'Painting the Past': At Monocacy National Battlefield on Saturday, bring your inner artist and paint toy soldiers in any scheme you desire. (You have to sign up first)

The forecast Saturday for Monocacy National Battlefield in Maryland is chilly with a certainty of indoor fun for those who come to paint toy soldiers.

“Painting the Past” is scheduled for 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the park near Frederick, with a repeat at the same time on Feb. 8. Participants are asked to be 10 or above and register ahead of time, as rangers limit the sessions to 18 at a time. (See bottom of this post for details)

All paints, brushes and other supplies are provided and participants can take their creations home.

The sessions were launched as an annual winter program in 2018, park ranger Matt Borders told the Picket. The idea was to have an indoor program to draw people to the battlefield during quieter winter months.

“The program looks at the wide range of uniforms in the American Civil War and encourages guests to paint up a toy soldier in whatever sort of uniform they envision,” said Borders.

The park provides infantry soldiers, as it was the largest branch in the service.

There was a wide variety of color used for uniforms, including flamboyant pantaloons and short jackets worn by Zouaves.

“As for the program, we have had everything from standard blue and gray, bright red and camo green,” said Borders.

Guests have painted soldiers with U.S. Colored Troops and even a memorial soldier with both gray and blue elements to their uniform, representing the modern 29^th Division, the "Blue & Gray Division." 

“For those doing dedicated Federal and Confederate forces, it has always been pretty much evenly split.”

Borders will display replica uniforms (right) for attendees to see and feel and discuss aspects of camp life.

Participants also will learn about soldier painting as a hobby for both display and gaming. 

“We use the larger 54mm plastic models now. These are the sort of plastic soldiers you can find pretty much anywhere, including in our shop here at Monocacy National Battlefield,” said the ranger.

“This event does tend to attract a few more young people, but we have had many adults enjoy this program as well,” said Borders.

At Monocacy on July 9, 1864, outnumbered Federals delayed Confederates bent on taking Washington, D.C. By the time Rebel troops reached the capital’s outskirts, Union reinforcements had arrived. 

All photos Monocacy National Battlefield

To register for "Painting the Past," contact the park at mono_mail@nps.gov or 301-662-3515 to let the staff know how many participants will attend.

Kennesaw's Wallis house and Civil War signal station: Georgia Tech student creates 3D drawings to help in new interpretation of field hospital, HQ site

The side and front of the closed Wallis house (Picket photos) and Union Maj, Gen. O.O. Howard

Maj. Gen. Oliver O. Howard made a wise choice by picking the Josiah Wallis house for his headquarters during the Union advance on Kennesaw Mountain in Georgia. Rising near the circa 1853 dwelling is Harriston Hill, which was a perfect spot for a signal station because of its sweeping view of the valley leading to the Confederate lines atop the mountain.

The Wallis House, which served as a field hospital for both sides in June 1864, survives today. though it is in pretty rough condition. Harriston Hill, also known as Signal Hill, includes remnants of Confederate earthworks. Now part of Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park, the two sites – separated by a subdivision -- await new use. The park says they can add a largely missing element: interpreting to visitors the Federal strategy at the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain.

There’s a lot of work being conducted before that goal is accomplished.

A master of architecture candidate at Georgia Tech in Atlanta has used LiDar (remote sensing technology) and a drone to create a model of the Wallis House for the National Park Service, which operates the park. He is wrapping up drawings for use in a historic structure report (HSR) that will be completed by the park next spring and used as a launching point on recommendations for use of the properties.

The two marked park parcels at left, features of the Wallis house at right (NPS, click to enlarge)

“Any time you have a chance to get to know a building is exciting, to understand it’s story a little more,” said Danielle Willkens, an associate professor of architecture at Georgia Tech. “You are on hallowed ground and that is palpable. There is another level of responsibility attached to the site.”

Willkens and student Thomas Bordeaux have been working with Suzanne Roche, the park’s first archaeologist. She told the Picket officials would like to see the two-bedroom Wallis house available to park visitors at some point, but it will require repairs and upgrades.

“Everyone is excited about having this house,” Roche said during a recent phone call. “They (park rangers) have been incorporating some interpretive information in their talks.”

It took years to protect and transfer site to park service

The Georgia Tech survey and a November 2021 NPS cultural landscape report on the Wallis farm and Signal Hill have brought new energy to the site, which has largely been out of the headlines in recent years.

