Washington's Birthday

[OlszowyTM]

Things seem a little slow lately, so how about a challenge- How many different period accounts of Washington's Birthday can we dig up? Was it viewed differently North & South? Did it's importance wane over the duration of the war?


2/27/62
Hornellsville Tribune

WASHINGTON’S BIRTHDAY
Rogersville Seminary Feb 24 ‘62

Mr Editor—Sir: The celebration of the Anniversary of Washington’s Birth, at the Seminary, on Saturday evening, was a rich entertainment. At an early hour the Chapel was densely crowded and the almost heartless stillness throughout the evening proved them not an uninterested audience. The exercises were opened by a stirring national air after which the reading of Washington’s Farewell Address by CW Stevens, a member of the grdauating class, drew forth many words of commendation for his clear and distinct enunciation, which displayed no inferior training in that important branch of education—Elocution.

Then Mr Gibson, of Hobart College, was introduced as the poet of the evening, who recited an original poem, subject, “Freedom”--.It will be no flattery to give him a high position among poets. He that can sweep down through the cycles of time giving the rise and fall of the Empire faithful to his subject and faithful to his muse, is no ordinary genius. Mr Snow of Lima was next introduced as the orator of the evening,-- subject, “The Good Hour”. He remarked that “to speak then was like serving the fish after the pudding ,” but if the “pudding” was good, ( and it was) certainly the audience did not fail to relish the “fish” for the meat of truth was agreeably seasoned with the spice of wit and served in a sty;e that the most fastidious literary epicure must have pronounced fine. Music and a vote of thanks closed the exercises and we doubt not that each one present went home with renewed love and vows of constancy to “Our Country”.

[J. Donaldson]

Advertisement from the Friday, February 14, 1862, edition of the Cedar Falls, Iowa, Gazette:

Celebration of Washington's Birthday

The Horticultural Society
will hold a
FESTIVAL
On the Eve of the Birthday of Washington
Friday, Feb'y 21st, 1862
FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE LIBRARY
The entire proceeds of the evening will be (used?) for
the purchase of books for the Library of the Society

Programme:
Rooms open at 6 o'clock; Exercises
to commence at 7, in the Large Hall
in Overman's Block
1. Music by the Cedar Falls Brass Band - "Hail Columbia"
2. Opening Chorus by Glee Club - "Star Spangled Banner"
3. Prayer by Rev. C. Waterbury
4. Music by the Orchestra
5. Reading of Washington's Farewell Address by H. M. Whitney
6. Music by the Glee Club - "The Red, White and Blue"
7. Oration on Washington by Rev. J. S. Dennis, of Dubuque
8. A scenic view, representing Washington, the Goddess of Liberty, and the Thirteen Original States
9. Music by Orchestra - a medley of national airs
10. Toasts, and Responses not to exceed five minutes each, with music interspersed
11. Music by Brass Band - "Washington's Grand March"
12. Benediction - by Rev. Mr. Taylor

Part Second

1. Grand Concert bv the Swinette Band.
(This will be the Greatest Concert ever held in the Valley)
2. Grand Aboriginal War Dance
(This will be worth a month's travel to see.)

Part Third

1. After the exercises in the Large Hall are
over, the Horticultural room will be open for
a Social Gathering. A Piano and Melodeon
will be in this room for those who may
wish to amuse themselves with music.

The Oyster and Refreshment Department
will be in an adjoining room, where Oysters,
Tea, Coffee, Cake, Fruit, and other Refreshments,
can be had at all times.

Tickets to all parts of the House, 25 cents each
Children - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -- - - 10 cents each

Refreshments Extra

H. M. Whitney
R. C. Overman
H. F. Crain } Com. of Arrangements
Fred Brehmler
P. Melendy

Cedar Falls, Iowa.

[J. Donaldson]

Cedar Falls, Iowa, Gazette
March 6, 1862

A She Copperhead - On the occasion of
the celebration of Washington's birth day,
in the city of Muscatine, Mrs. Wallace, wife
of the President of the Democratic Club in
that city, walked up to the American flag
floating in the street, and in the presence of
a large number of people, deliberately spit
upon it. The venomous copperheadess
should have been publicly spanked till the
stripes upon her person should vie in color
with the red stripes upon the glorious banner
she so wantonly insulted, and the protection
of which she is unworthy to receive. This
thing's husband was till lately the Secretary
of the State Agricultural Society.

[Emmanuel Dabney]

A Southern wartime Washington's birthday celebration:

DAILY CONSTITUTIONALIST [AUGUSTA, GA], February 23, 1862, p. 3, c. 1

Washington’s Birthday.

