“The people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with a proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free.” — General Order No. 3, June 19, 1865 On June 19, 1865, Union Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas with a message that should have echoed across the nation years…
Tag: history
Introducing the Hidden Pine Lodge: A New Chapter of the Southern Blueprint
Since launching The Southern Blueprint, my goal has always been the same: to tell stories that matter, explore Southern culture and history in new ways, and build something meaningful—something that lasts. Now, I’m taking the next step. Why I’m Doing This What started as a creative outlet has grown into something much more meaningful. I’ve…
Kentucky Derby 2025: The Complete Guide to This Year’s Race, Legends, Scandals, and Betting
More Than Just Two Minutes The roses are red, the bourbon flows, and the stakes are higher than a thoroughbred’s pulse at the gate. There’s a sound that rolls across Kentucky on the first Saturday of May. It’s not just hooves pounding the dirt or trumpets calling post-time. It’s the mint juleps in hands. It’s…
SBP Podcast Episode 8: The Couple and the Accountant: Disappearance, Deceit, and Death in Hilton Head
In this gripping true crime episode of The Southern Blueprint Podcast, we unravel the chilling mystery of John and Elizabeth Calvert—a wealthy Hilton Head Island couple who vanished without a trace on March 3, 2008. The last man to see them alive, their accountant Dennis Ray Gerwing, was found dead days later in a bathtub,…
SBP Podcast Episode 7: Pappygate
In this episode of The Southern Blueprint, we crack open one of the wildest true crime tales in bourbon history — the infamous case known as Pappygate. What started as a few missing bottles quickly unraveled into a sprawling investigation involving stolen barrels of rare whiskey, anabolic steroids, black-market dealings, and a close-knit Kentucky community…
The Lost Colony: Unraveling the True Story of Roanoke
I. Introduction The Lost Colony of Roanoke remains one of American history’s most baffling, deeply unsettling, and magnetically compelling mysteries. This was not a legend or myth that grew over centuries. It was an actual colony—real people, real records, and real disappearances. What happened to over 100 English settlers who vanished without a trace in…
SBP Podcast Episode 6: Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
Savannah, Georgia—a city where history, crime, and the supernatural collide. In this episode of The Southern Blueprint Podcast, we delve deep into the real-life murder that inspired Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, John Berendt’s bestselling book that captured the eerie charm and scandalous secrets of the Hostess City of the South. We…
Southern Presidents: Celebrating Their Impact, Acknowledging Their Flaws
The South has produced some of the most consequential presidents in American history. From the earliest days of the republic to the modern era, these men have shaped the nation’s trajectory through war, expansion, civil rights struggles, and economic transformations. Many were brilliant statesmen and skilled leaders, navigating the complexities of their time with vision…
Stagecoach Mary: The Cigar-Smoking, Gun-Slinging Legend Who Delivered the West
The Wild West was not for the faint of heart. It was a place where only the toughest survived, where law was often a suggestion, and where legends were carved out of sweat, gunpowder, and sheer grit. Among those legends stands Stagecoach Mary Fields, a six-foot-tall, cigar-smoking, whiskey-drinking, gun-slinging force of nature who shattered every…
Bass Reeves: The Black Marshal Who Became One of the West’s Deadliest Lawman
If there was ever a man who could walk into a room and make outlaws shake in their boots, it was Bass Reeves. The name might not be as famous as Wyatt Earp or Wild Bill Hickok, but it damn well should be. Reeves was not just one of the first Black deputy U.S. marshals…