Day 3 @ SMH

Are you familiar with the Staff Ride concept. If not, look here: http://www.fireleadership.gov/toolbox/staffride/downloads/the_staff_ride.pdf The author Dr. William Glenn Robertson was with us today as well as his Combat Studies Institute staff (http://usacac.army.mil/CAC2/CSI/ ). I have been on other staff rides with Glenn and in this setting they are a mix of staff ride and tour. I have also been on numerous other staff rides with Steve Rauch the Signal Center Command Historian. In my mind, middle/high school teachers could get so much more from their field trips if they followed the model. (If you happen to be a teacher let me know and I will assist you in designing and setting it up)



I am not going to go into the details of the ride other than to say it was about the Tullahoma Campaign of 1863, after Stones River (1862-3) and before Chickamauga (1863).

The question that comes to mind for historians and the general public I suspect (those that are interested) is, must one walk the field to really understand the battle/campaign? That has been debated by historians for a good while. There has been much criticism of those that do not walk the field yet still publish about the engagement(s).

Where do I fall out on this? I think it depends a good bit on the person. It involves, to me, right brain/left brain dominance, visual/tactical/passive learning, and the like. Me? I like to walk the field AFTER I have read/studied the engagement. I want to see the subtly of the terrain, the undulations in a field that might change line of sight and fire. I like to stand where the combatants stood and look as they did. I like to try and understand their decisions based upon what I see, just like they would have.

By the way, the Army has developed virtual staff rides for Iraq and Afghanistan.

Let’s see, what else did I pick up today?

Two very interesting papers in the same panel, both relating to my project.

The first concerned Western Virginia and the conflicts among its citizens. Robinett was born in Ohio County in what is now West Virginia. His family moved to Delaware while he was a child. Ohio County is in that little sliver sandwiched between Ohio and Pennsylvania. What would drive his family to move BACK east while most movement was west? The new B&O Railroad made it possible and indeed easy. But why did they did make the move? I need to find out.

There is much more to write and I will do so this evening.

Keep History Alive
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