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The Sultana Camp No. 1 of Memphis will host the 21st Encamp- ment of the Depart- ment of Tennessee (with Alabama and Mississippi). It will be exciting to visit one of the largest cities in the Mid-South and one that is steeped in Civil War history. The Encampment will be held on 20 Febru- ary 2016 starting at 9 a.m. at the Tennessee Genealogical Society, 7779 Poplar Pike, Germantown, TN. The meeting is pro- jected to end at ap- proximately 3:30 p.m. Arrangements for En- campment lodging have been made with the Courtyard by Marriott , Memphis- Collierville, located at 4640 Merchants Park Circle, Collierville, TN. Reservations may be made by call- ing (901) 850-9390 using the special Group Code “SUVS” or “Sons of Union Veterans”. A block of rooms have been made available at a special rate of $109 per night. Mark Day, Junior Vice Commander-in- Chief, will represent the SUVCW National Organization. Lunch will be catered by the Germantown Commissary. Com- missaries were small country stores throughout the South. They sold everything from blue jeans to bo- logna. The original Commissary, in Ger- mantown, was a small country store for over 90 years, until Walker Taylor bought it in 1981 and turned it into one of the best Memphis BBQ joints around. Dr. E. C. (Curt) Fields will provide an educational pro- gram for the En- campment through his convincing, true- to-life portrayal of General Ulysses S. Grant. His interest in portraying Grant is driven by his life- long study of the Civil War and his deep respect for Grant. Vol 3 Issue 1 Inside this issue: Headstone Reset for Pvt. Joel Byrum 2 Wreaths Across America 3 Blount County Jay- cees Christmas Pa- rade 45 From the Com- mander 67 From the Book Rack 810 Biographies of our Ancestors 11 Dual Membership Rulings 1213 EducationConstitution of the SUVCW 14 Calendar of Im- portant Dates 15 Major William Anderson McTeer Camp No. 39 Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War Maryville, Tennessee Winner of the 2014-2015 Abraham Lincoln Commander-in- Chief’s Award Preserving the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and our ancestors who fought to preserve the Union 1861- 1865! McTeer’s Loyal Mountaineers Department Encampment to be in Memphis

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Page 1: Vol 3 Issue 1 McTeer’s Loyal - … · Vol 3 Issue 1 Inside this issue: ... white Chevrolet Impala SS convertible. ... uniforms and wanted to learn more about us and what we do

The Sultana Camp No. 1 of Memphis will host the 21st Encamp-ment of the Depart-ment of Tennessee (with Alabama and Mississippi). It will be exciting to visit one of the largest cities in the Mid-South and one that is steeped in Civil War history. The Encampment will be held on 20 Febru-ary 2016 starting at 9 a.m. at the Tennessee Genealogical Society, 7779 Poplar Pike, Germantown, TN. The meeting is pro-jected to end at ap-proximately 3:30 p.m. Arrangements for En-campment lodging have been made with the Courtyard by Marriott , Memphis-Collierville, located at 4640 Merchants Park Circle, Collierville, TN. Reservations may be made by call-ing (901) 850-9390

using the special Group Code “SUVS” or “Sons of Union Veterans”. A block of rooms have been made available at a special rate of $109 per night.

Mark Day, Junior Vice Commander-in-Chief, will represent the SUVCW National Organization. Lunch will be catered by the Germantown Commissary. Com-missaries were small country stores throughout the South. They sold everything from blue jeans to bo-logna. The original Commissary, in Ger-

mantown, was a small country store for over 90 years, until Walker Taylor bought it in 1981 and turned it into one of the best Memphis BBQ joints around. Dr. E. C. (Curt) Fields will provide

an educational pro-gram for the En-campment through his convincing, true-to-life portrayal of General Ulysses S. Grant. His interest in portraying Grant is driven by his life-long study of the Civil War and his deep respect for Grant.

