114. CAPTAIN JOHN CLIBBON BRAIN (1840-1906) AGE 66
Captain Brain's Lectures
1871-1872 - Getting Paid to Tell His Story
John Clibbon Brain definitely enjoyed being the center of attention. One way he found to do that and make a little money was to give "lectures" in different cities on his experiences during the war. With a little advance notice and good advertising, these proved to be a good venture for him, at least for a time.
The article in the Nashville Union and American on February 17, 1872, is my personal favorite. But I guess when you've heard it once, you have no need to go again, for a little over a month later, an article from March 23, 1872, made it clear that attendance was not quite the same in that city.
John Clibbon Brain definitely enjoyed being the center of attention. One way he found to do that and make a little money was to give "lectures" in different cities on his experiences during the war. With a little advance notice and good advertising, these proved to be a good venture for him, at least for a time.
The article in the Nashville Union and American on February 17, 1872, is my personal favorite. But I guess when you've heard it once, you have no need to go again, for a little over a month later, an article from March 23, 1872, made it clear that attendance was not quite the same in that city.
(Transcription from The New York Times, New York, New York, Monday, March 13, 1871, Page 4.)
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Lieut. John C. Brain, who seized the steamer Chesapeake, and was the last Confederate prisoner, was being lionized in Columbus, Ga., at last accounts.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 17, 2017.
(Transcription from the Savannah Morning News, Savannah, Georgia, Monday, September 11, 1871, Page 1.)
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We learn from the Falls County Mercury, published in Marlin, Texas, that Capt. John C. Brain, of the Confederate Navy, and the last Confederate prisoner released by the Federals, is lecturing in Texas on the "capture of the steamers Chesapeake and Roanoke and the last Confederate naval expedition." We believe his family is boarding at the Rankin House in this city.--Columbus Sun.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at savnewspapers.galileo.usg.edu. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 14, 2017.
(Transcription from The Austin Weekly Statesman, Austin, Texas, Thursday, September 21, 1871, First Edition.)
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Capt. Brain's Lecture.—It was our pleasure Friday evening to listen to Captain John C. Brain, in his thrilling narrative of the exploits of himself and comrades during the days of the Confederacy as warriors on the high seas. While the lecture was peculiarly entertaining, as are all the adventures of the gallant tars in their naval exploits to us land-lubbers, the services of Captain Brain lose none of their brilliancy or vim by comparison with those of historical and of-repeated fame.
No man ever displayed more daring, more courage, more endurance, or has suffered more in bodily wounds, in support of a cause he justly deemed sacred; but which of late has proved so thankless!
Of his exploits we shall say nothing, for it is the duty of the citizens to hear from his lips what has already passed into history—it is well worth listening to.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 17, 2017.
(Transcription from The Galveston Daily News, Galveston, Texas, Thursday, September 21, 1871, Page 2.)
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Capt. Brain has returned from his trip to the interior, where he has been kindly received. Capt. Brain proposes to give one of his entertaining lectures for the benefit of the Bayland Orphans' Home, and to that end will be pleased to confer with the trustees of that institution. The Captain is staying at the Washington Hotel.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 17, 2017.
(Transcription from The Galveston Daily News, Galveston, Texas, Thursday, September 21, 1871, Page 3.)
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HOTEL ARRIVALS - SEPTEMBER 20.
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WASHINGTON.
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Capt. J. C. Brain, Charleston
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, February 7, 2017.
(Transcription from The Galveston Daily News, Galveston, Texas, Thursday, September 28, 1871, Page 3.)
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Capt. Brain's Lecture
For the benefit of the Bayland Orphan's Home, is postponed until Friday evening, when it will be delivered at Trube's Hall, on Church street, between Tremont and Twenty-fourth st. Capt. Brain's narrative of his remarkable adventures forms of itself a sufficient attraction to draw a full house, but when the good and charitable object of the entertainment is added, we are sure the spacious hall will be crowded to excess.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 17, 2017.
(Transcription from The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, Louisiana, Thursday, September 28, 1871, Page 2.)
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Capt. J. C. Braine is in Galveston, delivering lectures in that section.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, February 7, 2017.
(Transcription from The Galveston Daily News, Galveston, Texas, Saturday, September 30, 1871, Page 3.)
