and our hair. i'm quite sure he was a handsome man. it is hard to know why a man of his age and with the family would decide to enlist, even if it was to be part of the famed 13th regimen, of which he served. mr. bill miller ponders the same question. why would his great-great-grandfather choose to enter the war with the family to care for. why did he serve? perhaps it was because the union victory at gettysburg, a few short months before, had galvanized enlistment among men and women in the north. perhaps it was because he felt a againstto fight slavery. perhaps it was because the lisbon bounty, a sizable amount, would do his family well in a time of need. perhaps mr. miller will never know what prompted his great great granddad to prompt this to join this--

brotherhood. i know that with his persistence -- without his persistence, we would have never known this tale , nor how his existence on this earth created a family of future soldiers. being o invention of the anon did researchmiller's through the national archives to uncover archives to pay a portrait of his ancestor. like a puzzle, piece after piece, perfectly placed, these facts and figures help contribute to our now 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 and a time of war, despite being a student at .enn state university

as he turned back the pages of american history, he learned how improbable his existence was, and yet, he stands amongst us today to share the unlikely yarn . you see, little did he know that in the course of just one year, fight, benlist, captured at st. mary's church prisonginia, survived , and be relocated to andersonville, and diet of dysentery.ie , his wife he know would succumb to the pressures of providing and caring for his for girls, and make the unimaginable choice of placing orphanage of veterans. little did he know that despite all that was stacked against their success, these girls would

marry, their children, and contribute to the american story .n 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. the sergeant story is the story of america. this chronicle is just one of 45,000 stories of men that endured this place of epic tragedy. it is the story of the lives they carried on afterwards. it is also the story of the 13,000 souls that never left this place, the battles they fought in, the dates entered into their letters, and the diaries of the generals who commanded them are of no magnitude in this hallowed

ground at andersonville. why they chose to serve in a time of war. today, there are approximately one million americans in the u.s. army. , yet, only about 1% of the population of this great nation will ever choose to serve. these men of andersonville were of a special breed. they were men that knew full well the consequences of their actions. for their own personal reasons, they did what few others could, do.would they served. it is this brotherhood that i'm so honored to represent here today. a brotherhood that bonds us across centuries, in life-and-death. it bonds us in history. we, who served today, are following in the footsteps of the men who injured here at

andersonville. through 14 years of war on two fronts, today, still, we take the example and use it as our , noiration to fight on matter the circumstances. banner, white, and blue of the united states of america, and the black and white flag that honors our pows fly ase-by-side together today we commemorate a nation, and a war, the change our nation. these flags honor the men of men andville and the women in the audience today who have suffered being a prisoner of war on foreign land. in vietnam, korea, cambodia, and so many places.

it teaches the army much about our enemy, and the world, much of our nation's values. what we have undoubtedly learned from the disaster at andersonville is the humane treatment of pows to finds are national identity and reiterates our army values by ensuring that dignity and respect is paid to all enemy combatant. we have also learned how precious freedom is. cost.reedom always has a the cost is paid by men and women, men and women who are willing to endure torture, knowledge or should loneliness, despair, and even death in the .ursuit of freedom history tends to remember the dates. it remembers the battles of the victories. victories.e are some places on the battlefield where dates and

battles, winners and l losers are matters of an consequence. in these places, survival is the only thing of magnitude. the men of andersonville have survived. they have survived 150 years of what makes our nation great, the american people. as i conclude with you today, my hope is for the 13,000 souls lost here to rest in peace. one aowledge sacrifice prosperous world in an ever evolving nation. and legacy lives on in the heartbeats of their descendents, and the democratic spirit they inspire in those who follow in their footsteps. although tragic, their sacrifice and service paves the way for us to become a great nation. the greatest nation in the world has ever known. the united states of america. it is a great day to be a soldier, and i am honored and

privileged that these enlisted men gave me that opportunity. god bless them, not bless their families. godbless their legacy, bless our pows and mia past and present, god bless this great state of georgia, and god bless the united states of america. [applause] sgt. maj. dailey: please join me and stand for military honors.

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>> you may be seated. at this time, i would like to invite reverend buckner to the podium to give a an addiction. -- a benediction. let us pray.ner:

remember, oh lord, we beseech the. the souls of them that have kept the faith, those who we remember and those we were member not. and grant them rest in the land of the living and the joy of paradise where all pain and grief have fled away, for the light of thy countenance shine is forever, and guide in peace the end of our lives oh lord, when that will, and as that will , that we may enter the gate and dwell in that house where there shall be no darkness nor dazzling, but one equal light, no noise nor silence, but one equal music. no fears, no hoax, but one equal possession. no end nor beginning, but one equal eternity in the habitations of thy majesty and glory, world without end.

and unto god's gracious mercy and protection, we commit ourselves and those near and dear to us. the lord bless us and keep us. the lord make his face to shine upon us and be gracious unto us. the lord lift up the light of his countenance upon us and fill us with his piece. both this day, and evermore. amen. rest internal grant to them, lord, and let light perpetual shine upon them. amen. mr. sellars: at this time i would like to knowledge largest , mr. kenneth cut from the congressman's office. [applause]

mr. sellars: i would like to invite you to stand once again, this time, as the georgia army national guard presents the colors for a second time, and please remain standing. [drumroll]

>> present arms. ♪ [national anthem playing]

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mr. sellars: you may be seated. throughout the service, the united states flag stands prominently at the center of the national cemetery as set at half staff in mournfully knowledge meant of these losses. retired brew deal general robert corner him has performed the duty of raising the flag to full staff. his honors the service of medical staff throughout american military history, and echoes the role at the famous

nurse clara barton played in raising a flag on the spot in august of 1865. conclusion, i want to thank the military representatives for supporting this event. i also want to thank the public for their continual support in our national parks. we are pleased to consider this our first centennial event for andersonville national historic site. day will mark the 100 earth of the founding of the national park service, and across the country, our 408 sites will be celebrating all year long. , andvite you to join us find your part. we also hopes that one of the parks you find will be andersonville. thank you. [applause]

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♪ >> you are watching american history tv on c-span3. our coverage of ceremonies in

andersonville, georgia at the site of the andersonville prison. you have been learning about it. earlier today we had a chance to talk with an historian on this topic, you saw the ceremony. we continue with our conversation to learn more about life at andersonville prison. our next guest joining us now will be with us, the university professor leslie gordon, she just spoke at the funeral. she will be taking her questions, if you like to ask a question, call us now. you can also tweet us or post questions on facebook.com/c-span. joining us is leslie gordon --professor lesley gordon. professor gordon, thanks for joining us. professor gordon: thank you.

