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Talk:And Then There Were None

Relevance of Septimus Winner rhyme
It doesn't seem right to present the 1868 Septimus Winner version of the rhyme as being in some way equivalent to the 1869 Frank Green version, for the purpose of this book. It's quite clear that the Frank Green version is the one that Christie actually used; the other is quite different, although obviously related. I'd suggest removing the text of Septimus Winner and just referring to it by way of historical background. This is not an article about alternative variants of the rhyme, but about a specific novel. Thoughts? MichaelMaggs (talk) 21:41, 11 November 2020 (UTC)

 * , I think it makes it clear why Indians was used as a term when niggers was considered offensive, for at least one published version. Just an idea of mine. --Prairieplant (talk) 06:29, 12 November 2020 (UTC)
 * That should be discussed of course, but I don't think that needs us to quote the entirety of a different historical rhyme - one that is not used at all in the book. MichaelMaggs (talk) 08:35, 12 November 2020 (UTC)
 * Getting back to the above, still no evidence has been presented that Christie's rhyme was partly "derived from" the 1868 Septimus Winner text. She obviously didn't use it directly, and we don't have a single source stating that Frank Green's rhyme (which is what she did use) was derived from Septimus Winner. They could just as well have both some from some other, common, source. I'm proposing to remove the full text of Septimus Winner, and just refer to it in passing. MichaelMaggs (talk) 12:53, 22 June 2022 (UTC)
 * I agree with that approach, and action. The main interest of the 1868 version is it might have influenced the US publishers to shift from the term niggers to the term Indians instead of little boys or people or men any other phrase that might be used in the 1868 version. It is clear it did not influence the author in writing her novel. --
 * This is more complicated than expected. I have not been able to find the complete 1869 Frank Green lyrics online, but I doubt that what we have in the article is accurate, as a 1869 British publication would hardly have used the US spelling of "traveling". I may need to search out an original songsheet when I'm next in the British Library. All earlier versions I can find online end up with the last Indian (or Injun in some versions) getting married, not dying by hanging. It's unclear whether hanging was in the Green version, or whether that was added for the purpose of the story by Christie. Also, was Septimus Winner's 1868 version derived from some earlier traditional nursery rhyme? There are suggestions that it was, but what evidence do we have for that? Ten Little Indians is unclear. Some information here. MichaelMaggs (talk) 17:53, 28 February 2023 (UTC)
 * The way it's written in the entry is incorrect, but this is also incorrect. If you look at the sheet music cover it's credited to Septimus Winner AND Frank Green. That's because Frank Green's version does open with Winner's "One little, two little three little..." There is a very old British children's record you can hear on Youtube that opens with Winner's rhyme, then goes into the new Frank Green lyrics that Christie uses. Jeri Southern (talk) 05:57, 30 November 2023 (UTC)
 * Do you have a link to the sheet music online? MichaelMaggs (talk) 07:52, 30 November 2023 (UTC)

True location?
I am editing this, mainly because I didn't enjoy asking it, but, is the island based on a real life island? If Christie holidayed on an island that was too dangerous to get to and from by swimming, sounds like good inspiration for a murder mystery. Middle More Rider (talk) 23:42, 20 August 2022 (UTC)

 * Schmoop thinks it is based on a real island, but it is not part of the description of the novel on the official Agatha Christie website. Without a reliable source, and I do not consider Schmoop a reliable source as it had no footnote as to where they learned this, I would not add this to the article. If this is included in a biography about the author, that might be a reliable source. - - Prairieplant (talk) 20:21, 24 August 2022 (UTC)

Missing movie adaption
Whilst it's not a direct adaption I think the film Identity (2003) has enough in common to maybe considered adding 81.187.69.130 (talk) 14:41, 30 July 2023 (UTC)

Change cover image to reflect article title?
It's more than a little jarring to see the N word in giant letters the moment you open this page, especially since the page title doesn't reflect the novel's original title. Could we find the first cover featuring the "And Then There Were None" title and use that instead? 2601:1C1:8501:F557:898:6A25:929A:71C5 (talk) 19:38, 9 September 2023 (UTC)
 * No, sorry.  SN54129  20:21, 9 September 2023 (UTC)

Hey, could you please explain why it is necessary to have the outdated cover and title, especially since it contains a racial slur, instead of a newer cover with the title that matches the name of the article? I think it is unnecessarily confusing for readers and rather insensitive. — Preceding unsigned comment added by HoolaHoopsSuck (talk • contribs) 04:04, 3 June 2024 (UTC)
 * It is standard practice to use the first edition cover, where available, for all books – a practice that's specifically recommended in Template:Infobox book. That's still the case where the original cover is outdated or racist, per WP:CENSOR. MichaelMaggs (talk) 08:19, 3 June 2024 (UTC)

1939, 1940; collier & sons edition
I have a version titled “And Then There Were None” copywritten 1940 by P. F. Collier and Son Corporation with “manufactured in the U.S.A.” that does not appear on the publications list, and the first printing in 1939 would be an earlier version than the first claimed US version from January 1940 Dodd publishing. My version also uses “Indians” throughout. Any insight? Pictures attached in reply. 2601:188:CC7F:E60:4173:6174:5E51:FB49 (talk) 05:01, 12 December 2023 (UTC)

 * https://postimg.cc/gallery/s7GsCks 2601:188:CC7F:E60:4173:6174:5E51:FB49 (talk) 05:06, 12 December 2023 (UTC)
 * Where did you find 1939 as the first print? Your book has "Copyright 1939, 1940". I presume that refers to the original 1939 UK edition and 1940 is the additional copyright for the US adaption. That is a beautiful hardback, no doubt a plethora of avid Christie fans are foaming at the mouth jealous :) BeardedChimp (talk) 18:18, 18 March 2024 (UTC)

Changing cover image
I know this was already mentioned, but it was closed without a reason why it shouldn't be changed.

It's more than a little jarring to see the N word in giant letters the moment you open this page, especially since the page title doesn't reflect the novel's original title. Could we find the first cover featuring the "And Then There Were None" title and use that instead? Or just don't have a cover? 23.120.125.83 (talk) 23:33, 14 December 2023 (UTC)

 * This is Wikipedia, not Baby's First Encyclopedia, and Wikipedia is not censored. It's standard practice to have a picture of the first edition in articles pertaining to books. Zacwill (talk) 04:10, 15 December 2023 (UTC)

title: Talk:And Then There Were None


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Ryūgū-jō

Ryūgū-jō (竜宮城, 龍宮城) or Ryūgū (竜宮, 龍宮) is the supernatural undersea palace of Ryūjin or Dragon God in Japanese tradition.

It is best known as the place in fairytale where Urashima Tarō was invited after saving a turtle, where he was entertained by the Dragon God's princess Oto-hime and his minions, but when Urashima returned back to land after what he thought was a few days away, centuries had passed.

Overview
Ryūgū or Ryūgū-jō is the fabulous mythical residence of the Ryūjin (Dragon God) or Sea God, or the princess Otohime. It is also equated with the "fish-scale palace" (iroko no goto tsukureru miya)" which was the Sea God Watatsumi's palace mentioned in the Kojiki (8th century).

The Ryūgū is well-known as the supernatural place in the fisherman's fairytale Urashima Tarō, and most Japanese now consider it to be a place which supposed to lie under the sea. Actually, Ryūgū that appears in other narratives and fairytales (otogi banashi) had been considered to be underwater for a long time, but in the particular case of the Urashima legend, its Dragon Palace was not firmly considered to be underwater until quite late in the modern period.

Afloat or undersea
In most familiar versions of the Urashima legend nowadays in Japan, the Ryūgū lies undersea, but in early and otogizoshi versions, the fisherman traveled to Hōrai (Mount Penglai, the Elysium in Chinese tradition), a floating island. During the Edo era, pictorial depiction of Ryūgū above the waves remained fairly conventional. A work may illustrate Ryūgū above water, yet describe it textually as underwater, as in a burlesque gesaku work of 1782.

In the Meiji era, or "redbook picture books" of the 1880s, as well as Tsukioka Yoshitoshi's (1886) print are examples of Ryūgū illustrated above water, but they are lacking in textual detail on whether it is a sunken city or not. The akahon illustrations were appropriated by Masayuki Kataoka's English translation (1886), which describes the Dragon Palace as visible "far below" the water, to which the man carried by the reptile "descended".

Ryūgū was described as a "Dragon Palace beyond the blue sea", in Basil Hall Chamberlain's translation (1886). Here the "Dragon Palace" is illustrated as a complex of buildings atop an island, with fishes clad in kimono walking about the sandy shore. Chamberlain had freely substituted more ancient text material into his retelling of the Urashima fairytale. Chamberlain also interchangeably uses "Sea God's Palace", probably with the archaic god-name Watatsumi in mind.

Eventually, the Dragon Palace undersea became the standard in modern tellings of the Urashima tale. A canonical example by the Taisho Era, according to one researcher, was the edition by Mori Rintarō (novelist Mori Ōgai) and others, published 1920–1921, whose illustration shows Urashima and the turtle peeing underneath at the palace.

Palace architecture
"The walls of the Palace were of coral, the trees had emeralds for leaves and rubies for berries" (Chamberlain), roughly coincides with the inner chambers being fashioned with sangoju kin no tagui (珊樹樹金の類) according to Meiji Era akahon ehon ("red book" editions).

The use of materials such as pearl or crystal on the exterior is given in Brauns' translation (Englished by Lang), alongside the interior hall being illuminated by fish scales.

Masayuki Kataoka's English translation (1886) describes a Dragon's Palace with a crystal dome, which a researcher considers a novel, unfamiliar feature. Kataoka's translation, upon comparison, differed greatly from the text of the akahon picture books, though he had blatantly appropriated and reworked their illustrations. Here, there is a long distance from the gatekeeper to the palace proper, and Urashima is guided by a pretty glass ball that rolls of is own accord.

Four seasons on four sides
A notable feature of the Dragon Palace according to the "feudal" (otogizōshi) versions is the view to the "four seasons on four sides", though this has been eschewed in Chamberlain's translation.