Vol 3 Issue 1

Inside this issue:

Headstone Reset for Pvt. Joel Byrum

2

Wreaths Across America

3

Blount County Jay-cees Christmas Pa-rade

4—5

From the Com-mander

6—7

From the Book Rack

8—10

Biographies of our Ancestors

11

Dual Membership Rulings

12—13

Education—Constitution of the SUVCW

14

Calendar of Im-portant Dates

1 5

M a j o r W i l l i a m A n d e r s o n M c T e e r C a m p N o . 3 9 S o n s o f U n i o n V e t e r a n s o f t h e C i v i l W a r

M a r y v i l l e , T e n n e s s e e W i n n e r o f t h e 2 0 1 4 - 2 0 1 5 A b r a h a m L i n c o l n

C o m m a n d e r - i n - C h i e f ’ s A w a r d

Preserving the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and our ancestors who fought to preserve the Union 1861-1865!

McTeer’s Loyal Mountaineers

Department Encampment to be in Memphis

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McTeer’s Loyal Mountaineers January 2016

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On New Year’s Eve, JVC and Graves Registration Officer Richard Holmes went out to Old Sweetwater Baptist Cemetery with his son Junior McTeer Member Carter Holmes and family members Pryor Watson, Mark Watson, Ryan Watson, Wayne Kile, Kyle Noe, and Janet Wat-son, to reset the headstone of Private Joel Byrum, Company A, 5th Tennessee Volunteer In-fantry, USA. Great job in preserving the memory of a Union Veteran of the Civil War.

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Page 3 Continued from Page 2

Wreaths Across America

Department Commander Mike Downs and Major Scott Alley, PCC, Civil Air Patrol, represented the Ma-jor William A. McTeer Camp No. 39 at Knoxville National Cemetery on 12 December 2015 for the laying of wreaths on veterans’ graves. Our camp adopted this program as a fundraising event to support the purchase of wreaths as well as an event that we may actively participate in from year to year to place the wreaths on gravesites. Next year’s event will be on 17 December 2016. Knoxville National Cemetery is located in the northern section of downtown Knoxville, TN. Union Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside established the cemetery during the Civil War after the siege of Knoxville and subsequent Battle of Fort Sanders. Capt. E.B. Chamberlain, the assistant quartermaster, was as-signed the task of designing the national cemetery at Knoxville. The first interments were remains ex-humed from Cumberland Gap, Concord and many other regional sites. Chamberlain’s design and sys-tem for recording interments was so effective that, in 1866, Gen. E.G. Whitman, observed that the cemetery had been "the only burial ground of Union soldiers…originally laid out and conducted to the present time in a manner and on a system that rendered it suitable to be converted into a national cemetery without material alteration or change, or removal of a single body."

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Blount County Christmas Parade

Several members of the Major William A. McTeer Camp No. 39 of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War were proud to participate in the 2015 Blount County Jaycees Christmas Parade on 12 December 2015 which takes place in the cities of Alcoa and Maryville, TN. It was our first time participating and we had great fun! McTeer member Roy Gamble provided the transportation by way of a beautiful red an-tique tractor that he had personally restored pulling a long wagon containing bales of hay. Our theme was “A Red, White and Blue Christmas” which included our 35-star US flag backdrop, signs and small flags adorning the trailer from front to back. After the pa-rade, we gave out a number of the small flags to members of a local Boy Scout troop who were both polite in asking for them and grateful to receive them. On the opposite page is a collage of photographs taken during the parade. On the upper left hand side are McTeer members A. B. and Jason McTeer, descendants of Lt. A. B. McTeer, the father of camp namesake Major Will McTeer, waving to the crowd as we drive down a shopping plaza in Alcoa. On the upper right hand side is McTeer member George Lane, PCC doing a little poli-ticking with Congressman Jimmy Duncan who was riding in a beautiful 1961 red and white Chevrolet Impala SS convertible. Camp Commander David McReynolds took the center seat on the trailer and waved and talked with the crowd throughout the parade. We were very happy to have received ap-plause and many positive comments as we followed the parade route through both Alcoa and Maryville. 2015 Brother of the Year Steve Wallace was there with his original Civil War era musket in tow proudly wearing the artillery uniform of his ancestor. Secretary-Treasurer Doug Fidler also made it to be certain that we were following all of the pertinent rules. He also gathered contact information on several people who expressed interest in joining our camp. Somewhere near the halfway point in the parade, George Lane decided to step off the trailer and walk the parade route taking time to stop and take pictures with members of the crowd. In the collage is a picture of George taking a picture with a little girl who was taken with his uniform and sword. However, George lost a lot of ground by walking and we lost him for a while on our way back to the starting point to get our cars and meet our rides home. But no worry, George made it back with police escort, lights flashing and all—a grand entrance back for one of our Camp’s grand gentlemen.

