See You In The Field

Index to Sixth North Carolina State Troops Flags within the Collection at the North Carolina Museum of History

First Sgt. Rick Walton with the Reproduction Fisher Flag in 2011
Source: 20110625 Morrisville Living History-35.JPG

One day, way back in 2009, I was searching the North Carolina Museum of History Collections for something related to the Sixth North Carolina State Troops that I was researching at the time. After visiting the museum and seeing an object related to the Sixth North Carolina State Troops, I was very excited to learn there was an online database that would tell me more about the object.

Imagine my surprise and amazement when I discovered there were other Sixth North Carolina State Troops items in the collection that were NOT on display. What a cool "secret" treasure trove of artifact descriptions and photos I had stumbled into.

From that day on I spent very free moment searching the collection. At first it was thrilling to find random items, but I soon started stumbling over myself and re-finding the same things again and again, so I organized my searches and recorded my results.

Eventually my fishing expeditions started to come up dry, nothing new to find. I was as disappointed as an eight year old opening the last present on Christmas morning. The excitement was gone. But what about all the items I discovered? This was still a treasure trove of information. It was not necessarily meaningful at the time, but eventually many of these items were helpful to me in research projects and presentations.

This collection represents a massive research project that took me years to fully discover. I eventually collected all the results and created a webpage for the Sixth North Carolina State Troops website.

To make sure this effort is preserved for the future, I have reviewed, updated and present it here. The following tables contain descriptions and links to all the currently known (by me) objects in the collection of the North Carolina Museum Of History relating to the 6th North Carolina State troops. Some of them have photographs and some have only descriptions

Want to search for something specific , try their search page below:

SEARCH the North Carolina Museum's Collections

OR browse through all the FLAGS I have found related to the 6th North Carolina State Troops below:

Instructions

Click on the Highlighted Title in each description box to go to the related page in the museum's database which contains more details and photographs (when available). Click on the photos to the right of the description to see an enlarged view. Please report any missing or broken llnks to me so I can reconnect them.

Flags related the the 6th N.C.S.T.

H.1915.4.5	REGIMENTAL FLAG (Fisher Flag) BLUE SILK BROCADE SHAWL, OBVERSE IS EMBROIDERED IN WHITE "MAY 20TH 1775/ NORTH CAROLINA/ DEEDS NOT WORDS/ MAY 20TH, 1861" REVERSE HAS EMBROIDERED NC STATE SEAL
H.19XX.330.174	North Carolina Grays COMPANY FLAG *Important Note: This Flag is the subject of the 2016-2023 Fund Raising Campaign that raised $14,000 to conserve this flag for future generations.* CO. I, BLUE FIELD W/ WHITE CANTON PAINTED NC STATE SEAL & "THE OLD NORTH STATE FOREVER"; REVERSE READS "NORTH CAROLINA GRAYS, PRESENTED BY LADIES OF CEDAR FORK"
H.1914.252.18	6th North Carolina State Troops REGIMENTAL BATTLE FLAG *Important Note: This is the Flag we raised $6458 to conserve* CSA BATTLE FLAG, W/O HONORS, CAPTURE NO. 357 STENCILED UPPER EDGE, MACHINE-SEWN, SEVERAL HOLES THROUGHOUT, STAR CUT OUT LOWER FLY, HOLES IN BORDER. CAPTURED AT SAILORS CREEK.
H.1914.252.34	REGIMENTAL BATTLE FLAG CSA BATTLE FLAG, CAPTURE NO. "12" STAMPED ON REVERSE UPPER STAFF EDGE & FLY CORNER, HANDWRITTEN HISTORY ON STAFF EDGE, HAND-SEWN, SEVERAL HOLES THROUGHOUT Note: Recent scholarship suggests that this flag may have been mis-identified. The 6th NCST battle flag Captured at Rappahannock Station is most likely a flag currently owned by Stratford Hall and on display in Gettysburg
H.1967.57.1	CENTENNIAL REPRODUCTION FLAG REPRODUCTION CIVIL WAR FLAG OF THE N.C. SIXTH REGIMENT; USED BY THE REACTIVATED SIXTH in the 1960's.

Faces of the Sixth- Private Christopher McDaniel-Company C

The following photographs and information are original members of the "Bloody Sixth". I am honored to include their stories and images here. If you would like to share a story or photo about your 6th NCST ancestor, please leave a comment and I will be in touch.

Private Christopher McDaniel
Company C

Sixth North Carolina State Troops

Christopher McDaniel in the 1920s

________________________________________________________________________________

Prior Occupation: Farmer
Enlisted: September 22, 1862 for the war
Where: Burke County
Age at enlistment: 25
Wounded: Gettysburg July 1,1863
Captured: in field hospital at Gettysburg and confined to DeCamp General Hospital, Davids Island, New York Harbor
Paroled: September 16, 1863 exchanged at City Point, Va.
Furloughed: August 30, 1863
Carried as Absent wounded on the rolls through December 1864

Christopher McDaniel enlisted on September 22, 1862 at age 25 with his three brothers Jesse, age 27, John, age 33 and William, age 23. Christopher was nicknamed "Kiddy" by his friends.