However, the view to the four seasons is incorporated in Mrs. Ozaki's translation: cherry blossom in bloom to the east (spring), buzzing cicadas to the south (summer), multi-colored maple leaves to the west (autumn), and snow-covered ground to the north (winter). This is presumably based on a text edited by, probably the text of Nihon mukashibanashi (1896), which corresponds roughly with a version from the Otogizōshi. The four seasons also figure in F. Hadland Davis's synopsis (1912). The usual bird which sings in spring is the bush warbler, not actually a nightingale. More precise translations from the otogizōshi text are given elsewhere.

Passage of time
Whether in the ancient (Nara Period), feudal period or standard modern versions of Urashima, he believes he has spent 3 years at the otherworld or Dragon Palace, but more than 300 years had elapsed in the ancient and standard modern versions (700 years in the feudal period versions). The Mizukagami (1195) gives a more precise reckoning; Urashima supposedly returned in the 2nd year of Tenchō (825 AD), 347 years later. This matches the claim in Nihon shoki that he disappeared in the year of Yuraku 22, conventionally assigned the year 478. But it also means he did not come back until a century after the Nihon shoki was written.

Hoderi and Hoori
In the mythology concerning the two princes Hoderi ("Fire Flash") and Hoori ("Fire Fade") in the Kojiki, the latter younger brother adventures to the Sea God's palace and emerges triumphant, and sires the line of emperors. The story has been often retold as fairytale, e.g. as "The Princes Fire-flash & Fire-fade".

The Sea-God's palace, a "palace built like fishes' scales", is interpreted to be a metaphor for a silver-colored structure.

Local lore
In the Ryukyuan religion, Ryūgū-jō (Okinawan: Ruuguu) is the source of fire for all family and village hearths.

Ryūgū-no-tsukai and Jinjahime
The Japanese name for the deep-sea dwelling giant oarfish is ryūgū-no-tsukai (リュウグウノツカイ), literally lit. "messenger/servant of Ryūgū" or "Messenger from the Sea God's Palace".

This real species of fish may have been the origins of the mythical, which also claimed to be a "messenger/servant of Ryūgū". This (神社姫), was a type of the so-called "prophet beast" (yogenjū) during the Edo period, which prophesied bountiful harvest followed by epidemic.

Monuments
The Katase-Enoshima Station in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture is a structure built to resemble Ryūgū-jō, as a mock-up.

Ryūgū Shrine derives its name from Ryūgū-jō. Located on Cape Nagasakibana (also known as Cape Ryūgū) in southern Kagoshima, it is said to be where Urashima Tarō traveled to Ryūgū-jō. Locals honor Ryūjin and turtles as protectors.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Ryūgū-jō


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Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme

The Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM; International Motorcycling Federation) is the global governing/sanctioning body of motorcycle racing. It represents 121 national motorcycle federations that are divided into six continental unions.

There are seven motorcycle-racing disciplines that FIM covers, encompassing 82 world championships as well as hundreds of secondary championships: enduro, trial, circuit racing, motocross and supermoto, cross-country, e-bike, and track racing. FIM is also involved in many non-racing activities that promote the sport, its safety, and support relevant public policy. The FIM is also the first international sporting federation to publish an Environmental Code, in 1994. In 2007, a Commission for Women in Motorcycling was created by the FIM in order to promote the use of powered two-wheelers and the motorcycle sport among women.

History
The FIM was born from the Fédération Internationale des Clubs Motocyclistes (FICM), which itself was founded in Paris, France, on 21 December 1904. The British Auto-Cycle Union was one of the founding members. In 1906, the FICM was dissolved, but reborn in 1912 with the headquarters now located in England. The Six Days Reliability Trial was held the next year, the first international event held by the new incarnation.

The name was changed to the Fédération Internationale Motocycliste (FIM) in 1949, the same year that also saw the first race of the famed Road Racing World Championship Grand Prix. The headquarters were transferred to Geneva, Switzerland in 1959.

1994 saw the headquarters relocated, this time to Mies, Switzerland, and occupy its own building for the first time, shaped like a stylized motorcycle wheel. The name was changed again in 1998 to the Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme at the congress in Cape Town, South Africa. The same year, the FIM was given provisional status of recognition by the International Olympic Committee, and gained full status in 2000 at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

2004 marked the organization's centenary, and celebrations were held at the congress in Paris in October. Since 2018, Jorge Viegas (Portugal) is President of the FIM.

Due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, on March 6, 2022, FIM banned all Russian and Belarusian motorcycle riders, teams, officials, and competitions.

Road racing

 * FIM CEV Moto2 European Championship
 * FIM Endurance World Championship
 * FIM Grand Prix motorcycle racing
 * FIM JuniorGP World Championship
 * FIM Sidecar World Championship
 * FIM Superbike World Championship
 * FIM Supersport 300 World Championship
 * FIM Supersport World Championship
 * Asia Road Racing Championship
 * Asia Talent Cup
 * British Talent Cup
 * European Talent Cup
 * FIM MiniGP
 * Northern America Talent Cup
 * Northern Talent Cup
 * MotoE World Cup

Off-road racing

 * FIM Bajas World Cup
 * FIM E-Xbike World Cup Race (Electric bicycle)
 * FIM Freestyle Motocross World Championship
 * FIM Hard Enduro World Championship
 * FIM Ice Speedway of Nations
 * FIM Individual Ice Speedway World Championship
 * FIM Individual Speedway Long Track World Championship
 * FIM Motocross World Championship
 * FIM Oceania Speedway Sidecar Championship
 * FIM Sidecarcross World Championship
 * FIM Snowcross World Championship
 * FIM Speedway Under-21 World Championship
 * FIM Speedway Sidecar World Cup
 * FIM Speedway World Championship
 * FIM Speedway World Cup
 * FIM Supercross World Championship
 * FIM SuperEnduro World Championship
 * FIM Supermoto World Championship
 * FIM Team Long Track World Championship
 * FIM Team Speedway Under-21 World Championship
 * FIM Trial World Championship
 * FIM World Enduro Championship
 * FIM Women's Motocross World Championship
 * FIM World Rally-Raid Championship
 * International Six Days Enduro
 * Motocross des Nations
 * Supermoto of Nations
 * Trial des Nations

FIM motorcycle racing helmet testing and homologation
In 2019, the FIM decided to implement its own helmet testing regime. Helmet manufacturers have to submit helmets for testing, and the FIM then lab tests them to make sure they are up to the job of protecting racers.


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Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/8216

This page is an archive of the discussion surrounding the proposed deletion of the page entitled Q%C7%90.

This page is kept as an historic record.

The result of the debate was to delete the article.

Um, what? RickK 00:30, 18 May 2004 (UTC)
 * This is different. Really different.  Delete anyway. - Lucky 6.9 00:42, 18 May 2004 (UTC)

This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue or the deletion should be placed on other relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.

title: Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/8216


text:
William W. Belknap

William Worth Belknap (September 22, 1829 – October 12, 1890) was a lawyer, Union Army officer, government administrator in Iowa, and the 30th United States Secretary of War, serving under President Ulysses S. Grant. Belknap was impeached on March 2, 1876, for his role in the trader post scandal but was acquitted by the Senate. Belknap was the first cabinet secretary in U.S. history to be impeached.

A native of New York, Belknap graduated from the College of New Jersey, now Princeton University, in 1848, studied law with a Georgetown attorney, and passed the bar in 1851. He moved to Iowa, where he practiced law in partnership with Ralph P. Lowe. Belknap entered politics as a Democrat and served one term in the Iowa House of Representatives. When the American Civil War broke out in 1861, Belknap joined the Union Army. A tall burly man, Belknap was a natural Union Army leader and recruiter. A veteran of the Iowa Home Guard who had attained the rank of captain, he was commissioned as a major in the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry. He took part in numerous engagements, including Shiloh, where he was wounded, and Corinth. He served as a regimental, brigade, division, and corps commander, and served in high-level staff positions. By the end of the war, Belknap had been promoted to brigadier general and received a brevet promotion to major general of volunteers.

After declining a regular Army commission, Belknap was appointed Iowa's Collector of Internal Revenue by President Andrew Johnson; he served with distinction for four years. In 1869, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed Belknap as Secretary of War. During his tenure, Belknap ordered portraits of all the previous Secretaries, intending to create a complete collection in honor of the United States Centennial. In 1871, Belknap was investigated by Congress, after he was directly involved in the sale of arms and munitions to France, while the United States was ostensibly neutral during the Franco-Prussian War. The same year, Belknap had arranged aid for victims of the catastrophic Chicago Fire.

During the Reconstruction Era, Belknap's War Department and the U.S. military worked under the supervision of President Ulysses S. Grant and the United States Attorney General's office to occupy the former Confederacy and attempt to implement changes in government and the economy, while protecting freedmen from an increasingly violent insurgency. Belknap supported Grant's Reconstruction policy, which most Democrats opposed.

In 1875, Grant, Belknap, and other members of Grant's administration secretly agreed to remove troops from the Black Hills after gold was discovered. The US had protected the area from white settlers as part of a US treaty with the Lakota. The withdrawal of troops allowed a gold rush of white settlers to take place, and the US took de facto possession after the Lakota refused to sell their sacred lands. In 1876, the trader post scandal at Fort Sill led to Belknap's sudden resignation, impeachment by the Democratic-controlled House, and trial by the Senate. While a majority of senators voted to convict, they lacked the two-thirds required, and Belknap was acquitted. Judge Arthur MacArthur Sr. dismissed Belknap's Washington D. C. federal trial. Belknap resumed practicing law in Washington; he continued to be popular among Iowa Civil War veterans and was active until he died of a heart attack in 1890. One historian described Belknap as a man of both virtues and flaws, a talented lawyer, administrator, and military officer, but whose personal corruption overshadowed his positive qualities. Historians have largely forgotten Belknap's heroic Union Civil War service.

Early life and career

William Worth Belknap was born in Newburgh, New York on September 22, 1829, the son of career soldier William G. Belknap and Anne Clark Belknap. Belknap's father fought with distinction in the War of 1812, the Florida War, and Mexican–American War. Belknap attended the local schools in Newburgh, and graduated from the College of New Jersey at Princeton in 1848. In addition to attending Princeton with Hiester Clymer, the Democratic Congressman who later led the investigation into Belknap's War Department corruption, Belknap was a college contemporary of Grant's Secretary of Navy George M. Robeson, who was one year behind Clymer and Belknap at Princeton. After graduation, he studied law with Georgetown attorney Hugh E. Caperton. After passing an examination by Judge William Cranch in 1851, Belknap was admitted to the Washington, D.C. bar, and began looking for a place to settle and begin his career.

