Fallen Flag Railroads

The Meaning of Bull Run

Surely, Confederates thought, their new enemies would see the impossibility of defeating a people so committed to their independence; the United States would be forced to acknowledge the Confederacy’s claims to nationhood. Surely, the Northerners thought, their new enemies would realize they could not overcome so vast and wealthy a nation as the United States and would rejoin the union they had helped create. A decisive battle would kill the rebellion in its infancy.

We know now, of course, how wrong both sides were. After all, how could they have imagined what lay before them, the four years and 620,000 American lives, the equivalent of six million lives today? How, too, could they have imagined that the war they began in earnest that day would become a war that would end perpetual bondage for four million people?

Such a profound consequence was far from the minds of people on either side that day, for such a consequence seemed impossible. But had the Civil War turned out differently, American slavery, never stronger than it was in 1861, might have lived on for generations, its survival changing the paths of world history. The significance of this battle, in other words, radiates far beyond the boundaries of the battlefield and far beyond the limits of the single day.

The land itself seemed destined for conflict. Part of it was a farm owned by a free black man, James Robinson. Susan Gaskins, with whom he raised a family even though she was enslaved, bore eight children with James and, as Virginia law dictated, the children took the mother’s status as slaves. Susan and her daughters were freed at the death of her owner, and James was able to earn enough money to buy two of their sons, but two other sons were sold to the Lower South by Susan’s owner.

Another part of this land was owned by a widow, Judith Carter Henry, who had left much of the farm fallow after her husband’s death a few years earlier; it had grown up in cedar and pine. She was 85 years old, an invalid tended by her son, daughter and a young enslaved woman, Lucy Griffith, whom Mrs. Henry hired from a neighboring minister.

Caterpillar orders George Elwood (Fallen Flag RRs) to remove pics ...

Legally, Caterpillar can enforce a trademark restriction. What they don't realize is the free publicity they get by their products constantly being displayed in model form and the negative publicity they receive by such actions.Major corporations and organizations don't care about bad publicity as evidenced by Ford constantly recalling cars because they explode when they get rear ended (Pinto and Crown Victorias in Police Specs), Walmart stripping municipality coffers, and cities building brand new stadiums despite cutbacks accross the board. Ford is still one of the best selling cars worldwide, Walmart enjoys a constant stream of profits, and stadiums are still being celebrated.We can all email Cat The bottom line, as long as they are at the top of the profit food chain, who cares what the little guy thinks? It's all about the Benjamins. Guys like George Elwood who operate their railfan sites at no profit and relying on donations to help support the site (notice the lack of advertisements on the website) do not have the resources to take on companies like Caterpillar in the legal arena. We can all mail their legal team, but the legal team also has delete options in their email. If we are going to email anyone, we should email Caterpillar's Public Relations Department, the CEO of Caterpillar, and emails of support to George Elwood in case he needs it for legal purposes later on as well as moral support. It's tough being picked on by bullies. Saw a copy of your letter to the owner of the Fallen Flags website. Why are you going after him for just having pictures of CAT/EMD locomotives? It's just a hobby. People have been taking pictures of trains since the 1800s. There are thousands of people who like railroads. Are you gong to go after all the railfans who have taken pictures of CAT/EMD locomotives? How about the model railroad companies that make models of those locomotives? Union Pacific & CSX railroads tried it but gave up. Talk to their lawyers. If this is your first visit to The Whistle Post - Model Railroad Forum please take the time to register . Registration is required for you to post on the forums. Registration will also give you the ability to track messages of interest, send private messages to other users, and view the full contents of TheWhistlePost.com including the Photo Gallery, Video/Audio/Text Chat, Classified Ads, Photo Contests, Social Groups, and more! Registration is free and takes just a few seconds to complete.

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