Iowa Heritage Illustrated

Selling War
W ar-re la ted  p roducts like 
these, advertised in 1862, 
appealed to  both soldiers 
and civilians.
H e a v y  A r t i l le r y .
Manual for Heavy Artillery, for the uee of Volunteer]?. 
Service of Piece—of Guu on Siege Carriage, 8-inch Siege 
Howitzer—10-inch Siege Mortar—8-inch Siege Mortar— 
Cocliom Mortar—10-inch Sea-Coast Mortar—13-inch Sca- 
Coaat Mortar—Stone Mortar—Barbette Gun«—Casemate 
Guns—3-inch Columbians—24 pdr. Howitzer, &c. 1 voL 
12mo, plates, red cloth, 75 cent«.
Sent free, bv mail, on receipt of price.
D. VAN NOSTRAND, Publisher, 102 Broadway.
V A L E N T IN E S  FO R  1862.
Cupid and the Union, The largest stock of Valentines 
is now ready for dealer« by M. T. COZANS, No. 122 Nas­
sau Street, New York.
My popular $5, $10, $15 Lots, now ready.
Union Comics, 24 kinds—5 cents each.
Orders attended to, Wholesale and Retail.
1000 kinds from 3 cents to $10 each.
M a rch in g  A lo n g ,
The famous Army Song and Chorus, sung in all of the 
Cauipa on the Potomac. Price 25 cts. Also, Anthem of 
Liberty, words and music by R. Storm Willis, 30 cts., aud 
20 other New Patriotic Songs.
DRUMS and TRUMPETS, descriptive of a Military Pa­
rade (with beautiful picture), 35 cts., and Camp Life, prico 
50 cts., introducing all of the U. S. Army Camp Signals. 
Sent by mail on receipt of the price.
FIRTH, POND & CO., 547 Broadway, New York.
T h e  S ta n to n  W r it in g  D e sk .
To Soldiers, Sailors, Travelers, and the general Public. 
This is the best Portable Writing Case yet invented; 
contains 18 sheets paper (3 varieties), 18 envelopes (3 va-
ieties), 1 bottle ink, with me­
tallic screw top, worth alone half 
the price of the desk, 0 steel 
pens, 1 pencil, 1 sheet blotting pa­
per. and 1 accommodation pen­
holder. lYicc 35 cents. Soldiers 
forwarding 55 cents, the Dcak will 
be sent free by Haro den's Ex­
press, through the Quartermaster 
of their camp. Gf.o. W ilkinson 
& Co., Bookseller, Stationer, &c., 
2G Ann St., New York. Agents 
Wanted. Send for Circular.
Also, F.mery and Crocus Muslin for cleaning Arms and 
Equipments—approved by the Government. Price 25 c. 
per package of 9 pieceB. Sent fre • by H&rnden*« Express 
on receipt of 40 cents. Clubs for 6 packages for $1 50.
LEGS
& A R M S  S  E L P  H  0  s  PATENT 
51G BROADWAY.NX SEND FOR A CIRCULAR.
MILITARY GOODS.
S w o rd s  for P re se n ta tio n , S ashes, B elts , 
a n d  E p a u le tte s , G uns, P is to ls , 
a n d  R evo lvers.
Every article in the Military Line Wholesale nrd Retail.
W .  J .  S v m s  &  B r c . ,
Th e  g r e a t e s t  n o v e l t y  o f  t h eDAY.—Peirce’« Army Game Casket, for the use of 
SoldierB and everybody. You have, in a neat email box 
for the pocket, Che3s, Checkers, Backgammon, Cards, 
Dominoee, and all the popular Game* of the day—all for 