He moved west to Keokuk, Iowa, and entered into a partnership with Ralph P. Lowe. Deciding to make Iowa his permanent residence, in 1854, Belknap had a home built in Keokuk. He joined the Democratic Party and successfully ran for state office in 1856, serving in the Iowa House of Representatives from the 54th district between 1858 and 1860. Belknap was looked on as a rising Iowa Democratic leader. Belknap also joined a local company of the Iowa Home Guard, the Keokuk City Rifles, and he attained the rank of captain.

Marriages and family
In 1854 Belknap married Cora LeRoy, who died in 1862. They had one child together, Hugh R. Belknap, who served as a U.S. representative from Illinois. Belknap married Carita S. Tomlinson of Kentucky in January 1869; she died of tuberculosis shortly after childbirth in December 1870.

Belknap married again on December 11, 1873, to Amanda (née Tomlinson) Bower, his second wife's widowed sister. They had a daughter, Alice Belknap, born November 28, 1874. Alice Belknap was considered one of Washington society's most sought-after belles. In 1897 she reportedly converted to Judaism for her engagement to Paul May, an attaché of the Belgian legation in Washington. The engagement was broken the following year, and in June 1898 Alice Belknap married William Barklie Henry of Philadelphia.

American Civil War
When the American Civil War started, Belknap remained loyal to the Union as a pro-war Democrat. He first saw action in the Battle of Athens as the captain of the Keokuk City Rifles, a company of the Iowa Home Guard. He enlisted in the Union Army as a volunteer on November 7, 1861, and commissioned as a major. On December 7 he was mustered and tasked with raising and equipping the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry. Belknap was assigned to Companies F&S. A rugged, charismatic and handsome man, Belknap was well-suited to the rigors of being a soldier. At over six feet tall and 200 pounds, with blue eyes, and fair hair, mustache, and beard, Belknap was regarded a natural leader described as "a fine type of Saxon-American manhood". In addition, the public speaking skills and powers of persuasion he developed as a lawyer made him an effective recruiter. Belknap was a natural soldier, whose leadership skills, loud voice, and militia experience were assets in the training of newly enlisted privates.

Shiloh, Corinth, and Vicksburg
In March 1862, Maj. Belknap and the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry were mustered into military action. Traveling by steamer from St. Louis, Belknap was sent to the front at the Battle of Shiloh; arriving at Pittsburgh Landing on April 6 joining the Army of the Tennessee, under the authority of Union General Ulysses S. Grant. Belknap and his men were ordered to the front to serve under Maj. Gen Benjamin M. Prentiss at the Hornet's Nest. Belknap and his raw 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry troops were forced to fight like regular army veterans on Prentiss's depleted line. Belknap was slightly wounded in the shoulder, and his horse was shot and killed from under him. Afterwards he continued on the field on foot. Reinforced, the Union Army under General Grant, forced the Confederates to retreat back to Corinth, and Shiloh was considered a Union victory. After Shiloh, Belknap served as acting commander of the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry at the Battle of Corinth. Col. Hugh T. Reid, commander of the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry, had been severely injured in the neck at Shiloh and removed from active duty. Col. Reid stated that at Shiloh Belknap, "was always in the right place at the right time, directing and encouraging officers and men as coolly as a veteran" At Corinth, Belknap was noted for his "conspicuous gallantry". After Corinth, Belknap and the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry for a time served on guard duty. Belknap was formally promoted from major to lieutenant colonel on August 20, 1862. Belknap was promoted from lieutenant colonel to colonel of the Iowa 15th Volunteer Infantry on June 3, 1863. The Union capture of Vicksburg, the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi, was vital and would split the Confederacy in two. Belknap's primary military operation took place at the Siege of Vicksburg until Confederate General John C. Pemberton surrendered to Union General Grant on July 4, 1863. Colonel Belknap, Fifteenth Iowa, was part of the Third Brigade of the Sixth Division serving under Major General John McArthur.

On December 24, 1863, Belknap was in command of the 11th Iowa Volunteer Infantry and the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry reinforcing Redbone, Mississippi, south of Vicksburg. On February 26, 1864, Belknap served as provost marshal of post in Canton, Mississippi.

Battle of Atlanta, Battle of Ezra Church, and March to the Sea

On June 8, 1864, Col. Belknap and the veteran 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry were transferred to the 4th Division, XVII Corps at Ackworth, Georgia. On July 22, 1864, at the Battle of Atlanta, Belknap served with distinction, fighting against the 45th Alabama Infantry. Belknap and his Iowa troops dug in and set up earthworks and a parapet around Bald Hill. The 45th Alabama infantry led by Confederate Col. Harris D. Lampley, assaulted the entrenched Union line two times but were repelled by massive Union gun power. On the second attempt, Lampley and his remaining men crossed over to the Union line for hand-to-hand combat. Lampley, who had been shot, cursed his men who had fallen or were retreating. In the midst of the fierce fighting the burly Belknap grabbed the wounded Lampley by the collar, spun him around to face the Confederate lines, and shouted, "Look at your men! They are dead! What are you cursing them for!?" Belknap took the wounded Lampley prisoner; he was held until his death on August 24.

William H. Chamberlain of the 81st Ohio Infantry Regiment later wrote: "The next day [July 23, 1864] I remember seeing Colonel Wm. W. Belknap of the 15th Iowa (afterward Brigadier-General and Secretary of War). He was a brawny, red-bearded giant in appearance, and it was told of him that he had captured a number of prisoners by pulling them over the breastworks by main force, so closely were the lines engaged."

On July 28, 1864, at the Battle of Ezra Church, Belknap was in charge of the 15th Iowa Volunteer Infantry and the 32nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry, which reinforced Maj. Gen. Morgan Lewis Smith's XV Corps. On July 30, Belknap was promoted to brigadier general as commander of the 4th Division, XVII Corps, and participated in Major Gen. Sherman's operations in Georgia and the Carolinas. After Atlanta was taken by the Union Army, Belknap accompanied Maj. Gen. Sherman on his March to the Sea. Belknap was promoted to Brevet Major General of Volunteers on March 13, 1865, as a reward for his bravery in the Atlanta Campaign. Having declined a regular Army commission, on August 24, 1865, Belknap was mustered out of the U.S. Army.

Iowa Collector of Internal Revenue (1865–1869)
In 1865, President Andrew Johnson appointed Belknap Collector of Internal Revenue for Iowa's 1st District. In this position, Belknap was responsible for collecting millions of dollars in federal taxes; collectors were paid a percentage of the revenue they brought in, which made the position lucrative and highly sought after. Belknap served for four years until he was appointed Secretary of War by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1869. During his term as Collector, which coincided with the Reconstruction Era, Belknap associated himself with the Republican Party. Belknap served with distinction; when his Collector's accounts were settled, they were accurate to within four cents.

Secretary of War (1869–1876)
On the advice of General of the Army William T. Sherman, President Ulysses S. Grant appointed Belknap to Secretary of War on October 25, 1869, to take the place of Secretary John A. Rawlins, who had died in office of tuberculosis. Sherman himself had served briefly as acting secretary of war, after Rawlins's death. Belknap was seen as a protégé of Sherman's, having fought in the Atlanta Campaign and accompanied him on Sherman's March to the Sea. President Grant believed Belknap had served capably during the American Civil War and deserved to head the War Department.

After his appointment, Belknap implemented or recommended several positive initiatives. He recommended that Congress act to fix the date of May 1 as the start of the fiscal year, allowing for more accurate accounting of department funds. He inaugurated the preparation of historical reports by post commanders as a way to document their activities for posterity, and proposed actions to preserve Yellowstone National Park. Not all of Belknap's actions were well received, however. He bypassed Sherman when making appointments, and reduced Sherman's budget, thus weakening the authority of the General of the Army position.

In 1874, Sherman responded by leaving Washington and moving his headquarters to St. Louis. Major General Oliver O. Howard was also ostracized by Belknap. While stationed in Oregon, in 1874, Major General Howard candidly expressed his opinion of Belknap. Howard stated that Belknap was deceptive to "General Grant", that Belknap was not a true Republican, and that he associated nightly with "foul-mouthed" Democratic Kentucky associates. Howard also opined that Belknap was "not in favor" of the President's Indian Peace policy. That statement is likely related to a conflict, during Belknap's tenure, between the War and Interior Departments as to which would exercise control over American Indian policy. In the context of this era, Belknap's actions may not be seen as overly aggressive or overreaching. In terms of Reconstruction, historian Jean Edward Smith, notes that Grant, a former General of the Army, personally supervised the use of the U.S. military and that Belknap "had less freedom of action than other cabinet members." Belknap held office for 6 years, 4 months, and 7 days.

War Department portrait gallery (1869)
Upon assuming office in 1869, Belknap conceived the idea of creating portraits of previous civilian heads of the War Department in honor of the upcoming 1876 U.S. Centennial, and hired renowned artists Daniel Huntington, Robert Weir, and Henry Ulke. Belknap's portrait was painted by Huntington in 1874. The portraits were assembled into a distinct collection to be viewed by the public. The portrait initiative was continued by Belknap's successors; in addition to secretaries, the collection came to include others notable for their military distinction. This effort at historic preservation was considered a success, and Belknap received "unqualified credit" for his creation of the War Department portrait gallery.

Indian ring (1870–1876)

During the summer of 1870, Belknap successfully lobbied Congress to grant him the sole power to appoint and license agents, known as sutlers, with ownership rights to highly lucrative "traderships" at U.S. military forts in the Western frontier. These monopoly traderships were considered good investments during the Gilded Age and were highly sought after. On July 15, the Commanding General of the Army's power to appoint traderships was repealed, empowering Belknap while further eroding Sherman's authority.

To ensure maximum profits, Belknap ordered soldiers stationed at forts having Belknap-approved sutlers to buy supplies only through the authorized traderships. Soldiers on the Western frontier, who were thus forced to buy goods at exorbitant prices that far exceeded the usual rate, were left in debt or destitute as a result. One 7th Cavalry Sergeant noted that a shot of whiskey "mostly glass" cost 25 cents (.25¢ 1871 = $5.40 2019) glass, at a time when soldiers were paid a few dollars ($1.00 1871 = $21.60 2019) a month.

