Author Edward Ball to Headline Civil War Day
MIDDLETOWN - The General Joseph Mansfield House, the headquarters of the Middlesex County Historical Society located at 151 Main St., Middletown, will be the scene of Civil War Day Saturday, Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The featured speaker will be Edward Ball, the acclaimed author of Slaves in the Family. Ball grew up knowing that his family, the owners of 20 rice plantations near Charleston, South Carolina, also enslaved close to 4,000 people. The Ball family, which sent 12 sons to fight for the Confederacy, today numbers 150. The descendants of â€"Ball slaves” include more than 100,000 living Americans. In his talk to be held at 12 noon, â€"Slaves in the Family – One Slave Dynasty Before and After the Civil War,” Ball will address the question, â€"What do they share?”

       As an adult, Ball sought to uncover the painful truth of his family’s past. His quest took him to Ball family records and to the Freedmen’s Bureau records to find the descendants of slaves who had worked on Ball plantations. He traveled the country to meet these descendants, some of whom were his blood kin, to hear their stories. The book that resulted reveals how the effects of slavery live on in black life and memory.

       Edward Ball is the author of five books of history and other nonfiction. Slaves in the Family (1998) tells the story of the author’s slaveholding family as well as the stories of 10 of the black families they once enslaved. The book won the National Book Award for nonfiction and was a New York Times bestseller. Copies of Slaves in the Family will be available for purchase and inscription.

       Also participating will be Tom Callinan, Connecticut’s first Official State Troubadour. Callinan will sing popular songs at 10:30 a.m. from the Civil War era featured on his newest CD, â€"The Forlorn Soldier,” as well as original compositions including, â€"Connecticut’s Fighting 14th,” in honor of the 14th Regiment Connecticut Volunteer Infantry.

       The Mansfield House backyard will be the scene of an encampment of Civil War re-enactors who portray soldiers from Company F of the 14th CVI. They will demonstrate camp life, including conducting drills and cooking over a smoky campfire. Civilian re-enactors enhance this living history event by displaying medical tools of the day and illuminating other activities necessary to the operation of an army.

       The encampment of the 14th CVI will be continuous throughout the day. In the event of heavy rain, the encampment will be cancelled, but the musical performance and talk will be held inside. Admission for this event is $5, with children 12 and under free. The Mansfield House is handicapped accessible. Civil War Day is generously sponsored by Colebrook Financial Company LLC, the Community Health Center, and Bill & Susan Ryczek. For further information, contact the Society at 860-346-0746.
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