Yesterday was celebrated the birthday of the Father of his Country—the great Rebel Chieftain of 1776. We should call to mind his virtues, and strive to emulate them in this dark hour of our country’s peril.
Confederate flags were flying from the several flag staffs in the city; and in the morning, the 10th Regiment, Georgia Militia, paraded under command of Col. W. B. Griffin. In the afternoon, the semi-annual parade of the Augusta Fire Department took place.
The regiment paraded through several streets, and made a very good display. Col. Griffin made a very eloquent speech to the men, which was received with considerable applause.
In the afternoon, the Fire Department assembled in front of Firemen’s Hall, on Greene street, for the semi-annual parade, but after the usual inspection, the companies were dismissed and returned to the several quarters. (see http://www.uttyler.edu/vbetts/august...t_ja-je_62.htm)

[eric marten]

Possibly related:

There was a fiddle tune published by Knauff in Virginia in 1839 , possibly as a tribute to George Washington, entitled "The 22nd of February". The tune is also known as "Miller's Reel" and later became to be known (maybe by mistake) in the Appalachians as "The 28th of January".

By the way, does anyone know how this particuar Knauff was pronounced back then in this country - German with K or the English way with silent K ?

[Emmanuel Dabney]

I wanted to also ad that the official inauguration of Jefferson Davis in 1862 occured on February 22nd in front of the equestrian statue of George Washington on the Virginia Capitol grounds.

See:

http://www.mdgorman.com/Written_Acco..._2_21_1862.htm

http://www.mdgorman.com/Written_Acco..._2_22_1862.htm

The Richmond Daily Dispatch ran the following program:

Programme
for the
inauguration
of the
President and Vice-President
of the Confederate States.

1. 1st Colonel Charles Dimmock to be Chief Marshal, assisted by four Aids.
2. 2d. The Senate and House of Representatives will meet in their respective Halls at 11½ o'clock A. M., and then, with their respective officers, repair to the Hall of the House of Delegates of Virginia, which has been kindly tendered by the House of Delegates.
3. 3d. The President and Vice-President elect will be conducted to the Hall by the joint Committee of Arrangements at 11½ o'clock, and be received by the Assembly, standing.
4. 4th. The President of the Senate will occupy the seat on the right of the President elect; the Vice-President elect that on the left of the President, and the Speaker of the House that on the left of the Vice-President.
5. 5th. Invitations are extended to the following persons and bodies, to wit: members of the Cabinet, who will be seated on the right and left of the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House. The Governor of Virginia and his staff; the Governors of any other of the Confederate States who may be in Richmond, and ex-governor Lows, of Maryland; the Senate and House of Delegates of Virginia, with their respective officers; the Judges of the Supreme court of Virginia, and of the Supreme court of any other of the Confederate States who may be in Richmond; the Judges of the Confederate District court at Richmond, and any other Judge of a Confederate court who may be in Richmond; the members of the late Provisional Congress; the officers of the army and Navy of the Confederate States who may be in Richmond; the Mayor and Corporate authorities of the city of Richmond; the Rev. Clergy, and Masonic and other Benevolent Societies, and the members of the press.
6. 6. at half-past 12 o'clock the procession will move from the Hall by the eastern door of the capital, to the Statue of Washington, on the Public square, by such route as the Chief Marshal may direct, in the following order, to wit:

1. I. The Chief Marshal.
2. II. The Band.
3. III. Six members of the Committee of Arrangements, including their respective Chairmen.
4. IV. The President elect, attended by the President of the Senate.
5. V. The Vice-President elect, attended by the Speaker of the House of Representatives.
6. VI. The Members of the Cabinet.
7. VII. The officiating Clergyman, and the Judge of the Confederate Court at Richmond.
8. VIII. The Senate of the Confederate States, with its officers, in column of fours.
9. IX. The House of Representatives, with its officers, in column of fours.
10. X. The Governors of Virginia and other States, and Staff.
11. XI. The members of the Senate and House of Delegates of Virginia, and their officers.
12. XII. The Judges of the Supreme Court of Virginia, and other States who may be in the city of Richmond.
13. XIII. The officers of the Army and Navy.
14. XIV. The Reverend Clergy.
15. XV. The Mayor and Corporate authorities of the city of Richmond.
16. XVI. The Masons and other Benevolent Societies.
17. XVII. Members of the Press.
18. XVIII. Citizens generally.

Seats will be provided by the Chief Marshal for the Governors of States; the Judges, and, as far as practicable, for the other guests.

The invited guests are requested to present themselves at the door of the Hall in the order above indicated.

At the Statue of Washington the President elect, the Vice-President elect, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the officiating Clergyman, Confederate Judge, Governors of States, Judges of the Supreme Courts of States, the Chief Marshal and his Aids, and six of the Committee of Arrangements, will take positions on the platform. Prayer will then be offered by the Rt. Rev. Bishop Johns.

The Inaugural Address will then be delivered; after which, the oath will be administered to the President by the Confederate Judge in Richmond, the Hon. J. D. Halyburton, and the result will be announced by the President of the Senate.

The oath will then be administered to the Vice-President by the President of the Senate, who will also announce the result.

The several legislative bodies will then return to their respective Halls, and the President and Vice-President will then be escorted to their respective homes by the Committee of Arrangements.