Christopher was wounded in the right foot on the first day of Gettysburg.He didn't receive medical attention for three days. When he finally did get a surgeon, his wound caused amputation of most of his right foot. He was captured by Union soldiers on July 5th. He was then sent to the prison camp at David's Island New York, where he received more medical attention at DeCamp General Hospital. He was exchanged at City Point VA and was determined unfit for duty because of the loss of his foot. He walked from there to his home in Burke County using only his rifle as a crutch.

We don't know when he died, but some family members remember hearing stories from their fathers and mothers which said that he lived past the turn of the century and was alive as late as the 1920's.

All three brothers died in defense of their homeland. William was also wounded and captured at Gettysburg and died at DeCamp hospital on July 28, 1863. John died in Plymouth of wounds April 18, 1864. Jesse died of typhoid fever in a Richmond hospital on November 15, 1862

Source: Photo & Bio Courtesy of his Descendant Marty Christopher McDaniel

Additional information or photos would be welcomed to complete

the record of this honorable soldier.

A Simple Story Badly Told

The story of the Sixth North Carolina State Troops and the Battle of Gettysburg should be well known by the readers of this blog and there is little more that I can add. While researching the involvement of the 6th North Carolina State Troops in the Battle of Gettysburg (way back in the in the 1990's), I came across a reference to a letter written to Governor Vance by the commander of the Sixth just a few days after the tumultuous battle. Hoping that this would add additional details to the story of the sacrifices made by our ancestors in gray, I went to the North Carolina State Archives to search this letter out. I was ecstatic when I found the actual letter, handwritten in pencil on lined stationary, by Major Tate, from the field, nearly 135 years previously, nearly to the exact day.

Photo of the actual letter written by Major Tate to his cousin, Governor Vance
describing the role of the 6th North Carolina State Troops in the Battle of Gettysburg

I spent over 2 hours deciphering the neat handwriting and transcribing words and phrases from the original onto my sometimes faded photocopy. By the time I finished, I decided that there is no substitute than to share with you Major Samuel McDowell Tate’s sincere and heartfelt words "as an act of justice and in compliance with a promise to the men"

Major Samual McDowell Tate

N. C. Governor Zebulon B. Vance

Command Structure of the Sixth NC.S.T.- July 1863:

Commander : Major Samuel McDowell Tate

Brigade : Hoke’s Brigade (Colonel Issac E. Avery (killed)/Colonel A. C. Godwin)

6th NC, 21st N.C.,57th N.C. (54th N.C. detached to escort Prisoners from Battle of Winchester)

Division : Early’s Division

Corps : Ewells Corps (Lt. General Ewell - was Jackson’s Corps)

Army : Army of Northern Virginia (General Robert E. Lee)

Location : Gettysburg, Pa.

Here is Samuel McDowell Tate's description of what happened to the 6th North Carolina State Troops at Gettysburg in his own words:

In Bivouack, near Hagerstown M^d

July 8, 1863.

My dear Governor,

Excuse the necessity of writing with pencil and the familiarity with which I address you; but moments are precious and while I am yet spared I must hasten to perform a sacred duty to you as the honored head of North Carolina and to her brave citizen soldiers, especially those under my command. The great reason for this is the fact that it was North Carolinians only who succeeded in entering the enemy's works at Gettysburg. That our brigade commander was slain and we have no friends who will tell of our success on the night of the 2^d July, because all but the Sixth Regiment failed.

Colonel I. E. Avery, Commanding Hokes's Brigade
Slain during the attack on East Cemetery Hill at Gettysburg

Our Brigadier Genl Hoke being absent, wounded since battle Fredericksburg, 4^th May, Colonel Avery was acting in his stead. Lt Col Webb absent in V^a sick, left me in command of the 6th in this Penn^a campaign. but this, with the fear of being suspected of a desire to claim more on that account, shall not deter me from complying with a promise I have made the Regt to acquaint you as their Governor, with the truth, that history may hereafter speak truly of them.

Let me say at once, that I desire nothing and wish no notoriety; but I do want the glorious band of veterans in this Regt to be appreciated and honored at home. They are rapidly passing away, but North Carolina will have reason to point with pride to their valorous deeds.

On the 1^st July the Confed Army made a general attack on the enemy posted in front of Gettysburg. Of Early's Div, the Louisiana and Hoke's brigades were advanced to charge the enemy behind fences. It was rapidly done (& as is our usual fortune, immediately in our front it was a stone fence) the enemy driven before us thro' the town to their fortified heights behind. In this charge we lost a number of gallant officers & men, more than the bal. of the brigade and captured a battery near the fence. This battery will be credited to Early's division--SEE if it don't. The V^a and Geo brigades were held in reserve. Next day, 2^d we were ordered (La & N. C. brigades) to charge the heights. Now, it is proper to state that there are a series of heights there upon which the enemy had been driven from all around. Longstreet charged on the south face & was repulsed; A. P. Hill charged on the west face & was repulsed and Our two brigades were, late in the evening, ordered to charge the north front & after a struggle such as this war has furnished no parallel, 75 North Carolinians of the 6^th Regt and 12 Louisianians of Hays' brigade scaled the walls and planted the colors of the 6^th N. C. and 9^thLa on the guns. It was now fully dark. The enemy stood with a tenacity never before displayed by them, and with bayonet, clubbed musket, sword & pistol and rocks from the wall, we cleared the heights and silenced the guns.