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Dear Brothers, The year 2016 has arrived! And with it, once again our Camp em-barks on an ambitious schedule of events. I am excited that so much of our agenda directly relates to the purpose of our organization— “To perpetuate the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and of the men who saved the Union 1861 to 1865; to assist in every practicable way in the preservation and making available for re-search of documents and records pertaining to the Grand Army of the Republic and its members; to cooperate in doing honor to all who have patriotically served our country in any war; to teach patri-otism, and the duties of citizenship, the true history of our country, and the love and honor of our Flag; to oppose every tendency or movement that would weaken loyalty to, or make for the destruction

or impairment of our constitutional Union; and to inculcate and broadly sustain the American princi-ples of representative government, of equal rights, and of impartial justice for all.” On page 14 of this newsletter under the heading “Education”, I have provided a copy of the Preamble and the first four Articles of the Constitution of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. Even if you have done so before, read through this material. Study it and understand it. For such understanding will keep us focused on doing what is prescribed in our Order’s Constitution. We should feel great honor in being those individuals for which these duties have been passed down from our fathers, grand-fathers and beyond. December turned out to be a very busy month. I want to thank DC Mike Downs and PCC Scott Alley for representing our Camp at the placing of wreaths on the veterans’ graves at Knoxville National Cemetery. The number of wreaths funded falls very short of providing a wreath for each grave. I hope that we con-tinue to support this project and help find the funding so that eventually every grave at that cemetery may have a wreath. We also had some fun participating in the Blount County Jaycees Christmas Parade. We made an im-pact on people by proudly displaying our flag, promoting our Camp and giving out flags to deserving Boy Scouts along the way. We certainly made an impact on children watching the parade who saw our uniforms and wanted to learn more about us and what we do. And finally I want to thank JVC Richard Holmes for his and his family’s work in repairing the headstone for a Union veteran in Sweetwater. This action is what we are all about. In Fraternity, Charity and Loyalty, David McReynolds, Camp Commander

From the Commander

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Below is a Certificate of Appreciation that we received for our participation in this year’s Wreaths Across America. We are proud of our camp’s participation in com-munity events that help us achieve the purpose and objectives upon which our order was founded. I hope that we can participate again in 2016 and continue to grow the number of wreaths purchased and cover more headstones in Knoxville National Cemetery. All veterans deserve respect and remembrance.

David McReynolds Camp Commander

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Edward H. Bonekemper III is

the book editor for the Civil War

News and author of at least

three other Civil War mono-

graphs. Now, with his newest

release, The Myth of the Lost

Cause – Why the South Fought

the Civil War and Why the

North Won , he examines how

the history of the war was re-

written by pro-Southern revi-

sionist historians. In what is

close to a statistical analysis, he

examines the reason the South-

ern States tried to leave the Un-

ion, the eulogistic fervor that

developed around the cult of

Robert E. Lee, and the malicious

denigration of the military abili-

ties of U. S. Grant. In the first

two areas the author does a

first-rate job in developing his

premises; however, he has

problems dealing with Grant’s

career in a fair manner.

Through the first three

chapters, the author does an

excellent job of showing that

indeed slavery was the cause of

the war. By quoting the state-

ments of the Southern leaders,

official state-related secession

convention records, secession

resolutions and secession re-

lated declarations, he uses their

own words to illustrate how the

only topic was SLAVERY. All

statements are documented in

over 200 academic footnotes so

that a reader can follow up on

the material if they so desire.

