Perceptions Held by Groups About the Civil War

Upper Elementary Perspective Lesson Plan

Appomattox National Historical Park
Elizabeth Parnicza: Chief of Interpretation – [e-mail]

Objectives: As a result of this lesson plan, students will…

• Understand that the Surrender events at Appomattox Court House in April 1865 affected Americans in many different ways.
• Be able to explain perspective, and how they applied to the people involved with the Civil War and the Surrender events.
• Understand how the different perspectives and interpretations of the Surrender Events affect our modern perceptions.

Upper Elementary
Social Studies
Duration: 60 minutes
Description: This program will allow students to think about the different perspectives of those who lived through the Civil War, and how various viewpoints interpreted the events surrounding the Surrender Meeting at Appomattox. This program consists of several assignments designed to help students explore these differences through the stories of three people present at Appomattox Court House in 1865.

Preparation and Procedure

About Appomattox Court House:

In 1865, Appomattox Court House, Virginia was a small village along the Richmond – FollowingLynchburg Stage Road; it was home to about 100 people.·

• a week-long running battle from Petersburg and Richmond, Union soldiers under General Ulysses S. Grant surrounded General Robert E. Lee’s Confederates at Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.·
• Lee surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia to Grant at the home of Wilmer McLean.
• The surrender at Appomattox ultimately brought about the end of the American Civil War, the emancipation of nearly 4 million enslaved people, including nearly 4,600 individuals in Appomattox County, and the reunion of the nation.

Background

While not mandatory, it is helpful if students understand when and why the Civil War occurred prior to the program (causes, secession). Students are not expected to know about generals, armies or campaigns, as that will be covered during the program.

Resources:

https://www.nps.gov/apco/learn/education/teacher-packet-outline.htm
https://www.nps.gov/apco/planyourvisit/informational-bulletins-about-the-civil-war.htm
Park Website:
https://www.nps.gov/apco/index.htm

Standards of Learning: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the issues that divided our nation and led to the Civil War by

• a) explaining the major events and the differences between northern and southern states that divided Virginians and led to secession, war, and the creation of West Virginia;
• b) describing Virginia’s role in the war, including identifying major battles that took place in Virginia; and
• c) describing the roles of American Indians, whites, enslaved African Americans, and free African Americans.

USI.1 The student will demonstrate skills for historical thinking, geographical analysis, economic decision making, and responsible citizenship by

1. analyzing and interpreting artifacts and primary and secondary sources to understand events in United States history;
2. analyzing and interpreting geographic information to determine patterns and trends in United States history;
3. interpreting charts, graphs, and pictures to determine characteristics of people, places, or events in United States history;
4. using evidence to draw conclusions and make generalizations;
5. comparing and contrasting historical, cultural, and political perspectives in United States history;
6. determining relationships with multiple causes or effects in United States history;
7. explaining connections across time and place;j) investigating and researching to develop products orally and in writing.

Perspective Activity (Worksheet 1)

1. Introduce and define perspective for learners:

Suggestion for introduction to privileges:

1. Open the discussion by asking students to look at a picture of the McLean Parlor (Worksheet 1) and try and guess what important event happened in the room. This could be guided by relevant clues about the time period, setting, and the level of the home owner’s affluence. The instructor should welcome many different guesses by encouraging various interpretations from the students:

Example dialogue:

• Ask Students: Didyou notice how we had many different ideas of what happened in this room? We saw the same room, but all viewed it a little differently. This is called perspective.
• “Perspective” is the many ways in which something can be seen.
• Students will next be informed of the actual event that took place in the pictured room on April 9, 1865. Confederate Army Commander Robert E. Lee surrendered to US Army Commander Ulysses S. Grant, marking the beginning of the end of the Civil War.

When events happen in history, it affects lots of people who may all see what happened a little differently. Today, I am going to give you some information about three people who were in Appomattox in April, 1865. Their names are Fannie Berry, Charles Wainwright and Charles Minnigerode. In learning about their stories, we will see how their perspectives on the surrender events were the same and different.

