The Flag of the Gate City Guard

During the desperate retreat of the First Georgia from Laurel Hill, the flags borne by several companies of the regiment were lost.  One of those banners was the flag of the Gate City Guard, lovingly sewn and presented by the ladies of Atlanta to the company before their departure in early 1861.  The wagon carrying the flag was wrecked by sliding into a ravine during the muddy slog over Pheasant Mountain, and the banner was retrieved by pursuing Federal troops.  At some point after the war it was returned to Gate City Guards in Atlanta.  It now resides in the collection of the Atlanta History Center, and can be viewed here.

The story of how the flag was returned to the Gate City Guard has been obscured in history.  Quite by accident, I recently came across an article from the May 29, 1901, edition of the Mansfield Ohio News, which describes in detail the transfer of the flag from a veteran in that city to the old company.  

LONG LOST BATTLE FLAG
RETURNED

TO SURVIVING SOUTHERN
SOLDIERS.

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A Silken Banner Restored to
an Atlantic Company by

George L. Emminger.

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The following story from recent issues of the Atlanta Journal is not only appropriate to the Memorial day anniversary as seeking to show the passage of the old-time sectional hate and prejudice, but will have special interest to the old soldiers and to Mansfield people in general on account of the fact that George L. Emminger, who returned the southern banner, was, until recent years, a resident of this city.

When the old Gate City Guard went to war in the stirring times of ’61, they carried a beautiful flag presented to the company by the ladies of Atlanta, through Miss Henlieter, daughter of the late C. R. Hanlieter, editor and publisher of the Southern Confederacy.  The flag, after a time, went to the enemy, and all trace of it was lost.  Now, after nearly forty years, the scarred flag has been found, and will be restored to the Gate City Guard organization, which is still maintained.

Yesterday Mr. H. H. Cabiness received a letter from Mr. George L. Emminger, of Toledo, O., to whom the organization is indebted for the return of the flag.

Mr. Emminger wrote that an old lady of his acquaintance, some time before her death, gave to his son the staff and remnants of a regimental flag captured by her brother, at what battle he did not remember.  From the remaining inscription he saw that it had been presented by the ladies of Atlanta to the Gate City Guard.

“I do not know if there are any of the members of this organization yet able to answer “roll-call” in your city or section,” said Mr. Emminger, “but if so, they would like a return to the memories of the stirring times of ’61 and ’62 by a sight of that which led them.  They can have it by the mere expression of the desire.”

Mr. Emminger stated that there was a large portion of the silk gone, but enough is left to recognize it by.

In reply to the letter of Mr. Emminger, Mr. Cabiness stated that the company would joyfully receive the flag and would (unreadable) much pleasure in associating his name with the incident of its return.  He was asked to express the flag at the expense of the company to Mr. Harry Krouse.

Mr. Krouse was a member of the Gate City Guard,
the company which left Atlanta in April, 1861, belonging to the First Georgia
regiment of volunteers.  Mr. Cabiness had three brothers in the regiment, one a captain from Dahlonega, another a lieutenant of a company from Forsyth, and still another one who left college to join the Forsyth company.  After a little service in Pensacola, Fla., this company was sent to northwest Virginia and encountered McClellan’s forces.  The First Georgia regiment, together with the other Confederate troops, retreated from a position called Laurel Hill in crossing Cheat river.  It was here a battle was fought and the flag
was lost. 

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THE BANNER RESTORED.

Last night, in their armory, the Gate City Guard received the battle-scarred banner that waved over the company when the cause of Confederacy called southern troops to the field of chivalrous valor.  It was the same flag that Atlanta ladies made with their fair hands when fathers, brothers and sweethearts enlisted for the cause in ’61.  It differed from that emblem presented to the company more than thirty years ago only through its rent and ragged aspect, eloquent evidence of the fierce encounters which befell those who followed it in battle.

