Organization characterized most of the work for this week. While I continued trying to find different avenues towards understanding the Baker County community, I also took on new tasks. One such thing included preparing to scour the sources or more specifically, preparing for my visit to the Baker County Historical Society. Additionally, I took time to reevaluate the battle of Olustee itself and do some research into certain regiments. These efforts allowed me to review research methods essential to finding important sources.
The main focus of my week went towards organizing a meeting with the president of the Baker County Historical Society. During our last correspondence, I exchanged contact information with him. Therefore, I was assured that he had some recollection of not only myself, but also of our conversation. With the collected information I reached out to him to ask if Saturday the 15th would be an ideal date to visit. He informed me that the historical society was having an event throughout the morning, but that he would be available after 2:00pm. After also confirming this time with Dr. Gannon I was able to assure him of our visit. Next, I spent some time throughout the week organizing what I wanted to ask him. I collaborated with Dr. Gannon on this, and it was ultimately decided to focus more so on the African American cemetery. Discovering more about this cemetery would provide further confirmation about the location of the mass grave or even the outcome of some of the fallen black Union soldiers. My previous conversation with the president of Baker County Historical Society included inquiries about the cemetery as well. This produced an alleged name for it, Mount Herman. However, after trying to verify this with Dr. Gannon we realized that he may have been mistaken or the name provided was not exactly the adjacent cemetery associated with Olustee. Therefore, during our trip on Saturday it is vital to try and confirm details about this cemetery through any written mentions or helpful resources.
In addition to preparing for this visit I also did more formal research into the Olustee regiments. I was tasked with learning more about the 115th New York regiments. Initially, I was not able to find much aside from a few random mentions and online but not accessible memorabilia of soldiers' letters. Through this I gleaned that soldiers in this regiment were on the front lines of the battle and took heavy causalities. Then, through more research I discovered useful data on Family Search. This database told me where the companies recruited from and other details. Moreover, this database shared its resources so I was able to directly see more thorough articles and sources. Through this method, I viewed a New York state website that provided more general information about the regiment such as casualty statistics from different battles. This process reminded me of the importance in thoroughly examining various sources. It is not enough to gauge them for content. Rather it is essential to browse for additional information cited in footnotes or a bibliography. Through more exploration I have not found more personal accounts of the soldiers. However, I am hoping that through continued efforts I will be able to understand more about this regiment, subsequently humanizing the soldiers who sacrificed their lives during this battle.
Overall, I enjoyed reviewing my skills in research methods. More importantly, I am looking forward to my visit to the Baker County Historical Society. I hope that it will be not only informative, but also collaborative and perhaps encourage the growth of the "Olustee network."
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