was certainly capable of facilitating a conspiracy to make a problem go away. This brings us to the undeniable oddity of the Booth autopsy.

Uss Montauk docked in Washington Navy Yard 1865.

On board the Montauk several people identified the body as that of John Wilkes Booth. Oddly none of these people were family members, but close confidants of various government agencies. Surgeon General Joseph Barnes performed the autopsy, and removed the third, fourth, and fifth vertebrae from the body. These bones would become the center of the controversy over the years. Photographer Alexander Gardner was brought on board to photograph the body. Joseph Barnes reported back to Stanton that his orders had been carried out. In a still controversial move Alexander Gardner was relieved of all photographs of the body by order of Stanton himself. After Stanton saw the alleged Booth Autopsy photos he promptly destroyed them. No other copies exist. Stanton made sure if that. So much for transparency.

Photographer Alexander Gardner.

The body was hastily sewn into a sack, nailed into a wood ammunition crate, and buried under concrete in a storage room at the old Washington Penitentiary. A very odd way to dispose of any body of evidence, but it would get stranger. Alleged Booth conspirators were quickly tried by an illegal military tribunal and hanged. On October 1st 1867 the alleged assassins body was inexplicably dug up and buried again, this time inside the walls of the Washington Arsenal. President Andrew Johnson ordered the body to be dug up and re-identified for a third time in 1869. The corpse was then turned over to the Booth family and buried in the family plot in Green Mount Cemetery located in Baltimore Maryland. According to descendants it has been a long held secret in the Booth family that the corpse turned over in 1869 was not John Wilkes Booth. The family would later be willing to back that claim.

The Washington Arsenal 1867.

As early as 1865 rumors were swirling the man killed by Union soldiers in the tobacco barn was not Booth. Men who swore affidavits began to recant their testimony. Years ticked by until the conspiracy was almost forgotten. That all changed in 1877 when a man in Texas by the name of John St. Helen fell deathly ill. Thinking he was about to die Helen made an astonishing confession to his attorney Finis Bates. Helen claimed he was in fact John Wilkes Booth. Bates didn’t initially believe Helen. Helen explained that his diary was lost while he was on the run. Helen claimed he escaped Washington D.C. the night of the assassination by using a secret password to cross the bridge to freedom. Apparently Bates was able to confirm this information via an old document. In an incredibly bizarre twist John St. Helen made a full recovery and fled town immediately. No one heard from again until 1906.

The only known photo of John St. Helen.

In 1906 a man by the name of David George killed himself by drinking cyanid in Enid Oklahoma. Before George died he claimed to be none other than John Wilkes Booth. Hearing the story Texas attorney Finis Bates headed to Enid. Once he arrived and saw the body of David George he recognized it as his old client John St. Helen. Seeming an opportunity Bates wasted no time in preserving the body of the man. He shared his story along with the body to the United States Government. The government quickly informed Bates they were not interested to hear any more. The well preserved body went into storage and stayed there until 1920. After 1920 an X-ray was performed on the body and revealed the same broken bones as John Wilkes Booth. The body went on tour as the mummy of John Wilkes Booth from the 1920’s until it mysteriously disappeared in 1977.

The body of David George on display.

The Booth family themselves apparently have never believed it was John Wilkes Booth who was shot on the Garrett farm. When the Booth descendants were asked for permission to allow experts to exhume the Body of John Wilkes Booth from the family plot in Green Mount Cemetery they consented. The Booth descendants were quoted as saying “let’s have the truth, and put this thing to bed”. Many descendants say the first thing you learn when you are in the family is that the U.S. government has covered up the fact Booth escaped from the beginning. So with the Booths ready to turn the body over the United States Government had one response, a flat out refusal accompanied by a law suit from Green Mount Cemetery. Surprising since the operation had the full support of The Smithsonian Institute. The government’s claim was a simple one. They had lost the actual location of John Wilkes Booths Body ( highly unlikely ), and that uncovering a conspiracy may rewrite the history of not just the assassination, but the civil war as a whole. If the government lied about this what else had they lied about people would wonder. Was cotton not king? Was the war not really about emancipation? What reason did the Union have to really invade the south? These are not questions an even more far reaching government wants people to start asking in 2021. Just focus on the new Netflix release this month and trust us! The attorney for Green Mount Cemetery simply said the American people did not need to be asking these questions because it was dangerous, and in 1995 a federal judge agreed with him. Now not even the Booths had permission to move a body of another Booth.

The Booth Family Gravestone at Green-mount Cemetery.

To the surprise of the U.S. Government the Booth family upped the anti. They proposed that a sample of DNA be taken from the body of John’s brother Edwin Booth. This sample could be tested against the three remaining vertebrate that were removed during the autopsy aboard the USS Mantauck in 1865. Those vertebrate were still housed at The National Museum of Health in Washington D.C. Problem solved, the DNA from Edwin would be compared to the Vertebrate in Washington, and this would answer the question once and for all. Only one problem, again the United States Government said we could not have this information. In so many words they decided the vertebrate they had belonged to John Wilkes Booth, and any DNA testing may damage them for future generations. A bold claim in a day with touch DNA analysis available coupled with the fact elmers gluing the bones to a wood display didn’t seem to damage them for future generations (see caption).

Vertebrate Alleged to belong to John Wilkes Booth. Housed at The National Museum of Health in Washington DC.

To the Booth descendants credit they refused to take no for an answer. In 2019 the Booths got a break in the form of the latest in facial recognition technology. The computer was provided with three photos. The first was a photo of John Wilkes Booth taken in 1865, a second photo of John St. Helen taken in 1877, and a third of David George taken in 1906. Researchers then loaded 5,000 similar photos into the computer and waited. The software meticulously analyzes features that don’t change on a persons face over time. Jaw lines, space between the eyes, cheek bones, and nose shapes are all equated. The results came out and the openly skeptical researchers were stunned. The computer analysis left little doubt. About 1% to be exact that all three men were actually the same man. John Wilkes Booth had escaped. For some perspective police can convict a person of a crime with a 5% identification. One of the researchers said “I was absolutely shocked! It changed my perspective on American History”.

Computer generated analysis of the Booth photos.

So what now? As far as the government is concerned we should all believe John Wilkes Booth is buried in Baltimore regardless of the facts. They also have not changed their stance on DNA analysis, which researchers say would still be more accurate. Test have already shown this is more than just a conspiracy theory. The only thing that has been said since 2019 is from the attorney of Green Mount Cemetery who claims times are just too tough to uncover a conspiracy that may cause people to have southern sympathy and question who really killed President Lincoln. So when is it ever going to be a good time to tell the truth? Apparently this is not it.

Rebel Between the Rivers

Jack Hinson lived by a code. By the time the American Civil War broke out that code was deeply entrenched in Hinson. He had no quarrel with either rebel nor yankee. Although he owned a prosperous farm in Stewart County Tennessee, Hinson did not agree with secession. Whatever his belief was he was not about to get caught up in any war. By most accounts Hinson was a peaceful man. He even welcomed General Ulysses S. Grant into his home while Grant was in the area during the Union campaign against Fort Donaldson. But by February of 1862 John Hinson would become the most feared sniper of the war, and everyone would know the code he lived by was the code of the feud.

During 1862 records show that Hinson had two sons. Jack, age 22, and George, age 17 were hunting for deer about a mile from their farm. Unfortunately for Jack, and George the Union army was patrolling the area. Union soldiers came across the two boys. Historically Union Soldiers are painted as heroic men down south to destroy slavery. In reality there were no such thing. Many were nothing more than paid rapist and thugs. These were the variety that stumbled across Hinson’s sons. The soldiers decided it would be good fun if they tied the two young boys to a tree and shot them dead. Afterwards the Union soldiers drug the boys bodies around Dover courthouse in a display of Union justice. Afterwards they decapitated the young mens corpuses and staked the heads in front of the Hinson farm.

