Caltrop or calthrop. Large numbers of them would be scattered on a road or trail to slow down pursuit by cavalry. When a horse stepped on one, it would bruise or puncture the sole of the hoof and make the horse go instantly lame.
This is another page of the Christmas program that was given to the POWs at Stalag Luft III in 1944. It includes the lyrics to "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and "O Come All Ye Faithful." The program lists carols performed by the "troubador group" on...
This page has a Christmas program taped to it. The program reads, "Christmas Time Sagan, Germany, 1944." On the top of the page, Mitchener has written, "Our Entertainment - Yuletide --"The remainder of the program is on the following page.
This is another page of the Christmas program that was given to the POWs at Stalag Luft III in 1944. It includes a dedication page that reads, "The Senior American Officer extends very cordial season's greetings to all officers and men under his...
Brass bugle with castellated suture in bell section that confirms it as original to the 1860s. Dovetailed (zippered) seams are found on all Civil War-era bugles. (See North South Trader's Civil War, Vol. 29, no. 4, 2003, pg. 46, Fig. 14.) All...
Letter ordering an officer to go with a guard of one non-commissioned officer and six men in order to take charge of a passenger train on the Rome Railroad; the letter includes additional instructions. An example of the form to be kept is...
This page in Mitchener's POW diary from World War II shows a short poem called "Comrade to Freedom." The poem observes that men who have never been in bondage do not truly understand the joys of freedom.
Monument with sculpture of soldier atop marble base at funeral parade rest. He is leaning on his rifle, which is pointed down. Image features sculpture surrounded by tombstones and trees within the cemetery.
These final pages include contact information for four individuals, A. J. Jankura of Cleveland, Ohio; Joe L. Ogan of Tulsa, Oklahoma; Billy Jo [Trice] of Dallas, Texas; and C. Elmer Hicks from Louisville, Kentucky. He has also written, "Ask Olaf...
This is the table of contents page for Hardy A. Mitchener, Jr.'s journal during his stay as a POW in Germany during World War II. He has created his own list, with sections such as "Cellmates," "Our Creed," and "The B-17."
This nine-page letter written from Arthur H. Harris in Monroe, Louisiana, to his brother George Carroll Harris in Nashville is a conscious political treatise. The author is advocating and justifiying the secession of Louisiana at the upcoming...
Two-page letter from Arthur H. Harris of Monroe, Louisiana, to his brother George Carroll Harris of Nashville. He writes of his recruiting expedition and his rifle company, of recruits hankering for action, of George's desire for a chaplaincy, and...
Letter from Arthur H. Harris to his brother George Carroll Harris in Nashville. He writes of the pervading excitement that has surrounded the 1860 presidential election in his area. Though he is glad the contest is over, he acknowledges the death...
Two-page letter from Elisha W. Harris to his son George Carroll Harris of Nashville. He writes from his plantation Waco Place in Louisiana of the war being upon them with bloody consequence. He has abandoned his efforts to cling to the union and...
Two-page letter to his son George Carroll Harris of Nashville, Elisha W. Harris writes from his plantation Waco Place in Louisiana of attending a local political meeting. He details the zest the crowd displays for politics and the presidential...
J. S. Burrow writes his brother from Chester County detailing his financial problems, his inability to collect money until cotton comes to market, his desire to move from Jacks Creek for better money-making opportunities, and his fear that he will...
Letter from Jane Smith Washington of Springfield, Tennessee, to her son, William L. Washington in Toronto, Canada, describing a confrontation with Federal troops. Mrs. Washington describes an extremely violent confrontation with Federal troops. In...
Five-page letter written from John S. Brien in Nashville, Tennessee, to R. M. C[ornin], Esq. in Cincinnati, Ohio. The author expresses his views on secession, the Union, and Southern Rights as well as his hope for compromise. Says Brien, " I...
Four-page letter from Mary Guthrie Latta to her husband Samuel details news of their children and other family members. References are made to a scarcity of food and civilian transportation and rumors of battle. Mary proclaims her hope that her...
