75-588: The Andersonville National Historic Site , located near Andersonville , Georgia , preserves the former Andersonville Prison (also known as Camp Sumter ), a Confederate prisoner-of-war camp during the final fourteen months of the American Civil War . Most of the site lies in southwestern Macon County , adjacent to the east side of the town of Andersonville. The site also contains the Andersonville National Cemetery and
150-549: A feeling of incomplete defecation . Complications may include dehydration . The cause of dysentery is usually the bacteria from genus Shigella , in which case it is known as shigellosis , or the amoeba Entamoeba histolytica ; then it is called amoebiasis . Other causes may include certain chemicals, other bacteria, other protozoa, or parasitic worms . It may spread between people. Risk factors include contamination of food and water with feces due to poor sanitation . The underlying mechanism involves inflammation of
225-468: A national cemetery . It contains 13,714 graves, of which 921 are marked "unknown". As a National Cemetery, it is also used as a burial place for more recent veterans and their dependents. Visitors can walk the 26.5-acre (10.7 ha) site of Camp Sumter, which has been outlined with double rows of white posts. Two sections of the stockade wall have been reconstructed: the north gate and the northeast corner. Andersonville, Georgia Andersonville
300-498: A civil one. As such, survival often depended on the strength of a prisoner's social network within the prison. A prisoner with friends inside Andersonville was more likely to survive than a lone prisoner. Social networks provided prisoners with food, clothes, shelter, moral support, trading opportunities and protection against other prisoners. One study found that a prisoner having a strong social network within Andersonville "had
375-460: A commodity crop. It was not until 1968, when the large-scale mining of kaolin , bauxitic kaolin, and bauxite was begun by Mulcoa, Mullite Company of America, that the town was dramatically altered. This operation exploited 2,000 acres (8.1 km ) of scrub oak wilderness into a massive mining and refining operation. The company now ships more than 2000 tons of refined ore from Andersonville each week. In 1974, long-time mayor Lewis Easterlin and
450-470: A female householder with no husband present, and 30.6% were non-families. 26.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.67 and the average family size was 3.21. In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.8% under the age of 18, 9.4% from 18 to 24, 31.4% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 12.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
525-624: A group of concerned citizens decided to promote tourism in the town, redeveloping Main Street to look much as it did during the American Civil War. The city of Andersonville and the Andersonville National Historic Site, location of the prison camp, are now tourist attractions. As of the census of 2000, there were 331 people, 124 households, and 86 families residing in the city. The population density
600-570: A lack of market forces for research and development. Most vaccine development efforts are taking place in the public sector or as research programs within biotechnology companies. Dysentery is managed by maintaining fluids using oral rehydration therapy . If this treatment cannot be adequately maintained due to vomiting or the profuseness of diarrhea, hospital admission may be required for intravenous fluid replacement. In ideal situations, no antimicrobial therapy should be administered until microbiological microscopy and culture studies have established
675-473: A low-grade fever . Rapid weight loss and muscle aches sometimes also accompany dysentery, while nausea and vomiting are rare. On rare occasions, the amoebic parasite will invade the body through the bloodstream and spread beyond the intestines . In such cases, it may more seriously infect other organs such as the brain , lungs , and most commonly the liver . Dysentery results from bacterial , or parasitic infections. Viruses do not generally cause
750-518: A memorial to all American prisoners of war . Exhibits use art, photographs, displays, and video presentations to depict the capture, living conditions, hardships, and experiences of American prisoners of war in all periods. The museum also serves as the park's visitor center. The cemetery is the final resting place for the Union prisoners who died while being held at Camp Sumter/Andersonville as POWs. The prisoners' burial ground at Camp Sumter has been made
825-427: A petition signed by the majority of Andersonville's prisoners asking that the Union reinstate prisoner exchanges to relieve the overcrowding and allow prisoners to leave these terrible conditions. That request was denied. The petitioners, who had sworn to return, reported this to their comrades. During the war, 45,000 prisoners were received at Andersonville prison; of these nearly 13,000 died. The nature and causes of