My conclusion is that after I

read the first 100 pages, I can-

not imagine anyone being able

to rationally state that the issue

of slavery had nothing to do

with the coming of the Civil

War!!!

The material on debunk-

ing the myth of the “marble

man,” Robert E. Lee, is mainly

a continuation of the research

of previous historians. Such

writers as Gary Gallagher, Alan

Nolan and Thomas L. Connelly

have gone a long way in bring-

ing Lee’s reputation back down

to earth and Bonekemper does

a very good job of summariz-

ing the negative aspects of his

leadership. The strategic fail-

ure of Lee’s thinking was

based on his belief in the ne-

cessity of invading the North

to win, which, in the final

tally, cost the Confederacy

greatly in manpower and re-

sources while totally failing to

reach his goals. His focus

only on the Eastern Theater

of war allowed the Union ar-

mies west of the Appalachi-

ans to run rampant with the

southern armies only winning

one major battle at Chicka-

mauga Creek, and that victory

was reversed at Chattanooga.

The author feels the South

only had to “go for a tie” to

gain their independence and

that an offensive war, of the

type Lee tried to conduct, was

not needed and a waste of the

very limited resources of the

Confederacy.

Up to this point, the

author has been very infor-

mative and has written a use-

ful book, but his chapter on

the military history of U. S.

Grant leaves much to be de-

sired. Bonekemper attempts

to build the reputation of

Grant to such an extreme

point that it left this reader

McTeer’s Loyal Mountaineers January 2016

Page 8

From the Book Rack—continued on page 9 ===>

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almost breathless. U. S. Grant was indeed an excellent military leader and without him the re-

sults of the war probably would have been much different than what we look back on today.

However, he did have many weaknesses and he was not as perfect as the author would lead us to

believe. At Shiloh, Grant made a terrible mistake in not having his troops better prepared for an

attack while ignoring intelligence that Albert S. Johnston’s army was about to go on the offensive.

To find a scapegoat, he turned on General Lew Wallace and blamed his absence during the first

day of the battle as the cause of the early rebel success. During the Vicksburg Campaign, General

John McClernand played a major role in the Union Victory, while Bonekemper reverts to calling

the general from Illinois an incompetent political leader whose actions delayed Grant’s advance.

Actually, throughout the final drive on Vicksburg, McClernand’s Corp was used as the hammer in

the hard fought victories at Jackson, Champion Hill and the Big Black while such generals as

Sherman and McPherson were often being used as the rear guard. Both Sherman and McPher-

son strongly opposed Grant’s final plan with the former actually writing a letter to the War De-

partment alerting Stanton to his Commander’s dangerous strategy to take the Southern Citadel;

while McClernand was the only Corp commander to strongly support the drive. Additionally, on

22 May 1863, during a broad assault on the Vicksburg entrenchments that was supposed to in-

volve all three corps, soldiers from McClernand’s southern flank breached the Confederate line at

the “railroad redoubt.” Grant, who was several miles away, on the northern flank with Sherman,

failed to adequately support the breach for over three hours leading to a bloody Union with-

drawal from the rebel line. McClernand and his troops were rightly upset about the situation and,

as a result, the General issued his “General Order #72” celebrating the bravery of his Corp and

mentioning the lack of support from the supporting forces. This “General Order” later appeared

in several mid-western newspapers much to the heated chagrin of Generals Sherman and

McPherson who complained bitterly to Grant, citing McClernand’s failure to obtain permission to

release information to the press without going through Grant’s headquarters. Grant, deciding to

side with his two West Point friends, made the decision to relieve his best fighting general for in-

subordination. However, the Commanding General would not go to McClernand personally, but

instead sent a Lt. Colonel to deliver his “relief order.” This incident especially illustrates Grant’s

tendency to use “cronyism” to bolster his personal support that was later to have such a disas-

trous effect on his Presidency. The writer desperately needs to look at the new research that has

been done by Ed Bearss and Parker Hills as summarized in their 2010 book, Receding Tide –