The members of the old Guard were out in force to see the flag come home.  Men were present who saw the banner presented to the company by the ladies who made it.  They saw it later as it rolled down the steep side of Cheat mountain, in Virginia, when the gray clad boys were running from the Yankees, and it was the last glimpse of the flag they had until they looked
on its folds last night.

The entire membership of the active Guard was present.  Governor Candler and his staff were present, and there were members of the Confederate Veterans, Sons of Veterans, Daughters of the Confederacy and members of the Ladies’ Memorial Association.  The spacious hall of the
armory was filled with the infantrymen and their friends.

The flag was returned to the company through H. H. Cabiness, who learned of its existence from a personal friend in Toledo, O.  The Ohio gentleman was George Emminger, who wrote to Mr. Cabiness, stating that the flag was in his possession.  Through Mr. Cabiness’ efforts the flag was sent to Atlanta to be returned to its original owners.

SEVERAL SPEECHES MADE.

Governor Candler made the introductory remarks to the presentation exercises last night.  He extolled the bravery of Confederate soldiers in general and the members of the Gate City Guard in particular.

Mr. Cabiness requested F. H. Richardson to make the presentation speech.  Mr. Richardson referred in the happy memory of his childhood, of the departure of the Gate City Guard to join the Confederate army, and of how firmly their gallant appearance (unreadable) his faith in the invincibility of the southern cause.  He then paid a tribute to their record both in war and the work of the righteous reconstruction of the south.  Speaking of the tattered
battleflag he was to present to Captain O’Neill in behalf of his company, he
rejoiced in the fact that it had never been the flag of oppression or a flag
that represented anything but the highest courage of men, the noblest virtues
of women and the sweetest hopes of both.  In this connection he deplored the departure of our government from the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the constitution of the United States.  He condemned the drift towards imperialism and militarism and predicted that there will be a return to those ideas of civic liberty and justice on all men which was never so nobly illustrated as they were to the men of the south who constituted the grandest army that ever stepped on God’s (unreadable), in which there were no better or more heroic soldiers than the Gate City Guard. 

THE FLAG ACCEPTED.

Captain James F. O’Neill received the flag for the company in an eloquent speech.  His sentiments went straight to the hearts of the assembly, and his speech was considered by the entire audience as one of the best that has ever been made in Atlanta on a similar occasion.

Harry Krouse, who was a member of the company during the war, and who followed the flag from the time it was presented to the company until it was lost on the retreat at Cheat mountain, gave a history of the organization.  It was both interesting and eloquent, and the audience was greatly entertained by the recital of the narrative. 

MR. CARBANISS SPEAKS.

Governor Candler then called on Mr. Cabaniss for a speech.  Mr. Cabaniss, in the center of his remarks, said: 

Mr. Cabaniss spoke briefly and said that during frequent visits to the cities of the south, northwest and west, it had been his good fortune to meet a large number of representative people of those sections.  He had not found any trace of the bitterness which had formerly existed toward the people of the south; that the good people there not only entertained the kindest, feelings toward the people of the south, but manifested such friendship, frequently in a very substantial manner.

One of the gentlemen he had met was a prominent citizen of the state of Ohio, George Emminger, who in coming into possession of this battle-scarred and time-worn flag. It was his first impulse to send it to its proper owner.  For this kindly act I honor him.

The men who fought under this flag were heroes and those who opposed them were heroes.  It was American against American from 1861 to 1865, and the great destructiveness of the battles waged proved that each side had brave, loyal and unconquerable soldiers.

I thing [sic] this flag, and all other Confederate flags should be furled, never to be unfolded upon the battlefield.  They are mementos, peerless relics, to be guarded with sacred care and undying love.

But all other American battles must be fought
under the our American flag, the Stars and Stripes.  It is our flag as much as anybody’s, and of it the late Senator Hill said:

“Southern breezes kiss it; southern skies reflect it; southern sons will fight for it, and southern heroes will die for it.”

