The Colorado Index

Intermittent Publication

I have come to the realization that I can't both be the kind of candidate that I want to be and also write a quality blog.

Effective immediately, regular publication of this blog is suspended.

Army Post Cemeteries

There was a time when company or troop sized Army posts (forts) were scattered around the west.  Most were shut down in 1890 when the land and buildings were sold off.  The buildings were usually dismantled for the lumber, leaving only the rocks at each corner of each building that comprised the building "foundation."

Many of these forts had established a military cemetery as the need arose.  It wasn't practical to do anything else. When the posts were deactivated in 1890, the graves were moved to a larger active post.  Many of the graves from forts in this area were moved to Fort Riley or Fort Leavenworth.

Some graves weren't moved.  Soldiers who died of cholera were left in place out of fear of spreading the disease.  Civilian family members and Indian scouts weren't moved.

Some of those old posts weren't completely torn down, especially if the town that grew up around them was close enough that the residents could move into the officers quarters. Fort Walla Walla, Washington is one such place.

It had (has) a large post cemetery with the first burials dating to the 1840's. At one time I administered that cemetery and was the custodian of the burial records.

If you ever visit that cemetery, you will see a large number of unknown grave markers. Some time in the 1870's the Regimental adjutant asked to inspect the burial records.  The problem was that he wasn't at Fort Walla Walla, but at another post three states away.

The records were lost in shipment.  At that time and place, grave markers were wooden boards that eventually rotted and were replaced using the post cemetery records.  Without the records, the names and stories of those buried soldiers and civilians were lost.

Few probably know about those few still interred in long abandoned post cemeteries or the Fort Walla Walla soldiers who served our country and sleep under headstones with no names. Memorial day seems appropriate to write and think about them and if not tell their stories, tell the stories of their resting places.

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For those who are curious, it used to be possible for veterans to be buried in the post cemeteries of posts that were established in the 19th century and closed later than the 1890s if there is room.  Several of the larger coastal artillery posts on the Pacific didn't close until after WWII.  The Army still administers those cemeteries.

Fort Carson never had a post cemetery.  The Air Force Academy has a cemetery.  Burials there are limited to graduates and cadets, I believe.

Fort Walla Walla is the post where Captain U.S. Grant resigned his commission in disgrace.  The quarters he lived in still stand.  

Graveside Military Honors

It turned out that the family did decide to have a memorial service for my recently deceased brother in law.  That created a reason to drive to St Louis and back.

First, a comment about the military service that occurred at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery.  It was conducted by an honor guard who wore modified military uniforms. The volunteer honor guard is to be commended for their professionalism and their appearance. The fact that they would volunteer their time to honor a fallen comrade is no small matter.

As an retired officer who has attended several military funerals in the capacity of a survival assistance officer, a duty that often falls to ROTC instructors in locations that are far away from a military post, I thought I was familiar with the ceremony that I would see.

I was not.

I encourage those who might want their family to request military honors to check out the nature of the honors available ahead of time.  My guess is that there are several versions, some more traditional than others.

Windows 7 is Coming

The Denver Post has a promising article about Windows 7.  For now, though, it is vaporware.

Microsoft has lost me as a customer and it is going to be hard to get me back.

Some years ago, I bought three computers for myself and my wife.  All were PCs.  One replaced an out of date Mac that is still in the crawl space.

I loved that Mac, but the new generations of software made it obsolete.  My needs were simple.  I used Photoshop, Illustrator, an animation program, and did a lot of writing. 

Over the years, my needs changed.  My blog required that I keep multiple windows open to msm sites. Those sites, like the Denver Post, want attention grabbing graphics.  I found that those graphics didn't use all that much memory individually, but because of a stack (a computer term) problem in the Microsoft operating system, they gobbled up enough memory that I had to reboot too often.

In January, I decided to try a Mac.  I love it.  There are no security issues.  The software doesn't lock up. The overabundance of eye candy at the msm sites is toned down.  iLife is great, as is the built in camera.

As I replace my other old computers, they will be replaced with Macs.  Reliability at twice the price, but reliability.

A Personal Note

My brother-in-law died this morning.  Lung cancer.  He went so fast that he was only diagnosed ten days ago.  This week there was supposed to be a battery of tests to determine its progress.  After the first day, he was given a week to two weeks to live.

He didn't last a week.

He was my favorite in-law, and I will miss him.  Fortunately, we had a very good four day visit last October.  He appeared to be in great health.  That will be how I remember him.

There will be no service, so it seems fitting to memorialize him here.  Pardon my tears.

40 Years Ago Today

On St. Patrick's Day 40 years ago I got drafted.  It changed my life, for the better, I think. 

Back to Blogging

Yesterday was my last day of cancer treatment.  It was quite an experience--very little pain but a lot of discomfort.

The blog wasn't supposed to go "dark" over the past several days.  I had written a number of generic posts and set them to be published, something I have successfully done in the past  I am not certain what happened.

I am about a week behind in my research and writing, so we will see if we can catch up.

It Didn't Make 150 Years

If there was only one newspaper with the integrity to report honestly on Judicial misconduct, it was the Rocky Mountain News.

My guess is that the champagne glasses were filled many times last evening at the Supreme Court and the Colorado Bar Association last night.

Rocky, we hardly knew ye.  Sorry to see you go.

Without Internet Service

I am a bit late on approving comments because I didn't have access to the internet for 24 hours.  Thank you Comcast!

Valentine's Day Thoughts

I apologize for my absence over the last couple weeks.  Happy as I am to have a day job in this economy, I worked nearly nonstop over that time to write a technical report that is due early next week.

As Mrs. Civil Sense has seen little of me as well over that time, we are spending the day together with a movie and a bite to eat in nominal celebration of Valentine's Day.

Regular blogging shall resume next week.  Happy Valentine's Day.

by Civil Sense