In response to Ms. Pemberton's statement about Mrs. Lee's alleged refusal to accept a Negro guard at her house in Richmond after it fell, I offer here the following 3 references:

1)  The story can be found in a so-called history book, in Jay Winik's _April, 1865, The Month that Saved America_, Harper-Collins, 2001, page 120, where it is told WITHOUT ANY ATTRIBUTION for the quote as: 

"When Mrs. Robert E. Lee, who was too stricken by arthritis to flee and thus remained in Richmond, suggested that the soldier posted on her doorstep, a 
black man, was 'perhaps an insult,' she was promptly given a new guard, a white from Vermont, and had her household offer him meals on a tray." 

Where did Mr. Winik find this story that includes a quote which he fails to footnote or reference?   

2) An EYEWITNESS report:  In _Witness to Appomattox_, page 110, Richard Wheeler writes: 

"A sidelight to this measure is given by Union staff officer Thomas Thatcher Graves: 'As one of our aides was riding through the streets, engaged in gathering together 
the able-bodied men...he was hailed by a servant in front of a house, toward which the fire seemed to be moving. The servant told him that his mistress wished to speak to him. He dismounted and entered the house, and was met by a lady who stated that her mother was an invalid, confined to her bed, and as the fire seemed to be approaching, she asked for assistance. The subsequent 
conversation developed the fact that the invalid (a victim of arthritis) was no other than the wife of General R. E. Lee, and the lady who addressed the aide was her daughter, Miss Lee. An ambulance was furnished...and a corporal and two men guarded them until all danger was past.' " 

3)  Alfred Hoyt Bill enlarges on that story in _The Beleaguered City_, (Alfred A. Knopf, 1946, page 278-179: 

"...when darkness came, a brigade of white troops picketed the city. Its patrols moved through the suburbs. There was a sentinel on almost every porch. Except on official business, no one, either soldier or civilian, was allowed abroad after nine in the evening....Next morning a servant issued from General Lee's house with a tray of breakfast for the sentinel on the porch. About eleven this same morning,  April 4th, the sound of cheering came from the eastern part of the city. The news spread that President Lincoln had arrived." 

In the above quotes 2) and 3), one from a "first person," there is no mention of asking that a guard be "replaced" or of a statement about "an insult."  In fact, there were 3 Yankee guards whose colors or ethnic origins were not mentioned, but who stayed until the fire had died out and no longer threatened the Lee house.  

In the other recounting, the author says that ALL the guards in the city at night were white.  No mention is made of this alleged story concerning Mrs. Lee's thinking a Negro guard "an insult." Why?  Because all the guards were white. 

It is sufficient to say that a story or statement QUOTED WITHOUT ATTRIBUTION in a history book is highly suspect and less  believable than a quote from a "first person" eyewitness.  

The incident of a guard is not mentioned in _The Confederate State of Richmond_ (Emory Thomas, 1971) nor _Red River to Appomattox_ (Shelby Foote, 1974) nor _Battle Cry of Freedom_ (James McPherson, 1988).

Mr. Calkins' article and book are not available to me at the moment to check to see if he mentions this story of Mrs. Lee allegedly refusing to have a Negro guard at her door.  I plan to contact him personally on Monday.  

If you are able to provide a reference from Mr. Calkins' book or article, I would appreciate it, Ms. Pemberton.  Otherwise, given the above research and lack of verifiable proof, I must say I cannot accept this story as factual.

Joan Logan Brooks

________________________________________________
QUOTE from Ms. Pemberton:
Joan,

         I'm unsure of the exact source of that story, but my main sources
in making the Five Forks site at
http://www.pen.k12.va.us/Pav/Academy1/fiveforks/ were the Civil War Times
issue that featured an article on The Battle of Five Forks by Chris Calkins
and the book The Battle of Five Forks by the same Chris Calkins, plus the
linked sites.

                                         Anne
___________________________________________
At 07:50 PM 2/22/03 -0500, you wrote:
>Gen. Lee completed the manumission of his father-in-law's slaves, who
>passed to Mrs. Lee at her father's death, in 1864.  He was a few months
>beyond the 5-year time he was given to complete the manumissions.  But I
>suppose one can excuse him since he was otherwise occupied in the early
>1860s.
>
>Can you give a source for the story about Mrs. Lee and her alleged refusal
>to accept a black soldier as a guard at her door?  I have not heard or
>read that story before.
>
>Joan Logan Brooks
>
___________________________________________
>QUOTE from Ms. Pemberton.
>I believe the facts are that Lee inherited them from his wife. Seems I've
> > read somewhere that she stopped the manumission so that she would not live
> > alone while he was about his soldiering. If actions speak louder than
> > words, then Mrs. Lee's refusal to accept a black US soldier as guard when
> > Richmond fell, indicates her feelings on the subject of Negroes. She was
> > most ungracious!


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