Hostile American Indians bought supplies at these traderships, including high-quality single-shot breech-loaders and repeating rifles. At the same time, Army requisitions for rifles were filled by Belknap's War Department with inferior single-shot breech-loaders that jammed frequently, and were no match for superior breech-loaders and repeating rifles. The policy had a negative effect on the firepower of the U.S. troops and may have contributed to the defeat of George Armstrong Custer and the 7th Cavalry at Battle of the Little Big Horn in June 1876, several months after Belknap was out of office. (However, Custer had also decided against bringing Gatling guns; these would have increased Custer's firepower, even if his troops had been armed with inferior rifles.)

Belknap's second wife, Carita, was socially ambitious and unwilling to live in Washington, D.C., on Belknap's $8,000 annual salary (about $157,000 in 2018). When the couple arrived in Washington from Keokuk, Iowa in 1869, Belknap rented a large house recently vacated by Secretary of State William H. Seward. In hosting large parties, a typical social requirement for cabinet members, the Belknaps overextended their invitations; one of their events had 1,200 guests, including many young army officers; the resulting raucous behavior led to extensive damage and vandalism, including destruction of curtains, couches, and other furniture. The Belknaps could not afford to pay for the damages, and were faced with leaving Washington society and reducing expenses by living in a boarding house, or finding a way to increase their income.

They decided to look for additional income, and Carita engineered a plan to obtain a lucrative "cash cow" Indian tradership position at the recently built Fort Sill, located in the Oklahoma Indian Territory. Carita lobbied her husband to appoint a New York contractor, Caleb P. Marsh, to the Fort Sill tradership; John S. Evans, an experienced sutler, had already been appointed and did not want to give it up. To settle the question, Marsh drew up an illicit partnership contract that allowed Evans to keep the tradership at Fort Sill, provided that he pay Marsh $12,000 per year in quarterly installments (approximately $236,000 in 2018). Marsh, in turn, was required to give half of his $12,000 to Carita, also in quarterly installments. All the parties agreed to the arrangement; however, Carita received only one payment before her death from tuberculosis after childbirth in December 1870.

After Carita's death, Marsh continued to pay the quarterly share of the profits to Carita's younger sister Amanda, known as "Puss", who had moved in with the Belknaps, ostensibly to hold as a trust fund for the benefit of Carita's child. This profiteering arrangement between Amanda and Marsh was all done with Belknap's full knowledge and consent. After Carita's child died in June 1871, Amanda left to tour Europe, and Belknap continued to take the quarterly bribery payments until December 1873, when Amanda returned and became Belknap's third wife. Amanda was a beautiful young socialite; intending to keep the modest fortune she inherited from her family while also attaining a high position in Washington society, she required Belknap to sign a prenuptial agreement.

Belknap rented a large new house on G Street, which had been built by Orville Babcock, President Grant's personal secretary. From that time onward, Belknap and Amanda continued to accept Marsh's quarterly payments. Amanda was considered to be more self-indulgent than her sister Carita, donning gorgeous gowns, jewelry and other accessories for parties and other events, and called the "spendthrift belle" by Washington society. The Belknaps' extravagant lifestyle entertaining Washington society, holding lavish parties, and wearing elegant clothes, created envy among both Democratic political figures and permanent residents of Washington. However, that the Belknaps were receiving kickbacks was not publicly known until February 1876, when the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives launched an investigation, which discovered that Belknap and his wives had received about $20,000 (approximately $394,000 in 2018) in bribes from Marsh.

French arms sales (1870)
During the Franco-Prussian War from 1870 to 1871, the United States declared neutrality. Belknap had been accused by Grant administration critics, including Senators Charles Sumner and Carl Schurz, of violating neutrality and selling arms to French agents. In fact, Belknap had sold obsolete U.S. War Department firearms to a neighbor of the Remington family, which owned the E. Remington and Sons firearms and ammunition company. Samuel Remington, as an arms-selling agent to the French Government, then arranged the sale of those firearms to France. Belknap subsequently sold 54,000,000 cartridges to the French Army – cartridges that would specifically fit the firearms he had previously sold to the Remington neighbor. A Congressional investigation that took place in 1872 exonerated Belknap.

Pardoned Cadet Smith (1871)
During the Reconstruction Era, former slave James Webster Smith became the first African American cadet to enroll at West Point. After starting classes in 1870, Smith was immediately and severely hazed by white cadets. One of Belknap's nephews, a cadet at the academy, had been reprimanded (but not otherwise punished) for hazing Smith. In another instance, Smith was arrested and taken to a military court for fighting a white cadet, though Smith said he had merely defended himself. Major General Oliver O. Howard, an advocate for African-American civil rights and in charge of the trial, acquitted Smith and gave him a light punishment for unruly conduct. This outraged the academy's Bureau of Military Justice, who made a formal protest to Belknap on November 20, 1870. In another hazing incident, in January 1871, Smith was arrested for supposedly not holding his head up when marching, again after being severely harassed by white cadets.

With Howard now reassigned to the western United States, the academy's administration determined to force Smith out. This time he was convicted; his case was then appealed to Belknap. Smith had been recommended for expulsion, but Belknap intervened with President Grant, who changed the sentence to setting Smith back academically, which caused him to repeat his Plebe year. Smith continued at West Point until 1874, when Professor Peter S. Michie, a white supremacist, gave Smith a private test, in defiance of traditional West Point practice, and claimed that Smith had failed. Smith was then denied a chance to retest and was forced out of West Point.

Belknap concurred when Major General Thomas H. Ruger, appointed superintendent of West Point in 1871, reduced the hazing of cadets by 1873 and made strong efforts to eradicate the "discreditable" practice. Belknap admired Ruger's performance as West Point Superintendent and stated, "I am pretty satisfied with the success of your management, and private conversations with officers of all grades, & with civilians too, who have been there since your accession..." Other African Americans followed Smith's entrance into West Point and Henry O. Flipper became the first to graduate from the academy in 1877. In 1997, President Bill Clinton attempted to acknowledge and right the wrong done to Smith by awarding him a posthumous commission as a second lieutenant.

Aiding Chicago fire victims (1871)
From October 8 to October 10, 1871, a devastating fire burned and destroyed much of Chicago, killing hundreds of people and causing $200,000,000 (nearly $4 billion in 2018) in damages. Over 100,000 citizens were left destitute and homeless. Belknap took prompt action on October 9, ordering food sent from St. Louis, tents from Jefferson Barracks, and two companies of troops from Fort Omaha to help keep peace and order. On October 10, Belknap in writing a dispatch to Lt. General Philip Sheridan stated that the fire was "...a national calamity. The sufferers have the sincere sympathy of the nation." Belknap ordered military officers around the nation to send supplies to Chicago "liberally and promptly".

In his Annual Report to President Grant in December 1871, Belknap praised the War Department for the efficiency of operations in aiding the homeless and destitute of the Chicago Fire within hours of notification, while the fire was still in progress. Belknap also praised Sheridan and the several companies of troops under his command for keeping law and order in the ruined city.

Requested prisoner and prison reform (1871)
In the summer of 1871, a U.S. Board of military officers visited the Quebec, Canada military prison run by the British Army. The board recommended that British methods be adopted in the U.S. Army, including a system of rewards for good behavior, and difficult physical exercise and taxing military drill and ceremony as punishments, with the goals of returning prisoners to military duty at the end of their sentences and preventing re-offenses. Belknap approved the board's recommendations and requested Congress incorporate the British system into the U.S. military, and also requested that funding for the new program be paid for by having soldiers forfeit their pay during the time of their incarceration.

New Orleans 1872 street riot
During Reconstruction Grant enforced civil and voting rights for African Americans in the South, using the army and newly created Justice Department to destroy the Ku Klux Klan in 1871, under the Enforcement Acts. Louisiana during Reconstruction was one of the most politically turbulent, violent, and disputed states. Rival political factions fought for power in the state government, and white insurgents frequently attacked freedmen and their sympathizers, requiring the deployment of federal troops to keep peace.

During January 1872, the War Department was kept on high alert, concerned with the potential for violent confrontation in New Orleans between Gov. Henry Clay Warmoth's faction and that of George W. Carter, former speaker of the Louisiana House. Warmoth supported social equality and voting rights for African Americans, but southern conservatives considered him a corrupt northern carpetbagger. To prevent disorder Major General William H. Emory, Louisville District Commander, in charge of New Orleans, decided that federal troops were needed to prevent violence. Belknap informed General-in-Chief William T. Sherman, supporting Emory's request. On January 5, federal troops were deployed in New Orleans to prevent violence, and were intended to occupy the area until January 11. Sec. Belknap advised President Grant that Emory was the best to make the decision about use of the forces.

On January 9, a street riot broke out after a Gov. Warmoth supporter was assassinated; Gov. Warmoth's state police retaliated by attacking and dispersing Carter's faction at the Gem Saloon. Emory deployed reinforcement troops on January 10 to restore order. On January 12, Grant, wanting to stay out of state politics, told the mayor of New Orleans through the War Department that he would not declare martial law in Louisiana. An angry mob of thousands of Carter's men took to the streets. Emory deployed troops equipped with Gatling guns. Carter's men dispersed, believing that Emory would use U.S. military force to keep the peace.

On January 15, Grant wrote to Belknap that he desired to prevent the "danger of bloodshed" without having to take sides with either faction. On January 16, Att. Gen. George H. Williams told Gov. Warmoth that Grant would take sides only if there was a "clear case of legal right and overruling necessity." On January 22, learning that Gov. Warmoth and Carter had formed rival militias and were preparing for violence, President Grant issued orders through the War Department for Emory to use troops if necessary. When Emory communicated Grant's message to both Gov. Warmoth and Carter, they dispersed their factions and kept peace for 10 months.

Eads Bridge commission (1873)
In 1873, the construction of the Americas' first steel arched bridge, named after James B. Eads, was nearing completion in St. Louis. Belknap, under influence from the Keokuk Packet steamliner company, was opposed to its completion. He desired that the bridge be torn down, so steamers would not have to lower their smokestacks to sail under it. Belknap created a commission to make recommendations on either destroying the bridge and rebuilding it with a design that allowed steamers to pass or building a canal around the bridge so that they could pass. Eads, who was friends with Grant, visited Washington, D.C., in November 1873 before Belknap submitted the report to Congress, and asked that Grant rescue the bridge from destruction. Belknap argued that according to federal law, the Secretary of War had the authority to prevent obstruction of the Mississippi River.

