March Adjutant’s Call
Circular Memorandum #574, March 2026
“Perspectives on the 1862 Virginia Campaigns”
Presented by: Chris Kolakowski
Date: Saturday, March 14 Location: Big Spring Country Club
Cocktails: 6:00 PM Dinner: 7:00 PM Program: 8:00 PM
Meet our Speaker - Chris Kolakowski
We welcome back former member and President of the Round Table, Chris Kolakowski. Chris has given us some great talks in the past and has led three field trips for us. Christopher Kolakowski is Director of the Wisconsin Veterans Museum, a position he has held since January 6, 2020. He was born and raised in Fredericksburg, Va, but his mother’s family has very deep roots in the Badger State. Chris received his BA in History and Mass Communications from Emory & Henry College, and his MA in Public History from the State University of New York at Albany.
Chris has spent his career interpreting and preserving American military history with the National Park Service, New York State government, the Rensselaer County (NY) Historical Society, the Civil War Preservation Trust, Kentucky State Parks, the U.S. Army, and the MacArthur Memorial. He has written and spoken extensively on various aspects of military history and leadership from 1775 to the present and was the inaugural Director of the General George Patton Museum and Center of Leadership at Fort Knox, Kentucky.
Chris has published three books on the Civil War and three on World War II in the Pacific. He is a reviewer and contributor to the Air Force Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs and a Senior Fellow at the Consortium of Indo-Pacific Researchers. His latest book, titled Tenth Army Commander, is about General Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr., who was killed in battle on Okinawa.
“Perspectives on the 1862 Virginia Campaigns”
The 1862 campaigns in Virginia (Valley, Peninsula, Second Manassas) were dramatic operations unlike any seen in North America before. They also were a watershed in the Civil War and American military history more generally. This talk will explore and analyze these campaigns and their place in history.
RESERVATIONS ARE REQUIRED!
Reservations Are to be Sent to Doug Krawczyk or Made on Our Website
If you do not make a reservation, you may not get fed!
The Round Table must give Big Spring an accurate count of reservations no later than Thursday before our Saturday meeting. Reservations can be made by emailing Doug Krawczyk at rdklou1@gmail.com or by calling Doug Krawczyk at 502-592-6864.
When making a reservation for more than yourself, please list the names of everyone for which you are making a reservation. If you are calling Doug, and get his voicemail, please spell your name so he can properly identify the reservation.
If you wish to join us for just the program, you must still make a reservation so we can assure you have space and a seat. If you are attending just the program, you can call Doug anytime up to 4:00 PM the day of the Meeting.
Reminder for Table Reservations: Tables for parties of eight (8) can be reserved. When making a Table Reservation, please list the names of everyone in your party. That will ensure everyone in your party will be at the same table and enable us to manage our meeting space in a more efficient manner.
We Still Have Room for You!
Field Trip to the Carolinas: Sherman’s 1865 Campaign: April 22-26, 2026
$200 Final Payment is Now Due
The final payment of $200 is now due. You can pay the $200 final payment by mailing your $200 check made out to LCWRT directly to Louisville Civil War Round Table, 9462 Brownsboro Road - #142, Louisville, Ky., 40241. This makes the total per person payment for the field trip $400. You can also pay the final payment and $200 non-refundable deposit by going to our website, www.louisvillecwrt.com and scrolling down in the Events tab to the Field Trip. We are going to the Carolinas to learn about the Civil War’s last major campaign that took place in March and April of 1865 culminating in the surrender of the Confederacy’s last major army. The campaign pitted William Sherman against Joseph Johnston. Our guide will be Civil War historian and author Wade Sokolosky. Wade was recently named the new Executive Director of the Blue and Gray Educational Society. He is a retired colonel and a 25-year veteran of the U.S. Army. He is a respected historian and the author of four books with more on the way. Wade has been leading battlefield tours for many years and is recognized as an authority on the Civil War battles in the Carolinas. Wade will be coming to the Round Table to speak to us this December. This is a field trip we have never taken and we will see several well preserved battlefields including Averasboro, Monroe’s Crossroads, Wise’s Forks and Bentonville. We will also see the ironclad CSS Neuse and many other historical sites along the way. We will be staying in Smithfield, North Carolina. We will walk this hollowed ground and cover in detail what unfolded. You can sign up now by emailing John Davis at jddavis1122@gmail.com or you can sign up at the meetings.
