All Episodes

July 25, 2025 43 mins
Joshua Chamberlain was more than just the hero of Gettysburg—he was a war hero, four-term governor, college president, and the man who faced down an armed political mob in Maine. From battlefield bravery to political chaos, discover the full, wild story of one of America's most underrated legends.

Subscribe to our YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/@bangdangnetwork
Mark as Played
Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
The bloodiest war on American soil. States versus States, Brothers
versus brothers. Join Hosts Bang and Dang as they take
you battle by battle through the most divisive time in
American history. Welcome to Battles of the American Civil War.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
Welcome back the battles on American Civil War. Behind the battles,
Hosts the Bang and Dang, moving back over to the
Union side of Thanks, long time coming for this guy.
I feel like we've covered some less important people other
than this guy, but I don't know, less important, but
less popular. I guess Joshua Chamberlain one of the oldest
guys we've covered. I think Long Street so far that

(01:01):
we've covered and him are the only ones that have
lived into the nineteen hundreds. So I'm sure there's more
will cover, but that's the only ones that we've covered
so far.

Speaker 3 (01:11):
I got to see motorized vehicles and everything, basically telephones.

Speaker 2 (01:17):
Talk about Joshua Lorrence Chamberlain born Lawrence Joshua, as we
said back on in September eighth, eighteen twenty eight. That's
when he was born up in Brewer, Maine. His parents
were Sarah Doopy Brastow and Joshua Chamberlain. Now, his family
wasn't just any New England family. They had some deep roots,
really deep roots. They could trace their ancestry all the

(01:39):
way back to twelfth century England, well, which is during
the reign of the reign of King Steven twelfth century.

Speaker 3 (01:45):
And twelve hundred twelve Chamberlain. The family had a long
tradition of military service. Chamberlain's great grandfather Ebenezer, he fought
in both the French and Indian War and also the
American Revolutionary War for the Britain. Probably his grandad Joshua Well,
he was a shipbuilder and also a colonel. During the
War of eighteen twelve, he was even involved in the

(02:05):
Battle of Hampton. After that he packed up and moved
his family to a farm and brewer. In eighteen seventeen.
Chamberlain's own daddy, also named Joshua, served as a lieutenant
colonel during.

Speaker 2 (02:17):
Our Roostook War must be an Indian War, I had
to The Bloodless War was a border dispute between the
United States and Great Britain.

Speaker 3 (02:25):
Oh Canada.

Speaker 2 (02:26):
Oh I was up and we covered a little bit
of that during our Are Behind the Battles episode of
the Trent affair. I believe Chamberlain's ever have that little
dispute up there by OBC soh.

Speaker 3 (02:38):
Yeah, military service kind of ran in his blood. Chamberlaine,
he was the oldest of five kids. His daddy named
him after the naval hero James Lawrence. You might know
that name from Don't give Up the Ship story. They
ever heard Don't give Up the Ship story?

Speaker 2 (02:55):
Something new revolutionary where naval battle cried during the War
of eighteen twelve for the USS Chesapeake. He's mortally wounded
against bridget Frigate Shannon. His final words became a rallying
cry for the US Navy and a symbol of courage
and perseverance.

Speaker 3 (03:12):
Awesome, and he would definitely had high hopes that his
son would follow away a military path and live up
to the great James Lawrence's name. His own mommy, on
the other hand, had a different dream. She wanted her
boy become a minister. Sweet boy, Oh preach you.

Speaker 2 (03:29):
What about a young Chamberlain. He sort of followed both
paths in his own way. In the mid eighteen forties,
he became a member of the Congressional Church and Brewer.
Then he enrolled in the Major Whiting's Military Academy over
in Ellsworth. But you weren't good enough for West Point View.
And this is where things get interesting, because they always
get interesting. This is when it came time for college.
But he taught himself Greek just so he can get

(03:50):
into Voting College. That's some serious dedication, because it apparently
Voding College is a great college.

Speaker 3 (03:55):
Greek is rough college.

Speaker 2 (03:58):
It's a liberal arts college in brentw Okane. Liberal Arts
for the winding far him. I guess what are you
gonna do with liber Arts?

Speaker 3 (04:04):
Well he got in, of course, and I was in
eighteen forty eight. And while he was there he didn't
just hit the books. He fully immersed himself in college life.
He joined the Pusinian Society. He made the Phi Beta
Kappa and was part of the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity.
During his first two years he taught Sunday School in Brunswick.

(04:26):
Then his junior junior years he led the choir at
the First Parish Congressional Church. He graduated in eighteen fifty two,
and he didn't stop there because Old Chamberlain. He went
on to study at the Banger Theological Seminary for another
three years. While he leaned hard into his studies Latin,
German history, grammar. He also managed the master of French, Arabic, Hebrew,

(04:48):
and even Syriac yep okay, so he knows a lot
of languages.

Speaker 2 (04:53):
Up through to all you remained a Calvinist and a
pretty conservative Congregationalist, keeping to the faith he was raised in.
Long after graduating, his personal life took root. November seventh,
eighteen fifty five, he married Fanny Adams. She was a
cousin and adopted daughter of a local clergyman. Together they
had a daughter named Grace Doopy, who was born October sixteenth,
eighteen fifty six, and then a son, Harold Wills, born

(05:16):
two years later in eighteen fifty eight. They also had
two other children, but as it goes in these days,
these ones didn't survive infancy. Also around this time, in
the fall of eighteen fifty five, Chamberlain he returned to Boden,
this time not as a student. I wonder what he's
gonna be.

