North Carolina songwriters Barney Rogers and Russell Johnson will perform original acoustic music inspired by the spirit and emotion of the American Civil War during Music of the Carolinas: Rogers and Johnson, a free performance on Sunday, May 10, at 3 p.m. at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh. (May 10 is Mother’s Day, but more on that later.) Both musicians have deep ancestral ties to the Civil War, and their songs are inspired by real people, places and events. They will play selections from their CD When the Bands Played.* PineCone co-sponsors the program.
Rogers and Johnson relate the hardships and hopes of the men who fought and the families who were left behind. From the sacrifices of six brothers joining the Confederacy in the song “The Tatham Boys” to the anticipation of the wearied veteran returning home in “Heading South,” they capture the emotions of a desperate time. Mother’s Day Connection With the Civil War
Did you know that Julia Ward Howe (who wrote “Battle Hymn of the Republic”) was so horrified by the devastation caused by the Civil War that she created Mother’s Day for Peace? In 1872 she began to promote this day to honor peace, motherhood and womanhood. The first Mother’s Day for Peace was held in Boston, Mass. that year. The next year, 18 cities had a Mother’s Day for Peace gathering.
Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia believed Mother’s Day should be a national celebration. In 1907 she persuaded her mother’s church in West Virginia to celebrate Mother’s Day on the second Sunday of May. Jarvis wrote ministers, businessmen and politicians to gain their support, and by 1911, Mother’s Day was celebrated in almost every state. In 1914 Pres. Woodrow Wilson officially proclaimed Mother’s Day as a national holiday.
For more information, call 919-807-7900 or access ncmuseumofhistory.org. The museum is located at 5 E. Edenton St., across from the State Capitol. Parking is available in the lot across Wilmington Street.
* For more CD information and images, go to http://www.rogersandjohnson.net/.
The N.C. Museum of History’s hours are Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. Admission is free. The museum is part of the Division of State History Museums, Office of Archives and History, an agency of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources. The department’s Web site is www.ncculture.com.