14. The Amboy Guardian *May 18, 2022Eagle Scout Project, South Amboy*Photos SubmittedTroop #95Seth Mathias - completed projectCheesequake SuperintendentJohn Luk (L)Submitted by Seth MathiasSOUTH AMBOY - SethMathias, currently a life scoutfrom South Amboy’s Troop95 has collaborated withCheese State Park SuperintendentJohn Luk to completehis eagle project for passersbyto enjoy.“I love scouting becauseof all of the experiences Iwas able to have. Throughscouting, I have been able tovisit new places I have neverthought of going to and mostimportantly I built bonds withscouts from across the world.Camping, knotting, rappelling,leather work, rock wall climbing, swimming in a waterfall,completing a 20-mile hike and learning about our society from asmaller community scale to a larger global level are just some ofmy experiences.”My Eagle Project:I choose to build two benches along with a railing to provideadditional protect for patrons that use the park. I worked withCheesequake Superintendent John Luk who offered me to buildthe benches and railing. This would not only help the park, but itwould also protect the protected wildlife around the area. Manypeople would jump into the marsh and destroy the land, so it wasa great feeling to help both people and animals alike.I hope everyone will enjoy the structure for many years to comeas I will.Yours In ScoutingSeth MathiasThis Week in the Civil War160 Years AgoMay 18, 1862 – May 31, 1862By Phil KohnPhil Kohn can be reached at USCW160@yahoo.com.Having taken Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Natchez, Mississippi, a U.S. Navy flotilla under Capt.David Farragut on May 18, 1862, reaches the stronghold of Vicksburg, Mississippi, which commandsa strategic position on the Mississippi River. However, Confederate Brig. Gen. Martin L.Smith refuses to surrender either the city or his 5,000-man garrison and the Yankee vessels returndownriver.On May 19, President Lincoln countermands Maj. Gen. David Hunter’s order freeing slaves in theFederal Department of the South. Lincoln explains that Hunter had exceeded his authority in issuingthe order and that such decisions are to be made only by the chief executive. He once again appealsto the states to adopt his proposal of gradual, compensated emancipation.The first troops of the Federal California Column enter Tucson, Confederate Territory of Arizona,on May 20. The town had been abandoned by the Confederate Arizona Rangers on May 14 as theyheaded eastward towards the Rio Grande. In Washington, D.C., President Lincoln signs into law theHomestead Act that will give settlers 160 acres of land in the public domain if they occupy it andimprove it over five years.On May 22, in Mississippi, Union troops under Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck skirmish outside Corinthwith Confederates commanded by Gen. Pierre Beauregard.Stonewall Jackson seizes Front Royal, Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley on May 23. Two dayslater, Jackson’s 16,000 troops crush the 8,000 federals under Maj. Gen. Nathaniel Banks at Winchester,Virginia. U.S. casualties: about 2,800; Confederate: 400.Concerned by the continued advances of Stonewall Jackson, President Lincoln on May 24 issuesorders to Maj. Gen. John Frémont (in western Virginia) to move against Jackson in the ShenandoahValley and for Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell, at Fredericksburg, to divert some of his men to helpFrémont. Because of these shifts in forces, Lincoln informs Maj. Gen. McClellan that increasing thestrength of his Army of the Potomac is impossible.On May 25, 1862, President Lincoln presses Maj. Gen. George McClellan, sending him a messageto “either attack Richmond or give up the job and come to the defense of Washington.”The next day, May 26, President Lincoln again prods McClellan: “Can you get near enough [toRichmond] to throw shells into the city?” Meanwhile, in the Shenandoah Valley, Maj. Gen. NathanielBanks’s force continues to back away from Stonewall Jackson’s advancing Confederates aftertheir defeat at Winchester. In the West, Sherod Hunter’s company of Arizona Rangers arrives atMesilla, where it joins the five companies of Col. William Steele’s battalion of 7th Texas Cavalry.A Federal victory at Hanover Court House, Virginia, on May 27 opens the way