The Legend of the Confederate Gold

Please welcome guest blogger, Jennifer Purcell. She is the author of A Different Kind of War and Social Media Manager for Spark Flash Fiction.

As a born and bred Georgia girl, I love learning tidbits of Georgia history. But there are some things they just don’t teach you in history class.

One of those is the legend of the Confederate gold.

According to history, when Confederate President Jefferson Davis received news that General Lee surrendered, he packed up the Confederate treasury and left Virginia. Rumors began circulating that he had over a million dollars with him, mostly in gold coins and bullion. But when Davis was captured near Irwinville, GA, and the Union soldiers confiscated his load, he had nowhere close to the rumored amount with him.

Some Union soldiers took the confiscated money and headed to a railhead in South Carolina. When they stopped for the night in Lincoln County, GA, bandits stole the money. Some of it was later recovered, but much of it is still missing.

This led to questions about what happened to the gold. Some scholars say that all the money stolen from the Union soldiers was recovered and that much of what Davis left Virginia with was used to pay Confederate soldiers. They also say that the rumors exaggerated how much Davis was actually carrying. But one scholar has said that James A. Semple was entrusted with some of the gold before Davis’s capture and was tasked with making it to Mexico. He never made it there, though, because he spent much of the money on his affair with Julia Gardiner Tyler.

But the ensuing search for the gold created a lot of trouble for the Union Army. A general named Edward A. Wild led a search in the area where the bandits struck. He accused the Chennault family of hiding gold and tortured them for answers. This caused a huge scandal, and General Ulysses S. Grant ended up removing Wild from his command.

Today, people still search for the missing gold, and the questions surrounding it are the perfect breeding ground for a writer’s imagination. I had just learned of it and was beginning to brainstorm ways to incorporate it into my debut novel when I read Turn to Me by Becky Wade. She used it as an important plot point, so I won’t spoil it for you if you haven’t read it. But the part it played in the story just goes to show how many of us are intrigued by the idea of hidden treasure. 

What do you think happened to the missing gold?

Jennifer Purcell is a Georgia native who loves to write about

faith, family, and romance. She is an ACFW First Impressions contest winner and a semi-finalist in the ACFW Genesis contest. Her debut historical romance, A Different Kind of War, released September 2023. Visit her online at justjenniferpurcell.com.

If you love small towns and heartwarming romances that don’t shy away from real-life struggles, then you’ll love Jennifer's debut novel: A Different Kind of War.

The war isn’t over for everyone. Will these two weary hearts ever find peace? After Marjorie Willoughby lost her father and brother in battle and her mother to a fever, she cobbled together a new family. But a lingering debt endangers their future. Gregory Cartwright’s Union allegiance and pacifist beliefs forced him to leave his home, and now he’s looking for a fresh start among his fellow Unionists in Bradford, Georgia. But first he needs a piece of land. Is there a possible solution that benefits them both, or are these battles they cannot win?

The Pony Express in a Nutshell By Donna Schlachter -- with Giveaway

Poster advertising for riders

Most people know a little about the Pony Express, but few realize it only operated from April 1860 through to November 1861. The first ride left St. Joseph, Missouri heading west, and from Sacramento, California heading east, on April 3rd, 1860. 

The idea for a Pony Express was conceived in the minds of its owners because of the possibility of winning the contract for the overland US mail. Another company, Butterworth, was running a southern route that took up to three weeks to deliver to the west coast, and Majors and Waddell thought they could beat that time by taking the shorter northern route.
The irony of the matter is they never won the contract; instead, they merged with Butterworth to form the Overland Mail Company, and closed with the Pony Express over $200,000 in debt.