In response, Grant reminded Belknap that Congress had authorized the construction of the bridge, and that Congress would probably not authorize money to tear it down. He overruled Belknap's decision, and told Belknap in person, "You certainly cannot destroy this structure on your own authority...General, you had better drop this case." Belknap was embarrassed, stood up blushing, bowed to President Grant, and left the meeting. The Eads Bridge was completed in 1874 and is still in active use today.

Preserved Mathew Brady Civil War photos (1874)
In 1872, photographer Mathew Brady went bankrupt; his possessions, including photographs and negatives, were sold to satisfy creditors. In 1874, the owner of a warehouse in New York City offered a set of over 2,000 Brady negatives for sale; Belknap authorized their purchase for $2,500. The negatives were not packed or transported with care, and by the time the War Department took possession, about one-third of them were damaged or destroyed.

Brady subsequently complained to Belknap that none of the $2,500 had gone to him or any of his creditors. During the discussion, Brady offered to sell a second set of negatives; Congress appropriated up to $25,000 for the purchase, and after reviewing the materials and obtaining advice from a War Department attorney as to their value, Belknap authorized payment in full.

As a result of Belknap's initiative, the War Department acquired over 6,000 images of the Civil War era, including photos of prominent military and government officials, battlefields, and defensive works. This collection was subsequently combined with other collections of Brady photos which were purchased by the federal government; they were later catalogued, and are maintained by the National Archives and Records Administration and the Library of Congress.

Yellowstone expedition (1875)
During the summer of 1875, Belknap decided to explore Yellowstone the nation's first national park, created as the result of a law signed by President Grant on March 2, 1872. Accompanying Belknap were Colonel Randolph B. Marcy, Lieutenant Colonel James W. Forsyth, and Chicago businessman William E. Strong. Leading the expedition was Lieutenant Gustavus C. Doane, who had led the Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition in 1870, the first extensive federal survey of the Yellowstone territory, that was responsible in part for the formation of the park. Doane left Fort Ellis, where he was stationed, and made preparations for Belknap's party's arrival at Mammoth Hot Springs.

On July 26, Belknap's party reached Fort Ellis and proceeded to meet Doane. Led by Doane, Belknap's party attempted to retrace the original 1870 Expedition in addition to hunting for any big game found on the journey. Belknap's party included 24 soldiers and two ambulances. The two-week expedition proved to be troublesome as Doane was unable to find big game to hunt and after briefly viewing the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone, Belknap's party had to wait several hours before Doane finally found the trail.

Great Sioux War (1876)
In late July 1874, a U.S. Army expedition under Col. George A. Custer discovered gold in the Black Hills. Soon many gold miners were trespassing on land granted to the Indians under the 1868 Treaty of Fort Laramie. In June 1875, President Grant attempted to resolve the problem by offering Indians $100,000 per year to lease their land or $6,000,000 for the Black Hills. The Lakota Sioux under Chief Red Cloud refused since the offer would require the Sioux to be moved to the Indian Territory in Oklahoma.

On November 3, 1875, as the crisis escalated, President Grant held a secret meeting at the White House including Belknap, Secretary of Interior Zachariah Chandler and general Philip Sheridan. Sheridan told Grant that the U.S. Army was undermanned and the territory involved was vast, requiring great numbers of soldiers to enforce the treaty. Grant, Belknap, and Chandler agreed to a plan that would withdraw U.S. troops from the Black Hills, allowing miners to mine on Indian Territory. According to historian Jeffrey Ostler, the purpose of the troop withdrawal was to start an Indian war.

On December 3, 1875, Chandler ordered all Indians to return to their respected reservations, however, militant Indians under Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse refused to return. By January 1876, 4,000 miners illegally occupied Indian land. When hostile Indians refused to leave their hunting grounds by the January 31 deadline, Chandler turned the Indians over to Belknap's War Department stating "the said Indians are hereby turned over to the War Department for such action on the part of the Army as you [Belknap] may deem proper under the circumstances."

On February 8, 1876, Generals Crook and Terry were ordered to start winter military campaigns against hostile Indians and the Great Sioux War commenced. On March 1, 1876, Crook, in freezing weather, marched north from Fort Fetterman near Douglas, Wyoming to attack Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse and their Indian followers on the Powder River. The following day, March 2, Belknap abruptly resigned office over the Fort Sill trader post-scandal. From March 3 to March 7 the War Department was run ad interim under Secretary of Navy George M. Robeson. On March 8, 1876 Alphonso Taft was appointed by Grant Secretary of War. The Great Sioux War ended in April 1877 under President Rutherford B. Hayes.

Corruption, resignation, and House impeachment (1876)

On February 29, 1876, rumors that Belknap was receiving profits from traderships reached Representative Hiester Clymer, chairman of the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of War. In response, Clymer launched an investigation into the War Department. Although Clymer and Belknap were friends and had been college roommates, Clymer was a racist against black Americans who strongly opposed Republican Reconstruction. During Belknap's tenure, the Army was used in combination with the Justice Department to prosecute the Ku Klux Klan, a policy opposed by most Democrats. Caleb P. Marsh testified to the Clymer Committee that Belknap had personally taken Fort Sill tradership profit payments as part of the partnership agreement between Marsh and John S. Evans. On February 29, 1876, Belknap and his counsel went before Clymer's committee, but Belknap declined to testify.

On the morning of March 2, Treasury Secretary Benjamin Bristow told President Grant of Belknap's impending impeachment. After Grant finished breakfast, Secretary Belknap and Secretary Chandler arrived at the White House. Belknap was extremely anxious, openly wept, and confessed to Grant. Belknap handed Grant a one-sentence resignation letter. Grant personally wrote a letter accepting Belknap's resignation, which he placed on a White House mantel at 10:20a.m.

Clymer's committee was informed at 11:00a.m. of Belknap's resignation. Although Belknap's resignation initially caused commotion among House members, it did not prevent action by the Clymer committee. The chairman of the House Managers cited authority that as a rule, the law does not recognize fractions of a day and the House saw no cause to make an exception in this case. The committee unanimously passed resolutions to impeach Belknap and drew up five articles of impeachment to be sent to the Senate; thus Belknap had both resigned and would be impeached at "the same time" on March 2, 1876, by a unanimous vote of the House of Representatives. This was the first of two times in US history that a cabinet secretary was ever impeached, the second being the impeachment of Alejandro Mayorkas in 2024.

Speaker of the House Michael C. Kerr wrote to the Senate that Belknap resigned "with intent to evade the proceedings of impeachment against him," although within a few years of the 1797 impeachment of Senator Blount a number of officers including several judges had been threatened with impeachment and resigned to avoid it, after which the proceedings against them were abandoned.

On March 29 and April 4, 1876, George Armstrong Custer testified before the Clymer Committee, which continued to gather evidence for the Senate trial. Custer's testimony was a national media sensation because he accused both Grant's brother and the Secretary of War of corruption. Although Belknap had resigned, he had many political allies in Washington, D.C., including Grant. Custer had previously arrested Grant's son Fred, an Army officer, on the charge of drunkenness. As the result of that incident and his testimony to the Clymer Committee, Custer incurred Grant's displeasure. It took more than a month for Custer to resolve the situation and obtain Grant's permission to return to duty, leading his regiment in the expedition that would culminate with Custer's death at the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Upon Belknap's sudden resignation in March, Grant had to hastily ask his secretary of navy George M. Robeson to run the War Department ad interim, which lasted a week. Grant then appointed Alphonso Taft Secretary of War; Taft was an attorney and former judge; unfamiliar with military matters, he reluctantly agreed to serve in order to stabilize the War Department, and Grant promised to nominate him later for another, more suitable position. In May, Grant kept his word when he created a vacancy in the attorney general's post by naming the incumbent, Edwards Pierrepont, to serve as Minister to England; he then appointed Taft to serve as attorney general, and J. Donald Cameron to succeed Taft as secretary of war.

Senate trial, house arrest, and Senate acquittal

Starting on April 5, 1876, Belknap was tried by the Senate with President pro tempore Thomas W. Ferry presiding. For several weeks senators argued over whether the Senate had jurisdiction to put Belknap on trial since he had already resigned office in March. Belknap's defense managers argued that the Senate had no jurisdiction; the Senate ruled by a vote of 37–29 that it did. Belknap was charged with five articles of impeachment, and the Senate listened to over 40 witnesses. With 40 votes needed for conviction, 25 senators voted no on each of five counts, while the yes votes were 35, 36, 36, 36, and 37, thus acquitting Belknap by failing to reach the required two-thirds majority. All Senators agreed that Belknap took the money from Marsh, but 23 who voted for acquittal believed the Senate did not have jurisdiction. Grant's speedy acceptance of Belknap's resignation undoubtedly saved him from conviction.

After the trial, Belknap's wife and children traveled extensively in Europe. Former senator Matthew H. Carpenter of Wisconsin, who had defended Belknap at the Senate trial, said that Belknap was entirely innocent and that if he outlived Belknap he would clear Belknap's name. Carpenter was reelected to the Senate in 1879, but was in ill health; he died in February 1881 and never produced any new evidence.

On March 4, 1876, one month prior to his Senate impeachment trial, Grant's Attorney General Edwards Pierrepont had Belknap arrested; as a foe of the Tweed Ring in New York, Pierrepont was seen as a lawyer of integrity, and Grant named him as attorney general to promote reform and anti-corruption within Grant's administration. Grant, who as former commanding general put more scrutiny into military matters than presidents usually did, had ordered Pierrepont to launch a criminal investigation into Belknap's War department. Much to Belknap's anger, Pierrepont put an armed guard around his home to ensure he did not attempt to flee. In May 1876, Grant named Pierrepont Minister to Britain, and appointed his Secretary of War Alphonso Taft to be attorney general.

Washington, D.C., indictment (1876–1877)

After Belknap's Senate acquittal on August 1, the guards around his house were removed; he was indicted by a grand jury on the same day, and set for trial in the District of Columbia federal court. However, journalists and other observers were of the view that the district courts were unlikely to convict, given the number of Grant administration officials who had been accused of corruption and received little or no punishment.