host: can we start with a little bit of what you talked about in your speech as far as survivors of andersonville, can you give us a sense of what a survivor had to go through? in theor gordon: research i did, it's representative of many of the theivors that endured imprisonment here. if they made it their andersonville, it didn't mean necessarily their imprisonment was over. many were transferred out of it on to other prisons, they were infting prisoners to prisons troublesome, florence, and so many might have died there. they were going to put all caps. in those last weeks or months, that was the experience of the bureaucracy of the army. they waited to be formally exchanged.

the accounts and some of the men i studied, one of them in particular, this one soldier named george robbins talked about the journey home on the train, he called at the climax of his suffering, that was even worse because he was in an overcrowded train, and he was overwhelmed and exhausted. they would go through this journey of trying to get home. many of them made it home and would die at home because their bodies were so broken. so it wasn't just as though being freed from here and being exchanged was the end of the story. the 13,000 pows that died in andersonville, what happened to them? what's history tell us about what happened? --ler: -- sgt. maj. dailey:

professor gordon: they were dying from scurvy and severe diarrhea. these were terrible waste of guys -- ways to die. men with they would rather die in battle, they would rather die shot and killed in the heat of combat and to die this slow suffering that seem to so dehumanizing. it's just a terrible way to die. majority of those 15,000 died, from disease and malnutrition. host: we are seeing pictures of the gravesites there. recently there was another type of memorial service there and which was eliminated, to give you a sense of what's happening, you attended that. what was it like to attend that ceremony and see those illuminations. ? professor gordon: it was very powerful. i was with eric leonard and another historian, and we drove around.

we were really taken aback by lights forseeing the the 13,000. it really brought home a sense of just how many men were here. is a portion of the 13,000 mother were 40,000 here that endured andersonville. so a broader visual sense of the numbers. it's hard to contemplate that many deaths, i think. it's true for the civil war in general. so many deaths. but a place like here in andersonville, and the way they image was veryl powerful. oft: leslie gordon, author the broken regiment, and a history professor at the university of akron. susan in stillwater, new york is our first call. go ahead. a great, great cousin who died at andersonville.

april 22, 1864. as dynasty.s listed i read a lot of that was it is dying of dynasty really died from gangrene, is that possible? professor gordon: i think more of the deaths were from toentery, which was related malnutrition. the gangrene, that was usually related to open wounds. it certainly could happen from something like scurvy, which would lead to sores. -- i think ithat was more often this malnutrition that led to this kind of breakdown in digestive systems. gangrene was certainly a concern.

i can't say for sure was one thing or another. but that's a very nasty way to die. gangrene was a serious problem. if you were wounded in battle, that was often what happened. it wasn't the wound itself, it was the infection that came later. host: from rochester, new york. this is david. professor gordon: dr. gordon, caller: -- dr. gordon, it's a honor to see you. do you consider his book on andersonville the best book, or do you recommend any other books on andersonville? and have you read the novel? professor gordon: thank you. book stands as the best comprehensive history of the prison. , another some others is a good one as an overview prisons. there has been a good look at the memories of prison and the effects on pows, there's a great

book about veterans in general, with the chapter on expert is and what happened to them when they came home. dismissive of lots of the postwar writing of the prisoners, and i'm not as questioning of them, in particular one member of the 16th coming is very dismissive of. i don't agree with everything that he has to say, but it's an important book and i think it's a good place to start. i think there is much that we abouto learn, and explore the very topic of civil war prisons. it's really being neglected as a topic. i have read mckinley cantor's book, i read it many years ago when i first became interested in the civil war. mckinley cancer was an important author for me as a teenager. i haven't read it probably in more than 30 years. i think it's significant in reminding us of the everyday

soldiers, but i would go back to some of these other historians for more of the factual information. i think reading those together do give you a sense of the reality of the suffering here, and the magnitude of it. host: what we learn about prison life in andersonville by your study of the 16th connecticut? what specifics did you glean from that? professor gordon: what was so interesting and important, i ofnk about the experience the 16th, they began their service in antietam, and they are green troops in a panic and run off the field, essentially. as the beginning of their civil war service. they never get another chance to redeem themselves because of circumstance. they are transferred out of active service. they are captured at the battle of plymouth in april of 1864. they end up here. those of the bookends of their civil war service. at theng and fleeing

battle of antietam, and then imprisonment in andersonville. as civil war soldiers, the story here is hugely significant. i argue it becomes a redemption narrative for them. what happens to them here, the suffering they experienced. for them, they want that to be as good as fighting at gettysburg. as good as experiencing chancellorsville or vicksburg. yes, they are union veterans and yes, they run the winning side. but they want also be counted as victors, even though they can't show the same battle scars there other comrades could. it's difficult because x pows really weren't seen and perceived as the same as other veterans. this is true not just for the 16th connecticut. i'm really exploring how they cope with the experience, how they wanted the memory to be crafted. this was a lingering issue for them. they came back here, the

veterans, many of them in the early 1900s to commemorate the monument to their state. i argue this is really a monument to their regiments. effort,arheaded the they led the state commission, they were mostly manning the monument commission. one of their members, robert kellogg, was very influential also in the effort. this was so important to them that people remember what happened here. and not forget it. host: professor gordon, as part of that, there was paper stars in there to the tune of 13,000. professor gordon: yes, that was remarkable. see the actual stars, i saw some photographs online of the stars. i understand they were from children all over. the casket was quite moving. with the military honors today. host: we're looking at video of

those stars. leslie gordon is our guest to talk about andersonville. this is david from friendswood, texas. caller: great program. this is what television should be all about. i think i saw on the history channel that right when andersonville was built, the north stop the prisoner exchange program, and that more than anything else contributed to the suffering, much of the suffering death and andersonville. i was wondering if that is true, and if it is, did the north know about andersonville? why didn't they reinstitute the prisoner exchange program? i will hang up and listen. thank you. professor gordon: thank you for your question. the exchange program had stopped by the time andersonville was opened.

