U.S. Grant saved George Pickett's neck

[L Verge]

I am not going to ask how the U.S. Grant Association let that Presidential Library go South! What's next? Moving the Jefferson Davis Papers out of Rice University in Texas and sending them to Boston College? I guess the war really is over.

[LincolnMan]

I was wondering if anyone was going to notice that! Very keen on your part Laurie-you don't miss a trick do you. Symposium members are still waiting on those cookies you were going to bake us.

[Gene C]

I would guess it takes a lot of money to maintain that type of library. It may have needed some restoration and maintenence.
In Illinois, unfortunately, there is not much money for those types of projects.

And regarding cookies, I'm not picky, as long as they are chocolat chip.

[L Verge]

I can't afford to ship them all over the country as well as Europe, and that's what it would take to cover all bases on this great forum. Y'all will just have to come to the March conference, and I'll whip up a batch of my molasses ginger snaps (only I keep mine soft).

Speaking of our membership, Claudine e-mailed me today requesting the complimentary October Courier that I offered. I did not know that Claudine resides in Germany. I would like to offer a personal WELCOME to another history lover.

[Bill Richter]

Oh, Laurie, Lynne would love your ginger snaps! She likes them soft, too.

[Rob Wick]

Actually, the story of how the Grant papers ended up in Mississippi is a pretty sad tale.

John Y. Simon, who was in charge of the papers at SIU, had been accused of harassment by someone in the library, which shared office space with the U.S. Grant Association. Simon, who I must strenuously point out never admitted to it and was never proven guilty, was suspended from the university pending an investigation. There was talk that a deal which would have allowed Simon to return to campus was near, and then he died. Many people believed the stress of the investigation contributed to his death, but the man smoked like a chimney and was seriously overweight as well. I met Simon once when I was on a research trip to SIU, and he was a very nice man. I have no idea if the charges against him were true or not.

Anyway, after his death, the Grant Association, under the leadership of Frank J. Williams, determined that they were so angry with SIU that they were going to move the papers out of there. The Grant Association owns the papers, which consisted of some originals, but many photocopies of papers from other repositories. Williams, who spoke at a memorial service for Simon, angrily pointed out how he felt the university treated Simon very shabbily, and from that point it was only a matter of time before the papers were moved to Mississippi, where John Marszalek was located, as he took Simon's place.


Best
Rob

[LincolnMan]

Rob: thanks for the background history on that. That is so sad as far as what happened.

[Rob Wick]

It is sad, Bill. Simon was a good man and was very kind to beginning researchers, like myself. Again, I have no idea whether the charges against him were true, but a friend (who knew and strongly supported Simon) told me he thought it was more a misunderstanding than an outright case of harassment. Some also felt Williams showed poor taste mentioning it in his eulogy for Simon.

Best
Rob

[L Verge]

Thanks, Rob. I knew about the problems that John Simon endured and that John Marszalek had replaced him with the Papers. I forgot that Marszalek is with Mississippi State.

I first met John Simon when I was asked to join the board of advisers of The Lincoln Forum when it was founded. He was always fun to be with, witty and sage at the same time. His talks were great. John Marszalek is also with the Lincoln Forum and a good man.

As for Frank Williams, he says what he thinks and pulls no punches. That's how he went as high as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the State of Rhode Island.

[LincolnMan]

I was reading through my copy of the book Captain Sam Grant by Lloyd Lewis when I found this passage regarding George Pickett at West Point on page 91:

"A fiery Virginian, rebellious against some of West Point's sartorial rules, was George E. Pickett, who had been appointed from Illinois where he had gone to seek his fortune with an uncle, John G. Stuart, a former law partner of Abraham Lincoln. Pickett would be forever slow in class, and, thanks to his frequent insistence upon wearing a soft collar and tie instead of the prescribed stock, would always be near the bottom of the Conduct Roll."

[HerbS]

I feel that Pickett was a renegade in every sense of the word!In many ways he could have been Custer's "twin"!

[LincolnMan]

Nice one Herb! Interesting that history has two phrases about each one: "Pickett's Charge" and Custer's Last Stand."

[LincolnMan]

I found this from the January 1964 Civil War Times magazine about General Pickett:

Pickett's Greatest Triumph

"It is an ironic twist of history that Gen. George E. Pickett is best remembered for his gallant charge at Gettysburg- a military failure- while his most conspicuous success is practically unknown. While Grant and Lee were slugging it out in the Wilderness, Chancellorsville, and Cold Harbor, Pickett was in command of the Department of North Carolina, with headquarters at Petersburg. When Gen. ben Butler, acting under orders from Grant, moved up from Fortress Monroe and disembarked at Bermuda Hundred, Pickett was the only one who realized the danger. While his urgent appeals for help were being disregarded in Richmond, Pickett gathered what troops he could, and went out to meet Butler. Pickett's prompt action saved Petersburg, postponing the final surrender nearly a year."

I don't see in the issue who the author of the quote is. It is included as a side-bar at the end of an article.