The Wallis house was in “imminent danger” of being demolished, according to an NPS official who provided a statement to Congress in June 2010 in support of enlarging the park to include the sites. A developer had purchased 27 acres, including Harriston Hill and the Wallis homestead, in 2002, according to the official. 

Charlie Crawford, president emeritus of the Georgia Battlefields Association, recalls arguing against a rezoning for much of Signal Hill. “Although the Wallis house parcel was not part of the rezoning application, I said that the house and Signal Hill were both parts of a whole, both contributing to the site’s significant history.”

Working with the Cobb Land Trust, the Cobb County government acquired seven acres from the developer, including the farm and hill. About 43 homes are in the subdivision.

The land was donated to the federal park years later, in 2019, after Congress finally permitted expansion of the boundaries. (At left, entrance to the subdivision, Picket photo). The Covid crisis slowed action in 2020.

“I certainly agree this has been a long struggle,” Crawford told the Picket in an email.

“The inherent problem is making the building safe to visit (and up to code on electric, plumbing, HVAC) while still restoring its historical appearance.”

The house is off-limits, but that may change one day

Today, the setting is hardly bucolic. Cars whizz by on two busy highways – Burnt Hickory Road and Ernest W. Barrett Parkway – and the 41-home subdivision separates the Wallis house and Signal Hill. The park has no trespassing signs around the house, which is largely obscured by trees and vegetation. It allows no visitors to the property, citing safety and security concerns. Walking along Burnt Hickory is not recommended.

The 2021 cultural landscape report details ways to interpret the sites. At Signal Hill, some of the trees could be thinned so that visitors could get a view of Big and Little Kennesaw mountains. A trail to the entrenchments, which need to be stabilized, and other features could be built, along with interpretive markers. The Wallis farm could feature an outdoor education area, parking, restroom and signs.

The clash at Kennesaw Mountain was a costly, but brief setback during the Federal advance on Atlanta. Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman, commander of Union forces, was at the Wallis house during the Battle of Kolb’s Farm to the south.

Park and local officials are hoping the home can tell several stories, possibly featuring an exhibit on the role of African-American soldiers and civilians during the Civil War.

“General Howard is an important historical figure because of his successful leadership on the battlefield and his post-Civil War support of former slaves as head of the Freedmen's Bureau and founder of Howard University,” says the NPS.

His grandpa got tired of relic collectors

The Wallis house has been vacant for more than two decades. The site includes the home, original well and remains of two chicken coops and a smokehouse.

Commentary on a Historical Marker Database page about the dwelling includes a description by a Georgia man who said his grandfather acquired the land in the 1940s or 1950s.

“At the time of the purchase there were still doors inside the home with damage from a small skirmish fought on the property and within the home itself. Many floor boards were missing, and the house was in a general state of disrepair,” wrote Martin Jordan.

“It was not uncommon at all during the ‘60s and on for my grandfather to have to chase off relic seekers from the property surrounding the house, which was lined with trenches and earthworks,” Jordan added.

They don't build 'em like they used to

Willkens, the Georgia Tech professor, said the project has provided an ideal way for students to engage in preservation work. Bordeaux spent several days scanning the site, which was “very difficult” because of tree cover. The lack of other historic buildings nearby provided challenges on context.

Willkens (right) describes the house as a standard vernacular cottage, though its construction is a bit of a mystery. She thought at first it may have been a gable and saltbox style, but that is not the case. “It has some atypical arrangements.”

For some reason, the builders did not remove a massive tree stump before construction, she said.

The team took paint samples, ascertaining the original colors and is working with experts at the Smithsonian Institution to learn more about wood used in the dilapidated building.

“That house was probably built a lot better than something built five years ago,” said Willkens. “They have old growth trees, some additional redundancy in the structure.”

Postwar additions include a kitchen, laundry room, bathroom and back porch. Roche said no decision has been made about their fate, though the 2021 report suggests removing modern features.

The park would not provide photos of the home’s interior or Georgia Tech’s model and drawings, saying it wants to be careful in disseminating information and to safeguard the integrity of the site. Roche would not speak to the condition of the house. “You can walk inside it.”

The archaeologist and Willkens believe the structure can be saved.

Next steps in making the idea a reality

As stated earlier, the effort to save the house, give it permanent protection and have it help tell the story of the Atlanta Campaign is a long one.