the confederacy had overwhelming numbers of prisoners and know where to put them up. the richmond prisons. they build andersonville to deal with it, it was never meant to hold as many prisoners as it did. -- blame for andersonville there are a lot of blame to go around, certainly. but the confederacy was well aware of how bad the conditions were. i think henry words played his role, certainly. he was tried and found guilty for the conditions here. he did not have control over everything that was going on here. wender, isecure john think he was charged with some of the responsibility. he died before the war ends. the north come as far as this question of what was going on on the union side of how much did they know -- there's a book by charles saunders, who is very of thel, not just

confederate authorities and how much they knew the conditions here, but of the union authorities, of lincoln and stand. i think it's a compelling case that the war department in particular by the summer of 1864, the new exactly what was going on here, they were getting accounts, and sherman starts to make his way here and to georgia with his campaign towards atlanta. aware, and there is some claims that he allows for one attempt to free the soldiers, and that fails. but there is an acknowledgment by grant, by sherman, by lee and stand that they want to end the war, they want to win the war, and that's the best way to free the prisoners. and also the fact that the confederates refused to accept black troops as prisoners, to treat them as prisoners of war. that of course played a huge role in the prison policy of the

union. not be negated in this whole question of who is to blame. conditions that one in three men were dying here, and it certainly didn't have to happen. the things that could've been done. but yes, the union made a conscious decision that they and going to fight the war look for ending the war as quickly as possible. the argument grant made that if you put forces on the ground to come here and liberate the prisoners, that that would've taken away from his larger strategy of winning the war. host: for leslie gordon, david from utah. go ahead. caller: yes, the national park website for andersonville list 32 union soldiers who successfully escaped from andersonville.

my distant relative was one of them, his name was john eager. -- it wanted by chance wondered by chance of she knew anything about him. he ended up dying in ohio at a military hospital in 1878. she had leg injuries that he developed at andersonville. i know it's a long shot, i wondered if she knew anything about him. i'm sorry, idon: don't. that's quite a remarkable story. there were not that many escapes. it was very hard to get out of here. that's something that your relative did make it out. i think it also speaks to, as you said, he still suffered from the experience of being here. there were escapes. from the 16th, some of the officers -- officers weren't kept her, but some officers and ended up in charleston, for

example, they escaped. there has been some new work done on this question of escaped prisoners. need more work on this. we don't know as much about these stories. i don't know, i'm sorry about your relative. becausere escapes low of the structure, were there other factors? professor gordon: as far as how will heart is -- how hard it was? to be question of blame it. they had this place pretty well fortified. men, the georgia militia or guards that were here , it was difficult to have that many -- the manpower question is a real one as far as the confederacy -- who could be spared to guard a prison like this one? ,ut there were trenches builds

earth works built, and artillery pieces set up surrounding the prisoners so they can be fired. there were threats made, rumors that some of the men talking about it they were going to be fired on, that artillery was going to be re--- unleashed on them because of haverhill problems. -- behavioral problems. the men were consular looking for a way to get out, there was digging. there were dogs that were used. and of course, there's the infamous deadline. -- not an easy place to try and escape from. the conditions of the prisoners themselves, they were so weak and sick to even contemplate physically trying to break their way out. this was the middle of nowhere. ,t was a very isolated location and purposely so. if you escaped from prison in charleston or richmond, it was easier to get to union lines. until sherman makes his way down

here, you'll have to travel pretty far to make your way to union lines. host: here's tj from staten island, new york. caller: thank you for taking my call. we talked a little before about blame. i was wondering threat the beginning of the war, there was a policy of prisoner exchange. and when granting lincoln realized that this would be a sheer war of attrition, that policy was ended. do you think ending that policy contributed to the increased population of prisoners in andersonville? professor gordon: right. that is the question. at the point that lincoln and grants and stanton started to appreciate that if these changes -- exchanges continued, that confederates exchanged would go back into the armies.

of it also was this question -- the confederacy refused with the emancipation proclamation was passed, and became law on january 1, 1863, the confederacy refused to treat black troops as prisoners of war. asy declared black troops fugitives. fugitive slaves. this also played a role in the policy decisions. and so yes, i think it's a combination of issues. you also have to take into the fact that by the time you get into 1864, this war had become a much vaster, harder war than anyone had expected. when the war had started, very few people had thought about the question of prisoners. it really had not been carefully considered and planned.

and we ended up with these situations not just here in andersonville, but in these other prisons. this was obviously the worst of the deadliest. again, there were specific reasons why was the deadliest. host: next is dave from alpharetta, georgia. caller: good afternoon. i watched the ceremony this afternoon. i'm curious, unless my eyes deceive me, was the casket in front of the lectern drape in a 48 star flag? or am i in error? professor gordon: i was behind, so i don't know. i don't know they had a flag -- and sorry,been don't know. bit about us a little what we hear the modern-day military how a soldier francis -- transfers to civilian life. what was it like for a transfer to civilian life for those who

left andersonville, and if there are examples that you can give us from the 16th connecticut that might help us understand that? professor gordon: the transition wasn't always easy. of one example i can think ,s a good one is robert kellogg who joined when he was 18 years old, so he was a very young man still when he comes home and survives andersonville becomes back to his home state, and returns to his original prewar job as a druggist. he's working in a drugstore in norwich, connecticut. he still keeps a diary for a few months in the early part of his return home. he feels very isolated. he's feeling like nobody understands, he doesn't have any friends anymore.

a local deacon died that he knew, and he mentioned in his diary that death seems to have no meaning anymore, after experiencing all of the suffering and death here, somehow -- it doesn't matter that this man died. now, he will marry, he will have a family, he will leave connecticut. he moved to a highland sells insurance. a my all accounts coming is successful man. he lives until 1935. so he lived a very long life or it is very active and better in activities with the 16th connecticut. he doesn't keep a diary, so the records i have on him are mainly letters, particular to his comrades. part of that isolation he was feeling, he does get back in contact with a lot of his friends from the regiment. this is vitally important to him. i think it's what helped him find his way, and sort of get back to what felt like some sense of normalcy. ,nother example is ira forbes

who was a very close friend of robert kellogg. he originally wanted to go to yale, want to be a theologian, wanted to study religion, he comes back and does go to yale and end up deciding to go to journalism. it's not really clear why. he has a successful journalism career. like robert kellogg, it seems like he is unwell professionally. but clearly there are demons haunting him. he becomes alienated from his comrades, so much so that they don't invite him here in the early 1900s in 1907 to dedicate the monument here, which is very dramatic but he's not included. he was a vital member of the unit, he helped save the flag of the unit at plymouth. i would argue he is one of the true heroes of the unit. but he became estranged from his comrades, he was arguing with them about what really happened. just here in andersonville, but what happened when the. in a falling out with them.

