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The Caudill Flag owned by compatriot Ray Amburgey was present at the Crown Hill dedication in Indianapolis and was placed in a prominent location. The sacred soil of Kentucky and Virginia was spread around the monument containing the remains of the 13^th Kentucky men. Our general attended the Camp Douglas memorial service and offered sacred soil for all our ancestors remaining behind in those 80 acres of hell. The Caudill Flag also flew beside General Lee as he offered a presentation on the flags at the Battle for Columbia, South Carolina. The people were too kind to this unworthy servant. The ole general presented H. K. Edgerton a Confederate Naval Jack at the 1:00 opening ceremony. He was most grateful to the Caudill Camp for their gift of support. He stated that he would be honored to attend a camp meeting, possible in June or July. With Principles to Maintain, I remain your obedient servant, The Old General…. Laus Deo

Since the Good Commander is currently in the unenviable situation of having to relocate to new quarters I will submit my monthly musings a bit early. To those of us involved in reenacting the month of April ended on a high note with the Battle of Cumberland reenactment. The weather was perfect for wool uniforms (overcast day and temps in the 50's) the only problem was a severe shortage of Yankees to shoot at. The SCV KY Division Reunion was held in Prestonsburg. Treasurer Danny Taylor and myself were delegates representing the Caudill Camp. The following items were discussed: (1) Don Shelton has resigned from the post of Heritage Defense but has retained the post of Lost Cause Editor. No replacement has been announced. (2) Dr. Thomas Hiter been reelected as head of the KY Division. Tommy Rector has been reelected Lt Commander of the KY Division and David Harbolt has been elected Commander of the Central Brigade. (3) The subject of license plates was discussed and it has been decided to pursue a Confederate Heritage Plate that will be available to the general public. Test ads have been proposed to gauge publish reaction to the idea. The minimum number of plates that can be ordered is 1000 at a cost of $25.00 per license plate. (4) There is still discussion on the Vicksburg monument. There have been some detail changes to the design and it has been decided to pursue other bids on the project in order to generate lower construction costs.  (5) Letters will be sent to Camp Commanders on the subject of raising money to send kids to Sam Davis Youth Camps. (6) An auction was held to raise money for the construction of the Vicksburg monument. Approximately $370.00 was raised through the sale of donated items. (7) On Sunday morning a church service was held at the Samuel May house. East KY Brigade Chaplain Johnny P. Back and Caudill Camp Chaplain Tabby Back conducted the service. The crowd was not large but the service was moving and well received by all who were present. (8) Next years reunion will be held in Paducah, KY. (9) Compatriot David Harbolt who is Commander of the Central Brigade has a nephew- Steven Bradley Piankston-who was severely wounded in Iraq. He is currently in Bethesda MD. David has asked that all SCV members please remember him in prayer. Caudill Camp Chaplain Tabby Back and myself as East KY Brigade Chaplain conducted the worship service on Sunday Morning. On a final note, Our Adjutant, friend and comrade Richard Brown's wife has undergone surgery. Please remember to pray for her health and safety. Deo Vindicie Lt Commander John Back 

The Colonel Ben E. Caudill Camp is still the largest camp in the state of Kentucky with 91 members. Lt. Commander Johnny P. Back and Treasurer Danny Wright represented our camp at the Kentucky Division Reunion on the weekend of May 6^th and 7^th that was held in Prestonsburg. Camp members Danny Wright, Tabby Back and others represented our camp in the small skirmish that occurred on the Middle Creek Battlefield. The Unknown Soldier Monument to be located at the Sandlick Cemetery is getting closer to becoming a reality. Hall Equipment donated $500 and Enterprise Mining Company donated $1,000 toward the project. Other coal companies have stated that they might donate toward the project as well. Rokie Frazier (Appalachian Monument) has ordered the stone this week. Four tombstones have been placed with at least two others on the way. The grass is growing rapidly and was cut last weekend by members Glenn Brown and Wendell Brown. The cemetery looks so much better now that our camp has worked on it, it doesn’t look like the same place. The Pound Gap Monument is getting plenty of visitors, the guest book is continually being added to. The County Jailer’s prisoner work release program cut some of the grass recently. We will need to have a working soon to clean up around the monument and cut the grass. I believe that during Memorial Day Weekend that the monument will be visited by dozens of visitors. The re-enactment at Jonesville, Virginia, will be on the weekend of June 3^rd and 4^th. This re-enactment is sponsored by Jerry Parsons and is always a great one to watch or participate in. The cost to register is $5.00 per re-enactor. The 5^th Kentucky Infantry re-enacting group will be participating in this event as a maximum effort. Many of our camp members are also members of this organization as well. The Kentucky Explorer published a story on the Pound Gap Monument dedication and re-enactment in its March edition. They also published several pictures and the story about the Battle of Whitesburg in their May edition. The magazine Back Home in Kentucky may be running a story about the Pound Gap Monument in the near future. Our accomplishments as a camp are really starting to be noticed and publicized. Adjutant Brown

I have a great saying that I wish to share. "Treasure each other in the recognition that we will not always have one another." The past couple of months have truly brought this saying to my thoughts since we have lost so many compatriots and loved ones. Sometimes we take people in our lives for granted and then the full realization of a loss knocks upon our door. General Lee offered a beautiful analogy of the love we have and its effect upon us. "Thus link by link the strong chain broken that binds us to the earth, and our passage soothed to another world. Oh, that we may be at last united in that heaven of rest, where trouble and sorrow never enter, to join in an everlasting chorus of praise and glory to our Lord and Saviour!.." Let us stop for just a moment and shake our brother’s hand in the realization that we someday too will cross that turbid vale. Please keep all the sick we know of in your prayers Your Chaplain Tabby Back