Belknap remained angry at Pierrepont, and threatened to sue him for false imprisonment. On February 2, 1877, Belknap visited Grant and pleaded for his indictment to be dismissed. The next day Grant asked his cabinet for advice; Secretary of State Hamilton Fish was furious at Belknap and wanted him to be tried. Grant decided otherwise, and wrote to Taft that the district attorney should be directed to dismiss the case.

Following Grant's instructions, Taft told Washington, D.C. District Attorney Henry H. Wells that the evidence against Belknap would not sustain a conviction, and that Belknap had suffered enough during the Senate trial. Wells moved for dismissal; on February 8, 1877, Belknap's case, indictment No. 11,262, was dismissed by Justice Arthur MacArthur Sr. No longer facing the possibility of conviction and imprisonment, Belknap decided not to follow through on his threat to sue Pierrepont.

Later career
Having been disgraced by the Senate trial, Belknap sought to escape from the scrutiny and disapproval of Washington society by moving to Philadelphia. The Belknaps remained married; Amanda and the children visited the Catskills, Coney Island, and other resorts, and Belknap saw them periodically. Belknap later resided in Keokuk, where he practiced law that largely involved representing railroads. Although he was no longer involved in politics or government, Belknap often returned to Washington to represent clients, and maintained a residence and office there.

Years after his impeachment, Belknap's reputation publicly still remained damaged by corruption charges. During the 1880 presidential race, he was among those lampooned in a Puck magazine cartoon (Grant the Acrobat, by Joseph Ferdinand Keppler) opposing Ulysses S. Grant's bid for a third term.

One historian, L.D. Ingersoll, however, defended Belknap in 1880, saying "General Belknap came out of the terrible ordeal with "troops of friends" still standing behind him, notably old army comrades in the army and those who were especially familiar with his conduct of the general affairs of the War Department. These with many public men of the highest standing, insist that he is a much abused man."

Belknap remained popular among his fellow Civil War veterans; in 1887, Belknap coauthored the book History of the Fifteenth Regiment, Iowa Veteran Volunteer Infantry.

Death, burial and memorial
Belknap died suddenly from a massive heart attack in Washington, D.C. on Sunday October 12, 1890. The New York Times stated that his death occurred on Sunday between 1:00 a.m. and 9:00 a.m., and that he died alone at his residence in the Evans building on New York Avenue. Prior to his death, Belknap had played cards with his friends on Saturday night, then retired upstairs for the evening. Belknap's wife, Amanda, was in New York City at the time.

At 8:30 a.m. on Monday morning, Belknap's business associate, John W. Cameron, picked up Belknap's mail on the first floor of Belknap's home, where he maintained his law office, and proceeded to the second floor, where Belknap lived. Cameron and a maid found that all the rooms had been locked. A janitor was summoned to open the doors, and a step ladder was used to peer into Belknap's bedroom. Belknap had placed his hat and coat on a chair and his lifeless body was found on his bed. His left arm had been raised toward his head with his left hand tightly clenched. The bed clothes were disheveled and he appeared to have struggled for breath. The physician who initially examined the body stated that he had died of apoplexy; however, an autopsy by the coroner revealed that Belknap suffered from heart disease. The War Department was notified and received with "genuine sorrow" the news of Belknap's death, since Belknap had been a popular Secretary of War.

Belknap was buried in Section 1 at Arlington National Cemetery on October 16, 1890. The ceremony was conducted by St. John's Episcopal Church. The site features a granite gravestone with a bronze relief memorial designed by sculptor Carl Rohl-Smith. The bronze relief (2 ft. x 2 ft.) bust shows Belknap wearing a dress uniform with his hair parted on the right side as well as a long, full beard. The relief is located on the front of a granite base (6 ft. x 5 ft. x 5 ft.). This piece was surveyed by the Smithsonian's Save Outdoor Sculpture! survey in 1995 and its condition was described as "Treatment being needed". The relief is signed by the artist: C.R. 1897.

A plaque on the front of the granite base is inscribed:

WILLIAM WORTH BELKNAP
 * BORN 1829 – DIED 1890
 * COLONEL 15TH IOWA VOL. INFANTRY
 * BRIGADIER & BREVET MAJOR GENERAL U.S.VOLS.
 * SECRETARY OF WAR 1869–1876
 * ERECTED BY HIS COMRADES OF THE
 * CROCKER IOWA BRIGADE
 * 11TH, 13TH, 15TH AND 16TH IOWA VOL. INFANTRY
 * ARMY OF THE TENNESSEE.
 * COMPANIONS OF THE MILITARY ORDER OF THE
 * LOYAL LEGION OF THE UNITED STATES
 * AND OTHER FRIENDS

Historical reputation
Prior to Belknap's 1876 shocking resignation, Belknap's reputation was one of a war hero who honorably served the Union Army. There were no rumors of corruption while he served under Johnson as a Treasury collector. Even up to 1876, Belknap, under Grant, was believed to be a faithful judicious Secretary of War, publicly recognized for aiding and protecting 100,000 homeless Chicago fire victims.

In 2003 biographer Edward S. Cooper described Belknap as a man of virtues and flaws. According to Cooper, Belknap "willingly turned to graft to support the social ambitions of his wives" while living a lavish lifestyle in Washington, D.C., at the expense of soldiers and Indians during the Gilded Age. Belknap is positively credited by Cooper for creating and expanding the weather bureau, reforming the military justice system, and for preserving Mathew Brady's photographic record of the Civil War. Belknap's abrupt and controversial resignation in March 1876 caused an unprecedented succession of four Secretaries of War within a 13-month time period: Belknap, Alphonso Taft, J. Donald Cameron, and George W. McCrary.

In Keokuk, Belknap is remembered for being one of its "colorful citizens" and he has two streets named after him. He was commended by his Army colleagues for his coolness under fire during the Civil War, but his reputation suffered as the result of his forced resignation as Grant's Secretary of War, which took place under a cloud amid suspicions of misconduct.

Belknap's name resurfaced in January 2021, due to the similarity between Belknap's 1876 impeachment trial and President Donald Trump's 2021 impeachment trial, since both had left office by the time the trial had commenced.

Andra Belknap, a Belknap descendant, said, "William Worth Belknap was by many accounts a hero of the Civil War. He served the Union Army, and during the Battle of Shiloh, he was injured and had his horse shot down under him. And still, he continued in battle. During the Battle of Atlanta, he personally took a Confederate officer prisoner (supposedly dragging the man by the collar across the battlefield). His Civil War heroism, however, has been largely forgotten by history — even forgotten by his own family. His impeachment is what remains in the history books."

Legacy
A collection of his family's records and papers and several boxes of letters received by Belknap are located at Princeton University, where he was a member of the class of 1848.

His son Hugh R. Belknap served as a U.S. congressman from Illinois.

Mount Belknap in Utah is named in his honor.

List of Indian campaigns, battles, and wars involving the United States
Note: Although the Great Sioux War began in February 1876 under Belknap's tenure, no significant battles were fought between the beginning of the war and up to his sudden resignation in March. The war, lasting until April 1877, took place under five cabinet secretaries. Four under President Grant: Belknap, George M. Robeson (ad interum), Alphonso Taft, and J. Donald Cameron, and one under President Rutherford B. Hayes, George W. McCrary.
 * Yavapai Wars (1861–1875)
 * Comanche Campaign (1867–1875)
 * Battle of Summit Springs (1869)
 * Marias Massacre (1870)
 * Camp Grant massacre (1871)
 * Modoc War (1872–1873)
 * Battle of Salt River Canyon (1872)
 * Battle of Turret Peak (1873)
 * Red River War (1874–1875)
 * Second Battle of Adobe Walls (1874)
 * Battle of the Upper Washita River (1874)
 * Battle of Palo Duro Canyon (1874)
 * Battle of Sunset Pass (1874)
 * Battle of Snake Mountain (1874)
 * Las Cuevas War (1875)
 * Great Sioux War (1876–1877)

title: William W. Belknap


text:
Talk:Sexton (artillery)

This page is much more wiki-like than Sexton, which has hardly any information. Can we move this article to Sexton and Sexton to Sexton (church)?? 66.32.251.152 22:29, 18 May 2004 (UTC)

 * I wrote the article and I heartly approve, but others should make the decision. GreatWhiteNortherner 22:56, May 18, 2004 (UTC)

 * I have no problem with this article being placed at Sexton. Likely this is what people would be looking for if came here for it. Oberiko 23:37, 18 May 2004 (UTC)

The comment is about sexton being placed well back from the front is not terribly accurate. In the Sogel counterattack sextons endured an attack without the benefit of supporting infantry. They were so mobile that they could arrive on site before the infantry got there and sometimes sextons WERE the front line. The idea at the time was to have the guns right up with the infantry, I believe. -Glenn Spencer barnbum@hotmail.com

This page has physical data different to http://nigelef.tripod.com/25pdrsheet.htm probably because this site quotes early contemporaneous sources and probably refers to Sexton Mk 1. However, there are errors on the page and the Livesey source is wrong. First while orders were placed for 2000+ the UK order was cut by several hundred in late 1944 and nowhere near the number ordered were delivered(according to the documents in UK National Archives). Next, in UK service at least, Sexton was always fitted with a No 19 set. It's also worth noting, according to the NA records, that production was delayed by a shortege of M4 transmissions from the US and Canada was unable to produce the required number of ordnance & mountings so 2/3 were shipped from UK to Canada.

Sextons did not fire in the run-in fireplan on DDay, this firing was by regts with Priest (there's p[lenty of reliable sources for this), which re-equipped with Sexton in France in Jul/Aug 1944. Neither was it normal practice to deploy any field artillery, including Sexton, with infantry. In fact given its limited arc of fire Sexton needed to be furher back than towed 25-pr to provide effective support. Nfe (talk) 11:38, 10 September 2009 (UTC)

 * In June 1944, just after the landings in Normandy, all British Priests were replaced by Sextons and the Priests converted to Priest Kangaroos so that British stocks of US 105mm ammunition (then in big demand) could be used by US divisions in Normandy. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 95.149.173.73 (talk) 21:18, 6 February 2019 (UTC)

Comparison to German SP guns
I'm not sure if the comment about usage versus German assault guns is appropriate. The Germans employed both direct-fire assault guns and indirect-fire self-propelled artillery. While obviously such roles could and did overlap at times, the proper comparison for a Sexton/Priest would be to the German Wespe and Hummel SP-artillery, used in the same role, rather than to a StuG III for instance. Russ3Z (talk) 13:23, 7 April 2015 (UTC)

title: Talk:Sexton (artillery)


text:
Mark Allen (triathlete)

Mark Allen (born January 12, 1958, in Glendale, California) is an American triathlete and six-time Ironman Triathlon World Champion.

