Being A Good American -- Our Citizenship Rights and Responsibilities

Citizenship is the common thread that connects all Americans. We are a nation bound not by race or religion, but by the shared values of freedom, liberty, and equality.

Throughout our history, the United States has welcomed newcomers from all over the world. Immigrants have helped shape and define the country we know today. Their contributions help preserve our legacy as a land of freedom and opportunity. More than 200 years after our founding, naturalized citizens are still an important part of our democracy. By becoming a U.S. citizen, you too will have a voice in how our nation is governed.

The decision to apply is a significant one. Citizenship offers many benefits and equally important responsibilities. By applying, you are demonstrating your commitment to this country and our form of government.

Below you will find several rights and responsibilities that all citizens should exercise and respect. Some of these responsibilities are legally required of every citizen, but all are important to ensuring that America remains a free and prosperous nation.

Our Rights As Citizens:

• Freedom to express yourself.
• Freedom to worship as you wish.
• Right to a prompt, fair trial by jury.
• Right to vote in elections for public officials.
• Right to apply for federal employment requiring U.S. citizenship.
• Right to run for elected office.
• Freedom to pursue “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Our Responsibilities As Citizens:

• Support and defend the Constitution. 
• Stay informed of the issues affecting your community. 
• Participate in the democratic process. 
• Respect and obey federal, state, and local laws. 
• Respect the rights, beliefs, and opinions of others. 
• Participate in your local community. 
• Pay income and other taxes honestly, and on time, to federal, state, and local authorities. 
• Serve on a jury when called upon. 
• Defend the country if the need should arise.

All of the above came directly from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services' website. 

So why I'm posting this? Well, first, I enjoy talking about Civics. But more importantly, I have readers from other countries who wanted me to talk about this. One of my long time readers asked if there is any more to being an American Citizen besides what the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services states. He wanted to know if there are things the federal government website wasn't covering? He can't believe that that's all there is to being a "good American."

Thinking about this, I decided to post this here as a small reminder to folks about our basic rights and responsibilities as American Citizens. Of course, while reading over the list of rights, I was surprised to see that our rights and freedoms as listed in our Bill of Rights was not listed among the things that citizens should realize. 

Signed in convention on September 17, 1787, and ratified on June 21, 1788, The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. Our nation's "Constitution is empowered with the sovereign authority of we the American people." It was created by our framers and the consent of the legislatures of the states. It is the source of all government powers, and also provides important limitations on the government that protect the fundamental rights of United States citizens.

The Preamble states, "We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

Before someone writes to tell me that the word "defense" is spelled wrong in the Preamble above. It is exactly as spelled in the official document. 

It should be noted that our Bill of Rights, that which is the first 10 Amendments to the Constitution, specifically spells out our rights in relation to our government while guaranteeing our Civil Rights and the Liberties that we as individuals hold dear to us. 

Our Rights per The Bill of Rights: 

1. Freedom of religion, speech, press, peaceable assembly, and petition.
2. Right to keep and bear arms.
3. Right to not to quarter soldiers without the consent of the owner.
4. Right of American citizens to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.
5. Right to due process of law, freedom from self-incrimination and double jeopardy, freedom of being deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process. 
6. Rights of accused persons. Our right to a speedy and public trial by an impartial jury, be informed of the accusation; meet our accusers, have witnesses for us, and the right to a lawyer. 
7. Right of trial by jury in civil suits.
8. Freedom from excessive bail, cruel and unusual punishments.
9. Rights not specified which are rights of the people.
10. Powers reserved to the states -- states rights, or more accurately rights "reserved to the States respectively."

As for the responsibilities of citizenship that are listed in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, I was surprised that our responsibility to conduct ourselves as a civilized people while respecting the rights and freedoms of others was not listed. It does state, "Respect the rights, beliefs, and opinions of others." But really, do people understand what that means? 

It is an age old belief in America that one's rights and freedoms end when the person exercising those rights and freedoms harms others or destroys property. We should remember that our Founding Fathers recognized this fact and included the word "peaceably" when they created the 1st Amendment of our Bill of Rights. 

As stated: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

While we should not have to tell our potential citizens that conducting themselves in a civilized manner is a responsibility of our conducting ourselves as responsible citizens, as citizens, we should all understand that acting civilized and not a mob is conducive to good citizenship. 

After all, we are the "We The People" that our Constitution talks about. We are the people responsible for insuring our domestic tranquility as well as for promoting the general welfare of our nation. If we are to act like a mob than that's the jungle will create. And frankly, most Americans do not want an America that's a jungle ruled by jungle law of kill or be killed. 

Sadly, it takes times like these when the rule of law is ignored, when looters, rioters, and murderers go unchecked, that teach us how important the responsibility of being civilized really is to being a good American. It is also times like these that reaffirm why some of our rights are in place. Like it or not, these recent riots conducted by those simply out to wage war on America, and destroy lives and property, is why we have the 2nd Amendment. It is why we have our ability to protect ourselves, our families, and our communities. It's times like these that the basic right of a citizen to own guns demonstrates why we are afforded the ability as citizens to protect our loved ones. 

As for my referring to our Constitution, our Bill of Rights, our nation, our liberties, our rights, our responsibilities, our citizenship as Americans. I do so because its specifically "ours." Our Constitution does not apply to other countries. What's written in that wonderful document has met the tests of time and has endured and prevailed. Of course it applies to our federal government and not other nations. The same goes for our Bill of Rights. Those 10 Amendments only apply to American citizens. 

As an American, this is something that I feel very territorial about because our Constitution and our Bill of Rights were not written to give rights to non-citizens, those people who are citizens of other countries. They have rights or not under their laws. Our Constitution is solely ours because it was written for us. Our rights and freedoms are why others want to be American citizens. 

Being a good American means making a real and honest effort at being a responsible citizen. While it's our duty to do so, it actually comes very easy to those of us who love America.  

Tom Correa

The Truth About Slavery In The United States

Sometimes, factual history simply doesn't go along with those attempting to rewrite history. For example, a form of slavery is that of an indentured servant, also known as an indentured laborer or a contract laborer. It is a system of unfree labor where people are bound by a signed or forced contract to work for a period of time. While some say there's no comparison between slaves and indentured servants, the harsh reality of indentured servants is that the Fugitive Slave Laws traditionally applied to runaway indentured servants as well.

Of the 10 to 12 million black African slaves who were brought to the Western Hemisphere, it's believed that 4% of the slaves sold into bondage by their African Chiefs ended up in North America. The vast majority of African slaves were transported to South American countries.

When people say there has been slavery in the United States for 400 years, they are either liars or stupid and don't know history. The English, French, and Spanish owned slaves in North America before there was a nation known as the United States.

The United States won its independence from England in 1783. The United States Constitutional Convention took place in 1787 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Just 3 years later, in 1790, Benjamin Franklin petitioned the U.S. Congress to ban slavery. In 1807, a mere 20 years after the Constitutional Convention, President Thomas Jefferson passed a bill to stop the importation of African slaves into the United States. 

Please understand that President Thomas Jefferson, who is vilified today for once owning slaves, stopped the importation of slaves into the United States in 1807. That law went into effect in 1808. After President Jefferson ended bringing slaves into the United States, all African slaves brought into the United States were brought in illegally through smuggling. All illegally, no differently than Human Traffickers bring in Illegal Aliens into the United States today.

I'm amazed to hear how many Americans today are under the misconception that Democrats have been an anti-slavery party while also believing that Republicans are the party of slavery. The Republican Party was created in 1854 as an abolitionist party. Their focus was on abolishing slavery. President Abraham Lincoln was a Republican who vowed to end slavery. President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation freed the slaves in 1863.

By 1862, only the Democrat controlled Confederate states had legal slavery. The Emancipation Proclamation (Proclamation 95) was specially aimed at the rebel states for that reason. People should understand that President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation was an Executive Order issued on September 22, 1862. The Emancipation Proclamation was a Presidential Executive Order which stated that if the Confederate states did not end the war and rejoin the Union by January 1, 1863, all slaves in those rebellious states would be declared free. The final Emancipation Proclamation, which officially freed slaves in the designated states, was issued on January 1, 1863.

People can vilify President Lincoln by attempting to paint him as a hypocrite because he once said in a letter that he would keep slavery if it meant preserving the Union. I see him changing his stance regarding slavery when he realized that there was no stopping states from seceding. Besides, his Emancipation Proclamation trumped any of his rhetoric by actually freeing slaves. And whether some like it or not, it is a historical fact that President Lincoln's Emancipation Proclamation is the pivotal moment in American history when the black slaves were freed.

The 13th Amendment, which was the law ending slavery, did not pass the Republican controlled Congress until two years later on January 31, 1865. It was ratified in December of 1865, well after President Lincoln was murdered on April 15, 1865. As for his assassin, he was an actor by the name of John Wilkes Booth, who was a Democrat, a radical left-wing anarchist.

