Up Next, Monday, March 4th, 2024: “Southeastern Ohio Regiments”

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Nationally recognized Civil War expert to speak on Southeastern Ohio Regiments and display artifacts related to these regiments
1978 Ohio graduate Larry Strayer, who helped put together Time Life Books first Civil War series, will make a presentation on Southeastern Ohio regiments at the March 4th meeting of the General Charles H. Grosvenor Civil War Round Table. The meeting will be held at 7:00 p.m. in the large conference room of the Athens County Public Library Branch at the corner of Home and Lincoln streets, in Athens. Admission is free and all are welcome to attend.

Strayer’s presentation will feature brief descriptions of the war time service of various regiments raised in our area. These will be supplemented by the viewing of actual artifacts he has obtained from descendants of men who served in these regiments. He will tell the stories of how he obtained each artifact, often with a humorous bent. Many of these items were obtained by Strayer from grandchildren of the soldiers during the several years he lived in Athens after graduation.

Some of the artifacts that Strayer will have with him include photos of men enlisted in these regiments; the frock coat of Athens native Major Augustus Norton, of the 7th Ohio Cavalry; items related to the namesake of our round table, General Charles H. Grosvenor; and some relics that had belonged to Sargeant Launcelot L. Scott, Co G, 18th OVI, formerly of Nelsonville.

In addition to his work with Time Life books, Strayer was an active participant and troop coordinator in the 125th Civil War anniversary re-enactments in the mid to late 1980s. He was a co-founder with Rick Baumgartner, of Blue Acorn Press in 1991, releasing their first work “Echoes of Battle: the Atlanta Campaign,” a collection of illustrated 1st person narratives. Specializing in original works and enhanced reprints of western theatre subjects, Blue Acorn released more than 20 titles over nearly 25 years.

During the Civil War Sesquicentennial (2011-2015), Strayer loaned and curated two exhibits of artifacts and photographs to the Hayes Presidential Center and Marietta’s Campus Martius Museum, focusing on Ohio soldiers and their officers.

Currently, Stayer is co-compiling and editing “Echoes of Battle: Annals of Ohio Soldiers in the Civil War,” a three-volume set, with Volume 2 released this month. In his spare time, he keeps an ever-vigilant eye on the world of Civil War antiques and images, always looking for rare and unusual finds.

Meetings starts at 7:00 in the large conference room in the Athens County Library at the Corner of Home and Lincoln streets in the City of Athens.