for Brig. Gen.McDowell’s force — less the 20,000 troops he sent to the Shenandoah Valley — to move southwardfrom Fredericksburg to join with McClellan. In the Far West, ordering Col. William Steele and halfhis 7th Texas Cavalry regiment along with Hunter’s Arizona Rangers company to remain behindin Arizona as a rear guard, Gen. Sibley orders his vanquished invasion force to make the 630-mileretreat from Fort Bliss to San Antonio, Texas. He forwards a report to Richmond, commenting aboutthe condition of his troops, stating that he must abandon New Mexico, “our provisions, forage andammunition being completely exhausted.”Ahead of the slow-moving siege force of 110,000 federals under Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck, 66,000Confederates under Gen. Pierre G. T. Beauregard on May 30 stealthily evacuate the rail and roadhub of Corinth, Mississippi, under cover of the night and head towards Tupelo, Mississippi, 60 milesto the south. In the Shenandoah Valley, Brig. Gen. Stonewall Jackson — giving up the pursuit ofBrig. Gen. Banks’s force, begins to pull his so-called “foot cavalry” back from Harper’s Ferry so asnot to be trapped by the Union troops of generals Frémont or McDowell.May 31 sees the start of a two-day battle at Seven Pines, Virginia, on the eastern outskirts of Richmond.Some 75,000 Confederates under Gen. Joseph Johnston attack the 33,000 federal troops ofthe 100,000-strong Army of the Potomac that McClellan had stationed south of the ChickahominyRiver. During the fighting, Gen. Johnston is seriously wounded. He is immediately replaced by Gen.Robert E. Lee. In the Shenandoah Valley, Jackson’s force hastily withdraws from Winchester aheadof the converging troops of Frémont and McDowell, both of whom are too late to catch the Southerners.From Cowskin Prairie, in the Cherokee Nation in Indian Territory, Col. Stand Watie leads asecond raid by his Cherokee Mounted Rifles against Neosho, Missouri.Pallone Announces New Jersey Will Receive$6.5 Million to Clean Up Brownfield SitesPallone Championed the Funding in the Bipartisan Infrastructure LawPress Release 5/12/22WASHINGTON, DC – CongressmanFrank Pallone, Jr.(NJ-06) today announced thatNew Jersey will receive $6.5million to clean up Brownfieldsites through the Bipartisan InfrastructureLaw that Congresspassed and was signed into lawin November. The law injected$1.5 billion into the EnvironmentalProtection Agency’s(EPA) Brownfields programto help communities clean upcontaminated industrial sitesand turn the spaces into parks,housing developments, or newbusinesses. Pallone authoredthe bipartisan bill that createdthe program in 2002.The breakdown of the fundingincludes:•New Jersey Economic DevelopmentAuthority (NJEDA)– $2 million, which will benefitPerth Amboy, Atlantic City,Bridgeton, Jersey City, Millville,Paterson, and Trenton•Asbury Park – $500,000•Camden RedevelopmentAgency – $3.5 million•Hamilton Township –$500,000“Today’s announcement iswelcome news for my homestate of New Jersey. Thesefunds, predominantly from ourBipartisan Infrastructure Law,will allow families in New Jerseyto rest a little easier knowingthat some of the most contaminatedsites in their area willsoon be cleaned up, revitalized,and generating new jobs andeconomic opportunities. I’mespecially glad to see that AsburyPark and Perth Amboy inmy Congressional district willdirectly benefit from this investment,”Pallone said. “I’mgrateful to Administrator Reganand the Biden Administrationfor working so closelywith Congress to prioritize theBrownfields program, and I’llkeep fighting to ensure everycommunity – particularly thosethat have been historically overlookedand underserved – receivesthe resources they need.”Pallone has been a longtimeadvocate for the Brownfieldsprogram. In 2018, his bipartisanbill to reauthorize the programwas passed in a federal spendingbill and provided more flexibilityfor states and non-profitsto clean up Brownfields sites. InFebruary, Pallone held a hearingon the program in his Energyand Commerce Committeeand heard directly from localleaders, including the Mayorof Elizabeth, New Jersey, aboutthe program and how morefunding and flexibility continuesto help communities returnBrownfield sites to good use.
May 18, 2022 * The Amboy Guardian .15
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