In contrast to what the Republicans were doing from their start in 1854, the Democratic Party, which was established in 1829, actually took the nation into a Civil War from 1861 to 1865, in part over their desire to keep slavery intact. After the Civil War, the Democratic Party created the Ku Klux Klan to terrorize freed slaves and Republican administrators during the Reconstruction Era. Democrats in the South murdered and lynched blacks and Republicans. Democrats created segregation and Jim Crow laws.

Before someone writes to tell me that at some point the Democrats and Republicans magically switched places politically in regards to Equal Rights, keep in mind that it was Democrats who fought for months to stop the 1965 Civil Rights Act that gave Equal Rights to Black-Americans. Democrats tried to stop it. It's a fact that Republican votes enabled the 1965 Civil Rights Act to be passed. This is all true. 

So, where does the misinformation come from? Well, in some cases, it's simply not looking at the facts. In other cases, it's our taking technically correct statements at face value without looking into them. For example, we know that the importation of African slaves into the United States lasted a period of 26 years after our Constitution was ratified, and that slavery in the United States was legal from 1783 to 1865. But there's a problem with the latter statement.

Our saying "slavery in the United States was legal from 1783 to 1865" is a little misleading because slavery was not widespread in the United States during those years. In fact, many of the states abolished slavery either just before the United States won the Revolutionary War on September 3, 1783, or right after that.

For example, the colony of Rhode Island passed a law abolishing African slavery in 1652, over a hundred years before our War of Independence. Slavery was banned in Vermont when it was founded in 1777. The state of Pennsylvania officially abolished slavery in 1780. Slavery was abolished in Massachusetts in July of 1783, soon after a slave named Quock Walker sued his owner for his freedom. Connecticut abolished slavery in that state in 1784. New Hampshire abolished slavery in 1788. New York abolished slavery in that state in 1799.

Also, folks don't usually mention the Northwest Ordinance of 1787, which was passed just before our Constitution was ratified. That act prohibited slavery in the federal Northwest Territory. The six states that were created from the Northwest Territory were Ohio (1803), Indiana (1816), Illinois (1818), Michigan (1837), Wisconsin (1848), and Minnesota (1858). All forbid the owning of slaves from their conception. All came into the United States, as part of our Union of states, as "Free Sstates" long before slavery officially ended in the South in 1865. None of those states ever had slaves.

The same goes for the state of Maine, which became a free state, meaning it did not allow slavery, when it was admitted to the United States as part of the Missouri Compromise of 1820. The same with California when it became a state in 1850 as a "Free State." And yes, the same took place with Oregon in 1859, Kansas in 1861, and Nevada in 1864. Those states never ever had slavery to begin with. Subsequently, when the Civil War broke out in 1861, their slave populations were zero.

When we break down the 33 states and 10 organized territories present in 1861 at the beginning of the Civil War, we find that 10 states never had slaves in the history of those states, 8 former slave states did not have slavery for more than 50 years, 15 states were still slave states and they were primarily in the South, 9 U.S. territories did not have slaves, and there were 15 slaves listed as living in the Nebraska Territory.

Here's something else. To say that only Whites owned slaves in the United States is not true. The fact is, while the vast majority of slave owners were in fact White with European ancestry, there were Blacks and even Native American slave owners. Yes, Black-Americans and Native Americans owned slaves. 

Whether or not people want to admit the truth of what took place, the blame for slavery is not one simply owned by whites. In fact, long before the United States won its independence from England, there were black slave owners.

One of the more famous black slave owners in the British Colonies was Anthony Johnson. He was supposedly born around 1600 and died in 1670 which was over a hundred years before the United States declared its independence from England in 1776.

Johnson was a black man who gained his freedom as a slave. He gained wealth as a merchant. He then became a slave owner in the Colony of Virginia. It is said that he owned over 400 black slaves. And today, Johnson is recognized as being one of the first African-American property owners on the North American continent.

He is also said to have had his right to legally own black slaves recognized in a Virginia court of law. Known as a successful merchant and tobacco farmer, Johnson has been referred to as "'The Black Patriarch" because he was one of the first African slave owners in North America.

While Johnson was a British subject, one of the most famous American black men to own black slaves in the United States was a man by the name of William Ellison Jr. of South Carolina. By age 21, Ellison took money that he got from his slave master to buy his own freedom. He also took what his master taught him and used that knowledge of machinery to make cotton gins while also working as a blacksmith. Later, he acquired over 1,000 acres and became a planter. He did in fact own 53 black slaves. In fact, he is ranked as the largest of the 171 black slave owners in South Carolina history.

As for Native Americans owning African slaves? Long before the United States came into being, African slaves were owned by Native American tribes. In fact, Native American tribes bought and owned African slaves during the Colonial period and only ended with the American Civil War.

There were some North American tribes, such as the Five Civilized Tribes, who were slave owners before the United States achieved its independence. They continued to be slave owners after the United States came into existence.

We have to remember that slavery was nothing new to Native Americans. For a thousand or more years before the Europeans ever stepped foot on North American soil, tribes have waged genocidal war against each other. While most tribes believed in killing the men and boys of the enemy tribes, they all took slaves as spoils of war.

And while some think this sort of genocidal warfare was simply an isolated occurrence between a few tribes, there is evidence that such warfare was conducted all across the North American continent as far north as Alaska for more years than most realize. And yes, along with such warfare was the taking of slaves as spoils. But when it comes to African slaves, Native American tribes bought them.

The Five Civilized Tribes (Cherokee, Choctaw, Chickasaw, Creek, and Seminole) were huge slave owners. In fact, when they were forced to leave their lands following the Indian removal of the 1830s, those tribes went on the Trail of Tears to present-day Oklahoma, bringing their black slaves with them.

When you think of the Trail of Tears, you probably don't think of Cherokee slaveholders such as Cherokee Chief John Ross, who was an advocate and slave owner. You probably don't think of Choctaw Chief Greenwood LeFlore, who had 15,000 acres in Mississippi and owned 400 African slaves. No, you probably don't think of hundreds of African slaves owned by Native Americans, all having to make that horrible journey en masse to what is now Oklahoma.

Let's be honest, Native American Indian slave masters are not what we all think about when we think of the Trail of Tears. But sadly, there's no denying that it's part of what took place.

In an interview a few years ago, National Museum of the American Indian curator Paul Chaat Smith, who himself is Comanche, said, "The Five Civilized Tribes were deeply committed to slavery, established their own 'racialized black codes,' immediately reestablished slavery when they arrived in Indian territory, rebuilt their nations with slave labor, crushed slave rebellions, and enthusiastically sided with the Confederacy in the Civil War."

He went on to say, "The truth is about as far a cry from a crowd-pleasing narrative as you could possibly get. Do you want to hear that? I don’t think so. Nobody does. ...

The Cherokee owned slaves for the same reasons their white neighbors did. They knew exactly what they were doing. In truth, the Civilized Tribes were not that complicated. They were willful and determined oppressors of blacks they owned, enthusiastic participants in a global economy driven by cotton, and believers in the idea that they were equal to whites and superior to blacks."

We know that there were a few Native American tribes that provided sanctuary to some runaway slaves. We also know that there were Native American tribes that re-enslaved runaway blacks as their own. And yes, there were Native Americans who also captured them and returned them to their white masters in the late 1700s and 1800s for a bounty.

People conveniently forget, simply don't know, or intentionally ignore facts about slavery in the United States because they don't fit into their anti-White American narrative. Here are a couple of those facts that people seem to want to ignore. By 1830, 3,775 Black-Slave-Owners, yes, Blacks who owned slaves, were living in the South. Those Black-Slave-Owners owned 12,760 Black and White slaves. By 1860, the year before the start of the Civil War, about 3,000 Black-Slaves were owned by Black-Slave-Owners in New Orleans alone.

So, to sum this up, we know that by the Civil War, most of the states were slave free. We know that slavery was legal in the United States for a total of 82 years from 1783 to 1865. We know that more than just white owned slaves. We also know that, as is the case with most White Americans, most Native Americans did not own slaves. In fact, slave owners of any color were only a small handful of the wealthy during that time period.

Tom Correa

Frontier Justice In Arkansas 1895 - 1922

Frontier justice is extrajudicial punishment that's motivated by the belief that law and order either doesn't exist or doesn't work. And while that may be true, lynchings, gunfights, revenge killings are all said to be considered forms of frontier justice. Yes indeed, frontier justice is also "vigilante justice".

On August 6th, 1895, Crittenden County Deputy Sheriff Alfred Werner was shot and killed when he and two other deputies attempted to arrest a man at his home. When they arrived at the home the two deputies went inside the home as Deputy Werner remained outside.