he will be committed to the hartford asylum for the insane. he will be declared mentally ill. he dies there when he is 68 years old. to me, those are two examples of ways, they in many are 18 years old, 19 years old, they start of same place but they veer off in different ways are in the cap prove, of course, that his mental illnesses directly tied to his civil war experience, particularly his of prisoners. you have to wonder. it seems that had a role. professor leslie gordon, are those who died in andersonville who are unknown? best estimatesn: are there's about 500 unknown graves here. right after the prison closed, and then going forward in the , there was ad

national effort to identify the dead here. the prisoners were part of that, the survivors were part of that. they were intent on insuring that the dead here were remembered and the names were put on the graves. doris atwater was part of that, clara barton was very active as many people know. this became really crucial. there's a movement across the country both north and south to bury the dead, to commemorate the dead. here it andersonville, it was especially significant that the dead here be identified and accounted for. it, 13,500 ofbout them aren't named -- are named. his remarkable given the way they died and the conditions. host: our next call is greenville, south carolina. here is james. caller: i wanted to ask about

the food situation at the andersonville prison. foodouth had a shortage of at certain times, i think. i wondered how that affected the prison, into the prisoners have any kind of shelter to live under? professor gordon: well, food for the prisoners was particularly poor. this area of georgia had been relatively untouched by the war. again, before sherman came here. this was farmland, these farms beencertainly could have able to provide food for the prisoners. getting goodoblems quality food to the prisoners. i think that's where the question of who is responsible for some of that.

henry words, that plays in his feed. there are some things he could control and he could not control. this question of getting food into the prisons, whether they were being fed well, they were getting really low-quality. talks about the fact that they are not getting any kind of vegetables, that's part of the reason they are getting scurvy. made aearly could have tremendous difference for them. and yes, no doubt. this is an issue for the confederacy, but parts of the confederacy, where the war's most affecting, where armies are -- the confederacy as a bureaucracy have these issues. the confederacy was agricultural nation, they produced farm goods, but could they get those , whether toerred

the rome soldiers in the field, which prisoners? that was often the challenge. that was a difficult challenge for the confederates. host: cindy is from knoxville, tennessee. no ahead. -- go ahead. caller: i was wondering what were the conditions between andersonville and can't douglas in chicago? thank you, i love the program. professor gordon: andersonville was the worst. it was the deadliest. again, it had the highest death rate. i don't know as much about can't research, the own northern prisons -- the last caller and i forgot to respond, he asked about whether there was shelter. the difference with andersonville compared to these other locations like can't -- all campap doug

douglas. the northern prisoners were at camp's of instruction or former forts. united states forts that had been built before the civil war. andersonville is unique because it was located here, it was in this open area. there was nothing. there was no structure here. so the men came in here, if they happened to make it in with any kind of coverings, they would use that. and of course, there was praying on by the men themselves with raiders and what have you. they only had whatever they could use, whatever they literally had on their backs. that was a unique difference that andersonville had compared to the northern prisoners like a camp douglas. the death rates of northern prisons still was hired that ever should be.

but it didn't compare with andersonville. you'rewatching -- host: watching a market history tv. professor lesley gordon, author of "a broken rest -- regiment." our previous guest talked about soldiers in the camp looking out for each other, especially once they were put in there. did you see that amongst 16th? professor gordon: very much. they talk about that. some of them admit, you could take her role, you could accept --ole from the confederates is meant a few different things. it meant you could go outside the pen, you could get better food, you can work in the hospital, you could do work for henry worth your whether that meant being a clerk for him, or some specific job you need it done. i believe john cousin or tells the story in his postwar

account. a good friend of his took a parole to work outside the pen, and he gave him some exit food so he could bring some food that into the pen for him, and he claims that kept him alive. but there's no way he would've lived if his friend hadn't gotten that extra rations. there are other examples of that. they were incredibly dependent on those kind of friendships and relationships throughout. i do think that made such a difference. they really tried to keep tabs on each other while they were here, and keep tabs on how they were faring. when a member of the regiment died, many of them would take note of it in their diaries. it was important for them, it seemed of course not only just to keep record of it, but to died,alk about how they and the day they died, the moment they died.

i'm sure they were thinking ahead to the could tell their families, thinking ahead to hopefully they made it home and they could bring some closure to their families. they were there when that one comrade passed away. riverdale, georgia. you were on with our guest. thank you. i was involved in the filming of the movie andersonville, i was a confederate soldier. we feel the confederates were asking the prisoners to join the confederate army to get freedom and to serve with them for freedom. we all wondered whether that was a real true story or not. do you have any information about that? professor gordon: it's true. happen aed, it didn't lot, but it happened. it was denied -- in the postwar, most of the survivors would on the- and even see monuments, death before dishonor.

memory, there was this compelling desire to not want to mention and remember that anybody had accepted back of offer and served essentially the enemy and accepted the offer to serve in the confederate army. it happened. the 16th connecticut, i found -- not as muchrs feared andersonville, but in florence, someone recently contacted me to show me that he had a list of a few names, pacific names from the roster of and served inted the south carolina unit. for them, it was a moment of desperation. they really believed it was either take the offer, where they were going to die. i thinks what -- i think that is what it came down to. that is the context for this.

the confederate army of course was looking for men. they came through these prisons and into andersonville amigos offers. host: michael from camp town, pennsylvania. caller: i have for professor gordon, thoughts about whether or not the andersonville is a of the lincoln's policy of total war of attrition with , and all about the extermination camps and so forth that was later copied by queen victoria. because was even worse they included soldiers, women and children. would you comment on that? and are you related to general gordon? professor gordon: thank you for your question. i am not. i grandfather changed our name from kazan ski.

i'm not a gordon that goes back to john b gordon. i don't know about the comparison you are making, suggesting through that war. the question about total war that has intrigued so many historians -- no doubt, about attrition, that's the broader point i was trying to make earlier. i think in the scope of things, i think we need to acknowledge that lincoln was aware of what was going on here. -- i was evidence that think he had to feel -- and stanton as well, and these other generals, that even though this was a horrendous situation -- this would be his calculation. to end the war, to win the war, this would free the prisoners and their misery. this is what sherman explains in his own memoirs. when he's getting close andersonville, he allows this one raid to come here, it fails.

