A Remnant of 1898

Periodically, we come across an item in our collection that, at first, leaves us mystified as to why someone felt the need to add it to our collection.  An example is one of the first items given to the Society, described in the register as “Remnant of a Rocket (1898).”   It was donated by a Concord resident along with some handkerchiefs and newspapers.  Rummaging around in the depths of Hosmer House storage, we came across the remnant, which turned out to be a torn paper tube.

Though some of the writing is gone, what is left says, “This was exploded at the reception… General Fitzhugh Lee on his arrival in Washi__ . C. on the evening of April 12, 1898. At the Shore[h]am a few friends being in attendance”

From the writing that we could decipher, we were able to identify the occasion.   General Fitzhugh Lee was a well-known figure in 1898.  Nephew to Robert E. Lee, after graduating from West Point, he served in the cavalry in Texas and as a West Point cavalry instructor before resigning his commission to serve in the Confederate army.  After the war, he farmed and eventually became governor of Virginia.  He was appointed consul-general in Havana by Grover Cleveland in April 1896 and was retained in the role under William McKinley.  Cuba, still under Spanish control, was experiencing an uprising that continued throughout Lee’s tenure as consul-general.  The US press had much to say about Cuba and made much of Lee as a defender of American citizens who had difficulties with Spanish authorities.  In February 1898, the battleship Maine, sent to Havana harbor to ensure the safety of Americans after a series of riots, was blown up.  In April, President McKinley decided to intervene militarily in Cuba.  Fitzhugh Lee left Havana on April 10 with a group of evacuating Americans. 

Thanks to the press, public sentiment was ready for, as the Los Angeles Evening Express put it, “the creation of a hero.  The people wanted somebody on whom to lavish their pent-up patriotic enthusiasm.”  (April 13, 1898, p. 4)  Newspapers all over the country obliged.  (Lee’s Southern roots, his reputation as someone who wanted reconciliation between North and South in the post-war years, and the fact that presidents of different political parties had kept him in Cuba, helped to broaden his appeal to the American public.)  When Fitzhugh Lee arrived in Florida and took a special train up the coast, he was greeted at every stop by cheering crowds.  He made a “triumphal entry” into Washington, DC.  He went to the state department, the White House, and the Capitol to meet with the Senate’s foreign relations committee.  During the evening of April 12, the Richmond Times-Dispatch, reported that there was “one of the most remarkable demonstrations that the city has ever seen.” (April 13, 1898, p. 1).  Thousands gathered in the streets around the Shoreham Hotel where he was staying.  When he came out on a balcony after 9 pm, bands played, the crowd cheered, and fireworks were set off.  

Fitzhugh Lee, from Popular Graphic Arts, Public Domain, via Wikimedia Commons

We do not know who picked up the remnant of an April 12, 1898 firework rocket.  Experiencing the excitement that night must have made it worth someone’s while to keep it as a souvenir.  Over a century later, knowing the story helps us to understand why a ripped paper tube would become part of our collection.

Fitzhugh Lee’s observations and opinions were much sought-after during the two weeks before war was declared on April 25, 1898.  Soon thereafter, Acton men joined up to serve.  After training, they were sent to Cuba and elsewhere.  For information about one Acton man’s experiences in Cuba, see our blog post about William G. Rodway who, unfortunately, did not make it back home.

References:

• Eggert, Gerald. G. “Our Man in Havana: Fitzhugh Lee.” Hispanic American Historical Review, 1 November 1967, pp. 463-485.

• Longacre, Edward.  “Fitzhugh Lee.” Encyclopedia Virginia, Virginia Humanities, https://encyclopediavirginia.org/entries/lee-fitzhugh-1835-1905/

• Readnour, Harry Warren. “General Fitzhugh Lee, 1835-1905: A Biographical Study.”  PhD thesis, Department of History, University of Virginia, 1971.

 Newspapers (a selection among many available):

• “Gen. Fitzhugh Lee.” Waterbury Democrat [Waterbury, CT], 4 April 1898, p. 6.

• “General Lee's Varied Career.” Philadelphia Times, 10 April 1898, p. 21.

• “Lee and Sigsbee.” Boston Evening Transcript, 12 April 1898, p. 6.

• “Wait for Lee.” Topeka State Journal, Extra No. 4, 12 April 1898, p. 1.

• “Washington Goes Wild Over Gen. Lee.” Times Leader (Wilkes-Barre, PA), 13 April 1898, p. 1.

• Untitled. Los Angeles Evening Express, 13 April 1898, p. 4.

• “General Lee Welcomed Home” and “Capital City Capit.” Richmond Times-Dispatch [Richmond, VA}, 13 April 1898, p. 1.

• “What Might Have Been.” Boston Daily Globe, 14 April 1898, p. 6.

• “Fitzhugh Lee's Brilliant Record.” Richmond Times-Dispatch, 17 April 1898, p. 22.

• “Honor Fitzhugh Lee.” Weekly Times-Picayune [New Orleans, LA], 15 April 1898, p. 10.

• “Fitzhugh Lee.” The News and Advance [Lynchburg, VA], 15 April 1898, p. 6.

• “Patriotism Not Yet Dead.” Guthrie Daily Leader [Guthrie, OK],16 April 1898, p. 2.