"Night Assault" on East Cemetery Hill by artist Dale Gallon

In vain did I send to the rear for support. It was manifest that I could not hold the place without aid, for the enemy were massed in all the ravines and adjoining heights, and we were then fully half a mile from our lines. Finding the enemy were moving up a line I ordered the small band of heroes to fall back from the crest to a stone wall on the side of the hill where we awaited their coming. Soon they came over the hill in pursuit when again we opened fire on them and cleared the hill a second time. Very soon I found they were very numerous in the flats in my rear and now became the question of surrender or an effort to retreat. There was a calm and determined resolve never to surrender (one of our N. C. regts had done so the day before) and under cover of the darkness I ordered the men to break and to risk the fire. We did so and lost not a man in getting out.

On arriving at our lines I demanded to know why we had not been supported and was coolly told that it was not known that we were in the works.

I have no doubt that the Maj Gen^l will report the attack of the works by Hoke's and Hays' brigades which could not be taken. Such monstrous injustice and depreciation of our efforts is calculated to be of serious injury and then always to divide the honors due us among all our division is a liberality which is only shown in certain cases.

Of course the reports are not written out but I know the disposition so well that I look for no special mention of our regiment, while it is the only one in the A. N. V. which did go in and silence the guns on the heights and what is more if a support of a brigade had been sent up to us the slaughter of A. P. Hill's corps would have been saved on the day following.

I still have 300 men. Col Avery, a gallant officer, fell in front on the heights, mortally wounded. He died thirty hours afterward.

This hasty scrawl I write to you as an act of justice and in compliance with a promise to the men, before I pass off, if fall I must. We will have an engagement here or nearer the river in a day or less- perhaps. This regiment has had a reputation you know, and I fear no harm can come to it while any are left but it is due to the noble dead, as well as the living, that these men be noticed in some way. I assure you it is no sensation or fancy picture. Such a fight as they made in front & in the fortifications has never been equaled. Inside the works the enemy were left lying in great heaps- and most all with bayonet wounds and many with skulls broken with the breeches of our guns. We left not a living man on the hill of our enemy. I write this now, for fear I will not live to write at leisure hereafter. With your sense of propriety, I need not say more than that this cannot be exactly an official document, for it has no form- nor beginning nor ending, but is a simple story badly told.

All we ask is, don't let old North Carolina be derided while her sons do all the fighting--

Love to Cousin Harriet & believe me to be

Your ob^t servant,

SAM^L. McD. TATE,

Major, Commanding 6th N. C.

All my company officers are good ones, but there are alas many vacancies; how are they to be filled. By election? or appointment?

Aftermath

Tate talks about having 300 men left. Some records indicate he had nearly 472 at the start of the campaign. If so, his regiment suffered a 37% casualty rate, meaning about one out of every three men was wounded (131), killed (20), or missing (21). . While not nearly as high as the 26th N.C., there were a lot of empty seats around the campfire as a result of this battle.

According to the Official Records these were the causualties for the Sixth:

	Killed		Wounded		Missing
Date	Officers	Enlisted	Officers	Enlisted	Officers	Enlisted	Agregate	Officers killed
July 1	1	12	5	66	....	....	84	Capt. J. H. Burns
July 2	1	6	2	58	1	20	88	Lieut. A. J. Cheek.
Total	2	18	7	124	1	20	172

Samual McDowell Tate visiting Gettysburg in late 1890's

One Hundred and Fifty Five years AFTER the End of Slavery

I think for most of us, the continued racial discord in this country is disturbing and frightening. I felt like we had made great strides from the 1970's to 1990's. What happened? We all know that slavery was abhorrent, in fact many people of my generation "experienced" the horrors of bondage and forced labour first hand. It wasn't meant to be cruel, and the "whip" was often employed sparingly, yet firmly to better educate us on the importance of following the established order and rules. I'm not talking about the plantation, I'm talking about American childhood in the 1950's and 1960's! Were our parents monsters? No! Were the rules of society different than today? You bet! In fact, if I misbehaved in public, I could count on a teacher or someone else's mother whupping my behind when they caught me in the act! If I described the cruel treatment upon my person by a stranger to my parents, I'd probably get whupped again by them! Did I like it? NO! Did I deserve IT? In most cases, YES! Could the current generation have benefitted from some discipline...well you'll have to decide.

Slavery was abolished 155 years ago...that is 6 or more generations ago. How much was your life influenced by your father (1 generation removed), your grandfather (2 generations removed or your Great-Grandfather (3 generations). Did you even know your great Grandfather? What about his father or his grandfather? Not many of us would conceive of celebrating our successes or blaming our failures on the fortunes of our Great-Great-Great-Great-Grandfather, 6 generations ago. For myself and many of my friends, our grandfathers and great-grandfathers came here as impoverished immigrants. There were no handouts. They were servants, factory workers, ditch diggers. Their humiliating and backbreaking labor also helped build this nation and was the foundation of their families future successes. I know it has become trendy to say this nation was built on slave labour, I don't doubt the truth of that, but what about the 155 years of immigrant labor that followed? Did you ever see the once prevalent signs that read "IRISH NEED NOT APPLY"? Our immigrant ancestors didn't exactly have a walk in the park when they arrived on these shores.