G3J cents retail. I>argc discount to Sutlers and Dealers.
Send stamp for Circular. JOHN H. TINGLE Y, Pub­
lisher, No. 15*2J Fulton St., New York.
ARMY CARTRIDGE REVOLVER.
CO]
_ __
ADVANTAGES OF THESE REVOLVERS.
Aro light and simple in construction, durable, 
and safe to carry, are easily and quickly loaded 
and cleaned.
Shoot 7 Water-proof Cartridges, which can bo 
procured from any gunsmith in the country.
The Cylinder is firmly locked by a spring un­
derneath at the instant of discharge, preventing 
accidents which frequently occur with other Rê  
volvers.
Never miss6s, and can bo fired 100 times with 
precision, without cleaning.
The Cylinder is not removed to load, and no 
accident can happen from improperly closing the 
same after loading.
DI RE CT I ONS .
Place the hammer at half cock.
Press back spring A, and side-plate B, at same 
time.
Insert cartridges and push them home.
Push out discharged sliells with small rod. 
Carry, when loaded, with the hammer on the 
cylinder between the Cartridges, and they can not 
be exploded by accident.
P ENETRATI ON.
At 15 feet, penetrates V inches pine wood.
At 30 feet, penetrates G inches pine wood.
At 60 feet, penetrates 5 inches pine wood.
P RI CE.
No. 1—Small pocket size................. $0 50 each.
No. 2—Four, five and six inch barrel. 1(5 50 each.
No. 1—Cartridges, per 100................  50
No. 2—Cartridges, per 100................1 00
Enanfeled black leather Holster, Belt, 
and Cartridge-case.....................  2 00
Address “ WM. IRVING,
No. 20 Cliff street, New York.
S o ld iers , S a ilo r s , M a r in e s , & c .,
Wounded, or WIDOWS and CHILDREN of those killed 
in the present war, or died from wound« or sickness in­
curred from service therein, can have their
P e n s io n s , B o u n t ie s ,  B a c k  P a y ,
&C., by calling upon or addressing
SOMES & BROWN,
Solicitor« for Penaionorv, <fcc., Oflico No. 2 Pork Place, un­
der Broadway Bank, New York City, and comer 7th and 
F Streets Washington, I>. C.
Ag e n t s  w a n t e dTo «ell Yale’« Flag of our Union and Military Gift 
and Stationery Package«. Agent« who arc now selling im­
itation«, put up by other parties, are respectfully requested 
to «end tin their address and we will forward them a sample 
with circular, which will at once satisfy them that they can 
make more money and give better satisfaction by selling 
our packages than any other« in market. Address J. W. 
YALE, Proprietor, Metropolitan Gift Book Store, Syra­
cuse, New York.
R ea d in g  in C am p.
Book«, Magazines, or Papers will be sent to any address 
within the Federal lines, postage paid, upon receipt of the 
money.
Catalogue* and information supplied, with pleasure, 
without charge, stamps being enclosed for return postage. 
WALTER LOW, Publishers’ Circular Office,
39 Walker Street, New York.
A  N e w  E d itio n  of
Harper’s War Map
N o w  R e a d y .
