NPS expands network of sites that explore the post-Civil War era
The Reconstruction Era, dating between 1861 and 1900, 'is one of the most fascinating and misunderstood periods in American History and includes stories of freedom, education and self-determination,' the service said in a news release.
'We are very excited to work with these sites which are being added to the Reconstruction Era National Historic Network,' Park Superintendent Laura Waller said in a statement. 'They represent a wide variety of the types of institutions engaged in preserving the story of Reconstruction around the country.'
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The places being added to the park service's Reconstruction Era National Historic Network include Tolson's Chapel, an African American church and cemetery in Maryland that was used as a school between 1866 and 1899.
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San Francisco Chronicle
10 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Pope speaks about childhood and early mornings as an altar boy in unscripted visit with campers
ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV spoke publicly about his childhood in Chicago for the first time as pontiff Thursday, recalling that from the age of six he used to get up early to serve as an altar boy at the 6:30 a.m. Mass before going to school. Leo shared the memories during an unscripted visit with the children of Vatican employees who are attending the Holy See's summer camp. They were joined by other children, including Ukrainian young people, who are attending summer programs run by Italy's Caritas charity. The visit, which was not announced in advance, took place in the Vatican's main audience hall, which was decked out with huge inflatable bouncy castles for the estimated 600 kids. One of the young campers, Giulia, asked Leo if he used to go to Mass as a child. The former Robert Prevost, who grew up the youngest of three brothers in the south Chicago suburb of Dolton, said the family always went to Mass on Sundays. 'But starting from when I was around 6 years old, I was also an altar boy in the parish. And so before going to school -- it was a parochial school -- there was Mass at 6:30 a.m.,' he said, emphasizing how early it was. 'And Mom would wake us up and say 'We're going to Mass!' Because serving Mass was something we liked because starting from when I was young, they taught us that Jesus was always close to us.' Leo, who was born in 1955, recalled that at the time, Mass was celebrated in Latin. He said he had to learn it to serve Mass even before he made his First Communion, one of the key sacraments in the church. 'It wasn't so much the language that it was celebrated in but the experience of getting to know other kids who served the Mass together, the friendship, and this closeness with Jesus in the church,' he said. Leo's brother, John Prevost, has said his little brother knew from a very young age that he wanted to be a priest. Young Robert used to pretend to celebrate Mass using their mother's ironing board as an altar and Necco candies — a once-popular sweet — as Communion wafers. History's first American pope spoke in Italian, but he switched to English to address a group of Ukrainian children, some of whom held up Ukrainian flags and snagged Leo autographs. He spoke about the benefits of meeting people from different backgrounds, languages and lands. It was one of the first times Leo has spoken unscripted at length in public, responding to questions posed to him by the children. He has tended to stick to his prepared texts for his audiences so far in his young pontificate. ___
Hamilton Spectator
10 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Pope speaks about childhood and early mornings as an altar boy in unscripted visit with campers
ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV spoke publicly about his childhood in Chicago for the first time as pontiff Thursday, recalling that from the age of six he used to get up early to serve as an altar boy at the 6:30 a.m. Mass before going to school. Leo shared the memories during an unscripted visit with the children of Vatican employees who are attending the Holy See's summer camp. They were joined by other children, including Ukrainian young people, who are attending summer programs run by Italy's Caritas charity. The visit, which was not announced in advance, took place in the Vatican's main audience hall, which was decked out with huge inflatable bouncy castles for the estimated 600 kids. One of the young campers, Giulia, asked Leo if he used to go to Mass as a child. The former Robert Prevost, who grew up the youngest of three brothers in the south Chicago suburb of Dolton , said the family always went to Mass on Sundays. 'But starting from when I was around 6 years old, I was also an altar boy in the parish. And so before going to school — it was a parochial school — there was Mass at 6:30 a.m.,' he said, emphasizing how early it was. 'And Mom would wake us up and say 'We're going to Mass!' Because serving Mass was something we liked because starting from when I was young, they taught us that Jesus was always close to us.' Leo, who was born in 1955, recalled that at the time, Mass was celebrated in Latin. He said he had to learn it to serve Mass even before he made his First Communion, one of the key sacraments in the church. 'It wasn't so much the language that it was celebrated in but the experience of getting to know other kids who served the Mass together, the friendship, and this closeness with Jesus in the church,' he said. Leo's brother, John Prevost, has said his little brother knew from a very young age that he wanted to be a priest. Young Robert used to pretend to celebrate Mass using their mother's ironing board as an altar and Necco candies — a once-popular sweet — as Communion wafers. History's first American pope spoke in Italian, but he switched to English to address a group of Ukrainian children, some of whom held up Ukrainian flags and snagged Leo autographs. He spoke about the benefits of meeting people from different backgrounds, languages and lands. It was one of the first times Leo has spoken unscripted at length in public, responding to questions posed to him by the children. He has tended to stick to his prepared texts for his audiences so far in his young pontificate. ___ Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP's collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Miami Herald
11 hours ago
- Miami Herald
Mysterious Civil War artifact rumored to be from alligator attack, park says
War artifacts are typically weapons and uniforms, but occasionally something so strange shows up, that even historians are at a loss. One such oddity — a ragged chunk of leather — is part of the Civil War collection at the Vicksburg National Military Park in western Mississippi. 'This alligator hide was one of the first natural history specimens to be cataloged,' the park wrote in a June 30 Facebook post. 'Previous staff members held on to its old label which provides a clue on how this alligator hide was obtained. The label reads, 'Hide of alligator which bit a soldier during the war and caused loss of a leg.' We will never know whether this tale is true.' The label suggests 'an alligator bit a soldier during the campaign and siege' at Vicksburg, which began in 1862 and ended with the Confederates losing control of the Mississippi River on July 4, 1863. Park visitors are unlikely to see an alligator today, officials said. However, the battlefield is within the known range for alligators, which can exceed 10 feet in Mississippi, the state reports. Union and Confederate troops fought 18 months at Vicksburg, resulting in 48,000 casualties, the National Park Service says. Alligators may have claimed some of the lives, based on first-person accounts documented by the American Battlefield Trust. Among the reports is a journal entry by Capt. Charles B. Haydon of the 2nd Michigan Infantry, who was at Vicksburg in 1863 when he wrote: 'The alligators eat some soldiers [!] but if the soldiers would keep out of the river they would not be eaten.' Lieutenant John G. Earnest of the 79th Tennessee Infantry was at Vicksburg around the same time and reported being awakened one morning by the 'roar' of a hungry alligator. 'I found the mosquitoes had pulled me to the edge of the bayou, and an old alligator jubilant at the prospect of getting me for his breakfast,' Earnest wrote. 'I vowed never to allow myself to sleep on that bayou's bank again.' Vicksburg National Military Park covers 1,815 acres, and is about a 45-mile drive west from Jackson. The park 'commemorates one of the most decisive campaigns of the Civil War, the 1863 Siege of Vicksburg,' the National Park Service says
