American History Ex

Philly Civil War buffs mourn the unexpected loss of their museum.

by Mike Newall

Mark Stehle A Dumpster sits outside the former home of the Civil War Museum. State funding fell through, and now the museum is homeless.

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Last summer, a handwritten sign was taped to the door of the Civil War Museum of Philadelphia, a nondescript redbrick building at 18th and Pine. The museum had been there for eight decades.

"The Civil War museum is now and forever closed at this location," it read.

It went on to say that the museum, which owned one of the most respected Civil War collections in the nation, would be relocating to The First Bank Building at Third and Chestnut. Philly Civil War buffs were excited. While Philadelphia markets its revolutionary history, it had long ignored the city's prominent role in the Civil War. The museum was crumbling. The new site, an impressive building in the heart of the historic district, would open in time for Philly's big 2011 Civil War sesquicentennial events.

On Sunday, however, the Inquirer reported the deal was off. Gov. Ed Rendell withdrew $15 million in promised state funding, citing budgetary constraints. Having sold its old headquarters in expectation of the state money, the museum is now homeless.

On Monday the news reverberated around the local Civil War community.

Dan Rolph, historian and head of reference services for the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, reclined at his overflowing desk. Rolph is from Kentucky, and shares the white hair, dark eyebrows and solemn expression of his favorite general, Confederate Commander Robert E. Lee. ("He was liked by both sides," Rolph explained.)

"This is very regrettable," said Rolph, rubbing his beard. "I used to go there during lunch and do research. It was a wonderful place."

He opened a cardboard box containing the diary of Lt. Col. Frank T. Bennett of the 55th Pennsylvania Volunteers, taken prisoner off the coast of Georgia on March 16, 1862. The only paper Bennett had was a novel titled Lotus-Eating: A Summer Book. He penned his thoughts in the tiny spaces between the book's lines. Rolph settled upon an entry dated "18th of March" and slowly made out the words.

"This narrow cell ... nail studded door padlocked upon us ... the strangely barred windows ... can this be real?"

An hour later, James G. Mundy Jr., director of library and historical collections for the Union League, arranged some Civil War documents on a table inside a dignified and polished reading room. Mundy is a composed man who prefers bowties and possesses a savant-like knowledge of the Civil War. He calmly retraced the path of Abraham Lincoln's Philadelphia funeral procession.

"Arrived at the railroad depot at Broad and Washington at 6p.m. on April 22, 1865, then traveled north on Broad, west on Walnut, north on 21st, east on Arch, south on Third, and finally entered the south gate of Independence Park at 8:20 p.m."

"Every ward leader wanted Lincoln's body to pass through their part of town," added John J. Meko Jr., executive director of the League.

Mundy opened a leather-bound book containing the original witness testimony taken hours after the assassination in the parlor of the house where Lincoln lay dying. This is the only copy of these notes. Mundy turned the heavy pages and read the scrawling longhand.

"... I then heard the report of the pistol and saw Mrs. Lincoln catch him (the president) around the neck.

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"You can't get this stuff on eBay," said Meko.

The Union League will soon begin renovating its grounds to house the Civil War museum's 10,000 books. It will not have room for the artifacts.

"We will ensure that an important part of the Civil War museum's collection remains in Philadelphia," said Meko. "Hopefully all of it will. As some of us like to say, 'We're not just a one-war town.'"

For now, the museum has secured temporary office space at the PECO building, and hired a realtor to search for a permanent home in the historic district. But without state funding, keeping the collection in Philadelphia will be an uphill battle, says Sharon A. Smith, the museum's president and chief executive.

There are little-known Civil War sites in Philadelphia. Shortly after the war, as a gift for his military service, the Union League bought Ulysses S. Grant a townhouse at 2009 Chestnut. That address is now the law office of Young Park. The building has been rebuilt or remodeled. "Really, a former president lived here?" asked Park. "Should be some good luck." George Gordon Meade, a Philly native and the commanding union general at Gettysburg, was awarded a large home at 1836 Delancey. It has since been converted into apartments. A polite woman named Susan has owned it since the 1970s.

Susan likes to tell people how, walking to her Center City podiatrist, she once spotted a portrait of General Meade in someone's garbage.

"I picked it up," she remembers. "It was a shame just lying there. It's in my mother's basement now."

(mike.newall@citypaper.net)