A 1953 Wallis house marker along busy Burnt Hickory Road (Picket photo)

Cobb County, just northwest of Atlanta, for years saw an incredible housing boom and development. While that was a boon for newcomers, preservationists and historians decried the loss of Civil War sites or land to development.

Now there’s an opportunity to offer something new in the telling of the battle.

“We are excited things are going on at the house,” said Roche. NPS historians visited the site just last week.

Much remains to be done. An engineer will need to study the feasibility of making repairs and restoring the Wallis house to its wartime appearance.

Thousands of cars travel past the house each day (Picket photo)

And officials will need to consider the cost of the project, its risks (concerns about vandalism) and rewards (enhanced interpretation). Major improvements on both sites could run into the millions of dollars. One feature now in place is a parking lot at the entrance of the subdivision allowing access to Signal Hill.

All of this will go in to the historic structure report (HSR), which is an involved process involving a lot of back and forth. “When we receive the recommendations from the HSR on how to proceed with either rehabilitation or restoration of the house, we will release the plans to the public for comment,” said Roche.

The archaeologist said acquiring such a historical treasure this many years later is not common, “which is why it is exciting.”

“We are really excited about hopefully being able to interpret this to the public,” said Roche.

Hands-on learning: These artifacts may not be eligible for the museum, but they still have a lot to teach Kennesaw Mountain park visitors about the Civil War

Several items from the federal park's education collection (KMNBP)

If an item is under glass at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park’s museum and visitor center, you can be sure provenance has been proven and it has a firm connection to the June 1864 fighting there or the Atlanta Campaign.

Many artifacts found on trails or donated to the park don’t meet that standard. But that’s OK – they can still educate visitors during interpretive programs and field trips.

I asked Jake Boling, a Kennesaw Mountain park ranger and education coordinator, for a little more detail after a  #MuseumMonday social media post about the education collection.

Boling stressed a museum-level item needs to have historic context, including a specific location and chain of custody.

“A good example of this is when a visitor brings in a box full of Minie balls that they found in their basement, which could be from any Civil War site,” Boling said in an email. “We would not be interested in the Minie balls for our museum collection, but they could be a useful educational tool.”

Unlike items at the museum, artifacts in the education collection can often be touched and held by visitors.

The North Georgia park posted a photograph (above) with many items of that type: three pocket Bibles, shell fragments on either side of a 12-pound solid shot, and at bottom, an Enfield round, musket ball and a Minie ball round.  (While all of the artifacts in the photo are original, some used for interpretation are reproductions.)

The Bibles are examples of those commonly carried by soldiers in the field, wrote Boling.

The shell fragments come various types of explosive artillery rounds. The solid cannon ball would have been used with a 12 pound, smoothbore Napoleon cannon. The Enfield round would have been used in Enfield rifles, whereas the Mine ball would have most likely been used in a Springfield model rifled musket, he said. The round ball could have been used in a number of different smoothbore muskets. 

Artifacts in the education collection are shown in a variety of programs. Sometimes, they are taken off-site.

“Broadly, these items help our interpretive audience actually feel and hold (in some cases) a piece of history. While we may not have the specifics on the when and where of these items, being able to feel the weight of a cannonball or the sharp edges of an artillery shell can facilitate a connection with the resources here,” said Boling. 

Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park is putting on 160^th anniversary programming this month. Events include hikes, music and infantry, artillery and signal corps demonstrations.

Vandals target six signs, earthworks and wood fencing along trail leading to summit at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park

Vandals destroyed or damaged six signs, several sections of split-rail fencing and caused minor damage to Civil War earthworks, said officials at Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park northwest of Atlanta.

Hikers on the Kennesaw Mountain Trail discovered the damage last Saturday morning, said Ray Hamel, chief of interpretation at the park.

“There were no reports of vandalism from visitors or NPS personnel when the park closed Friday evening,” he said in an email.

The destruction extended from approximately halfway up the mountain trail to the summit. (NPS photo at left)

Regarding the small section of earthworks:

“The damage was limited to a single small section of earthworks and appears to have been caused by foot traffic. This section was occupied by Confederate troops, Walthall’s Division, Loring’s Corps,” Hamel said.  

“The incident is under investigation,” the ranger said. “The park will make the repairs.” There are no cameras on that portion of the trail.

The park is asking with any information about the trail damage to call 770-427-4686, ext. 0.

One of a half dozen signs targeted by vandals (NPS photo)

There have been instances of minor vandalism in the past at Kennesaw Mountain.