From idea to the first mail run took less than six months. First they identified the easiest and shortest route; then they contracted with stagecoach stops, mercantiles or other businesses in small towns and cities for the home stations, where a rider lived and worked, making his runs about a hundred miles east and west. For the relay stations, where horses were changed out, the Pony Express contracted with ranches, outfitters, and ordinary folks to stable three to six horses and have somebody on hand with a saddled horse for the incoming rider. These relay stations were fifteen to twenty miles apart, depending on the terrain. Sometimes they had to start from scratch and hire somebody to build a barn, corral, and cabin to be in the right place at the right time.

For a period of about six weeks in the Spring 1861, the mail run was halted due to unrest between settlers and the native peoples, and while records aren’t clear, it appears no rider or mail bag was lost during the eighteen months of its operation. However, there are stories that talk about a horse shot out from under its rider and the mail bag being stolen, only to be recovered a year later.

As with any great piece of history, there will be myths and stories told. Among the famous legends are that Buffalo Bill Cody rode for the Pony Express. Records and recollections vary and contradict each other, but it is possible he rode for them for a short time as a young boy. Another great story is that women disguised themselves as men in order to sign up, but again, records are not clear whether this is true or not. However, it is documented as fact that women did sign up as soldiers in the Civil War, so it could be true.

Riders were hired for their ability to ride, endure the elements, as well as perform other necessary tasks around the home stations. Posters that advertise for wiry orphans are not completely true, but no doubt orphans could have been preferred. The pay started at around $25 a month plus room and board, which was a lot of money in those days, particularly for a teenage boy. However, along with their horsemanship and ranch skills, they were also exhorted not to drink, not to cuss, and not to shoot people without cause. At their swearing-in, each took an oath to act like a gentleman, and were issued a handgun, a rifle, and a Bible. Most carried their rifle in a scabbard, but often left the pistol and Bible in their bunk to reduce weight.

The time period, 1860, fascinates me as there were so many changes happening in America. The train is a near dream; the cross-country telegraph is nearing completion; the country is brewing for civil war; women are campaigning for voting and civil rights. In just a few short years, cameras will photograph the first war ever; telephones will be installed in people’s homes; electricity will light our lives into the dark of night. Despite the changes, one thing is sure: the Pony Express lives on in our hearts and our folklore much longer than it actually ran.

In my story in the “Pony Express Romance Collection”, Echoes of the Heart, both characters are running from bad situations, which mirrors the thinking of the day: go West and start over.

Leave a comment, and I will draw a lucky winner of a print copy (US only) of “Pony Express Romance Collection”.

Donna writes historical suspense under her own name, and contemporary suspense under her alter ego of Leeann Betts, and has been published more than 30 times in novellas, full-length novels, and non-fiction books. She is a member of ACFW, Writers on the Rock, SinC, Pikes Peak Writers, and CAN; facilitates a critique group; teaches writing classes; ghostwrites; edits; and judges in writing contests.

Echoes of the Heart: http://amzn.to/2lBaqcW
www.HiStoryThruTheAges.wordpress.com
www.HiStoryThruTheAges.com Receive a free ebook simply for signing up for our free newsletter!
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Books: Amazon: http://amzn.to/2ci5Xqq and Smashwords: http://bit.ly/2gZATjm About Echoes of the Heart:

Catherine Malloy, an orphan girl running from a compromising situation in Boston, answers a personal ad in a magazine, on behalf of her illiterate friend. Through his letters, she finds herself falling in love with this stranger. Benjamin Troudt is crippled and illiterate, and knows nothing of this ad. His route supervisor, Warton, who was helping Benjamin with the paperwork, has been given only a short time to live, and knows Benjamin needs help, so he places the ad. Can Catherine overcome her belief that the God of her parents has abandoned her? And can Benjamin allow God to open his eyes and his heart to love?

The Dogwood Tree and Easter

Legends of the Dogwood Tree

Late winter and early spring in East Texas means the Dogwood tree will bloom and color the landscape with its white or pink blooms. I have always loved this tree, but never had any success trying to grow one here in Houston.

