♪ ♪

>> you may be seated. i would now like to invite to the podium reverend frederick a. buechner director at calvary episcopal church. his church was founded the same year that andersonville opened. reverend buechner will open our service with an invocation. >> let us pray. remember in think kingdom, ou

god, those who laid their lives down for their friends. grant them rest in the land of the living, in the joy of par paradi paradise, whence all pain and grief have gone away. grant that they may ma be numbered among the host of think redeemed, going forth conquering and conquer with thee their ever lasting, lord. this day oh lord to our prayers where we beseech think mercy for the souls of think service who thou have biden to leave this world to thou hallowed place. grant them place in think kingdom of peace and light. amen.

>> thank you reverend buechner. for the prisoners at andersonville, prayers provided comfort, community and sometimes even solutions. the story of providence springs is an ongoing testament to man's belief in greater things. prisoners also believed in the power of words, whether through letters from home or their own reflectio reflections. here to share his own words, i would like to introduce judson mitcham of georgia. >> what an honor it is to be here. prayer at andersonville 2015. every prayer once prayed here is still in the air. but there is also that old whine of astonishment caught in the

throat. so who are we to have gathered here. even in praise, even humbled by the blood of our inheritance could we ever be too sure what history is good for. history is what we are. creatures made of time and story, the clay of the bible, fired and shaped into brittle jars that hold our days. and today we are in our element out in these fields of wounding stillness at the end of summer where we stroll as freely as we choose down clean lanes of grass and stone. we can take our time and try to understand what we will never understand. but one measure of our days has commanded us to fall in and to stand at attention, to form up

where the stockade swarmed. the soldiers prayed to god for the end of. the dusk and the sunrise are still inside us. and the years go on and we touch them one by one. and today they are the strange beads of a prison rosary, a ruined boot lace tied in knots. let us go on then and say amen to the weapons at our feet, blades of grass. the beautiful uncut hair of graves. amen to the night that takes up its position. amen to the sun that advances through the risen dust. with or without us. whatever we believe. everywhere now in this nation of old sorrows and new, even trembling with the past, here at

andersonville we are suffering from what we have forgotten. tell us again, if you can, how to praise and how to grieve and how to witness. give us this day, for give us our trespasses. the race is not to the swift nor the battle to the strong. but time and chance happen to them all. turn you to the strong hold yea prisoners of hope. [ applause ] >> thank you, mr. mitcham. the civil war was view by many as the second american revolution. in honor of those who chose to fight for freedom, the maneuver center of excellence brass quintet will play the american revolutionary war medley.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪

♪

♪ ♪

♪ [ applause ] >> although the prison site was open only a short time, its impact has been felt throughout generations. for a brief history, i am pleased to introduce dr. lesley

gordon from the university of akron. >> thank you. it's a privilege to be here with y'all today. on may 3rd and 4th, some 400 members of the 16th connecticut infantry regiment entered andersonville prison. this particular regiment which had seen hard fighting, was captured at the battle of plymouth on april 20th. entering the stockade here, many reflect in their diaries. >> our hearts failed us as we

saw what used to be men, now nothing but mere skeletons with covered with filth and vermin. god protect us. he alone with bring us out of this awful mess. private george chipman knew death stocked close. a large number die here daily. sergeant al voer gates was convinced it would prove, the hardest trial of my life, although i have faced death in many forms. the confederacy erected andersonville here near to small town of anderson, georgia to handle the growing number of captives overwhelming richmond's prisons. about the time the 16th arrived here in early may 1864, just over 12,000 inmates crowded into

this open air stockade. by the time andersonville would close its gates for good, 45,000 union soldiers were imprisoned here. and as we know today, nearly 13,000 of them made ansonville their final resting place of those 400 of the 16th that entered here, about 100 of them would die. today we come here to commemorate those deaths for this funeral of 13,000. prisoners died as robert kellogg described not in the heat and excitement of the battle but in a loneliness of a multitude with an comrade only at their side and under a hostile flags. members of the 16th connecticut suffered from exposure, contagious disease, lack of adequate sanitary facilities, tainted water, improper diet and insufficient medical care. diarrhea, dysentery and scurvy