In 2021, someone tried to set the Illinois Monument ablaze. A lewd image was carved into the stone, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. The grave marking of an unknown soldier and a tombstone for a Union soldier were also vandalized.

Park superintendent Patrick Gammon at the time said: "It’s really sad to see something like this happen because we have to remember our past, remember those who fought for our country.”

A jumble of split-rail fencing at the Kennesaw summit (NPS photo)

Another Civil War site reported this week announced criminal activity.

Manassas National Battlefield Park in Northern Virginia said Thursday it was investigating the theft of a bronze plaque in a parking lot near Groveton Confederate Cemetery.

The marker was placed in 1928 by the Virginia Battlefield Markers Association.

A giant oak at the Resaca battlefield in NW Georgia was a thing of beauty. Now the witness tree is gone, a victim of time and a storm

Tree in better days, after storm, reduced to stump, a writing in the wood (Friends of Resaca)

An imposing witness tree that greeted visitors to Resaca Battlefield Historic Site in northwest Georgia is gone, lost to weather and old age.

Ken Padgett with the Friends of Resaca said the oak was only about 10 years old during the May 13-15, 1864, Battle of Resaca, the second-bloodiest of the Atlanta Campaign. A Georgia Department of Natural Resources employee performed a drilling of the tree in about 2014 and came up with the estimate, he said.

The friends group recently posted photos of the stump and said a storm last year finished off the oak, which was showing signs of decay.

“She was a beautiful tree,” one Facebook commenter said. “The field looked bare yesterday without her, even though it needed to be done.”

Before it was recently cut up and hauled away, portions of the tree were propped up and it was a safety risk to the public, according to Tony Patton of the friends group.

Much of the western part of the battlefield is contained within the park, which is bordered by Interstate 75.

The spot where the tree was located is approximately where the Union’s 20th Corps and the 14th Corps overlapped, said Patton (in Friends of Resaca photo).

Federal units attacked the Confederate line on May 14, and Hooker’s 20th Corps supported Palmer’s 14th Corps in the Camp Creek area near the witness tree. (See American Battlefield Trust map below for details on units)

The once-proud oak had broken limbs after a 2022 storm (Friends of Resaca)

Patton said it’s difficult to pin down specific units that attacked near the oak but the 102^nd Illinois of the 20^th Corps was there a short time before it was “pulled out and sent around to the north end of the battlefield to help repel the Confederate attack on the afternoon of the 14th.” The regiment fought through the end of the Atlanta Campaign and was in combat in South Carolina and North Carolina at war's end.

Carlin’s brigade within the 14^th Corps was in that part of the field much of the day. 

There are impressive accounts of the 21^st  Wisconsin Infantry, which had recruits from the Oneida tribe, according to Patton.

The Federal assault on the Confederate right-center (Cleburne, Bate and Hindman) petered out around 3 p.m., “having achieved nothing but casualties,” according to the American Battlefield Trust.

Fighting continued the next day but the battle proved to be inconclusive.

There was one result: The South’s Joseph E. Johnston was forced to retreat from the field due to a wide flanking maneuver by William T. Sherman.

Resaca Battlefield Historic Site in Gordon County contains significant remnants of Rebel earthworks, including an impressive length of trenches visible on the Red Battlefield Trail (Signs point out metal detectors are banned and artifacts cannot be removed).

Patton said a witness tree on the Blue Battlefield Trail survives.

Northwest Georgia is replete with Civil War sites, and the Resaca area includes the park, a Confederate cemetery in the town, Fort Wayne and an annual battle reenactment on a separate property.

“The attendance is great by both local recreation users and history buffs alike,” Padgett said of the historic site a few years back. “We have hosted many tour groups from around the South and had many national visitors.”

(Note: To see where the witness tree was located at Resaca Battlefield Historic Site, click the map and see the red arrow west of River Battlefield Trail)

Witness trees still can be found in many Civil War battlefields, including Gettysburg and Manassas, where the park suggests soldiers got under the leaves for shade or rested by leaning on a trunk.

The National Park Service also has a protection program at historic sites in the Washington, D.C., area, including the White House and National Mall.

The witness flora “provide essential context and markers on battlefields, allowing us to better identify where parts of chaotic battles occurred,” says the American Battlefield Trust. “The trees, like the land we save, have seen things we cannot imagine, and bear the marks of those events.”

Patton puts the situation at Resaca succinctly:

”It's very tragic that another piece of history is gone.”