The trees are beautiful along the sides of the highway running from Houston up through Woodville and Jasper, Texas where my aunt and uncle lived at one

time.

I discovered that many legends about the Dogwood abound where the tree blooms. From ancient times to the Indians to modern days, legends may be religious or cultural.

Some of the legends concern the name, others the shape of the flower, size of the tree, and another one the “little people” the trees sheltered.

One of the funniest stories comes from an Old English version of how the tree got its name. The wood of the tree became very dense and hard as a rock when it dried. The limbs were used to make “dogs” or “doggerwood” meaning “a stick used to skewer meat.” Another version had the English using the sticks of wood to cure the mange by washing their dogs with the stick.

The Cherokee people believed that a divine race of little people lived among the trees sent to teach people how to live in harmony and at peace with the woods. These were “Dogwood People” and were very kind as protectors of babies and older, infirm people. The English word that came to be used for the people is Brownie.

Two religious legends have been passed down through the years. The first one says that Satan learned that the Dogwood was Adam’s favorite tree, so Satan climbed up a locust tree to sneak into the Garden of Eden and destroy the tree. However, his attempts were foiled by the cross-shaped four petal flower, and he was able only to take a bite from each petal. Supposedly this little intrusion left the tree forever with petals looking like a bite had been taken from them. The locust tree was also cursed with thorns so it could no longer be used for devious purposes.

Despite all these tales, one unknown person penned a poem around Easter time that tells an entirely different story and is my favorite.

It is said that Jesus had a love for the Dogwood tree that grew to be as large as the oak trees we know today. The trunk grew strong and firm as the English people described. Because of its strength and stability, the legend says a Dogwood tree was used to fashion the cross upon which Jesus was crucified. Because it was used for such a cruel purpose, the tree was deeply saddened. However, Jesus, with His gentle love for everything, told the tree that because of its great sorrow, it would never again grow large enough to be used for such a purpose. Therefore, it would be slender with twisted trunks and branches and the four petals would represent the cross with special coloring on each one to denote the blood of Jesus and the center of the flower to represent the crown of thorns. 

The problem with this beautiful story is that the tree is native to North America and didn't grow in Israel in Jesus' time. No matter, the legend is loved, and the flowers are beautiful.

As the tree blooms in the spring, leaves are scarce but the flowers are profuse. They fill the countryside with their beauty, and because of the poem, people are reminded of the sacrifice our Lord Jesus made on the cross that day.

The tree to the right is on the road to Jasper in East Texas. Below is a closer view of the pink variety of the Dogwood tree.

Copies of the poem can be found all over today. Commemorative plates,

plaques, decorative handwork in watercolors and needle work, crosses, jewelry and even tattoos can be found bearing the design of the dogwood blossom. 

No matter what can be proved or disproved, the beautiful blossoms on the tree are a reminder for all of us during the season of Easter.

Martha Rogers is a free-lance writer and multi-published author from Realms Fiction of Charisma Media and Winged Publications. She was named Writer of the Year at the Texas Christian Writers Conference in 2009. She is a member of ACFW and writes the weekly Verse of the Week for the ACFW Loop. ACFW awarded her the Volunteer of the Year in 2014. Her first electronic series from Winged Publications, Love in the Bayou City of Texas, debuted in the spring of 2015.  Martha is a frequent speaker for writing workshops and the Texas Christian Writers Conference. She is a retired teacher and lives in Houston with her husband, Rex. Their favorite pastime is spending time with their twelve grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.

The Legend & History of the Dogwood Tree

Blogger: Amber Schamel

Since Easter is coming up, I thought I’d share a beautiful legend that always comes to my mind this time of year. The legend behind the dogwood trees. Some of ya’ll may have heard it, but perhaps you don’t know some of the other history behind the tree.

Down South, the Dogwood Trees are a symbol of Spring. There are festivals every year that celebrate Spring and the blooming of the dogwood tree. In fact, three states have honored the tree with state plant status. The dogwood is the state tree of Missouri, the state flower of North Carolina, and Virginia loved it so much that it is actually their state flower AND state tree.