Education
He graduated from UC San Diego, where he was an All-American swimmer, with a degree in biology.

Career
After competing and losing in the Ironman Triathlon Championships six times (often to Dave Scott), Allen emerged victorious in 1989, winning one of the most difficult one-day sporting events in the world.

This was the first of six Ironman victories for Allen, the last coming in 1995 at age 37, making him the oldest winner of the event at that time. He has also excelled at the Olympic distance, winning the sport's inaugural World Championships in 1989 in Avignon, France, by more than a minute. He was undefeated in 10 trips to the Nice International Championships, and from 1988 to 1990 he had a winning streak of 21 races.

Over the course of his racing career, which ended in 1996, he maintained a 90% average in top-three finishes. He was named Triathlete of the Year six times by Triathlete magazine, and in 1997 Outside magazine dubbed him The World's Fittest Man. Allen was inducted into the Ironman Triathlon Hall of Fame in 1997. He has also been inducted into the USAT Hall of Fame and the ITU Hall of Fame.

Allen has summarized his career in four characters: "1-6-21-infinity". "1" is for his victory in the first official triathlon World Championship. "6" is for the six times he won the Ironman. 21 stands for his two season run of 21 straight victories, along the way defeating every one of the top 50 triathletes in the world. "Infinity" represents his acknowledgement by ESPN as "The Greatest Endurance Athlete of All Time."

Allen owns and operates Mark Allen Coaching, a global online triathlon coaching concern.

Results

 * DNF - Did not finish

title: Mark Allen (triathlete)


text:
HMCS Protecteur

One ship and one future ship of the Royal Canadian Navy have been named HMCS Protecteur;

 * HMCS Protecteur (AOR 509), a replenishment oiler in service from 1969 to 2015
 * HMCS Protecteur, the planned replacement for the first vessel. The ship was laid down on 16 January 2020.

Battle honours

 * Gulf and Kuwait
 * Arabian Sea

title: HMCS Protecteur


text:
Virginia City, Nevada

Virginia City is a census-designated place (CDP) that is the county seat of Storey County, Nevada, and the largest community in the county. The city is a part of the Reno–Sparks Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Virginia City developed as a boomtown with the 1859 discovery of the Comstock Lode, the first major silver deposit discovery in the United States, with numerous mines opening. The population peaked in the mid-1870s, with an estimated 25,000 residents. The mines' output declined after 1878, and the population declined as a result. As of the 2020 Census, the population of Virginia City was 787.

History

Peter O'Riley and Patrick McLaughlin are credited with the discovery of the Comstock Lode. Henry T. P. Comstock's name was associated with the discovery through his own machinations. According to folklore, James Fennimore, nicknamed Old Virginny Finney, christened the town when he tripped and broke a bottle of whiskey at a saloon entrance in the northern section of Gold Hill, soon to become Virginia City.

In another story, the Ophir Diggings were named in honor of Finney as he was "one of the first discoverers of that mining locality, and one of the most successful prospectors in that region". Finney "was the best judge of placer ground in Gold Canyon", locating the quartz footwall of the Ophir on 22 February 1858, the placers on Little Gold Hill on 28 January 1859, and the placers below Ophir in 1857.

After the discovery of the Comstock Lode in 1859, the town developed seemingly overnight on the eastern slopes of Mount Davidson, perched at a 6200-foot elevation. Below the town were dug intricate tunnels and shafts for silver mining. The Comstock Lode discovery and subsequent growth of Virginia City was unequaled by the history of other precious metal discoveries.

Virginia City's silver ore discoveries were not part of the California Gold Rush, which occurred 10 years before. At the time of the discovery of the Comstock Lode, silver was considered the monetary equal of gold, and all production was purchased by the federal government for use in coinage. In 1873, silver was demonetized by the government, in large part due to the flood of silver into international markets from the silver mines of Virginia City.

Technical problems plagued the early mining efforts, requiring the development of new mining technology to support the challenge. German engineer Philip Deidesheimer created a timbering system for mining tunnels called square sets, which enabled the retrieval of huge amounts of silver ore in a safe manner. Square set timbering, roots blowers, stamp mills, the Washoe Pan milling process, Cornish pumps, Burleigh machine drills, wire woven rope, miners' safety cages and the safety clutch for those cages; even the Sutro tunnel all had a place in supporting the exploitation of the rich ore body. As technological advancements, these were used many times over in later mining applications. In 1876 one observer reported that in Virginia City, "every activity has to do with the mining, transportation, or reduction of silver ore, or the melting and assaying of silver bullion."

By 1876, Nevada produced over half of all the precious metals in the United States. The Comstock produced silver and gold ore valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars annually. The wealth supported the Northern cause during the American Civil War and flooded the world monetary markets, resulting in economic changes. Like many cities and towns in Nevada, Virginia City was a mining boomtown; it developed virtually overnight as a result of miners rushing to the Comstock Lode silver strike of 1859. But, Virginia City far surpassed all others for its peak of population, technological advancements developed there, and for providing the population base upon which Nevada qualified for statehood. The riches of the Comstock Lode inspired men to hunt for silver mines throughout Nevada and other parts of the American West.

Virginia City population increased from 4,000 in 1862 to over 15,000 in 1863. It fluctuated depending on mining output. US Census figures do not reflect all of these frequent changes. Nonetheless, Virginia City overnight became one of the largest cities in the American Southwest. For the 1880 United States census, Virginia City was even larger than some of today's largest cities of the entire US, such as Phoenix, San Diego, Jacksonville, and even Dallas. The city included gas and sewer lines, the one hundred room International Hotel with elevator, three theatres, the Maguire Opera House, four churches, and three daily newspapers. Many of the homes and buildings were made of brick.

With this center of wealth, many important local politicians and businessmen came from the mining camp. At its peak after the Big Bonanza of 1873 Virginia City had a population of over 25,000 residents and was called the richest city in the United States. Dominated by San Francisco moneyed interests, Virginia City was heralded as the sophisticated interior partner of San Francisco. "San Francisco on the coast and Virginia City inland" became the mantra of west coast Victorian entrepreneurs. Early Virginia City settlers were in large part the backwash from San Francisco and the California Gold Rush, ten years before. Mine owners who made a killing in the Comstock mines spent most of their wealth in San Francisco.

A San Francisco stock market existed for the exploitation of Comstock mining. The Bank of California financed building the financial district of San Francisco with money from the Comstock mines. The influence of the Comstock lode rejuvenated what was the ragged little town of 1860 San Francisco. "Nearly all the profits of the Comstock were invested in San Francisco real estate and in the erection of fine buildings." Thus, Virginia City built San Francisco. The Comstock's success, measured in values of the time period, totaled "about $400 million". Mining and its attraction of population was the economic factor that caused the separation of Nevada territory from Utah, and later justified and supported Nevada statehood.

The mining industry dominated Virginia City, making it an industrial center similar to those of the east coast. But the city retained some of its frontier flavor. The social history of the town has emphasized the high number of immigrants among its residents. Miners largely from Cornwall, England, where tin mines had been developed based on hard rock technology, flooded the Comstock. The new English immigrants were one of the largest ethnic groups. Many of the miners who came to the city were Cornish or Irish. In 1870, Asians were 7.6% of the population, primarily Chinese workers who settled in many western towns after they had completed construction of the transcontinental railroad. The Chinese filled niche markets, such as laundry workers and cooks.

Through time, the numerous independent Comstock mines became consolidated under ownership of large monopolies. A group called the Bank Crowd, dominated by William Sharon in Virginia City and William Ralston in San Francisco, financed the mines and mills of the Comstock until they had a virtual monopoly. By manipulating stock through rumors and false reports of mining wealth, some men made fortunes from the stocks of Virginia City's mines. When it appeared the Comstock Lode was finished, the city's population declined sharply, with ten thousand leaving in 1864 and 1865.

By the late 1860s, a group of Irish investors threatened the Bank Crowd's control. John Mackay and partner James Fair began as common miners, working their way up to management positions in the mines. By purchasing stock in the mines, they realized financial independence. Their partners James Clair Flood and William S. O'Brien stayed in San Francisco and speculated in stock. The Irish Big Four (or Bonanza Kings), as the men were called, eventually controlled the Consolidated Virginia mine where the Big Bonanza was discovered in 1873. The next few years were some of the most profitable on the Comstock, as the Bank Crowd lost control to the Irish Big Four. Population reached 25,000 in 1875.

Mining operations were hindered by the extreme temperatures in the mines caused by natural hot springs. In winter the miners would snowshoe to the mines and then have to descend to work in high temperatures. These harsh conditions contributed to a low life expectancy, and earned miners the nickname of Hot Water Plugs. Adolph Sutro built the Sutro Tunnel to drain the hot spring waters to the valley below. But, by the time it was completed in 1879, the mines had substantially passed the intersection level, as their tunnels had been dug ever deeper. In 1879, the mines began to play out and the population fell to just under 11,000.

Great Fire of 1875
Between 1859 and 1875, Virginia City had numerous serious fires. The October 26, 1875, fire, dubbed the Great Fire, caused $12 million in damage. "The spectacle beggars description; the world was on fire...a square mile of roaring flames." When a church caught fire, Mackay was heard to say, "Damn the church! We can build another if we can keep the fire from going down these shafts." Though the Con. Virginia and Ophir hoisting works burned, the fire did not penetrate the Con. Virginia shaft and only reached 400 feet into the Ophir shaft. "Railroad car wheels were melted", "brick buildings went down like paper boxes", and two thousand were left homeless.

In ensuing months the city was rebuilt. A majority of the area now designated as the National Historic Landmark historic district dates to this later time period. However, the bonanza period was at an end by 1880.