plagued the inmates. although they had endure combat, death in prison was something entirely new. grerj champ lynn reflected, men die here very fast. just over a week later he likened the constant death to the falling leaves in autumn. on july 20th, sergeant oliver gates counted 11 dead since they arrived on that may day. and he wrote more than ever died in camps since he left home. here we get nothing to eat and no care. prisoners were dying in their tents, in the open sun, anywhere and everywhere. with little to do except focus on the suffering, the impact of so much death, especially this kind of death, unheroic, helpless was profound for those who did survive. by mid august, one sergeant

wrote in his diary that he scarcely knew what to write what. the weather is unbearable and men's hearts are sinking. by mid august, sergeant hen vi savage wrote almost every day someone in our regiment dies. we're certainly warned to be prepared. some days one looks forward and wonders whose turn will come next. the pace of death was shocking. in may leyland bar low believed quote, one man dies every hour. one estimated that prisoners were dying at a late of 45 a day. we are falling like leaves in the august wind. ira forbes counted 29 dead from the regiment. he said how fast we are passing away. combat seemed far preferable than imprisonment.

barely two weeks into his captivity, ira forbes wrote it would be unspeakable happiness for me to return to the army and fight under our glorious banner. it seemed so unmainly for them to be so helpless. as robert keglog explained, quote, they do not ask to be free from participation in the strife but they long to walk forth from their dens even though it may be to meet the sulfurous spoke in the cannon in the contested battle because there at least would be glorious action. imprisonment was nothing like these men has experienced. was something that would haunt them. on the second day of his incarceration, iran forbes visited one of the hospitals and was deeply shaken by what he saw. i have seen them at the execution. i have seen them in a condition so heart rendering.

i've never seen them in such a condition so heart rendering as this. as the weeks changed to months and no exchange came, it was astonishing how much suffering the prisoners here witnessed and observed. no other place would compare to the misery and destitution of andersonville. forbes wrote, it does seem that men cannot suffer more than they do in here. like most civil war soldiers and their families, members of the 16th connecticut were concerned that they die a good death and have some sort of appropriate christian service before their removal from the pen despite the horrific conditions that surrounded them. forbes wrote generally there camp there are no religious services held at the death of the men. a fact that reflects great disgrace upon the authorities in charge of the prisoners. oliver gates was asfounded to

observe, when a man dies here, he's carried out on a stretcher and when they're ready to put them on the wagon, they cart them to the burying ground for each man, throw him in as you would a dog and cover him up without any ceremony. one would curse him for die so soon. a dying prisoner collapsed on the ground near the brook. he reflected, who knows but this man had a loving family at home who may never know his sad end. they may hear that he died in prison down in georgia. that will be all. but no one outside of the den will understand one half of the suffering that occurs here. but i suppose it is better. years after the war it was a point of pride among members of the 16th that no member of the regiment lacked what they call reverent burial. forbes explained the question of a christian burial was raised by

members of the 16th at the prison at the first death that occurred. i was impossible for the members of the deceased comrades to take the body outside. even religious ceremonies of any kind was not to be thought of. it was decided that script churl reading over the body of the man in the regiment would be held. forbes insisted that no member of the 16th that died here was deprived of the last tribute, what he called christian comradeship. certainly some p.o.w.s in the regiment, as did other prisoners faltered and gave in to december spare. some accepted parole to get better food and escape from the pen. those who did not die survived to face more imprisonment in charleston or florence before exchange finally and mercifully came. released prisoners late in 1864

and early 1865 went to camp parole in annapolis, maryland and then they were furloughed before returning to service. men from the 16th connecticut arrived here where they found thepss in a limbo waiting to be formally exchanged before they commenced their furloughs. the corporal notified his family that he was safe and alive. i feel thankful to my heavenly father that he had snatched me as i have reason to think from the jaws of death. he was convinced that in a few more weeks he would have parish parished. private lewis hall come was paroled and he came home, in the words of his family, a wreck. he was so weak and starved that that he could hardly turn in his bed. by april he returned to the regiment.

however he was not fully recovered and on may 19th, 1856 he entered a military hospital in fairfax, virginia where he died at the age of 24. his family in new england never heard from him again. wallace woford reached him home, but he died within a week of his arrival. his gravestone reads, eight month to suffer in rebel prisons, he came home to die. he was 22 years old. for others their imprisonment left their health shattered. oliver gates, after the war resumed to his prewar occupation, he almost severed his left arm. unable to do manual labor, he lived for the next ten years mainly off his modest disability pension from the u.s. government. from the lingering effects of disease of the eyes he contracted while in prison here.