Ole Miss researcher to study African-American experience at Vicksburg

For the next two years, University of Mississippi history instructor Beth Kruse will live and work in Vicksburg, delving into the untold story of Black Americans in the tumultuous Civil War South.  The National Park Service Mellon Humanities Postdoctoral Fellowship has named 15 postdoctoral fellows to tell a more inclusive story of American history. Kruse will piece together the history of African Americans living in and around Vicksburg between the Civil War and Reconstruction. Kruse will examine widow and orphan pension letters and other documents from African American soldiers who died in the war and are buried in Vicksburg National Cemetery. She will also gather stories from families who are descendants. -- Article

Wreath is placed in Pickett's Mill ravine where a US flag finial was found. Hundreds of Union soldiers died nearby in artillery slaughter

An honor guard Saturday above a ravine where flag finial was found (Picket photo)

On a gorgeous late spring day, about 40 people and I walked single file down a trail in Paulding County, Ga. Sun pored through the trees as we made a gentle descent, a deep and breathtaking ravine to our right.

This might have been on any other morning a carefree trek away from worry and traffic congestion in metro Atlanta. But Saturday was no normal day – it was the 159^th anniversary of the Civil War’s Battle of Pickett’s Mill. And hundreds of Union soldiers died in that ravine on May 27, 1864.

A few minutes earlier, at the Pickett's Mill park museum, visitors got an overview of the slaughter. We then set out for a wreath-laying ceremony at the spot where a finial, the top of a U.S. flag carried in the battle, was found in 1963 at the bottom of the ravine. The flag topper, which sits in a case in the visitor center, was the star of the program Saturday. It's the first new exhibit at the park in years, staffers said.

**Photo gallery of Saturday's events at Pickett's Mill**

John Hoomes, curator preservationist and interpretive ranger at Pickett’s Mill Battlefield, said the scene must have been horrific as canister from two Confederate artillery pieces tore into the Federal soldiers who climbed the ravine in the second futile attack. Several color bearers, who were defenseless, were shot down.

Each regiment in the Union army had two sets of colors, one the U.S. flag and the other a regimental flag. These banners were sacred -- a point of pride and a means of leading and rallying men amid the chaos of combat.

The enemy always shot at color bearers and tried to seize flags. The Pickett's Mill finial is believed to have been put on an American flag.

The finial at Pickett's Mill likely belonged to an Ohio or Indiana regiment.

“As you walk down entering the ravine, you are entering the deadliest part of the battlefield,” Hoomes said.

My photos can’t begin to show just how deep the ravine is and the height those unfortunate men in Col. William H. Gibson’s brigade had to scale. The wreath was placed near the bottom of the ravine and a creek. I felt it was too steep for my knees and ankles, so I did not venture that far down. (At right, local historian Michael Hitt points to the Federals' objective.)

After the ceremony, we walked back up to the approximate location of where two Confederate cannons rained hell down the ravine in 1864. One of them, a bronze 12-pounder howitzer that was part of Confederate Capt. Thomas Key’s battery, is on display in the visitor center (see above). The original 780-pound barrel sits on a reproduction carriage.

The howitzer was cast in Boston by Cyrus Alger & Co. in 1851 for the Arkansas Military Institute. The number 9 is stamped on its muzzle face and the cannon is marked with an eagle and globe.

Capt. Key and his Arkansas four-gun battery played a large part in the Confederate victory. Maj. Gen. Patrick Cleburne ordered Key to place two guns to the right oblique to enfilade a ravine.

Federal troops under Maj. Gen. William Hazen and Gibson charged uphill in their futile attempt to take the top of a ridge. Key’s howitzers were ready for them.

“They shot solid shot and canister. And that was 48 balls per (canister) round,” Stephen Briggs, then interim director at Pickett’s Mill, told me in 2016. The battery fired 182 rounds of spherical case and canister in two hours, he said.

Crew prepares to fire reproduction howitzer on Saturday (Picket photo)

The Federal army suffered 1,600 casualties at the battle, compared to 500 for the South. The advance on Atlanta was delayed about a week. 

On Saturday, a reenactor artillery crew was firing blanks. Key’s Battery, associated with the Friends of Pickett’s Mill Battlefield, drilled and fired a reproduction cannon as park visitors held fingers to their ears. Activities elsewhere in the park included musket firing and a demonstration of camp life.

