bobover3 (imported) wrote: Tue Nov 27, 2012 4:00 pm In the mid 19th century, life was much more rooted in states and towns than it is today. The Union was an abstraction, while people's lives were lived in their towns. Loyalty is greater to home and family and community than to anything else. Remember that the British citizens who rebelled against the Crown in 1776 were also traitors.