The ubiquitous 1855 Smith Brothers color lithograph that dons nearly every public building and gift shop in Oswego is pictured courtesy of the H. Lee White Maritime Museum. Featured in the lithograph are the paddle-wheeled steamers Northerner and Ontario, propeller driven schooners, the west-side elevators, canal commerce, Fort Ontario, the budding shipbuilding industry and churches of Oswego’s shipping heyday.
OSWEGO – The H. Lee White Maritime Museum at Oswego is pleased to present the fourth installment the 2017 History Lecture Series featuring Dr. Natalie Joy Woodall.
President Abraham Lincoln’s decision to institute a draft to raise 300,000 new troops to bolster the depleted ranks of the Union Army in the summer of 1862 elicited enthusiastic opposition in Oswego County.
Declaring that a draft would be dishonorable, a War Committee consisting of several influential men traversed the length and breadth of the county to persuade fathers, sons, brothers, and husbands to leave the “cooling shores of Lake Ontario” to serve their county in some unknown, faraway place.
Men from all walks of life demonstrated their patriotism by enlisting in the organization which came to be known as the 110th Regiment NYSV.
Among the 1,000 plus recruits was a special group, lake sailors who were, by federal decree, exempt from the draft.
Their motivations for enlisting, wartime experiences, post-war careers, and ultimate fates form a significant part of this presentation.
Dr. Woodall has lived in Oswego for more than 30 years.
The holder of two doctorates, she has been a teacher, college professor, newspaper reporter and scuba instructor.
Her interest in local history and genealogy has led to the publication of two full-length books, Oswego County and the Civil War: They Answered the Call and Men of the 110th Regiment: Oswego’s Own.
She is currently researching a third book dealing with Oswego’s famous 147th Regiment.
Museum curator, Michael Pittavino said that “while Central New York is well-known for its involvement in the abolitionist movement, Dr. Woodall’s discussion features the Lake Ontario sailors who willingly enlisted in the Union Army, and takes a fresh look at this regions contribution to the causes of the Civil War.”
This lecture will take place at the Maritime Museum, on the West First Street Pier, on September 23 at 1:30 p.m.
The event is free and open to the public.
The museum is also taking part in the Smithsonian Institution’s Museum Day Live! offering those with a qualifying ticket free admission for two to the museum’s campus.
For more information about this program or other museum activities, visit www.hlwmm.org or call (315) 342-0480.
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