My Kepi and Me is a series honoring camp members and their ancestors. The purpose is to share their ancestor’s history as well as the current son occupying the seat of honor. This month let us stand and offer a silent salute to our fallen compatriot, Greg Caudill. Greg was born on August 20, 1957 to Margaret Back Caudill of Somerset and the late Mitchell Caudill. He had three brothers by the names of Jeff, Terry and Todd. His four sisters survive his passing. They are Carrie Caudill, Thelmarie Adams, Connie Adams, Legine Adams. Greg was a graduate of Letcher High School and worked at Rodney Ison’s Garage for several years. He was considered an ace mechanic and could listen to a motor and tell you what was wrong with it. Greg enjoyed bow shooting, black powder, 4 wheeling and jeeps. Greg was extremely proud of his heritage and would talk for hours about his kinfolk. His passion was for his confederate ancestry. He entered the camp on Private James C. Caudill. He was also related to Henry H. Caudill, Henry ‘Tush’ Caudill and Levi Eldridge, along with a host of others. He was a true friend to all and greeted you with a smile. Greg was very active in the Sons, setting stones and doing dedications until his illness prevented him from participating. Ladies & gentlemen let us tip our kepis and offer a moment of silence as the bell tows for our brother Greg Caudill.

Originally a resident of Morgan County, Joseph D. Adkins (Devil Joe) was born in 1829, married twice, and enlisted in the Confederate Army on October 21, 1861 at West Liberty, Kentucky as a 2nd Lieutenant. By July of 1862 he had been promoted to Captain of Company B and he remained in service through the reorganization of the original 5th Kentucky. He was captured in Morgan County on August 18, 1863 and taken to McLean Barracks in Cincinnati, Ohio. He served later in the war with an independent partisan ranger group in what is now Elliott County. A few months after the war, in October of 1865, another ex-Confederate Ned Perry killed Captain "Devil Joe" Adkins in a street brawl. The encounter took place in front of the Kendall Hotel on Main Street in West Liberty. Captain Adkins chose a rock as his weapon, Perry chose a pistol. His body was taken from West Liberty to his home on Howards Creek and he was laid to rest in the Adkins Cemetery.

This month we are embarking on a series of honoring yet another group of ‘soldiers’ that were relentless in their quest for freedom. We will offer our salutations to the Ladies of the South that gave not only of their families, homes and children but also were willing to risk their lives for what they believed. This month we salute Kate Cumming. Kate was born in 1835 in the town of Edinburgh, England. Her family moved to Montreal, Canada and later to Mobile, Alabama. Kate was noted to be very bright and full of life. Kate, though born in England was a natural for Southern society. She loved the lifestyle and relished the balls, tea and social life of Mobile. Ms. Cumming was not a supporter of the War Between the States, praying that the matter could be settled through diplomacy but when the union invaded the south she offered her services to the Confederacy as a nurse in the Army of Tennessee. At the age of 27 she accompanied approximately forty other ladies to northern Mississippi where she enlisted as a nurse in April of 1862. Her services were soon utilized as the war increased in intensity. She practiced nursing during the Battle of Shiloh, Corinth, and Okalona. Probably because of her intelligence, strong character and proficiency her reputation began to grow. She volunteered to go to Chattanooga and work at the Newsome Hospital. She became a Matron and was soon appointed to work with Dr. Staub. After the fall of Chattanooga she went to Georgia and attempted to bind the wounds of Sherman’s insane destruction of the state.

any were s 10.Many were skilled at arms manufacture or industrial skills- thus needed more in industry

Deposits 4/21/06=$246.00 5/03/06=$55.00 5/10/06=$1510.00 $1811.00

Balance 3/16/06 $ 878.41

Members Present

Open Floor: The camp paid their respects to our departed compatriot Greg Caudill prior to the meeting and a moment of silence was observed for those that have gone before. A resolution certificate will be presented to the family. Enterprise Coal donated $500 towards the cemetery monument. Commander Chaltas discussed the power pole at the monument. Susan Howell (State Dept. of Transportation) approved it. Hopefully it will be installed by our next meeting. Commander Chaltas requested that all entries for the Confederate Kin be submitted by May 30, 2006 so the book could be published in the month of June. All are welcome to submit a story regarding their ancestor. It was also announced that Commander Chaltas’ book on Poetry of the Civil War is on line at www.lulu.com/davidchaltas. The camp bylaws will have a second reading during the May meeting as brought to the floor by Wayne Watts and seconded by Richard Smith. Motion carried. East KY Brigade Commander Poynter discussed the Ky. Division Reunion and encouraged all to attend. Don Poynter drew Pauletta Breeding’s name for the quilt donated by Mike and Debbie Tyree. My Kepi and Me honored the late Jake Smith. A discussion was held regarding the license plates and Virginias drive to get a bicentennial of Lee’s 200^th birthday. Raymond Isaacs described the sign in stand that he made and placed inside the gazebo for visitors to sign. The camp is so appreciative of his efforts. Great job compatriot Isaacs! Chairman Gary Begley of the Leatherwood Reenactment Committee gave an update on the progress of the upcoming event. Gary discussed the proposal for strip-mining the mountain by the battlefield. A motion was placed on the floor to write a letter objecting to the mining operation so close to the actual battlesite. Carlos Brock seconded the motion and camp members voted unanimously to oppose the proposal. Commander Chaltas will draft a letter of opposition to the mining proposal on behalf of the camp. Camp certificates of membership were given to the following: Garland Kiser, Kelly Hall and Benji Adams. The Ben Caudill Scholarship will be presented to Letcher County Central. Trivia was played and an auction was held, raising $40.00. Closed meeting via prayer and meeting adjourned.