Vicksburg and Gettysburg the Campaigns That Changed the Civil War. Overall, Grant’s strength

was in his tenacity, as Jim Ogden said at a recent Knoxville Civil War Round Table. It took him

eight tries before finally taking the city. Other Union generals would probably have quit long be-

fore victory. Also in the Overland Campaign, Grant made numerous tactical errors that were ex-

tremely costly in manpower such as the frontal attack at Cold Harbor. Ulysses Grant was a very

good general, but like Robert E. Lee, he made several almost fatal errors that had luck gone the

other way could have led to a different outcome of the war.

Other problems with the book include a statement on page 124 that makes the claim it was

“George Thomas’s Tullahoma Campaign.” I have never read in any book or magazine article that

From the Book Rack—continued from page 8

From the Book Rack—continued on page 10 ===>

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the Tullahoma Campaign was planned and carried out by anyone other than General William

S. Rosecrans who led this drive on Chattanooga. Also on page 212, Bonekemper claims it was

Grant’s idea for the ill-fated raid led by Colonel Abel Streight to create a diversion away from

his plans for Vicksburg while in fact it was approved by Rosecrans’ Chief of Staff (and later

President) General James A Garfield. These factual errors along with several typos distract the

reader from the excellent points the writer was trying to make.

The hard facts of the book are that it is 268 pages long with another 61 pages of aca-

demic footnoting found at the conclusion of the text. Also included is an excellent bibliogra-

phy and index. It was published by Regnery History of Washington D. C. with a copyright date

of 2015. If you are interested in the fallacies of the “Lost Cause” concept of the war, this is a

must read, but the errors and poor editing of some of the material annoyingly distract from the

overall value of the topic. I would probably grade it at the C+ level, so there was definitely

room for improvement!

*****

From the Book Rack—continued from page 9

Above and to the right are images of Andrew McReynolds whose brief biography is on page 11. Gen. Andrew T. McReynolds, Camp Com-mander David McReynolds and Camp Coun-selor Joseph McReynolds are all descended from John McReynolds (1672-1760) of County Tyrone, Ireland.

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McTeer’s Loyal Mountaineers January 2016

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Eighth in a Series—Biographies of our Ancestors

Andrew McReynolds—cousin of David and Joseph McReynolds

Gen. Andrew T. McReynolds was born in Dungannon, County Tyrone, Ireland, Decem-

ber 25, 1807, and maternally was a cousin of Gen. Andrew Jackson, the hero of the Battle

of New Orleans and later seventh president of the United States. His grandfather was also

a lawyer of consummate ability in Ireland, and had an office in Sackville street, Dublin,

was for years Sheriff of Tyrone County, and lived to reach the patriarchal age of 103

years. His father was John McReynolds, also a distinguished member of the Irish bar.

Great tales reached Ireland of how Cousin Andrew Jackson was climbing the ladder of

professional and political fame, and the young McReynolds determined to try the new

world also. Upon the death of his father, he inherited the estate, and two years later found

the proceeds in gold in a carpet-bag on the way to New York. Andrew Jackson was presi-

dent then, and the young man received a warm welcome. He spent but little time in the

east, however, and made his way in 1833 to Detroit, which then had a population of less

than 2,500. Having a natural inclination toward politics, and incited by the success of his

cousin, he was elected alderman four years after his arrival in Detroit. His military record

dates back to 1832, when he and a Pittsburg militia maintained peace during very perilous

times during the nullification crisis in South Carolina. In 1847, he was a Democrat mem-

ber of the Michigan senate, and his remarks upon the subject of the relations with Mexico

were so eloquent that he attracted notice in Washington and President Polk tendered him a

captaincy in the Third Dragoons. He accepted, and his record in Mexico was that of a gal-

lant soldier. In 1848, he was promoted, by brevet, major "for gallant and meritorious con-

duct in the battles of Contreras and Cherubusco." At the latter place, he was wounded in

the left arm, which was ever afterward comparatively useless. Major

McReynolds returned to Detroit and afterward became the first captain of the Montgom-

ery Guard. In 1859, he came to Grand Rapids and entered upon the practice of law, but he

had hardly settled down when the Civil War broke out and he was given carte blanche to

organize a cavalry regiment anywhere. The regiment was wanted badly and the president

could not wait for the governor to issue a commission. In this way Colonel

McReynolds happened to be the only Colonel of Volunteers to receive a direct commis-

sion from President Lincoln during the war. He raised a regiment in New York City at

once, and his gallant record in the Civil War is a matter of history. His son, B. Frank

McReynolds, was also a gallant fighter in the war.