Harold Holzer is Coming to the Louisville Civil War Round Table!
Mark your calendars for our 600th meeting celebration to be held on May 9, 2026. To help us celebrate this special event, we are very excited to have renowned Abraham Lincoln scholar Harold Holzer come and speak to us. He is one of the country's leading authorities on Abraham Lincoln and the political culture of the Civil War era. A prolific writer and lecturer, and frequent guest on television, Holzer served for six years (2010–2016) as Chairman of The Lincoln Bicentennial Foundation. We are planning several special ways that we will commemorate this special occasion. Stay tuned for details as this will be a meeting you will not want to miss!
PINS, PINS, PINS!!!
We are pleased to announce the arrival of our NEW LCWRT LAPEL PINS. THEY LOOK GREAT! Celebrate our amazing history and show your LCWRT pride by picking up a pin and joining in the anniversary celebration (donations for the pins will be accepted and used to support our mission to study and preserve CW history). Quantities limited.
President’s Note: Membership Ambassadors
SUSTAINABILITY: We are all LCWRT membership ambassadors. By bringing in new members, we will ensure OUR LCWRT endures. We are approaching our 600th meeting; this would not have been possible without all of us being asked to the Round Table at one time. Doug Krawczyk asked me to attend, fourteen years ago. Thanks, Doug.
GUESTS: Who make’s the best guest to bring to the Round Table meeting?? Do they have to be a former/current history professor?? Published author?? Nah,…. The best guest to bring to the LCWRT is your friend or neighbor who wants to learn more about the American Civil War and meet like minded, interesting folks, (or just eat really great fried chicken). I, personally, joined because I had lived in Europe for 6 years and had been an avid student of WWII history, and realized in my 40s, that I hadn’t really studied the Civil War much. Despite attending a military academy, my college and high school exposure to Civil War history was VERY limited.
HOW: EASY-PEASY – When you are making your reservation, just tell Doug their names or add them to the list of names when making your reservation on-line. You or your guest will be responsible for paying for dinner, but they are welcome to attend the meeting at no cost. If your guest arrives late, don’t forget to seek out Patrick, our treasurer, and make sure dinner has been paid for. Remember, you can be a guest only once. While attending subsequent meetings, guest may join the LCWRT or use the $20 day-pass option, if they plan to attend infrequent tly.
BUT IT’S LATE IN THE SEASON: Not to worry: new members joining in April or May, will have their membership extended into the following Round Table season.
Thank you, Bob Glass, President-elect, for stepping in for me this February. I’ll see you all in March with a guest in tow!!
Julie
2025 – 2026 Schedule
Saturday March 14 Chris Kolakowski “Perspectives on the 1862 Virginia Campaigns”
Saturday April 11 Will Greene “Lost Opportunity: Grant Crosses the James”
Saturday May 9 Harold Holzer “Abraham Lincoln”
Tiffany Scofield Passes Away
Longtime Round Table member Tiffany Scofield has died. She was married to Life Member Wolfe Schofield who was a key member of the Round Table for many years serving as President and member of the Board of Directors. Tiffany, age 85, of Louisville, died peacefully with her family by her side on Thursday, February 12, 2026, at Norton Women’s & Children’s Hospital in St. Matthews following a brief illness.
A life-long Louisvillian, Tiffany was a graduate of the Kentucky Home School for Girls and the University of Louisville’s School of Music. A woman of profound faith, Tiffany was a founding member of her beloved Grace Anglican Church, where she was a familiar face at the Welcome Table every Sunday morning. Earlier in life, Tiffany taught kindergarten and gave piano lessons in her home. An aficionado of koi and goldfish from a very young age, in 1985 she launched her business Distinctive Ponds, building and servicing koi ponds and water gardens. She co-founded the Greater Louisville Koi & Goldfish Society, which remains active today. Tiffany was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. Edward L.W. Scofield, known as “Wolfe.”