I don't feel any guilt about slavery, My family wasn't even on this continent then! I also don't feel angry or betrayed about the shabby way immigrants were treated and taken advantage of when they arrived here, What good would it do now anyway, over a century later? They lived through it, not me, and worked hard to claw their way out of poverty to give the future generations of America the success we enjoy today. I honor them for the hardships they suffered and am grateful I didn't have to suffer nearly the pain they did. Thats not to say I experienced adversity, poverty or discrimination. Trust me I did!, Not nearly to the level my ancestors did. Nor to the level some of my childhood black friends did (some of whom were better off than me.) I know many successful black families that share a similar story to mine, but it would be ridiculous to believe any 20th century family was in a similar situation to immigrant or slave families from the century before. Why? Because nowhere in our constitution does it say "all...except for the descendants of the former slaves." And I do believe former black slaves struggled mightily to improve the plight of the their descendants. I wonder how badly they would feel let down by todays news stories?

I just finished reading a very interesting book called “The Slaves War” by Andrew Ward. I would recommend it. I would also recommend reading the last chapter, the authors note, first to better understand the authors intentions, otherwise the first few chapter may seem a little biased and untrustworthy.

In this last chapter, the author describes his source material and purpose, letting the former slaves “speak" for themselves in their own words. It is organized into different periods and different regions, east and west. He has not "corrected" what they said and felt. although some of what they believed about the war seems to have been mis-understood by them. You'll discern a commonality of experience and description, but the author also explains some of the prejudices that crept into the white WPA interviewers recording that may have flavored the result. Even well educated, well spoken former slaves were portrayed using the “slave dialect”.

The collection of actual slave Narratives can be found here and make very interesting reading:
https://www.loc.gov/collections/slave-narratives-from-the-federal-writers-project-1936-to-1938/about-this-collection/

There is often a lot of "mis-remembered" information here that may confuse or mislead an uneducated reader. You have to realize that what they said is what these former slaves truly believed, although sometimes not necessarily factual. We know, of course, that Yankees did not have horns and pointed tails, so a modern reader would not give much credence to those particular widespread memories, but when they read how former slaves were disappointed because they didn’t get their “promised” 40 acres and a mule, or their U. S. Government slave pensions you might wonder why they were cheated. They weren't, that was never actually promised. When they describe how Lincoln secretly came through the south and saw the terrible ways to slaves were treated or the various sightings of Lincoln in disguise, checking up on them, you have to realize this was about as factual as Santa Claus dropping down your chimney. They said it. They believed it. but It's not true and the author never really helps the reader fact check some of these memories.

Also if you look at the WPA interview time period: mid 1930’s and do a little math, that's about 70 years after the end of the Civil War. That means that many of the interviewees were children when the war ended and they gained their freedom. As very young children, were they really “slaves” in the manner in which their parents were? Many of their memories of cruel beatings could well have simply been those of a naughty child being punished rather than the indiscriminate and unnecessary beatings of slave owners over their chattel, although I’m sure there are instances where that occurred. I do not mean this to infer that slaves weren't sometimes treated cruelly, I just wonder if a child's memory or archaic events is totally trustworthy. Can you accurately describe your family life when you were eight or ten years old?

The author included many memories of the cruelty of the Yankee "liberators". They “freed” the slaves from their deep south plantations only to enslave them in the army camps as cooks, laborers, Laundresses, concubines and forced soldiers. They warned them that if they tried to return to their former masters, they would probably be killed for running away from the plantation, so the poor slaves were truly stuck between a rock and a hard place.

The author also identified memories of the loyalties that existed when slaves defended the master's plantations against Yankee invaders or when they returned a masters body or his effects from the battle front, at great risk to their own lives.

At least one slave's description wisely recognized that the Yankee Soldiers could care less about freeing the slaves, they were more interested in plundering, humiliating and destroying successful southern plantation owners. In fact many Northern soldiers were not shy about saying this directly.

Reading this book is a little like being in the ocean in a rowboat without a paddle. You have to take the wild ride plunging to depths so obscene you’d rather forget and rising to heights that shine understanding on that “peculiar institution” that so plagued everyone in the southern economy.

I came away with a feeling that indeed the black slaves on this continent had a hard lot before, during and after the war. Their mistreatment by white plantation owners, poor white trash overseers and cruel Yankee soldiers is abundant, but it also identifies cruel black overseers, heartless black freeman and Northerners who banned the immigration of blacks, whether free or escaped. On occasion we hear the former slave recount the kindly master, who, when all was lost and their plantation destroyed, welcomed back their runaway slaves to remain on the land because they were “family”.

There are no five minute sound bites that can do justice to this very complex issue, but one thing that is abundantly clear is that slavery was abolished 155 years ago and there is no longer any excuse why this period of history should have any influence on the present generations other than to remind us that if work together for a common purpose, we should never have to repeat this embarrassing period in the future.

Time line of the North Carolina Grays Company Flag

The flag of the “North Carolina Grays” was designed and hand made by the girls and ladies of Cedar Fork to be presented to their loved ones who were departing for war as company I of the newly formed Sixth Regiment of North Carolina State troops. It is an Infantry company flag.

The silk flag has a blue field with a white canton containing a hand painted NC state seal. Beneath the state seal, on a painted flowing white ribbon, are the words "THE OLD NORTH STATE FOREVER”.

The reverse white canton reads "NORTH CAROLINA GRAYS” on a white arc above a centrally located small, single, gold five pointed star, with the words “PRESENTED BY LADIES OF CEDAR FORK” on a white arc below the Star.

