I had an “aha
moment” this week that came after two road trips, a phone call, email exchanges
and online research into two young Georgians who died during the Civil War.
Pvt. Thomas G. Wood (left, courtesy David W. Vaughan Collection) and Matthew and Josiah Nunnally (Findagrave)
Months after
I traveled through Walton County on two occasions, I was able to connect young
drummer Pvt. Thomas “Tommie” Gaston Wood and Capt. Matthew T. Nunnally.
Photographs of the two clinched the deal by showing they were
in the same unit. The gray frock coats are single-breasted, bear seven buttons,
a black collar and distinctive black striping, or scallops, on the sleeves.
The portrait of Wood is very well-known and haunting: Tommie is 17 years old, but
looks even younger. The orphan’s expression is innocent. “You
can see the sweat around the hat and sideburns,” said David Wynn Vaughan, who
collects Civil War portraits. Tommie’s is one of his favorites.
I knew nothing about either soldier when I trekked through Walton County in September and October. I live in adjoining Gwinnett County and I thought it would be interesting to check out Civil War markers and sites in Monroe, Jersey and Social Circle, where young Tommie lived.
The Federal army caused mayhem in Social Circle twice in 1864. Kenner Garrard’s cavalry burned a depot and warehouses in July and the 20th Corps destroyed much of the railroad in November during the March to the Sea
The town’s welcome center has a section on its Civil War ties, and affixed to one wall is a July 2007 article in The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (Picket photo, below). My former colleague Jim Auchmutey did an excellent job describing Vaughan’s collection of Georgia soldiers, including Tommie Wood.
A few days later, I called Vaughan about the photo -- a 1/9
plate tintype taken by an unknown photographer -- and asked what drew him to
purchase it more than 20 years ago. He described Tommie’s expression and lack
of tinting on his face, often applied by photographers. Regarding the uniform,
“his buttons have been gilded.”
Took a while for me to put 2 and 2 together
As is (way too) often the case, I did not immediately write a
post about Tommie, who sadly died from pneumonia a few months after his
portrait was taken. As I write this post, I have several good stories in the
hopper, but have not found time to finalize reporting or get around to writing
them. The procrastination nags at me.
But back to our story ...
During an October trip to Athens, a month after I spoke with Vaughan, I stopped by Monroe’s post office. As I drove off, I spied a monument at Rest Haven Cemetery.
Matthew Talbot Nunnally stands at attention, half of his hat brim lost to time. His sword is broken. I read that he was killed, age 24, at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863.
Several tablets, commissioned by one of the young
officer’s sisters, describe his life and service. I posted a few a photographs
on the Civil War Picket’s Facebook page and moved on.
On neither road trip did I remember references to Wood and
Young serving in the 11th Georgia. I was more interested in Tommie’s
portrait and Nunnally’s statue.
Two photos show members of 11th Georgia
After a recent email to Vaughan on another matter, I decided
to get back to the Wood post.
Auchmutey’s article mentioned Keith Bohannon, a professor of
history at the University of West Georgia. The author is an expert on Georgia
troops, the Army of Tennessee and Reconstruction and has an interest in
portraits.
Bohannon has assisted Vaughan with research, including when
the latter purchased the Wood portrait for thousands of dollars from an
individual in 2004.
Pvt. Thomas Gaston Wood (Courtesy David W. Vaughan Collection)
Vaughan, an Atlanta Realtor, is
well-known in Civil War photography circles for his premier collection of
hundreds of images and his precise research. About 50 of
his photos and biographies have been published in Georgia Backroads magazine, with
8-12 hours of work going into each profile.
A review of my notes and Vaughan’s emails on the portrait led
me to reach out to Bohannon this week. The professor replied as a teen he first
saw the plate at an
antique mall in metro Atlanta.
“I seem to
remember that the seller said that it was a photograph of a drummer from Walton
County, but I am not sure. That was a long time ago. I seem to remember that he
wanted somewhere between 70-100 dollars for the image, which was far more than
I could afford.