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#1732779674059900-475: A prisoner at Andersonville, recalled "Before one was fairly cold his clothes would be appropriated and divided, and I have seen many sharp fights between contesting claimants". Although the prison was surrounded by forest, very little wood was allowed to the prisoners for warmth or cooking. This, along with the lack of utensils, made it almost impossible for the prisoners to cook the meager food rations they received, which consisted of poorly milled cornflour. During
975-579: A statistically significant positive effect on survival probabilities, and that the closer the ties between friends as measured by such identifiers as ethnicity, kinship and the same home town, the bigger the effect." A group of prisoners, calling themselves the Andersonville Raiders , attacked their fellow inmates to steal food, jewellery, money and clothing. They were armed mostly with clubs and killed to get what they wanted. Another group started up, organized by Peter "Big Pete" Aubrey, to stop
1050-463: A week. If the case is severe, antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin or TMP-SMX may be useful. However, many strains of Shigella are becoming resistant to common antibiotics, and effective medications are often in short supply in developing countries. If necessary, a doctor may have to reserve antibiotics for those at highest risk for death, including young children, people over 50, and anyone suffering from dehydration or malnutrition. Amoebic dysentery
1125-525: A week. The frequency of urges to defecate, the large volume of liquid feces ejected, and the presence of blood, mucus, or pus depends on the pathogen causing the disease. Temporary lactose intolerance can occur, as well. In some occasions, severe abdominal cramps, fever , shock , and delirium can all be symptoms. In extreme cases, people may pass more than one liter of fluid per hour. More often, individuals will complain of diarrhea with blood , accompanied by extreme abdominal pain, rectal pain and
1200-472: A year. It commonly occurs in less developed areas of Central and South America, Africa, and Asia. Dysentery has been described at least since the time of Hippocrates . The most common form of dysentery is bacillary dysentery, which is typically a mild sickness, causing symptoms normally consisting of mild abdominal pains and frequent passage of loose stools or diarrhea. Symptoms normally present themselves after 1–3 days, and are usually no longer present after
1275-522: Is a city in Sumter County , Georgia , United States. As of the 2020 census , the city had a population of 237. It is located in the southwest part of the state, approximately 60 miles (97 km) southwest of Macon on the Central of Georgia railroad . During the American Civil War , it was the site of a prisoner-of-war camp , which is now Andersonville National Historic Site . Andersonville
1350-440: Is a longstanding World Health Organization (WHO) target for vaccine development, and sharp declines in age-specific diarrhea/dysentery attack rates for this pathogen indicate that natural immunity does develop following exposure; thus, vaccination to prevent this disease should be feasible. The development of vaccines against these types of infection has been hampered by technical constraints, insufficient support for coordination, and
1425-512: Is also in contrast to toxins that cause watery diarrhea, which usually do not cause cellular damage, but rather they take over cellular machinery for a portion of life of the cell. Definitions of dysentery can vary by region and by medical specialty. The U. S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) limits its definition to "diarrhea with visible blood". Others define the term more broadly. These differences in definition must be taken into account when defining mechanisms. For example, using
1500-531: Is held by the Wisconsin Historical Society . Planning an escape from this camp was routine among the thousands of prisoners. Most men formed units to burrow out of the camp using tunnels. The locations of the tunnels would aim towards nearby forests fifty feet from the wall. Once out, escape was nearly impossible due to the poor health of prisoners. Prisoners caught trying to escape were denied rations, chain ganged, or killed. Playing dead
1575-413: Is often treated with two antimicrobial drugs such as metronidazole and paromomycin or iodoquinol . With correct treatment, most cases of amoebic and bacterial dysentery subside within 10 days, and most individuals achieve a full recovery within two to four weeks after beginning proper treatment. If the disease is left untreated, the prognosis varies with the immune status of the individual patient and