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Capt. Brain's Lecture.
Whatever relates to the Bayland Orphan Home is of deep interest to the citizens of Galveston. This was most clearly shown by the very fair attendance of our best citizens at Trube's Hall last evening, to hear Capt. Brain's lecture. The Capt. was in good voice and spirits, and told the history of his terrible sufferings in an agreeable manner. This history was replete with thrilling sketches, interspersed with pleasant, romantic incidents. He told us in a simple, unaffected way, of his share in the capture of the steamer Chesapeake and the United States mail steamer Roanoke, and the last expedition of the Confederate Navy.
The receipts will provide many comforts for the fatherless children under the sheltering roof of the Bayland Orphan Home.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from The Times-Democrat, New Orleans, Louisiana, Sunday, October 8, 1871, Page 3.)
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Capt. John C. Braine, the last Confederat[e] prisoner released from durance vile by the Federal authorities, has just arrived in this city from Texas. He was sadly wounded and crippled in the war, and being unable to earn a living, as in ante-bellum times, by going down to the sea in ships and doing business in the mighty waters, he proposes to deliver a lecture or two on "the battles he has been in" on the high seas, treating them as historical events without mixing them up with either dead or living issues.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, Louisiana, Sunday, October 8, 1871, Page 12.)
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A Treat in Store.—Some evening during the current week an opportunity will be given to our citizens to hear from the mouth of a gallant sailor a part of the history of the navy of the Confederacy. The lecturer is Capt. John C. Brain, who was chief actor in the capture of the Chesapeake and Roanoke, and also a witness an participator in very many romantic incidents of the war. Capt. Brain still suffers from wounds received in service, and also from the effects of a long, irksome and cruel imprisonment. He comes well heralded from Texas, and highly commended by its journals. The place and time for the first lecture will be duly announced. Meantime, we commend the battle-scar[r]ed Captain to the kind attention of all who know him by his heroic record.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, Louisiana, Tuesday, October 10, 1871, Page 1. This story also ran in the same newspaper the following day promoting the lecture happening that evening.)
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Capt. Brain's Lecture.—On Wednesday, to-morrow evening, at 8 o'clock, at Masonic Hall, corner of St. Charles and Perdido street, Capt. Braine, late Confederate States Navy, will deliver a lecture on many romantic and startling incidents connected with the history of the C. S. naval service, and in which he was personally concerned.
Capt. Brain's career in the Confederate navy was of a singularly interesting character. He has just returned from a lecturing tour in Texas, where he was warmly received.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from The Times-Picayune, New Orleans, Louisiana, Thursday, October 12, 1871, Page 4.)
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Capt. John C. Brain's Lecture.—There were assembled at Masonic Hall last evening, upon the occasion of the lecture of Capt. John C. Brain, the last prisoner of the late war, a most appreciative and intelligent audience, tho[u]gh, in numbers, not so large as was generally expected. The particulars of the capture of the Federal steamers Chesapeake, Roanoke and other vessels, so truthfully and plainly related, yet so eloquent in their simplicity, riveted attention to the speaker from the beginning to the close of his relation.
Capt. Brain intersperses his lecture with many amusing and instructive incidentals to his great undertakings. In closing, he referred but briefly to his cruel and groundless incarceration, during which he must have suffered the most intense tortures, some idea of which may be drawn from his now crippled condition and the circumstance that when placed in prison his weight was 180 pounds, and when he left it, through the generous, though tardy, interposition of President Johnson, he weighed but 92 pounds.
Capt. Brain will lecture again to-morrow evening, at the same place, and it is to be hoped that our people, especially our ladies, will show their appreciation of true merit by turning out in large numbers. The lecture commences at 8 o'clock.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Brooklyn, New York, Monday, November 20, 1871, Page 3. This item ran in a number of newspapers around this time, including The Petroleum Centre Daily Record, Cornplanter, Pennsylvania, Tuesday, November 21, 1871, Page 2.)
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Brain.--Captain John C. Brain, the last prisoner of the war, who was released from his place of imprisonment in the Kings County Penitentiary by President Johnson in 1869, is lecturing in Georgia.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, February 15, 2017.