The suspect was expecting the deputies to arrive at the house, so he hid outside waiting. Yes, ready to ambush the deputies. As Deputy Werner stood outside, the man opened fire from an ambush position and shot Deputy Werner in the neck. He killed the deputy almost instantly.

A posse was formed to capture the killer. While officially it is not known if he was ever captured or killed. It is believed by most that he was hanged from some tree.
Hot Springs Police Detective John Donahue

On Thursday, December 25th, 1902, Hot Springs Police Department's Chief of Detectives John Donahue was shot and killed by a man the he attempted to arrest for assaulting a woman with an ax. Detective Donahue approached the man on a local street. The suspect drew a revolver and shot him in the head, killing Donahue instantly.

As the suspect attempted to escape, a 16-year-old boy who saw what took place ran to get his father's shotgun and shot the murderer in the face. Because of his distance, the shotgun put the murderer on the ground but did not kill him.

The murderer lay in the street writhing in pain. But as the boy approached him with his reloaded shotgun, the murderer turned his pistol on himself and shot himself in the head.

On August 20th, 1910, Garland County Sheriff Jake Houpt was shot and mortally wounded. And his brother, who was a deputy, was also wounded while attempting to arrest two brothers for stealing horses.

The two horse thieves suddenly produced pistols and opened fire as Sheriff Houpt and his brother were escorting them to jail. As the suspects fled, both wounded lawmen returned fire killing one suspect and wounding the other. Sadly, Sheriff Houpt died three days later.

The other suspect was captured three days after the shooting. Then on December 26, 1910, Sheriff Houpt's killer was being escorted by a deputy sheriff from the Garland County Jail to the police station when three unidentified men walked up with guns drawn.

The unidentified men forced the deputy to step away. Once clear, the three men opened fire and shot the killer to death. As for the shooters, the unidentified citizens were never identified.

On September 26th, 1911, Sheriff William Preston and Deputy Sheriff Barney Stiel of the Pulaski County Sheriff's Office were shot and killed by two brothers they were attempting to arrest near Dumas.

As Sheriff Preston and several of his deputies approached the suspect's cabin, one of the brothers opened fire killing the Sheriff instantly. Deputy Stiel returned fire killing his Sheriff's murderer, but the other brother opened fire and killed Deputy Stiel.

The other deputies shot and killed his killer. They also shot and seriously wounded their father who arrived on the scene shooting a rifle at them. The killers' father was taken to a hospital and then to the local jail. Almost immediately, word started to go around that the killers' father was only acting in defense of his sons and would probably get off with a light sentence if any.

The next morning the father of those two killers was taken from the local jail by a group of angry citizens. He was hanged from a water tank just outside of town on the Iron Mountain Railroad.

On April 1st, 1912, Fort Smith Police Department's Detective Patrick Andrew Carr was shot and killed when he assisted other officers in the capture of an escaped prisoner.

It all took place when the 42-year old Fort Smith Police Detective observed a 24-year old male engaged in a loud argument with a woman on Garrison Avenue. Detective Carr arrested the young man. While escorting him to jail, the prisoner pulled away from the Detective and ran.

Detective Carr was soon joined by other officers in pursuit of the escapee. During their efforts to recapture of the prisoner, shots were fired and Detective Carr was struck above the right eye by a bullet. Detective Carr died nine days later in St. Edward Hospital and did not regain consciousness. He was survived by his wife, two sons, and three daughters.

A few days later, Detective Carr's killer was found. Soon enough, he was captured. But on the way to jail, the officers were overpowered by a number of angry citizens. They took Detective Carr's killer and hanged him from a nearby tree.

On July 4th, 1912, Conway County Sheriff's Special Deputy Herbert Paul Nisler was only 21 years old when he was killed. It happened when he and several other deputies, and the Conway County Sheriff attempted to break up a fight at a picnic near Plummerville.

After Special Deputy Nisler was assaulted and killed, citizens became angry and soon grabbed his killer. Before it could be stopped, his killer was hanged from the nearest tree.

On November 7th, 1919, Columbia County Sheriff B. E. Greer was shot and killed while attempting to arrest a man wanted for beating his wife at their home approximately four miles west of Magnolia. Yes, killed during a domestic violence situation. Sound familiar, it should. More law enforcement officers are killed during domestic violence situations than any other type of situation.

On the way there, the 45-year old Sheriff Greer deputized a citizen to accompany him to the home. They met with another deputy at the location. The sheriff and the deputized citizen approached the home's open door. The man inside immediately fired at them, but fortunately the shooter missed both of them.

Sheriff Greer then entered the home and returned fire at the suspect. The suspect then took cover hiding under a bed. When the sheriff bent down to look under the bed, the suspect fatally shot him.

The killer of Sheriff Greer was able to get away but was arrested by a sheriff's posse at his sister's house. As the sheriff's posse took the man to jail, an armed group of angry citizens approached the posse and took the killer off their hands. They then hanged him.

On December 10th, 1922, Conway County Deputy Sheriff Granville Edward Farish was only 34 years old when he was shot and fatally wounded in the line of duty. He sustained his fatal wound the previous day while interviewing a suspect in Morrilton.

While talking with the suspect, his killer all of a sudden pulled out a .32 caliber revolver and shot Deputy Farish in the abdomen. He then ran from the scene.

The killer was found and was arrested by other deputies. He was then taken to the county jail. But due to the threat of mob violence, the Sheriff decided to move him to another county. In the process of transferring their prisoner, the deputies were confronted and overpowered by a large group of angry citizens who were concerned that the killer would get of lightly.

Those angry citizens hauled the killer away with them. And later, well later the deputies found Deputy Farish's killer where those concerned citizens had hanged him.

None of this was unusual back in the day. All are just examples of frontier justice. And after reading this, you might be wondering what would give the people back then the notion that a killer might get off lightly? Especially when people today have this idea that no one got off lightly back in those days.

Well, imagine this, on May 26th, 1874, John Wesley Hardin killed Brown County, Texas, Deputy Sheriff Charles Webb. Of course, Hardin claimed he killed the Deputy in "self-defense." And no, Hardin was not alone when he killed Deputy Webb. Two of Hardin's gang members were with him when it happened.

The murder of Deputy Web angered a great many locals and soon a group of citizens quickly formed. Believe it or not, it is said that Hardin's parents and wife were taken into protective custody. And yes, tension was high for over a month until his brother Joe, and their two cousins, Bud and Tom Dixon, were arrested on outstanding warrants in July. It was then that the angry citizens broke into the jail and dragged out Joe, Bud, and Tom. They pulled the three outlaws to a tree and strung them up. Then they went looking for Hardin.

John Wesley Hardin had fled, but it would be years before he was finally caught. Then on June 5, 1878, Hardin was tried for the killing Deputy Webb. And surprising as it was, Hardin was only sentenced to serve 25 years in Huntsville Prison for killing Deputy Webb. That's it, 25 years for luring Deputy Webb into a hotel room to kill him.

It is interesting to note, that on February 14, 1892, while in prison, Hardin was convicted of a manslaughter charge for the earlier shooting of J.B. Morgan. For killing Morgan, Hardin was given an additional two-year sentence that was to be served concurrently with his 25-year sentence.

So, let’s make no mistake about it, whether it was the Vigilance Committee of 1851 in San Francisco, California, which numbered in the thousands, or small groups of angry citizens in small towns in Arkansas, citizens in the Old West knew real well that the law did not always work. Because of that, in many cases in many parts of the West, citizens did what the law may have refused to do.

They were dissatisfied with the performance of the justice system. And because of that, they saw it as their duty to take action to stop killers from killing again.

Tom Correa

Two Union Soldiers Named Jacob Miller

Jacob C. Miller was born on August 4, 1840, in Bellevue, Ohio. His parents were John R. Miller (1801–1868) and Christiana Alspaugh Miller (1807–1870). 

During the Civil War, he volunteered and served with the Union Army in Company G, 113th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He rose to the rank of Sgt., and is said to have served exceptionally. After the war, Miller became a laborer, than a "house carpenter," and later a mail carrier. He lived in Illinois for a while, but then settled in Nebraska. He married Martha Adelia Homan Miller who was born in New York on February 25, 1846. It's believed they were married in either 1868 or 1870.

Some sources say he had a daughter, Lottie, and two sons, Percival and William. I couldn't find any trace of a daughter or a second son. From what I can find, their only child was a son, William Eugene Miller. who was born on October 6, 1871. Sadly, William died a mere ten days after his 8th birthday on October 16, 1879.

Jacob C. Miller lived until the age of 76 when he died in Omaha, Nebraska. He passed away on January 13, 1917. He was buried in the Cedar Dale Cemetery in Papillion, Nebraska. When his wife Martha passed away a few years later in 1923, she was interred with her loving husband.

Jacob, Martha, and William are buried together in a family plot in the Cedar Dale Cemetery in Papillion, Nebraska. There is a headstone for William, and a smaller marker for Jacob and Martha. Along side both is a headstone that has the words Medal of Honor inscribed just beneath Jacob C. Miller's name.