In the mid 1500’s, the trees were known in Europe as the dagwood, because the small stems were used for dags, daggers, arrows or skewers. Later, around 1615, the name was changed to dogwood. No one knows for sure why the name changed from dagwood to dogwood. Perhaps it was a pronunciation thing. Or perhaps it was because the tree sometimes made the sound of a dog barking when the branches knocked together in the wind. Or perhaps it was due to the medicinal properties of the bark, that were often used to treat mange in dogs.

The native Americans used the dogwoods for many purposes, including medicines and dyes. The tree was seen as masculine, and many of the ceremonies consisted of the males eating their berries. The sap, however, is toxic and was used as a poison amongst the tribes. When the dogwoods bloomed in spring, the Native tribes knew it was time to begin planting.

Thomas Jefferson is one of the main reasons that the dogwood tree became popular as an ornamental tree. He loved them and promoted them for landscaping, including many of them in his estate plan at Monticello.

Notice the unique petal tips

Growing up in Colorado, I had never heard of dogwoods until I started volunteering in the rural Ozarks near where my dad was raised. He’s the one that original introduced me to these trees and the beautiful legend behind them. My dad stopped the car beside the road, snapped off a branch and held it out to us as he explained the legend. They are a rather small tree, rough and crooked looking. Around Easter every year, it bursts forth with beautiful, fragrant blooms. These blooms have four petals that look somewhat like a cross. The tips of the petals are unique, looking almost as if they've been imprinted by nails, and having red coloring that almost looks like blood stains.
 
No one knows for certain where the legend originated, or who is responsible for it, but it goes something like this:

The Dogwood Tree by Anonymous

When Christ was on earth, the dogwood grew

The blooms look almost like a cross,
with a crown of thorns at the center.

To a towering size with a lovely hue.
Its branches were strong and interwoven
And for Christ's cross its timbers were chosen

Being distressed at the use of the wood
Christ made a promise which still holds good:
"Not ever again shall the dogwood grow
To be large enough for a tree, and so

Slender and twisted it shall always be
With cross-shaped blossoms for all to see.
The petals shall have bloodstains marked brown
And in the blossom's center a thorny crown.

All who see it will think of Me,
Nailed to a cross from a dogwood tree.
Protected and cherished this tree shall be
A reflection to all of My agony."

While history tells us that these trees didn’t grow naturally in Palestine, (and therefore would not have been around during the time of Christ) and the legend most likely originated in the early 20th century, the story of the Dogwood Tree is just that…a story. However, it is a fantastic tool for telling others, especially young children, about the story of Jesus’s sacrifice & our redemption. The tree does bear resemblance to the story, which makes it an easy way to share the Gospel. I’ve witnessed my dad sharing it this way many times. So now, when you see the sign of Spring in the Dogwood Tree, remember its Creator, and His love for you.

Have you heard the legend of the Dogwood Tree? What other legends have you heard about Christ’s crucifixion? 

*****

Amber Schamel writes riveting stories that bring HIStory to life. She has a passion for travel, history, books and her Savior. This combination results in what her readers call "historical fiction at its finest".  Her title, Dawn of Liberty, was awarded the 2017 CSPA Book of the Year award in Historical Fiction. She lives in Colorado and spends half her time volunteering in the Ozarks. Amber is a proud member of the American Christian Fiction Writers Association. Visit her online at www.AmberSchamel.com/ and download a FREE story by subscribing to her Newsletter!

The Superstition Mountains

by Susan Page Davis

View of the Superstitions from the west side

The Superstition Mountains in southern Arizona offer beautiful views and are a popular hiking and rock climbing destination. Not far from Phoenix, the mountains can be seen for many miles.
 