We drop a tear as we consider the past, but we must look to the future and its reunited union, under a restored flag, as one people we will do our part in maintaining a common country in its proud position as the greatest nation in the world and aid it with all our strength in pressing forward to the beauty and majesty of its missions.

OTHER SHORT TALKS.

Colonel Robert J. Lowry, Colonel Andrew J. West, Captain T. H. Jones, a Confederate veteran who came to Atlanta several years ago from Kentucky, and Captain W. L. Ezzard, who commanded the company during the war, made short speeches.

Refreshments were served during the evening.  As the active Guard were marching to the upper room with the old flag in their midst, a (unreadable) moment occurred.

A lady who was standing near the door as the line of uniformed soldiers marched through, grasped the folds of the tattered flag and imprinted a kiss on it.  She was one of the ladies who made the flag and presented it to the company in 1861.  The incident was witnessed by the entire assembly and there were many in the crowd who could not restrain tears at the spectacle of extreme love and devotion to the lost cause and the flag by which it was represented last night.

The Gate City Guard will keep the flag in their archives.  It is  (unreadable) as one of the most valuable relics in the possession of the command.

Flag of the Washington Rifles

Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in conference assembled, That the Secretary of War be, and he is hereby, authorized to deliver to the proper authorities of the respective States in which the regiments which bore these colors were organized certain Union and Confederate battle flags now in the custody of the War Department for such final disposition as the aforesaid proper authorities may determine.

This act, passed by the United States Congress in 1905, and signed by President Theodore Roosevelt, returned flags carried by Confederate troops to the Southern States. Among these banners was the First National pattern flag of the Washington Rifles, Company “E” of the First Georgia Volunteer Infantry. The colors were in poor condition, the fabric tattered and torn.

In 1861, forty-four years earlier, the banner’s silk shone brightly, and its canton proudly displayed the painted Georgia state coat of arms. The lovingly sown flag was presented to the Washington Rifles as they prepared to depart for Camp Oglethorpe in Macon. The scene was described in the April 3 edition of the Sandersville Central Georgian:

On Monday previous to their departure, the ladies of Sandersville, with their usually liberality and promptness, prepared a sumptuous dinner in the Court House for the benefit of the Rifles, but of which all were invited to partake. We were not present, but we have heard but one opinion expressed in regard to the manner in which the affair was conducted, and that one is highly creditable to the fair donors. The ladies of our town know how to get up these things, and in the present instance they more than excelled any former public occasion amongst us. After all who chose had partaken of the dinner, an abundance for several days’ subsistence was packed away to be carried with the company. The ladies during the day presented the company with a handsome flag of the Confederate States. Sustained by the hand, and encouraged by the smiles of fair woman, what would not man dare—what would he not achieve?

Business also prevented our hearing the address delivered by Col. J. S. Hook before the company and the public on this occasion. We are told, however, that it was the most felicitous and appropriate; that in patriotic and soul-stirring words he depicted the honor and glory of a life devoted to the defence of one’s country, and said, that while he was conscious it was unnecessary to so speak in this instance, he would exhort them never to permit the flag confided to their keeping by the angel band of women to be tarnished by one unpatriotic act, or soiled by the hand of a foe. The ceremonies were highly interesting, and very creditable to all engaged.

During the retreat of General Robert S. Garnett’s Army of the Northwest from Laurel Hill in July of 1861, many of the flags belonging to the various companies of the First Georgia were stored in wagons. Panicked teamsters jettisoned equipment from entangled wagons as the column worked its way through the Allegheny Mountains, and many wagons were simply abandoned when they became stuck. One such wagon was left behind at a river crossing just north of Kalers Ford, where Colonel Ramsey fought a rearguard action against pursuing Union troops, and where six companies were cut off from the army and forced to wander lost in the trackless wilderness. This wagon contained the banner of the Washington Rifles. As Federal troops crossed the river in pursuit of the Confederates, a soldier of the Ninth Indiana found the Rifles’ colors in the wagon. Climbing atop the wagon, he unfurled the colors and waved it, either to urge on his comrades, or possibly just to show off what he had discovered. The banner was sent north, where it remained in the War Department’s collection of captured flags. It was returned to Georgia as one of the returned battleflags.