Speaker 3 (05:31):
He came back as a teacher. He started out instructing
logic and natural theology. Then he moved He moved on
to become a professor of rhetoric and oratory. Over the years.
He would go on to teach just about everything and anything,
everything except signs of math. Eighteen sixty one he was
appointed Professor of Modern Languages. This is a position that

(05:52):
he held right up until eighteen sixty five.

Speaker 2 (05:54):
It wasn't there but right that. When the war broke out,
Old Lawrence Chamberlaine Joshua, he didn't exactly sit on the fence.
He believed pretty firmly that the Union had to be
defended by anyone and everyone who could step up. And
he didn't keep those opinions to himself either. During his
classes at Bowden College, he'd speak pretty openly about it.

(06:16):
He'd tell the students to follow their hearts, yeah, and
also made it clear that he believed the cause of
the Union was a just one mm. He said, you
follow your hearts, but don't be bitches.

Speaker 3 (06:26):
At one point, Chamberlain even wrote to Maine's governor, Israel
Washburn Junior. He said, get this, I fear this war
so costly, a blood and treasure will not cease until
men of the North are willing to leave good positions
and sacrifice the dearest personal interest to rescue our country

(06:46):
from desolation and defend the national existence against treachery. Uh,
good for him. That wasn't just rhetoric.

Speaker 2 (06:55):
He might have taught rhetoric, but he wasn't just saying Chamberlain.

Speaker 3 (06:59):
He meant every word. But now everyone around him shared
that enthusiasm. A lot of the faculty of Boding they
weren't exactly thrilled with how I was spoken. He was
getting liberal bitches. So officially he was granted the leave
of absence from that college. The story they told that
he was going to Europe for two years to study languages. Yeah,

(07:19):
that didn't happen.

Speaker 2 (07:21):
Instead, he went out and enlisted in the Union Army.
He didn't tell his family, didn't tell the college, He
just went going. When he signed up, Chamberlain was offered
the colonelists Colonel Tosy. I've never heard that word ever
in the hundreds of episodes three, the colonel Colonelissy of
the brand new twentieth Maine Regiment Famous twentieth Main But

(07:41):
he turned it down, Corner's biographer John Poland, Chamberlain said
he'd rather start a little lower and learn the business first.
So we did, and he accepted the rank of lieutenant
colonel in August eighth, eighteen sixties. He was so lieutenant colonel.
He served under Colonel Aldebert Ames. He was tough, no
nonsense West Pointer. Twentieth Maine was placed in a third brigade,

(08:02):
first Division, fifth Corps, which was part of the Old
Army of the Potomac was action.

Speaker 3 (08:08):
Chamberlain wasn't alone. His younger bro Thomas, also became an
officer in the same regiment. Another brother John, he wasn't
in uniform, but he did visit, but he did visit
the regiment during the Battle of Gettysburg.

Speaker 2 (08:20):
He wasn't in uniform, but he did stay at a
hotel eight.

Speaker 3 (08:23):
He was part of the United States Christian Commission, so
he was a what do they call it a chaplain?
He was a machinery really. He later became a chaplain
and another main volunteer regiment. The twentieth Maine's first real
tests well you know where. That came at the Battle
of Fredericksburg. And while they didn't suffer as many casualties

(08:44):
as some of the other units, especially during disastrous Union
charges at Mary's Height, they were still in the thick
of it that very night. They had to spend hours
in the open and frozen field battlefield that is in Chamberlain.
He later wrote about in his diary. In grim detail
he did.

Speaker 2 (09:03):
He described lyon among the wounded, using the bodies of
the fallen for shelter, even as kind of a pillow.
All night you could hear bullets zipping through the air,
sometimes smacking in the corpses around him. It was brutal,
he says. But that's the kind of hellish reality soldiers
in the warhead of any war.

Speaker 3 (09:18):
I was doom.

Speaker 2 (09:20):
A few months later, in May of eighteen sixty three
to twentieth Maine, they missed the batter of Chancers bill
now by choice. It was an outbreak of smallpox had
swept through the regiment. Damn thanks to a bad match
of smallpox vaccines.

Speaker 3 (09:31):
Oh there you go.

Speaker 2 (09:32):
And then they were pulled off the line for rear
guard duty while the rest of the army went into battle.
Then June of eighteen sixty three, Attlebert Ames was promoted.
That opened the door for Oh Joshua to finally step up.
He then became colonel of the twentieth just in time
for one of the most famous battles in American history, Gettysburg.

Speaker 3 (09:51):
Yep, it happened. Well, so if you know anything about
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. You probably know the moment that really
cemented his place in American history, Battle Getty's Boygue. It's
specifically what happened on the second day of July in
eighteen sixty three. Let's set the scene for you, folks.

(10:12):
Union forces scrambling all around. They'd taken some pretty serious
hits on the day one the battle. They we're now
trying to regroup. Forming a defensive line on a series
of hills just south of town wasn't exactly a well
prepared position. It was more like a we have to
hold this or we're done kind of situation.

Speaker 2 (10:30):
Yeah, and the old rebels they saw that weakness, they
moved fast, especially in the Union's left flank, and that's
when Chamberlain's brigade, under the man of Colonel Strong Vincent,
he was ordered to dig in and defend a rocky
hill called Little Round Top.

Speaker 3 (10:43):
Oh.

Speaker 2 (10:44):
The guy who gave the order was Brigader Jennial Gubu K. Warren,
who was Army's Chief of Engineer. Oh. Warren's one of
the men often credited with realizing just how crucial that
hill would be.