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#17327796740591650-650: Is part of the Americus micropolitan statistical area . The hamlet of Anderson was named for John Anderson, a director of the South Western Railroad in 1853 when it was extended from Oglethorpe to Americus. It was known as Anderson Station until the US post office was established in November 1855. The government changed the name of the station from "Anderson" to "Andersonville" in order to avoid confusion with
1725-407: Is particularly common in parts of the world where human feces are used as fertilizer. After entering the person's body through the mouth, the cyst travels down into the stomach. The amoebae inside the cyst are protected from the stomach's digestive acid. From the stomach, the cyst travels to the intestines, where it breaks open and releases the amoebae, causing the infection. The amoebae can burrow into
1800-404: Is restricted by convention to Shigella dysentery. Some strains of Escherichia coli cause bloody diarrhea. The typical culprits are enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli , of which O157:H7 is the best known. These types of E. coli also make Shiga toxin. A diagnosis may be made by taking a history and doing a brief examination. Dysentery should not be confused with hematochezia , which
1875-424: Is the passage of fresh blood through the anus, usually in or with stools. The mouth, skin, and lips may appear dry due to dehydration. Lower abdominal tenderness may also be present. Cultures of stool samples are examined to identify the organism causing dysentery. Usually, several samples must be obtained due to the number of amoebae, which changes daily. Blood tests can be used to measure abnormalities in
1950-769: The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), Department of Georgia, bought the site of Andersonville Prison through membership and subscriptions. It found that as their number was growing less year by year, and as it required a great deal of money to keep up the place, it would be better for them to offer it to the Woman's Relief Corps (WRC), the auxiliary to the GAR. When the WRC was in annual session in St. Paul, Minnesota , in 1896, representatives of
2025-497: The developing world . While medications used to decrease diarrhea such as loperamide are not recommended on their own, they may be used together with antibiotics. Shigella results in about 165 million cases of diarrhea and 1.1 million deaths a year with nearly all cases in the developing world. In areas with poor sanitation nearly half of cases of diarrhea are due to Entamoeba histolytica . Entamoeba histolytica affects millions of people and results in more than 55,000 deaths
2100-404: The intestine , especially of the colon . Efforts to prevent dysentery include hand washing and food safety measures while traveling in countries of high risk. While the condition generally resolves on its own within a week, drinking sufficient fluids such as oral rehydration solution is important. Antibiotics such as azithromycin may be used to treat cases associated with travelling in
2175-701: The larceny , calling themselves "Regulators". They caught nearly all of the Raiders, who were tried by the Regulators' judge, Peter McCullough, and a jury, selected from a group of new prisoners. This jury, upon finding the Raiders guilty, set punishment that included running the gauntlet , being sent to the stocks , ball and chain and, in six cases, hanging . The conditions were so poor that in July 1864, Captain Henry Wirz paroled five Union soldiers to deliver
2250-432: The poverty line , including 29.3% of those under age 18 and 13.5% of those age 65 or over. Dysentery Dysentery ( UK : / ˈ d ɪ s ən t ər i / DISS -ən-tər-ee , US : / ˈ d ɪ s ən t ɛr i / DISS -ən-terr-ee ), historically known as the bloody flux , is a type of gastroenteritis that results in bloody diarrhea . Other symptoms may include fever , abdominal pain, and
2325-539: The Andersonville Prison, arriving on April 30, 1864. An extensive and detailed diary was kept by John L. Ransom of his time as a prisoner at Andersonville. Father Peter Whelan arrived on June 16, 1864, to muster the resources of the Catholic church and help provide relief to the prisoners. At Andersonville, a light fence known as "the dead line" was erected approximately 19 ft (5.8 m) inside
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2400-453: The CDC definition requires that intestinal tissue be so severely damaged that blood vessels have ruptured, allowing visible quantities of blood to be lost with defecation. Other definitions require less specific damage. Amoebiasis , also known as amoebic dysentery, is caused by an infection from the amoeba Entamoeba histolytica , which is found mainly in tropical areas. Proper treatment of
