Joshua Hill knelt at the grave of Fleming Jordan, Company G, the 4th Georgia Infantry. Around him, markers commemorating other men — soldiers from Ohio and Michigan, from Alabama and the Carolinas — stretched in all directions. It was July 1866, and the stones were new; the recently ended war a national wound.
Hill pulled a handful of grass from the plot at Virginia’s Arlington National Cemetery. He inserted the blades in an envelope and mailed them to his friends, the dead soldier’s parents, in Monticello, Ga.
“I plucked from the turf under which he sleeps a few blades of grass which I send you as a melancholy souvenir,” he wrote.
That letter, and those blades of grass, will be featured in “Civil War Treasures in Your Nation’s Attic,” coming to a television near you. Taping for the show, commemorating the 150th anniversary of the start of the 1861-1865 war, takes place Saturday at 2 p.m. at the National Archives at Atlanta.
Part scholarly discussion, part showbiz production, “Treasures” is sponsored by the National Archives, Scott Antique Market and Georgia Public Broadcasting. It follows a symposium, “Civil War: America’s Long Struggle,” that takes place from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The production is modeled after “Antiques Roadshow,” the popular Public Broadcasting Service series in which experts appraise family heirlooms. Like “Roadshow,” the local version will feature a handful of people and their possessions. Unlike “Roadshow,” the production in Morrow will focus on objects’ historical significance; money, say organizers, is not the issue.
It’s certainly not an issue for Nathan Jordan. Fleming Jordan was his great-great-great-uncle. The grass from that grave site, now brown and brittle, as well as Hill’s long-ago letter, belong to his family.
The value of the letter, written in a flowing script? “I wouldn’t think that it’s worth anything,” said Jordan, 34 and a graduate student at Georgia State University. “It’s just ink on paper.”
But value is more than just a monetary measure.
Looking for history
Michael Simpson has a clock. It was made by the American Cuckoo Clock Co. of Philadelphia. With its fluted columns, the rosewood clock is reminiscent of a Greek temple. At its peak is a small door, no larger than a playing card, that pops open to reveal a tiny wooden bird, light blue with a dappled white breast. The clock has been in his family for more than a century.
It was a gift to Aaron Simpson, who was barely more than a child when he joined a New Hampshire regiment as its drummer boy. He went off to war, came back and was presented with a handsome clock from his father, no doubt relieved that the youngster made it through the conflict intact.
Unlike young Aaron, the clock never saw much action. For various reasons, it was hardly used from one generation to the next, though a family cat did knock it off a wall, denting the clock’s face. Simpson, 56, plans to show it Saturday.
“You don’t see them like that anymore,” said Simpson, a retired chef who lives in Hapeville. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Its value? “It wouldn’t matter what it’s worth,” said Simpson. “This’ll go to my son, and his son, and so on.”
An object’s worth is often traced to its provenance, or history, said appraiser Steve Winters. An Acworth resident, Winters will be one of several experts participating in the “Treasures” show. He specializes in flags and has assessed the value of banners dating from the Revolutionary War to the mid-20th century.
“Most of the time, a history [of an item] gets lost,” he said, and that has a negative effect on its worth.
Winters, a collector and buyer for 20 years, bought a red, white and blue dress, with hand-stitched stars, made during the Civil War. A long-ago mother made it for her little girl, something pretty from an ugly time.
“It’s just a fabulous piece of Americana,” said Winters, who has high hopes for Saturday’s show. “I fully expect some interesting things will come through the door.”
Leave swords at home
Anyone wishing to display artifacts must register and attend the symposium, whose speakers include experts on Civil War artifacts, the Andersonville National Historic Site and President Abraham Lincoln.
The Archives show welcomes just about anything from the war period — utensils, correspondence, photos, clothing, firearms and more. Anyone bringing guns must be sure their weapons’ firing pins have been removed.
No swords, sabers or knives will be allowed; old blades, like old animosities, are best left at home.
In the Archives’ lobby are exhibits showcasing that hard time in our nation’s history. The displays, under glass, feature drawings of “Yankee catchers,” submerged stakes designed to sink ships; African-American newspapers; a $20 bill featuring Confederate President Jefferson Davis; a pardon signed by Lincoln, and more.
Rob Richards, director of archival operations, wants visitors to linger over the documents. They are a reminder, he said, of our heritage.
“We want people to feel that connection,” he said.