Speaker 3 (10:54):
Damn right he did, so we got the Confederates coming
up that hill. They weren't exactly fresh, and nobody really
was at this point in war. They're a part of
HUD's division, specifically the Alabama Brigade on the brigadier a
General Evander Law. These guys, well, they just marched over
twenty miles that very day in the heat.

Speaker 2 (11:12):
They gotta run up hill.

Speaker 3 (11:13):
Their canteens were empty, stomach's empty, mouthed dry. They didn't
even get a chance to refill their water before Law
sent them into battle.

Speaker 2 (11:23):
Now his orders were clear, take the hill, he want
the water.

Speaker 3 (11:26):
Take that fucking hill.

Speaker 2 (11:27):
He displashed the fourth, fifteenth, and forty seventh Alabama, along
with the fourth and fifth Texas to seize little Roundtop.
It's worth noting that as the battle dragged on and
Law realized he was now commanded the entire division, he
ended up handing off control of the brigade to Colonel
James Sheffield instead. The Confederates they charged up the hill,
and as they neared the crest, they got blasted by
a strong Union volley and were pushed back, at least

(11:49):
for the moment. This wasn't the only charge they'd make.

Speaker 3 (11:52):
Yeah, well you got one regiment, in particularly the fifteenth
to Alabama, commanded by Colonel William Oates. It wasn't done,
not by a long shot. Shifted right, trying to swing around,
flanked a Union position. And what was waiting for them?
You ask, well, only three hundred and eighty six men
and officers of the twentieth Maine and the eight to
third Pennsylvania holding that far left edge of the Union line.

(12:14):
It's like, come on, motherfucker's. This is when Chamberlain saw
the Confederate maneuver. He knew exactly what they were trying
to do. So first he ordered this his men to
stress their lines as far as it could go, literally
to the point of being single file.

Speaker 2 (12:27):
Never want to be single file.

Speaker 3 (12:29):
Then, after another Confederate assault, he had a southern half
of the line swing back like a hinge, refusing to flank.
This move created an angle on the line that made
it hot for the Confederates to get around them.

Speaker 2 (12:40):
There you go, Well, the twentieth main they held that
position for a full ninety minutes under heavy fire, threw
multiple charges from the fifteenth Alabama and others, and they
were taking some serious losses. At one point became clear
to Chamberlain that they couldn't hold much longer. His men
were running out of AMMO, their numbers dropping fast, and
if there was another charge, they they're done for him.

(13:01):
But he's dead or leaving fleeing, yamn.

Speaker 3 (13:05):
So he made a bowl call, order a bayonet.

Speaker 2 (13:08):
Joge, dude, fix those bayonets. And nobody's had a successful
bayonet charge at all during the war.

Speaker 3 (13:13):
That's right, he told his men, And fix those bayonets
and go on the offensive. Well, the plan you asked
dabbed the shit out of a right or the plan
you asked the left flank, which had been pulled back earlier.
It would advance first, in a kind of a right
wheel forward move. Once they were lined up with the
rest of their regiment, everyone would charge forward together like

(13:34):
a door swinging shut on Confederate line. And guess what
damn it?

Speaker 2 (13:38):
It worked, sure did. The shock of that unexpected bayonet assault,
combined with the fact that the fifteenth Alama was already
exhausted and low on coordination, broke their attack. A big
portion of them surrendered right there on the slope. What shit. Well,
while Chamberlain gave the order, there's an interesting side note.
The young officer named Lieutenant Holman Melcher. He actually initiated

(13:59):
a charge from the under the line at the same time.

Speaker 3 (14:01):
Oh wow.

Speaker 2 (14:01):
He wasn't acting in underdirect orders. He just saw the
moment and he went for it. His diamond ended up
helping a lot. And during the Confederate retreat, there was
one more surprise waiting for him.

Speaker 3 (14:11):
Oh shit, what is it, Chamberlain. Well, he quietly placed
Company B of the twentieth Main, led by Captain Walton Morrile.
He said, go behind a stone. There's a stone wall
over there, about one hundred fifty yards of the east.
Get behind that, along with a few sharp shooters from
the second United States Sharpshooters. This group they've been hiding,
waiting for their moment attack. And as the old rebels

(14:33):
pulled back, they suddenly came under five from the hidden group,
just enough to throw the retreat into confusion, make it
even hot in every group.

Speaker 2 (14:41):
Yeah, this whole sequence at Little Roundtop, it's one of
the most famous moments of the Civil War, and it's
where Chamberlain really became a legend for his actions that day.
He was awarded the Medal of Honor. Oh good for
him and his citation goes as this President of the
United States of America, in the name of Congress, it
takes pleasure and presented the Medal of Honor to Colonel
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, United States Army for extraordinary heroism July second,

(15:04):
eighteen sixty three, while serving with the twentieth Main Infantry
in action at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, for darren heroism and great tenacity,
and holding his position on the little roundtop against repeated assaults,
and carrying the advanced position on the great roundtime.

Speaker 3 (15:17):
Wooe. Well, so, after Chamberlain's heroics at Gettysburg, you might
think the guy would just take a well learned break,
all right, Oh well, he did it. Fast forward to
April eighteen sixty four. He's right back in the thick
of it.

Speaker 2 (15:34):
I'd say that's a little bit of a re examinary year.

Speaker 3 (15:37):
He's right back in the thick of it. He returned
to the Omi Potomac, and here's where things get at
a little exciting. He was promoted to the brigade commander.
This meant that he was non charge of the first Brigade,
first Division of the Fifth Corps. Just a couple months
later boom right in the middle of the Second Battle
of Petersburg, which was part of the early stages of
the Siege of Petersburg. This was on June eighteenth, eighteen

(15:59):
six folk, and things were brutal.

