How to Honor the Fallen on Memorial Day
Keep the Clarity of Mind of William Tecumseh Sherman
By David Churchill Barrow
Take a look even today at a map of the Southeastern United States – like Rome of old, all roads lead to Atlanta. So it was when the city fell to Union troops on September 2, 1864, to be followed by Sherman’s famous (or infamous, if you are a “Lost Cause” romantic) march to the sea. In the larger scheme of things; i.e. political, economic and psychological, the fall of Atlanta had far more significance than either the battle of Gettysburg or the fall of Vicksburg; the two events most hailed as turning points. Before its fall, Lincoln was about to be beaten in the presidential election by George McClellan, who was running on a platform of accommodation with the Confederacy. Before its fall and the march to the sea, most of the South’s railroads and manufacturing (such as they were) were still in operation. Before its fall, desertion in the Confederate armies was at least somewhat manageable. All of that changed, and the end of the war was in sight.
Memorial Day Memories and Small Town Virtues
By David Churchill Barrow
Memorial Day in the sleepy little Massachusetts town where I grew up was a big deal (not so much here in Florida or elsewhere in the south, since its origin was a commemoration of Union dead). Next to Christmas it was also my favorite holiday, despite the somber ceremonies. It marked the beginning of summer – cook-outs, the filling of swimming pools, flowers in full bloom, and fresh clean air. Not long before school’s out!
