Re-discovering the past
Historical documents come alive at HMNS's Civil War exhibition, but Houston isavoided
- Amputation kit. By the end of the war, surgeons took less than a minute toamputate a body part.
- Unidentified Member of the Duryee’s Zouaves 5th New York Infantry. Thesehard-fighting soldiers fought in the Seven Days Battles, the Second Battle ofBull Run at Manassas, Antietam, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville beforemustering out on May 14, 1863.
- General Grant at the Battle of Belmont by Alexander Simplot. Alexander worked asa special correspondent for Harper’s Weekly and covered the war along theMississippi River and in Missouri. He would send his drawings to New York sothat they could be published. Harper’s Weekly considered it fast if they couldprint a picture within two weeks of it being drawn.
- Unidentified Drummer, 12th Wisconsin Infantry. Boys as young as 11 could enlistto carry the drum into battle. When not on the battlefield, these musicianswould assist surgeons with medical needs such as amputations.
- Virginia Cavalry officer’s hat with black ostrich feathers plume
- This colorful “Union Defenders Certificate” was included with an application forpension by Hannah Hotchkiss, whose son, Leonard, died while serving with CompanyB of the 30th Iowa Infantry.
- Dance Army Revolver .44 Caliber and Dance Navy Revolver .36 Caliber,manufactured by J.H. Dance & Brothers, Columbia and Anderson, Texas. The companyproduced about 135 .36 caliber and 350 .44 caliber revolvers under contract forthe state of Texas.
- Rope Tension Side Drum with Infantry Eagle Made by Charles E. Town, Bath, Maine,ca 1862. This drum was used by Priv. Alpheus Holbrook, 19th Maine Infantry. Thedrum is fitted with modern replacement drum heads and rope, but the eightleather tugs are original.
The billboard advertisements for the new Discovering the Civil War exhibition at the Houston Museum of Natural Science strike a heavy tone, asking "What have we done?" in all caps.
There are many more questions raised inside the exhibit, put together in part by the National Archives, but while the events may be haunting, the visuals are designed to draw visitors in.
As the title suggests, this isn't about going over the facts of the Civil War as we know them — the battles, the politics, and the like. Instead, the exhibit focuses on the small-scale effects of the war, and how events affected real people of the time.
Think all this is ancient history? Curators specifically avoided choosing an area near Houston to avoid potentially inflaming any old wounds.
The walls layer photographs, letters and other documents of the era, blown up and grouped around specific events and personal experiences: Citizens arguing over secession, 14-year-olds writing letters from the battlefield, doctors securing patents for new prosthetic limbs. There's a lot to read, sure, but the focused subject matter and the interactive visual and audio displays are engaging.
There are some particularly interesting vignettes, including a section on Civil War spies, the tools they used to code messages and the scientific advancements spawned by the war. History buffs will want to check out the original declaration of secession by South Carolina from 1860, an original copy of the 13th Amendment and, from Feb. 16 to 21, 2012, Lincoln's original Emancipation Proclamation. (Until then, visitors can see a replica.)
There are also diplomatic letters, including one in Chinese, a census book that includes Confederate president Jefferson "Jeff" Davis, and a ledger of crimes committed against blacks in Texas and the response.
Think all this is ancient history? Curators specifically avoided choosing an area near Houston to avoid potentially inflaming any old wounds.
When you're bored of historic documents, head to the second part of the exhibit, which features an amazing range of artifacts assembled by Houston Civil War collector John Nau. There are Union and Confederate uniforms, guns (including one that doubles as a grinder) and other battlefield relics.
There's also a special section devoted to the battle for control over the port of Galveston and the USS Westfield, which was rediscovered in 2005 and is being excavated and restored by the Center for Maritime Archaeology and Conservation at Texas A&M.
It's a big, splashy exhibit, and there are plenty of items to examine, but Discovering the Civil War struggles to escape the feeling that making it through is akin to eating one's vegetables. There's a lot to take in, but the work is worthwhile.
"Discovering the Civil War" is on display at the Houston Museum of Natural Science through April 29, 2012.