Biographies and Questions (Worksheets 2A-2C)

1. Students will be provided with biographies and questions for the following people present at Appomattox during the Civil War:

Charles Wainwright (Worksheet 2A)

Fannie Berry (Worksheet 2B)
Charles Minnigerode (Worksheet 2C)

Suggestion for introduction before biographies and question:

• Open the activity with a small introduction to each of the figures.
  • Example dialogue:

Brigadier General Charles Wainwright was a successful farmer and soldier in the Union army. He was in charge of setting up cannons during the Battle of Appomattox Court House. Wainwright witnessed a lot of important things after the fighting was over, including the Confederate troops giving up their weapons.

Fannie Berry was an enslaved woman who lived in Appomattox in 1865. She experienced some amazing firsts during the Battle of Appomattox Court House, including seeing African American soldiers fight with the rest of the Union army. Berry received her freedom when the Union soldiers came to Appomattox.

Charles Minnigerode was the son of a famous minister, who ran away to join the Confederate army at 16. Minnigerode was on the field during the Battle of Appomattox Court House when he was shot in the back and left for dead. He was found by a Union surgeon and taken to a hospital to recover.

Biographies

Charles Wainwright (Worksheet 2A)
My name is Charles Wainwright, and I was 34 when I joined the Union army in 1861. When I went off to war, I left my two sisters, elderly father, and successful farm behind in New York. It was sad, but I loved my country, and would do anything I can to keep it together. Luckily for me, my family wrote to me often, and they were proud of me because I was a Chief of Artillery in the army. This meant I commanded cannons on the battlefield. I was there during the last battle against a part of the Confederate army at Appomattox Court House, on April 9, 1865. My soldiers and I were fighting hard, when we saw a white flag of truce go across the field. We were told the Confederate army might surrender. I looked around and saw brave soldiers from the Union that had been killed. I wondered how I was going to get used to the idea that we might no longer have an enemy to fight anymore. Later, we heard that part of the Confederate army surrendered; we were overjoyed! We celebrated that night by lighting the fuses of captured Confederate cannons; they lit up the night like fireworks. A couple of days later, I rode my horse to go and see the Confederate soldiers give up their rifles. Afterwards, we gave the Confederates food to eat because they were hungry and tired. As we left Appomattox to march home, we ran into a lot of former slaves begging us for horses and mules. They told us that they didn’t have any animals to farm for themselves. We gave them what we could, but I wondered what would happen to all of those people who were no longer enslaved? It rained a lot on the journey home, and I thought to myself what our country would look like now, after so much fighting? Would there really be peace over the land?

1. What did Charles Wainwright leave behind when he left to go to war?
2. Why did he join the Union army?
3. How was Wainwright involved in the battle of Appomattox Court House?4. What are some things that Wainwright worries about that might be the same as a Confederate soldier or an enslaved person?
5. What are some things that Wainwright worries about that might be different from an enslaved person, or a Confederate soldier?

Fannie Berry (Worksheet 2B)

My name is Fannie Berry, and I was born into slavery in the year 1845. I was owned by a man named George Abbott in the county of Appomattox. As a slave, I witnessed a lot of awful things; many people I knew were ripped apart from their families and sold. My own mother was separated from her sister, who she never saw again. When the war started, I just thought it would be more trouble, but then I started hearing rumors that Lincoln might free the slaves. You would think that I would have been happy when the Union army came to Appomattox on April 8, but when one of those soldiers approached me to ask if I had seen the Confederates anywhere, I was too afraid to tell the truth. I was scared my master might find out what I said and hurt me. The next day, during the battle around the village, I saw something I never thought I would ever see in my life, African American soldiers fighting for the Union army! I was so proud. They must have scared the Confederate troops, because not long after they showed up on the battlefield, the Confederate army surrendered. The Union army brought something else with them when they showed up at Appomattox: The Emancipation Proclamation, freedom for the slaves! FREE! My people were overjoyed! We sang songs! We laughed. We cried. But still, we were also really unsure. We were free now, but where would we go now? We had never been able to go to school, vote, or even get legally married. Would that change for us now? How would we make money? Would Americans respect us and consider us fellow countrymen?

