TOCWOC – A Civil War Blog

Author: Fred Ray

  • Short Takes

    Other projects and an upcoming family reunion haven’t left much time for blogging, but I’ll try to scribble off a few words tonite. Had dinner with fellow author John Fox the other nite at one of Asheville’s brew pubs, Jack of the Wood (highly recommended). John, who runs Angle Valley Press,  is finishing up his […]

  • National Firearms Museum

    One place I forgot to mention in my previous post was the National Firearms Museum, which is certainly worth a visit any time you’re in the DC area. Located with the National Rifle Association headquarters at Fairfax, VA, the museum features thousands of firearms of all types from all periods, including the Civil War. Featured […]

  • On to Richmond

    I was in Richmond last week speaking to the Richmond Civil War Round Table and of course visiting various book stores and museums. The talk was memorable—I was about halfway through the presentation when BOOM! there was a huge clap of thunder and the lights went out. For a time we really did feel we’d […]

  • Civil War “sniper” training

    I received a request for comment on Civil War “sniper” training as compared to WWI: We’re trying to piece together a longitudinal picture of civil war sniper training and contrast that with U.S. sniper training during WW I.   Our focus is on what is learned; then lost over given periods of time. The short answer […]

  • Joseph Whitworth video

    Bill Adams sends along the url for a short feature on Sir Joseph Whitworth, concentrating more on Whitworth’s personality (rather prickly) and inventions (the micrometer, among others). The narrator’s knowledge of firearms and things military is marginal, as where he says that the British Army should have adopted it and that it would have given […]

  • Short Takes

    Real world has been intruding again, leaving little time for blogging. Nevertheless… A group of academics, some of them historians, urged President Obama not to lay a wreath at the Confederate memorial in Arlington on Memorial Day. One of them was James McPherson. Now my opinion of McP has been declining for a while, as […]

  • Drummers and Musicians

    You never know where you’ll stumble across Civil War material. I came across some interesting info at the National Music Museum, which has a short bio of Avery Brown, said to be the youngest man (boy?) to enlist during the war. Although they seldom rate a mention, musicians were an important part of the army. […]