Following up on my post about the recent Dahlgren bio, an excellent dissection on HistoryNet about the authenticity of the papers found on that officer’s body:
It can be accepted then that the authenticity of the Dahlgren papers is established beyond a doubt. There is not the least scrap of credible evidence for their forgery. There is ample evidence, on the other hand, for their content being exactly what was printed in the Richmond newspapers. The label ‘contestable’ does not apply to the Dahlgren papers.
I agree, and don’t think there can really be much doubt at this point. The only real question can be how high the plot went.
Speaking of the Dahlgrens, the Navy recently honored Admiral John Dahlgren at a base named in his honor, where he is remembered as “the father of naval ordnance.”
Retired Rear Adm. Jay A. DeLoach was the keynote speaker. He said Dahlgren “gave the American sailor something he’d never had before–an unshakable faith in their guns.”
Ulric Dahlgren IV, Dahlgren’s great-great-grandson, was among descendants present for the ceremony and a tour of the base.
Should you be in the market for a Civil War cannon, say to keep people off your lawn, look no further than the Cannon Super Store. One item of interest is a very rare Confederate Hughes breech loader used in the Western theater. Only a dozen were made, and this may the only survivor.
And finally, a tragic story from Afghanistan, which I include only because I’ve seen several instances of similar things happening during the Civil War—someone hit and killed while minding their own business in camp by a freak rifle shot.
Post from: TOCWOC - A Civil War Blog
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