Elmira Civil War Prison Camp

It is finally on the way from the printers! Order your copy today! The 1st 100 orders will be signed copies. This book has been 2 years in the making and covers a multitude of topics. It contains photos of a number of places and faces of Civil War Elmira. Prior to the activation of the prisoner of war camp, Elmira played a significant role in the training, mustering, draft and demobilization of 1000's of US volunteers. A number of individuals who passed through Elmira from 18...61-65 went on to prominent roles both during and post war. https://www.elmiraprisoncamp.com/prod/elmira-civil-war-book

Thank you to everyone who has ordered a book. 65 of the first 100 copies have already been spoken for! Copies are available locally at the Chemung County Historical Society and the Christmas House if you want save on shipping. There are still some calendars available at those locations too. The Friends would like to wish everyone a safe and healthy holiday season! Thank you again for your support and look forward to meeting many of you in 2021.

This post is courtesy of Ron Coddington at Military Images.

Our building got a bit of a facelift this year. It still needs a 2d coat on several of the sides, but it is ready to face the winter weather. Many thanks to the volunteers who helped scrape and paint. Especially those of you who spent hours on the ladders up in the peaks. Volunteers are what makes this project run and the Friends truly appreciate your contributions. Walt Sweeney... Dave Mosher Tom Mosher John Purdy John Trice Ken Miller Marty Chalk Doug Oakes The remainder of the building is in the comments section.

Factoid Friday Military inspired poetry set to music was a common occurrence during the Civil War. Two well known examples are The Battle Hymn of the Republic and The Bonnie Blue Flag. Others written for regiments are more likely to be lost to the dust bin of time. We found one for the 23rd NY Volunteer Infantry (Southern Tier Rifles), the first full locally recruited regiment to leave Elmira in 1861. Written by local business men, the full score and words can be found on line in the Library of Congress - https://www.loc.gov/resource/ihas.200000790.0/?sp=1 You can read more about the 23rd NY & its war record at the New York State Military Museum, in Saratoga, NY - https://dmna.ny.gov//civil/infantry/23rdInf/23rdInfMain.htm