1. What were some hard things Fannie Berry experienced living as an enslaved person?
2. What were some things Berry saw during the battle of Appomattox Court House?
3. What did the Union army bring for Fannie Berry?
4. What are some things that Berry worries about that might be the same as a Union or Confederate soldier?
5. What are some things that Berry worries about that might be different from a Union or Confederate soldier?

Charles Minnigerode (Worksheet 2C)

My name is Charles Minnigerode, and I was born in 1845 in Williamsburg, Virginia. I deeply love Virginia, just like my father. He was born in Germany, but he liked America’s religious freedoms so much that he moved to Virginia to become a minister. My father’s church in Richmond had both Robert E. Lee, the head of the Confederate army, and Jefferson Davis, President of the Confederacy, as members. When war came to Virginia, I knew I had to defend her. So, in 1862, when I was only 16, I ran away to join the Confederate army. My mother was very worried about me, but I wrote her lots of letters while I was away. I worked my way up to be a staff officer for a general in the Confederate cavalry. I was at the general’s side on April 9, 1865, when something terrible happened to me! That day we were on the battlefield near the village of Appomattox Court House, we were fighting pretty hard. Suddenly, we heard orders to stop fighting. We started to ride away from the battlefield to avoid surrendering, but I was shot in the back! Hitting my head on the ground, I realized I had fallen from my horse. Everyone gathered around me with tears in their eyes. They knew there was nothing that they could do for me, as I was told I would die from my wounds. They left me and rode off. I was writing my mother a goodbye letter when I was found by a Union surgeon. He bandaged me up and took me to a Union field hospital. The doctor removed the bullet that had lodged in my chest. Everyone there was so kind to me, but as I laid in my hospital bed, there were so many things that I was unsure of. What would happen to me now that we had lost? What would my country look like? Would Confederate soldiers like me be considered citizens again? What about all my friends who fought with me? Would they be remembered and honored? Would the South and her people still be respected?

1. How old was Minnigerode when he enlisted, and why did he join the Confederate army?
2. How was Minnigerode involved in the battle of Appomattox Court House?
3. Who saved Minnigerode?
4. What are some things that Minnigerode worries about that might be the same as a Union soldier, or an enslaved person?
5. What are some things that Minnigerode worries about that might be different from a Union soldier, or an enslaved person?

Character Trait Matching Activity(Worksheet 3)

2. Students will be given a worksheet with pictures of Wainwright, Berry and Minnigerode in the middle (Worksheet 3). Around the border are different thoughts and quotes that can be ascribed to each figure highlighting unique biographical concerns. With table partners, students will match the number on the pictures to the corresponding quote. Students can come together as a class to report their findings.

• Charles Wainwright

1. What will America look like, now that the South is back in the Union?
2. Will everyone peacefully accept freedom for the enslaved?
3. Can we trust the soldiers to go peacefully back to their homes?
4. Will the country we fought hard for stay together?

• Fannie Berry

1. Will I ever be able to find parts of my family again?
2. Will I be respected as an actual citizen?
3. I have never been able to go to school before, will I get to go now?
4. Where will I live now that I am no longer forced to stay somewhere?

• Charles Minnigerode

1. What will my home look like now that we lost?
2. Will my friends who fought and died still be remembered?
3. Will I be able to accept that my way of life will no longer be the same?
4. Can I become an American citizen again?

Concluding Transfer Activity: Character Speech Bubbles (Worksheet 4)

Students will look at a period painting depicting the surrender meeting at Appomattox (Worksheet 4). Above three figures are blank speech and thought bubbles. They must come up with a line and that they imagine their person would “say or think,” synthesizing the information that they learned from studying different perspectives. Students will take turns saying their line for the class, making the picture “come to life.”