2475-561: The Confederacy and the federal government after the war ended. He believed, correctly, the federal government would never see the list. Therefore, he sat next to Henry Wirz, who was in charge of the prison pen, and secretly kept his own list among other papers. When Atwater was released, he put the list in his bag and took it through the lines without being caught. It was published by the New York Tribune when Horace Greeley ,
2550-418: The Confederacy's refusal to include black Union troops in the exchanges. The stockade became severely overcrowded. During the war, disease was the primary cause of death in both armies. Infectious disease was a chronic problem, due to poor sanitation in regular as well as prison camps. A young Union prisoner, Dorence Atwater , was chosen to record the names and numbers of the dead at Andersonville, for use by
2625-478: The Georgia GAR came before them, and offering the old prison, asked them to accept the gift and keep it from desecration. The women accepted it as a sacred trust, and immediately appointed Lizabeth A. Turner , as chairman of a board to beautify the grounds and make a park of them. A house for a caretaker was needed, and as the women did not want to build it within the old stockade, more land was purchased making
2700-548: The National Prisoner of War Museum. The prison was created in February 1864 and served until April 1865. The site was commanded by Captain Henry Wirz , who was tried and executed after the war for war crimes . The prison was overcrowded to four times its capacity, and had an inadequate water supply, inadequate food, and unsanitary conditions. Of the approximately 45,000 Union prisoners held at Camp Sumter during
2775-546: The South after the close of the Civil War. Contrary to common belief, Wirz was not the only person prosecuted for his actions at Andersonville. James Duncan, who had worked in the quartermaster's office at Camp Sumter, was convicted of manslaughter for allegedly withholding food from some of the prisoners. Duncan had previously been called as a defense witness for Wirz, but was arrested when he arrived to give evidence. In 1890,
2850-497: The WRC also erected a monument to her memory in the park. In 1910, the site was donated by the WRC to the federal government. In the following year, the memorial tablet set up by the donors was unveiled. Upon the tablet are the names of the incorporators of the WRC as well as the names of the Board of Trustees for 1909-10, and the names of the committee on transfer to the government. The National Prisoner of War Museum opened in 1998 as
2925-551: The acreage within the enclosure about 87 acres (35 ha). A ten-room house was erected, a caretaker installed, and then the tedious process of making a park was begun. Bermuda grass was planted root by root, a pear and pecan orchard set out, and a rose garden planted, with rose bushes sent from almost every state in the Union. Several states were given ground upon which to erect monuments to their dead soldiers. These were Massachusetts , Ohio , Michigan , Rhode Island , and Wisconsin . Turner having died while in discharge of her duty,
3000-402: The camp. He concluded that it was due to " scorbutic dysentery " (bloody diarrhea caused by vitamin C deficiency). In 2010, the historian Rosemary Drisdelle said that hookworm disease, a condition not recognized or known during the Civil War, was the major cause of many of the fatalities among the prisoners. At the time of the Civil War, the concept of a prisoner of war camp was still new. It
3075-465: The conditions for the prisoners inside. He was found guilty, and sentenced to death. On November 10, 1865, he was hanged . Wirz was one of three men executed after the war for war crimes and the only Confederate official; the others were guerrillas Champ Ferguson and Henry C. Magruder . The revelation of the prisoners' sufferings was one of the factors that affected public opinion in the North regarding
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3150-469: The deaths are a source of controversy among historians. Some contend that the deaths resulted from Confederate policy and were war crimes against Union prisoners, while others state that they resulted from disease promoted by severe overcrowding, the widespread food shortage in the Confederate States, the prison officials' incompetence, and the breakdown of the prisoner exchange system, caused by
3225-439: The disease. These pathogens typically reach the large intestine after entering orally, through ingestion of contaminated food or water, oral contact with contaminated objects or hands, and so on. Each specific pathogen has its own mechanism or pathogenesis, but in general, the result is damage to the intestinal linings, leading to the inflammatory immune responses . This can cause elevated physical temperature , painful spasms of