Online at: http://tinyurl.com/y8862ra

[OlszowyTM]

March 5, 1864 Harpers Weekly

THE BROOKLYN SANITARY
FAIR.
THE anniversary of Washington's Birthday was fitly celebrated in Brooklyn—the third city in the United States—by the opening of the Fair in aid of the Sanitary Commission. On pages 152 and 153 we illustrate some of the leading features of this Fair; and on page 156 will be found a sketch of the "Post-Office," where anybody can find as many letters as he desires—postage not paid. The buildings occupied by the Fair comprise the Academy of Music and Knickerbocker Hall, on one side of Montague Street, and two large buildings on the opposite side. One of these is connected with the Academy by a temporary bridge thrown across the street. Knickerbocker Hall and one of the other buildings were erected expressly for the Fair, all the materials and labor having been given, without charge, forming one of the leading items in the list of contributions. The bazaar of the Fair occupies the auditorium of the Academy; but as most of the stalls are beneath the first tier of seats, they are not seen in our general view of the interior, which is taken from the dress circle. The artist has saved us the labor of describing in detail the general arrangements and some of the most striking special features of the Fair. To give any thing like a catalogue of the articles contributed would require a volume. By way of hint it may be said that there are more than 10,000 sofa-cushions, and a lady of a mathematical turn of mind assures us that there is a pin-cushion for every pin in the city. The Art Gallery contains 175 framed paintings, most of them of great merit, besides many gems from the albums of our patriotic artists. In the Department of Manufactures and Mechanic Arts we find almost every thing from a buggy to a bag of coffee—from a saddle to a sewing-machine. Not the least interesting contribution here is a huge bale, marked "336 lbs. Sea-Island Cotton," the product of free labor, sent from Hilton Head. In the New England Kitchen the descendants of the Pilgrims may regale themselves upon the national delicacies of crackers, doughnuts, molasses, pies, pickles, apple-sauce, pork and beans, cider, and the like. If any man wishes to know just how his grandmother appeared when she made captive the youthful heart of his respected grandfather, he has only to look at the fair attendants, who are arrayed in the garb of the last century. It is an odd sight; but our belles in their hoops, etc., will look quite as oddly to their grandchildren. In the detached building at the corner of Montague and Clinton Streets is a museum of rare and valuable contributions, paintings, engravings, and works of art and vertu. One room contains a beautiful arrangement of flags and war materials from the Navy-yard, and another a collection of flags captured from the rebels.
http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoun...oklyn-fair.htm


Feb 25, 1865 Harpers Weekly

LYRIC FOR WASHINGTON'S BIRTHDAY.
By WILLIAM ROSS WALLACE.
[" When I, an American, living under the Government founded by the immortal WASHINGTON, visit his tomb, let me not stand there, a stranger, an alien, by the consent of a government founded by rebels and traitors."—From a Union Speech, delivered in Union Square, New York, by the Hon. Chauncey Shaffer.)
WORDS of beauty, power, glory,
How through all the land they ring, Broad and mighty as the music
Rolling from our eagle's wing
As he battles with the tempest,
Scatters clouds that veil the plain, So the glorious sun may sparkle
On its hallowed homes again !
What ? Americans be aliens
Where his native forests bloom?
Beg permission for an hour
By their mighty father's tomb?
What ? resign our rights to treasure Worshiped by a whole wide world? See another nation's banner
On the sacred spot unfurled?
Sooner shall exultant Heaven,
When the very noon is won,
Let the tempest fiends of chaos
Rob her bosom of the sun!
No ! ye impious rebels, traitors,
Ye who rend the very Trust
Left by him no, never, never
Shall ye only own that dust !
All Americans shall guard it
Even ye when Battle's fires
Shall have burnt out of your bosoms Their disloyal, vile desires!
Words of beauty, power, glory,
Ring along the loyal sod!
Loudly ring as when archangels
Smite the thunder-bells of God B
ells of warning to the peoples
Who in Truth's white castles dwell, When en their ramparts are assaulted
By the rebel hosts of hell !

http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoun...-explosion.htm

Here's the front cover of Harpers from 1861
FEBRUARY 23, 1861. Harpers Weekly
http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoun...washington.htm

[OlszowyTM]

Here are some examples of Washington in art over the years as our ancestors saw him.

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/wash/hd_wash.htm

[BobRoeder]

From: One Battle Too Many: The Writings of Simon Bolivar Hulbert Private, Co. E 100th Regiment, New York State Volunteers, 1861-1864 - Richard P. Galloway.

Pg. 47 - From Diary while at Camp Morgan, Buffalo, NY

Sat, Feb 22, 1862: This morning aroused at half past 5 o,Clock to go to the city at 8 O,Clock to celebrate the birthday of the father of this country, Washington. After marching through the principal streets of the city, amid the booming of cannon & the crowded assemblage of people, we returned to camp weary.

pg. 286 - From a letter

Morris Island, S.C.
February 23d, 1864

Dear Mother & Sister, Yeserday was Washington's Birth day. Our Navy was all Decorated, more gay than any Bride you ever saw, with all the colours of the different Nations which our Government has intercourse...

The diary entry for the previous day simply says: Mon, Feb 22, 1864: On picket in the boats out near James Island. Shell Charleston all night.