Southern MD Civil War Round Table Film Series

January 10, 2017

Come out and join us for the second season of Civil War films from 5:00pm – 6:45pm, prior to the regularly scheduled Round Table meeting tonight. Please note that tonight’s movie will be shown at the College of Southern Maryland’s Community Education Building, Room CE-101, 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD. Admission is free!

Tonight’s Feature: “Wicked Spring”

During the 1864 battle of the Wilderness, three Union soldiers and three Confederate Soldiers get separated from their units as twilight engulfs the ravaged battlefield. They wander alone through the dangerous woods, separated from each other, until they meet by chance on the banks of a quiet creek. The men meet and spend the night around a campfire, not realizing they are enemies until the next morning when the sun rises and a new day of battle begins. – Kevin R. Hershberger

December 13, 2016

January 2017 Southern MD Civil War Round Table

January 10, 2017

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will take place on Tuesday, January 10, 2017 at 7:00pm at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD.

Guest Speaker: William Connery

Join William C. Connery as he recounts the notable events and battles that occurred in Northern Virginia in 1861 after the firing on Fort Sumter. In the mid-nineteenth century, Alexandria was a port across from the Nation’s Capital; Arlington was an 1100 acre estate managed by U.S. Colonel and Mrs. Robert E. Lee; Fairfax, Prince William and Loudoun Counties consisted of rolling farmland and tiny villages. This peaceful region was thrown into chaos as South Carolina seceded from the Union in Dec. 1860 and other slave states followed until Virginia finally joined the Confederacy in April and May 1861. The ‘invasion’ of Northern Virginia on May 24, 1861, created a no-man’s land between Yankee and Rebel armies, especially in the area south of Alexandria. Some citizens joined Confederate forces, while others stayed to face uncertainty. This book offers new insights into this most important time in American history.

William S. Connery grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, considered ‘neutral territory’ in the Civil War. As a young boy, his family visited the battlefields of Gettysburg, Antietam, and other local historical sites. He has a degree in history from the University of Maryland. Since 1989, Mr. Connery has lived in Fairfax County. He contributes to the Civil War Courier and other publications. He was awarded the prestigious Jefferson Davis Historical Gold Medal by the Fairfax Chapter of the UDC for this book. His other book, Mosby’s Raids in Civil War Northern Virginia, deals with the Gray Ghost of the Confederacy, who became a friend of U.S. Grant after the War! Mr. Connery is a frequently requested speaker on the Civil War and other American history topics in the Washington, D.C., metro region. He can be reached at william.connery@verizon.net.

November 9, 2016

Southern MD Civil War Round Table Film Series

December 13, 2016

Come out and join us for the second season of Civil War films from 5:15pm – 6:45pm, prior to the regularly scheduled Round table meeting tonight. Movies will be shown at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD. Admission is free!

Tonight’s Feature: “Pharaoh’s Army“

... Connect » Movie Collector Connect » Movie Database » Pharaoh's Army

Set in Kentucky during the Civil War, the film tells the story of an encounter between a squadron of Union Army soldiers that take up residence at the farm of a woman whose husband is fighting in the Confederate States Army. Inspired by Shelby Foote’s books about the war, the film is based on a true story of a southern child who shot and killed a Union soldier.

November 8, 2016

December 2016 Southern MD Civil War Round Table

December 13, 2016

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will take place on Tuesday, December 13, 2016 at 7:00pm at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD.

Guest Speaker: Paul O’Neil

The Pratt Street Massacre, also known as the Baltimore Massacre or the ...

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to welcome Paul O’Neil, who will discuss with us the Pratt Street Riots in Baltimore, MD. Mr. O’Neil will begin his talk with on overview of life and the political and war climate in Baltimore, MD in 1860. The ascendancy of Abraham Lincoln to President of the United States quickens the pace at which war may come, causing him to issue a call for volunteers, in order to preserve and protect the capitol city. These volunteer troops must travel through Baltimore to reach Washington, D.C. and on April 18th, unruly mobs launch an attack on these troops as they pass through Baltimore. Mr. O’Neil will analyze these events for us and the subsequent arrival of the 6th Massachusetts on April 19th and the riot that this precipitates. He will also provide insight on the arrival of and attack on the Washington Brigade of Pennsylvania volunteers as they arrive at the Pratt Street Station. To conclude, Mr. O’Neill will share with us the aftermath of these events and there affect on the war effort.