“I do
remember noticing the initials on the underside of the bill of his kepi. The
coat he is wearing matching those of two other uniformed members of the ‘Walton
Infantry,’ Co. H, 11th Ga.”
Wood’s initials are painted on the underside of the brim in
the image.
Bohannon’s reference to two other uniformed members of the
regiment sent me scurrying to the internet.
 |
| Estate record mentions Tommie Wood as serving under Capt. Matthew Nunnally of Monroe. |
Josiah lost a leg after Second Manassas. The farmer died back home in 1908 at age 73.
So there it is: The connection between Nunnally and Wood. The former commanded the latter. It may be of no real interest to anyone but me.
Tommie drummed but for a short time
Bohannon
said Thomas G. (Tommie)
Wood appears on the 1850 Walton County census as a student in the home of his
parents, Baptist minister Thomas G. Wood and Emily J. Wood. His father
died in 1852 and his mother died in 1858. (Image below)
The boy appears on the 1860 census a boarder in the household of Social Circle schoolteacher J.M. Smith. (Tommie’s brother William lived until 1924).
Tommie
enlisted in early July 1861 and the 11th Georgia Infantry traveled north to serve in the Army of Northern Virginia. After missing the
battle at Manassas, the regiment went into quarters at Center Hill, where it
spent most of the winter at the camp and lost men due to discharge as well as
death resulting from illness, according to Wikipedia.
An ill Tommie landed in a Confederate hospital in Richmond.
He died on Dec. 13, 1861, at age 17 or 18, without every being in combat. He is believed to be buried in Richmond’s Oakwood Cemetery.
During his research, Bohannon came across a January 1862
article in the Augusta Constitutionalist by Dr. William W. Crumly, a chaplain
of Georgia military hospitals in Richmond.
“In taking my morning round through one of the hospitals, I
find in one of the wards a youth of more than ordinary beauty and intelligence.
His name is Wood, the drummer boy, from Social Circle. Young Wood was the pet
and idol of his regiment. And he is struggling with pneumonia, that terrible
scourge of the camp and the hospital. When asked whether he was afraid to die,
he calmly answered: ‘No. I joined the church when but eight years of age; my
father and mother are both in heaven, and I would rather go and be with them
there, than to stay and suffer here.’ He was beautiful in death – lovely as the
fresh cut rosebud, dripping with the dew of morning. Taking his post in the
centre of the long line of the dead at Oak Wood, no sound of his drum shall
ever awake the sleepers there.”
Records on Fold3 and Ancestry.com indicate Tommie’s maternal
grandfather, Gresham Herren, settled the teen’s estate. Online records indicate
the estate was due $91.76 from the Confederate government.
Historian long displayed Wood's portrait
Civil War photo collector Lee Joyner of Madison, Ga.,
remembers seeing the Wood portrait at the home of a man, since deceased, who
subsequently sold it to Vaughan.
Joyner noted the dark trim typical of early-war Georgia
uniforms. I asked him what is special about the image.
“You don’t see many Confederate drummer boy images. And,
secondly, it is an identified one. It is kind of a poignant image.”
“I did have
an enlarged black and white print of the image up for a long time in dorm
rooms, apartments, etc., but now I have it stuck in some files. I've always
found the photograph particularly poignant given the extremely youthful and
delicate appearance of Wood. I also like the initials on the bill of his
kepi and the uniform of the Walton Infantry which exhibits characteristics of
many jackets worn in 1861 by Georgia Confederate soldiers.”
Joyner and
Vaughan, who has about 300 images, are part of a small, but dedicated community of
Civil War photo collectors. They realize they are caretakers of a piece of
history.
“The image collecting world is not very big. Sometimes,
another collector will tell you about them,” said Vaughan. ”Of course, we are
competitors, though we are friends.”
