Here in Maryland there are lots of Brother against Brother stories. Maryland
had regiments on both sides ( They sometimes met in combat. Was it Culps Hill
and Kernstown that stick in my mind?) As I have said before, you can tell when
you cross from Virginia into Maryland because the town square has a monument to
the fallen vets of WW1 instead of the Daughters of the Confederacy monument.
And when you cross into Pennsylvania you see the Grand Army of the Republic
Monument. I believe this is at least partially due to the touchiness of the
subject in the post war years. Kydd Douglass was arrested in the 1870s or 80s
when he got dressed up in his Confederate Uniform to have a picture taken.
Especially in the officer corps it was friend against friend. These officers
had been friends and associattes since their days at West Point. And I can
say from experience that sometimes that creates closer ties than brothers have.
Oh I had distant relatives on both sides from the town of Cambridge on
Marylands eastern shore. Not brothers but nephew/uncle or something like that.
But in Cambridge that was very close (they probably worked together on the
family fishing boat). Also had another that bought his way out of the army (I
think, the family story is rather vague. something about hiring a substitute
who then deserted.)
Bob Smart (bsmart@smart.com)