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The 150th Anniversary of the Charleston (Illinois) Riot

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We recently participated in the reenactment commemorating the sesquicentennial of the deadly Charleston (Illinois) riot of 1864.  Riot?  Deaths?  Until then I had believed that Illinois was the site of only peaceful things: Lincoln's nomination, election, farewell, the Great Northwest Sanitary Fair in Chicago, and Lincoln's funeral. Charleston is the county seat of Coles County.  Like many other towns located further South in the state, it had a large number of Southern sympathizers, or at least people who believed their business interests aligned with those of the South.  There were also those who were Union supporters but who had grown tired of the war and wished it to end, sometimes under any circumstances.  These Peace Democrats were nicknamed Copperheads.  The term "copperhead" was derived from the name of the poisonous snake that struck without warning.  Apparently the term was used before the Civil War for an unexpected, hostile, vindictive enemy.   http: