New Fort Curtis in Helena, Arkansas

Fort Curtis was a small Civil War earth and wood fort at Helena built by the Union. It played a major part in the Battle of  Helena in July 4, 1863.

If you read my novel, Chase The Wild Pigeons, you will recognize the name. It was also very important in my story, as I tried to keep the history of the battle as true as possible.

A new replica of the fort is being built in Helena only few block from where the original once stood. It is my understanding there will be replica cannon and the whole nine yards. It will be dedicated Friday, May 11, 2012.

There are big things going on in Helena now, and I am glad to see the Civil War history getting recognized in a big way. If you are near Helena, check out the fort. It takes up a whole block at the corner of York and Biscoe.

The Fort is finished. It is well worth checking out. It has a cannon, too!

What the soldiers said

I like to read diaries, letters and the like written by soldiers during the Civil War. It's fun to see the words and slang they used then. You may see a few we still use today.

Here are few words pertaining to food:

bully soup, panada: A cooked mixture of crushed hardtack, cornmeal, ginger and wine.

creeper: A term used by New England soldiers for a small skillet.

mud lark: Pig

skillygalee: Hardtack softened in water then fried in bacon grease.

slow bear: Stolen pig.

teeth dullers: Hardtack crackers.

treacle: Southern term for molasses.

Here are a few slang words:

bodega: Liquor store

calaboose: Jail

cooter: Turtle

cuffy: Black male

German corn: Rye

hoosegow: Jail

Irish hoist: A kick in the pants.

katzenjammers: The effects of a hangover.

shoddy: Cheap or low quality.

tumbled over: To be killed.

Here are a couple of books that might interest you: Everyday Life During The Civil War and The Writer's Guide to Everyday Life in the 1800s. There is pretty cool stuff in there. I used some of it in my stories.

Roughing it on the homefront

As the Union blockade put a strangle hold on the South. The home folk had to make due or substitute to get by. They came up with some pretty ingenious ideas.

Salt was dug from the smokehouse floor, boiled and the sediment was used for a brownish salt.

Sweet potatoes dried in the sun were used in the place of sugar.

Wheat and rye was used for a coffee substitute, so were okra and chicory.

Dried blackberry leaves, sassafras, and other herbs were used for tea.

Paper was scarce, so they wrote on just about anything. They made envelopes from wall paper.
 

Ink was made from oak balls and walnut juice. Dye was made from butternut.

 

Candles were made from tallow, or pine knots were used to light the parlor.

 

Spinning wheels were brought out of storage to make clothes. Needles were made from thorns, buttons made from persimmon seeds.

The woman saved their urine to make niter for gunpowder.

You have to give them credit; they knew how to make do.

Giveaways

I have a couple of freebees for you.

If you are a member of Good Reads, you can put your name in the hat for a free paperback copy of my novel, Chase The Wild Pigeons.

Saturday, 1-14-2012, I will be giving away for free my short story, The Red Pond At Shiloh for Amazon kindle.