Random historical trivia

As I continue to wade my way through David Eicher's "The Longest Night: A military history of the Civil War," I'm approaching Sherman's Georgia campaign, which was followed by his infamous "March to the Sea."

One of the upcoming battles is the battle of Kennesaw Mountain, a footnote in history. It's one of those random events that probably sounds familiar to many people, who can't figure out why.

That's because it may best be recognized for a connection that has little to do with the war.

As Chairman Kaga would say, "If memory serves me correctly..."

At the battle of Kennesaw Mountain in 1864, a soldier named Landis was grievously wounded. And he vowed to the Powers That Be that, if he should survive, he would name his child for the place he fought.

Sure enough, he survived. And some 56 years later, in 1920, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, first commissioner of Major League Baseball, banned the Chicago "Black Sox" for throwing the 1919 World Series.

Links:
• The battle of Kennesaw Mountain
• Kenesaw Mountain Landis, misspelling and all
• The Black Sox scandal
• Author David Eicher, who fit every Civil War battle into 800 pages

Look for that HorrorFind Weekend post sometime soon, honest! I spent the afternoon drafting my yearly Fantasy Football team. This year looks like a good one, but time will tell...