Google Earth Quiz Number One Test your Aerial Reconnaissance Skills Amaze your friends If you're like me, when there are dishes to be done, or garbage cans waiting to be emptied, it means only one thing: time to sit down at the computer for a nice long session of Google Earth. This evening I put together a little geography quiz for faithful readers. Can you identify the location or significance of the following Civl War scenes? Name the battle? Identify a few landmarks? Judge the season and time of day based on tree shadows? Click on the images to get a larger view.A number of them are fairly easy, I think, due to road configurations (and in fact, I forgot to turn off the road names on at least one photo) or distinct features. On a couple photos, I placed push-pins to set-off the the tell-tale extant Civil War clues (a building, or monument) amidst a sea of residential and commercial development. All of the images were the scenes of bloody battles, or at least well-known peripheral fights associated with major campaigns (nothing too obscure). Four of them are from the Western Theater, four are from the East. One is in the Trans-Mississippi. In all of the photos, there is some famous battlefield feature in the center of the image, or nearly the center, though you may find something along the edges to help solidify your hunch—the more features you identify, the more impressive your answer will be. Post your answers as comments to this blog entry, and in a day or two I'll identify each image, and post some maps and other photos to show how the fighting transpired, or how the troops were aligned in these landscapes. I'll also heap plaudits upon the winner, if there is one. Don't cheat by looking up the coordinates before posting your guesses or answers (use them to check your work, if you're dying to know). I did not notice they were listed until after the fact, and it's way too much trouble to go back and edit those out, then upload again. As the quiz evolves from this trial run, I'll edit out those clues. If you do not have a broadband connection to view this page, please accept my apologies, and also my invitation to join the rest of us in the 21st century.No. 1
No. 2
No. 3
No. 4
No. 5
No. 6
No. 7
No. 8
No. 9
David:
1 Franklin?
3. Mississippi River maybe FTs Donaldson * Henry
4. Gettysburg
8 Pea Ridge
regards, Pete
Not sure my setup allows moving the images, but it would be nice if I could zoom in and out as you seem to indicate.
#2 - the entry road to Wilson's Creek starts out like this. The park has lots of trees, too.
#6 - after my recent weekend at Stone's River/Murfreesboro, that's my guess for this one.
Of course, it also reminds me of some of a field in North Georgia, where we stood in the freezing cold and looked across the open areas.
Terry
David,
I think you are giving us to much credit for geography however #3 is easy with the bend of the Mississippi: Vicksburg.
Best regards,
Dave
On closer inspection, I do not see the cliffs below the fort so this is probably not Vicksburg. See! You need 3D rendering....
-Dave
Dave,
I believe #3 is the Point on Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, with the Tennessee River and part of Moccasin Bend showing.
RYOS, John
3D computer enhancement would give a much better feel for elevation changes, also I assume North is up. You did not state.
John,
Yes, you are probably right. However that means that rascal David did not show us the main part of the battlefield! So cruel.
Best regards, Dave
>>However that means that rascal David did not show us the main part of the battlefield! So cruel. <<
He has an evil mind. <g>
However, there was fight when Hooker took Lookout Mountain.
> However, there was fight when Hooker took Lookout Mountain.
John, yes General Hooker did good. If I may rant a little:
Gen. Hooker was the key to the victory at Chattanooga. Gen. Grant never gave him any credit, but on the next day after he took Lookout, he began a flanking action against Gen. Bragg with all of this force. Grant always maintained that Hooker stalled at the burned bridge on the Chattanooga Creek and did nothing useful. But in reality, Hooker pressed his forces and not only got behind Bragg but attacked along the front side of Missionary Ridge also.
Grant had been talking to Gen. Thomas all afternoon about a diversionary attack up the Ridge to help Gen. Sherman (who had so many troops at his disposal that he was sending some of them back!), but Thomas, who knew by the lack of fire from that end of the Ridge that Sherman had already failed, stalled Grant as long as he could to give Hooker the time he needed. When he did move out, Thomas' men faced Confederates who had already decided to bail out as they knew their line of retreat was being cut off. The only real 'Miracle at Missionary Ridge' was that not one small part of Grant's plan worked, yet he was credited with great generalship at that battle and promoted to overall command. And who did he promote to replace him? Gen. Sherman, the guy who fell on his face at 'Billy Goat Hill'. And who received a Thanks of Congress for the great victory? General Sherman. Generals Hooker and Thomas received no credit then or now. History is written by the victors of course, but especially by the top dog generals.
>History is written by the victors of course, but especially by the top dog generals.<
See also Upton at Winchester, Crook at Fisher's Hill and Warren at Five Forks.
Steve Meserve
> Upton at Winchester, Crook at Fisher's Hill and Warren at Five Forks
Steve,
I'm embarrassed to say I am not familiar with the actions at Winchester or Fisher's Hill, but I know what you are saying about Gen. Warren at Five Forks. He was treated very badly by history due to the despicable Gen. Sheridan.
>He was treated very badly by history due to the despicable Gen. Sheridan.<
Each action was a case in which the despicable egomaniac Little Phil claimed credit for what other men did. His treatment of Crook after Fisher's Hill ended a 20-year friendship.
> His treatment of Crook after Fisher's Hill ended a 20-year friendship.
My esteem for Gen. Crook is now even higher on reading this info. I have always thought him the best of the Indian fighters as he tried to be fair with them after defeating them in battle.
What can I say about the beloved Sheridan? Every time I study a battle in which he took part, I am less and less impressed with him. He did OK at Stones River although he eventually lost his nerve and left the battlefield, but he did really terrible at Chickamauga, basically running away all the way to Rossville, yet claimed in his memoirs that he returned to the battlefield and 'closed up' on the left of Gen. Thomas. From reviewing the ORs, it appears the best he did was lead a mounted scouting party to the vicinity of the battlefield in the evening. He then said in his memoirs that if Thomas had kept his nerve that night and not withdrawn to Rossville, that between his force (barely more than one brigade) and Thomas' force, he thought they would have defeated the rebels that next morning. He of course wrote this after Thomas was long dead. What unmitigated gall our little fellow had!
>He did OK at Stones River although he eventually lost his nerve and left the battlefield, but he did really terrible at Chickamauga<
I hope someday we can get you to the Berryville Gorge so you can see just how flawed his battle plan for Third Winchester was. Had he not enjoyed such an overwhelming majority of troops on the field, particularly cavalry, that battle would have been Early's victory. Likewise, it was Sheridan's disposition of troops around Middletown that led to the near disaster at Cedar Creek, a battle Wright had already won before Sheridan ever reached the field; but look who got the credit for the victory.
I think so little of the man, I once spit on his grave before I even realized what I was doing. Had there not been so many people around, I might have done something else.
John: > believe #3 is the Point on Lookout Mountain, Tennessee, with the Tennessee River and part of Moccasin Bend showing.<
Right you are -- you made the most of your home court advantage.
Dave: >3D computer enhancement would give a much better feel for elevation changes, also I assume North is up. You did not state.<
You're right, I should have at least given the orientation. Next time I'll state that up front.
re: Lookout Mountain
Dave: >However that means that rascal David did not show us the main part of the battlefield! So cruel.<
I was going to show Orchard Knob and Missionary Ridge, since you can see the monuments on the knob, but I couldn't get an image of it that wasn't blurry. At least I covered myself with this qualification:
"All of the images were the scenes of bloody battles, or at least well-known peripheral fights associated with major campaigns (nothing too obscure). "
> Had there not been so many people around, I might have done something else.
The image that popped into my head gave me a real chuckle. However since I assume the man is planted in Arlington, I'm glad you showed restraint. <smile>.