Speaker 2 (16:03):
He is in the middle of a major action that day, Chamberlain.
He was hit bad. A bullet tore through his right
hip and groin and exited through his left hip. Basically
went straight across the lower power of his body. Set
of collapsing immediately, which anyone would have done, Chamberlain he
pulled out a sword and jammed it into the ground
to brace himself upright. Literally held himself up on his sword,

(16:23):
bleeding heavily, trying to keep his men from retreating. Mmmm.
He wanted to send a messages that they were still
in the fight. He stood like that for a few minutes,
completely upright, until he finally blacked out from loss of
blood and collapsed.

Speaker 3 (16:35):
Damn. Good for you, though, buddy. Wow. The division surgeon
thought he was done for fatal wound. They said. The
report of his death actually made it into main newspapers.
What something else happened because of his bravery, especially what
he done today before his core commander Major General Guvena

(16:55):
Warrent fired off a recommendation to Lieutenant General Ulysses as
Grant urging a promotion. Warrener wrote that Chamberlain had already
been deserving of the recognition for gallant efficient leadership and
that he led his brigade under insanely heavy fire. And
the request had this one heartbreaking line in it. It said,
he expresses to wish that he may receive the recognition

(17:17):
of his services by promotion before he dies, for the
gratification of his family in France.

Speaker 2 (17:24):
He wanted that money. Yeah, Grant, He responded fast. Chamberlain
was promoted on the battlefield to brigad in general. And
he didn't die though, and he took it away And
I'm just kidding, right, Despite the gut wrenching injury, Chamberlain
somehow made it through with the help of his brother
Tom and what can only be described as sheer willpower.
He was back a command by November. Holy shit, that's right.

(17:45):
He was supposed to be dead in June and by
that fall he was wearing his uniform again.

Speaker 3 (17:49):
Am this guy? Well know a lot of people, including
his wife Fanny, they begged him to just come home.
They wanted him to resign, but Chamberlaine he was not
having it. It's committed to seeing the war through to
the end, he said, no, I'm not a quitter. By
early eighteen sixty five, he had regained command of his
brigade and continued fighting. Twenty ninth to match. During the

(18:10):
final push of Grant's campaign to in the war, Chamberlain
and his brigade were in another fierce fight, this time
Quaker Road, the.

Speaker 2 (18:17):
Old Quaker Road fighting. There was no joke. He was
wounded again, this time in the left arm and chest.
This one was so bad he almost lost his entire arm.
He also came dangerously close to being captured, but once
again he pulled through. He led his men to success
and was brevetted to the rank of major general by
none other than old President Abe.

Speaker 3 (18:36):
Oh.

Speaker 2 (18:36):
That day on Quaker Road earned him the nickname Bloody Chamberlain.
Oh there's one last detail from that fight that's just
straight up cinematic.

Speaker 3 (18:44):
Though they say, what is it. Well, Chamberlain kept two
things close to his very heart. Literally in his left
front chest pocket carried a small bible and a frame
picture of his wife Fanny. So when a Confederate soldier
took a shot at him, and the bullet passed through
his horse horse's neck.

Speaker 2 (19:00):
Oh, that's probably why he survived.

Speaker 3 (19:02):
Pe hit that picture frame in his pocket and then
did something incredible. It entered under his skin at the
front of his chest and traveled around his torso just
under the skin, following a rib and coming back out
his back.

Speaker 2 (19:18):
He missed everything.

Speaker 3 (19:19):
Huh, ain't that weird?

Speaker 2 (19:20):
From the outside, everyone thought he'd been shot straight to
the chest. Union Confederate alike figured that was it, But nope,
he stayed standing. He kept shouting encouragement to his men
and refused to go down. It shows exactly why Jamerlyn
is remembered not just for being a brilliant tactician, but
for his insane level of grit bite.

Speaker 3 (19:38):
Those kneecaps right, damn this guy. Wow. So it's the
morning of the ninth of April eighteen sixty five. It's
a special day for America, just before the end of
the Civil War. Joshua Chamberlain is right in the middle
of it. That very morning, a rebel officer rides up
to him under a flag of troofs. Chamberlain probably knew

(19:59):
right away that something was about to happen. The officer
tells him, Sir, I am from General Gordon. General Lee
desires a cessation of hostilities until he can hear from
General Grant as the proposed surrender.

Speaker 2 (20:12):
Oh oh, that's how Chamberlain he finds out that Robert E.
Lee is ready to surrender the Army of Northern Virginia. Wow,
he found out first the war it's ripped Well, him
and Grant had been communicating the war that's ripped the
country part for four years finally coming to a close,
and he's there to witness the first whisper of it.
Fast forward to the next day, It's not really fast.

(20:33):
The April tenth, Chamberlain, he gets called to the Union
headquarters Major General Charles Griffin. He gives him assignment. He says,
you've been selected to preside over the surrender ceremony. Oh,
this is going to be the former surrender at the
Competitive Infantry scheduled for April twelfth at the Appomatox Courthouse.

Speaker 3 (20:48):
Yet that shit, Wow, Chamberlain, Well, he's about to oversee
one of the most emotional symbolic moments of the entire war,
the entire world history. Now when the days it's not
just any ordinary ceremony. This isn't even a victory parade.
This is complicated. There's bitterness, relief, pride, and shame, all

(21:11):
of its swirling in the air. The old Episodiers began
their march down the road, coming to surrender their rifles
and battle flags, under the command of General John B. Gordon, who,
by the way, was no slouch at all. Gordon was
a respecting, formidable general in the Confederate Army. And here's
where Chamberlain makes a choice.