Tommy Carter with the finial he pulled from the ground (Picket photo)

The finial is in the visitor center museum. An interpretive panel had not arrived by Saturday but should be put up soon. For years, the finial was on a trophy stand and used as a book weight in the park library. Until last year, it was thought to possibly be a reproduction, but experts are now saying it is genuine.

Tommy Carter (above) of New Hope, Ga., was reunited with the finial for the first time since he and a cousin dug it up in the ravine in 1963. (It’s important to note that this was private property at the time, about 10 years before the state began acquiring land for the park and later prohibited such activity.)

The original Key's Battery cannon is only a few feet away from the finial exhibit. “That could be the cannon that hit that finial three times,” said Hoomes.

Where eagles dare: Bronze bird was atop a U.S. flag during a doomed, but heroic Union assault at Georgia's Pickett's Mill. It's now on display

The bronze eagle finial now on exhibit at Pickett's Mill (Georgia DNR)

For about 25 years, a small bronze eagle sat on the library shelf at Pickett’s Mill Battlefield outside Atlanta. It was a bit of a curiosity. The bird’s feet were missing, one wing was broken and the other was turned inward. It was affixed, oddly, to a trophy stand.

Staff members and volunteers thought the weathered finial – an ornament placed on the top of a flag – might be a reproduction. But they couldn’t find a donation slip to help explain the story.

Now, after a finial expert weighed in and a park staff member began extensive research, officials and experts are saying this eagle isn’t a fake. Rather, they say, it earned its current condition while under fire at the Battle of Pickett’s Mill on May 27, 1864, when attacking Union regiments poured into a ravine and were pulverized by Confederate artillery and rifles.

The Federal finial will be formally unveiled to the public Saturday during the anniversary commemoration of the battle in Paulding County, Ga. Afterward, a wreath-laying ceremony will take place in the ravine where the flag topper was found in November 1963, just a few days before the JFK assassination. (See coverage here of Saturday's event)

“Next to the original cannon that sits in the museum, (the finial) is one of the rarest artifacts that could be found from any Civil War battlefield,” says John Hoomes, curator preservationist and interpretive ranger at Pickett’s Mill. “Especially the eagle finials. They are the rarest.”

A portion of the ravine where the finial was found at Pickett's Mill (Georgia DNR)

Pickett’s Mill is one of the best-preserved Civil War sites in the country, with its famous ravine and remains of artillery emplacements and earthworks.

Hoomes says his research on the finial over the past year has been like solving a mystery. “I was a skeptic. I didn’t think it was the real thing.”

The dedication and battle anniversary fittingly fall on the Memorial Day weekend.

“People actually fought and died there for an idea, no matter which side the dreamer was on,” says finial expert Del Thomasson. “The eagle tells a story with every crease, bend, break, that someone held it high and was willing to give their life for that dream and idea.”

It was an honorable and dangerous job

Our story begins 159 years ago as Confederate troops parried Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman’s army as he marched on Atlanta. Sherman learned some tough lessons when he tried to flank and push back his foe at Pickett’s Mill as he moved on Atlanta.

Troops under Union Maj. Gen. O.O. Howard clashed with those of Maj. Gen. Patrick Cleburne, fighting at extremely close quarters. The Federals – most Midwestern regiments -- charged down ravines and uphill against the Confederates. At least 700 of the men in blue died and the advance on Atlanta was delayed a week. The Union suffered about 1,600 total casualties in the slaughter, compared to the South's 500. 

Each regiment had two sets of colors, one the U.S. flag and the other a regimental flag. These banners were sacred -- a point of pride and a means of leading and rallying men amid the chaos of combat. The enemy always shot at color bearers and tried to seize flags. The Pickett's Mill finial is believed to have been put on an American flag.

“Carrying the colors into battle was an honor and privilege, as well as a dangerous job. Those that carried the colors needed to be courageous,” according to a page on Connecticut history. “The flags also symbolized national and regional pride for the soldiers as they went into battle.” (Sketch at left a quartermaster color bearer by Alfred Waud, Library of Congress)

Hoomes tells the Picket the location of the finial discovery in the 1960s lines up with the movement of a brigade led by Col. William H. Gibson. Among the five regiments were the 49^th Ohio and the 32^nd Indiana.

In his memoirs, Confederate Pvt. William J. Oliphant, who served in Granbury’s Texas brigade, recalled the charge of an Indiana unit. It’s quite possible it was the 32^nd. Oliphant said the attackers almost reached their lines before being forced back.