Yes, Jacob was a Medal of Honor recipient for bravery during the Civil War. In fact, during the Siege of Vicksburg, Miller is said to have volunteered for a dangerous mission that meant almost certain death. As amazing as it was, he survived and was later awarded our nation's highest honor. 

It's true. This Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor recipient served in the Union Army in Company G, 113th Illinois Infantry during the siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi, on May 22, 1863. The battle involved a long siege of the Confederate forces defending a very important position on the Mississippi River. Whoever controlled that position, controlled Vicksburg and would ultimately control the vital supply line of the Mississippi River.

General Ulysses S. Grant was in command of the Union forces at Vicksburg. What became known as the Siege of Vicksburg started on May 18, 1863 and lasted until July 4, 1863. It was considered a decisive Union victory. There were over 77,000 Union soldiers at the siege of Vicksburg. During the repeated assaults and 47-day siege, the fighting was fierce and cost in blood was high. As a result, 120 Union soldiers earned Medals of Honor.

Union forces tried on several occasions to storm the city. Miller was a member of a small group of volunteers that charged the Confederate lines. That volunteer charge, only un-married men were allowed to volunteer, would become known as the "charge of the volunteer storming party." It's said that he was at the head of his attacking force where the enemy fire was the heaviest and the odds of his making it through alive were not in his favor. Yet, he survived the charge. Years later, on August 20, 1894, he was awarded the Medal of Honor for his gallantry in the face of the enemy.

So about now you're saying, tell us how Jacob C. Miller was shot in the head and lived? Tell us about the picture atop this article with him wearing the Medal of Honor? 

Well, while the Internet says that Jacob C. Miller was shot in the head? The Internet is wrong. Jacob C. Miller who won the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Siege of Vicksburg is not the man in the above picture. Jacob C. Miller is not the man with a bullet hold in his forehead. The picture below is Jacob C. Miller.

The picture of a man with a hole in his head is Jacob Miller. Just not Medal of Honor recipient Jacob C. Miller. 

As for the decoration that looks like the Medal of Honor? Well, it's not the Civil War-era Medal of Honor. The medal that he is wearing is actually the medal of the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) which was a fraternal organization that was formed after the Civil War by Union veterans for the benefit of Union veterans. The GAR medal looks almost exactly like what the Civil War-era Medal of Honor looked like.

The story of the second Jacob Miller is fairly amazing in my book. He was born in Indiana in 1838 and enlisted in the Union Army's 9th Indiana Volunteer Infantry in 1861. I couldn't find out much more than that regarding his personal life. 

Of course, according to some sources, he saw a lot of action during the Civil War. Yes, several skirmishes and battles, including the Battle of Chickamauga. That battle was fought from September 18th to the 20th, 1863. It was end of a Union offensive, called the Chickamauga Campaign, in southeastern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia. The battle of Chickamauga didn't turn out well for the Union. It was a Confederate victory. 

That battle is regarded as the most significant Union defeat in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. And here's something else, the Battle of Chickamauga resulted in the second-highest number of casualties. It is only second to the Battle of Gettysburg. 

It was during the Battle of Chickamauga in a forest along the Chickamauga Creek in Georgia that a Confederate musket ball struck the second Jacob Miller right in the forehead. The story is that he was hit at the exact moment that he was aiming his rifle.

Because of the Union forces were retreating, the second Jacob Miller was left for dead. Frankly, it's not too hard to think he was done for after getting shot in the head. That round laid him out. He was completely unconscious and looked to be dead as his comrades were retreating. It is said that he came to later and immediately realized that he was where he shouldn't be. He was in the midst of Union and Confederate dead at the what was the rear of the Confederate line.

As we can see by the picture of him in his old age, he lived to tell the tale of what happened. In fact, he recounted his experience to The Daily News of Joliet, Illinois, on June 14, 1911. It was at that time that he said how he woke and after realizing where he was, he feared becoming a prisoner of war.

It was then that he used his rifle as a crutch and started walking. Covered with blood, he said he walked and "those that I met did not notice that I was a Yank."

He walked until he came upon a road which he followed. Exhausted, he laid down by the side of the road and passed out again. Passing ambulance bearers found him. They put him on a stretcher to a wagon that carried him to the Union field hospital. 

In that 1911 newspaper interview, Jacob Miller recalled how he was laying in the hospital tent. He said, "a hospital nurse arrived and put a wet bandage over my wound and around my head and gave me a canteen of water. The surgeons examined my wound and decided it was best not to operate on me and give me more pain as they said I couldn’t live very long, so the nurse took me back into the tent. I slept some during the night. The next morning, the doctors came around to make a list of the wounded and said they were sending all the wounded to Chattanooga, Tennessee. But they told me I was wounded too bad to be moved."

The Army doctors told him that Jacob that if he was taken prisoner, that he could be exchanged later. Even with a bullet still in his head, he knew better than to let that happen. After hearing the doctor, he left on his own to make his way to Chattanooga. He knew the treatment troops got as prisoners of war. He knew his chances of survival were slim if he were taken. So he left and walked until he passed out along side a road.

A wagons taking the wounded to Chattanooga came by and saw him. The drivers loaded him in the wagon. He passed out again in the wagon. He woke the next day in Chattanooga. From there, he made his way to another hospital in Nashville. From there, he was transferred to an Army hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. Then, he was sent to another hospital in New Albany, Indiana. 

During this whole time, he kept asking doctors to remove the bullet. He said, "In all the hospitals I was in, I begged the surgeons to operate on my head but they all refused.”

After nine months of suffering, Jacob Miller met with two doctors who agreed to operate on his still open wound. It was then the doctors took out the musket ball. Jacob Miller remained in the hospital until his enlistment ended on September 17, 1864.

But that's not the end of the story of what happened to Jacob Miller. Fact is, there was more than just a musket ball in Jacob's forehead. As he stated in that 1911 newspaper interview, "Seventeen years after I was wounded, a buck shot dropped out of my wound. And thirty one years after, two pieces of lead came out."

During that interview, Jacob Miller wanted readers to know that he hasn't doing the interview to complain about his suffering, or about what happened, or his treatment, or even to blame anyone for leaving him when everyone was retreating. He simply thought he would relate what happened to him during the Civil War fighting for the Union. In fact, he made no qualms about how grateful he was to the government, saying, "The government is good to me and gives me $40.00 per month pension."

And for you folks who might be curious, $40 in 1911 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $1,079.53 in 2020. To give you an idea of how that $40 was spent, typical prices for 1911 for food included a loaf of bread for 7 cents, a dozen eggs for 34 cents, a quart of milk for 9 cents, a pound of steak for 26 cents, and renting a room would cost about $2 a week. So for a disabled veteran at the time, $40 must have seems like enough to get him by. And if he had a job, he was that better off.

By the way, Jacob Miller died sometime in 1927.

So there you have two Union soldiers who fought in the Civil War. Both named Jacob Miller. In reality, that's probably a fairly common name for those days or today. One was a Medal of Honor recipient, the other was a man who proved miracles do happen. 

On June 14, 2025, I received an email from Judith Miller. She wrote to say, "Jacob C Miller, Medal of Honor recipient, died January 13, 1917, in Nebraska. His Medal of Honor medal is in the possession of my husband's family. He was my husband's 2x great-grandfather." 

I cannot thank Judith enough for writing to let us know this. I truly appreciate it.

Tom Correa 

The Memorial Day Visit

"They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them."

                           For The Fallen by Robert Laurence Binyon

When I was much younger and fresh out of the Marine Corps in the late 1970s, I remember driving by a cemetery full of American flags and what looked to be a Memorial Day observance taking place. The sight, the color, the breeze, the movement atop every grave, the sight of the people gatthered, all grabbed me for a second. I pulled in and stopped. After getting out, I found that I just missed the ceremony.

For some reason, I started walking the graves, reading the stones, the names, the dates, seeing which were veterans, from which war. Of course wondering if there were those my age when they died.

A few rows over from where I was, I saw an old woman sitting on a stone bench just looking at a headstone. She said quietly just taking in the moment. Though there were many others there that day, for some reason, she looked over at me and nodded with a small smile. I smiled back and nodded my hello. In her hands was a rosary and what looked like some tissue.

I have no idea why, but for some reason I found myself slowly making my way over to her. I don't know if it was curiosity and my wanting to see the stone she was looking at so peacefully. I don't know if I just wanted to see what branch he was in, that is assuming that he served. For whatever reason, I found myself drawn to the old woman side.

She looked up at me, then she said, "He's my husband."

I nodded looking at the stone, seeing his name, his rank, his branch of service, his war, and the date he passed. The sentiment on the bottom. I noted the empty space on the stone, and figured that it was for her.