Speaker 2 (21:30):
Nobody ordered him to do it. There was no protocol,
but on his own initiative he decides to honor them.
He tells his men to carry arms a formal military salute. Basically,
it was a sign of respect, a way of saying,
recognize your courage, you fought hard.

Speaker 3 (21:43):
An't like shaking hands at the end of the hockey.

Speaker 2 (21:46):
Serea a right and his memoirs, written decades later, Chamberlain
he scribes what happened next, and it reads like a
movie scene. Apparently.

Speaker 3 (21:53):
Oh. He says that Gordon, who was riding at the
head of the column with his eyes cast down, understood
the gesture. Gordon lifted his eyes, recognized what was happening
and responded with grace. He wheeled his horse around with
his effortless motion. Chamberlain says that suburb grace, of which
he is a master, lowered his sword to the stirrup

(22:16):
and salute. Gave the command for his men to dip
their battle flag in return.

Speaker 2 (22:22):
Wow, and the old rebel soldiers what was left of
their warn battered brigades. They responded. As they passed Chamberlain's brigade,
they returned the salute. No shouting, no jeering, no cheers,
just silence. Chamberlain, he said it felt like the passing
of the dead. He knew it wasn't going to be popular.
Plenty of union men thought saluting the enemy was out
of line. Right the Chamberlain, he stood by it. He

(22:43):
later wrote in his memoir The Passing of the Armies
that the gesture was the right thing to do. Yeah,
it was a recognition of a shared humanity in the
middle of one of the most divisive moments in American history.
I mean, you got to show them that you're still Americans,
still together.

Speaker 3 (22:55):
Right, I mean you got you got you guys want
to be unite again. So by gones, be bygones, right,
Jenner Gordon in his own memoirs, he returned the compliment.
He called Chamberlain one of the knightliest soldiers of the
Federal Army. That's a big statement from a former enemy. Now,

(23:16):
just to be fair, to be fair, to be fair.
There's been some historical debate about this whole salute exchange,
isn't there always Some critics, like author SG. Gwynn in
The Hymns of the Republic, have raised questions about whether
it really happened the way Chamberlain said it did. After all,
Gordon didn't mention the event until after Chamberlain's memoir came

(23:37):
out forty years later.

Speaker 2 (23:39):
Okay, why would he, right?

Speaker 3 (23:41):
Why would he want to?

Speaker 2 (23:42):
Here's the thing. Major historians like James McPherson, who wrote
battlecryt Freedom, they believe the event did happen pretty much
as described, and Chamberlain wasn't exactly known for embellishing. He
was already a decorated war hero and then nothing left
to prove, right, right, So whether or not the salute
went down exactly like that, the fact that it's part
of our collective memory says something about what the moment meant, right,

(24:03):
It wasn't about Gloria conquests. It was about dignity even
in defeat.

Speaker 3 (24:07):
Oh he didn't get defeated. Wow it well, it's a recap.
Chamberlain fought in twenty battles, cited for bravery four times,
six horses shot out from under him, and wounded six times.
The man practically had a punch car for battlefield injuries.

Speaker 2 (24:24):
Right, He's like, one war and you're free.

Speaker 3 (24:26):
Right, But appomattics. He didn't need a sword, he didn't
need a rifle. He just needed to stand there, just
one quiet order carry arms. And he turned the surrender
into something far more meaningful than to just at the
end of the American Civil War.

Speaker 2 (24:42):
Yeah, that's a little crazy, after all the chaos, the bloodshed,
and that incredibly human moment epomatics. Oh, Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain
finally leaves the US Army. The war was over, Our
boys are coming home. He survived wounds that should have
killed him more than once, and now he's headed back
to main and he's like, damn and there. The guy's

(25:03):
a rock star. Though people in Maine love them, love them.
He is a war hero known for courage, intellect, and
maybe most importantly, dignity.

Speaker 3 (25:10):
Damn right.

Speaker 2 (25:11):
So it's no surprise when shortly after his return he
enters politics. Yeah, why not.

Speaker 3 (25:17):
He runs for governor of Maine as a Republican. Of
course he wins. Not only does he win, but he
set the state record in eighteen sixty six for both
the most vote and the highest percentage of the vote
ever received by a Maine Guba nudatorial candidate at the time.
And then, because Chamberlain doesn't do anything half ass, he
breaks his own record just two years later in eighteen

(25:38):
sixty eight. Am this guy? So he came president?

Speaker 2 (25:42):
He ends up serving four one year terms as governor
of Maine.

Speaker 3 (25:45):
That's all he did was one year term.

Speaker 2 (25:46):
That's back when one year terms are standard and still
for in a row. That's no small feat. So I
gotta get elected. But his time in office is in
all parades and praise. He's principled, and principled politicians have
a habit of making somebody mad.

Speaker 3 (26:00):
All right.

Speaker 2 (26:01):
Two of his stances they really ruffled some feathers.

Speaker 3 (26:03):
Oh.

Speaker 2 (26:03):
Firstly, he supported capital punishment, something that sparked real controversy.
You want to kill people? Oh no, there were a
lot of growing anti death penalty movements during the era,
and his stance didn't sit well with old reformers.

Speaker 3 (26:14):
Ooh well on the second one and all, refused to
create a special police force to crack down on alcohol
during Maine state wide prohibition.

Speaker 2 (26:20):
Good damn, they had prohibition way before prohibition.