“The color bearer of the regiment fell with his colors, instantly another siezed [sic] the flag and held it aloft only to fall dead. Again and again it was raised until six brave men yielded up their lives in trying to keep it flying. The sixth man fell with the flag in front of our company and only about ten or twelve feet from us. There it lay a prize within our grasp. I could have reached it with a single bound but thought as it was already ours, I would wait until their line had been completely driven back before picking it up. When the Indiana regiment broke and fell back for the last time, leaving their flag on the ground at our feet, one of the brave fellows turned, and seeing it was being left behind, threw down his gun, came back and picked it up. He straightened himself to his full height, gritted his teeth and flapped his flag in our faces. Instantly a half dozen rifles were leveled on him and in another moment he too would have fallen riddled with bullets, but just then one of our boys cried out "don't shoot him, he's too brave." We lowered our rifles and gave him a cheer as he carried his flag safely away.”

Postwar illustration of Pickett's Mill by famed artist Alfred Waud 

Hoomes says he believes the finial in the park’s collection was on the flag of either the 32^nd Indiana or 49^th Ohio. “Of all the units, they had the heaviest casualties.”

Josh Headlee, curator and historic preservation specialist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, prepared the finial for the exhibit. The accompanying interpretive text does not specify a regiment because of uncertainty.

“It was found in the area of the regiments in question and there is a high probability that it is from one of those regiments, but as you surely well know, during those heated battles projectiles, dirt, and debris were flying all over the place and it’s not inconceivable that it landed there after being blown there from further down the line,” Headlee says. “So I’d say that we are better than 90% sure, but not enough to (definitively) pin it to a particular regiment.”

'We found a bunch of stuff'

Tommy Carter grew up near Pickett’s Mill and lives in New Hope, site of another clash during the Atlanta Campaign. Carter and a cousin, Hubert Rackley, often searched for Civil War relics in the area.

Finial in 2022 when it was on a trophy stand (Del Thomasson and Georgia DNR)

He told the Picket he was 9 years old when he and Rackley, both descendants of the Malachiah Pickett family, went to the ravine in November 1963 with a minesweeper. They had permission to be there, Hoomes says.

(It’s important to note that this was private property at the time, about 10 years before the state began acquiring land for the park and later prohibited such activity. Federal and state park officials always remind visitors to not disturb cultural resources on public land; they can face charges.)

“We found a bunch of stuff that day,” says Carter. “That eagle was the main one. We found it in a creek near where the rocks were.” The artifact was lying on its side, about six inches down, he said. The feathers were caked with dirt.

Maj. Gen. William B. Hazen, who led a large brigade at Pickett’s Mill, took shelter behind a large rock about 50 yards away. Noted veteran and author Ambrose Bierce (right) was with Hazen and later wrote a caustic account of the futile Federal attack entitled “The Crime at Pickett’s Mill.”

Carter and Dennis Deal, a collector friend, believe the finial to be authentic and the same one found in 1963. Deal, also of New Hope, said Rackley showed him the artifact years ago. “I knew he found it and I (saw) it in his collection.”

Deal – who was not present at the discovery of the finial -- says he is in awe of the courage of the trapped Union soldiers and flag bearers at Pickett’s Mill. “It was really bad for the Yankees.”

Last year, Deal and Carter traveled to the ravine with park officials to discuss the finial and its location.

A book weight or perhaps a trophy

Flag topper expert Thomasson of Ringgold, Ga., was at a relic show in early 2022 when a volunteer at Pickett’s Mill came up and mentioned the finial sitting on the shelf. The volunteer, a member of the Friends of Picket’s Mill Battlefield, apparently believed the item was a reproduction and later sent photos.

Thomasson reached out to an eagle finials expert, relic collectors and, eventually, park officials.

Thomasson, who has a similar eagle in his collection, told them he believed the Pickett’s Mill item to be authentic.

“I thought it was a trophy or some kind of memorial. I did not know what it was. My boss at the time said it was like a book weight,” Hoomes says. Before it was remounted for the exhibit, the eagle was on a stand saying it was from the battle. The top line read "Federal Flag Staff Eagle."

Thomasson, the author of “Flagstaff Finials Toppers & Ferrules of the American Civil War,” paid a visit to Paulding County in March 2022. He visited the ravine and officials compared the Pickett’s Mill bird to a similar one in his collection.