Source: Obituary of Andrew T. McReynolds as transcribed by Barb Jones, 14 Feb-ruary 2008.

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In addition to General Order 09, which attempts to clarify questions regard-ing dual memberships, Commander-in-Chief Mortorff has established though General Order 11 a Dual Membership Review Special Committee. The members of this committee are PCinC Brad Schall, PCinC Richard Orr, National Executive Director David Demmy, PCinC Ed Krieser and PCinC Perley Mellor. The special committee tasking is not limited to just the impact of dual mem-berships on finances or membership strength, but to any other unclear situa-tions, including: What are the effects on Encampment voting strength and dual depart-

ment memberships? Can dual memberships alter past camp, or department, commander hon-

ors? Can dual members count in the establishment of new camps? Should dual members pay National per-capita for each camp they are a

member?

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McTeer’s Loyal Mountaineers January 2016

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For self-education, following are the Preamble and first four articles of the Constitution of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War as taken from the most current edition of the “Blue Book” which can be found on the national website under the Governance tab.

CONSTITUTION

Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War

Status of the Constitution as contained in the printed edition of 1956 with amendments to the date hereof.

PREAMBLE

We, the descendants of soldiers, sailors, or Marines who served in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, or Revenue Cutter Service of the United States of America during the War of the Rebellion of 1861 to 1865, have formed this patriotic and fraternal Order, for the purpose and objects in this Constitution set forth; and in so doing pledge ourselves to com-memorate our fathers' deeds; to render loyal service to our Country, and to promote the maintenance of unqualified American citizenship with respect for and honor to the flag.

ARTICLE I. Name

The name of this Order shall be the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War.

ARTICLE II. Purpose and Objects

To perpetuate the memory of the Grand Army of the Republic and of the men who saved the Union 1861 to 1865; to assist in every practicable way in the preservation and making available for research of documents and records pertain-ing to the Grand Army of the Republic and its members; to cooperate in doing honor to all who have patriotically served our country in any war; to teach patriotism, and the duties of citizenship, the true history of our country, and the love and honor of our Flag; to oppose every tendency or movement that would weaken loyalty to, or make for the destruc-tion or impairment of our constitutional Union; and to inculcate and broadly sustain the American principles of repre-sentative government, of equal rights, and of impartial justice for all.

ARTICLE III. Eligibility to Membership

All male descendants, whether through lineal or collateral line of ages specified in Article VII of this Constitution who are blood relatives of soldiers, sailors, marines or members of the Revenue Cutter Service, who were regularly mustered and served honorably in, were honorably discharged from, or died in the service of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps or Revenue Cutter Service of the United States of America or such State regiments as were called into active service and were subject to orders of United States general officers, during the War of the Rebellion between April 12, 1861 and April 9, 1865; who have never been convicted of any infamous or heinous crime; and who have, or whose ancestors through whom membership is claimed have, never voluntarily borne arms against the Government of the United States of America shall have eligibility to membership. 1 , 2

ARTICLE IV. Religion and Politics

The Order being strictly non-sectarian and non-partisan, the introduction or discussion of sectarian or partisan topics is strictly prohibited.3

____________________________________

1 A pardon, gubernatorial or for that matter presidential, does not erase the conviction or the criminal record. NC Darby, Op 3, 133rd, 146. CinC Freshley, Gen Ord 7, 133rd, 223. 2 Infamous crime is defined as a crime that is punishable by death or imprisonment in a state penal institution, with or without hard labor, for more than one year. NC Darby, Op 3, 133rd, 146. CinC Freshley, Gen Ord 7, 133rd, 223. 3 This language does not prohibit the Legislative Affairs officer or committee from reporting on a wide variety of pend-

ing legislative issues that impact the Order, such as access to landlocked cemeteries by easements, protection of grave

markers, ect. CinC Mellor, 132nd, 311 (General Order 13)

Education!

