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Library Jewel #3: Official records of Union, Confederate armies

Library Jewel #3: Official records of Union, Confederate armies

(Image courtesy of Washington State Library) The third and final State Library Jewel for May is timely since the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War was recognized this spring: official records of the Union and Confederate armies, as found in the United States Congressional Serial Set. Here is an excerpt regarding the two-volume atlas from which the Gettysburg map shown above is found: “The atlas of the Official records consists of maps of battlefields, cities and their…

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Archives Treasure #3: Stevens’ 1860 Colt Army model

Archives Treasure #3: Stevens’ 1860 Colt Army model

The third Archives Treasure for February is the Colt Army Model handgun owned by Hazard Stevens, the son of Isaac Stevens, the first governor of Washington Territory. The younger Stevens enrolled in Harvard College in 1860, but left at age 19 to join the Union Army during the Civil War. He fought in the Battle of Fredericksburg and served in the Battle of Fort Hunger, for which he received the Medal of Honor. After the war, Hazard Stevens moved to…

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John Wilkes Booth and the Socialist

John Wilkes Booth and the Socialist

From the desk of Steve Willis, Central Library Services Program Manager of the Washington State Library William H. Packer was probably among the last living Civil War veterans in Washington State. In his eventful life he was able to strut and fret his hour upon the stage alongside Edwin and John Wilkes Booth, serve in the Union Army, and help found a Socialist Utopian community in Washington State. Changing his surname from Packard to Packer in order to avoid detection from…

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Library jewel #3: Poem about former Territorial Gov. Stevens

Library jewel #3: Poem about former Territorial Gov. Stevens

Besides being Washington Territory’s first governor and a major factor in the creation of the Territorial Library in 1853, Isaac Stevens also was a brigadier general in the Civil War until he was shot and killed at the Battle of Chantilly in northern Virginia on Sept. 1, 1862. This poem about Stevens following his death is the third and final Library jewel for September. The poem was found in a Bible that was once owned by Hazard Stevens, son of…

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The Civil War’s Youngest Soldier

The Civil War’s Youngest Soldier

Random News from the Newspapers on Microfilm Collection: The Civil War’s Youngest Soldier Although this article was found entirely at random, I do have some history with this case. So some of the information was already filed away at home, but I could’ve easily found it here at the Washington State Library if I wanted to invest some time researching. The newspaper in Montesano, Washington known today as The Vidette has a long genealogy of titles going all the way…

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April 12: A painful date in U.S. history

April 12: A painful date in U.S. history

Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen a lot of media coverage and discussion about the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War. In fact, the war began on this day in 1861 when Confederate troops fired on Fort Sumter in South Carolina. What many people might not realize is that April 12 is also the date when President Franklin D. Roosevelt died in Georgia in 1945, just a few months before World War II ended. Roosevelt, our…

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Check out our new exhibit

Check out our new exhibit

There’s a new, privately funded exhibit being featured in the front lobby of the Secretary of State’s executive office. It showcases Isaac Stevens, who was Washington’s first territorial governor and later was a general in the Civil War before he was killed in action. The exhibit is in line with the 150th anniversary of the start of the Civil War.  The exhibit will be up until next February.

WSL Updates for March 31, 2011

WSL Updates for March 31, 2011

Volume 7, March 31, 2011 for the WSL Updates mailing list Topics include: 1) RESOURCE SHARING GRANT Q&A SESSION 2) FIRST TUESDAYS – SEARCH THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES 3) FUNDING FOR LIBRARY SUPPORT STAFF CERTIFICATION 4) NEW YORK TIMES AVAILABLE THROUGH LIBRARIES 5) MAKING SENSE OF THE CIVIL WAR 6) CE OPPORTUNITIES NEXT WEEK (SOME FREE, SOME NOT)