Speaker 3 (26:23):
Yeah, it's Maine, right, And remember Maine was way ahead
of the national prohibition movement. The main law abandoned alcohol
had been around since the eighteen fifties. Crazy, but well, Maine,
A lot of them are fishermen and you don't want
but are drunk people on boats. I don't think they
cared right. But enforcement was a whole different story. Chamberlain

(26:45):
didn't want to turn state into a surveillance state just
to enforce temperance. So, yeah, Chamberlain called he But through
it all he stayed consistent. He wasn't afraid to take
unpopular positions if you believe they were right, whether that
meant showing respect to Confederate soldiers, appomatics, or standing firm
in office. As governor, Chamberlain he had a habit of

(27:07):
doing what he believed was just not what was easy. Right.

Speaker 2 (27:12):
Just when you think his life couldn't get any more
dramatic after the war, near death wounds, four terms as governor.
Then get to eighteen eighty when things in Maine they're
about to get wild, main gone wild. It's January. There's
a full on political crisis Berruin. Basically nobody can agree
on the newly elected governor Maine actually is. The election
is a mess at tensions are sky high. And then

(27:35):
armed men take over the main statehouse. Oh, they occupy
the building with guns literally insurrection.

Speaker 3 (27:42):
Oh no, So who do you call?

Speaker 2 (27:44):
Conspuster?

Speaker 3 (27:47):
So who do you call on this situation? Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain,
even though he's no longer an elected official, Jammelin still
the commander of the main militia. Outgoing Governoro Garcion sends him,
sends for him to come restore order. Jamie Lynn, ever
of the Calm in the Storm, steps up once again.

(28:09):
First he manages to send the armed man home, no bloodshed,
no violence, he just handles it. Then he works with
the Augusta police to keep things secure and peaceful while
everyone waits for the legal system to start out the chaos.
I mean, that's all you had to do in the
first place, right, But he doesn't leave.

Speaker 2 (28:27):
He stays in the state House pretty much around the
clock for twelve days straight while the whole state teeters
on the edge of chaos, just waiting on the main
spring judicial court to weigh in on who actually won
the election. Then it gets even more intense their assassination threats,
kidnapping plots. At one point, a mob of twenty five
to thirty angry men actually gathered outside looking to kill him.

(28:48):
So what does he do. He walks outside alone and
faces him down. Right, he just walks out the front
door and stares him down until they back off.

Speaker 3 (28:55):
Oh wow. Both political factions were so impressed or desperate
they actually offered him bribes to appoint him the United
States Senator governor. That's how much both sides wanted him
in their pocket. But Chamberlain, he wouldn't take debait. He
stayed neutral principal as always because he didn't choose a side,
and neither party backed him. So just like that, his

(29:17):
political career came to an end. Now that might sound
like a dramatic downfall, but Chamberlain he wasn't finished making
an impact just yet. He said, I'm gonna go and
return to education, his first love, and he went to Boden,
his alma mater. He turned down a position as president
of the New State University in Toronto, hoping instead to

(29:39):
take the top job at Boden. In eighteen seventy one,
of course, you know he gets it.

Speaker 2 (29:45):
He comes president of Boden College and served until eighteen
eighty three. It's a significant post, but the role wasn't easy.
His old war wounds they had never fully healed, and
overtime the pain and complications warmed down. Eventually, poor health
they forced him to step down altogether. He also did
briefly serve as ex officio trustee of nearby Bates College

(30:06):
from eighteen sixty seven to seventy one. So even though
his battlefield days were long gone, he kept finding ways
to serve through leadership, education, shaer presence in moments of crisis.
Oh you can count on Chamberlain.

Speaker 3 (30:18):
Damn right. So, after resigning from Bowden College in eighteen
eighty three, Chamberlain made his way to New York City.
They started practicing law. I don't know what to do,
but you might think that would be enough of a
Carier pivot after everything he's done already. But not for Chamberlain.
He ended up taking on a federal appointment as surveyor
of the Port of Portland, which is in Maane. On

(30:40):
top of that, he dipped his toes into a bunch
of business ventures, real estate deals down in Florida in
eighteen eighty five, involvement with the College of Art in
New York, and even some work with the hotels. Then,
because apparently he never liked it, liked to sit still,
he went west. Why not? He got involved in building
railroads and worked on that, worked on public improvement projects

(31:04):
on the west coast.

Speaker 2 (31:05):
Look at this guy, good for him, all there's something
most people don't know though. Ever since that serious woond
he took in eighteen sixty four, Chamberlain, he had to
live with some intense health issues. I think everybody knows it.
From that point and to the day he died. He
wore an early version of a catheter with a bag.
He went through six different surgeries trying to correct the
original injury, hoping to stop the fevers and infections that

(31:25):
kept coming back. Unfortunately, none of those operations were successful.
Was a constant struggle, but he kept pushing.

Speaker 3 (31:32):
A forward, did jee o Pete, I'll picture this eighteen
ninety three thirty years after battle Gettysburg's twentieth main made
its legendary stand. That's where they did that. And Chamberlain
is the word of the Medal of Honor back then.

Speaker 2 (31:46):
The citation oh he was awarded in eighteen ninety three.

Speaker 3 (31:49):
Right, the citation described his daring heroism and great tenacity,
and holding his position a little roundtop against repeated assaults,
and carrying out the advanced position to the great roundtop.

Speaker 2 (32:00):
Yep said that we said that already ye. Like a
lot of Civil War stories, controversy followed. One of his
subordinate officers later claimed that Chamberlain never actually gave the
order to charge at Gettysburg. Still, that claim never really
stuck or changed how people saw him. His reputation held strong. Chamberlain,
even to his later years, he was still ready to serve.
In eighteen ninety eight, at the age of seventy, he

(32:22):
volunteered to command the United States Army forces in the
Spanish American War Man And he wasn't just shouting into
the wind either. He had support from Acting Secretary of
War Russell Alger and also President William McKinley, But because
of his lingering health issues, he was ultimately passed over.