The mountains got their name because early settlers heard of the many stories and myths told about them by the Apache and Pima Indians in the area. Later, the legend of the Lost Dutchman Gold Mine captured the imaginations of many. To read more about the Lost Dutchman’s Mine, see Nancy Farrier’s earlier post on this blog: http://www.hhhistory.com/2013/04/www.nancyjfarrier.com.html .

On the east side of the Superstions, near the trailhead of the Peralto Canyon trail.

The mountains were once known in Spanish as Sierra de la Espuma, mountain range of foam. The most prominent of the range is Superstition Mountain. Other prominent features include Peralta Canyon, Miner’s Needle, Weaver’s Needle, and Flat Iron Peak. Humans have lived in this area for many thousands of years.

Some Apache believe that a hole leading down into the lower world is located in the Superstition Mountains. Winds blowing from the hole are supposed to be the cause of severe dust storms in the Phoenix metropolitan region.

The Pima Indians have a detailed legend about a widespread flood that has similarities to the biblical account of Noah. In this tale, man was created by Cherwit Make, the Great Butterfly, who later became angry because of man’s bad behavior.

Legend of Suha

Suha, a Pima shaman, was warned by the creator, through the voice of the wind, that if people did not change, they would be destroyed by floods. When the people didn’t listen to Suha’s warnings, he and his wife were told to gather spruce gum and make a large, hollow ball. After stocking this structure with water and food, they crawled inside and sealed it.

The flood came, destroying the other people. Suha and his wife eventually landed in their gum ball on Superstition Mountain. Their food was nearly gone, and they were glad to find a prickly pear, or tuna cactus right outside when they opened a hole in the ball. They ate its fruit and waited. When the water subsided, they went down into the valley and created a new civilization.

This view was much like what stagecoach passengers saw in the 1880s.

There is much more to this myth, and you can read about it here.

Another Pima tale tells of Hauk, the “Devil of Superstition Mountain,” who stole one of Suha’s daughters. Suha followed and rescued his daughter, but some people believe the evil spirit still lurks behind Supersition Mountain and will not go there.







Giveaway:  I decided to use the Superstitions as part of the setting for an upcoming book.  If you would like to win a copy of my earlier book set in northern Arizona’s Four Corners area, leave a comment below and include your contact information. Almost Arizona is a historical romance. In it, you will find a sister’s love and her determination to clear her brother’s name when he is accused of murder.

Susan Page Davis is the author of more than sixty published novels. She’s always interested in the unusual happenings of the past. Her newest books include The Twelve Brides of Christmas and The Outlaw Takes a Bride. She’s a two-time winner of the Inspirational Readers’ Choice Award, and also a winner of the Carol Award and the Will Rogers Medallion, and a finalist in the WILLA Awards and the More Than Magic Contest. Visit her website at: www.susanpagedavis.com .

Where Was Camelot?

Escape into creative worlds of fiction.

St. Michael's Tower on Glastonbury Tor overlooks flatlands. Some believe it was once the Arthurian Isle of Avalon.
Courtesy of Donnylad [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Ah, Camelot! The legendary home of King Arthur, Queen Guinevere, and the Knights of the Round Table inspires our imaginations today. Whether (and where) it existed remains a hotly contested topic. 

The first mention of Camelot occurred in Chrétien de Troyes' poem "Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart," written around 1177, with a passing reference to Arthur coming from Caerleon in Wales, his usual seat, to hold court there. The name, Camelot usurped Caerleon in 13th-century French romances such as the Lancelot-Grail and the Post-Vulgate Cycle, although many details remained the same. It wasn’t until Sir Thomas Malory’s “Le Morte d'Arthur,” based on the earlier French romances, appeared in the late 15th-century that Camelot came into its own.

Mallory placed Camelot in Winchester, a Northampton town, and indeed a Round Table hangs in Winchester Castle. Although an interesting artifact, it is not the original. King Henry VIII commissioned this table in 1522 in honor of a state visit of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. The table features the names of Arthur’s knights and King Henry, himself, in Arthur’s seat below a Tudor rose.

