The pervasive impact of the Civil War on life in early Greene County

By MARY WEAVER

RIPPEY, Iowa, Dec. 16, 2016 — Six generations, or “four greats-” ago, mothers, wives and sisters may have been preparing food to send off with their sons, husbands, and brothers as they leftMary Weaver Profile Greene County for the “War of the Rebellion,” the “War Between the States,” or as it is now called, the “Civil War.”

It was 1861, and Greene County men, young and middle-aged, were ready for adventure. They were eager to get away from the mundane work of being a pioneer on the prairie.  There was great patriotism and general excitement among the citizenry.

The men drilled frequently, at least once per week, and the Brand School, near present-day Squirrel Hollow Park, was composed of  32 men up to age 25 that served as a company under the leadership of their teacher Azor Mills. The 32 men’s names include ones familiar to current residents – Toliver, Burk, Davis, Myers, Johns, Turpin, as well as Brown.

The State of Iowa, under Governor Samuel Kirkwood who was elected in 1860, called for volunteers to fight for the North.  The still-young state – it had won statehood on December 28, 1846 – provided 70,000.  Of those, 20,000 perished due to battle or illnesses, or infections associated with battle. Among those who went to the war from Greene County, many were iinjured, died of disease or returned home with injuries. Their commander Azor Mills lost the use of his arm after it was struck by a cannon ball.

cemetery-walk-rob-emily-hoyt-as-azor-miranda-mills
School teacher, administrator, military and political leader Azor Mills and his wife Miranda Mills, an early civic leader herself, were portrayed during a 2014 “cemetery walk” in Jefferson by Rob and Emily Hoyt, of Scranton.

In 1861 the population of Greene County was 1,400 persons.  One half of Greene County’s able bodied men wore the blue uniform of the Union Army according to the local history book “Past and Present of Greene County, Iowa,” published in 1907.

That book notes, “…among the pioneers, a good many people who had been born and brought up in the South and hence were not great admirers of the plan to keep the South in the Union. They settled along the ’Coon, adjacent to the timber and when the war was really on, many of them were neutral and some even leaned South in their sympathies.”

An interesting historical fact documented in that history is that on July 4, 1861, at the Independence Day celebration in Jefferson, two full companies of infantry were present.  The Jefferson Company’s uniforms featured trousers with a red stripe down the outer seam.  The other company, from Washington Township, was not fully uniformed, but was well-drilled.  A number of men in the Washington Township unit had no boots suitable to wear at the July 4th celebration, but local Rippey physician Dr. J. C. Lovejoy suggested the barefooted men black their feet.

Onlookers noted the agility demonstrated by the men during their drills.

I came across those fascinating notes of local history during the Civil War when I was searching the internet for recipes that were popular and common back then.  One thing that caught my attention is that troops on both sides of the war carried and ate soda-like crackers.  The soldiers of the South called them “Johnnie Cakes,” while the Union forces called them “Hard Tack.”

They could not have been very tasty by current standards, as the Hard Tack was made of flour, water, and lard, while the Johnnie Cakes were made of cornmeal, milk, lard with a little soda and salt.  Here are the recipes if you’d like to try them:

Hard Tack

2 cups flour
½ cup of water
1 Tablespoon of lard
6 pinches of salt

Johnnie Cakes

2 cups of cornmeal
2/3 cup of milk
2 Tablespoons of lard
2 teaspons of soda
½ teaspoon of salt

Baking instructions: Roll out as a thin dough and bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

The Civil War soldiers were also issued “crackers” during fighting, but reports indicated those had become homes for insects and rodents as they were transported to the front lines.

The pioneer cemeteries of Greene County have the graves of many Civil War veterans.  Be on the lookout for the headstones. During upcoming family gatherings, ask members of the oldest generation who among their ancestors fought in the Civil War. Be certain to determine if they wore the Blue or Gray uniform.

You can comment on this story in the space below here, or write directly to the columnist by email at mweaver235@gmail.com.  The author, who lives outside Rippey, is an active member of the  Greene County Historical Society.

Our historical society needs members (and donations, too!)

JEFFERSON, Iowa, Dec. 7, 2016 — As this year comes to a close and 2017 is set to begin, it’s time to purchase or renew memberships in the Greene County Historical Society. And it’s also a great time to make donations to the society and be able to claim the donations in your income taxes.

Individual memberships are $15, family memberships are $20 and you can really help us by becoming “Friends of the Greene County Historical Society” at the $50 level.  Additional donations are welcomed for any amount, of course.

You can get all the details about memberships and donations — including the new option of making these transactions online on this secure website — by clicking right here.

Greene County Historical Society officers for 2017 are (left to right) past-president Ces Brunow, vice-president & program director Nancy Hanaman, president Dale Hanaman, treasurer Becki Cunningham, executive director Roger Aegerter, and secretary Margaret Hamilton. Elections of the officers and board members were held at the year-end society meeting on Friday, Dec. 2, at the Greenewood Center in Jefferson.
Greene County Historical Society officers for 2017 are (left to right) past-president Ces Brunow, vice-president & program director Nancy Hanaman, president Dale Hanaman, treasurer Becki Cunningham, executive director Roger Aegerter, and secretary Margaret Hamilton.

Chuck Offenburger, a member of the GCHS board of directors, said he “used my credit card and the online payment method to buy our family membership for 2017, primarily just to test the system, and I was amazed how quick and easy it is. People should give it a try, both for memberships and for straight donations.”

And while you are on that memberships/donations page on the website, please take time to read the compelling story by past-president Ces Brunow published there.  Brunow concisely explains just what our organization’s financial obligations and challenges are.

Dale Hanaman, our current president, notes that our membership is very loyal.  “Using the membership list, we have 284 people who are members — people holding individual or family memberships,” he said. “During 2016, all but 37 paid their membership,” which is pretty good in comparison to most organizations that have members.   We figure that the 13 percent who did not pay in 2016 either didn’t get our reminders or just plain forgot.

Hanaman said he has to be aware and a bit concerned that our members include “a large number of people over 60 years of age.  I hope that we are able to attract many new members during this coming year,” and he added that current members can sure help recruit.

“Many of us are business persons, or involved in a community service group or connected to a worshipping community,” Hanaman said.  “And we all have friends and neighbors.  New historical members may come from our own contacts, so our members need to encourage others to join.”

He noted that “the historical society is a group of people wanting to remember our roots, help cherish our various backgrounds, and celebrate our history.  What of your history can we lift up and give thanks?”

We typically attract 50 to 60 people to the monthly historical programs we have April thru December.  We strive to make those programs informative, interesting and even entertaining.  And we make them accessible, too, as we schedule them into churches or other meeting facilities around Greene County.  The programs, over the year, span a wide variety of interests.  In addition, we feature up to a half-dozen special feature programs that are typically held at our historical museum in Jefferson, and those programs often attract more than 100 people.

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    How many courthouse structures have been built on the site of the current Greene County Courthouse?

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    There have been three courthouses built where the Greene County Courthouse stands today.  Ground was broken on the current courthouse in November of 1915, the cornerstone was set in May 1916 and the new building was dedicated in October of 1917. The centennial celebration of the courthouse is already underway, with events being planned by the “Courthouse 100” committee, with support from the Greene County Historical Society.  You can learn more about the courthouse history and the celebration plans on the Facebook page “Courthouse 100: Greene County, Iowa.”

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