The image at the top of this column is from a brochure titled “The Returned Battle Flags,” which was given as a souvenir during the United Confederate Veterans Reunion held in Louisville, Kentucky, in June of 1905. It shows the Washington Rifles flag as it looked when returned to Georgia. The banner, made of silk, continued to deteriorate, but was restored by conservators in recent years. The banner is now part of the collection of the Georgia Capitol Museum in Atlanta. The restored flag can be viewed here.

Another Victory for Battlefield Preservation

Good sense and historical preservation have prevailed again!  Once again, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has rejected placing a casino near the Gettysburg National Battlefield.
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From the Civil War Trust:

Proposed Gettysburg Casino Location Rejected by Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board

Civil War Trust praises board for its enduring commitment to protecting this hallowed ground

(Harrisburg, Pa.) – Following today’s decision by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board to reject a second proposal to bring casino gambling to the doorstep of Gettysburg National Military Park, Civil War Trust president Jim Lighthizer issued the following statement:

“Both personally, and on behalf of our members, I would like to thank the members of the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board for their thoughtful deliberation and insightful decision. By stating that the hallowed ground of America’s most blood-soaked battlefield is no place for this type of adults-only enterprise, they have reiterated the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s commitment to its priceless history and upheld its obligation to protect such sites from wanton and unnecessary degradation.

“This is a great day, not just for Gettysburg, but for all historic sites. However, we must remember that this proposal was just a symptom of a larger problem — the numerous irreplaceable sites similarly besieged by ill-considered development. I am confident that those seeking to protect priceless treasures of our past will be empowered by this victory for historic preservation, and I hope that its spirit will be carried forth in other communities facing similar questions of encroachment.

“Sadly, this was not the first time that the Gaming Board was forced to weigh the possibility of gaming with a Gettysburg address. Now that two such proposals have been denied — clearly demonstrating the resonant power this iconic site and the widespread desire to protect it — I sincerely hope that those would seek personal profit and financial gain will think twice about trading on the blood of 50,000 American casualties.

“Now, as ever, the Civil War Trust and its allies stand ready to work on behalf of Gettysburg and the other deathless fields that shaped the legacy of our nation, particularly as we begin the sesquicentennial commemoration of the American Civil War. We are exceptionally pleased to have the support and cooperation of visionary government bodies, like the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board, that understand the singular significance of such sites to aid our efforts.”

Since it was announced last year, the proposal to open Mason-Dixon Gaming Resort a scant half-mile from Gettysburg National Military Park has drawn immense opposition — an early April survey by a nationally renowned polling and research firm found that only 17 percent of Pennsylvanians supported the idea, with 66 percent actively opposed and 57 percent indicating that such a facility would be “an embarrassment” to the Commonwealth. Tens of thousands of petitions were submitted against the project and nearly 300 prominent historians united to urge its rejection, as did the national leadership of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund and the American Legion. Other prominent Americans who lent their name to the campaign to protect Gettysburg include Susan Eisenhower, Emmy-winning filmmaker Ken Burns, two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author David McCullough, Medal of Honor recipient Paul W. Bucha, renowned composer John Williams and entertainers Matthew Broderick, Stephen Lang and Sam Waterston. In 2005, citing public outcry, the Gaming Board likewise rejected a plan to construct a casino one mile from the edge of the national park.

The Civil War Trust is the largest nonprofit battlefield preservation organization in the United States. Its mission is to preserve our nation’s endangered Civil War battlefields and to promote appreciation of these hallowed grounds. To date, the Trust has preserved more than 30,000 acres of battlefield land in 20 states— including 800 at Gettysburg. Learn more at www.civilwar.org.