This flag was carried with them to the seat of war in Virginia, but packed in a trunk and unused while the regiment fought in many a bloody battle. The storage trunks were discovered during a Federal raid and the contents taken. Many years later the flag was returned and put on display.

Today the flag resides, in climate controlled storage, at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, N. C. Overall the paint is badly cracked and the silk fractured. No conservation has been performed upon this flag due to the brittle and shattered silk. It cannot be viewed or studied until conservation has been undertaken because even moving it causes deterioration.

Following is the concise, but detailed timeline of the flag from its inception to it delicate current state. It is now up to us to preserve both its memory and the physical reminder of this historic relic.

The Conception

1859- Cedar Fork Academy formed with Richard W. York as Principle and Hiram Weatherspoon as president of the board of trustees. Source: The Weekly Standard, 14 Dec 1859, Wed, Page 1

“The school is located immediately on the North Carolina Railroad, sixteen miles N. W. of Raleigh and four [miles] North of Morrisville, and students can get off the mail train at the academy. [I. e. School is located near the tracks] source: New Bern Daily Progress, 28 March 1860, Page 2.

Map Showing Location of Cedar Forks Academy near present day Morrisville, N. C.

January 7, 1860- York calls a military meeting at Cedar Fork and organizes the “Wake Riflemen” with Weatherspoon as Captain and York as 3rd Lt. Source: Weekly Raleigh Register, 18 Jan 1860, Wed, Page 1

April 29, 1861- A “Soldiers Relief Association” is organized by the Ladies of Cedar Fork with a stated objective of presenting Professor R. W. York’s volunteers with a “handsome flag” as well as supplying the volunteers with the material comforts of home and offering moral support. Source: Semi-Weekly Standard, 8 May 1861, Wed, Page 3; Semi-Weekly Standard, 18 May 1861, Sat, Page 2

May 11, 1861- “Prof York, of Wake, has suspended his school and raised a company [The North Carolina Grays], of which he has been elected captain. He expects to have 100 men or more.” Source: Semi-Weekly Standard (Raleigh, North Carolina)11 May 1861, Sat • Page 3 & Semi-Weekly Standard, 18 May 1861, Sat • Page 3

The Flag is Made

May 1861- Blue Silk Flag, with white hand painted Cantons, edged with heavy Gilt fringe was made by Miss Sophia Partridge of Raleigh who was conducting a female school in Raleigh and was a prize winning seamstress and artist. source: The State Chronicle, 7 Feb 1892, Sun, Page 1

Sophia Partridge

May 16,1861 6th Regiment organized and went into camp of instruction at Company Shops, near present day Burlington, N. C. source: Jordon, “NC Troops”, Vol 1, pg 258

May 21, 1861- Letter from C. F. Fisher [Charles Frederick Fisher, president of the North Carolina Railroad and organizer of the 6th Regiment] to Capt. York apologizing for being unable to meet due to other business but urging him to decide whether to join the regiment he was then forming. “I am called upon to present the names of Captains & Officers- for appointments- I believe no more short term volunteers will be received- so the governor says- until the State Troops are filled up. So your question would be as between myself & some other chief.”… “If you are yet determined- send me your names of officers by morning train to report for appointment at once or wait to see me- as you please” Source: North Carolina State Archives, PC.498, Charles F. Fisher Paper, 1 Item copied by Frederick Walton 8/13/2005

May 28, 1861- Company I [The North Carolina Grays] was organized and assigned to the 6th North Carolina State Troops with 120 members on the roll. source: Durham Globe (Durham, North Carolina) · Sat, Oct 15, 1892 · Page 1

The Flag is Presented

June 1, 1861- Meeting of the North Carolina Grays at Cedar Fork to include speeches, sermon, flag and bible presentation, military drills and food. source: Semi-Weekly Standard, 18 May 1861, Sat, Page 3; The Weekly Standard, 12 Jun 1861, Wed, Page 2 (note: see this article for text of speech presenting and receiving the flag.)

July 9, 1861- 6th Regiment of North Carolina State Troops acts as Military Guard and escort for remains of deceased Governor John W. Ellis. source: The Raleigh Register. Raleigh, North Carolina, Saturday, July 13, 1861 - Page 3 Note: The North Carolina Grays Company Flag was carried at Ellis Funeral: “Co. I assigned to escort the body of Governor Ellis flying their company flag.” Source: The State Chronicle, 29 Sep 1892, Thu, Page 4

North Crolina Governor John W. Ellis (1820-1861)

July 11 1861- the 6th North Carolina State Troops, 957 strong, enters Confederate Service and left for Virginia. Source: Semi-Weekly Standard, 13 Jul 1861, Sat, Page 3

July 21, 1861- Battle of Manassas- North Carolina Grays are now Co. I of the 6th North Carolina State Troops and are participants in the first great battle of the war. Colonel Fisher Is Killed Leading his troops into battle.

August 1, 1861- Official statement of the killed and wounded in Col. Fisher's regiment at the battle of Manassas - Company I, Capt. York, commanding.--Sergeant Hiram Sears, Sergeant John W. Wilson and Private Joseph T. Morris, mortally wounded; Private James H. Moring, severely wounded, and Joseph D. Ausley, slightly wounded. Source: The Richmond Daily Dispatch: August 1, 1861

APRIL 12, 1861- General Lee Surrenders at Appomattox Court House. The war is over . 181 members of the 6th North Carolina State Troops Surrender and receive their paroles, including 26 members of Co. I (“North Carolina Grays”). None of those surrendering were officers. They returned without the (probably long forgotten) company flag.