he doesn't want to lose sight of what his bigger prize is. sense thatere was a the confederates were still fighting. georgia, there are signs of weakening. it does become a war of attrition. here, fromnk the men their perspective, they felt this could not stand. that their suffering had to be recognized and could not be seen as just part of total war. experience ofe war. these are these complicated questions that i think are important to try to take into account. it's hard to come out with an

easy answer. let's hear from frank in atlanta, georgia. professor gordon: -- caller: professor, thank you. i had a great grandmother by the name of joseph walsh was taken prisoner with the massachusetts fifth volunteers. he was taken prisoner by the in 1862 and moved into a cap. -- a camp. , theret know which camp was a great number of volunteers for massachusetts that were incarcerated. , this given an option goes back to stories we been told in some writings in our family. he was given the option to lessen his punishment, improve his conditions if he were to

agree to work with the tradeerates to apply the -- his trade happen to be hard as maker. he agreed to do that. he writes in the journal that he did it not to support the confederates, but to guarantee that he would be coming home after the war, basically to improve his living conditions. i'm wondering if you have found any evidence of any prisons in your research where this was a .ommon practice area professor gordon: i think you were speaking of the common point of how men came to terms with the decisions they made. again, with my work on the 16th, there's one particular soldier who, in his diary, there's one section where he is extremely

critical of men that took these paroles or it again, to work in the cookhouse or work in the hospital. some of them worked as shoemakers, which was a highly valued trade for the confederacy. they wanted help making shoes. he was extremely angry and bitter about this. this was so shameful. again, death before dishonor. hisin the last page of diary, he confesses that he accepted a parole when he was at florence. it to stay alive, so we could go home to his wife and daughter. he says he regrets that he was so judgmental of his comrades. that no one should do that. that no one should try to assume they know what it's like to be in that position. i think it speaks to this gutwrenching torments of these prisoners were going through,

whether this prison or other prisons. they are feeling a have been forgotten in many cases. they don't really have a sense of the big exurb. whether it's a question of is this total war, is there attrition, is their exchanges going on? theyare trying to survive, can a lot or consider these abstract questions of patriotism and duty. even questions about the union or abolition. they are just trying to survive. some of them do give in and accept parole, and even join the confederacy. real,k they are very human moments of crisis that can speak to us through the generations. you read about in these diaries and these memoirs that i think we have recognized enough in civil war history, the really comes to a head in stuttering --

studying prisons. virginia more call for , jump in with your question,. caller: i haven't ancestor in andersonville -- had an ancestor in andersonville. at the end of the war, i don't know how we got to washington and died and is buried at arlington. i just wondered what happened at the end of the war to the prisoners there? professor gordon: he might have been like some of the soldiers i studied. to aght have made his way place like camper oh, dash cam perrault, there was one in fairfax virginia. he might have been in one of those hospitals due to his imprisonment, no doubt. and he died and he ended up in arlington. that would be my suspicion. and that was the end of his story.

host: what would you say is the legacy of andersonville? professor gordon: i think andersonville -- some of the things i was speaking to -- andersonville doesn't fit with the sort of larger heroic narrative of so many civil war battlefields, gettysburg, of courageous soldiers and decisive leaders. it leaves us with a lot of complicated, conflicting questions and emotions. theink that's in many ways way it should be when you are studying subjects and thinking about the subject like the civil war. i think that is the legacy of andersonville. i think it needs more attention. it is appropriate that the funeral is here for these 13,000. their comrades and survivors wanted these men to be remembered, they want to do be sure these men had a drop or burial, and i think it is appropriate -- had a proper

burial, and i think it is appropriate we keep coming back to think about this experience. >> good afternoon.

you are watching american history tv. you are looking at the andersonville prison. we take you live now to the andersonville national historic site and cemetery in andersonville, georgia for the next three hours, taking your phone calls and the commemorative funeral for the soldiers who died here. joining us from the andersonville national cemetery, adjacent to the cemetery location is the chief of the historical site and will be with us for the next hour to talk about the history of andersonville and why does consider the most notorious site of the civil war. we are joining our phone line so you can join the conversation. if you want to join the -748-8900.on, 202

you can also post questions and .omments on our facebook page mr. leonard, thank you for joining us this afternoon. mr. leonard: it is my pleasure to be here. let's start with where is andersonville? it is important to start with this idea that military prisoners and prisoners of war are often left out of the mainstream telling of the war. quite friendly, there are no winners in the story. this is not a battlefield. it is something entirely different. it is a valor and honor. those concepts take a different form here. and many respects, in a standard

guess, they are prisoners of war, and then you move right back to the battles. often, and addressing the story, there is an and knowledge of that, and then no detail, and you move on. andersonville has a name brand recognition. the public often doesn't know any of the details beyond the name and that something unusual took place there. host: let's start with the basics. when was it built? what was its purpose? mr. leonard: in the fall of 1863 as the exchange system of the previous two years falls apart, due to the presence of black soldiers in the field, and the question over how to treat like soldiers -- black soldiers. with afederacy is faced

problem. there holding the mostly in the richmond area. thousands, 10,000 prisoners in richmond -- it has a drag effect on the community. resources are going in to maintain the prisoners. if you are in the confederate army, or the government, you are looking at those resources, they should go to the army to fight the war. if you are civilian, you are thinking, my family is hungry, why am i having trouble getting food? and then, prisoners in richmond -- richmond is one of the primary targets of the war, there is a lot of fighting having unionity -- soldiers in richmond makes that target even more attractive. the solution was to move the prisoners away. that63, there is this idea southwest georgia is a very safe, insulated place, very far

from the fighting. it is serviced by the railroad system of the south, and it is an agricultural breadbasket, food should be readily available. officers come here and find a site. some of the concepts that we consider -- this idea of not in my back yard. they specify an area that is essentially 100 miles north and south. you will notice, the president did not -- prison did not end up near a commr big communities. want the prison close to them. there are 20 people living at the andersonville station train

stop. . those people do not have political power. there are willing landowners who are absolutely ready -- two of them make the deal. on paper, they are supposed to receive a rent of about $50 per year from the confederate government for leasing their property to build this massive facility. 1600 acresioned as a square design for a capacity of 6000-8000 prisoners, essentially those being held in richmond. the intention is to move them from richmond here. construction begins in early 1864, and by the end of february, prisoners are en route and arriving here. the prison comes into being.