Lecture ad in The Courier Journal, Louisville, Kentucky, Sunday, January 7, 1872, Page 4. Image from newspapers.com.
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(Transcription from The Courier-Journal, Louisville, Kentucky, Sunday, January 7, 1872, Page 4. The ad also ran in the same newspaper, Tuesday, January 9, 1872, Page 4.) |
(Transcription from The Cincinnati Enquirer, Cincinnati, Ohio, Thursday, February 1, 1872, Page 4.)
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Lecture in Covington.
Captain John C. Brain, who has obtained considerable distinction throughout the South by his lecture on Confederate Navy Experiences, will repeat his lecture to the Covingtonians to-night. Of course a crowded house will greet him.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, February 7, 2017.
(Transcription from the Cincinnati Daily Gazette, Monday, February 5, 1872, Page 4.)
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The audience of Capt. John C. Brain, "the last prisoner of the war," at the Odd Fellows' Hall on Saturday night, was like one that greeted the Fat Contributor in Southern Illinois some years ago. It consisted of one man. The Captain dismissed the audience and did not lecture.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at GenealogyBank.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, February 17, 2017.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Saturday, February 10, 1872, First Edition, Page 4.)
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Captain J. C. Brain, Columbus, Ga.; John C. Gardner, Hickman, Ky.; W. W. Gates, Jackson; J. B. Basin, St. Louis; and Dr. R. L. C. White, of the Lebanon Herald, were registered at the Battle House yesterday.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Sunday, February 11, 1872, First Edition, Page 2.) |
Lecture ad in the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Sunday, February 11, 1872, First Edition, Page 2. Image from newspapers.com.
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(Transcription from The Tennessean, Nashville, Tennessee, Sunday, February 11, 1872, Page 4.)
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Lecture by the Last Confederate Prisoner.
Next Tuesday evening an opportunity will be given to our citizens to hear from the mouth of a gallant sailor a part of the history of the navy of the Confederacy. The lecturer is Captain John C. Brain, who was chief actor in the capture of the Chesapeake and Roanoke, and also a witness and participator in very many romantic incidents of the war. He still suffers from wounds received in service, and also from the effects of a long, irksome and cruel imprisonment. He comes highly commended by the press of the South. The New Orleans Bulletin of a recent date says:
"Captain John C. Brain, so well known as one of the leading executive spirits of the Confederate Navy, lectured at Masonic Hall last night, as announced, giving a very interesting detailed account of his gallant services and closing with a brief statement of his arrest in New York, as late as September, 1866, on a charge of piracy and his subsequent release by order of President Johnson, after more than two years imprisonment, on the ground that he was a regular officer of the Confederate Navy, duly commissioned, and therefore not answerable to this charge.
"Captain Brain recites the facts with but little comment, and consequently without straining for the effects of the embellishments of language, but the details of his achievements, while modestly recited, are given so fully as to fill out the general outline of his exploits, and impart new interest to them even at this late date, not withstanding the failure of the Confederacy. As a consequence he was listened to with most marked attention.
"One cannot see him all, scarred and mutilated as he is in the service, and hear him narrate the manner and effects of his exploits, without being impressed with his character as a man of nerve, and sympathizing with him in his treatment as the last prisoner of the war."
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Sunday, February 11, 1872, First Edition.)
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CAPT. JOHN C. BRAIN.
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The Last Prisoner of the War on a Visit to Nashville.