Thomasson says the eagle likely belonged to an Ohio regiment, but it’s possible an Indiana unit carried it.

The position of Gibson's brigade (center) as it moved to attack (Georgia DNR)

After looking at accounts and hearing from Carter, Hoomes believes the finial to be battle-damaged and was carried during the second attack wave -- men under Gibson, not Hazen.

Bierce wrote of the attack: “Our brave color-bearers were now all in the forefront of battle in the open, for the enemy had cleared a space in front of his breastworks. They held the colors erect, shook out their glories, waved them forward and back to keep them spread, for there was no wind. From where I stood, at the right of the line -- we had “halted and formed,” indeed -- I could see six of our flags at one time. Occasionally one would go down, only to be instantly lifted by other hands.”

Carter took him to the site and there was a metal stake and orange ribbon nearby, Hoomes says. Someone, not an archaeologist, marked the site, the ranger says. If an archaeologist did not record the find, it does raise a question of provenance.

“I am convinced that it is real. I am convinced it is the one that Tommy and his (cousin) dug up.”

The evidence of authenticity adds up, he says

Some of the eagle finials in Wilson's collection (Courtesy of Kyle Wilson)

For his part, Thomasson contacted Kyle Wilson, an expert and collector of eagle finials.

Finials were made of higher quality material early in the Civil War, and makers included Tiffany and Co. and Cairns & Brother, both based in New York. Wilson, who lives in Lebanon, Illinois, told the Picket he is not certain who made the Pickett’s Mill finial.

He says the artifact is made of bronze and has remnants of gold gilding. The whole item, complete with mounting, would weigh up to two pounds. It was a solid piece and strongly attached to the wooden pole.

Wilson says the Pickett’s Mill wing could have been intentionally folded by its bearer so that it would not snag on overhanging tree branches, but he is not certain. The patina, evidence of oxidation and wear indicate the finial is real and that it was in ground for decades. “You can see wear where it was carried.”

Typical components of an eagle finial (Courtesy of Kyle Wilson)

And, he says, there are no known reproductions of the eagles. The manufacturing process was complicated and some were in three pieces, held together by soldering. A ball was attached to the feet and then attached to a base on top of the flag pole.

“It probably got blown off the staff by canister or possibly by a round ball,” he says. “I am 100 percent sure it was shot right off the pole,” instead of breaking off when the color bearer fell or dropped it.

It’s possible the flag was from an Indiana regiment. But, Wilson says, “If I was a gambling man, I would have to say it was Ohio. You see a lot more in Ohio.”

Hoomes said he hoped a metallurgical analysis would have been conducted to see what kind of shot hit the finial and broke off the wing, but that was not done.

'They bore witness'

There are varying accounts on how the finial came to be in the park collection. Carter says he does not know, while Deal says he believes Rackley donated it before his death in 1998. But Hoomes says Rackley obviously would have known it was real, and he wonders how the idea of a reproduction came about. Regardless, the mystery of the donation lingers.

A finial in Del Thomasson's collection next to the Pickett's Mill eagle

The finial is displayed in a small case at the visitor center. A new interpretive panel describes the importance of flags and decorative finials, which came in a variety of shapes, including spades, spheres and globes.

“The damage sustained as flagbearers carried them into battle help tell the story of the difficulty and violence faced by soldiers, like those at Pickett’s Mill. The damage visible on the Civil War era eagle finial to your right provides clues to the experience soldiers faced beneath it and the flag it once adorned,” part of the text reads.

“What caused the bent wing of the eagle? Could this finial have been with a flag flown in battle? Are the dents a clue? What happened to the eagle’s legs, which once would have grasped a metal globe on top of the flag staff?”

Park officials and others are excited about the display.

“What we thought was just a relatively mundane piece sitting on a shelf in the library has turned out to be quite an important artifact for the site there,” says the DNR’s Headlee. Hoomes says the finial symbolizes the Federal army of the Civil War and the United States today.

And, says Wilson, the eagles stood for patriotism just as much as the flags they topped.

“They bore witness to the horrible things and travesty that happened during the battle,” he says.

Saturday’s program at Pickett’s Mill will include guided and unguided tours of various stations within the battlefield. Visitors can experience a glimpse of both military and civilian life that will include home skills and crafts, cannon firings, musketry, military drills and camp life. The unveiling of the finial exhibit will be around 10 a.m. ET. A food truck will be available. Site admission is $3 - $6. Click here for more information.