P r i c e  S i x  C e n t s .
Sent by mail on receipt of price.
HARPER BROTHERS, New York.
Ewans’ P o rtab le  A rm y S toves «re indi>ponHa-
ble for Soldiers in the field. Cooking Stove with every con­
venience for raes5* of four officers, with seven feet ol pipe, 
packs in mess cheat twenty by twenty-four inches, and 
twelvo inches deep, price complete, $15. Tent / tenter, 
will heat any teut iu the «crvicc, pack« with six feet or * 
pipe in box ten by ten inches, and eight inches deep, price 
$5. Send for circular. J. W. EVANS, 21 John St.
THIS DAY PUBLISHED. — INFANTRYTACTICS For the INSTRUCTION, EXERCISE, 
AND MANŒUVRES OF THE SOLDIER A Compa­
ny, Line of Skirmisher», Battalion, Brigade, or Corps 
d'Armce. By Brig.-Gen. Sikas Caskv, U. S. Array. In 
3 vola. $2 50. Sent free by mail on recept of price.
D. VAN NOSTRAND, Publisher,
No. 192 Broadway.
A  U sefu l P r e s e n t  t o  th e
OFFICERS OF OUR ARMY!
MILLIGAN'S ARMY MLtS-KL.i lL.LS.
(PATENT APl’UKD FOIi.)
G O T O I R 6 N  CA « T° H  C W S
IN
Ns KEtftf
Tii».* iuo>t compact and complete arrangement for n mess 
of four person« ever offered to the army. Weight fifteen 
pounds. Occupioa two-thirds the ppace of a cubic footl 
Sold by nil dealer« in Military goods. lYice $12. Libera, 
discount to the trade. Wholesale depot 4 Platt St., N Y. 
Send for oiroular. MILLIGAN BROTHERS.
F re e  to Soldiers.
W
AR.— We want the address of every soldier in the 
Union army. Wo wish to send to every soldier 
something that will increase hi* comfort. Also" the ad­
dress of every sutler and dealer in goods for the soldier. 
W. II. CATELY ¿z CO, 102 Nassau Street, N. V'.
Im p o r ta n t to  A rm y  and  N a v y  Officers.
FIELD GLASSES, 
SUMMONS’ BINOCULAR 
LANDSCAPE GLASS. Inval­
uable to FporDmen, officer?, 
travellers Arc. ; compact, port- 
able, efficient: combining ex­
traordinary defining power and 
wide field of observation. Cat­
alogues sent free, by enclosing 
stump.
SEM M O N S, O ptician,
CG9I Broadway, under Lafarge House, N. Y.
For WoiiiuIm either ocfaslonrd 
8>y Use <B»e KS«yonrl, Kitbrc, or 
IhsMt'S, Sorr-i or ESrul.m,
To which every Soldier and Sailor are lia­
ble, (here are no medicines so safe, sure, and 
convenient, os Holloway’s Pills and Oiuiment 
The poor wouuded and almost dying sufferer 
might have Iris wounds dressed immediately 
if he would only provide himself with this 
matchless Ointment, which should be tlirus 
into the wound and sneare l a ’f round it, then 
coved with a pie:e of linen from his knap­
sack and compressed with a handkerchief. 
Taking, uight and morning, f, or 8 Pills, to 
cool the system and prevent intlamation.
F.very Soldier's Knapasclc and Seaman’ 
Chest shonld be provided With these valua­
ble Remedies.
(Ads are from Harper's Weekly, 1862, except bottom right, from [Toledo] Iowa Transcript, January 21, 1864.)


