Wayne County Civil War Roundtable Program

John C. Spaziani of Canton, OH will be presenting as the Confederate Gen. Samuel Cooper, Adjutant and Inspector General, the highest ranking full Confederate officer, of which there were eight total.
John’s love of the American Civil War stems from a visit to Gettysburg for the Civil War Centennial (1961-65) and he still has the black and white photos. He subsequently attended several 145th Anniversary and all the eastern 150th anniversary events: 1st and 2nd Bull Run (Manassas), Antietam, Chickamauga, Gettysburg, Cedar Creek, and Appomattox. He has done extensive research on Confederate and Union spies, spying, and espionage; plus the Confederate submarine, The Hunley.
John was “drafted” by the Civil War Heritage Foundation, Inc., doing four annual Living History events in Gettysburg and regionally for the last three years. John was asked by the CWHF, Inc. to portray Gen. Samuel Cooper, CSA.
He is collaborating on a historical novel with a published author and has been researching for the book in Charleston, Mobile, New Orleans and Savannah. He is an avid photographer and has read extensively on the Civil War, boasting a library of over 200 works. He has authentic CW outfits (Union and Confederate) with accouterments and original firearms.
John was born and raised in New Jersey and graduated from Stevens Institute of Technology (in New Jersey) with a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering and was a practicing Professional Engineer in fossil and nuclear power. He subsequently graduated from the Univ. of New York with a Masters in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from Lynchburg College. He obtained a third Masters at Walsh Univ. in Counseling and Human Development and is certified in Reality Therapy/Control Theory and the MBTI Personality Assessment Tool.
John retired in Sep. of 2014 as VP, Project Management with CMI Energy and currently consults as a Project Management Professional (PMP) and Registered Education Provider (R.E.P.) of the Project Management Institute (PMI). John also taught at the University level and in public seminars. He has been married to Charlene since 1969 and they have three sons and four grandchildren.

Gerald Payn, WC CWRT Coordinator,  (330)345-5547