Virginia City and Mark Twain

The writer and humorist Samuel Clemens, then a reporter on the local Territorial Enterprise newspaper first used the pen name Mark Twain in Virginia City in February 1863 Clemens lived in Virginia City and wrote for the Enterprise from fall 1862 until May 1864. His departure was to avoid a duel with a local newspaper editor upset over Clemens' reporting. Clemens returned to the Comstock region twice on lecture tours, first in 1866 when he was mugged on the Divide. The muggers relieved Clemens of his watch and his money. The robbery turns out to have been a practical joke played on Clemens by his friends. He did not appreciate the joke, but he did retrieve his belongings—particularly his gold watch (worth $300), which had great sentimental value. Clemens' book Roughing It (1872) includes this and other anecdotes about the city. Clemens' second return occurred in 1868 at the time of the hanging of John Millian, who was convicted of murdering the well-liked madam Julia Bulette.

Climate
Virginia City has a hot-summer mediterranean climate (Csa) with warm to hot summers and cooler and rainier winters.

Economy
In the 21st century, Virginia City's economy is based on tourism. Many residents own and work at the shops in town that cater to tourists, while others seek jobs in the surrounding cities. Virginia City, a National Historic Landmark District, draws more than 2 million visitors per year. It has numerous historic properties that are separately listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The tourism supports an eclectic assortment of fine and casual dining experiences. Many lodging properties offer options to tourists wanting to stay overnight. Several bed and breakfast facilities are based in restored historic homes including: the B Street House Bed and Breakfast, previously the Henry Piper House, which is listed on the National Register; Edith Palmer's Country Inn and Core Restaurant in the restored 1860s Cider factory; and the 1876 Cobb Mansion.

Arts and culture
Virginia City is home to many interpretive museums and sites, including the Silver Terrace Cemetery, the Fourth Ward School Museum, the Pioneer Cemetery, the Fireman's Museum, the Way It Was Museum, Piper's Opera House, the Police Officer's Museum, St. Mary's Art Center, and numerous exhibits in businesses throughout town. Virginia City also hosts many unique and authentic event celebrations including cook-offs, parades, and Civil War re-enactments.

Virginia City Hillclimb
There is an annual hillclimb that runs from Silver City to Virginia City via Highway 341 (a truck route) that is put on jointly between the Ferrari Club of America Pacific Region and the Northern California Shelby Club. As of 2013, the event is officially open to performance vehicles of all makes. The event was put on first by Road & Track and the Aston Martin Club, the following year the SCCA took the same route, and later it was picked up by the Ferrari Owners Club. Highway 342 is now the return route for cars that have completed their runs up Highway 341. The hillclimb covers 5.2 mi, climbing 1260 ft and passing through 21 corners.

Museums and other points of interest
Virginia City retains an authentic historic character with board sidewalks, and numerous restored buildings dating to the 1860s and 1870s. Virginia City is home to many charming and informative museums. The Fourth Ward School Museum brings Comstock history to life in interactive displays, and a restored 1876 classroom. The four-story wooden school is the last one of this type left in the United States.

Points of interest include the Comstock Historic Walking Trail, where hikers can view the Pioneer Cemetery, site of Julia Bulette's grave, the Combination Mine Shaft, and Sugarloaf Mountain. Other attractions include the Silver State Police Officers' Museum in the Storey County Courthouse, complete with jail cells from the 1870s; The Way It Was museum on Sutton and C Streets, the Fireman's Museum with authentic Victorian firefighting equipment on display, the Chollar Mine tour, Ponderosa Mine Tour, Silver Terrace Cemetery, Presbyterian Church dating to 1862, St. Mary's of the Mountain Catholic Church (c. 1876), St. Paul's Episcopal Church, and St. Mary's Art Center, offering lessons and retreats. Trolley tours, walking tours, Storey County Courthouse, Miner's Union Hall, Knights of Pythias Building, numerous historic shops and homes, the Old Washoe Club, and Miner's Park are other attractions.

Among the attractions on C Street are the Bucket of Blood Saloon, the Delta Saloon with the Old Globe, the Bonanza Saloon with the Suicide Table, the Silver Queen, and the Red Dog Saloon, originally the 1875 Comstock House, located at 76 North C Street. The Red Dog Saloon gave many San Francisco rock musicians their start during the summer of 1965. Piper's Opera House occupies the corner of B and Union Streets and is open as a museum when not a host to shows and musical venues of many types. Piper's Corner Saloon was one of the longest continuously operating saloons of the nineteenth century.

The historic 1864 Union Brewery and saloon on 28 North C Street, frequented by Mark Twain, has been restored and reopened.

Also in Virginia City is the Silver Queen Hotel and Wedding Chapel, which is famous for its picture of a woman whose dress is made entirely of silver dollars. The hotel was built in 1876 and includes a saloon.

Virginia City was declared a National Historic Landmark district in 1961, and has been carefully preserved to retain its historic character.

Education
Virginia City has one elementary school (Hugh Gallagher Elementary School), one middle school (Virginia City Middle School), and one high school (Virginia City High School).

Railway
The Virginia and Truckee Railroad's northern terminus is located at Virginia City. A project was started in 1972 to begin rebuilding one of the nation's "crookedest railroads". The portion of line that has been rebuilt so far stretches south to Carson City and through Gold Hill. The project ran the first steam engine from Carson City on September 5, 2009, and continues to provide tourist excursions between Carson City and Virginia City on weekends. Other trains are pulled by historic locomotives on weekdays between Virginia City and Gold Hill on 35-minute round trips.

Notable people

 * Fred B. Balzar, 15th Governor of Nevada from 1927 to 1934; born in Virginia City
 * Lucius Beebe, author, gourmand, photographer, railroad historian, journalist, and syndicated columnist
 * Julia Bulette, English-born prostitute and proprietor of most renowned brothel
 * Charles Clegg, author, photographer, and railroad historian
 * Dan DeQuille, author, journalist, and humorist; wrote History of the Big Bonanza (1876) about the Comstock Lode
 * James Graham Fair, mine owner, partner to John Mackay
 * George Hearst, an early Superintendent of the Gould and Curry in 1860. Hearst made his first fortune at the Ophir mine on the Comstock Lode.
 * Harold A. Henry, Los Angeles City Council president; born in Virginia City
 * John Brayshaw Kaye, poet and politician; worked in the town in the 19th century
 * Richard Kirman Sr., 17th Governor of Nevada from 1935 to 1939; born in Virginia City
 * Ezra F. Kysor, architect in Virginia City from 1865 to 1868
 * John William Mackay, richest mining millionaire from the Comstock Lode
 * Albert A. Michelson, the first American to receive the Nobel Prize in Physics (1907); grew up in Virginia City where his father was a merchant
 * Ferdinand Schulze, Prussian immigrant who became a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
 * W. H. C. Stephenson, early African American figure; founded Baptist church and advocated black suffrage
 * W. Frank Stewart, silver mine operator and Nevada state senator from 1876 to 1880
 * Marie Suize, Frenchwoman who operated a shop selling wines and liquors; arrested in San Francisco in 1871 for being dressed in male clothing
 * Adolph Sutro, industrialist, San Francisco mayor
 * "Professor" Jerry Thomas, legendary bartender, spent about a year (1864) either at the "famous" Delta Saloon or the Spalding Saloon on C Street (or both)
 * Mark Twain, iconic author, journalist, and humorist; worked for the local newspaper; his novel Roughing It is set in and around Virginia City

In popular culture

 * Author Louis L'Amour's novel Comstock Lode is set in Virginia City during the silver rush.
 * Virginia City is near the site of the fictitious Ponderosa Ranch on the Western television drama Bonanza. As such, the show's characters made visits to the town regularly. The Virginia City depicted on Bonanza was located at RKO Forty Acres in Hollywood.
 * It was the locale of the 1940 film Virginia City, set during the Civil War, and starring Errol Flynn.
 * The city appears in the 1944 film The Adventures of Mark Twain.
 * The city during its mining boom was the setting for most of the 1946 James M. Cain novel Past All Dishonor.
 * Virginia City und die wahre Geschichte des Wilden Westens ("Virginia City and the True History of the Wild West"), directed by Elmar Bartlmae, is a 2007 German documentary film.
 * "Darcy Farrow", a folk song written by Steve Gillette and Tom Campbell, mentions Virginia City and other places and landmarks in the area (including Yerington, the Carson Valley, and the Truckee River). The most popular version was performed by John Denver.
 * A significant portion of Julie Smith's 1987 novel Huckleberry Fiend, concerning the discovery of a lost section of the manuscript for Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, takes place in Virginia City. The actual missing holograph was located only four years after publication.
 * The 1973 Lucky Luke adventure L'Héritage de Rantanplan, created by Morris and Goscinny, is mainly set in Virginia City.
 * A filming location for the 1973 cult film Godmonster of Indian Flats.

title: Virginia City, Nevada


text:
HMCS Preserver

HMCS Preserver is the name of three ships of the Royal Canadian Navy:

 * HMCS Preserver (1941), leadship of the Fairmile-support depot ships
 * HMCS Preserver (AOR 510), a Protecteur-class replenishment oiler
 * HMCS Preserver, formerly named HMCS Châteauguay, a planned Protecteur-class auxiliary vessel

Battle Honours

 * Arabian Sea

title: HMCS Preserver


text:
User:CovertSushi

I am a wildcat, you are a worm,

And we are chasing each other and taking turns.

We aren't giving up,

We aren't safe,

And we are chasing each other all over the place.

title: User:CovertSushi


text:
Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Critical geography

This page is an archive of the discussion surrounding the proposed deletion of the page entitled Critical geography.

This page is kept as an historic record.

The result of the debate was to delete the article.

This looks like a sandbox refugee, or maybe a rant against the usage of a chinese term. Either way, the term Feng shui is by far the more prevalent. And it spells "Fung swei" wrong. Rhymeless 06:36, 18 May 2004 (UTC)
 * Hmm. "Critical geography" appears to be a subcurrent of academic geography, with papers and conferences and what-not. So there could be an article about that, but what's there now under the title critical geography certainly isn't that article. Delete. Wile E. Heresiarch 04:37, 20 May 2004 (UTC)

This page is now preserved as an archive of the debate and is no longer 'live'. Subsequent comments on the issue or the deletion should be placed on other relevant 'live' pages. Please do not edit this page.