Obviously this did not sit well with Jack Hinson, and he decided to do something about it. Unknowingly the Union soldiers had provoked a deadly man. Hinson took his single shot Kentucky rifle, and killed the Lieutenant who was in charge of the men who had murdered his sons. This did not quench Hinson’s lust for yankee blood however. Operating as a partisan sniper he went on to kill more. A lot more.

Union records credit Hinson with over 130 kills during the war between the states in the area known as “Between the Rivers”. The actual number is lost to history. Hinson himself admitted he stopped counting, but did mark a notch in his rifle every time he killed a Union Officer. There are 36 notches in the rifle that is now privately owned. Killing Yankees wasn’t Hinson’s only skill. He also helped Nathan Forrest kill a lot of them as a guide during Forrest raiding of Johnsonville. No one was safe from Hinson’s rage. He even hit targets on Union gunboats from over a half mile.

Hinson’s Kentucky Flinty

When the war ended Hinson finally hung up his rifle, though he never forgave the Union for the murder of his sons. Hinson lived the rest of his life peacefully until April 28th 1874 when he died from meningitis. In the end Hinson’s tragic story is a lesson that just because a man is peaceful, doesn’t mean he Isn’t a practitioner of extreme violence. It was a costly lesson for many unfortunate Union soldiers who found themselves in Hinson’s sights.

The Oswald Ring

No other event rocked the United States to its core more than the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. In 1963 America was in every way encountering growing pains. Only 100 years removed from a bloody civil war the country was now facing unrest on several new fronts. Nuclear anxiety was at its apex having just narrowly escaped the Cuban middle crisis. Tensions with Russia heated up along with the crushing stresses of the race to space. Civil rights in America were at a boiling point, and Kennedy had taken a popularity hit particularly in the Deep South.

John F. Kennedy-Getty Images

Among those detractors was a man that would not only put an end to Kennedy’s presidency, but also his life. There have been a lot of debates about Lee Harvey Oswald’s motives for killing Kennedy on that day in 1963. What is beyond reasonable questioning is that on November 22nd 1963 Oswald removed his gold wedding ring, placed it on his wife’s dresser along with $187, then killed the President of the United States.

Lee Harvey Oswald-Getty Images

The ring’s journey after that is somewhat remarkable in itself. At the time Oswalds wife, Marina, was staying with a friend. The marriage had been rocky since the couple moved back from Russia, and Ruth Paine was charitable enough to allow Marina and the children to stay with her while things were sorted out between the Oswald’s. Later it would be Paine who the Secret Service and FBI would pay a visit shortly after the assassination. At some point Paine turned the ring over to the authorities without Marina’s knowledge. So at the end of the day the Oswald wedding ring was in the custody of the U.S. treasury department, presumably as evidence of Oswald’s involvement in the assassination.

Lee and Marina Oswald-Getty images

Conspiracy theory’s ran rampant in the years following the assassination. At that time over 80% of Americans believed there was a government cover up. These ideas were not baseless. As with most government action the investigation was slow and inept. Items of evidence were lost, stories were misconstrued, politicians were involved with no law enforcement experience, and power struggles in Washington made interpretations difficult. The ring was lost like many other items by the teams of people who looked into the killing. That is how it stood until 2012.

Window at 6th Floor Museum where Oswald fired from-insighttohistory

In 2012 a cache of old papers were discovered in a safe at the law office of Brackett & Ellis in Dallas Texas. Further examination of the documents showed them to be directly related to the Kennedy assassination. Among these papers was an envelope marked by the U.S. Treasury, and inside they discovered Lee Oswald’s missing wedding ring. The files belonged to a retired Dallas attorney Forrest Marquart. Here is where our story gets confusing.

Texas School Book Depository-insighttohistory

Marquart was contacted, but at age 90 he refuses to talk about the ring, and claimed he has no idea how it ended up in his possession. It should be noted that Marquart is now suffering from dementia. It was thereby assumed Marina possibly used the ring to pay for legal fees from Marquart. Indeed Marquart did serve as legal counsel to Maria in 1964, but there is a problem. Maria claimed she never paid Marquart using the ring, and that she had positively not seen the ring since the morning November 22nd 1963. The Secret Service claims they turned the ring back over to Maria shortly after the assassination. This version of the rings path seems the most suspect to me for the simple fact the ring was a key piece of evidence at the time. Why would they give it back so quickly?

