Dear Deane Ferguson Mills,
I just joined this list yesterday. Having moved to Virginia upon
retirement in 1997, I am busy learning more of the history of the state
and the controversies it has raised. I was born and raised in Maryland,
but must admit that I was a college teacher by profession and probably
meet your definition of liberal.
Nevertheless, this is a sincere question I ask now, not a criticism or
put down. What rights did Virginians in the 1850s believe might be taken
away from them except their right to make their own decisions about
slavery? At that period wasn't the federal government debating whether
to make slavery illegal in certain territories as they applied for
statehood? Lincoln said repeatedly that preservation of the union was a
higher priority for him than abolition of slavery. That is, the federal
government did not intend in 1860 to abolish slavery in states like
Virginia where it was already established. It does appear that secession
precipitated the Emancipation Proclamation.
Sincerely, Donald Makosky
On Mon, 3 Sep 2001 10:13:54 -0400 Deane <[log in to unmask]>
writes:
> Well, I suppose that is why those Virginians fought for the North.
> They considered themselves Americans rather than Virginians and they
> probably also espoused the causes of the North rather than the
> South.
> Nevertheless, I believe that many Southerners were extremely
> patriotic about
> their individual states and, in fact, saw themselves and felt
> themselves to
> be "Virginians" first; "North Carolinians" first;
> "South Carolinians" first, etc.
> I would also like to make the point that in some ways these
> philosophical
> and political battles are still being fought.
> Today, Americans in every state of the Union are now fighting the
> idea of an
> over-big, gargantuan, ravenous, "morbidly obese", centralized
> government
> that is over regulating and over taxing its citizenry.
> In other words, States' Rights is still an issue.
> Those issues, I think, were the crux of the Civil War.
> To the folks out there who disagree with me, please do not tell me
> that the
> reflections and memories of my four, Un-Reconstructed Southern
> grandparents
> were the rantings and ravings of some old bigots. Their beliefs had
> absolutely nothing to do with the issues of slavery and they were
> not
> racists.
> What some of you (notably you liberal, college professors) call
> 'propaganda', others might call a primary source.
> The reason I keep mentioning my grandparents at this site dedicated
> to
> Virginia history is because I want to give them a voice in these
> matters.
> They lived through the times being discussed and they were hardly
> alone in
> what they thought and believed in.......and believed in strongly
> enough to
> go to war and fight for.
> Deane Ferguson Mills
> A 13th generation Tidewater Virginian!
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: <[log in to unmask]>
> To: <[log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Monday, September 03, 2001 6:11 AM
> Subject: Re: Hampton (Virginia) National Cemetary: 757.723.7104
>
>
> > How about General Thomas and other Virginians, like the
> substantial
> portion
> > of Loudoun county German Quakers that fought for the Union and
> considered
> > themselves Americans above Virginians?
> >
> > To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the
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> > at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-hist.html
>
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