"He died after being home for only a few months," she sighed. "He was wounded and shipped back to the states. We all thought he would be fine. At least that's what we told ourselves. That's what we kept telling him to give him hope. You can't lose hope."

I listened, and didn't say a word.

"He was overseas. Almost thirty, he was older than most of the others. He was a good Soldier." She smiled still very proud of him. "He was a good man. He liked the service. He did his job. He did his part. We all did in those days. We did what was needed."

She took in a breath and slowly sighed again, "We were married for a few years when the war broke out. We were happy to have jobs again. Times had been so tough. And we had so many plans. Of course, one day, well one day we'll be together again. But until then."

I listened and simply nodded in agreement. I looked at her, and watched the years in her eyes as a tear streamed down her cheek. She shook her head a little as if shaking off a regret and reached over to squeeze my hand. Here was this old woman who I didn't know. And for a moment, she seemed so frail and worn beyond her years. It was as if she were tired from waiting. And she needed to be there and tell a stranger their story.

"After he enlisted, we had only a short time together before going overseas. I was a real camp follower because we knew he might not come back, and we wanted as much time together when we could. We didn't talk about that. But of course, that didn't matter. I understood why he needed to go. He wasn't a shirker. No, not him. When he was needed, he went. He was gone for two years. Then when he came home. Well, so many surgeries later, he still died."

She reached up to wipe a tear. "He died for me, our daughter, our grandchildren. For all of us I guess. He is still the man of my dreams. He's still my hero. After all of these years, I still miss him."

I said. "Lest we forget. He should not be forgotten. There's nothing wrong with being always faithful. It's just right."

Her eyes met mine and she smiled hearing what I said. Again she reached over and this time clutched my hand, and said, "Thank you for that." Then she slowly stood. "God bless you. Thank you for that."

Her grandson who was over talking with some friends came over to help her. He said, "Thanks," and shock my hand. Then said, "She still misses grandpa. Especially today. It's their anniversary."

As they walked to their car, I thought about what the day is all about, those who were killed overseas, those who passed away after returning. I also thought about her love for him. Her pain of missing him still. Her missing him after so many years.

Things seemed to stand almost at a still while she reminisced for those few moment and tell me of her love. Soon, I again looked at the small flags caught in the breeze. It was Memorial Day, and in the distance I watched flag bearers and a civilian honor guard still present from a ceremony which must have ended just before I arrived.

I couldn't help but think about the honor guards that I've been a part of while in the Corps. For a moment, I thought about the funerals, the ceremonies, and how the speakers always talked about love of country and those who make the ultimate sacrifice. They talk about the history of Memorial Day and why it's so important for us to observe those who made sure our freedoms are intact -- about how it's our responsibility to not let their deeds nor their sacrificed be forgotten, how we should not forget them.

That was more than 40 years ago. I still remember the woman in her late-sixties who seemed older than her years. The loving wife who still wept for her beloved husband gone more than 30 years before. I remember how she missed him still.

She held on to the promise that we will again be united with those we love. While I believe that those who are dear to us do not stop loving us just because they die, we must do the same and not stop loving them because they have gone before us. While I have no idea if she's still with us, I believe her husband knew how much she loved him, how proud of him she still was, and how she still saw him as her hero.

For me, every once in a while, when I pass a graveyard on Memorial Day weekend, I'll see the flags and wonder if there is another loved one missing their hero. After all, they should not be forgotten. And frankly, there's nothing wrong with being always faithful. It's just right.

Lest we forget.

Tom Correa

A Message From Merced County Sheriff Warnke

Merced County, California, Sheriff Warnke

It has come to our attention that there has been some rumors about a letter sent to the State of California and if it was actually authored by Sheriff Warnke. Well, we are here to tell you IT WAS and you can read it below.

My “Official” stance regarding this is explained as follows;

When this Pandemic first came to light and our nation took the stance to “shelter in place” I was skeptical but supported any effort to protect our citizens from this disease. This included having to deal with a local church pastor who defied his order.

As time marched on, it became very apparent that decisions were being made on what “could happen” but hasn’t come close to the “predictions” that are being fed to our citizens. “We are going to peak within the next two weeks!”

This has been the battle cry for two months. I even went so far as to secure equipment to house all the bodies that were to overrun my county due to COVID based on what was being reported out of the Governor’s Office. Guess what, it still hasn’t occurred.

You know what “could happen” each day? Car crashes, airplane crashes, food poisoning, LE getting ambushed, and I could keep going!! But we as citizens continue to face these “could happens” each day. The world is a very dangerous place and we face it daily knowing the risks. But here in America, we decide what chances to take based on any risk factor and that includes going to work as a cop for the last 41 years.

The Constitution gives us that right. I doubt that the Governor would ever take a job where the dangers are as constant as they are in my CHOSEN profession. But I, along with millions of men and women do this every day knowing the risks.

Nobody has the right to dictate what risks I’m going to take when I leave my house and this includes an elected governor. If I go to a business and I feel that the risk is to high, I can make a choice whether or not to do business there. And this includes getting a haircut or getting a routine dental checkup.

When Governor Newsom took to the airwaves and then singled out a county because they didn’t follow his orders and treated them differently, it became obvious to me that this whole lock down was based upon him being able to have control over the citizens of this state.

He is treating this state’s counties as he has claimed to be treated by the President in the very recent past. That statement also pointed out that different counties have different issues and should be treated independently and not covered under one blanket. That statement is a fact whether or not there is a pandemic.

He is using the Public Health director as his authority in an attempt to maintain control over the citizens based solely on what “could happen” keeping in mind that the PH Director reports directly to him. Governor Newsom now threatens the different local jurisdictions regarding funding if they don’t follow his orders.

Didn’t he sue the President for holding funding due to him defying the President’s orders?

Our current situation is reflective of a short statement I recently read that seems to fit here; “If the barn yard were to hold an election, the cows, chickens, pigs and horses would vote for the hand that feeds them. Even though that same hand will eventually lead them to slaughter” Hmmm. That’s what is happening here in this state and possibly other states.

Economic slaughter is what we are facing because of his continuous behavior to keep this nation’s greatest state economy from thriving. The majority of the citizens are on the verge of a state wide revolt because they are losing the possibility to regain their businesses because of the tremendous financial loss they suffered.

I truly believe that Governor Newsom’s motivation is to have the majority of the citizens (and illegal residents) dependant on governments assistance so he could maintain this control once this “pandemic” is declared over. This is being caused based upon a crisis he himself has caused in this state based on a declared pandemic on a virus that should have been dealt on a completely different level. The CURE should not be worse than the disease.

So, the answer you are looking for is this. I WILL NOT be taking any enforcement action in this county for any of the COVID-19 “violations”.

As the Governor has also directed the Sheriff’s to release felons onto our streets and LE in general to completely disregard the safety of our citizens by not allowing most felons from even being booked but then wants us in LE to arrest people for standing closer than 6 feet or worshiping their religious beliefs in a building.

My decision is based on the Constitutional Rights afforded our citizens and I as the Constitutional Law Enforcement Authority in Merced County, I am here to uphold them. The citizens themselves can make informed decisions on how to proceed and protect their lives and livelihood and not the Governor of a state.

Remember that the people elected a governor, not an emperor.

Sheriff Vernon H. Warnke
Merced County, California

Editors Note:

I'm posting his message here because Merced County Sheriff Warnke represents all freedom loving Americans who have we the people's best interest in mind. Of course, let's keep in mind that the dilemma for most officers is keeping their jobs and feeding their families while knowingly enforcing orders to arrest Americans who have not committed a crime -- orders from mayors and governors who would not hesitate firing an officer who refuses to carry out their edicts.

While police chiefs are political appointees and the state police agencies like the California Highway Patrol answers to the governor, county sheriffs are voted into office by we the people. I truly believe that's the reason sheriffs departments aren't "just following orders" while other department are when it comes to enforcing the edicts of the mayors and governors. 

Remember this, their edicts are not laws. Kings, Queens, Emperors, and Dictators issue edicts, proclamations and decrees. Edicts are not laws because laws are passed by legislatures. If governors are concerned about our safety and upholding their oath to protect and defend our rights, they would call for sessions of their legislatures and passed laws. Laws can be challenged in court. 

Instead, Americans are now in a position of being arrested for challenging the edicts of governors and mayors no differently than what takes place in dictatorial nations. And sadly, there are law enforcement agencies who are enforcing those edicts just as if laws are being violated when no crimes are being committed. Thankfully, the majority of America's county sheriffs are not.   

It's great Americans like Merced County Sheriff Warnke that should give us hope for our future.

Tom Correa

Editor/Publisher

The American Cowboy Chronicles

The Camp Grant Massacre 1871

As with police departments when there's a drop in the crime rate, and the military during peacetime, budgets get slashed and allocations are cut. That situation was what the people in Tucson, Arizona, saw happening when the reduction of Indian hostilities took place in that area in the early 1870s.