One of the arrivals at the Battle House is Capt. John C. Brain, of the Confederate navy, who enjoyed the unpleasant distinction of being the "last prisoner of war." Capt. Brain's exploits were at the time very notorious in the United States, he having captured the Chesapeake and the Roanoke. At the end of the war he was in Liverpool on duty, and returning to the United States, was immediately arrested on charges of piracy and murder. The United States authorities maintained that the seizure of the Chesapeake in American waters, and the death of one of her crew from violence, brought the prisoner under these capital charges. Though proof was tendered that these acts were the legitimate results of orders from superior officers to him as a subordinate, Capt. Brain was imprisoned in a New York fort for two years and a half, his case being postponed from time to time. Finally, his health was so impaired that the physicians said he could not live three months longer in prison, and Horace Greeley demanded in the Tribune his immediate trial or unconditional release. Still nothing was done to secure it. Col. Blanton Duncan being in New York, was appealed to go to Washington and take the necessary steps. Drawing up the following document--
The undersigned Senators and Representatives respectfully submit the accompanying article from the New York Tribune, with an earnest hope that the President will extend clemency to the subject thereof, irrespective of the legal aspects of the case, and that he will order his discharge at an early day--
Col. Duncan procured the signatures of all the Democrats and many of the Radicals, and, accompanied by Thomas McCreery, went to the Attorney General and laid regular siege to him, while Senator Whyte, of Maryland, accompanied some Baltimore ladies to see the President on the subject. The stumbling-block was in Mr. Evarts, who maintained that legally Capt. Brain was guilty of the charges. He finally gave way to the pressing and reiterated demands of the two Kentuckians for clemency, and to waive all legal views, and the prisoner was finally discharged, broken in health and without resources. Henry A. Parr, formerly of this city, but now living in Nova Scotia, was a lieutenant under Capt. B.
On Tuesday night next Capt. Brain will deliver his highly interesting lecture at Masonic Hall on the captures he made while an officer of the late Confederate States Navy.
He was commissioned as a Master in that service, at Montgomery, Ala., in April, 1861; was promoted to a Lieutenancy in May, '64, and again promoted to the rank of First Lieutenant commanding, in February, 1865. He was a prisoner in Forts Lafayette and Warren for over six months, in the years 1861, 1862; and again for two years and a half after the war was over—that is, from September, 1866, to March, 1869. He was released from the New York prison March 1, 1869, by the order of President Andrew Johnson, on the ground that "he was a regularly commissioned officer of the Navy of the Confederate States."
The lecture of Capt. Brain is said to be very entertaining, and no doubt will be largely attended.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Wednesday, February 14, 1872, First Edition.)
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The Lecture of Capt. Brain.
The very short notice which had been given of the proposed lecture by this gentleman last evening, and the fact that our people had not become fully cognizant of either the interest of the subject or deservings of the lecturer, combined to prevent an attendance justifying its delivery. Acting upon the advice of friends, who desire to see out people have the opportunity to do justice to themselves, and also to give Capt. B. a material evidence of their appreciation of his services and sufferings in the "Lost Cause," he postponed its delivery to Friday evening next, at Masonic Hall. In the meantime efforts already inaugurated will be consummated to render the occasion one, by its attendance, to reflect credit upon our city and gladden the heart of our gallant friend, Capt. Brain. The sale of reserved seats will commence this morning at Dorman's music store.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Thursday, February 15, 1872, First Edition.)
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Capt. Brain's Lecture.
A large number of tickets have been sold for Capt. Brain's lecture Friday evening, and indications are favorable to a crowded house on that occasion. The Captain's lecture is said to be very entertaining, and aside from this fact he is a deserving gentleman, who by his crippled condition, relies altogether upon his lectures for a support.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Friday, February 16, 1872, First Edition.)
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The Lecture To-Night.
The lecture of Capt. Brain to-night at Masonic Hall will, we are assured by highly interesting, as it will be more of a narrative of his experience on the high seas during the late war. He entered the service at Montgomery, Alabama, April, 1861, as a master, was promoted to lieutenant in 1863, and again promoted to a commander in February 1865, for the capture of the Roanoke off the Island of Cuba in September, 1864. The rank of Commander is equal to that of Brigadier General in the army. The captain is a modest, unassuming gentleman, who has sufficiently shown his faith by his deeds. He comes amongst us a stranger, not for the purpose of perpetuating strife, but desirous of casting oil upon the troubled waters, at the same time narrating the thrilling incidents that occurred while he made an imperishable name for himself as a gallant seaman, and in fact who has been more sinned against than found sinning. Let the friends of this gallant gentleman turn out, and give him a full house. His lecture is emphatically in his own interest, as by his crippled condition, he is unfit just now for any other service.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from the Nashville Union and American, Nashville, Tennessee, Saturday, February 17, 1872, First Edition, Page 4.)
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BRAIN.
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The Last of the Confederate Prisoners
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A Thrilling Narrative of Adventure by a Brave Sailor.