The Flag is Lost

October- December 1861- In an 1892 interview, York recalled setting forth to “die for his country with his wife’s Saratoga packed full of clean linen and other articles deemed by them necessary for his comfort and well being.” Saratoga trunks were the premium trunks of the period containing myriad compartments, trays, and heavy duty hardware. Finding them cumbersome and inconvenient for active field operation York and about 60 of the men in his company left their trunks in charge of a man living near their camp, in a house on the Potomac adjoining Mount Vernon. The North Carolina Grays company flag, no longer used, was stored in Captain York’s trunk along with his other valuables. Source: The State Chronicle, 7 Feb 1892, Sun, Page 1

Example of a "Saratoga Trunk". Less practical than a knapsack when on the march!

“Sometime in 1863”- the 73rd Ohio Regiment, guarding Washington, D.C., is sent on a special expedition to scout the area in their front and discovers Company I’s cache of Confederate trunks which were “captured”. The North Carolina Gray’s “handsome silk flag” was given to Major Thos. W. Higgins by the Brigade Commander as a souvenir. Source: The State Chronicle, 30 Jan 1892, Sat, Page 1

Note: York Writes in “BRIEF SKETCHES NORTH CAROLINA STATE TROOPS IN THE WAR BETWEEN THE STATES. “COLLECTED AND COMPILED By JAMES C. BIRDSONG, ex-State Librarian. APPENDIX A. FLAG OF THE "NORTH CAROLINA GRAYS.:

“During the fall of 1862, while in camp on the Potomac river, the company was sent on an expedition against a force of Federal troops, and while on this duty the house wherein was stored the company's baggage, etc., was captured by the 73d Ohio Regiment under command of Major T. W. Higgins, and thus the flag fell into the hands of the enemy. Major Higgins sent the flag to his home in Ohio where it was preserved as a trophy of war.”

May 7, 1879- York, working on writing a regimental history solicits material from former comrades. Source: The Observer, 8 May 1879, Thu, Page 2

June 22,1888- Major York writes to Chatam Record and explains that the North Carolina Grays Flag was “lost” when the trunk it was stored in was taken in a raid, not “captured in battle “and in fact was “never in any engagement”. Source: The Chatham Record, 28 Jun 1888, Thu, Page 3

The Flag is Found

Jan 22, 1892- U. S. Federal Army Major Thos. W. Higgins writes to the Raleigh State Chronicle relating the story of how he came to process the North Carolina Gray’s Company flag and offers to return it to veterans of that unit in the spirit of reconciliation. Source: Major Thos. W. Higgins in The State Chronicle, 30 Jan 1892, Sat, Page 1

Feb 4, 1892- The Chatam Record prints an article about the offer to return the flag and suggests organizing a veterans reunion and inviting Higgins to present the flag to the veterans. Source: The Chatham Record (Pittsboro, North Carolina) · Thu, Feb 4, 1892 · Page 3

February 5, 1892- Major York request the flag be returned and offer to forward to the state Library where is can be displayed as an “historical relic”. Source: Durham Globe, 5 Feb 1892, Fri, Page 1

June 7, 1892- Major York announces reunion Planning meeting to be held at Cedar Fork on July 2, 1892. Source: Durham Globe, 7 Jun 1892, Tue, Page 1 Note: See Durham Globe, 18 Jul 1892, Mon, Page 2 for particulars decided on at the meeting.

Aug. 22, 1892- Announcement of Confederate Veterans reunion at Cedar Fork on October 7, 1892 featuring the return of the North Carolina Grays Company Flag, speeches, picnic dinner, etc. Source: Durham Globe, 22 Aug 1892, Mon, Page 4; Durham Globe, 6 Sep 1892, Tue, Page 1;Durham Globe, 4 Oct 1892, Tue, Page 1;The State Chronicle, 29 Sep 1892, Thu, Page 4

October 1, 1892: Major York invites N. C. Governor Holt to Reunion to receive the flag. Holt appoints a delegate and pledges to carefully preserve the flag in the memory of those who so courageously followed it. Source: The State Chronicle, 2 Oct 1892, Sun, Page 1

The Flag is Returned

October 7, 1892: The Last Reunion held at the Cedar Fork [Baptist] Church, The North Carolina Gray’s Flag is finally returned to North Carolina by Colonel Higgins and presented to Mrs. Fannie Lyon Lowe, who originally presented them to the company in 1861. She in turn presented them to Lieut. D. C. Gunter Major R. W. York gave a historical sketch of the company, Sgt C. L Williams read the roll call of 120 original members and many were answered “dead” by friends, but 31 were present to answer the roll. Recruits during the war pushed the final roll to 252 men of who 67 were still living. A picnic and intermission followed the roll call. After dinner the people reassembled to watch Major York thank Col Higgins and present the colors to the state to be displayed in the state library. ( the State library was located on Capitol Square in the Supreme Court and Library Building which it occupied from 1888-1914) The Governor, unable to attend Appointed Col. E. G. Harrell , QMG to accept the flag on his behalf. A large crowd of over 3,000 people attended, Several speeches and music by the Durham band entertained visitors. Details reported in several newspapers: Durham Globe, 8 Oct 1892, Sat, Page 1; The State Chronicle, 8 Oct 1892, Sat, Page 4 (includes Harrell’s speech);Durham Globe, 15 Oct 1892, Sat, Page 1 (Birdsong’s Speech)