It was a region that feared an economic crisis because the Federal government saw the cessation of hostilities as a good reason to reduce funding for operations meant to pacify and control the Apaches. It's said that Tucson as a whole enjoyed a sense of prosperity as a result of the "blankets for peace" government program. The economy there was as dependent on war with the Indians as some cities today are dependent on automakers keeping their plants operating.

It's not a new story at all. It's a story that was played out in the Old West time and time again. When that which feeds the local economy stops being there, businesses fail, people lose their jobs, and ghost towns are all that's left. When the cattle drives dried up, so did several of the cowtowns that cheated and hated the drovers young and old. Of the ones that survived, it was usually due to people staying put and finding other means of industry. For example, when mines went bust so did mining towns. The town of Tombstone can thank Hollywood and tourists for keeping that town alive.

In early 1871, there were those in Arizona who saw it their civic duty to increase hostilities with the Indians -- just to stoke public fear and get the Federal government to increase federal funding to keep the troops there and the "blankets for peace" program intact. 

Fort Grant was established in August 1860 in the Arizona Territory as an outpost named Fort Breckinridge. In 1871, Fort Grant, also known as Camp Grant, was a sun-scorched collection of assorted adobe buildings. Located about 50 miles Northeast of Tucson, it sat at the convergence of the San Pedro River and Aravaipa Creek. It was a place the Apache knew as their home long before their tribe had been driven away by American soldiers. The prelude to the massacre started in February of 1871 when five starving Aravaipa Apache women arrived at Camp Grant seeking sanctuary. 

Early in 1871, 37-year-old First Lieutenant Royal Emerson Whitman assumed command of Camp Grant. Lt. Royal Whitman was the officer in charge of the Post and he decided that they could settle at the Camp after meeting with them. In reality, he took them in as "prisoners of war. In that way, they would be under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army. Of course, by his allowing them to settle at the camp, he and the U.S.Army became responsible for their protection and providing them with the food they needed.

Soon, over 500 more Aravaipas arrived at the fort. Led by Chief Eskiminzin, he requested that the Apaches be allowed to grow crops along the creek so they could help feed their people. Lt. Whitman gave them permission to do so and even arranged for the Apaches to work as ranchhands for local ranchers -- all so that the Indians could earn money and assimilate into American society.

The Apaches saw this as an opportunity to lead a happy peaceful life on their home territory beside the creek that had provided their water. This was a huge change for the Apache who knew that living near white settlers always brought problems. But since the U.S. Army in this situation was now their protector, they hoped this time would be different. Sadly, it wasn't.

By March, things started to erupt for the worse. A renegade band of Indians attacked a baggage train and two men were murdered. The renegades who some say were Yavapais Indians and not Apache Indians also stole 16 mules in the raid. Later that month, a rancher was killed and a Mexican woman from the south of Tucson was kidnapped. Soon old fears were inflamed and outraged residents of Tucson sent representatives to see U.S.Army Gen. George Stoneman for protection. 

Gen. Stoneman was responsible for all military policies in the Arizona Territory. He had stationed his 3rd Calvary northeast of Tucson. Though the people of Tucson saw this as his leaving them without military protection, Gen. Stoneman did not move his troops closer to Tucson.

A few weeks later in early April, another Indians again raid took place on the ranch. This time 19 head of cattle were stolen. Word of the raid got to the people of Tucson and immediately the citizenry gathered. Even after realizing that the news of the attack was delivered by Papagos Indians who were the sworn enemy of the Apaches, a large posse was organized to go after any and all Arivaipa Apache Indians. 

By the end of the posse's first day out, they found and killed an old Indian man who was identified as being an Arivaipa Apache from Camp Grant. The posse was not as fortunate later in skirmishes with renegades. In those battles, three whites were killed about 30 miles from Camp Grant. They returned to Tucson with little to show for their efforts against the renegades. 

On April 30th, 1871, things would go horribly wrong for the Arivaipa Apache at Camp Grant. Two days before that on April 28th, 148 Arizonans, comprised of six Americans, 48 Mexicans, and 94 San Xavier Papagos Indians began to leave Tucson a few at a time to avoid suspicion. 

Their leader was an American by the name of William S. Oury. He was the organizer of the raid. Oury was known as an easily angered Virginian, and he had fought in the Texas War for Independence including serving at the Alamo and in the Mexican War. The leader of the Mexicans was a skilled tracker by the name of Jesus Elias. Apaches had recently attacked the Elias homestead, killing two of Elias’ brothers. So yes, Jesus Elias had a score to settle -- and it didn't matter if the Indians that he would kill had anything to do with killing his brothers.

The 6 Americans and 48 Mexicans were joined by 94 San Xavier Papagos Indians led by their chief Francisco. They hated Apaches and welcomed the chance to rid the earth of them. It was an age-old hatred that may have been around before the first Europeans stepped foot on North American soil.

The 148 Arizonan raiders were armed to the teeth and headed for Camp Grant to inflict as much death on the Arivaipa Apache as humanly possible. They were not after the raiding renegades. They simply wanted to exterminate Apache -- their being peaceful didn't matter.

After traveling for two days under the cover of darkness, the raiders arrived at Camp Grant. Hiram Stevens, a friend of Oury's stood guard at the intersection of the road to Camp Grant to prevent any early warning and detection, while the raiders gathered outside the camp where the Apaches slept. 

There, just before the dawn of April 30, 1871, eight Arivaipa Apache men and 110 Arivaipa Apache women and children were brutally murdered in the brief span of 30 minutes. It's true, the Papagos Indians used clubs and lances while the Americans and Mexicans attackers used rifles and pistols on 118 Arivaipa Apache men, women, and children in just 30 minutes. 

And besides the brutal attack, 28 Arivaipa Apache babies were kidnapped from the ghastly scene. Why steal the babies? To sell them in the child slave trade in Mexico. 

By the time Lt. Whitman got word that armed Arizonans intended to raid the Apaches at Camp Grant, it was simply too late to act. By that time, the Indians had already been slaughtered. And when the soldiers led by Lt. Whitman finally arrived at the Apache encampment, it was half-past seven that same morning. 

Whitman and his men which included their Post Surgeon Conant B. Briesly were met with corpses left to rot in the morning sun of Arivaipa Canyon. It was said to be a macabre sight that made most of the combat-hardened troops sick to their stomachs. And among the dead, the troops found only one woman alive. Dr. Conant B. Briesly chronicled the sight in his log. Lt. Whitman made his report to Gen. Stoneman later.

Lt. Whitman had the bodies buried, and immediately sent interpreters into the mountains in an effort to locate the Apache men and assure them that his soldiers had not participated in the "vile transaction". It said that because of Lt. Whitman's efforts, the surviving Aravaipa Apache began returning to Camp Grantby the following day. Of course, after the massacre, several groups of Apaches joined up with the Yavapais in the Tonto Basin. From there they waged guerrilla warfare which lasted into the 1880s.

So yes, with the animosity at full-boil on both sides, a boil that would not simmer down for years to come, the merchants of Tucson got their wish of extending the hostilities for their financial gain -- even if their gain came with the murder of 118 innocents and later the lives of American troops. 

If one wants to know what sort of darkness celebrates killing men, women, and children, those 148 Arizonans are it. It's said that by eight o'clock that morning, the 148 Arizonans responsible for that horrible act, for undertaking such an evil deed, were having breakfast and celebrating what they did in Tucson itself. Believe it or not, though their victims were defenseless and sleeping, those Arizonans saw what they did as a victory over the Apache. 

Leading up to this, we know that atrocities were committed by both the white man and the Indians. By the 1870s, American immigrants were moving into the Western Frontier by the thousands. As what took place in other regions where people flood into an area, they exhaust the native food and water resources. As with what took place during the California Gold Rush of 1849, local tribes that relied on wild game and native plants as their primary food source soon find they now go hungry because they now have competition for food. This alone has led tribes to steal livestock, mules, and horses. Tribes also had problems with new diseases introduced by Whites and saw them as uninvited guests.

As for the settlers, they were frustrated with government representatives who were unavailable to protect the white citizenry. Of course, it didn't matter to them that a major problem faced by the U.S. Army as they had too few soldiers for too vast an area of land. There was also the problem of troops deserting. And lastly, we should remember that in the 1870s and into the 1880s, there were also other Indian Wars taking place all over the West. So in reality the number of troops in the West were in fact stretched pretty thin.

There was another problem going on that some might not have realized taking place. Divided into four sub-tribes, the Tolkapaya (Western Yavapais), the Yavepe and the Wipukpaya (Northeastern Yavapais), and the Kewevkapaya (Southeastern Yavapais). The Yavapais ranged from the Colorado River to the Tonto Basin. They too killed and mutilated white settlers for all the same reasons as other tribes. While most reports at the time have the Apaches as the biggest problem, Yavapais Indians were often mistakenly identified as Apache. 