30,000 Acres and Counting

The Civil War Trust has just celebrated 30,000 acres of battlefield property saved.  Included in that total are 57 acres at Rich Mountain, and 26 acres at Corricks Ford, both in West Virginia, and both areas that had an impact on the First Georgia.  The Trust published the following news release yesterday:

Civil War Trust Eclipses 30,000 Acre Milestone

Completion of Acquisition Efforts at Dallas and Resaca, Georgia, Push Preservation Group to New Heights(Washington, D.C.) – This week, the Civil War Trust, the nation’s leading organization seeking to protect the hallowed ground of our rapidly disappearing Civil War battlefields, announced that with the completion of its efforts at Dallas and Resaca, Ga., it has forever preserved more than 30,000 acres of historic land. To mark the occasion, Trust president James Lighthizer issued the following statement alongside a personal video message to the group’s supporters:

“When I took the helm of this organization in late 1999, neither I nor anyone involved in the battlefield preservation movement, could have predicted this level of success. But year in and year out, the passionate support of this organization’s members, and their heartfelt desire to leave a legacy greater than themselves for their children and grandchildren, has propelled us beyond my wildest expectations. To each and every one of these individuals I owe a great debt of personal thanks.

“The figure of 30,000 acres — the equivalent of 47 square miles — is almost too large to comprehend. But in the case of this organization, it is a tangible success that can be visited and appreciated one battlefield at a time. It’s 240 acres at Antietam, 710 at Corinth and 385 at Perryville. It’s 377 at Shiloh, 705 at Gettysburg and 1,798 at Brandy Station. It’s 117 on Morris Island, 952 at Malvern Hill and 212 at Wilson’s Creek. And more land at scores more battlefields — 110 sites spread across 20 states.

“But our work is far from done, with these sites are disappearing at the alarming rate of 30 acres per day. And so, although today we pause to celebrate our achievements, we will not rest in our efforts. As we begin the commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the Civil War, let us redouble our work to set aside these irreplaceable landscapes as a lasting memorial to the brave men who took up arms during our nation’s most turbulent hour. What legacy for the sesquicentennial could be more fitting?”

Indeed.  I urge all readers of this blog to support the Civil War Trust in their fine and important work.  The Trust can even set up a monthly payment plan drafted from a credit card (this is what I do). 

A Big Rebel Yell and a Yankee Huzzah!

The Civil War Trust (formerly the Civil War Preservation Trust) has just announced a victory in the fight to prevent Walmart from building next to the Wilderness Battlefield:

Walmart Abandons Plans to Build Supercenter on Wilderness Battlefield

Preservation community pleased with decision by retail giant to drop plans to build a supercenter within historic boundaries of Wilderness battlefield(Orange, Va.) – In an unexpected development, Walmart announced this morning that it has abandoned plans to pursue a special use permit previously awarded to the retail giant for construction of a supercenter on the Wilderness Battlefield. The decision came as the trial in a legal challenge seeking to overturn the special use permit was scheduled to begin in Orange County circuit court.

“We are pleased with Walmart’s decision to abandon plans to build a supercenter on the Wilderness battlefield,” remarked James Lighthizer, president of the Civil War Trust. “We have long believed that Walmart would ultimately recognize that it is in the best interests of all concerned to move their intended store away from the battlefield. We applaud Walmart officials for putting the interests of historic preservation first. Sam Walton would be proud of this decision.”

The Civil War Trust is part of the Wilderness Battlefield Coalition, an alliance of local residents and national groups seeking to protect the Wilderness battlefield. Lighthizer noted that the Wilderness Battlefield Coalition has sought from the very beginning to work with county officials and Walmart to find an alternative location for the proposed superstore away from the battlefield.

“We stand ready to work with Walmart to put this controversy behind us and protect the battlefield from further encroachment,” Lighthizer stated. “We firmly believe that preservation and progress need not be mutually exclusive, and welcome Walmart as a thoughtful partner in efforts to protect the Wilderness Battlefield.”