Mrs. Fannie Lyon Lowe

Note: The Blue Silk “Fisher” Regimental Flag was also present at the reunion. Source: The State Chronicle, 8 Sep 1892, Thu, Page 3

May 20, 1895- 25 men of “the Cedar Fork Veterans, Co. I, [Sixth] N. C. Regiment” carried the recently returned company flag in the parade to dedicate the Confederate memorial on the lawn of the Capitol in Raleigh. The Flag was borrowed from its display at the state library.
Source: News and Observer (Raleigh, North Carolina) · 21 May 1895, Tue · Page 5

December 5, 1902 Hall of History Created- Fred G. Olds Opens a “hall of History” in the State Museum (forerunner of the museum of Natural Sciences), in The Capitol City of Raleigh. Olds's private collection and the State Museum's collection were merged and opened to the public as the Hall of History. This 100 x 40 foot room is equipped with the latest in environmentally secure, triple locked display cases. The intention is to show the rich history of North Carolina from Prehistoric Indian relics through the latest conflict of the war with Spain. Of special interest are relics, uniforms, arms and flags of the war between the states, including the Company flag of the “North Carolina Grays” previously displayed in the state library. Source: The Morning Post, Raleigh, North Carolina, 03 Dec 1902, Wed • Page 5

North Carolina Hall of History (taken between 1914 and 1930)
[North Carolina Museum of History Accession #: H.19XX.188.1].

December 1914- The North Carolina Historical Commission took over the Hall of History and assigned it a twofold purpose: to teach the history of North Carolina and to preserve historical material. The hall moved into its second home in the State Administration Building, now known as the Ruffin Building, at the intersection of Morgan and Fayetteville streets. These new quarters occupied two large halls on the second floor. Collector Fred Olds spent a great deal of effort to acquire Confederate flags for all the North Carolina regiments. It is not clear if the North Carolina Grays flag became part of the collection in 1902 or 1914. Source: NCMOH website

1926: A description of the Flag is found in the in the 1926 book “North Carolina Women Of the Confederacy, Written and Published by MRS. JOHN HUSKE (LUCY LONDON) ANDERSON, Fayetteville, N . C. Historian, North Carolina Division, United Daughters of the Confederacy:

“In her sketch of Company I, 6th N. C. Regiment, Mrs. A. J. Ellis, the beloved historian of the Raleigh "Daughters," tells of the presentation of a beautiful flag to these boys of the Morrisville and Cedar Fork communities of Wake County. She says, "A beautiful banner of blue silk, trimmed with white silk fringe, the N. C. coat Of arms painted in one corner, and the inscription. "To the Morrisville Grays by the Ladies of Cedar Fork," in the center had been made by Misses Morris, Page and Lyon. This was presented to the company by Miss Jennie Lyon in an appropriate address, being accepted by Lt. Page. After patriotic songs and resounding cheers by the soldiers, a Bible was given each man by the ladies.
The flag was captured during the war by Major Wiggins, of Ohio, and a great celebration took place at Cedar Fork when it was received by the lady who first presented it, now Mrs. Lowe. This flag is now in the Hall of History in Raleigh.”

Note: the flag actually says “North Carolina Grays” not “Morrisville Grays”. The nucleus of the regiment was from the Cedar Fork Community, near Morrisville.

The Flag Today

February 2015 - The membership of the Sixth North Carolina State Troops /The Cedar Fork Rifles Preservation Society, Inc. has decided to undertake the effort to raise the funds to conserve the silk flag of the North Carolina Grays.

May 2017- Historian Rick Walton is a presenter at the N. C. Museum of History's History à la Carte

The author was fortunate enough to photograph this flag when it was brought out during a History à la Carte (“Sophia’s Civil War Flag”) presentation he made about the history of the flag in May 2017.

2018- After several years of fund raising, it seemed like an almost impossible task, given that the estimated total required was nearly $14,000. We had some money left over from our previous fund raising effort for the Sixth NCST Saylor's Creek battle flag (now on diplay at the NCMOH) Our various efforts had raised our total to $6000 by late 2018.

2019- The flag today is safely stored at the North Carolina Museum of History, but is in such a fragile state it can not be displayed and can rarely be seen. The silk and painted images are so brittle and fragile it can not be handled or studied. Simply opening the storage draw to look at it would potentially cause additional damage to the already stressed flag.

Oct 2019- The 26th NC Troops announced their partnership with the 6th NC State Troops, Co. I in order to preserve the company flag of the North Carolina Grays.

Jan 2020- At the annual business meeting, the members of the Sixth N.C.S.T. voted to donate $2,500 towards the company flag preservation. That puts the total at over $9,300.

Feb 2023- We are thrilled to announce that the North Carolina Museum of History, holding these funds on our behalf, informed us that we have now raised the $13,742, the amount needed to conserve this flag. Conservation has yet to be scheduled and is expected to take over a year.

April 2023- N.C. Grays flag has been delivered to the conservator. Conservation is expected to take about a year.

Sept. 7, 2024- The Conserved Flag was dedicated in a Ceremony at the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh.