English

Selling War

Iowa Heritage Illustrated, vol.93 no.2, Summer 2014

Beranek, Jamie

Iowa's Vanishing Depots

Walch, Timothy

SETTLE HYMN
—OK— ^  *
.E * B E .P U 8 £ I€
tfiioiiua—JIAn JSroicn
Minc/eyckJlnwYc seen the glory u! ttie com- 
\  l.cy i^^ the  Lur*l:
He i« tr»\nul|^Loui t lie vliiUgin whefe I lie 
^ L r tiv j jM F v r A ti t  lire stored;
Htf hjubilooscd the fateful lightning of Hi* 
;ei» ible «wilt *\\ utu:
\ -:/ . 0  Hi* • ru th  is inufciiifig on
«— Glonj, Glorify Hallelujah *
l him* seen Him in the watch-ftrcii of a hun­
dred circling camps;
They have buihl^d him an altar iu the eve­
ning dews nnd damp**;
1 can read His righteous sentence by the 
dim ;thollaring lamps:
His day ¡m marching on. 
Chorus—Glory, Glory, Hallelujah /
l have read a ficrw gospel writ in burnished 
rows of steel:
‘¿As ye d'|ul witji mv otmtemner» so with y*)\ 1 
my grace shall deal;
Let the hero born oi woman crush the ser­
pent with his heel,
Since God is inarching on. 
CitOnus— Glory, Glory, IfaJlelvfah /
He ho« sounded fortli the trumpet that shall 
never call retreat;
He sifting out the heart- ot men before 
His judgement seat:
Oli, bo swift, my soul, to answer him! he ju ­
bilant my feet!
Our God is marching on. 
t ’nonrs— Glory, Glory, Hallelujah
In the beauty of  the lilies, Christ was born 
across the sea,
WjUi a glory in His bosom that irans^gurea
you and me;•
Ah he «lied to make men holy, let us die to 
make men free,,
While tied is inarching on. 
Chorus— Glory % Glory, Hallelujah /
Sixth St., under Lindell IIot*d
A bugle, fife, and handwritten book of 
bugle calls. These, as well as drums, set  
the pulse of army life.
Below: The 2nd Iowa regimental band.
>/m
All is told to us 
by drum and fife
The Importance of Music in the Civil War
by Timothy Watch
W
e all know these familiar
words: "Mine eyes have 
seen the glory of the 
coming of the Lord." That first line 
from the "Battle Hymn of the Re­
public" is almost as familiar today 
as it was when it was written more 
than 150 years ago. For most Amer­
icans, the song is forever linked 
with Union patriotism during the 
Civil War, just as the song "Dixie" 
is an equally powerful anthem of 
Confederate resolve to protect the 
Southern way of life. Indeed, both 
of these songs continue to be sig­
nature sounds of the crusade that 
divided this nation.
Music was integral to every as­
pect of the war, from recruitment 
to battle and later to bereavement 
and homecoming. It stirred patri­
otic spirits and it directed troops in
THFACTS AND PHOTO O f  MUSICIANS SHSI (O ES  MOINES)
SH SI (IOWA CfTY)
The stirring lyrics of “Battle Hymn 
of the Republic” first appeared in At­
lantic M onthly  in February I 862. They 
then began to appear in newspapers 
and on broadsides (above). The words 
were sung to the tune of “John Brown’s 
Body.”
Spring 2014 7
/
A
M
E
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IC
A
N
 A
G
R
IC
U
L
T
U
R
IS
T
Songs for Soldiers and Their Friends.
Tlie Trum pet o f Freedom. Containing, Soldier’s 
Chorus; Viva la A m erica; M other when the war is over ; 
Mount, Boys, M ount: P icket G uard; Not a Star from our 
F lag ; V olunteer’s W ife; Ked, White and B lue; To Canaan ; 
Do they pray for me at H om e; How do you like it, Jefferson 
D ; Battle Hymn of the Republic; Glory H allelujah; Gari­
baldi Hymn, and other popular Songs, Duets, &c., will be 
sent, post-paid, for 40 cents. OLIVER DITSON & CO., Pub­
lishers, Boston,
O U R  A B S E N T  S O N S  A N D  B R O T  H E R S —“ It 0  M E , S W E E T  II O M E  «■< <»p«rrt / »  . » m m
Above: “The sick and wounded,” wrote an Iowa soldier, “will probably all be sent 
home on furloughs, and I expect to start as soon as I can . . . for with a sick or 
wounded man,‘there is no place like Home.’”
Above: A rare photograph of troops on 
the march. Music helped direct soldiers 
through the daily camp routines, on 
marches, and in battle.
Left: Dozens of war-related songs 
found eager consumers in army camps 
and in parlors. Much of the music re­
flected themes of patriotism, sacrifice, 
and sentiment for home and family. 
“Home, Sweet H om e” was one such 
song.
Below: Music like “Pea Ridge March’’ 
had a valiant, martial quality.
LIBRARY" OF C O N G RESS
8 Iowa Heritage Illustrated
battle. It solemnized burial of the 
dead and celebrated victories.
It's hard to overestimate the 
importance of military music. "We 
have music for everything/' wrote 
one New York officer to his father, 
"music telling us when to get up, 
music telling us when to go to bed, 
when to get breakfast, when to 
eat dinner, when to clean streets, 
when to drill, when to stop drill­
ing, when to go to church on Sab­