3300-426: The heat and intensity of their feeling, exclaimed with earnestness. "Can this be hell?" "God protect us!" and all thought that he alone could bring them out alive from so terrible a place. In the center of the whole was a swamp, occupying about three or four acres of the narrowed limits, and a part of this marshy place had been used by the prisoners as a sink, and excrement covered the ground, the scent arising from which
3375-689: The human expansion out of Africa 50,000 to 200,000 years ago. The seed, leaves, and bark of the kapok tree have been used in traditional medicines by indigenous peoples of the rainforest regions in the Americas, west-central Africa, and Southeast Asia in the treatment of this disease. In 1915, Australian bacteriologist Fannie Eleanor Williams was serving as a medic in Greece with the Australian Imperial Force , receiving casualties directly from Gallipoli . In Gallipoli, dysentery
3450-445: The intestinal muscles ( cramping ), swelling due to fluid leaking from capillaries of the intestine ( edema ) and further tissue damage by the body's immune cells and the chemicals, called cytokines , which are released to fight the infection. The result can be impaired nutrient absorption, excessive water and mineral loss through the stools due to breakdown of the control mechanisms in the intestinal tissue that normally remove water from
3525-409: The land on which the prison was built, was both depot agent and postmaster. Until the establishment of the prison, the area was entirely dependent on agriculture, supported by dark reddish brown sandy loams later mapped as Greenville and Red Bay soil series. After the close of the prison and end of the war, the town continued economically dependent on agriculture, primarily the cultivation of cotton as
3600-466: The levels of essential minerals and salts . Efforts to prevent dysentery include hand washing and food safety measures while traveling in areas of high risk. Although there is currently no vaccine that protects against Shigella infection, several are in development. Vaccination may eventually become a part of the strategy to reduce the incidence and severity of diarrhea, particularly among children in low-resource settings. For example, Shigella
3675-469: The modern term deadline in the sense of a time limit derives from this.) At this stage of the war, Andersonville Prison was frequently under-supplied with food. By 1864, civilians in the Confederacy and soldiers of the Confederate Army were all struggling to obtain sufficient quantities of food. The shortage of fare was suffered by prisoners and Confederate personnel alike within the fort, but
3750-582: The most damaging was a letter to the Confederate surgeon general by James Jones, who in 1864 was sent by Richmond to investigate conditions at Camp Sumter. Jones had been appalled by what he found, and reported he vomited twice and contracted influenza from the single hour he'd toured the camp. His graphically detailed report to his superiors all but closed the case for the prosecution. Wirz presented evidence that he had pleaded to Confederate authorities to try to get more food and that he had tried to improve
3825-417: The paper's owner, learned the federal government had refused the list and given Atwater much grief. Atwater believed that the commanding officer Wirz had been trying to ensure that Union prisoners would be rendered unfit to fight if they survived the prison. Prisoner of war (POW) Newell Burch also recorded Andersonville's poor conditions in his diary. A member of the 154th New York Volunteer Infantry , Logan
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#17327796740593900-426: The person's body in the feces and can survive outside the body. If hygiene standards are poor – for example, if the person does not dispose of the feces hygienically – then it can contaminate the surroundings, such as nearby food and water. If another person then eats or drinks food or water that has been contaminated with feces containing the cyst, that person will also become infected with the amoebae. Amoebic dysentery
3975-536: The port of Savannah . After General William Tecumseh Sherman began his march to the sea and destroyed Millen, the remaining prisoners were returned to Andersonville. Andersonville Prison was liberated by the Union Army in May 1865, with the prisoners inside being found and described as "human skeletons amid hellish scenes of desolation". After the war, Henry Wirz , commandant of the inner stockade at Camp Sumter,
4050-518: The post office in Anderson, South Carolina . During the Civil War, the Confederate army established Camp Sumter at Andersonville to house incoming Union prisoners of war . The overcrowded Andersonville Prison was notorious for its bad conditions, and nearly 13,000 prisoners died there. After the war, Henry Wirz was convicted for war crimes related to the command of the camp. His trial