Winchester Castle Great Hall and Winchester Round Table,
Courtesy of Graham Horn [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Arthurian scholar Ernst Brugger thought that ‘Camelot’ might be a corruption of ‘Camlann,’ the site of Arthur’s final battle against Mordred and a Pictish army. The location of this battle is not known, however theories exist. 

Another Arthurian scholar, Roger Sherman Loomis, thought ‘Camelot’ to be a corruption of ‘Avalon.’ The Isle of Avalon is first mentioned in “Historia Regum Britanniae” (‘The History of the Kings of Britain”) by Geoffrey of Monmouth (circa 1136). Glastonbury became associated with Avalon in 1191 when monks at the abbey claimed to have located the graves of King Arthur and Queen. These remains were moved and lost during the Reformation, and scholars suspect they were not genuine.

Could this be the grave of King Arthur?
Courtesy of Harvey Robinson [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

One of the best claims comes from Cadbury Castle, an iron-age hill fort that was reoccupied and rebuilt by someone who was probably a king of great wealth during the Arthurian era. Read why this location has my vote in Cadbury Castle: Location of Camelot? 

I’ve barely scraped the surface of possible locations for Camelot. The list goes on. In reality, we may never know for certain whether Camelot, or King Arthur himself, actually existed. For most of us, that’s not important. Arthur, Guinevere, the Knights of the Roundd Table, and Camelot live in our imaginations and belong to us all. As Arthurian scholar Norris J. Lacy so aptly put it, "Camelot, located no where in particular, can be anywhere."

About the Author

Escape into creative worlds of fiction with Janalyn Voigt, an author whose unique blend of adventure, romance, suspense, and fantasy creates breathtaking fictional worlds for readers.

Beginning with DawnSinger, Janalyn's epic fantasy series, Tales of Faeraven, carries readers into a land only imagined in dreams.

Janalyn is represented by Sarah Joy Freese of Wordserve Literary. Her memberships include ACFW and NCWA. When she's not writing, she loves to discover worlds of adventure in the great outdoors with her family.

Who Was the Real Robin Hood?

Who was the Real Robin Hood?

This post is brought to you by Janalyn Voigt, author of medieval epic fantasy.

The beloved legend of Robin Hood has inspired literature throughout the centuries and in modern times, movie retellings. Did an actual person initiate the legend? So far, no one knows for certain, but research by English medieval historian, Sir James Holt, points to an outlaw listed on the Yorkshire judicial roles in 1225-26 as Robert Hod (nicknamed Hobbehod) as a likely source of the tale. Robert Hod escaped into the greenwood from 1226-30.

Eight more Robin Hoods appeared in the late 13th-century, and may well have been copycats. The earliest example, from 1261-2 is particularly telling. In a Birkshire court case against one William, son of Robert Le Fevre, the clark referred to William Le Fevre as William Robehod. It is believed he did so because he was already aware of the reputation of an outlaw with that last name, the person who inspired the legend of Robin Hood. If that is true, the outlaw William was nicknamed after probably lived at a much earlier date to have acquired such notoriety.

So far, we can only speculate, but this documentation may point back to Robert Hod as the source of the Robin Hood legend. The video, below, is a fascinating look at the possibilities.

About Janalyn Voigt

Escape into creative worlds of fiction with Janalyn Voigt. Her unique blend of adventure, romance, suspense, and fantasy creates worlds of beauty and danger for readers. Tales of Faeraven, her epic fantasy series beginning with DawnSinger, carries the reader into a land only imagined in dreams.

Janalyn is represented by Sarah Joy Freese of Wordserve Literary. Her memberships include ACFW and NCWA.

When she's not writing, Janalyn loves to discover worlds of adventure in the great outdoors.


Visit the author site for Janalyn Voigt