Like the Apache, the Yavapais were mobile. The Yavapais also used guerrilla warfare tactics. This made it extremely difficult for the U.S. Army to distinguish one tribe from another. And of course, there was the problem of a tribe like the San Xavier Papagos Indians using the whites to exterminate their lifelong enemies the Apache. 

In October, a Tucson grand jury indicted 104 of those who took place in the massacre. All toll, there were 108 counts of murder. By December, eight months after the massacre, 104 of those who took it upon themselves to slaughter those innocent people were indicted and brought to trial. The only reason they were brought to trial is that President Ulysses S. Grant demanded that the Territory of Arizona bring those individuals responsible for that heinous act to trial. President Grant actually threatened to put the whole Territory of Arizona under martial law if the Governor didn't do anything to bring those responsible to justice.

So yes, there was a trail. The trial focused solely on Apache atrocities and was 5 days long. The jury deliberated for only 19 minutes. Then all 104 men were found not guilty of killing Indians. The only thing the trial proved to all there was that no one was going to be found guilty of murdering innocent Apaches men, women, and children in the 1870s in the Arizona Territory. 

Lt. Whitman published letters on behalf of the Apache. Nothing came of that. And frankly, there's probably a reason that was the case. While to us today we certainly understand how that massacre wasn't right by any stretch of the imagination, believe it or not, many of the settlers in Arizona at the time considered the massacre simply a case of "justifiable homicide".

Imagine that.

Tom Correa

Our Dog Holly Has Passed Away -- I Will Miss Our Pretty Girl

About 8 years ago, I wrote about how my dog Jake died suddenly. Yes, very suddenly. I pulled up that day and my father-in-law said, "I think Jake is dead."

He was right. My big very healthy looking dog that I had for a couple of years had simply died after playing with my in-laws' dog Oliver. It was a shock to my system. I think the reason that it was such a shock has to do with my being retired and having so much time to spend with him. Though my wife also loved the brute, he was really my big brown dog. He kept an eye on me late into the night while I sat here writing, and then he was gone.

About a year after losing Jake, my wife and I talked about getting another dog. Again, we went to the pound looking for a dog to rescue. Since I have a liking for a basic brown dog, we found a smaller version of Jake.

We were told she was two or less when she was picked up. And when we first saw her, my wife and I saw she was just a sweetheart looking for a home. We gave her one. We called her Holly. And I really believe she loved her name. 

That was seven years ago. And today, well today Holly passed away.

Over the last two days, she acted as if she picked up a bug. She wasn't moving as fast and she wasn't taking her treats as she would. And friends, she lived for treats.

This morning, my wife woke me up telling me that Holly was wobbly and couldn't stay on her feet. Immediately, we decided to get her to a Vet. We called our Vet located in San Andreas to see if she could fit us into her busy schedule. We arrived before 11am and immediately the Vet ordered blood work and tests. She told us to go grab lunch and be back at 1pm.

When we returned, she told us that she believed Holly had Autoimmune Hemolytic Anemia. She then explained that autoimmune hemolytic anemia is an immune system disease in which the body attacks and destroys its own red blood cells. In dogs with autoimmune hemolytic anemia, their red blood cells are still being manufactured in the bone marrow -- but once released into the circulation, they simply don't stay around like they should.

What causes autoimmune hemolytic anemia? Frankly, I'm still not clear on that. I do gather from talking with the Vet and looking it up, that there are two types of autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

One is "primary" while the second is "secondary." In the case of primary autoimmune hemolytic anemia, the dog's immune system is not working properly, and it incorrectly makes antibodies that target its own red blood cells. It's estimated that about three-quarters of cases of autoimmune hemolytic anemia are considered primary.

With secondary autoimmune hemolytic anemia, the surface of red blood cells actually become changed by some underlying disease process or by way of a toxin or poison. The dog's immune system then recognizes the changed red blood cells as "foreign invaders" that must be destroyed.

Secondary autoimmune hemolytic anemia might be triggered by cancer, some sort of infection, blood parasites, reactions to drugs, chemicals, toxins, reactions, snakebites, or even bee stings. Cancer is the most common cause of secondary autoimmune hemolytic anemia.

The biology behind all of this says that the targeted red blood cells are either destroyed within the blood vessels or when they circulate through the liver or spleen. In both situations, hemoglobin will be released. When that happens the liver will attempt to break down the excess levels of hemoglobin. This actually has the effect of overloading a dog's organs.

What are the symptoms of autoimmune hemolytic anemia? Well, dogs with autoimmune hemolytic anemia have severe anemia, and their gums will be very pale rather than the normal pink to red color. Dogs with anemia will be listless and tired or will get tired easily. The reason for this is that the dog doesn't have enough red blood cells to carry oxygen to the tissues. Because of that, a dog may actually appear wobbly and disoriented due to low oxygen levels in the brain. To compensate for the lack of oxygen to the tissues, their heart rate and their breathing increases.

As things go along, excessive levels of bilirubin will build up within the dog's body. Excessive levels of bilirubin cause the skin, eyes, and gums to appear yellow and jaundiced. The dog may vomit, and lose it's appetite. If a dog's autoimmune hemolytic anemia is so severe that it is life-threatening, then a blood transfusion will be needed. Understand, blood transfusions can cost $2,000 or more depending on where you take your dog.

Our Vet recommended a blood transfusion. I was on the phone talking with a few places regarding a blood transfusion for Holly when she died tonight.

We got her from the pound and we were gifted to have her as a part of our family for the last seven years. She was a great companion. She was great around strangers, children, and other dogs. She was a lover dog, a wonderful friend, a dog that would lick you to death.

She loved being told she was pretty. Her tail would wag even faster when she heard us say that. She loved to go on rides and would jump at the chance to jump in my truck to go get our mail or run others errands. All I had to do is say "Let's go for a ride" and she instantly became the happiest dog in the world. Though sick, tonight I took her for a ride. The reason, I wanted her to because it could be her last. Sadly it was.

Over the years, she would watch over me when I went out to feed the horses. She actually looking forward to it, and when I'd say "Let's feed horses" she run to the door. And as for her telling us what she needed, she would let us know what she needed by pawing us to get up from watching a television show -- or for me to get away from my keyboard.

Most always, it was either to let her out to do her business or she'd want a treat. Sometimes, my wife or I would get up and she would then sit down facing the kitchen, That was her way of saying she wanted a treat. If we opened the door to let her out, and she wanted out, she scratched on the door to let us know she needed back in.

I buried Holly on our property near where Jake and my horse Murphy are buried. Tonight, I dug a grave for our lover dog. It was something that I really wasn't looking forward to. I am not going to say that I didn't know that this day would come. I just wish it was a few more years down the road.

No longer will I call out for my Holly girl. No longer will she give us love on a bad day, or make the world a better place. I can only hope that I will be with her again. Until then, I will miss her scratching at the door. I will miss our pretty girl.

There are reasons why I cried while I buried her tonight. Simply put, she was a love. And as for me, my one comfort is that I really believe she knew she was loved.

Tom Correa

From Private To General -- Samuel Emerson Opdycke

Union General Samuel Emerson Opdycke

As for regular General officers in the Union Army during the Civil War, like the Confederate Army, there were many. As for "brevet" Generals, it's said they were dime a dozen during that war. In fact, there were hundreds of brevetted Generals in the Civil War on both sides. While many were for valor, that wasn't always the case.

For example, it's said that the majority of career senior officers did receive some form of brevet promotion within the final months of the Civil War. If that sounds strangely political, that's the other part of brevet promotions. Doling out brevet promotions as political paybacks was nothing new in that war, especially since doling out military officers commissions to political friends during the war was common place on both sides. So yes, in some cases, those promoted as a brevet General were done so just because they knew the right people. In those cases, it was about politics and money.

Of course one of the most famous "brevet" Generals is George Armstrong Custer. In any discussion of such promotions during the Civil War, Custer's name is usually mentioned. Custer was in fact seen as a practical joker, known as a "class clown" and "prankster," while attending West Point. He actually finished last in his class at West Point. 

But please, don't think that something like graduating last in your class will stop those destined to rise through the ranks. Fact is, even though that was the case, Custer did go from 2nd Lieutenant to brevet Brigadier General of the Michigan Calvary Brigade Volunteers within four years during the Civil War.

Then there's the story of Samuel Emerson Opdycke who went from mere Private to Major General during the Civil War. Yes, from the rank of Private to the rank of Major General. He was born on January 7, 1830, on a farm in Hubbard, Ohio. While his family were farmers, his father fought in the War of 1812 and his grandfather was an officer with the New Jersey Militia during the American Revolution. Young Samuel was educated in the Hubbard common schools.

