Talk:Johnson Chesnut Whittaker

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Yes, i'm still working on this- the page is not abandoned. So don't put it up for deletetion. I'm doing a massive overhaul on it, removing what's not needed, making summeries of the important stuff, and pretty much chopping the current article by about half its size. It is a historic event- He was even pardoned after death by President Clinton. Coolgamer 19:42, 7 December 2005 (UTC)

If this isn't updated within a month, please leave a message on my talk page to update it. Or contact my e-mail or aim. I really want to finish it and cite sources, but life is a... well, let's just say mess. Coolgamer 21:17, 6 November 2006 (UTC)

In 1968, an historian, John Marszalek, was researching the National Archives to do a book on General William T. Sherman when he stumbled across a letter discussing the court martial of Johnson Chesnut Whittaker. After seeing the letter, he also stumbled across the more than 9,000 page transcript of the court martial and notes that were written in his bible detailing the daily acount of harssment that was committed by the White cadets at West Point Marszalek was intrigued by the research and he aggressively researched the history of the family for almost three years. Finally, with oral accounts from Whittaker's Granddaughter, Cecil Whittaker Pequette, photos of Whittaker, and the book Court Martial was written in 1972.

In 1993, New York film producer, Harry Moses, produced a made for TV movie that aired on the Showtime network called Assault at West Point. Three years later, in June 1995, Whittaker's descendants, which included his granddaughter, great-grandsons, and great-great grandson were present at White House ceremony in which Whittaker was posthusmously commissioned as second Lieutenant in the military(the rank he would have earned upon graduating from West Point in 1880). In addition to the commission, President William Clinton also presented the family Whittaker's bible, which had been seized during the court martial in 1880 and was kept in the National Archives as evidence for 115 years.

Peter Boykin Great-Great Grandson of Johnson Chesnut Whittaker

[edit] TV Movie

Assault at West Point: The Court-Martial of Johnson Whittaker