Paul O’Neil became interested in the Civil War in 1961, when he was 8 years old. He did a scrapbook collection of photos for Cub Scouts, and poured over the hand drawn illustrated maps of battles found in the “American Heritage” history of the war, published at that time. His father helped his interest by driving him and younger brothers numerous times to Gettysburg, making sure to tell the boys about two different bank robberies that happened in Union Mills, MD. Paul still has photos of him at 9 or 10 wearing a Union campaign hat and carrying his toy musket. During his high school years, Paul worked on board the U.S.S. Constellation which, though wrongly called at that time, the frigate, is the only ship to actively serve in the war still afloat.

It was as an unemployed social worker that Mr. O’Neil’s life once again was caught up in the war when, in July 2000, a friend let him know there was a job opening at the Baltimore Civil War Museum, which he quickly took. Paul was the museum manager as an employee of the Maryland Historical Society, until being laid off in 2006. The previously mentioned friend then let him know there was an opening on board the Constellation, to which he again returned to until this past October.

October 12, 2016

Southern MD Civil War Round Table Film Series

November 8, 2016

Come out and join us for the second season of Civil War films from 4:30pm – 6:45pm, prior to the regularly scheduled Round Table meeting tonight. Movies will be shown at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD. Admission is free!

Tonight’s Feature: “12 Years a Slave“

In the years before the Civil War, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is kidnapped and sold into slavery in the South. Subjected to the cruelty of one malevolent owner (Michael Fassbender), he also finds unexpected kindness from another, as he struggles continually to survive and maintain some of his dignity. Then in the 12th year of the disheartening ordeal, a chance meeting with an abolitionist from Canada changes Solomon’s life forever.

October 11, 2016

November 2016 Southern MD Civil War Round Table

November 8, 2016

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will take place on Tuesday, November 8, 2016 at 7:00pm at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD.

Guest Speaker: Mr. Don Thomas

Debuting as the new kid on the block, former President and founder of West County Corporation, Don Thomas has recently retired from the industry to turn his hobby and lifelong passion for history into a new career. An avid reader with an insatiable appetite for nonfiction Don has always sought reading material untainted by legend, myth or fabrication.

Realizing few authors dare to venture outside the sanitized limits prescribed to explain the American experience, he began his own study compiling buried documents once hidden or forgotten, but never lost.

In 2012, after years of accumulating a personal library swollen with uncovered new evidence Don decided to publish some of his research, but needed an author. Though he quickly found it was futile trying to persuade a scholar to write his story which abandoned the mainstream chronicles surrounding Lincoln’s murder conspiracy. Growing frustrated he reluctantly decided to write the book himself.

The Reason Lincoln Had to Die is but a small portion of his painstaking four-year research into the violent removal of a United States president from office. While his book mainly focuses on the treasonous self-serving motive to assassinate President Lincoln, his investigation and publications about Lincoln’s hidden assassins continues as an ongoing project. With two highly acclaimed essays including many published articles, Don also is a popular speaker addressing private and public organizations each year.

Only those who have not yet learned about Don Thomas believe the conspiracy to kill Lincoln still remains an unsolved mystery.

The Reason Lincoln Had to Die - How They Got Away with Murder

September 30, 2016

Southern MD Civil War Round Table Film Series

October 11, 2016

Come out and join us for the second season of Civil War films from 5:30pm – 6:40pm, prior to the regularly scheduled Round table meeting tonight. Movies will be shown at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD. Admission is free!

Tonight’s Feature: “The General“

ParadeRest Presents: Buster Keaton’s The General - VFH – Virginia ...

This American silent comedy film, released by United Artists, was inspired by the Great Locomotive Chase, which happened in 1862. Buster Keaton stars as the hapless Southern railroad engineer Johnny Gray who faces off against Union soldiers during the American Civil War. When Johnny’s fiancée, Annabelle Lee (Marion Mack), is accidentally taken away (kidnapped) while on a train stolen by Northern forces, Gray pursues the soldiers, using various modes of transportation in comic action scenes that highlight Keaton’s boundless wit and dexterity. (67 minutes)

September 30, 2016

Ulysses S. Grant Forum and Discussion

American Ulysses Audiobook by Ronald C. White Jr. at Library

WHAT: Evening Conversation with Ronald White.

WHEN: Tuesday, October 4th, 2016, 6:30 PM to 8:30 PM

WHERE: National Press Club Ballroom, 529 14th St. NW, Washington, DC 20045

“The Trinity Forum invites you to participate in an Evening Conversation with Ronald C. White on the release date of his new book American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant on Tuesday, October 4. White will provide a new interpretation of Ulysses S. Grant as a generous, faithful and reflective man, and remarkable, if embattled leader — and the implications of Grant’s leadership approach for our own divisive time. Responding to Dr. White will be Peter Wehner, a Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center and contributing opinion writer for The New York Times. The event will be held at the National Press Club from 6:30-8:30 pm on Tuesday, October 4th, 2016. Register today at http://www.ttf.org/event/evening-conversation-ron-white-0

Ronald C. White, Jr.'s American Ulysses: A Life of Ulysses S. Grant ...