4125-480: The prisoners received less than the guards. Unlike the captives, the guards did not become severely emaciated or suffer from scurvy as a consequence of vitamin C deficiency due to a lack of fresh fruits and vegetables in their diet. The poor diets and resulting scurvy was likely a major cause of the camp's high mortality rate, as well as dysentery and typhoid fever . These resulted from filthy living conditions and poor sanitation. The only source of drinking water
4200-688: The rest, some likely simply returned to civilian life without notifying the military, while others probably died. In the latter part of the summer of 1864, the Confederacy offered to conditionally release prisoners if the Union would send ships to retrieve them (Andersonville is inland, with access possible only via rail and road). In the autumn of 1864, after the Battle of Atlanta , all the prisoners who were well enough to be moved were sent to Florence Stockade (near Florence, South Carolina ) and Camp Lawton (near Millen, Georgia ). At Millen, better arrangements prevailed, and prisoners were transported by rail to
4275-442: The severity of disease. Extreme dehydration can delay recovery and significantly raises the risk for serious complications including death. Insufficient data exists, but Shigella is estimated to have caused the death of 34,000 children under the age of five in 2013, and 40,000 deaths in people over five years of age. Amoebiasis infects over 50 million people each year, of whom 50,000 die (one per thousand). Shigella evolved with
4350-478: The specific infection involved. When laboratory services are not available, it may be necessary to administer a combination of drugs, including an amoebicidal drug to kill the parasite , and an antibiotic to treat any associated bacterial infection. Laudanum (Deodorized Tincture of Opium)] may be used for severe pain and to combat severe diarrhea. If shigellosis is suspected and it is not too severe, letting it run its course may be reasonable – usually less than
4425-403: The stockade wall. It demarcated a no-man's land that kept prisoners away from the wall, which was made of rough-hewn logs about 16 ft (4.9 m) high and stakes driven into the ground. Anyone crossing or even touching this "dead line" was shot without warning by sentries in the guard platforms (called "pigeon roosts") on the stockade. (It is considered possible, although not established, that
4500-454: The stools, and in severe cases, the entry of pathogenic organisms into the bloodstream. Anemia may also arise due to the blood loss through diarrhea. Bacterial infections that cause bloody diarrhea are typically classified as being either invasive or toxogenic. Invasive species cause damage directly by invading into the mucosa. The toxogenic species do not invade, but cause cellular damage by secreting toxins, resulting in bloody diarrhea. This
4575-483: The summer of 1864, Union prisoners suffered greatly from hunger, exposure and disease. Within seven months, about a third had died from dysentery and scurvy; they were buried in mass graves, the standard practice for Confederate prison authorities at Andersonville. In 1864, the Confederate Surgeon General asked Joseph Jones, an expert on infectious disease, to investigate the high mortality rate at
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#17327796740594650-413: The underlying infection of amoebic dysentery is important; insufficiently treated amoebiasis can lie dormant for years and subsequently lead to severe, potentially fatal, complications . When amoebae inside the bowel of an infected person are ready to leave the body, they group together and form a shell that surrounds and protects them. This group of amoebae is known as a cyst, which is then passed out of
4725-404: The walls of the intestines and cause small abscesses and ulcers to form. The cycle then begins again. Dysentery may also be caused by shigellosis , an infection by bacteria of the genus Shigella , and is then known as bacillary dysentery (or Marlow syndrome). The term bacillary dysentery etymologically might seem to refer to any dysentery caused by any bacilliform bacteria, but its meaning
4800-441: The war, nearly 13,000 (28%) died. The chief causes of death were scurvy , diarrhea , and dysentery . The prison, which opened in February 1864, originally covered about 16.5 acres (6.7 ha) of land enclosed by a 15-foot (4.6 m) high stockade . In June 1864, it was enlarged to 26.5 acres (10.7 ha). The stockade was rectangular, of dimensions 1,620 feet (490 m) by 779 feet (237 m). There were two entrances on