bath, and when to come back. All is 
told to us by drum and fife."
T
he most elemental Civil War 
music was on the field of 
battle. Cutting through the 
din, smoke, and confusion, musi­
cians' drumbeats and bugle calls 
instructed the troops to advance, 
retreat, or take other actions. The 
sounds carried farther than an of­
ficer's voice and faster than a man 
on horseback. They provided di­
rection and focus and motivated 
men in the midst of battle. At the 
Battle of Gettysburg, for example, 
Major General George Pickett and 
his men made their historic charge 
to "Bonnie Blue Flag." Waiting for 
them on Seminary Ridge were 
Union troops listening to "The 
Star-Spangled Banner."
These sounds were enhanced 
by unit flags that gave visual direc­
tion to the troops. To bear the flag 
through a battle was a great honor, 
and to capture an enemy battle flag 
was a consummate, iconic achieve­
ment of victory. Such flags were 
highly prized and later were dis­
played in public places as evidence 
of the bravery of state regiments.
Beyond military operations, 
music figured in camp life and 
back home. The musicians within 
a regiment or brigade, for example, 
performed in parades, at concerts, 
and for other patriotic events. It is 
believed that there were more than
400 musical bands in the Union 
army and another 125 bands 
among the Confederate forces. 
Iowa soldier Henry Clay McAr­
thur wrote, "The sound of Brass 
Bands can be heard through camp 
playing beautiful pieces making us 
forget almost that we are here for 
the purpose of battling with our 
fellow countrvman."
J
It is not surprising, therefore, 
that composers wrote numer­
ous songs to inspire patriotic and 
sentimental feelings and remind 
soldiers and their families of the 
reasons for their sacrifice. North­
erners were regaled with "The 
Battle Cry of Freedom" and "John 
Brown's Body," and Southerners 
favored "Bonnie Blue Flag" and 
"Lorena," among other songs.
Iowan George Brad way de­
scribed how music was part of an 
impromptu celebration on July 4, 
1864: "Nothing new was going on 
till night when the Lieu Col said we 
would have a candle light procesión 
so every fellow got a piece of candle 
put it in his bayonet and fell into 
ranks we marched about half way 
to Memphis shouting yelling and 
singing patriotic songs such as the 
stars spangled banner rally round 
the flag and John Brown they fairly 
made things shake when they was 
singing the latter." A few days later 
he added: "We hurrahed and sang 
so much the eavening of the 4th that 
our throats was so sore we could 
hardly eat hardtack."
Even in prison, music played a 
role. One captive wrote, "Our men 
sing all the national songs again, 
and again, with spirit and fervor, 
and as there are many excellent 
and trained voices, the effect is 
fine. The Star Spangled Banner is a 
prime favorite, and among others, 
Homeward Bound is heard."
In the early years of the war, 
patriotic music was a robust form 
of home entertainment and many
evenings were spent gathered 
around the piano in the parlor. But 
as the war dragged on, patriotic 
music was replaced with sentimen­
tal songs that focused on themes of 
separation and loss. "'Just Before 
the Battle Mother,'" notes histo­
rian Christian McWhirter, "exem­
plified this trend by portraying 
soldiers coping with the hardships 
and brutality of war by thinking of 
their mothers."
A
s the wars outcome seemed 
assured, there were more 
songs about the impending 
Union victory. "Sherman's March 
to the Sea," for example, was writ­
ten as a poem by Samuel H. M. 
Byers of the 5th Iowa Infantry. 
Byers had been a prisoner in Con­
federate camps for 16 months when 
he wrote the poem. The words 
were put to music by another pris­
oner, and the song was smuggled 
north, where it became a huge hit 
with both families and the troops. 
It remained popular long after the 
war and was played repeatedly for 
General Sherman, who, it is said, 
came to dread hearing it over and 
over again.
"The war catapulted music to a 
new level of importance," McWhirt­
er stresses. "More than mere enter­
tainment, it provided a valuable 
way for Americans to express their 
thoughts and feelings about the con­
flict. Conversely, songs influenced 
thoughts and feelings of civilians, 
soldiers, and slaves—shaping how 
they viewed the war." ❖
Timothy Watch writes frequently for this 
magazine.
NOTE ON SOURCES
For a Fine overview, see Christian McWhirter. 
Battle Hymns: The Power and Popularity of Music 
in the Civil War. Quotations related to Henry 
Clay McArthur and George Bradway are from 
materials in Special Collections, State Historical 
Society of Iowa.
Spring 2014 9


