Meeting Dates
The organization meets on the fourth Tuesday of each month September through May. Meetings are held in the Williamsburg Regional Library Theatre located at 515 Scotland St in Williamsburg, VA, unless otherwise posted. The meetings begin at 7 PM. Membership is open to the general public.
This Month's Speaker
On October 23, 2018, Lieutenant General Ulysses S.
Grant - Dr. E. C. (Curt) Fields will present “The Battle of Shiloh”.
It has long and loudly been asserted that Grant (and Sherman) was
surprised by the Confederate attack at Pittsburg Landing. He has
been severely criticized about not having built breastworks or dug
trenches. He was held responsible by the Northern press for the
appalling loss of life at Pittsburg landing (23,746 killed/wounded), and
his dismissal was demanded even unto the President in the Executive
Mansion; the President being urged to sack Grant and save himself
politically.
Was Grant surprised? Was it a failure of Leadership not to build
or dig breastworks/trenches? Was he responsible for the staggering
loss of life?
Grant stated: "The battle of Shiloh, or Pittsburg Landing, has
been perhaps less understood, or, to state the case more accurately,
more persistently misunderstood, than any other engagement between
National and Confederate troops during the entire rebellion. Shiloh was
the severest battle fought at the West during the war, and but few in
the East equaled it for hard, determined fighting.” (excerpt from
"The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant")
Come to the Williamsburg CWRT and hear General Grant himself address
these issues (accusations?) to learn for yourself about Shiloh.
Dr. E. C. (Curt) Fields, Jr., has been an avid and lifelong student
of the American Civil War. His interest in portraying General Ulysses
S. Grant was driven by that study and his deep respect and admiration
for General Grant.
Dr. Fields is the same height and body style as General Grant and,
therefore, presents a convincing, true-to-life image of the man as he
really looked. He researches and reads extensively about General
Grant in order to deliver an accurate persona of the
General. His presentations are in first person, quoting from General
Grant’s Memoirs; articles and letters the General wrote, statements he
made in interviews or wrote himself, and first-person accounts of people
who knew the General or were with him and witnessed him during events.
Visit the American Battlefield Trust site to view animated Peninsula Campaign map
Visit the Williamsburg Battlefield Association (view
newsletter)
(http://www.williamsburgbattlefieldassociation.org/)
(https://www.facebook.com/WilliamsburgBattlefieldAssociation)