4875-606: The west side of the stockade, known as "north entrance" and "south entrance". This allowed for a space of about 5 feet by 6 feet (1.5 x 2 m) for each prisoner. Robert H. Kellogg, sergeant major in the 16th Regiment Connecticut Volunteers , described his entry as a prisoner into the prison camp, May 2, 1864: As we entered the place, a spectacle met our eyes that almost froze our blood with horror, and made our hearts fail within us. Before us were forms that had once been active and erect;— stalwart men , now nothing but mere walking skeletons, covered with filth and vermin. Many of our men, in
4950-429: Was 254.1 inhabitants per square mile (98.1/km ). There were 142 housing units at an average density of 109.0 per square mile (42.1/km ). The racial makeup of the city was 65.26% White and 34.74% African American. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.21% of the population. There were 124 households, out of which 34.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.0% were married couples living together, 17.7% had
5025-409: Was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 105.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.5 males. The median income for a household in the city was $ 29,107, and the median income for a family was $ 30,972. Males had a median income of $ 26,591 versus $ 20,000 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 15,168. About 19.8% of families and 23.0% of the population were below
5100-407: Was a creek that also served as the camp's latrine. It was filled at all times with fecal matter from thousands of sick and dying men. Even when sufficient quantities of supplies were available, they were of poor quality and inadequately prepared. There were no new outfits given to prisoners, whose own clothing was often falling to pieces. In some cases, garments were taken from the dead. John McElroy,
5175-573: Was another method of escape. The death rate of the camp being around a hundred per day made disposing of bodies a relaxed procedure by the guards. Prisoners would pretend to be dead and carried out to the row of dead bodies outside of the walls. As soon as night fell the men would get up and run. Once Wirz learned of this practice he ordered an examination by surgeons on all bodies taken out of the camp. Confederate records show that 351 prisoners (about 0.7% of all inmates) escaped, though many were recaptured. The US Army lists 32 as returning to Union lines; of
5250-611: Was captured on the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg ; he was first imprisoned at Belle Isle in Richmond, Virginia and then Andersonville. He is credited with having been the longest-held Union prisoner of war during the Civil War, having survived a total of 661 days in Confederate hands. His diary is in the collection of the Dunn County Historical Society in Menomonie, Wisconsin ; a mimeographed copy
5325-488: Was later regarded as unfair by several pro-confederacy groups, and a monument in his honor has been erected in Andersonville by the United Daughters of the Confederacy . The town also served as a supply depot during the war period. It included a post office, a depot, a blacksmith shop and stable, a couple of general stores, two saloons, a school, a Methodist church, and about a dozen houses. Ben Dykes, who owned
5400-418: Was not until 1863 that President Lincoln demanded a code of conduct be instituted to guarantee prisoners of war an entitlement to food and medical treatment and to protect them from enslavement, torture and murder. Andersonville did not provide its occupants with these guarantees; the prisoners at Andersonville, without any sort of law enforcement or protections, functioned more closely to a primitive society than
5475-528: Was severely affecting soldiers and causing significant loss of manpower. Williams carried out serological investigations into dysentery, co-authoring several groundbreaking papers with Sir Charles Martin , director of the Lister Institute . The result of their work into dysentery was increased demand for specific diagnostics and curative sera. Bacillus subtilis was marketed throughout America and Europe from 1946 as an immunostimulatory aid in
5550-411: Was suffocating. The ground allotted to our ninety was near the edge of this plague-spot, and how we were to live through the warm summer weather in the midst of such fearful surroundings, was more than we cared to think of just then. Further descriptions of the camp can be found in the diary of Ransom Chadwick, a member of the 85th New York Infantry Regiment. Chadwick and his regimental mates were taken to
5625-422: Was tried by a military tribunal on charges of war crimes. The trial was presided over by Union General Lew Wallace and featured chief Judge Advocate General ( JAG ) prosecutor Norton Parker Chipman . A number of former prisoners testified about conditions at Andersonville, many accusing Wirz of specific acts of cruelty. The court also considered official correspondence from captured Confederate records. Perhaps
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