6000-10,000 prisoners was the original intent, how many ended up there? mr. leonard: at its height, the one time capacity in august 1864, there are over 32,000 u.s. thisers being held inside present. by that time, the original stockade had a 10 acre expansion . that is both in the month of june and open on july 1. host: also, could you follow up, if you have that many people in such a confined space, what is living like their? give us a sense of the conditions and what ends up happening with the prisoners there. mr. leonard: this is the forest a part of south georgia -- of southpart georgia.

the original 1600 stockade was built of posts that were square and fit tightly together. the first prisoners that arrive described as a place where their construction debris is clearly everywhere. it is a very disturbed place. there is no shelter. prisoners improvise shelter out of the degree that is present -- debris that is present. were gathering details are allowed out daily. when you're gathering that would, you are looking for two purposes. obviously, all this fire wood for cooking, but larger pieces debris and castoffs of is shelter making material. don't forget, if you're

watching a home and want to contribute to the conversation, again, now is the time to do so. if you want to call, 202 -748-8900 for those of you on in the eastern and central time zones. if you want to tweet at us, you can do so. you can also post on our facebook page. mr. leonard, let's pretend i am a prisoner coming to the prison, what is my day like? in the 14 months of the present operation, the answer to a question changes to radically. for those initial prisoners who arrived in late february 1864, it seems strange when you know what comes later. they see andersonville as an improvement.

it is better than other prisons. it is an improvement. the weather in south georgia seems nicer. they have a change of venue. they are kind of excited about the opportunity. , everyoners arrive prisoner that arrives here and leaves here does so on the train . the train is integral to the story. when you are offloaded at the train station, the train itself, the train tracks, and the train station are almost half a mile to the west of the main prison compound. prisoners referred to it as . hundred paces to hell outside of the gates, closer to the main compound, you are intoed out, assigned

detachments and squads. part ofl is a critical the daily experience of the prison. roll call is how the confederate command determines how many prisoners they have, and what their disposition is. they are counting the number of prisoners in the hospital, in the stockades. they're making daily lists of the number of prisoners that arrive, the transfer out, and that die. they separate that out from the number of people who die in the hospital and die in the prison itself. host: as far as the way people, give us a sense of health conditions -- where their clean facilities? give us a sense of what living was like in that front. mr. leonard: one way to start with that is the hospital. a 14 months, there's always

hospital. it is in three different locations, and there is a fourth adjunct to that. just for prisoners, there is a separate hospital facility close to the train tracks. that was a compound with two frame stone structures. where the hospital starts is inside the hospital itself -- the prison itself. that, by may, the confederate command has realized is not a good idea, it is not working very well. the hospital downstream of the prison to the southeast. their perception is living next

to the stream will be a healthier space. it is important to note that the stream that they move it next to is the stream that flows through the prison compound itself. , the, as originally built enters the middle and west side of the compound, flows through the wall, and the creek is the single most important feature of the present. it is the plumbing. the prisoners will collect clean drinking water in the middle section of the prison, perhaps bathe and clean themselves in the creek.

the creek is channeled into a .tructure that is a toilet the intention of all of this is the flow of the creek will flush the toilet. the success of that is designed on an understanding in the 1860's of germs and bacteria, which is to say, no understanding of that at all. but they don't know is they have created the perfect breeding ground for dysentery. host: we can engage in this later, only because we have calls lined up for you. let's start with paul and tennessee. you are on with eric leonard, go ahead. caller: my question is why does andersonville have such a bad reputation with another that had a

rate.ow survival andersonville did such a batter reputation.ad mr. leonard: andersonville is the deadliest place on american soil. here and 14s die months. that is a dental they cannot be compared to any other place. the percentages have been used to create a sense of false equivalency. parish in onend is aa -- there complex reason of why that occurs. in one single month, 3000 people

died at andersonville. the scale was stunning. survivors spend the rest of their lives trying to come to them to what happens to and their friends. families struggle with what was it for. while 13,000 men die here, nearly 13,000 live. that is the bigger number. the survivors of this experience come to an end. they struggle with what does it .ean there is not this sense of valor . in fact, prisoners of war, until the late 20th century were considered to be cowards and failures as soldiers.

guilt, isst survivors something that union soldiers struggle with. connieur next caller, from north carolina. caller: mr. leonard, i have a question. i recently watched the ken burns documentary on the civil war. they stated in the document that the superintendent of the warden of andersonville was convicted of war crimes and hanged. i would like to know what his name was. can you verify that for me, please? that is absolutely true. urtz.is captain henry wo he serves -- the command structure of the prison is in byy respects dysfunctional

design. it makes no sense. there is a kernel that commands the entire military complex there. this is a really big plays with, at times, thousands of confederate soldiers either by you have a or colonel in charge of that. under him, you have a serious of .epartments there is a chief surgeon who oversees the hospital operation. captain you have a whose job is to oversee the operations of the prison. second to that, the guard forces are georgia reserves, a form of militia. these are not combat ready troops. these are teenagers, old men

with little training. when they are assigned, the .aptain has authority over them when he is off duty, the authority falls to the commanders. z is often absolutely frustrated. he complains constantly. his hands are tied. he is dependent on the quartermaster for supplies, the commissary for food. the roll call that they do every roll call,hey call the commissary officer has to provide food into the prison. food was delivered every day. henry wurtz is still on blownn as the prison is

to the wind. the kernel gives the last command of the complex. he fled to florida the week before. on may 2,o his arrest 1865. heat is transferred to washington, d.c. after his arrest and the transport, his escort, at one point in chattanooga, turned him over to the guard house, the federal guardhouse in chattanooga. that was a mistake. when the captain, who is escorting him, comes back, he has been recognized by the men who were once in his care. during his transport to washington, d.c., the end of shaving the beard off of his face so he is less

recognizable. 30,000 men live through this, and they recognize him immediately. toy are the ones, and try figure out who to blame, there is a larger command structure, but prisoners do not see that. z every day.nry wurt they tell stories about the dutch captain, one of his many nicknames. he is tried in a military tribunal in washington, d.c. from august 1865 to the end of october. november 10, death 1865. he is often described as the only confederate soldier to be put to death or tried for war crimes. that is not true. he is absolutely, positively the most famous. by the time of his institution, he is the third confederate captain to be tried and executed for war crimes in 1855. host: mr. leonard, we are asking

people to give comments and questions on facebook as well. writes and on facebook saying there was a movie called andersonville and asked if it was an accurate perch rail -- portrayal. mr. leonard: there are sort of two films. miniseries about the present. it focuses on prison life and dramatizes a fairly early infamous moment in the prison operation. iding,mp ra prosecution, and later execution of a group of prisoners known as the "raiders." separately, there was a stage play turned into a film, calledg william shatner the "andersonville trial."

the play and then the film about the trial are inspired and drawn out of the trial transcript that by the u.s.d government in 1869. the tnt miniseries was a three-hour miniseries that explored the prisoner experienced by drilling down to in 14 months of the drill down to something that is over and done in one month of the prison's history. it is a very dramatic story. the story of the raiders ultimately has a very nice, neat dramatic arc. beginning, a middle, their capture, and finally their execution. the confederate army come all thatay from richmond, ok'd

