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Jefferson Shields, Black Confederate – Lexington, VA

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Sharing brief stories of the ignored and forgotten. The following was published in the Nov 1, 1901 issue of the Times Newspaper in Richmond, Virginia about Jeff Shields: Jefferson (Jeff) Shields is a man of rugged character and is a great favorite among the white people, especially the old-soldier element, for Uncle Jeff counts himself one of the followers of the “Lost Cause.” Uncle Jeff entered the Confederate service as cook [and body servant] with his young master, James K. Edmondson, who became colonel of the 27th Virginia Regiment, Stonewall Brigade. Later he was cook for General “Stonewall” Jackson, and of this honor he never tires of talking. After General Jackson’s death, he cooked for General J.E.B. Stuart, then for an officers’ mess until the close of the war. He recalls many incidents of General Jackson’s colored Sunday school, taught here in the Presbyterian lecture-room several years previous to the Civil War. Uncle Jeff. was in General Jackson’s class, and he is t...
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What the Yankees Did. Burrel Hemphill: loyal slave gave his life than betray a trust

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During the War Between the States (aka unCivil War), Burrel Hemphill was a slave in the household of the very wealthy bachelor, Robert Hemphill, who had been killed in The Battle of Seven Pines on June 13, 1862. Sherman’s troops had been stealing what they wanted and burning what remained. When they approached the Hemphill estate in February of 1865, they reportedly demanded that Burrell reveal the hiding places of the Hemphill family’s silverware, other valuables and money that had been hidden from them. In an attempt to coerce Burrell to talk, the Yankees tied a rope to his ankles and dragged him up and down the road by a horse, before simultaneously hanging and shooting him. Despite the Yankees best attempts, Burrell died without saying a word. This monument erected in his honor reads, "In memory of Burrel Hemphill, Killed by Union soldiers February 1865. Although a slave, he gave his life rather than betray a trust. He was a member of Hopewell." (More info found in l...
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Francis Scott Key & the Ironic fate of his Grandchildren – Imprisonment at Fort McHenry and the Star Spangled Banner

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The irony of Lincoln’s armies attacking and imprisoning many of the grandchildren of our most famous Revolutionary War era Heroes and Founding Fathers (including George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, George Mason, etc) was not lost on the grandson of Francis Scott Key, author of the lyrics of our National anthem, “The Star-Spangled Banner.” His fascinating story of arrest and imprisonment follows along with my photos of famous sites related to Francis Scott Key, his parents, and many of his grandchildren, including Fort McHenry, his birthplace at Terra Rubra, his gravesite in Frederick, Maryland, his grandchildren's graves in Owing Mills, Maryland (north side of Baltimore), the Courthouse he used in Frederick Maryland, etc. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - FRANCIS “FRANK” KEY HOWARD FOUND THE IRONY OF BEING IMPRISONED BY YANKEES AT THE SAME LOCATION THAT HIS GRANDFATHER FRANCIS SCOTT KEY WAS DETAINED BY THE BRITISH 47 YEARS EARLIER. AFTERALL, WHIL...
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