In August 2009, the Orange County Board of Supervisors approved a controversial special use permit to allow construction of the Walmart Supercenter and associated commercial development on the Wilderness Battlefield. A wide range of prominent individuals and organizations publicly opposed the store’s location, including more than 250 American historians led by Pulitzer Prize-winners James McPherson and David McCullough. One month after the decision, a group of concerned citizens and the local Friends of Wilderness Battlefield filed a legal challenge to overturn the decision.

The Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5–6, 1864, was one of the most significant engagements of the American Civil War. Of the 185,000 soldiers who entered combat amid the tangled mass of second-growth trees and scrub in Virginia’s Orange and Spotsylvania counties, some 30,000 became casualties. The Wilderness Battlefield Coalition, composed of Friends of Wilderness Battlefield, Piedmont Environmental Council, Preservation Virginia, National Trust for Historic Preservation, National Parks Conservation Association, and Civil War Trust, seeks to protect this irreplaceable local and national treasure.

The Civil War Trust is the largest nonprofit battlefield preservation organization in the United States. Its mission is to preserve our nation’s endangered Civil War battlefields and to promote appreciation of these hallowed grounds. To date, the Trust has preserved nearly 30,000 acres of battlefield land in 20 states. Learn more at www.civilwar.org.

Now, if we can just take care of that casino at
Gettysburg . . .

Gettysburg Casino

The Civil War Preservation Trust has just issued a news release on a new study showing the adverse impact of the proposed Mason-Dixon Casino at Gettysburg. 

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INDEPENDENT ANALYSIS REVEALS DEEP FLAWS IN PROPOSED GETTYSBURG CASINO ECONOMIC PROJECTIONS

Examination discloses that casino would have “serious, substantial and sustained adverse impacts” to the Gettysburg Battlefield and surrounding community

(Gettysburg, Pa.) – Today a coalition of preservation groups working with local business owners involved in Businesses Against the Casino released an independent assessment of the potential impacts of gaming on Gettysburg and Adams County. The report, Impacts of the Proposed Mason-Dixon Casino on the Gettysburg Area – A Realistic Assessment, found that the application for a resort casino license near Gettysburg greatly exaggerates the economic impact of the proposal and ignores the “serious, substantial and sustained adverse impacts” it poses for existing businesses and the battlefield.

The report was commissioned by the Civil War Preservation Trust (CWPT), National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), National Trust for Historic Preservation and Preservation Pennsylvania on behalf of the Adams County organization Businesses Against the Casino. Author Michael Siegel of Public and Environmental Finance Associates of Washington, D.C., has more than 30 years experience in public and environmental finance and impact analysis.

“Appropriate scrutiny shows the analysis performed by Mason-Dixon in support of its application to be insufficient and amateurish,” said CWPT president James Lighthizer. “The document mentions no potential impacts on the Borough of Gettysburg — where existing businesses are at ground zero for negative fallout — despite explicit requirements for such consideration in application materials.”

“Gettysburg National Military Park is already an economic engine for the surrounding communities,” said Cinda Waldbuesser, NPCA Pennsylvania senior program manager. “This independent analysis shows that Mason Dixon’s promises of economic gain are exaggerated and ignore the impacts that the casino will have on the park. Licensing a casino so close to the battlefield would put a known economic engine at risk in favor of an unknown venture.”

Based on the many important findings revealed in A Realistic Assessment, Charles McElhose, a local business owner and a spokesman for Businesses Against the Casino, believes it should be required reading for every business owner and local resident.

“Claims made about a project of this scale must be able to withstand close examination,” said McElhose. “Many things were unaccounted for, or perhaps purposefully omitted, in the Mason-Dixon impact report. This new analysis is crucial to obtaining a full understanding of the impacts this casino will have on our community. It stands to affect the bottom line of every local business — especially those serving heritage tourists, but, likewise, the companies that provide products and services to those businesses. There is very real potential for a “snowball effect” that could devastate our economy.”