. it has a nice beginning, middle, and end, but the truth is the true prisoner experienced, no one wants to watch it. you are dirty, hungry, you have to go to the bathroom -- there is a lot of sitting around and waiting on a fate that is very uncertain. the tnt film, the background detail is stunning. when i watch that, that is what into. into -- i key it is a very accurate for tail. portrayal. host: our guest is entered eric leonard. you can call and enough questions. the numbers will be on the screen. lee in winchester, virginia,

thank you for holding on. .aller: thank you mr. leonard i had a great great uncle who was brought to andersonville. i'm wondering, it's an open part, i believe. the dates and times you are able to go to andersonville, and, are you able to get records and copies of your ancestors and and the being there burial sites? as a u.s. national park site, andersonville is open to the public daily. it is closed only three days a year -- thanksgiving, christmas day, and new year's day. the grounds are open in a clock to 5:00. the museum hours are from 9:00 .o 4:30 daily inside the national prisoner of war museum, the part maintains a database -- park maintains a database of people buried in the

national cemetery, including the andersonville dead. there is a listing of the andersonville prisoners, the debt and the survivors. there also partial listings of prisoners of war. we do not have original records here. the original records are at the national archives. the most important historic document for documenting union theirers of war is th service record. again, the national archives has that. some of the records are becoming accessed and easier to than going to the national archives. , especially the survivors, but the dead, the record was done well after the war. it is a memorandum. it identifies the captured day of the individual, often the circumstances of the capture.

lists the various places where they were held prisoner. with most prisoners held andersonville, this is one of at least three, sometimes as many as six, prison facilities that they are held at in the space of one year. it is the biggest and most famous, for a lot of reasons, but it is not the only one. those national archive records .re the first source during a visit, you can use the database to look of a person. often, we do have copies of the service record or other items. this was an enlisted prison. what is extraordinary about these prisoners, they're not famous people. are the workingmen of the u.s. army, the marine corps, the navy . their privates, corporals,

sergeants. what is extraordinary about them is how ordinary their lives are after this thing that the experience. host: from california, this is david. go ahead. caller: good morning. i was told that there was a medical doctor who would examine the prisoners before they were admitted to the cap, and it's -- , andted to the camp supposedly he was a freemason. if there were any masons, and they made a note to him, he would extract them. as that possible story -- possible story? changenard: the surgeons over time. however, it is clearly documented -- this actually makes the story better -- georgia officers who are

freemasons, they recognized the ,ing and the sign, these men who under normal circumstances, their job does not bring them to the stockade, they walk in with care packages and names. there is a masons large improvised in the stockade, against the south wall of the prison. ' diary accounts -- prisoners notice this, and after the war, they want to be a mason. that fraternity is one of a very small number of routes in which mercy is being allowed in the prison. thank you for bringing that up. host: that was david and california. mr. leonard, as far as safety within the prison walls, how did that work as far as having so may people combined in one space? mr. leonard: there is little to

no internal policing. they the cards do is sa man the gates. that in their relationship to the creek. one of it is north of it, one of it is south of it. there are 52 towers around the stockade wall. what the guards do is keep you in. and so, internal policing is left to the prisoners. and if that sounds like a recipe for trouble, it is. constanting is almost part of the prisoner experience, where early in the prison's operation, raters or rating is a raiders -- raiding or is a verb before camp robbing.

thea prisoner, the more -- more friends or have, the closer your stay together, the more no one is going to steal your stuff and you are going to survive if somebody else is walking -- watching your back. host: let's go to charles and virginia. go ahead. caller: yes, i have a question about andersonville. prior to andersonville existing, the north and the south had prisoner exchange agreements. the north had unlimited supply and the north had more troops, and the south had a limited supply of future troops. and what -- it was a war maneuver strategy brought to lincoln by his generals. the south doesn't have the troops to replenish these. andersonville wouldn't have

existed, neither would have chicago, or others, if not for lincoln's war strategy. it is not lincoln's war strategy. the system ties into the evolving nature of the war. following the emancipation ,roclamation, the united states the union army start enlisting african-american men not simply by the thousands, but by the tens of thousands. and this creates a question. it is a cultural change. how do you treat these men? and in the spring of 1860 -- around the same time of 1863, the army, the lincoln administration are struggling with the changing nature of war and they bring in a legal scholar by the name of francis to develop, for the first time, a written law or code of war.

they are taking evolving military tradition from 200 years in europe and in the united states, the revolutionary war, and a are codifying it. and to be code is critically important and often overlooked in american history and in world history. copieseva convention entire sections of the code. so the code survives in spirit today and these humanitarian protections for noncombatants, prisoners of war. buried within the code is a very bold statement that in a sense is the first equal rights policy of the united states government. soldiers, regardless of their color, are to be treated equally. and it was a line in the sand. provocative and, boy, it did. they all react -- adept

reactionary policies to this. be treateds are to as slaves and repatriated to slavery. white officers of black regiments are to be put to the for inciting insurrection. -- put to death for inciting insurrection. for months, that policy is just talk. following the, you know, in charleston, following the assault that is featured in the film "glory," 35 men of the 54th massachusetts are captured. there are not killed, they are captured. and what to do with them is the tipping point. the governor of the state of south carolina wants to try them for war crimes and put them to death. the confederate army is desperate to that that not happen. the confederate government is desperate that that not happen.

they became not to do that, so these 35 men and up in the charleston city jail, which still -- 35 men end up in the charleston city jail, which still exists today. throughout 1864, as the prison crisis -- the prisoner crisis gets worse and worse, at every time these two sides negotiate, the united states representatives are very clear, all you have to do is treat them equally. that is it. and the exchanges die on that one issue alone. until really be very end of the war. host: mr. leonard, how was segregation treated there in andersonville jackson -- andersonville? mr leonard: at the battle one comes intoe the --

being, the regiments fight a rearguard action that is instrumental in allowing the union troops -- the bulk of the union troops -- to retreat from the field. approximately 50 prisoners are taken. they're not initially brought to andersonville. they are moved there at some point in the spring. there cap separately. they live within the stockade as a group. later on, they have a major , his them, a white officer rank is disrespected by the confederacy and he is thrown in and enlisted in prison because he is an officer of black soldiers. that major is denied medical care. camps with the black

soldiers. [indiscernible]- -- appointment at the prison, black soldiers are used as a slave labor. every morning, they lineup and they count out and then they walk out. think about this for a minute. if you are a white soldier from prison is like, an amphitheater. everybody can see that happening. those black soldiers are being treated different venue. you are stuck in here. what you want is not to be stuck in here. and they walk out. now, they are being put to hard labor. around the prison compound and they are subject to punishments straight out of the plantation. if they refuse to work, if they

