The "Horrors of Sixty-Two": Rowena Blankenship and New Year's Eve 1863


Rowena Alexis Blankenship was born in 1844 in the high hills of Gallia County in southeastern Ohio, growing up near the small village of Mercerville. As she watched her neighbors, family, and friends go off to war, Rowena crafted a number of poems to help lift the spirits of her community and to help others make sense of the tumultuous times. Her work survives through the pages of the Gallipolis Journal, and while her poetry will not give Walt Whitman any fears of losing his title as America’s premier Civil War-era poet, several of her pieces are very evocative of the times and provide a wonderful insight into how a young Ohio woman viewed the Civil War.
A patriotic woman of the North who appears to be about the same age as Rowena Blankenship. The Civil War for the women of the home front was at times a gut-wrenching and life-changing experience. For Rowena, she found a release through her poetry. This incredible image is part of the Liljenquist Collection of the Library of Congress. 

Rowena would marry Civil War veteran Ira W. Booton in 1865 following his discharge from the service. Corporal Booton served in the 73rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry and was wounded and captured at Second Bull Run in 1862, and wounded a second time at the Battle of Lookout Valley, Tennessee October 29, 1863. This wound in the shoulder took months to recover from and ended his war. Years later, Ira’s grandson would sit on his lap and insert his finger into the wound caused by a Rebel bullet 50 years prior. Ira and Rowena had three children together (Minnie, James, and Rowena) before Rowena passed away at the age of 27.

The following poem entitled “New Year’s Eve of 1863” was published in the January 15, 1863 edition of the Gallipolis Journal. Its words strike me as especially poignant when viewed in conjunction with the Battle of Stones River, which by January 15, 1863 was just starting to make the news in Gallipolis. “Farewell to the year that is fading, ‘twas sorrow and misery through, our hearts and spirits are hardened, by the horrors of ‘sixty-two,” Rowena wrote. "May hearts long wedded to sadness be joyful in sixty-three."

But the casualty lists would be lengthy, and final victory for the Union seemed ever so elusive…


‘Tis new year’s eve, and I’m sitting
In the twilight dim and gray,
Comparing this lonely evening
With scenes that have passed away
When friendship and youth met together
On this of all other nights
And Cupid’s sure-aiming arrows
Filled many hearts with delight
When in social scenes we greeted
The ones to us most dear
When our sky of joy was not blighted
By a single sigh or tear

Then peace with her rosy pinions
Spread wide o’er Columbia’s land
And we knew and tasted her blessings
And basked in her sunshine so grand
How soon a sad change has come over us
Since this evening three years ago
When we hailed the hearts we loved dearest
Nor dreamed of coming woe
But the bugles of war have resounded
And the battle trumpets blown
Our banner has been insulted
And the seeds of discord are sown

The true and brave have not faltered
But rallied around our banner
And tonight the voice of thousands
Rise high in one wild hosanna
For our God, our country, and freedom
And their voices are loud and clear
For they, trusting in God, are fighting
For all that to freeman is dear
Since the voice of the brazen rebellion
Has called forth our friends to the fight
We have bidden them march on like heroes
And win the true laurels of right

Many have fallen in the conflict
And many we know must fall
But nerved our hearts to endure it
And bade farewell to them all
Farewell to the year that is fading
‘Twas sorrow and misery through
Our hearts and spirits are hardened
By the horrors of ‘sixty-two’
Farewell and may peace in her beauty
Spread her wings o’er the homes of the free
And may hearts long wedded to sadness
Be joyful in ‘sixty-three’

Mercerville, Ohio
Rowena A. Blankenship

In this haunting image from the Liljenquist Collection, a young widow wearing a mourning brooch holds a portrait of her deceased husband who appears to be a Federal officer. Beyond the emotional and spiritual toll of losing a beloved spouse, becoming a widow during the Civil War posed especially difficult life decisions with such limited opportunities for employment for women. This image strikes a chord with me as this very situation occurred in our family when an uncle, Stephen A. Stratton of the 89th Indiana Volunteers, died of disease in Memphis in 1863, leaving a wife and several children back home in Jay County, Indiana. The bravery of the men in the field was matched by the steadfast resolve of the women on the homefront to continue to raise their families and persevere despite the anguish and heartache that characterized this era of American history.


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