Key findings of A Realistic Assessment include:

NUMBER AND TYPE OF JOBS MIS-STATED

Casino proponents claim the facility will bring hundreds of good jobs to the community. By comparing apples to oranges, the Local Impact Report confidently announces that the facility will create approximately 900 “net new jobs” for Adams County. That figure, however, is a confused and deceptive jumble of “full-time equivalent,” full- and part-time jobs to which further ancillary positions were also added, based on an inappropriate, misleading, and undocumented statistical multiplier. This causes the LIR’s projection of jobs to be unreliable and overstated.

The LIR’s economic analysis does not mention the actual number of on-site jobs it has assumed to be at the proposed casino, instead citing a figure of 375 full-time equivalent jobs. As A Realistic Assessment documents, this is actually a mix of 1,087 full and part-time jobs. Realizing that the average salary is $17,061 per year — just $.95 above state minimum wage requirements— indicates that the majority of those positions will be part-time jobs rather than full-time or career positions.

ASSUMED STAFFING LEVEL IS GREATER THAN ATLANTIC CITY’S LARGEST, HIGHEST VALUE CASINO

Among the most unreasonable assertions put forward in the Mason-Dixon LIR is that the proposed casino would support more jobs per gaming position — the individual seats for gamblers at a slot machines and table games — than the largest, highest-value destination casino in Atlantic City, N.J. Based on Mason-Dixon’s projections, the casino would employ 1.21 individuals per gaming position (nearly 1,100 jobs for 900 gaming seats). By contrast, Atlantic City’s Borgata Hotel, Casino & Spa, the second largest casino complex in the country, has a ratio of just 1.19 jobs per gaming position, while the average for Atlantic City is .90. Adjusting the projections from the Crossroads Gaming Resort and Spa — proposed for the identical market area in 2005–2006 — to include the same number of table games, it would yield only .55 jobs per seat.

The Applicant claims its facility — serving a primarily local and convenience market — would proportionally have more jobs than Atlantic City’s Borgata resort complex, which dwarfs Mason-Dixon in scale and scope. The estimated construction cost for Mason-Dixon is $27.03 million, while the 2009 value of the Borgata was $1.77 billion.

SACRIFICING EXISTING BUSINESSES FOR A NEW VENTURE

The LIR’s economic analysis is based on the odd proposition that none of Gettysburg’s existing businesses will be hurt when residents and current visitors spend their money at the proposed casino instead of local shops and restaurants. Based on the spending of local residents in other casino communities, area residents would annually gamble away $776 per person, or $68.3 million, at Mason Dixon — plus another nearly $18 million in estimated food, beverage and entertainment spending. Estimating half that sum would otherwise have been spent locally, that’s $43 million annually siphoned out of the pockets of local residents and businesses. Based on Mason-Dixon’s estimates, existing visitors to the community are conservatively estimated to spend an average of about $35 each at the casino, for a total annual diversion of about $78.4 million from existing county businesses, ultimately resulting in the loss of as many as 1,130 existing jobs in the community. Many positions, following the spending that supports them would be transferred to the proposed casino. But the LIR fails to recognize this, as its methodology is incapable of distinguishing between a legitimate net new job and one transferred from a local business.

SKIPPING THE BATTLEFIELD FOR THE SLOTS: VICKSBURG’S POST CASINO EXPERIENCE

The previous application for a casino oriented to the identical market area as Mason-Dixon relied heavily on touting Vicksburg, Miss., as a model of how a casino would affect Gettysburg and the surrounding area — specifically that visitation to Vicksburg National Military Park (NMP) was unaffected and actually benefitted from the introduction of casinos. Vicksburg was once a close, second to Gettysburg, in visitation among National Park Service Civil War sites, but in 1994, the first year all four Vicksburg casinos were open, visitation plunged 20 percent. By 1998, visitation had ultimately recovered to its pre-casino level and remained relatively stable until Hurricane Katrina caused another steep decline in 2005. But the ability for visitation to Vicksburg’s historic battlefield to bounce back seems to be exhausted. Unlike other national parks in Mississippi and Louisiana, which have returned to their pre-hurricane levels, Vicksburg’s visitation remains at levels not seen since the imposition of visitor fees in the 1980s or the 1970’s oil embargo, and the link cannot be ignored or easily dismissed.

