Civil War Tales by Silas C. Turnbo.

"Death in a cruel manner." 

These are the words that often came to my mind as I assembled and narrated 100 Ozark Civil War stories by Silas C. Turnbo. This project has become one of my most treasured endeavors thus far, and it has only increased my appreciation of the struggled endured by the pioneers of the Ozarks.

This project took longer than I estimated, but it is an experience I will not long forget. Before this project began, I went to look at the documents & stories that were donated from the College of the Ozarks and given to the Arkansas History Commission in Little Rock. Additionally, I went through numerous rolls of microfilm which retold many of these stories. Furthermore, I compared these stories to the Springfield Greene County Library's Turnbo Manuscripts.

Editing was slow and meticulous due to Mr. Turnbo's sentence structure was sometimes a little tough and long. Some sentences were enormous and were up to 9 -11 lines long. In order for me to read aloud and breathe (and not pass out), I had to add a few commas and brake up some of his sentences in order for them to sound correct. As I assembled these stories, I endeavored to maintain the integrity of the names, phrasing, and pronunciation true to its Ozark heritage. I even pronounced "Missouree" as "Missouruh."

Once I began this project, I thought I could complete it in just a few months. Unfortunately, that was not the case. As time progressed, it seemed like I became acquainted with the subjects of the stories. Many times before I began to narrate a particular story, I endeavored to do some genealogical research on the people and families mentioned in order to get to know them. Sometimes after narrating their ordeal of trials and tribulations, I would turn off the recording equipment and simply walk away in awe of what was endured. At other times, I just had to walk away due to, "Death in a cruel manner."  On most of the stories that detailed torture, I recorded alone...not wanting anyone in the house to overhear the encounters of agony explained. As a solace, I would take walks on the White River where some of these incidents occurred. Sometimes, I would go visit the graves of those the stories detailed. Though I knew my visit could not help them, it was always encouraging to see the old memorial stones that loved ones left behind. As I left each area or gravesite, many times I would sing the refrain of old penned after the Civil War by Joseph P. Webster and S. Fillmore Bennett.1

  "In the Sweet By and By."

There’s a land that is fairer than day,
And by faith we can see it afar;
For the Father waits over the way
To prepare us a dwelling place there.

Refrain

In the sweet by and by,
We shall meet on that beautiful shore;
In the sweet by and by,
We shall meet on that beautiful shore.

I believe the second verse holds a wealth of meaning for those in that era of war.

We shall sing on that beautiful shore
The melodious songs of the blessed;
And our spirits shall sorrow no more,
Not a sigh for the blessing of rest.


For those who would like to hear these Ozark Civil War stories, they are now available on Google Play. In all, this project contains 7 hours & 10 minutes of narration. Each album contains at least 33 stories, and they are priced at $4.99 each.  If you would like to listen to a portion of each story, simply click on the Google Play icon or the albums below.

 Below are the Titles & Times of the 1^st Volume.

1.

Viewing the Steamboat Going up the Missouri River

. 4:31

2.	The Alph Cook Cave.			5:44

3.	A Cold Swim Across White River			. 11:19

4.	A Little Scare in the Big War.			2:20

5	. Picked Up Her Husband's Brains.			5:47

6	. The Last Hours of Mike Yocum.			4:55

7	. Stirring Scenes in the Early Days of Yellville, Arkansas			. 4:53

8.	Riding into the Federal Lines for Salt			. 3:11

9	. The Commander of the Company Refused to Prefer Charges Against Them.			4:31

10.	Dragged a Dead Man from the Road.			2:01

11	. A Terrible Experience in the Civil War			. 1:37

12	. A Little Incident of War Times.			2:42

13	. Oh, Boys, Shoot Me Again			. 4:17

14	. War and its Victims.			2:44

15	. Hot Words Pass Between Two Officers Unequal in Rank.			2:02

16	. Reading the Bible by the Reflection of Light from a Burning Town			. 1:59

17	. Captured in the Night Time			. 2:14

18	. A Man Escapes Death by Leaping Up and Running			. 2:33

19	. How a Soldier Exchanged Hats with a Small Boy.			2:12

20	. A Party of Southern Soldiers Refuse to Appropriate a Pair of Federal Gloves			. 3:27

21	. The Killing of Wilse Brown			. 4:59

22	. Substituting Pieces of Plank and a Door Shutter for a Coffin			. 2:27

23	. How I Was Befriended Once in War Times.			6:27

24	. Ex governor Elias N. Conway			. 1:10

25	. Sacrificed His Life Foolishly			. 3:57

26	. Opposed to Civil War.			4:02

27	. Joyful Meeting Between Father and Son.			3:36

28	. A Solemn Scene.			2:34

29	. A War Time Incident in Douglas County, Missouri.			2:04

30	. Love and War.			5:45

31	. A Pathetic Scene on the Battlefield.			3:39

32	. Sad and Serious Recollections of Wardays.			6:23

33	. Wounding an Inoffensive Man. 0:57

Enjoy your Ozarks' History.

References:

1.  Webster, Joseph P., and S. Fillmore Bennett. "In the Sweet By and By." In the Sweet By and By. 1868. Accessed October 31, 2015. www.hymntime.com/tch/htm/i/n/t/intsbab.htm.