*The Trinity Forum is a nonprofit organization that engages leaders with the great ideas of civilization in the context of faith for personal and societal renewal. With any questions about this event or the Trinity Forum, please contact Alyssa Abraham at aabraham@ttf.org or (202) 944-9881.

September 13, 2016

October 2016 Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table

October 11, 2016

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will take place on Tuesday, October 11, 2016 at 7:00pm at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD.

Guest Speaker: Robert O’Connor

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table welcomes Bob O’Connor, who will share with us his research about the approximately 209,000 soldiers who served in the Union armies and navies. He brings to light the number of Colored Troops held as prisoners of war in Confederate prisons. While historians have found 776 such prisoners, Mr. O’Connor has found evidence of 2,642! Mr. O’Connor will also bring some local flavor to our gathering, as he discusses some of the U.S Colored Troop soldiers that he discovered who enlisted from Southern Maryland. From Petersburg to Olustee, from Ft. Pillow to Salisbury and all the way to Andersonville, Mr.O’Connor will shed light on these courageous freedom fighters.

Bob O’Connor lives in Charles Town, WV, where he is retired and dedicates his time to being a full time author. His interest in history dates back to 1958, when he visited Galesburg, IL for the 100th anniversaty celebration of the Lincoln v. Douglas debates. The featured speaker that day was Carl Sandburg! Mr. O’Connor would go on to serve as Director of Tourism in Washington County, MD and became intimately familiar with Antietam National Battlefield and Harper’s Ferry National Historical Park. He helped bring to fruition two marvelous events held at Antietam that we all enjoy today; The Independence Concert, held each July and the Memorial Illumination, held each December. Mr. O’Connor has written and published eleven books about the Civil War and four times has been named a finalist in national book award competitions. To learn more about Bob O’Connor and his works, pleases visit his website; http://boboconnorbooks.com/.

Attendance is free for all, but membership is recommended. For information, contact the Round Table’s president, Brad Gottfried, at bgottfried@csmd.edu or 301-934-7625

July 8, 2016

September 2016 Southern MD Civil War Round Table Meeting

September 13, 2016

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table is pleased to announce that its next meeting will take place on Tuesday, September 13, 2016 at 7:00pm at the College of Southern Maryland’s Center for Business and Industry, Chaney Enterprises Conference Center, Room BI-113, at 8730 Mitchell Road in La Plata, MD.

Guest Speaker: Daniel Carroll Toomey

Dan's photo

Following the War of 1812 the Federal Government opened ten arsenals across the newly formed United States. One of these was located in Pikesville, Maryland. Opened in 1818 the arsenal supplied weapons and equipment to the United States Army until the beginning of the Civil War. After the war the property was conveyed to the State of Maryland.

In 1888 a great need existed for the care and shelter of Confederate veterans living in Maryland after the Civil War. General Bradley T. Johnson, the president of the Association of the Maryland Line, approached the state legislature for permission to convert the arsenal buildings in Pikesville to a home for Confederate veterans. Supported by private donations from nearly every Southern veteran’s organization in the state, the home was both an immediate and long term success. Noted Maryland author Daniel Carroll Toomey will give a brief history of the Pikesville Arsenal followed by an in depth look at the creation and management of one of Maryland’s least known Civil War sites.

... in Maryland: Daniel Carroll Toomey: 9781929806003: Amazon.com: Books

Daniel Carroll Toomey is a graduate of the University of Maryland and the author or co-author of a dozen books including The Civil War in Maryland and Baltimore During the Civil War. He has lectured for a number of historical organizations and colleges including the Smithsonian Institution and Johns Hopkins University. His course “The Civil War in Maryland” has been taught throughout the state.

Dan has contributed to a number of radio and television programs and several video productions. He also serves on the Maryland Military Monuments Commission and was Project Historian for the Maryland Memorial erected at Gettysburg in 1994. It was Dan Toomey who wrote the inscription for that monument.

Dan has won numerous awards for his historical research and exhibits including the Gettysburg National Battlefield Award in 1985 and was the 2001 recipient of the Peterkin Award given by the National Park Service at Fort McHenry. He is currently the Guest Curator at the B&O Railroad Museum and designed The War Came by Train exhibit – the largest Civil War railroad exhibit ever presented and written a book by the same title.

The Southern Maryland Civil War Round Table invites all to join us as we welcome Daniel Carroll Toomey back to speak to us about this little known Civil War treasure within the Free State’s boundaries. Attendance is free for all, but membership is recommended. For information, contact the Round Table’s president, Brad Gottfried, at bgottfried@csmd.edu or 301-934-7625.