Notwithstanding the inclement state of the weather last evening, Masonic Hall was filled with a large and most respectable audience, assembled to hear Capt. Brain's narrative of the services performed by the Confederate navy during the civil war. The war-worn sailor's appearance on the stage was greeted with cheers. Capt. Brain is yet a comparatively young man, with hair unsilvered with gray, but long imprisonment and hard treatment have shattered his iron constitution, and left him a crippled wreck, to hobble through life. His unassuming deportment and frank, straight-forward manner won for him the sympathy of his hearers at once. He described the thrilling scenes through which he took such a prominent part himself, in a plain unvarnished style, which carried conviction with it. No one who heard him could for a moment doubt the truth of his statement. Every incident connected with the capture of a vessel was detailed with minute accuracy. In fact, his extreme care to prevent misconception of his remarks, betrays him into a fault almost as great as inaccuracy. At times he becomes prolix to the verge of tediousness. It is a mistake, however, which most of his hearers can overlook, and which his own good sense will doubtless lead him to avoid in future. The lecture, occupying nearly two hours in delivery, was listened to with unabated interest from the beginning to the close, and was frequently interrupted by applause.
The lecture consisted principally of an account of his own services in the late Confederate States Navy. He described first the capture of the Chesapeake in New York harbor in 1863, and the final disposition of the vessel. He next recounted the gallant capture of the steamship Roanoke off Havana, in September, 1864. The Roanoke was a vessel of 1,500 tons, with a crew of 50 men and having on board at the time of capture 46 passengers. Through the treachery of the Confederate States representative at Havana, the Captain of the vessel had been forewarned that an attempt would be made to capture it. Before leaving port, the Captain procured arms for his men, determined to defend the vessel to the last. Capt. Brain with ten men took passage on the steamer, and the same night that it left Havana, surprised the crew and took possession of the vessel. At Bermudas he was unable to obtain coal, and was forced to destroy his prize. The lecturer then described the capture of the schooner St. Mary, forty miles from Baltimore, in Chesapeake Bay, and the subsequent capture and destruction of a number of Federal vessels in the Gulf of Mexico, up to the close of the war. When he learned that the Southern armies had surrendered, he destroyed the St. Mary, took his men to Liverpool and paid them off. He then proceeded to New York, and afterwards to Savannah, Ga. He afterwards was away from the country for six months. He returned to New York in 1866, and was arrested on the 13th of September of that year, for piracy on the high seas. A bogus examination was held in Brooklyn. A dozen or more witnesses were heard against him, but he was not allowed time to obtain a solitary witness to show that he had acted under orders in seizing Northern vessels. He was imprisoned and kept in close confinement till March 1, 1869, when he was released by order of President Johnson, on the ground that he had been a commissioned officer of the so-called Confederate States, and that his acts were, therefore, not piratical. When he entered prison he weighted 180 pounds and was a hearty, vigorous man; when he left it he weighed 92 pounds, and walked with a crutch. He concluded by paying a tribute of respect to Lieut. Henry A. Parr, of Nashville, who, he said, was "as brave a man as ever stepped a ship's deck; one who will always be an honor to his family and his country."
The lecturer retired amid a storm of cheers.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from the Public Ledger, Memphis, Tennessee, Tuesday, February 20, 1872, First Edition, Page 3.)
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Memphis, Tenn., February 20, 1872.
Captain Jno. C. Brain:
Sir—Allow us to avail ourselves of your presence in this city to request that you will deliver a public lecture on the events of your cruises as an officer of the Confederate Navy.
Jefferson Davis, R. F. Looney,
Marcus J. Wright, W. A. Goodman,
J. G. Lonsdale, Isham G. Harris[,]
Ben May, Gid. J. Pillow,
M. J. Wicks, Jas. E. Beasly,
J. J. DuBose, Jno. F. Titus,
B. F. White, Jr., Jas. H. Edmondson,
W. F. Boyle, J. W. Sneed,
Colton Greene.
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Memphis, Tenn., February 20, 1872.
Hon. Jefferson Davis and others:
Gentlemen—I have received your note of this date asking me to deliver a public lecture on the events of my cruises as an officer of the Confederate Navy. It will afford me great pleasure to comply with your very kind and flattering request, and you are authorized to announce that the lecture will be delivered at the Greenlaw Opera House on Thursday evening next.
