Abraham Lincoln was inaugurated as the 16th President of the United States on March 4, 1861. He stated, in his address, "I have no purpose, directly or indirectly, to interfere with the institution of slavery in the States where it exists."
Carpetbaggers were Northerners who traveled south after the Civil War with goals of profiting off the Reconstruction. They sometimes partnered with Southerners known as scalawags.
The two-day Battle of Shiloh, near Pittsburgh Landing, Tennessee, ended on April 7, 1862. Confederate General Albert S. Johnson and his troops had battered the Union Army until reinforcements arrived and Union General Ulysses S. Grant's command on the battlefield shored up the sagging Union lines. The battle ended with the Confederates pushed back to where they had started - less 10,700 casualties, including Johnson, who bled to death from a leg wound. The North narrowly avoided defeat, but at the high cost of 13,000 casualties.
Union General Nathaniel Banks lost so many supplies to Confederate General Jackson's infantry during the Valley Campaign that the southern soldiers referred to him as "Commissary Banks."
Communicable diseases were a large factor in the failure of the Confederate's Cheat Mountain campaign in September of 1861. Although southern General Robert E. Lee had about 11,000 men in his six brigades, more that northern General Joseph J. Reynolds' opposing force, almost half of Lee's soldiers became ill at the same time. These sick troops were not only unavailable for combat but also consumed needed food. They also delayed incoming supplies as wagons were used to move them to the rear. Other soldiers were also taken out of combat to attend to the sickened men.
The Grand Rapids Civil War Round Table welcomes the return of Father Robert Miller and his new presentation, "Confederate Christian Warrior: Father James Sheeran of the 14th Louisiana."
Father James Sheeran was one of the most colorful figures, soldier or not, of Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, and indeed of the entire Civil War. He was a widower, an Irish immigrant, a committed Confederate, a dedicated Catholic priest and religious, and an outspoken warrior of the Lord’s army whether North or South. He could be blunt, outspoken and cantankerous to officers, soldiers and even civilians if need be. Yet his spiritual and personal attention to the troops in his care was exemplary and was noticed by nearly all in the Confederate army.
As chaplain of the 14th Louisiana, and one of very few “full-time” Catholic chaplains (only 15 of 126) in either army, Sheeran interacted with nearly every high-ranking Confederate officer in the Army of Northern Virginia. His 1861-1864 chaplain’s ministry is filled with humor & stories, pathos & horror, color and drama. His insightful Civil War journal (recently released in un-abridged form) may be the best chaplain’s journal ever published after the War. As Gen. Howell Cobb’s (GA politician/general) reminisced in 1863, “the 14th Louisiana were the most favored in the service, for while they had Gen. Zable to damn them, they had Father Sheeran to save them.” This talk will be a fascinating walk through an aspect of the Civil War rarely spoken of!
Rev. Robert J. Miller, Catholic priest, former Pastor (35 years in Chicago); Adjunct Professor of Ecclesiology, Archdiocese of Chicago; author of “Both Prayed to the Same God: Religion and Faith in the American Civil War”, “Under Two Flags – Catholic Confederate Chaplains”, and “Faith of the Fathers – The Comprehensive Study of Catholic Civil War Chaplains”.
Membership fees for the 2025-2026 season are $30.00.
Checks can be made out to GRCWRT.
Get your membership/renewal form on our website
membership page or at one of our meetings.
Dues are based on the meeting year, September - June.
We are always looking for new speakers. If you would like to give a presentation to the GRCWRT, or can recommend someone, please contact our program director.
Wednesday
June 17, 2026
Father Robert Miller
Confederate
Christian Warrior:
Father James Sheeran
of the 14th Louisiana
We Meet At:
Orchard View Church of God
2777 Leffingwell Ave. NE
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Located at the southwest corner of
3 Mile Road NE and Leffingwell Avenue NE
Doors open at 6:30 p.m.
Program begins at 7:00 pm
Civil War Notes
Our Next Meeting
Special Announcements:
Father James B. Sheeran
14th Louisiana, CSA