Vicksburg’s main casino complex lies about 2.5 miles south of its historic Main Street area, roughly 4 miles from the main entrance to Vicksburg NMP and 1 mile from the park boundary — distances that are comparable to the proposed Gettysburg site. Between 1992 and 1994, when visitation plummeted, traffic bypassing the park’s entrance increased by the same percentage, while traffic on a key access segment of old Highway 61 running directly to the casinos exploded by 64 percent. Today, traffic through downtown Vicksburg is 17 percent lower than it was in 1998. As A Realistic Assessment concludes: “The pattern is clear: traffic to casinos up; traffic and visitation at Vicksburg’s two most significant historical, cultural, and tourism sites down.”

FAILURE TO CONSIDER GEOGRAPHIC COMPETITION

In rejecting the 2006 Crossroads Application, the Gaming Control Board cited the applicant’s failure to adequately address its potential geographic disadvantage, as other neighboring states were contemplating adding or expanding their gambling options. Since then, the regional gaming landscape has changed dramatically. In West Virginia, table games have been added to existing casinos, including nearby Charles Town Races and Slots. Delaware will soon add table games of its own, and the nearby Dauphin County casino overlaps with the market area that Mason-Dixon would draw upon.

Most significantly, however, the LIR fails to note the effect of the soon-to-open Maryland casinos — which were only a possibility at the time of the 2006 application, although their impact was a serious concern to the PGCB. This could cause the proposed casino to lose tens of thousands — if not a hundred thousand or more of its expected visitors following their opening
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More information about the CWPT's efforts to block the casino can be found here.

Flags of Bentonville

In its June 2010 newsletter, the Civil War Preservation Trust has declared its mission to save more land at Bentonville, North Carolina, site of the last major battle between the remains of the Confederate Army of Tennessee, under General Joseph E. Johnston, and the combined armies of General William Tecumseh Sherman. The CWPT has posted on their website an impressive display of battleflags carried by various units in the battle, and can be viewed here.

After the First Georgia mustered out in March of 1862, most members of the Southern Rights Guard, Company "C" of the regiment, formed the Southern Rights Battery, of the Fourteenth Battalion Georgia Light Artillery.  Serving under the First's former adjutant, Captain Joseph Palmer and later Captain Minor W. Havis, the battery served at Bentonville and surrendered with Johnston's army on April 26, 1865. 

Oil Spill Response

By now, everyone knows about the disaster of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.  My family's prayers go out to everyone affected by this terrible ordeal.  Pensacola, site of Forts Pickens and Barrancas, is beginning to see the first effects as tarballs begin to wash up on the pristine beaches.  Gulf Islands National Seashore, which oversees the forts, has set up a link on their website advising of the National Park Service's efforts to protect these treasures.  Clicking on the Park Service logo on the left column will open this link.  May all the treasures of the area, both historical and natural, be spared from this looming catastrophe.

Battlefield Preservation

I'd like to go just a little afield for my first actual post. As many of you know, David LeVan is trying to win approval to develop the Eisenhower Hotel and Conference Center, located just south of the Gettysburg National Battlefield boundary, into a casino. I would like to extend my support and assistance to all who oppose this incursion into such a historically sensitive area. Eric J. Wittenburg, an attorney and Civil War author who blogs on "Rantings of a Civil War Historian" recently gave several good reasons for opposing the casino in an interview for the Civil War Preservation Trust. You can see the interview here. I urge everyone to add their voices in opposing this threat to one of our greatest national treasures.