DearMYRTLE - READERS' RESPONSE: SB Association

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READERS' RESPONSE: SB Association

DearREADERS,
RE: http://www.dearmyrtle.com/05/1124.htm THANKFULLY, we've got folks who responded with the following information:

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From: jimmy reynolds
DearMYRTLE,
My grandfather and great grandfather were Southern Baptist Preachers and were members of Southern Baptist Assn. Both were members of the SB Assn. I checked with the Sonrise Baptist Church here in Santee, CA. I was told It is still active. Hope this will help. Son rise is spelled correctly and they are the head of the Southern Baptist Campground in California.

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From: BJSGen@aol.com
DearMYRTLE,
"The Union Leagues were a group of organizations formed in the north to support the war and were basically patriotic in nature. They later became a way to shape public opinion, and “became a vibrant political force that left its stamp upon both the Civil War and Reconstruction.” (p 34) The idea grew out of the Wide Awake clubs that were organized in 1860 by the Republican party. (p. 34-5) While the Wide Awake clubs were generally disbanded after the 1860 election, the idea sprang up two years later to counter secessionism, in the form of secret and semi-secret societies. These groups were armed “with ‘knives, hatchets, shotguns, anything they can get their hands on.’” (p. 35)

The so-called exposés of the KGC, OAK, and SoL that were published in the newspapers added to the membership of these Union Leagues, and were good for the newspapers circulation as well. It was a process that fed on itself. The movement was good for politicians too. For example, “Governor Kirkwood [of Iowa] lent a hand to the practice of beating the bushes in search of golden circle members and encouraging the spread of the Union League as a patriotic countermeasure.” (p. 49)

The Spartan Band (SB) was another northern patriotic organization. It was a “semi-military organization” It was organized by John Wilson and John Trimble Jr., an “ex-pedagogue, an ex-abolitionist, and an ex-minister (Episcopalian).” (p. 49) The SB, while a northern patriotic society like the Union Leagues, was more like the unsuccessful KGC, OAK, and SoL, in that it “struggled for existence. The Union Leagues, unlike all the rest, flourished. (pp. 50-51) "

From: Frank L. Klement, Dark Lanterns: Secret Political Societies, Conspiracies, and Treason Trials in the Civil War. Louisiana State University Press: Baton Rouge, LA. 1984.

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DearREADERS,
Since the original query from Rhonda included a reference to an ancestor's "certificate which made him a Colonel in the SB Association. It was signed by the National Secretary, John Trimble, Jr." it would appear that the Spartan Band is the definition our researcher seeks.

Happy family tree climbing!
Myrt :)
DearMYRTLE,
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