Speaker 3 (32:41):
Here's a kicker. The man who got the job instead
William Oates, the same guy who had been his Confederate
opponent at Gettysburg. Oh that's some full circle history right there, folks.
That's a slapping the dick.

Speaker 2 (32:52):
Some crazy shit, isn't it.

Speaker 3 (32:54):
Well.

Speaker 2 (32:54):
In nineteen oh one, he bought Crow Island, which was
within view of his Don Heegen estate in Casco Bay
and Brunswick. He had his own little slice of main paradise.
A few years later, in nineteen oh five, he helped
found the main institution for the blind in Portland, which
we now know as the IRIS Network. His own wife
was visually impaired, and that personal connection led him to
serve on the organization's very first board of directors.

Speaker 3 (33:18):
Nice. Despite everything, decades of pain, discomfort, medical setbacks, Chamberlain
he stayed deeply involved with veterans organizations ever since he
was the governor of Maine. He was active in the
Grand Army of the Republic, the Civil War Vatans Group.
He returned to Gettysburg many times over the years, giving
speeches at reunions, honor and fallen comrades. His last known

(33:40):
visit to the battlefield was May sixteenth and the seventeenth
of nineteen thirteen. He was helping planning the fiftieth anniversary reunion,
but unfortunately he's health declined so much that he wasn't
even able to attend the actual event two months later.

Speaker 2 (33:55):
Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain passed away in nineteen fourteen in Portland, Maine.
He was eighty five. What ultimately took his life out
all trace back to those lingering wounds he suffered during
the war, specifically the one he took at Petersburg, an
injury that had haunted him for fifty years. He died
with doctor Abner O. Shaw at his side. That name

(34:15):
might not ring a bell right away, but it's significant.
Shaw he was one of the two surgeons who had
operated on Chamberlain during the war in Petersburg. To had
that same doctor with him at the end half a
century later, it's kind of poetic and definitely emotional.

Speaker 3 (34:30):
Eighty five though.

Speaker 2 (34:32):
Shit, that's not bad. Yeah.

Speaker 3 (34:33):
Now, When the medical experts later reviewed Chamberlain's long and
painful health record, they came to a pretty solid conclusion
it was complications for that original Petersburg wound. Obviously, that
killed him. All those surgeries, the infections, the chronic pain
in his body just never fully healed. Because of that,
Chamberlain is often said to be the last Civil War
vetan to die directly from wartime wounds. Some even go

(34:57):
as far as calling him the last casualty of the
Civil War. But just to be totally accurate here, that
claim has a little asterisk next to it, just.

Speaker 2 (35:05):
Like Michigan's football season. I'm breader general A Galusha Pennypacker.
He actually died in nineteen sixteen, and he too died
for moons he'd received during the war, So they go
that narrative Galusha Pennypacker.

Speaker 3 (35:19):
Huh.

Speaker 2 (35:20):
So, while chamberlain story is deeply symbolic and powerful, technically
he wasn't the very last. Still, he was one of
the final direct links to the war, not just in
life but in death. He's buried in Pine Grove Cemetery
in Brunswick, Maine, the town where so much of his
life unfolded.

Speaker 3 (35:36):
Did you ever find yourself in Brunswick, Maine?

Speaker 2 (35:37):
Don't know why you would.

Speaker 3 (35:40):
Stopped unless you're already there. There's must he stop for
any history buff and Civil War enthusiasts Chamberlain's home. It's
right across Main Street from Bowden College campus nights and
today it's the Joshua L. Chamberlain Museum. The house is
owned and operated by the Pajeeba Scott Jep Scott Jepp

(36:02):
Historical Society. And let me tell you what, that's a
hard word to say. They've done.

Speaker 2 (36:07):
This is main while we having words like this, They've.

Speaker 3 (36:10):
Done amazing job observing Chamberlain's legacy. They got nothing else
to deserve it up there acres of all. Right, only
do they run the museum, they also maintain an extensive
research collection on the things of Chamberlain.

Speaker 2 (36:23):
I would assume. So they're the freaking Chamberlain Museum. What
else is gonna do it? Right, it's real deal, folks. Well,
the memorabilia inside it's impressive. You'll see the actual many
of all that nearly killed to my Petersburg. It's there.
So those is original metal of Honor, the very one
awarded forst Heroic at Gettysburg. And for the art of Lovers.

(36:45):
There's even non Troviani's original painting of the famous charge
at Little Round Top.

Speaker 3 (36:51):
Art Lovers. I thought it was art of Lovers. The
actual painting and out of print original painting. Look at that.

Speaker 2 (37:00):
However, you're planning a visit, Tours of the home are
offered by a volunteer people, real passionate folks, starting in
late May and early October.

Speaker 3 (37:07):
Yeah, because they can't come outside after that.

Speaker 2 (37:09):
Started in late May and running through mid October. It's
a great way to experience a history of close from
people who really care about telling Chamberlain the story.

Speaker 3 (37:16):
Right fuck yeah, right, wow. Chamberlain's memory isn't just tucked
away in a museum, though, in the small town of Maine.
It's built into the state itself. Over an Eastern Maine
US Route one A crosses the Penaba Scott panob Scott
panop Scott River between Bangor and Brewer and none Harley

(37:38):
even newer. I am none other than the Joshua Chamberlain Bridge.
It's a two lane steel plate girder bridge, officially open
on eleventh of November nineteen fifty four. Of course, it's
named after him.