Lee Harvey Oswald’s wedding ring on display at the 6th St Museum-insighttohistory

It seems we will never know where Lee Harvey Oswald’s wedding ring went for that 50 years. It is another mysterious circumstance that surrounds the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Today you can find the ring easily. It is on public display at the 6th Floor Museum in Dallas.

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The Voynich Manuscript

As the world of code breaking goes the last few generations have a pretty good track record. During World War II British and American cryptographers broke the German enigma code capable of 159 million changes per day. Likewise Japanese codes were quickly broken turning the tide of war in the pacific. The FBI now has a computer capable of breaking codes and ciphering language. One mystery that has perplexed the world is The Voynich Manuscript. Named after Wilford Voynich a polish book dealer who purchased the codex in 1912. It consists of 240 pages of text and diagrams.

The parchment of the book has been carbon dated to the 15th century between 1404 to 1438. So what does the The Voynich Manuscript tell us? We have no idea. Despite the best efforts ocryptographers and high tech modern computers the codex remains a mystery. That being said the first one of you that comments “aliens!” deserves to be punched in the mouth.

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The likely genesis of the codex was the beginning of the Italian renaissance. A language or way of communication lost to the sands of time. What we do know is the script reads from left to right and contains no form of punctuation complicating scholarly attempts to translate the document. The consensus among cryptographers is that the book has something to do with medicine. We will probably never know who wrote the manuscript, but there are lots of interesting suspects we can ponder. Among them are Roger Bacon, John Dee, Edward Kelly, Giovanni Fontana, and my personal favorite Voynich himself.

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It is currently in possession of Yale University. Today the manuscript represents what can happen if we don’t play our part as the keepers of history. A language and perhaps an entire civilization that we know nothing about. Unfortunately one of many. As we contemplate the cipher it’s not hard to imagine the history, language, stories, and features of our very own communities disappearing after only a few generations. Perhaps the manuscript is serving the purpose it was intended for, as a warning.

Earhart Mystery Holds On Tight

I’m not the kind of person who would say I told you so. Ok, who are we kidding? I am exactly that kind of person, and you can refer to the article posted here on July 16th, 2015 should you wish to gloat along with me. After a gigantic swing and a-miss in the 2015 search for Amelia Earhart’s final resting place TIGHAR managed to stir enough interest in the island of Nikumaroro to catch the attention of underwater researcher expert Bob Ballard. Officially TIGHAR doesn’t hold a single piece of physical evidence to back up their Nikumaroro theory. The collection of circumstantial evidence in its totality is what appealed to Ballard. When TIGHAR’ s work hooked in Ballard it brought the project instant credibility, even to a skeptic like myself. Bob already had a good resume of finding a few small things like the Titanic, the battleship Bismarck, and a lost U.S. nuclear submarine. So in August of this year Ballard and TIGHAR set out on a multimillion dollar land, sea, and air expedition to Nikumaroro. In two weeks of exhaustive searches using state of the art equipment what did this mammoth expedition find? The answer is nothing. After two weeks of side scan sonar, underwater ROV, air drone video, and archeological digs the team couldn’t find so much as a lug nut from a Lockheed Electra airplane. Hopefully we can now move on from the nightmare that has been the Nikumaroro theory. There are many other places that Earhart’s plane could be that need attention. From TIGHAR’s past behavior I don’t see them giving up on Nikumaroro any time soon, but it’s time to move on. If it were there, Bob Ballard would have found it. The Nikumaroro expedition has not been a total loss.

We know where Amelia Earhart isn’t. Earhart continues to be a larger than life figure and a lightning rod for the women’s movement in the United States that just giving up on finding her should never be an option. There are plenty of people out these still looking, and TIGHAR can play the biggest part in that with all there resources if they chooses to move on. Bob Ballard said it best. Earhart’s plane is not the Loch Ness monster. It’s a real and physical thing that we can lay hands on, and because of that it can be found one day.

