A History lesson It is common practice to make new year's resolutions to turn over a new leaf and make a fresh start for the indefinite future. On January 1, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln penned the Emancipation Proclamation declaring all person held as slaves within the rebellious states be freed to live life on their own terms. This document solidified the notion that the already war for the Union was becoming more a war for freedom. One aspect of this dynamic was any Confederate region overcome by the Union Army was immediately subject to this proclamation. Liberated slaves often joined the Union Army and Navy to become the new liberators. My own great, great grandfather (Major James Quackenbush Rice) died in the Third Battle Of Winchester on September 19, 1864 fighting for this cause as part of the Union Army. A Slave Ship La Amistad was a 120 foot two masted brigantine schooner owned by a Spaniard and based out of Cuba. Strangely enough, her name means "friendship&quo