Bartlett Yancey Malone

[PaigeBooth]

Have currently been reading "The Diary of Bartlett Yancey Malone," A Civil War Confederate Soldier enlisted in the 6th North Caroline Regiment. Though the book is small, it is surprisingly insightful and is a very personal look into the life of a soldier. Prior to the war, Malone was a farmer and eventually joined the army in July of 1861. He entered the army as a twenty-three year old private, and rose to the rank of sergeant. After Malone's capture on November 7, 1863, he was imprisoned at Point Lookout, Maryland, where he remained a prisoner until his release on February 24th, 1865. I found Malone's description of what he was given to eat at Point Lookout and also his experiences in January of 1864 to be quite interesting and thought I would share them. (I have corrected Malone's spelling errors and have added punctuation so it is easier to read):

In Malone's own words, regarding his rations at Point Lookout: "Our rations at Point Lookout was 5 crackers and a cup of coffee for breakfast. And for dinner a small ration of meat, 2 crackers, three potatoes, and a cup of soup. Supper we have none."
Here is Malone's description of January of 1864: "I spent the first day of January '64 at Point Lookout M.D. The morning was pleasant, but toward evening the air changed and the night was very cool. Was so cool that five of our men froze to death before morning. We all suffered a great deal with cool and hunger. Two of our men was so hungry today that they caught a rat and cooked him and eat him. The 6th was cool and cloudy, and we had 9 men to die at the hospital today. Our beds at this place are composed of Sea feathers. That is we gather the small stones from the bay and lie on them. The 7th was very cool- a snow fell after night. The 10th was a nice day, and I saw the man today that makes coffins at this place for the Rebels, and he says that 12 men dies here everyday. The 22th day of January '64 was a very pretty day. And it was my birthday which made me 25 years of age. I spent the day at Point Lookout, M.D. And I feasted on crackers and coffee. "

Also, since today is May 10th, I would like to add my birthday wishes to John Wilkes Booth and mention that I am also in mourning for the death of Stonewall Jackson who died today, in 1863.

[L Verge]

I will have to get Sgt. Malone's diary just to read about Point Lookout. My great-grandmother's brother was in the Confederate Navy and was sent to Point Lookout after his capture. He survived, but carried an open wound on his ankle that never healed. Assigned to grave-digging detail, he struck his leg with a pick-ax. The germs were so horrendous that the wound remained with him until his death years after the war.

As a side note, his brother fought for the Union (they were both from Maryland) and survived also. They would attend family functions, but would never speak to each other from 1865 on.

The site of what was once Point Lookout Prison Camp is about an hour's drive from Surratt House. Today, most of the original prison compound is underwater and archaeological exploration is conducted at times. The Point is the southernmost tip of Maryland where the Chesapeake Bay and the Potomac River come together. I have been told that the currents there are extremely treacherous. There is a huge monument as you enter the modern grounds, and then you get a surprise by seeing nothing but camp grounds and fishermen -- 99% of whom probably have no idea of the history there. Even the State Park rangers assigned there know very little to nothing about the Civil War history. I understand that what was once a small museum to that history is now devoted to natural resources exhibits.

Perhaps that is fitting, because the original plans for Point Lookout in the 1850s was as a resort area to attract the wealthy people from D.C. and Baltimore. The horrific prisoner counts from Antietam and Gettysburg changed those plans.

[L Verge]

Paige,

I forgot to respond to your wishing a happy birthday to JWB. I join you in doing that. As evil as many people think his deed to be, he still gave us a fascinating (albeit tragic) topic in history to discuss and learn from -- and he was an intelligent and talented individual until the Civil War did a number on him, like it did on so many millions of Americans.

My daughter was born three weeks early in 1973. I started into labor on the morning of May 7, and it lasted until noon on May 9 when she finally decided to make an appearance. After awhile - by the morning of May 9 - I was kinda hoping that she would wait until May 10 to be born because it was Booth's birthday. She is eternally grateful that I did not wait until that date. I started working at Surratt House when she was two years old, and she has always felt a little jealous of the attention I have paid to Mr. Booth! If she had to share a birthday with him, I don't know what the repercussions might have been...

[PaigeBooth]

Oh, Laurie- I couldn't agree with you more on behalf of Booth! Being that we are girls of Southern Feeling, we can understand how the war drove JWB to his deed. By the way, I forgot to tell you how much I enjoyed it when you responded to my post about Lee's surrender at Appomattox saying that you wore black that day! I'm going to have to start doing that too!