He was in his late teens when the California Gold Rush took place, and he left Ohio for a few years to see if he too would strike it rich. By his mid-twenties, he was back in Ohio working various jobs. Just before the war, Samuel worked in Warren, Ohio, as a merchant selling horse equipment and supplies.

At the outbreak of the Civil War, Samuel's older brother Henry went off to Kansas and served in the Union cavalry there for most of the war. As from Samuel, he was 31 years old when he heard the bugle call. And like many, he enlisted in the Regular Army as a Private.

Because of his valor at the First Battle of Bull Run with the 41st Ohio Infantry, he received a commission to 1st Lieutenant on August 26, 1861. So yes, since Opdycke joined the Army as a Private in April of 1861 and was promoted to 1st Lieutenant on August of 1861, he went from the rank of Private to 1st Lieutenant in less than four months.

Samuel Opdycke was promoted to Captain in March of 1862 just before the Battle of Shiloh. By that September, he resigned to return home so that he would be able to organize and form the 125th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. To do that, he was made a Lieutenant Colonel on October 1, 1862.

By January 14, 1863, he was promoted to the rank of Colonel and given the command of a regiment. His regiment is said to have earned a great deal of fame in the defense of Horseshoe Ridge at the Battle of Chickamauga. Soon he was in command of a brigade, and his men were at Missionary Ridge during the Battles for Chattanooga. The fighting during the Battle of Missionary Ridge was brutal, but 125th Ohio Volunteer Infantry were still able to push Confederate General Braxton Bragg's men out of Chattanooga, Tennessee, by November of 1863.

In the spring of 1864, Col. Opdycke and the 125th Ohio Volunteer Infantry joined General William Tecumseh Sherman's Army in his Atlanta Campaign. And at the Battle of Resaca, Opdycke was badly wounded. It wasn't the first time he was wounded, but it was then that no one thought he'd pull through.

Actually, he did recover and led an assault in the Battle of Kennesaw Mountain. The Battle of Kennesaw Mountain was fought in June of 1864. It was the largest frontal assault launched by William Tecumseh Sherman's Union Army against the Confederate Army of Tennessee which was commanded by his old opponent Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. It's said that it ended in a defeat for the Union, but the fact is it didn't stop Sherman's advance on Atlanta. As a result of what happened there, Confederate Gen. Johnston was replaced with Gen. John Bell Hood.

Colonel Opdycke's brigade fought at the Battle of Jonesborough which was meant to draw the Confederate's Army of Tennessee commanded by Hood away from their defenses in Atlanta, Georgia. All so Sherman could burn it to the ground. It worked and Sherman did just that.

Colonel Opdycke's brigade is said to have pursued Gen. Hood's troops to Nashville, Tennessee. And from there, his brigade fought in the Battle of Franklin to secure the Union Army's victory at Nashville. It is no wonder that the 125th Ohio Volunteer Infantry gained a reputation as fierce fighters among Confederate forces.

During the Franklin-Nashville Campaign, Col. Opdycke distinguished himself at the Battle of Franklin. It was there that he achieved the status of a legend among his men. The story behind that has to do with the approach of Confederate troops under Gen. Hood. Opdycke's division commander was Gen. George D. Wagner.

Wagner ordered Opdycke along with two other brigade commanders to take up hasty defensive positions in front of the Union fortified line. Opdycke assessed the situation and actually challenged this wisdom of that order. It's said he argued with Wagner, and then took his men into a reserve position behind the fortifications.

As Col. Opdycke suspected, the Confederate assault broke the Union's line near the Columbia Pike. Seeing that was taking place, Opdycke sent his men into the battle. His men blocked the road at first. But then, Opdycke's Ohio troops straddled the road to allow retreating Union troops the ability to pass.

Col. Opdycke ordered his brigade forward to block the pursuing Confederates. It was about that moment when Union corps commander Gen. David S. Stanley arrived to observe what was taking place. Stanley later wrote, "I saw Opdycke near the center of his line urging his men forward. I gave the Colonel no orders as I saw him engaged in doing the very thing to save us, to get possession of our line again."

Opdycke's counterattack is said to have turned the tide of that battle, and secured an important victory for the Union Army. Opdycke's decision to defy orders and pull his brigade behind a fortified position ultimately led to a Union victory. It was for his action at the Battle of Franklin that he was honored with a brevet appointment to Major General of volunteers. He was promoted to a full Brigadier General of the Regular Army on July 26, 1865.

Brig. General Opdycke resigned from the Army in 1866. After the war, he moved to New York and helped establish the dry goods house Peake, Opdycke, Terry & Steele. Old soldiers are supposed to fade away, live out their live dealing with their wounds while writing their memoirs. He actually wrote several articles about what took place during the war. He was also very active in veterans affairs.

Sadly, it's said that on April 25, 1884, his wife and son heard a gunshot coming from his bedroom. Rushing to see what happened, they found the General with a bullet hole in his abdomen. He lingered in pain for a few days before finally dying. But before doing so, Brigadier General Opdycke managed to tell the doctor treating him that he accidentally shot himself while cleaning his revolver. He was 54 years old when he passed.

The 54-year-old General was transported by train to his hometown and buried there in Oakwood Cemetery in Warren, Ohio. On that day, The St. Paul Daily Globe wrote, "With the death of Gen. Opdycke, passes away one of the most gallant and distinguished soldiers which Ohio sent into the Civil War."

While he was certainly a brave man, Brigadier General Samuel Emerson Opdycke is not the only soldier to make the incredible journey from Private to General during the Civil War. There were others. And while some are amazed at how George Armstrong Custer who was a West Point graduate could go from 2nd Lieutenant to brevet General in pretty quick time, his feat pales in comparison to what happened to America's "Boy General." No, George Armstrong Custer was not the original "Boy General."

That deserving distinction was given to Uriah Galusha Pennypacker in newspaper around the country long before Custer's men started calling Custer that. Fact is, the man known as America's "Boy General" is believed to be the youngest General in American history. And yes, the Valley Forge-native is believed to still holds the record for being the youngest General in the history of the United States Army. 

Thought born in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, it's said he was raised without having any memory of his parents. His mother died when he was still a baby, and his father was adventurer who left for California where he supposedly founded a newspaper and then sold it. The 1880 Census had his father living in Oakland, California. Uriah Galusha Pennypacker was raised by his grandparents. 

After enlisting with the 9th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment in 1861 at the age of 16-years-old, he was a Private assigned to the job of Quartermaster Clerk. Believe it or not, it was there that he earned a commission to the rank of Captain because of his organizational skills. Not a brevetted rank, but an actual commission. 

When he was 19-years-old, be was promoted to the rank of Major because of his valor at Cold Harbor. Because of his bravery in battle at the Siege of Petersburg, he was promoted to full Colonel. And at the Second Battle of Fort Fisher in early 1865, Col. Pennypacker was not only wounded while leading an assault -- he was awarded the Medal of Honor because of his valor and promoted to the rank of Brigadier General. 

He was only 20-years-old. It was an unheard of achievement that made him an instant national sensation. His story was carried in newspapers throughout the Union, with of course the exception of those newspapers which were owned by Copperhead Democrat Confederate sympathizers. 

And think about this, while he was the youngest person to hold the rank of Brigadier General in the United States Army at the age of 20, he is also the only General who was ever too young to vote for the president who appointed him. General Uriah Galusha Pennypacker retired from the U.S. Army in 1883, and died of natural causes in Philadelphia in 1916 at the age of 72.

Where Uriah Galusha Pennypacker was as good a man as they come, on the other side of the spectrum is one who is said to have been pure evil. Nathan Bedford Forrest began his military career as a 40-year-old Tennessee cavalry volunteer with the rank of Private. Shortly after enlisting in the Confederate Army, he used the wealth which he accrued from his own very large slave-trade fortune to outfit a regiment. 

It was because of his wealth that he was given the commission of Confederate Lieutenant Colonel. He ended the war as a Major General. After leaving the Confederate Army, he went into Democratic Party politics and was instrumental in creating the Klu Klux Klan.

Another Confederate who rose from Private to General is Irish immigrant, and former British soldier, Patrick Cleburne. He was a native of County Cork. In 1846 at the age of 18, he dropped out of Trinity College Medical School. He then joined the British Army assigned to the 41st Regiment of Foot.

After leaving the British Army as a Lance Corporal, Cleburne moved to the United States and settled in Arkansas. It was there that he became a pharmacist and newspaper owner. He joined the Democratic Party and was a staunch supporter of the Democratic Party endorsement of keeping slavery in place.

When the Civil War broke out, the very prosperous 33-year-old Cleburne volunteered as a Private for a local Arkansas regiment. Because of his wealth and past military experience, along with his political ties, he was soon "elected" Captain. He rose to the rank of Major General. His comrades called him "The South’s Fighting Irishman."

Confederate Gen. Cleburne was killed in action at the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864. Some say he was shoot dead by Brig. General Opdycke's men at that battle.

Tom Correa