All Is Told to Us by Drum and Fife: The Importance of Music in the Civil War

A Capital Librarian! The Life and Times of Forrest Spaulding

Swaim, Ginalie

Ilisloriral treasures from our collections
"Well I was to the Christmas Tree amples are only a sample of the changed autograph books. In her
last night," Florence Collins wrote many autograph books in the col- very best handwriting, one student
to Frances Briggs on Christmas lections of the State Historical So- wrote: "Dear Teacher: May your
Day, 1892. "I got a very nice pres- ciety of Iowa. Most are from the life be one Long season of love,
ent its just awful nice. It was a 19th century Till the angels shall whisper Your
Autograph Album. One side of it The custom of signing auto- home is above. Your Well Wisher, 
is plush and the other side is Cel- graph books often occurred at the Arabella."
loyd with flowers on it. I tell you end of a school year. Classmates Lovelorn students might write 
it knocks the socks all off of May’s. added sentimental or humorous flirtatious messages. And the ar-
I tell you, I wish you was here to messages, though seldom origi- tistic ones might add a sketch or
write in it now." nal ones. A fellow named George calligraphic swirls and loops.
Florence had reason to be wrote to a young lady named Ef- Autograph books lost popu-
excited about her Christmas gift. fie: "May your good resolutions be larity as schools began to publish
Autograph books were popular like a crying Baby at church. Always yearbooks, which offered new ter-
among young people and actually carried out" ritories for writing messages of
dated back centuries. These ex- Teachers and students also ex- friendship. — The Editor
94 Ioioa Heritage Illustrated
jcìuvct X/
Runici s’
BOTH PA G E S S H S l P H O T O S  BY C H A R L E S SC O T T
T h e  typ ica l au to g ra p h  book o f this  
p erio d  was a b o u t 5x3 inches. S o m e  
covers w e re  p a rtic u la r ly  d e c o ra tiv e . 
T h e  pages inside w e re  usually b lank, 
a lth o u g h  som e included co lo rfu l illus­
tra tio n s , like th e  one above and on th e  
le ft. T h e  n a tu re  sketch in b row n ink  
was by C lau d  N e ff, w h o  signed th e  page 
“ R espectfu lly  yo u r fr ie n d ” and d a ted  it 
“Jan. 2 8 th , 1883.”
Summer 2014 95