She is survived by her son, Ted, daughter-in-law, Christi, and her sister, Dinah Stokes. The funeral service will be 1:00 p.m. on Friday, March 20, at Pearson Funeral Home, 149 Breckenridge Lane, Louisville, KY 40207 with burial in Cave Hill Cemetery. Visitation will be 4-7 p.m. on Thursday, March 19, at Pearson Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Grace Anglican Church, PO Box 822, Prospect, KY 40059 or online at https://graceanglicanlou.com/give and Hosparus Health Louisville, 6200 Dutchmans Lane, Louisville, KY 40205 or online at https://hosparushealth.org/donate/. The Round Table whishes to express our heartfelt sympathies to Tiffany’s family and friends. She will be missed.
New Name Badge Policy
We are implementing a new name badge policy. Each member will be responsible for keeping their name badges. No longer will the name badges be brought to the meeting and placed on racks. There will be a box with the name badge sorted alphabetically and you can check this box. When you leave the meeting do not leave your name badge, take it home with you and bring it to the next meeting. New members will be given a name badge and if you lose your name badge you can email John Davis at jddavis1122@gmail.com to get a new one.
We want to thank all the folks who have volunteered in the past who have worked to maintain the name badges. This new policy will greatly reduced the effort and time involved in bringing the name badges to the meetings.
Not Receiving the Newsletter?
If you are a member of the Round Table, you should be receiving the newsletter in your email. The newsletter is sent to your email about 12 days before each meeting. There are still a few members who receive the newsletter by mail but we want all members to receive it by email. If you are not receiving the newsletter, please let us know by emailing John Davis at jddavis1122@gmail.com. It may be that we do not have your correc address or you may have changed your email address to a new one.
The Newsletter is on our Website
If for some reason, you do not get the newsletter or lose or delete your copy, the Newsletter is on our websitewww.LouisvilleCWRT.com. It is posted on the website approximately 12 days before the meetings.
12th Annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge
Our friends at The Emerging Civil War have announced the full line-up of speakers for the 12th Annual Emerging Civil War Symposium at Stevenson Ridge. the event will be held August 7–9, 2025. Tickets are available for $325 each. the theme will be “Partnerships and Rivalries.” Several of our members have gone in the past few years and have really enjoyed this symposium.
We’re pleased to feature TWO keynote speakers this year:
1. Harold Holzer—Presidents in Print: The Dueling Images of Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis
2. Craig Symonds—Admirals in Blue and Gray: Farragut and Buchanan
Plus, we have a line-up of eight other speakers:
1. Kris White—“Heavens, How They Hate Him”: Braxton Bragg and the Army of Tennessee’s High Command
2. Dr. Angela Zombeck—Partners in Escape: POW Escape Attempts and Plots, Successful and Stymied
3. Joseph Ricci—“Not with a Pen but a Sword”: George H. Thomas and John M. Schofield
4. Pat Kelly-Fischer—Duel in the Desert: Canby and Sibley’s Fight for the West
5. Neil Chatelain—The Mississippi River vs. Everyone: How Grant, Foote, Pope, Farragut, Porter, Butler, Lovell, Johnston, Beauregard, and Hollins had to fight the “Father of Waters” before fighting each other
6. Ryan Quint—“With Friends Like These…”: Ambrose Burnside and Joseph Hooker, Late 1862
7. Tim Smith (of the East)—Friction in Command: Personal and Professional Conflicts Between the Union Commanders During the Gettysburg Campaign
8. Evan Portman—Frenemies: The Partnership and Rivalry of Joshua Chamberlain and Ellis Spear
Our popular Friday evening panel also returns, and we'll have a Sunday morning tour—so we have lots going on!
For information or to order tickets, visit our Symposium page.
Attest: By Order of:
John Davis Julie Bartlett
Adjutant President