Civil War Symposium 2024

Civil War historians and enthusiasts, please join us on Saturday, April 6 from 9:30 AM to 4:00 PM for a day of Civil War presentations and discussions.

This event is free and open to the public. Everyone is invited to attend all or part of the day.

Bossard Library asks that attendees park in the gravel lot directly across the street from the library's entrance.

Please join us for a day of Civil War history as four speakers/authors present programs on a wide variety of Civil War topics, including information specific to Gallia County.

Our first speaker is Peter Cultice with the presentation, "The Underground Railroad in Southeast Ohio". Ohio played a prominent role in the Underground Railroad movement to help hide and transport runaway slaves on their dangerous journey to free states and Canada. There are many Underground Railroad sites in Southeast Ohio, including a number in Gallia County, but few in our area know much, if anything, about them. Mr. Cultice will present an overview of both the sites and history of the Underground Railroad in Southeast Ohio. 

Peter Cultice is the president of Muskingum County History and has presented programs on the Underground Railroad to both local and national audiences. He also gives Underground Railroad walking tours in Putnam, Muskingum County. Peter is an attorney and historian from Zanesville, Ohio.

Our second speaker is author Christy Perry Tuohey with the presentation, "A Place of Rest for Our Gallant Boys: The U.S. Army General Hospital at Gallipolis, Ohio, 1861-1865". Ms. Tuohey will discuss both the hospital itself and the men and women who cared for the Union and Confederate soldiers in residence. Among the people who cared for the soldiers were a young teacher who switched to nursing when hospital cots filled her classroom; a New England surgeon who survived both Confederate capture and a bloody Southern battle to take charge of the hospital; and a hospital steward who nursed his regimental comrade back from the brink of death, and how together they ended up treating casualties in Gallipolis. Ms. Tuohey will also share with us some interesting finds she has made since her book was published. 

Christy Perry Tuohey is an author and freelance writer. She was born and raised in West Virginia and is a graduate of Marshall University. She is a 30+ year veteran of newsrooms and classrooms. She was a TV news reporter and anchor in markets including Charleston/Huntington, WV; Charlotte, NC; and Columbus and Cleveland, OH. Her writing has been published in multiple print and online newspapers and magazines.

Our third speaker is author Roger Pickenpaugh with the presentation, "Captives in Gray: The Civil War Prisons of the Union". Focusing on prison diaries and reportage in the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion, Mr. Pickenpaugh will discuss overall prison policy and the variations between different camps, what conditions in camps were like for Confederate prisoners, and whether those conditions resulted from conscious government policy or were the product of local officials and situations.  

Roger Pickenpaugh was a teacher at Shenandoah Middle School in Sarahsville, Ohio for thirty years before retiring. His books have focused mainly on outstanding Ohio weather events and the Civil War. He has devoted a great amount of study on the topic of Civil War prisons and, as a result, has published four books about Civil War prison camps.

Our fourth speaker is author Darl L. Stephenson with the presentation, "Headquarters in the Brush: Blazer's Independent Union Scouts". In the fall of 1863, a group of scouts and sharpshooters, consisting mainly of farmers from the mountains of southeastern Ohio and West Virginia, was organized to fight the bushwhackers in the mountains of West Virginia. The unit was so successful that General George Crook mounted the group on horses in 1864 to combat rebel guerrillas, make deep raids, and act as the front and rear guard of the army, giving them the most dangerous of missions. In the Shenandoah Valley, General Sheridan gave them the mandate to take on the renowned Confederate partisan John S. Mosby and his rangers. Come hear the account of this extraordinary group of men, many of whom called Gallia County their home. Mr. Stephenson will talk about both the men who comprised the Blazer Scouts and the battles and skirmishes they were involved in.  

Darl Stephenson is a retired Middle East specialist for the Defense Intelligence Agency. He is also a retired USAFR Lieutenant Colonel. 

Light refreshments will be provided. Lunch will be on your own with a listing of local restaurants provided for your convenience. 

Presenters' and authors' books/CDs and other items for purchase will be available on a cash basis only.