Very respectfully, your obedient servant,
Jno. C. Brain.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
Lecture Ad from the Public Ledger, Memphis Tennessee, Wednesday, February 21, 1872, First Edition, Page 2. Image from newspapers.com.
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(Transcription from the Public Ledger, Memphis, Tennessee, Wednesday, February 21, 1872, First Edition, Page 2. Same ad also ran Thursday, February 22, 1872, Page 2. The Memphis Daily Appeal, Memphis, Tennessee, ran a similar ad on Wednesday, February 21, 1872, First Edition, Page 4.) |
(Transcription from the Public Ledger, Memphis, Tennessee, Thursday, February 22, 1872, First Edition, Page 2.)
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Captain Brain's Lecture.—To-night Captain John C. Brain, the last prisoner of war, will deliver a lecture at the Greenlaw Opera House. Captain Brain was in the service on the "high seas" during the war and made many brilliant captures, among others the United States mail steamer Roanoke, in 1864. The principal subjects of the lecture will be the capture of the steamer Chesapeake in New York harbor, in 1865; the capture of the United States steamship Roanoke, off the Island of Cuba, in 1864; the last Confederate naval expedition; cruise and capture of the schooner St. Marys, in 1865, and destruction of the vessel off the Island of Jamaica. In addition, Captain Brain will give his experience of two and a half years in a Federal bastile.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
(Transcription from The Orangeburg News, Orangeburg, South Carolina, Saturday, March 23, 1872, First Edition, Page 3.)
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Capt. Braine, the last Confederate prisoner, the other night rebuked the chivalry of Nashville because there weren't enough of them at his lecture to pay expenses.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, January 18, 2017.
Nothing makes you quite as mad as someone encroaching on your territory and giving it a bad name.
(Transcription from The Daily Phoenix, Columbia, South Carolina, Wednesday, July 10, 1872, Page 2.)
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S. Adams Lee, the Yankee Swindler.
The following communication, dated Columbus, Ga., July 4, we clip from the Augusta Chronicle and Sentinel:
I see in your issue of the 2d a statement that Captain Lee, a cousin of our beloved General R. E. Lee, is to deliver a lecture on Hampton Roads, in this city.
May I request you to publish this swindler and scoundrel, as an act of justice to the gentlemen who were officers in the late Confederate States navy? There never was but one Captain Lee, and his name was S. S. Lee, a brother of the late Gen. Lee. This scoundrel's name is S. Adams Lee. He is from Washington, Pa., and is the son of a minister of that place. This swindler was shown up in Murfreesboro, Tenn., last summer, by General Custis Lee, as an imposter. In February, this year, S. Adams Lee was shown up in his true character by General John C. Breckinridge, in Frankfort, Ky. He never was on board of the Merrimac or any other Confederate ship. He might have seen her from the Federal lines. Said imposter served in the Federal army, and lost his left foot. He is now traveling with a forged letter, purporting to be from the Hon. Jefferson Davis, stating that he is from Virginia.
While he was the guest of Gen. Joel A. Battle, of Nashville, Tenn., and before he was shown up by the papers in Murfreesboro and Nashville, he solicited subscriptions for the Orphans' Home, at Talladega, Ala. Of course he put the proceeds in his own pocket. After this he traveled through Missouri and lectured for the Lee monument--i. e. his own pocket. He next turned up in Frankfort, Ky., Lexington, Versailles, &c. At Versailles he was fully exposed by Lieutenant W. H. Craig, who served on board of the Merrimac as an officer in the late Confederate navy. I will give you the names of the Lee family who held commissions in the Confederate States navy: Captain S. S. Lee, in charge of office of orders and detail; Lieutenant Sidney S. Lee, Jr., naval station, Wilmington, N. C.; and midshipmen D. M. Lee and W. A. Lee. I take the liberty of requesting you to publish the Yankee imposter as an act of justice to those who served the lost cause. JOHN C. BRAIN,
1st Lieut. Com'dg C. S. Navy.
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NOTE: The above transcription was made from an online image of the original newspaper article at Newspapers.com. Errors were corrected minimally, and only to facilitate readability.
Transcribed by Jo Roth, February 15, 2017.