another member settled home in connecticut, he married, had two daughters. but his health was shattered from his imprisonment here. he set out west to try afresh. he and his wife were living in lansing, iowa when he died at the age of 35. he's buried in his hometown, although a public plea was made that his name be added to the civil war monument as he had been a faithful soldier and contracted disease from here at arnolds andersonville. it was never added to that monument. there's a number of the veterans who are diagnosed as insane and confined to institutions. ira force who's credited for helping to save the regiment's colors at plymouth was committed to the hard forth retreat for the insane where he died at the

age of 68. in 1906 when veterans of the 16th helped to dedicate their state's monument here at andersonville, robert kellogg gave a short address, stressing patriotism and loyalty. he didn't come here to sensor those p.o.w.s who broke and accepted confederate paroles. he would not dwell on the difficulties he and his comrades had. instead his focus was on healing and commemoration. as a scholar of the civil war, i seek to understand the complexities of the prison experience for the men of the 16th. this event provides us with an opportunity to remember those who died here but also to remember that even for the many survivors, their ordeal did not end here. they faced difficult times with their sometimes mental often

physical health destroyed. they fought to find ways to construct a knew heroic narrative. we hear in the records quoted here how deeply these e-p.o.w.s wanted to ensure that andersonville be remembered, that the dead here be given referent burial. in all of this it's important to recognize that their months of captivity left lasting scars, much echoing to us today. thank you. [ applause ] >> thank you, dr. gordon. while there is no easy way to go from accounts of captivity to one of our nation's beloved songs, it's music and lyric evoke the possibilities of a unified nation. we now present america the beautiful.

♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪

♪ [ applause ] >> over 14 months united states soldiers, sailors, marines and civilians were held captive here

at andersonville. their memory as honored by the laying of wreaths during patriotic ceremonies across the nation. today we present four wreaths in memory of their service to this country. presenting the wreath on behalf of the united states army, staff sergeant and command sergeant phillip stringfield.

presenting a wreath on behalf of the united states nay have, logistics specialist third class justin logan, hospitalman second class demont cole.

presenting a wreath on behalf of the united states marine corps, sergeant darius dubose and corporal hannah sherbernack.

presenting a wreath on behalf of civilian, national park service deputy regional director sherry fields and maddie and michael sella sellars.

thank you. we would also like to acknowledge the additional wreaths that have been placed here today from descend dent organizations and the ex-prisoners of war. [ applause ] now it is my great pleasure to introduce our keynote speaker, sergeant may jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]\ jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ] jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]j jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]o jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]r jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]jr. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]r. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ]. of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ] of the army, daniel dailey. [ applause ] >> it is a great day to be a soldier. ladies and gentlemen, welcome. i'm honored to be here today. as a history major, i am very excited about the opportunity to

talk about what history teaches us about ourselves. history tends to remember the dates, the battles, the victories. it lauds the winners and favors grand action or monumental failure. but there are some places on the battlefield where dates and battles, winner and losers are matters of inconsequence. in these places, survival is the only thing of magnitude. this place, this ground we walk on today is such a place. during a period of 14 months at camp sumter, located not far from the town of andersonville, have 45,000 enlists union soldiers who were here confined on these grounds died here. andersonville is a place where survival was against the odds for those who entered the

stockads. due to the disease and injury unchecked here, or they were inprisoned further by an emotional infirmary that lasted into the beyond. but this human tragedy, this humanitarian disaster of unsufficient food, shelter and medical aid is now infamous in our civil war narrative. what i will remember today and what i ask you to remember is the lives lived before andersonville, the lives lived after andersonville, and the lessons learned as a result of the lives lived and lost because of andersonville. in my attempt to do justice to the 45,000 stories of the pruz ners who endured here, i will share the story of just one of them. this u.s. soldier and p.o.w. i highlight today is no better or

