Charles Dana, virtually unknown or seldom covered by many Civil War historians, was a brilliant American journalist, author, and government official.
When Dana left the New York Tribune as Horace Greeley's right hand man, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton immediately made him a special investigating agent of the War Department. In this capacity, Dana discovered frauds of quartermasters and contractors. President Lincoln called him "the eyes of the administration;" and he spent considerable time at the front, sending Stanton frequent reports concerning the capacity and methods of various generals in the field. Most of us interested in the Civil War are familiar with Dana's reputation for "spying" on Gen. Grant during his Vicksburg campaign. His reports back to Secretary Stanton
and President Lincoln are thought to have weighed heavily in Grant's promotion to Lieutenant General.
Our members will remember our speaker, Steve Demory, who with his wife, Patrice, portrayed Thaddeus and Leontine Lowe at our program in January, 2007.
In this month's presentation, Steve will talk about Dana's background, the events that lead to his appointment as Assistant Secretary of War, and the truly significant role he played in forming the team that would eventually lead the federal forces to victory. As Secretary Stanton's right hand man and field operative, Dana had first hand experience with, and reported on, many of the war's pivotal events and personalities.
Steve and Patrice reside in Anaheim, and portray the Lowes and present the history of the U.S. Balloon Corps at local Civil War reenactments.
Steve became very interested in Charles Anderson Dana when his research found that he played such a critical and important role in the Civil War. He was fascinated by how Dana's role has been largely glossed over or even ignored in most history books. Steve works doing data entry at a security systems monitoring company where he has been for 25 years.
Come join us to learn about another intriguing figure in Civil War history.
Janet Whaley
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