Civil War Numbers

Fate of The Fuehrer part 5

Adolf Hitler is the barometer of evil by which all others are measured. It’s incomprehensible that one man could so change the way we see the world and foreign diplomacy. The United States clung strongly to the Monroe Doctrine, George Washington’s farewell address warnings about foreign wars, and it’s own isolation going into the war. Afterward the county would emerge as a superpower in every conflict since. Hitler’s actions directly caused the death of so many millions of people in so many parts of the world no one can tell us the true estimate. Men, women, and children wiped off the face of the earth during the fog of war. Hitler used his intellect and passionate public speaking abilities to rise to power in Germany. Americans penance for allowing this to happen would be paid with the blood of a generation. The road from Normandy to Berlin would be paved in American lives. Hitler used bigotry, hate, anger, and elitism to throw the world into the largest cataclysm history has ever seen. It would take America’s greatest generation to overcome Hitler’s thirst for power and military might. Men who were the embodiment of honor, pride, patriotism, heroism, and determination would bring unimaginable violence to the shores of Europe in order to stop Hitler. These are the ideals that make it so important to know once and for all what was the final fate of the German Fuehrer. How could we sacrifice so much and still know so little about his last days? Were they spent in a bunker in Berlin, or quietly relaxing in the Argentine sun?

In his own mind Joseph Stalin was never fully convinced Hitler was dead according to his closest confidants. The Russian secret police continued to search for Adolf Hitler as did the American authorities. The bones that now sit in the archive in Moscow are marginalized as concrete proof due to the Russian refusal for further testing and the French teams ridiculous claims. No indisputable evidence has ever been produced using those bones and the Russian government is notorious for counter intelligence. Rochus Misch was an invaluable asset to historians giving priceless insight into the war from a German perspective. He is unquestionably one of the most valuable resources for future generations to learn information from. Unfortunately his only questionable and inconsistent information has to do directly with Adolf Hitler’s fate. Though he never swayed in his testimony Hitler died in the bunker he did change details of his story on several occasions. This was an uncharacteristic oversight by Mish who was highly intelligent. His personal feelings and defense of Hitler make his version of The Fuehrer’s last days extremely unreliable and unfortunately questionable. Though the idea that Hitler escaped on board a German U-boat has been repeatedly debunked the idea he may have fled to Argentina is unequivocally plausible. The United States government spent an enormous amount of time and manpower after the war tracking down leads across the globe. It is clear from recently declassified documents that U.S. intelligence agencies were never fully convinced Hitler committed suicide in 1945. A complex underground German network across Argentina yields increasingly indisputable evidence that German escape protocols were in place long before 1945. A highly effective network that safely hid high level nazis like Adolf Eichmann, Josef Mengele, Walter Rauff, Franz Stangl, and Gerhard Boone. If these notorious men were able to escape capture then it becomes an absolute certainty Hitler could have done likewise. Argentina is still home to an unusual amount of German descendants who are to this day afraid to talk about war criminals. Some of the highest ranking officers in the Nazi hierarchy have grandchildren living in Argentina today. Living proof that many eluded capture and lived normal lives after the fall of Berlin. Did Hitler die inside his bunker in 1945? Conventional wisdom tells me to think he did.

Im not remotely close to a conspiracy theorist. In my own mind I want to believe he did take his own life seeing no other alternative. A broken and perilous shell of his former self suffering physically and mentally to the point he took his own life in a moment of absolute and unyielding agony is exactly the ending I want to believe met Adolf Hitler. A fitting end to a man who brought so much evil to the world, threatened freedom, cost so many brave soldiers to die in alien countries, and tried to wipe out an entire race. But I don’t believe that’s what happened. In the shadow of evidence that seems to grow daily I believe somehow Hitler escaped Germany. I think the bones in Moscow are a ruse put into motion long before the war was lost, and have continued to be manipulated in a misguided attempt to bury the truth, and embarrass the west. Fortunately the truth can’t hide forever. A new generation has taken over the hunt for the fate of The Fuehrer, and it is only a matter of time before they find out what nations, armies, and history have so far failed to discover. What happened to Adolf Hitler.