worse than any other. to those dedicated family members who are here today, please accept my sincere apologies for not having enough time to tell the story of each and every one of them. i wish i could. just know that you are their voice and our nation appreciates you for keeping their unique cro chronicles alive. your contribution to the country's rich history of interesting, sad, exciting and complex people is invaluable. without you america would be a place defined by number on centuries old calendar or markers on a map where shells dropped and men were buried. instead our nation's history is one of men and women of all backgrounds, both successful in their endeavors and unsuccessful. who came together with their own dreams and built a place for us to endeavor as we may. with success at times and

failures at others. sometimes through these stories we gain a glimpse of someone's life that enriches our own immeasurably. we thank you for helping us to remember those individuals, no matter how perfect or how flawed they make our nation. they make our nation great. one of these individuals i want to introduce to you was born and bred in my home state of pennsylvania. it was 1863, christian capehart, a store keeper and a father of four girls enlists in the union army. the blair county native was already 31 years old, at 5'11", with hazel eyes and a dark complex and dark hair, i'm quite sure he was a handsome man. it's hard to know why a man being of his age and with a family would decide to enlist. even if it was to be part of the

famed 13th calvary regiment for which he served. mr. bill miller ponders that same question. why would his great great grandfather choose to enter the war at the age and with a family to care for. why did he serve? perhaps it was because the union victory at gettysburg had galvanized enlistment among men and women in the north. perhaps it was because he felt a calling to fight against the sins of slavery. perhaps it was because of the enlistment bounty could do his family well in this time of need. perhaps mr. miller will never know what prompted his great great granddad to join this brotherhood. but i know he will never stop digging until he discovers the true answers. and i also know that with his persistence we would never have known this tale of sergeant

christian capehart, nor how his mere existence on this earth created a family of future american soldiers. being a veteran of vietnam himself, sergeant bill miller's intrigue was picked by his father's research on their family's civil war connection. miller did research in the national archives to help paint a portrait of his ancestor. these facts and figures, lists and rosters help contribute to our intimate and personal glimpse into a shared national history that comes directly from the genealogy of many family trees. miller was himself a volunteer soldier. he chose to serve in a time of war, despite being a student at penn state university, as miller turned back the pages of american history, he learned how improbable his existence was and yet he stands among us today to

share the unlikely yarn. you see, little did capehart, the great great grandson of german immigrants know that in the course of one year he'd enlist, fight, be captured at st. mayor rir's church in va swra, survive prison, be relocated to side step the fear of-and-sonville and die of dysentery months later in a south carolina prisoner of war camp. little did he know that his wife would succumb to the pressures of caring for their four girls and make the unimaginable choice to place them in an orphanage for veterans. little did he know that despite all that was stacked against their successes, these four girls would marry, bare children and contribute to the american story in their own unique ways. one of those unlikely children born to one of those girls would

be the grandparent of my new friend, bill miller. he and his two brothers all served our nation. this is a story of family. of resilience, of selfless service and sacrifice in the nas of insush mountable obstacles. sergeant christian capehart is the story of america. his chon kl is one of 45,000 stories op men who endured this place of epic tragedy. it's the story of the real housewives -- lives that carried on. the stories of the ones that never left this place, the dates in their letters and the diaries of the generals who commanded them are of no magnitude on this hallowed ground of andersonville. instead of consequence is why they did what they did, why they chose to serve in a time of war.

today there are approximately 1 million americans in the u.s. army. yet only 1% of our entire population of this great nation will every choose to serve. these men of andersonville were of a special breed. they were men who knew full well the consequences of their actions. and for their own personal reasons, did what few others could or would do. they served. it is this brotherhood i am so honored to represent here today, a brotherhood that bonds us all across the centuries in life and death. it bonds us in history. we who serve today are following in the footsteps of the men who. today, still, we take their example and use it as an

inspiration to fight on no matter, no matter the circumstances. the red, white and blue banner of the united states of america. and the black and white flag that honors our p.o.w.s and mias fly strong here today side by side. as we commemorate a place and a war that changed our nation forever. these flags mark progress and change in honor of the men of andersonville and for the men and women in the audience today who have suffered the unimaginable hardships of being a prisoner of war in a foreign land. the p.o.w. experience these soldiers suffered here at andersonville, in vietnam, in korea, cambodia and in so many other places teaches the imprisoned much about themselves. teaches the army much about our enemy and teaching the world much about our nation's values. what we