Autograph Books

Iowa Heritage Illustrated, vol.93 no.1, Spring 2014

This vampyre, Nostalgia
I
t was a "monster," wrote a re­
porter, "that wanders listlessly 
up and down our camps," caus­
ing men to "droop and die. . . .  It is 
languor, debility, low fever, loss of 
appetite, sleeplessness, death, and 
yet, through all, it is only that sad 
thing they call Nostalgia."
As early as the 1750s, nostalgia 
was a medical diagnosis in Europe 
and a subject of discourse among 
doctors. In the United States, the 
terms nostalgia and homesickness 
filtered into medical parlance by 
the Mexican War and became in­
creasingly familiar as the Civil War 
wrenched men from the familiarity 
of family and home.
Unlike today, when nostalgia 
is defined as a sentimental, wistful, 
and too rosy remembrance of one's 
own past, nostalgia was "a physi­
cal illness that could suck the life 
out of a soldier," a notion that "had 
been slowing emerging in Ameri­
can culture during the antebellum 
period," according to historian 
Susan Matt. "It became far more 
widespread during the Civil War 
as doctors and laypeople north and 
south came to see acute homesick­
ness not just as an emotional condi­
tion, but as a physiological one as 
well."
The Manual of Instructions for 
Military Surgeons on the Exami­
nation of Recruits and Discharge of 
Soldiers, published in 1864, listed 
the symptoms: "appetite fails . . . 
excretions are impaired . . . sleep is 
disturbed . . . emaciation comes on 
. . . stupor and delirium."
After the war, the government's 
official Medical and Surgical His­
tory of the War of the Rebellion tallied 
5,000 cases and nearly 60 deaths at­
tributed to nostalgia. Iowa soldier 
Cyrus Boyd wrote, "More men die 
of homesickness than all other dis­
eases—and when a man gives up 
and lies down he is a goner." Boyd 
exaggerated. There were far more 
lethal diseases, but the idea that 
soldiers died of homesickness was 
commonplace.
"The poor fellow died of Nos­
talgia (homesickness), raving to 
the last breath about wife and chil­
dren," one army doctor reported. 
"Deaths from this cause are very 
frequent in the army."
Historian Judith Andersen says, 
"This condition was thought to set in 
when soldiers were thrown into the 
tumult of war: viewing combat and 
experiencing the shockingly differ­
ent environment of war (marching, 
illness, poor living conditions). It 
was noted that nostalgia, in severe 
cases, could lead to death because 
of the recruit's absolute hopeless­
ness and that this was more likely 
to happen with young recruits."
How, then, should nostalgia 
and homesickness be treated? Some 
said to fill the day and night with 
structure and activity. Play rous­
ing music to lift the spirits. Boyd 
advised his comrades to "keep the 
mind occupied with something 
new and keep going all the time ex­
cept when asleep." But advice dif­
fered on whether connections with 
home comforted the morose soldier 
or actually worsened his condition. 
Did foods "that tasted like home," 
letters from family, local newspa­
pers, even church services in camp
soothe the soldier, or exacerbate his 
longing? It was said that, "Union 
bands sometimes were forbidden 
to play 'Home, Sweet Home' or 
other songs that might render sol­
diers melancholic." Union Major 
General Benjamin Butler wrote to 
his wife: "Don't write me to come 
home any more. You have made 
me so homesick now I am almost 
unfit to duty."
Many army doctors and of­
ficers considered symptoms of 
homesickness a sham, signs of 
indolence, cowardice, and weak 
character. "Homesick" men should 
not be mollycoddled, but shamed 
and ridiculed.
But women who worked in 
army hospitals thought differently. 
They did not deny the feelings of 
their patients suffering from "sol­
dier's heart." Nor did a Chicago 
news correspondent who wrote: 
"Who shall dare to say that the boy 
who 'lays down and dies,' a-hun- 
gered and starving for home, does 
not fall as well and truly for his 
country's sake as if a rebel bullet 
had found his heart out? Against 
it the Surgeon combats in vain, 
for 'who can minister to a mind 
diseased?"'
—by Ginalie Swaim
NOTE ON SOURCES
Major sources are Judith Andersen. “ ‘Haunted 
Minds’: The Impact of Combat Exposure on 
the Mental and Physical Health of Civil War 
Veterans,” in Years of Change and Suffering 
ed. James M. Schmidt and Guy R. Hasegawa; 
and Susan J. Matt. Homesickness: An American 
History.
52 Iowa Heritage Illustrated


This Vampyre, Nostalgia

Historical treasures from our collections
The Meaning o f Victorian Hairwork
"Hair is at once the most delicate and lasting of our 
materials and survives us, like love,” author Leigh Hunt 
wrote in an 1850s Godey's Lady’s Book.
The yellowing pages above prove that They are 
from a small album created in the 1850s by Florida 
Collins. Florida traded locks of hair with friends and 
family and fastened them to the pages.
Florida was also learning to braid and weave 
longer strands of hair into modest examples of hair- 
work, a type of Victorian faneywork. Girls and women 
learned hairwork from each other or from women’s 
magazines, which printed patterns and instructions 
and advertised the thin wire, wooden bobbins, and 
other supplies needed.
Hairwork was one way to remember those who
had moved away and memorialize those who had died. 
Civil War widows fashioned hairwork into brooches 
and lockets, rings and watch fobs.These were worn as 
mourning jewelry.
Those who excelled at haiwork created remark­
ably intricate wreaths. They wrapped long strands 
around wire and then shaped them into petals, leaves, 
and stems. Framed and preserved under glass domes, 
haiwreaths may seem a peculiar artform to us to­
day, but to Victorians they represented great meaning 
and required considerable patience and skill. Although 
Florida Collins was a novice, her album, preserved in 
the collections of the State Historical Society of Iowa, 
bespeaks friendship, family, and memory, just as she 
intended 150 years ago. — The Editor
96 Iowa Heritage Illustrated


