George Singleton tells of many Civil War-era inventions, innovations

George Buster Singleton

(For decades, local historian and paranormal investigator George “Buster” Singleton published a weekly newspaper column called “Somewhere in Time.” The column below, which was titled “Civil War era brought many inventions, firsts,” was originally published in the Jan. 7, 1988 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

I take leave of the happenings of our beloved Monroe County with this article, due to the many events of the holiday period and partly because of the inclement weather during this same time span.

I do not admit to getting older, but I have become more cautious during these latter years. And, besides, the top on my motorcycle leaks when it rains. How’s that for an excuse? So this reason alone is enough to keep one out of the bad weather, looking for something to write about.

Since the Civil War is my second love (behind the history of Monroe County), I will try to bring to my readers’ attention some of the firsts that distinguished the warring armies. Many experiments bordered on lunacy, but, for better or worse, many were tried during this period.

Take, for example, the fact that despite the many modern developments spawned by the war, thousands of the soldiers on both sides during its early days went into battle wearing body armor. Newspapers had advertised that iron breastplates would shield them from death. Many casualties resulted from this practice.

Both Union and Confederate inventors turned out weird, fork-barreled cannons. These were supposed to fire two shots at the same time. The two cannonballs were joined by a piece of chain, so that enemy troops would be mowed down, provided they were standing in the right spot and in a group.

Our brothers of the Confederates built a steam-powdered cannon of mammoth size which flung cannonballs from a hopper without the benefit of gunpowder. But too many of the cannonballs hardly made it out of the end of the barrel.

Many taxes first came into being during the Civil War. Some of these were the income tax, withholding tax, tobacco tax and cigarette tax.

Would you believe that the first “aircraft carrier” was put into use during the Civil War? This was a boat that was designed especially for hauling observation balloons. The poor, miserable soul who drew the assignment to go aloft in an observation balloon was the most sought-after target in the whole war, regardless of which side he was on.

Truly, the Civil War was a breeding ground for many of the items of war we use today. Such items as railroad artillery, naval torpedoes, repeating rifles, snipers, ironclad naval vessels, hospital ships and a machine gun that really worked.

The Federal army exhibited a miraculous water-walking device that was supposed to make military bridges a thing of the past, allowing armies to pass over streams and rivers. Each soldier would wear tiny canoes on his feet, and drive himself over the water with a small paddle. I wonder what type of training the cavalry horses received for the river crossings. I’m sure the war would have been over much sooner had they been successful in this endeavor. Had I been a Rebel general and looked across a river to see a horse and rider walking across the top of the water, I would have surrendered quickly.

The bugle call “Taps” originated on the bloody battlefields of this conflict. And, too, the highest decoration of our land for bravery beyond the call of duty. The Medal of Honor was first awarded during the dark days of this war.

But we must not ever forget that this terrible conflict that brought our beloved nation to its knees, had a more serious side. In many instances, brother fought brother and father fought son. Many families were divided; the nation was split apart.

So, in closing, what more appropriate words could be said than the following lyrics:

No more shall the war cry sever,
Or the winding rivers be red;
They banish our anger forever
When they laurel the graves of our dead!
Under the so and the dew that cover,
Waiting the judgement day –
Love and tears for the Blue,
Tears and love for the Gray…

(Singleton, the author of the 1991 book “Of Foxfire and Phantom Soldiers,” passed away at the age of 79 on July 19, 2007. A longtime resident of Monroeville, he was born to Vincent William Singleton and Frances Cornelia Faile Singleton, during a late-night thunderstorm, on Dec. 14, 1927 in Marengo County, graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1946, served as a U.S. Marine paratrooper in the Korean War, worked as a riverboat deckhand, lived for a time among Apache Indians, moved to Monroe County on June 28, 1964 and served as the administrator of the Monroeville National Guard unit from June 28, 1964 to Dec. 14, 1987. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks to warrant officer in May 1972. For years, Singleton’s columns, titled “Monroe County history – Did you know?” and “Somewhere in Time” appeared in The Monroe Journal, and he wrote a lengthy series of articles about Monroe County that appeared in Alabama Life magazine. It’s believed that his first column appeared in the March 25, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal. He also helped organize the Monroe County Museum and Historical Society and was also a past president of that organization. He is buried in Pineville Cemetery in Monroeville. The column above and all of Singleton’s other columns are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here each week for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work and memory alive.)