If you are looking for a nice article about our first Memorial Day celebration go to the link below. The site is Gatehouse Press. They publish Civil War books and print the superb Gettysburg magazine. The link below is about our first Memorial Day and how it came about.
http://www.gatehouse-press.com/?p=1470
Now remember, we are talking about our AMERICAN Memorial Day not other Memorial celebrations in other countries. Some smart alec posted a snide comment after the article. He was probably annoyed that the article has the title "The first Memorial Day?" The article is about OUR first. Sheeeccchhhh!
BTW, the site frequently updates the article section with new ones so check it out or subscribe so you get the note that there is a new post. That makes it easy.
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| Sallie was the mascot of the 11th Pennsylvania. Sallie stayed with the dead and dying of the regiment at Gettysburg while the rest of the regiment fell back to Cemetery Hill. After the battle was over the men of the regiment found Sallie dehydrated but lying patiently with her friends, protecting them. Years later when it came time to erect a monument for the regiment the old veterans chose to have her likeness at the base. People visiting the battlefield today often leave dog treats for her on the monument. |
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| Father Corby of the Irish Brigade blessing the regiments before they went into the fight. |
Enjoyed finding Sallie's photo on your site. It's always great to see her and the other Civil War dogs remembered.
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you found it! I have always been fascinated by pets/mascots of soldiers throughout history but mostly the Civil War. There have been a few good books to come out recently about soldier dogs used in Afghanistan and Iraq.
ReplyDeleteIf you'd like to read more about Sallie I recommend the book, A Colonel, A Flag, and A Dog by Cindy Stouffer & Shirley Cubbison. It's in paperback from Thomas Publications. The book has the one and only known photo of Sallie sleeping. It Was probably the only time you could have taken her picture.
We were fortunate to buy a copy of "A Colonel, A Flag, and a Dog" when we did! It is now out of print and very hard to find either on-line or in used bookstores.
ReplyDeleteOut of print? Hard to find... really? That's sad. I suppose I am glad I bought mine a few years ago then instead of waiting. Thanks.
ReplyDeleteDon
The book has now been reprinted and is available here: https://www.facebook.com/SallieMascot/?fref=ts
ReplyDeleteFacebook- Sallie, A Regiment and a Dog in the Civil War