give lip, they are beaten, they are ripped. -- whipped. and they are whipped in front of the other black soldiers. an extension of that is if you are a white soldier observing the prison operation, what you know of slavery before you came to the south to fight the war is what you read in novels. ,s a prisoner in andersonville if you attempt to escape, they hunt you down with dogs. that is straight out of the novel. and a number of prisoners come to realize, wait, we are -- we are not slaves, but we are being treated like slaves. so you build in empathy with their -- there. the black soldiers are being used as slaves throughout the operation. york, thankrom new you for waiting, go ahead. caller: there were reports of

many, several soldiers, testifying on his behalf that he did everything in his power to sustain them. and they were not allowed to testify during his trial. there were other soldiers who were never in andersonville that were allowed to testify against him. lesley gordon may speak to this later today. the sergeant of the 16th connecticut infantry, his entire regiment is held here. when he is released in exchanged -- and exchange -- in exchange from south carolina, he starts -- he turns his journal, has diarrhea, into a book. it is published in march of 1865 before -- while he is still working here all the prison is a functional place. because of that book, he is

called the testify. kellogg testifies as both the prosecution and the defense. both sides speak to this one individual soldier and say, we trust everything he says. he is very blunt about this guy being -- [indiscernible] he has a very specific story about henry werth's -- henry werth. story almost humorous where he asks permission to use his pocket knife to big up a root for extra food. permission, but before he is done, he is told to leave. when he approaches the prison's gates, he realizes he has left his pocket and i behind. he goes to the first officer he sees and says, excuse me, i need to get my pocket knife. he walks him back, they find the knife, and t, you know, returns

him to the prison. just imagine that image. a prisoner walking back to the south gate entrance with henry werth on horseback. everybody notices this. the place kind of stops for a moment. rth in the moment, captain we cracks a joke. he says, they think you are up to something. -- when weimony , 150 about the trial witnesses testified. bluntest ofthe them, the most accusatory of them, tend to be the 50 or so confederate officers, confederate guides, confederate officials, and confederate civilians.

there are the ones that speak very plainly to break down within the chains of command and assign responsibility. host: here is evan from indian wells, california. caller: [indiscernible] host: evan, go ahead. caller: [indiscernible] onto ok, let's move joanna. michigan. caller: hi. i have a question. i'm going to tell you my story. i had a great great uncle who served in the union. and he was under george custer. captive inwas taken 1864. he went to richmond, and then he was transferred down to andersonville. and he was down there from july until november, when he was paroled, pardoned, up to

maryland because of his dysentery and malnutrition, where he died. and that is where he is laid to rest. interesting.s i did get my uncles civil war records -- uncle's civil war records, and they are phenomenal. they are very detailed, they are excellent. but my question is, while my uncle was down at andersonville, during that summer, some of the union soldiers were stealing from each other -- food, what not, just survival type things -- and a book i have on andersonville lists my uncle as being a judge during the trial of these soldiers. and i was wondering if there could possibly be any sketches or photographs available of any of those kind of trial incidences with the union soldiers. mr leonard: within andersonville

, there is really the only one trial. it takes place at the last days of june 1864. and so there aren't any drawings of that. certainly, especially in the later prisoner memoirs published by the 1870's, 1880's, and 1890's, they talk about the raiders in great detail. whether our drawings of is the execution -- what to there are drawings of -- what there are drawings of is the execution of the raiders. the execution of a small number of prisoners by other prisoners, that is a big deal. 23,000 people watched that. and -- and they draw it. there are drawings of the gallo structure -- gallows

themselves. there are drawings of that particular moment. host: stone mountain, georgia, jane is up next. caller: earlier this year, i went to andersonville with my boy scout troops, and i want to hear about the buddy system they had between the prisoners and the guards. buriedo the raiders were separate from all the other graves. could you tell me about that? mr leonard: absolutely. policylly, according to and regulation within the prison, prison trade is -- guards trading with prisoners is prohibited, which means it happens all the time. there is a pretty slick black market. especially early on in the spring and summer as prisoners are leading -- leaving the cabin prisoners doing work outside the main stockade, they

will often interact with civilians, women coming to sell vegetables. we have descriptions of sweet potato pies being sold. if you are a prisoner coming from the battlefield that spring or early summer, you may have greenbacks, u.s. currency, union currency. that is an illegal object in the confederacy. which means, of course, there is an amazing black market. one of the ways that is kept into is the confederacy manages a settlor store within the prison -- settlers store within the prison. and be operator is a georgia militia officer. and he is bringing in goods and selling. one of the photographs of the prison shows this lean to structure. and that is the tipping point that the street off of the northgate -- it's original name was north street. it becomes known as market street because in addition to

the store, you have this -- you are creatingners their own stores. they are trading real estate within the prison. trade, you a skilled are doing that. one of the prisoners who does testify for the defense claims that it is possible to get a -- [indiscernible] there are prisoners making food and producing food. there is a free market economy, and it is a reminder that we perceive andersonville as a hopeless place. these men have ingenuity, they have drive, they are attempting to make a life out of their circumstances. ,n regards to the raiders though six men, in late june when the arrival game is created to put an end to the camp

robbing, the regulators are, quite frankly, a vigilante gang. and they go to the prison command and say you have a problem, we will help you fix it if you let us identify them. they say that is a raiders, that is a raider. those trials, prisoner trials dismiss most of them. about 70 or so. and they are made to run a gauntlet back into the prison. and they are severely beaten. we know that one of the prisoners through the gauntlet died because of the injuries sustained. that leaves six. and -- the so-called ringleaders -- one of these -- one of the soldiers has been a prisoner at andersonville for two weeks. my provocative thought is, he is not a ringleader of anything.

he made a powerful enemy. those men, after their executions, because of the dishonor of the act, stealing from other prisoners, beating other prisoners, they are executed for that. sense,e, in a dishonorably discharged and executed. who is doing the burying at andersonville? prison labor. those six men are buried in dishonor. black soldiers dying at andersonville are not buried separately. they are buried in the trenches along with everyone else. and that is a measure of the prison labor. a black soldier who died is a soldier. they lost theers, right to be buried with their fellows. and they remained today segregated graves away from the other graves. they are separate in their dishonor. host: you're talking about

prison life, mr. leonard. in our world, the word "deadline" means one thing. why was it famous? mr leonard: the deadline doesn't originate in andersonville. it is, however, an invention of the civil war military prison. prisons, north and south, have deadlines. and those deadlines take various forms. , it is a simple fence. places, over the creek, sometimes the deadline is not obvious. sometimes prisoners deal the forrds in -- you know -- firewood or shelter building. and the rule is, of course, if you cross the deadline, guards can shoot you. and yet the photographs taken in august of 1864 illustrate the prison at its height. cl