Speaker 2 (37:54):
Is named after some fucking Joshua Chamberlain.

Speaker 3 (37:57):
His actually name is Josher and Chamberlin Bridge. Right, here's
a cool little geographic tribute. Oh, there's actually a village
called Chamberlain in Maine. It's located in the town of Bristol.
And yep, you guys, that's named after him too.

Speaker 2 (38:19):
I'm sure it is. She's September twenty thirteen Jamberline's original
medal of honor, the one he was warded way back
in eighteen ninety three. It was officially donated to the
jep Scott Historical Society. Here's where it gets crazy, though.
There wasn't some well preserved family heirloom passed down carefully
over generations. Nope, nope, nope, a meadow was found in

(38:40):
the back of a book. Oh, someone picked up an
old book at the church at a church sale at
the First Parish Church in Duxbury, Massachusetts, and there was
tucked away in the pages.

Speaker 3 (38:50):
Massachusetts. Wow. The person who found it it chose to
stay in outyminous too, which only adds to the mystery.
But there's a solid explanation for hour ended up there.

Speaker 2 (39:00):
It's not a mystery at all.

Speaker 3 (39:02):
Chamberlain's granddaughter, Rosamond Allen, who was actually the last surviving
a descendant, had donated her entire state to that very
church when she passed away in two thousand. So the
medal somehow ended up among her belongings and eventually inside
that book, I.

Speaker 2 (39:17):
Would say it somehow up and belongings. So she's the
last surviving descendant from Chamberlain.

Speaker 3 (39:22):
Before the donation came official, the medal had to be
authenticated and that wasn't taken lightly. Oh.

Speaker 2 (39:27):
It was verified by four major institutions, the main State Museum,
the Library of Congress, the Smithsonian, and the Awards and
Decorations branch of the Department of Army.

Speaker 3 (39:37):
That would be the only one I would want to
do it right.

Speaker 2 (39:39):
It's the real deal. Clearly, it's on display at the
Chamberlin Museum. That's all about Chamberlain's life. And now for
comparison voting College, Chamberlain's all mal mater still holds on
nineteen oh four version. Like we said, so between the
museum and the College, both medals are preserved and accounted for,
and thus the story of his life is complete.

Speaker 3 (39:58):
That's nice.

Speaker 2 (40:01):
Yeah, well Chamberlain, Yeah busted up a long time too.
Who's the oldest Civil War survivor Henry Albert Henry Woolson.
He died in nineteen fifty sixty.

Speaker 3 (40:13):
I am.

Speaker 2 (40:13):
He was a drummer and bugler in the first Minnesota
Heavy Artillery.

Speaker 3 (40:16):
It's one hundred and six. Holy shit, I am dude
is only eleven years old. In the beginning of the war,
it was a drummer right, served for a year. Oh
he's got a minument Gettysburg. What do you do there?
He don't Gettysburg.

Speaker 2 (40:31):
He was a drummer boy in the artillery Regiment October
tenth nine, eighteen sixty four, becoming the drummer. Obviously, the
company never saw action and it was discharged September seventh,
eighteen sixty five. Okay, guy, all right, so he just
sat in camp for a few months and then ended
fucking well anyway, this is uh Chamberlain. Uh cool guy,

(40:55):
don't hear about that guy?

Speaker 3 (40:55):
Finally a dickhead alcoholic and uh.

Speaker 2 (41:01):
Somebody that didn't ignore orders or did stupid ship overlook
the army or the seventy eight million men across from us. Yeah,
but he never had like a high command like the
other ones though, so maybe he would have got a
little dumb but when never know, he was a good guy,

(41:23):
that god guy.

Speaker 3 (41:24):
Good guy.

Speaker 2 (41:25):
Yeah. Next week we'll profile another a confederal ally, somebody.

Speaker 3 (41:31):
William Moltz early y, we.

Speaker 2 (41:34):
Have not done Jewbra early. Maybe we'll do Jewbra early
or one of the hills d h or ap or
somebody Johnston or where did Johnston?

Speaker 3 (41:45):
Or Johnston?

Speaker 2 (41:46):
Did Johnson too?

Speaker 3 (41:47):
Well?

Speaker 2 (41:48):
We didn't do William, no.

Speaker 3 (41:49):
One that died.

Speaker 2 (41:51):
We did Albert.

Speaker 3 (41:52):
Oh, we did another one that surrendered. He surrendered last.

Speaker 2 (41:55):
Yes, he did well, one of the last. Um. Yeah.
Many back next week for some more behind the battle.
So remember supbscribe, share with your fans, leave the review,
and we'll see you next week for more behind the
battles of the Civil War.

Speaker 3 (42:09):
Battle does go bang than.

Speaker 2 (42:59):
M hm SI
Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Stuff You Should Know
My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

My Favorite Murder with Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark

My Favorite Murder is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark. Each week, Karen and Georgia share compelling true crimes and hometown stories from friends and listeners. Since MFM launched in January of 2016, Karen and Georgia have shared their lifelong interest in true crime and have covered stories of infamous serial killers like the Night Stalker, mysterious cold cases, captivating cults, incredible survivor stories and important events from history like the Tulsa race massacre of 1921. My Favorite Murder is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including historic true crime, comedic interviews and news, science, pop culture and more. Podcasts on the network include Buried Bones with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, This Podcast Will Kill You, Bananas and more.

The Joe Rogan Experience

The Joe Rogan Experience

The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.