The Meaning of Victorian Hairwork


Civil War Children
TWO CHILDREN STARE across a stream at mounted 
soldiers, while two others sit with their hands in their 
laps, seemingly oblivious.
But how could they be oblivious—to war?
Like youngsters everywhere, children during the 
Civil War absorbed what they saw and heard and 
sensed—at home and school, in town and church. As 
historian James Marten tells us, "Children missed little 
of what the war had to offer, from the pageantry and 
the excitement to the hardships and the tragedy."
And as children do, Civil War girls and boys mim­
icked the adult world. They made believe they were 
wounded soldiers and charging cavalry. They play­
acted the war as small generals commanding troops, 
as little nurses bandaging soldiers, as spies, prison­
ers, and deserters. They cheered news of a victory and 
marched around the parlor with toy drums. Iowa farm 
woman Marjorie Ann Rogers recalled that before her 
husband enlisted, he "often took the boys with him 
if the [local] war meeting was near enough to return 
home that night, as they were both good singers.... He 
and the boys sometimes did all the singing. The boys 
caught the spirit of the times and would go through 
the program of the meeting at home, singing 'The Star 
Spangled Banner' and 'America.'"
But growing up during the war was not child's play. 
The war pulled away older brothers and fathers, leaving 
households filled with stress, uncertainty, and fear. "Do 
you wonder that the children of that time grew prema­
turely old, [fearing] the blanched face of their mother?" 
asked an Ohioan years after the war. "How often 1 [had] 
seen mother snatch a paper, and, without drawing a 
breath, scan the list of dead and wounded, and whenever 
we boys went for mail, how, when a letter was handed 
out with the well known [hand]writing ... we would run 
like deer for home, to be met at the gate."
After his father had left for the war, young Frank 
Rogers carried a loaded pistol in his pocket. As he ex­
plained to his mother, "Father told us all to take care of 
you and I will."
Community tensions over loyalty crept into chil­
dren's classrooms. Historian Hubert Wubben tells us 
that teachers were fired for perceived "disloyal and 
traitorous sentiments." In Jasper County, "teachers re­
solved that they would try to infuse their pupils with 
a spirit of patriotism [and] asserted that teachers who 
failed to properly appreciate soldier efforts to preserve 
the Union were unworthy members of the profession." 
Although teachers taught patriotic songs and poems, 
they were warned not to "allow the children to sing 
inflammatory songs" like "John Brown's Body."
And, of course, there were teenagers as young as 
15 who entered the war as drummer boys and then 
died of dysentery, or who picked up fallen flags and 
then took their share of bullets and cannon fire.
The war created as many as 20,000 to 30,000 sol­
diers' orphans nationwide. At the Iowa Soldiers Or­
phans Home in Davenport, records up through 1866 
list child after child whose father had died because of 
the war. Many of the 510 children were probably "half­
orphans," whose widowed mothers were unable, often 
financially, to care for them.
Surely war was the cruelest to children in the 
South. Food shortages weakened them, particularly 
slave children. James Marten writes that "their most 
coherent memories of northerners were . . .  of bullies 
and bandits who left pillaged plantations and hungry 
slaves in their wakes." The war's legacy to Southern 
children was devastation.
In 1860, children made up a third of the U.S. popu­
lation. In hundreds of ways, the great conflict of the 
next four years affected them. "Their innocence was 
challenged," Marten states, "and their naivete blast­
ed [as the war] shoved them into the world of their 
parents."
So that is why this special issue on the American 
Civil War begins with those who had little voice and 
no authority—the children.
by Ginalie Swaim, editor
Spring 2014 3


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