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Calendar of Important Events

Camp Mess will continue to be the second Tuesday - Our first Camp Mess meeting of 2016 is on 12 January 2016 at Cal-houn’s on the Creek Restaurant in Maryville, TN starting at 12:30 PM. And, we will continue to meet monthly throughout the rest of 2016. Our February meeting will therefore be on 9 February 2016. 20 February 2016- Department of Tennessee (with Mississippi and Alabama) Annual En-campment to be held in Memphis, Tennessee hosted by Sultana Camp No. 1. If you want to go, a Registration Form is available on the main page of the Department of Tennessee website under the Encampment No-tice with a blue link “Click Here For Registration Form”. It is also avail-able on our Camp website under the “Calendar” tab. Simply scroll down to the event and at the very bottom of the description of the Department Encampment is a blue link entitled “Registration Form”. Also remember to make hotel reservations if you need them. 21 March 2016- First camp quarterly meeting of 2016! 22-23 April 2016- Thompson-Brown House Heritage Fest / Civil War Reenactment / Living History weekend! 22-23 April 2016- Sultana Descendant’s Association annual reunion at Mount Olive Baptist Church. 100th anniversary of Sultana memorial. 24 July 2016- 150th anniversary of the re-admission of Tennessee to the Union. 11-14 August 2016- The 135th Encampment of the Grand Army of the Republic to be held in Springfield, Illinois.

Be sure and visit our Camp Website at www.mcteer39.org. There is a page with a complete Calendar of Events that is updated regularly. Check back often for news of changes in time or place!

Reminder! Keep your weekends free as we will need volun-teers to help us do head-stone dedications and cleanings throughout the year. Here are some tentative dates: 26 March 2016—Cleaning of Sultana Monument at Mount Olive Cemetery. 2 April 2016- Gravesite dedication at Pleasant Hill Methodist Church Cemetery in Maryville, TN.

Page 16: Vol 3 Issue 1 McTeer’s Loyal - … · Vol 3 Issue 1 Inside this issue: ... white Chevrolet Impala SS convertible. ... uniforms and wanted to learn more about us and what we do

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David McReynolds, Editor 4323 Near Shore Drive Louisville, TN 37777

MCTEER’S LOYAL MOUNTAINEERS

It’s easy to join the SUVCW. Hereditary membership is available to a male descendant over age 14 of a Union soldier, sailor, marine or member of the Revenue Cutter Service between 12 April 1861 and 9 April 1865. You may either be a direct descendent or descended from a brother or sister of the person who served.

Associate membership is available to men who do not have the ancestry to qualify for heredi-tary membership.

Junior hereditary or associate memberships are also available to males 6-14 years old.

One option is go to the national website (www.suvcw.org), click on the “Membership” tab and follow the directions to access and submit an application. Be sure to include your interest in our camp—Maj. Wm. A. McTeer Camp No. 39, Department of Tennessee.

Or, you can go to our Camp Website, www.mcteer39.org, fill out a Camp Application, print it and follow the directions to submit it directly to our camp for rapid processing.

Or you can message us on Facebook or just express your interest to any current SUVCW mem-ber. They will be glad to help you.

Or, simply contact our Camp Secretary Doug Fidler at [email protected]. This method is likely the most efficient and economical path to membership.

How to Join the SUVCW

National Organization: www.suvcw.org Department and camp websites may be accessed by clicking “Depts. & Camps” on the national website. Look for us on Facebook! SUVCW—Maj. Wm. A. McTeer Camp No. 39.

Visit our Camp Website at www.mcteer39.org!

We are on the Web!!!

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