St. Marys in Camden County, Georgia — The American South (South Atlantic)

The Civil War: Local People

St. Marys History Walk

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, January 18, 2020

1. The Civil War: Local People Marker

Inscription. Diary of Julia Johnson Fisher, Entry dated April 21, 1864 We are short allowances today. A saucer of rice and skim milk for dinner. We shock a half pint of cream in a glass jar and thus have produced our first butter—perhaps a small tea cup full and we are to have some rice cakes for supper. Gussie has come from camp to help us. He says the confederates have burnt Mr. German’s house and mill at King’s Ferry to prevent the lumber from going to the Yankees. Mrs. Linn and baby thrive well. She has nothing to live on but corn meal and rice; but nobody knows of anything—not a point—The pickets are living on a (sic) field peas and rice, and the animals are suffering. There is money enough and nothing to buy. The Penniman Papers; A Georgia Family in the Civil War.
O.J. Hickox, Jr., Ed. Woodbine, Georgia
Diary entry courtesy of Bryan-Lang Historical Archives.
Moses Dallas was a slave from St. Marys when he began working for the Confederate Navy. He was riverboat pilot of the ironclad CSS Savannah. On June 3, 1864, Moses piloted 120 men in seven boats safely through the sound near Savannah to ambush a prized Federal side-wheel gunboat, the USS Water Witch. Moses’ bravery did not see him through the fight. With no qualified pilot for the captured

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gunboat, the Water Witch was run aground and eventually burned to prevent its recapture by the Union.

Erected 2016 by The Lundin & Thurner Families.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Parks & Recreational Areas • War, US Civil • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical date for this entry is April 21, 1864.

Location. 30° 43.286′ N, 81° 33.218′ W. Marker is in St. Marys, Georgia, in Camden County. Marker can be reached from the intersection of Bartlett Street and St Marys Street West, on the left when traveling north. Located within the St. Marys History Walk. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 101 Bartlett St, Saint Marys GA 31558, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. The Civil War Comes to St. Marys (here, next to this marker); The Civil War: Local Landmarks (here, next to this marker); Southern Signature (a few steps from this marker); St. Marys: A Military Town for 200+ Years (a few steps from this marker); The Enduring Gullah (a few steps from this marker); Georgia’s Coastal Gem: (within shouting distance of this marker); The Birth of a City (within shouting distance of this marker); The Last Battles of The War of 1812 (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in St. Marys.

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, January 18, 2020

2. The Civil War: Local People Marker

Photo Insert Top Left: Indoor Cooking image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, January 18, 2020

3. Photo Insert Top Left: Indoor Cooking

Was done on wood stoves or kitchen fireplaces. They were large and fixed with an iron bar that the cook could swing in or out of the fire.

Photo Insert Middle Left: U.S.S. Water Witch image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, January 18, 2020

4. Photo Insert Middle Left: U.S.S. Water Witch

Courtesy of the Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.

Photo Insert Bottom Left: C.S.S. Savannah image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, January 18, 2020

5. Photo Insert Bottom Left: C.S.S. Savannah

Courtesy of the 290 Foundation

St. Marys History Park markers from a distance image. Click for full size.

Photographed By Brandon D Cross, January 18, 2020

6. St. Marys History Park markers from a distance

Credits. This page was last revised on October 13, 2020. It was originally submitted on January 30, 2020, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 196 times since then and 22 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on January 30, 2020, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.