The Conserved Flag of the North Carolina Grays
Dedicated at the N. C. Museum of History on September 7, 2024

Please keep an eye on this blog for future updates.

Flag Details:

NCMOH Accession Nbr: H.19XX.330.174

Flag Dimensions: 6’ 3” (190.5 CM) length x 4’ 1/16” (122.0 CM) width

Faces of the Sixth- Private Rufus H. Beavers, Co. I

Private Rufus Henry Beavers

Company I- “North Carolina Grays”

Private Rufus Henry Beavers

Post war photo age about 35

Contributed by descendant Philip Snell

Born: 3 Feb. 1830
Prior Occupation: Farmer
Enlisted: unknown

Brother of 6th NCST members Sidney, Charlie and G.T. Beavers.

Click here to see letters written by two brothers James Sidney Beavers and his brother G.T. Beaves to their family from the ranks of the Cedar Fork Rifles in the Confederate Army

While fighting in the upper Shenandoah Valley under General Early, Beavers was captured at Halltown, West Virginia on August 22, 1864, and confined at Camp Chase, Ohio, until transferred to Point Lookout, Maryland, March 18, 1865. Exchanged at Boulware’s Wharf, James River, Virginia, March 27, 1865. Descendantstold me that he wrote in his bible that he was imprisoned in Illinois before being sent to Pt. Lookout.

Note: Halltown, Va. (Now W.V.) is located just south of Harpers Ferry. On August 10, 1864 the 6th North Carolina was at Bunker Hill Va. (Iobst- The Bloody Sixth, P. 225). The Confederates pursued Sheridan’s Federals beginning August 17, as General Early moved his army from Strasburg toward Winchester, where Ramseur’s division faced a “Considerable Skirmish” The Confederates pursued Sheridan to his stronghold at Harpers Ferry before withdrawing back to Their own strong position at Bunker Hill. It could be that Beavers was captured during skirmishing, while on Picket duty or on patrol. No records exist that give details about his capture.

Married Louise Lewter (b. Dec. 29, 1834 – d. June 7, 1879) on 2 Feb 1854. together they had fourteen children.

Died in 12 Mar 1909 and buried at Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, Chatham County, NC

Grave of R.H. Beavers in Mt. Pisgah Baptist Church, Chatham Co. N.C.

Source Notes:

1) Jordon, "North Carolina Troops, 1861-1865"

2) Compiled Service records at North Carolinas State Archives, Sixth Infantry, Be-Ca F.6.21.4P (NA-MC270-159), 7/24/2004, Co. I, 6 NC Inf

3) Chatam County Marriages, 1772-1860, pg 46

4 )Find A Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=39537773

Additional information or photos would be welcomed to complete the record of this honorable soldier.

Monuments are not ours to take

"Who are we then to take away the honor they earned through blood. We didn't bestowe it on them and we have no right to remove it. What we have been given is the sacred duty to protect and preserve this honor for future generations."

Author at 2016 N. C. Capitol Independence Day program to Honor North Carolina Confederate Soldiers

When I pass the beautiful monuments on the Capitol grounds, I recognize that citizens of North Carolina deliberately placed these here to recognize the sacrifices and contributions of individuals or groups who made significant contributions to our state. The relative importance of these contributions to our contemporary lifestyle is not what matters. WE have surely moved beyond these foundational events to achieve even greater success for our citizens. What is important to me is that these monuments allow us to honor and respect those that came before us to help us be where we are today. We should collectively be able to see these monuments in a place of honor, in the public square, as a way to drive us forward to make our own contributions to society. Our citizens should be looking forward to find ways to improve our community. Looking backward and trying to edit the past to make it less painful does not in any way make our future more promising. If these statutes cause some of us pain, than that should be used as a catalyst for ideas to change the future, not whitewash the past.

When I look at the monuments on the Capitol grounds I see young men with purpose and honor in their lives, whether I'm looking at the Vietnam memorial, the WWI monuments or the Confederate monuments. I honestly don't see white supremacists rallying modern day citizens to return to an antebellum culture of slavery. What I see are ordinary, scared, young farm boys who answered the call of their state to pick up arms in her defense.

Don't forget, the Confederate Monument is dedicated to North Carolina Soldiers who fought for the Confederacy. North Carolinians that answered the request of their state leaders to serve honorably. How can our state leaders now ignore this honorable service by its citizens?

After suffering through four years of unimaginable hardship, danger and brutal war, these boys became the proud, honorable men that did their best and were honored for their achievements by their fellow citizens. Many went on to achieve great things for our state as leaders in the highest positions in both the private and public sectors.

If you take the time to walk through the solemn white Confederate headstones in Oakwood, ask yourself, how many of these soldiers, many of whom made the ultimate sacrifice, actually owned a slave? The answer, for most, is that they didn't!

Who are we then to take away the honor they earned through blood. We didn't bestowe it on them and we have no right to remove it. What we have been given is the sacred duty to protect and preserve this honor for future generations.

As a taxpayer, I certainly think my money can be better spent than wasting it to appease a vocal minority. Please leave the Monuments alone. The law protects them, but more importantly it is our generation's duty to protect them for the future.

submitted to the NC Historical Commision Monuments committee on 4/10/2018

Flags related the the 6th N.C.S.T.

Private Rufus Henry Beavers Company I- “North Carolina Grays”

Private Rufus Henry Beavers

Company I- “North Carolina Grays”